123367 Fri Oct 01 10:31:26 -0700 2004 6 8 Midwest 0 670166 Am coming home to the midwest from Tokyo. Have been gone for 2 years. Where do I go? Anything BUT Japanese please!!! Want good food and nothing else. Fri Oct 01 10:31:26 -0700 2004 0 Yukari 1 670168 A few great places have opened in the last two years in MSP. (Since you didn't specify high- or low-end, I'll just throw out a variety off the top of my head): Minneapolis high-end: Solera (tapas), Bakery on Grand (dinner - "bistro" food), Cosmos (trendy, upscale, new American), Levain and Vincent. St. Paul high-end: A Rebours (eclectic, bistro), Osteria I Nonni (upscale Italian located in Lilydale), Heartland (locally inspired dishes). If you used to like the Dakota over in St. Paul, they moved to a much better space on Nicollet Mall. Food hasn't changed a whole lot. Bakery on Grand also has more casual brunch fare during the day so it's really like two distinct restaurants in one space (both excellent). Highland Grill was remodeled right about the time you left and it's still excellent (and slightly more spacious). Grandview Grill was also remodeled and the "Tex Mex" for breakfast is still an enormous, three-pound pile of deliciousness. Punch pizza (the St. Paul location) is still turning out great pizzas. Casper & Runyon's Nook (Randolph and Hamline in St. Paul) is currently the reigning burger spot in town (always up for debate), although service there sucks and you regularly have to wait 30 minutes for your order. There have been a couple good Rochester posts recently -- you may want to do a search and check those out. Welcome back! Fri Oct 01 11:50:44 -0700 2004 670166 0 MSPD 2 670177 Thanks MSPD for your great info. Will definitely put it to good use. Any chance you know where Stewart Woodman landed? I think that is his name. He came from Manhattan to MSP. Also, remember reading about a great BYO wine restaurant, located next to a wine shop in Wine and Spirits magazine a while back. Can not find the info. Any recommendations there? Cheers! Fri Oct 01 20:10:48 -0700 2004 670168 0 Yukari 3 670201 Stewart Woodman was at Levain. He left there in April to pursue his own place. I'm a little out of it this Monday morning (long weekend of solo parenting...me and both kids have colds), so my brain isn't linking his name to anything that's opened yet, or that I've heard is soon to open. Fellow hounds maybe can pick up my slack on that. As for the second part, I'm not the resident expert on wine here, but Zander Cafe/Solo Vino on Selby? I'm not sure if it's just the proximity, but there's a synergy between the two. I love both places. Mon Oct 04 10:20:12 -0700 2004 670177 0 MSPD 4 670238 Thanks for the leads - better than I can do here in Japan. You seem to have your finger on the pulse. Any good "local food" places I can go for good honest grub? Also, any place with a good wine by the glass list? Wed Oct 06 10:17:05 -0700 2004 670201 0 Yukari 5 670241 Again, I'm not a real expert on wine, so take the wine part of my comments on this as "second hand from reliable sources". Lucia's (Hennepin and 31st, just east of Lake Calhoun) has excellent, locally-inspired food and supposedly a very nice selection of wines (by the glass, I'm not sure). I can vouch for the food, and the menu changes often. I checked City Pages award for "Best Wine List" and they list Cafe Barbette (Lake St, also just east of Calhoun). I haven't been there personally, but I've heard good things. You also may want to check into Bobino Wine Bar/Cafe, just across the river into Northeast Minneapolis. That area has really become much more vibrant in the last couple years (don't worry, Nye's is still there). It's been a while since I've ducked into Bobino, but on a couple of occasions I've had some apps and a few glasses of wine. In fact, I would highly recommend a visit to the Hennepin Ave/University Ave NE area. You could pick up a sampling of sausages from Kramarczuks and go across the street to Surdyks for a couple bottles of wine and a lot of great cheeses. I also love the cafeteria at Kramarczuks when I'm craving a cabbage roll, some pierogi, sausage and borscht (can you get Ukrainian/Eastern European foods in Japan??). Great hearty food this time of year (it's getting cold here). Also in the neighborhood is Mayslack's Bar (15th Ave NE & 4th St NE). I'm not in the camp that claims their "world famous" roast beef sandwiches have gone downhill. They're well worth the trip out of the way in my opinion. Good "honest grub": I consider a good, big burger in that category. As I mentioned The Nook (Randolph and Hamline in St. Paul) is good. Lodge Burger or the Juicy Lucy. Where Randolph Ave meets West 7th in St. Paul, attached to a bingo hall is Danny Boy's. I'm almost to the point where they're my favorite burger in town. The half-pound (2/3 pound??) "Rookie Special" is a load, and their fries are very good (very thin cut). Whitey's up in Northeast also serves a great burger. (Not to be confused with the adjacent White Castle, which is far lower quality, but I've been known to wander into from time to time. Shhhh!). Down in Bloomington (90th St, just east of Penn Ave) Wally's makes a great, thin-sliced roast beef sandwich, and I love anything "hot open-faced with mashed potatoes and gravy" there. Just your good old fashioned comfort food. They may only be open for lunch though. Around the U campus, there's The Wienery on Cedar, just south of Riverside on the West Bank for some great greasy-bag hot dogs and hand-cut fries. And if you want a stellar breakfast, and you're missing the wall-to-wall people of Tokyo, hit Al's Breakfast in Dinkytown. Other places I eat frequently that have food you may not find in the far east: El Burrito Mercado (S Robert St and Concord Av) in St. Paul. Wonderful Mexican, cafeteria style. Great tortas, and the best tamales in the city. Highland Grill (Cleveland Ave just north of Ford Parkway in St. Paul). Super turkey burgers, fish and chips, and the "Elvis burger" also ranks up there in MSP burgers. They often have some very good daily specials. More upscale, yet locally-inspired: Chet's Taverna (Raymond Avenue, just off University). Elk, venison, game birds (also may fit your good wine criteria) and seasonal menu (I read they are currently featuring tomatoes). A Rebours for lunch or dinner. If you don't want to go all out for dinner, they have a unique, reasonable lunch menu. Get the charcuterie plate and enjoy their excellent breads. That should give you a few things to think about depending on what part of the city you hit. I always hope other folks will chime in, as there is so much I'm missing, especially in the wine department. And I mean, how much longer can a guy ramble on??? If you have any other specific desires, let us know. I dream of visiting Japan some day...maybe I'll be coming to you for advice in the future. Wed Oct 06 12:09:35 -0700 2004 670238 0 MSPD 6 670305 MSPD - your suggestions are great. Will definitely hit on some of them. Kramarczuks has a cafe? Can I get the sausages cooked there? And, meeting high school friends in Maple Grove. What are your suggestions? Am craving good Mexican. Well, just craving Mexican as it is expensive and not great in Tokyo. Who thought Mexican could be bad and expensive???? Your advice is well-heeded! Arigato. And, definitely let me know when you come to Tokyo. Here is a start on info about tofu. Link: http://metropolis.japantoday.com/tokyo/recent/localflavors.asp Sun Oct 10 09:27:49 -0700 2004 670241 0 Yukari