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mpls/st paul

post #1 of 8
6/6/06 at 9:54am
Thread Starter 
yes, yes - i live in the twin cities and yet i'm asking this question: i'm looking for restaurant reviews from you, the good/bad/ugly. i haven't had a chance to eat out in the mpls/st paul area, though i've lived here for nearly two years now. i have gone to the staple joints: lucias (i've worked there, so i had to), solera, 112. i have yet to go to la belle vie since they opened their minneapolis location; i hear it's hard to get a table there.

so, where best to go? and where best to go with a picky eater who won't eat anything but hamburgers? the restaurant where i work at now (cosmos at graves|601) will make a hamburger for anyone, though it's not on the menu, but one can hardly expect that from everywhere.
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post #2 of 8
6/6/06 at 12:45pm
Wow, Cosmos?!?!?! Voted one of the top restaurants in the country recently. A friend went there and thoroughly enjoyed it. I haven't had the chance yet. Wife can't eat at night after 7 due to GERD.

Belle Notte is outstanding, but expensive. Their BelleNotte signature filet with crabmeat is the best I've had anywhere.

Holyland is awesome, and makes hamburgers.

Abu Nader's on 2095 Como Ave. is quaint, and the best Schwarma sandwich I've had since Abdul's Afandy went out of business. They make hamburgers.

Muffuletta on Como (a few blocks from Abu's) is very nice. They have hamburgers on the menu, or at least "a hamburger" on the menu.

Tria on Centerville road (White Bear Lake) does not live up to expectations and is inconsistent.

Kozlak's (Hodgson Road in Shoreview) is very consistent, outstanding ambience (outdoor patio, professionally landscaped), best salad bar around, and the steaks are awesome. Tournedoes with two sauces is pretty decent. I know the owner/exec chef, Mark Satt. It's been there since 1979, which attests to its following. They have a children's menu I believe.

A totally outstanding restaurant, that I've actually reviewed in print, is Lord Fletcher's in Minnetonka, right on the bay. If you got a boat, you can land right at their doorstep (boat is optional!)

Heartland in St Paul is a must. Totally original and exciting!

Really Classy: Bayport Cookery in Bayport, Minnesota.

But le piece d'resistance, absolutely the best restaurant I've ever eaten in, that makes Kings and Presidents stand in line like everyone else is Harborview, in Pepin, Wisconsin. They don't take reservations! A MUST GO TO PLACE if ever there was one!

Call me, I'll go too!

Wow, Cosmos, that's way cool!

doc
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post #3 of 8
6/16/06 at 9:52pm
Either of the Luci restaurants in St. Paul are pretty accomodating, but no hamburgers. It's getting close to the best time of year to go as they have their own produce grower. All other ingredients are locally sourced wherever possible.

Other good picks are Cafe 528 in St. Paul, Vincent's in Mpls and, as Doc said, Heartland
Anulos qui animum ostendunt omnes gestemus!
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post #4 of 8
6/18/06 at 9:50am
Gotta agree with Doc on the Heartland call. True innovation with local ingredients. great stuff.
Peace,
kmf


Visit Edible Iowa River Valley"In the long view, no nation is healthier that its children, or more prosperous than its farmers." -President Harry Truman, at the signing of the School Lunch Act, 1946Join Slow Food HereJoin Gather.com here
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post #5 of 8
6/18/06 at 12:33pm
I've yet to find a decent hamburger in this town. I should sample the trendy eateries around here more often but I don't. Always end up eating out in other cities.
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post #6 of 8
6/18/06 at 9:15pm
Dev, have you been to Luci's? I tend to think of Heartland as the French version of them. They were been doing the local ingredient thing long before Lenny Russo opened his doors (not to knock Lenny). They just don't market it.
Anulos qui animum ostendunt omnes gestemus!
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post #7 of 8
6/19/06 at 6:34am
Now I haven't, but I'll be up there in the Spring on my book tour. I'll be sure to check it out.
Peace,
kmf


Visit Edible Iowa River Valley"In the long view, no nation is healthier that its children, or more prosperous than its farmers." -President Harry Truman, at the signing of the School Lunch Act, 1946Join Slow Food HereJoin Gather.com here
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post #8 of 8
6/19/06 at 6:56am
If you want the best hamburger you ever had stay home and create it, Then enjoy :lips: I wouldn't go out for a burger of any magnatude. :D Go out for something that is signature, One of a kind. My .02 cents. :chef:
http://www.frappr.com/chefsunited
One time a guy pulled a knife on me. I could tell it wasn't a professional job; it had butter on it.- Rodney Dangerfield -


'We're ALL amateurs; It's just that some of us are more professional about it than others'. - George Carlin
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