Control is now playing at the Uptown Theatre. There is a wonderful moment the amazing bio-pic Control where Ian Curtis, lead singer of Joy Division, walks to work from his parents home in suburban Manchester. He has a job at a government employment agency, trying to help people get on their feet. As he trudges … Read more
Ingredients: 1 1/2 pounds fresh black mussels, cleaned 1 ounce ginger, diced 1 1/2 ounces garlic, chopped 1 1/2 ounces shallots chopped 1 ounce tamari soy sauce 2 ounces vegetable oil 1 ounce chives, chopped 2 ounces unsalted butter 3 ounces seedless cucumber, diced 1 ounce quality sake salt and pepper to taste Method:Warm … Read more
Which camp are you in? A: Truffles are earthy little pungent gifts from the ground that should be prized and savored in a meaningful and creative dish. B: Truffles are overrated bits of hype that chefs use to glam their menus while hiding their technical failings. Honestly, sometimes I’m in both camps at the same … Read more
Well, the biggest secret today is clearly our new website. Be sure to check it and enjoy our new features. No more buried content! You’ll find a much airier feel all around — I hope. Hell, forget about going out. Just spend the weekend digging through the archives and emailing articles to your friends. I’m … Read more
If you are reading this, you are at The Rake’s new web site. And you are looking at the result of a lot of work by Cristina Córdova, our web editor, Matt Bartel, our web geek, Brad Richter of Codewarp, and Erika Stenrick and Ronan Dowling of Gorton Studios. Kraig Larson of Ciceron did the … Read more
Trust me, even when I go away, I’ve got nowhere else to go. I’m always around, a lurker in my own life. The end of the baseball season is always a painful thing for an obsessive/compulsive man who is a complete slave to routine yet has very few habits –with the exception of bad habits– … Read more
It’s nearly impossible to find a decent men’s jacket these days. Last weekend’s hunt yielded fashionable versions from Neiman Marcus (the $1,200 one by Etro, for example) and comparatively affordable options from Off Fifth (a Valentino clearanced at $600). But alas, I am not paying for what boyfriend wears to little brother’s wedding this weekend … Read more
ARTDay of the Dead An amalgamation of indigenous ritual, Catholicism, and Mexican tradition, Día de los Muertos celebrates and honors those who have traversed the line between life and death in Latin American cultures. In reverence to this special day, the Altered Esthetics exhibition opening this evening presents more than 30 national artists’ representations of … Read more
Have I mentioned how much I hate Trader Joe’s? A little over a year ago, when the California-based grocer moved into Minnesota, and located their inaugural store about a mile from my house in St. Louis Park, the POLICE had to be called in to direct traffic. It was like Lourdes: people streaming in from … Read more
We’re sitting at a table in Rice Paper, the little Asian-fusion restaurant in Linden Hills. When I asked Jim Harkness, president of the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy, if he would talk to me over dinner he said sure, I should pick the place. His house is in this neighborhood, I reasoned, and he … Read more