Subway breakfast… we are all a bit curious aren’t we?

Maybe I am the only one that was curious, but I had to check out the new Subway breakfast menu. For being in South Mpls I am always a bit bummed that the only food establishment that is within an easy walking distance is Subway. I feel this responsibility to frequent it at least once a month. Maybe if people go here other restaurants will open?? That is my reasoning and dream.

A lazy Sunday finally found its way into my schedule so I thought I would start the morning with a brisk walk to Subway and try out this new menu. There are 5 different breakfast sandwiches you can choose from, I settled on the basic egg and cheese. For $1.75 I could order the English muffin and for a bit more you could get it served on a flat bread or other Subway sandwich bread.

So the positives, the egg is an egg white omelet and the English muffin is a light wheat. So if you are looking to beat the McDonald’s Egg McMuffin in calories and fat, the Subway sandwich will do it. The Subway egg and cheese is 4 grams of fat vs the McMuffin egg and cheese which is 12 grams of fat. The Subway breakfast sandwich also gives you the option of adding any of the toppings that are available to you when ordering a normal build your own sandwich, so you can easily add in some veggies to the mix. The refrigerator case has also expanded to include things like juice, yogurt, and apple slices.

However, we all want to know if it is worth it, right? I guess if I was on a road trip, saw a Subway on the side of the road and needed a quick to-go breakfast I would consider ordering it again, but I won’t make a point to walk there again for breakfast. The English muffin was  cardboard and I couldn’t taste the egg omelet. I would recommend spending more to try the flatbread and adding some veggies to ramp up the flavors. Or maybe what I am really recommending is finding a few friends, heading to a yummy brunch location and really starting the day right!

Breakfast served til 11am.

Subway: http://www.subway.com/subwayroot/index.aspx

Read Full Post »

A neighborhood Mexican gem: Dominguez Restaurant

Dominguez Restaurant
3313 E 50th St, Minneapolis, MN 55417
(612) 729-2353
no website

“Let’s go to the Mexican place! You know, the Mexican place!” Thankfully my friends can decipher my cryptic talk because they all call it “the Mexican place” too! I first discovered Dominguez back in 2007 and I find myself going back again and again. You will find the Mexican place right off 34th Ave on 50th street in Minneapolis. It is a little orange building with bold, yellow block letters spelling out: RESTAURANT. There are some charming lawn ornaments in the front of a little man with his donkey and cart – they always make me smile when I pull up.

My favorite dish is the chimichanga. The veggi chimichanga. A deep-fried burrito, smothered in cheese sauce. Ooh my. The veggie chimichanga is filled with fire roasted peppers and onions, accompanied with a side of rice and a side of refried beans. The beans are not that special, but the rice is fluffy and lightly flavored, overall I always leave with a full belly and not feeling greasy and gross like other Mexican establishments have left me. The food is fresh and served by the nicest servers.

One word of advice – stay away from the margaritas. Your choices are lime and cranberry (yes, cranberry) and they are just weird. The taste is like an energy drink or HI-C juice box that has gone bad. I mentioned this to a friend of mine and they pointed that Dominguez does not have a full liquor license, they just sell beer and wine. So would mean the margarita probably doesn’t have tequilla. Hmm, wonder what it does have?? Your best move is to stick with the beer, can’t go wrong there!

I realize this neighborhood joint probably isn’t in-between everyone’s home and work but I recommend making the trip to visit, your bellies will be happy!

Read Full Post »

Kieran’s Irish Pub: Wine List

In case you haven’t heard, Kieran’s Irish Pub opened in Block E last week. As I stood there last night, gaping at the massive, beautiful, mountain of a bar, I realized I was not in the mood for the brown bubbly stuff.

I was hungry for wine.

A peek at the wine list:

I enjoyed the Cocannon Cabernet.

It’s too soon for a full review, but here are a  few early observations.

The new Kieran’s is larger than the previous location with a more complex floor-plan. There is a main dining room with a stage, a small separate dining room (with another bar), a couple of private rooms for groups of 10-15 people, and a new Titanic Lounge. In my opinion, the space is pleasant and comfortable. There are nooks, crannies, cozy booths, high and low tables, gas fireplaces and the same random art that covered the walls in the old space.

The food was creative (ie.: bison, walleye, curry, and yes…fancy pretzel dipping sauces!), tasty and well-priced. The wait staff and bartenders proved friendly and attentive. The Tim Malloys rocked the house with dirty toast after dirty toast.

So far, business is booming. The place was packed when we arrived around 7:30 for dinner, and by the time we left at midnight–a line had formed outside!

Read Full Post »

Kafe 421 and Ginger Hop: restaurant week review

Before robins and tulips, the first signs of Spring for me are:
1. A sighting of someone wearing shorts, while the snow is still on the ground,
2. A motorcyclist all bundled just to be the first on the streets and
3. Minnesota Monthly Restaurant Week!!

Last week, I got to visit 2 restaurants that were offering special tasting menus: Kafe 421 and Ginger Hop

Kafe 421 421 14th Avenue Southeast Minneapolis, MN 55414-2005 (612) 623-4900 www.kafe421.com $15 Dinner Menu Starter: Greek Salad—Romaine hearts, tomatoes, cucumbers, red onions, green peppers, feta cheese, kalamata olives and oregano vinaigrette This was a just fine Greek salad. Nice crisp lettuce, with cheese and kalamata olives. Always a good way to start dinner and get that stomach ready for more! Entrée: Vegetarian Moussaka—Layers of potato, eggplant, zucchini and tomato topped with a thick béchamel and parmesan crust served with pomodoro This was so good and I didn’t see it on their regular menu so this was a treat! The sauce was much more tomato than bechamel (a white sauce of milk, butter, flour), but lovely and rich. Dessert: Ouzo scented crème brulee Baklava a la mode Well the dessert was suppose to be the crème brulee, however the server told us they just ran out and will have to substitute with the baklava (a la mode!). I may have been too excited upon that news! I am not a crème brulee fan, but baklava? Stand back! Overall: I wish I would remember to go here more! Good wine list, good food and the parking lot off 5th St SE validates (so I only had to pay $2). They also have a meal deal on Tuesdays and Sundays – check out the website for more info.

Ginger Hop 201 East Hennepin Avenue Minneapolis, MN 55414 (612) 746-0305 www.gingerhop.com $15 Dinner Menu Starter: Three cream cheese -OR – cream cheese and onion wontons I picked the three cream cheese and it didn’t disappoint! There was just the right amount of cream cheese so I wasn’t left with a pile of fried dough with no cream cheese to eat with it. Entrée: Sweet Green Curry -OR- Thai Fried Rice This was a tough choice, I am not sure how much I like Thai curry, but this was the night to try! So I ordered the Sweet Green Curry. It is not sweet! It is the spiciest thing I had in a long time, in fact I was pretty surprised how spicy it was without giving a person any warning. However, I can say I like curry when it is a coconut curry dish like this was! The crisp, fried tofu blended in wonderfully along with the red pepper, peas and eggplant. Dessert: Ginger ice cream with a ginger snap cookie Lovely finish, a nice creamy ice cream with a soft delicious gingersnap cookie Overall: The service was pretty lacking this night and I wish they took reservation instead of just call ahead. The sweet green curry is real spicy, with no warning, hoping that next time I can order with a reduced spice level. However, I learned that if I see coconut curry on the menu, I will ordering it again and again!

Read Full Post »

Atlanta restaurants: a brief review

There comes a time every winter when I just need to get away. I usually don’t need a long time, just a few days or so. I need that time to not see snow, to remember the stunning colors flowers bring to the landscape and to not see my breath when I walk outside! Just last weekend I, along with Jen, made the escape to Atlanta. While the weather may have been more warm-lanta like, the food was all Hotlanta!

If you find yourself in Atlanta any time soon here is a quick run down of restaurants we recently visited.

Steel
Neighborhood: Midtown
950 W Peachtree St, suite 255
Bizzare place, not until a menu was in front of me did I realize this was an Asian restaurant! The decor was modern and nondescript. I ordered the stir fried vegetables with brown rice. Not bad, but the sauce was forgettable.

Prickly Pear Taqueria
Neighborhood: Midtown
950 W. Peachtree St NE, suite 220
I am pretty sure you could find a better Mexican place than this in the area, but it was right across the street from my hotel and when you have been walking all day sometimes you just want something easy. No chips and salsa on the table for you, you have to order it so instead we ordered the guacamole and chips. Guac was ok, but the paper thin chips were better. Additionally, I ordered 2 veggie tacos which were too heavy on the green sauce and not heavy enough on the cheese!

Dantanna’s
CNN center
1 CNN Center
This is a total sports bar place, with fun oversized booths that have individual flat screen TVs, although we were seated at a boring table. The tomato-goat cheese soup was yum. The veggie sandwich listed herbed Brie but I couldn’t find it, without cheese it lacked dressing.

La Tavola
Neighborhood: Virginia Highlands
992 Virginia Avenue NE
My favorite restaurant of the bunch! We sneaked in just before the wait turned from zero to 1 hour! If you are looking for Italian, go here. The Caesar salad was heavy on the garlic, but that is exactly what I like. My main dish was an apple, walnut, smoked ricotta ravioli that I hope to see on a menu near me someday.

Dakota Blue
Neighborhood: Grant Park
454 Cherokee Ave
You can tell this is a local, neighborhood gem. Tables filled with young, hip, artsy couples and local art hangs on the walls. I left with a new craving, jalapeño cheese grits from Dakota Blue. The wrap I ordered was overstuffed with beans, cheese and scrambled eggs and it was great. If this was in my area I would visit frequently!

Marlow’s Tavern
Neighborhood: Midtown
950 West Peachtree Street
It is a chain, with 6 locations in the Atlanta area! However, I am glad I didn’t say no to chain dining this night! Dinner was great, and they were happy to have us for hours (which I love to settle in a booth,with a good friend and a bottle of wine and not think about leaving the safety of booth life and entering the scary world again). The asparagus fries were crisp and with aioli sauce. My house made black bean burger was good but lacked flavor. Jen said that her steak was the best she had in ages. This was the first restaurant on the trip I ordered dessert at (for shame) and was pretty sad I couldn’t finish my carrot cake.

Baraonda Caffe Italiano
Neighborhood: Midtown
710 Peachtree St NE
They serve Neapolitan style pizza where the pizza is cut into 4 giant slices and you are left with that dilemma, to fold or not fold. I folded my special of the day – Fontana cheese, goat cheese, plum tomatoes, zucchini. I more than satisfied my craving for pizza at this stop!

Looking for something to do in-between the restaurant outings… go to the Cyclorama! It is a giant oil painting completed in 1886, that covers over 15,000 square feet, depicting the Battle of Atlanta and you get to view it by sitting a chair that rotates 360 degrees. Sounds nerdy, right? Well, it is. But it is stunning and Jen and I loved it!!

Read Full Post »

The Vegetarian: Restaurant Review

The Vegetarian
4022 Central Avenue Northeast
Minneapolis, MN 55421
(763) 782-9678‎

First I want to start with a big thank you to everyone that recommended the Vegetarian lately and putting it on my radar. The best way to briefly summarize my outing: 100% vegetarian. 100% yum.

The warmth and spices hit you immediately upon walking in. We were greeted by the friendly owner and were told to sit wherever we wanted. The restaurant is small, laid out in a rectangle where one wall was lined with about  10 – 4 person tables and the opposite wall housed the large buffet stand and a few more tables. Bright yellow and a counter, laden with accessories, stare back at you when you walk in to pick your seats.  The out of season, holiday paper place mats actually made me smile more about this little gem on Central Ave.

The menu was overwhelming to this vegetarian who usually has a limited selection on every menu. It took awhile just to comprehend that I could order anything on this menu without making a single substitution! We started with just ordering some appetizers before deciding upon dinner. We ordered garlic naan – 2 orders! I was in heaven. We also ordered vegetable pakora. The pakora was served with a green chutney that the server picked up on the fact we loved when we finished off nearly all of it but freaked out when he tried to take the remaining drops away. He offered to bring more which ended up being twice as much – thank you! 🙂 Pakora is a deep fried vegetable with a spicy tempura batter. The thing that I love about a 100% vegetarian restaurant is that I can grab at a deep fried item and not worry about what I would be eating. There was a sampling of cauliflower, potato slice and other delicious mystery items.

Finally I settled upon the mutter paneer for my main dish. Surprise, surprise – it is what I usually order. I also usually order everything with zero spice, yes, I know, that is sad, but I don’t like cover-ups. Spicy dishes are hard for me to sample all the true flavors, all I taste is that hot spice. Of course my fellow dining buddies are much more adventurous and asked for medium spice. Once my dish of peas and cheese in a slightly creamy, tomato sauce was brought out I couldn’t wait to dig in. However, one bite and I was like, “oh no”. Then I really looked at the dish and I saw the chili oil pooling in mine, I knew that meant I got the spicy dish. And at the same time one of my fellow dining buddies said she wished her dish had more spice and couldn’t believe this was “medium”. It wasn’t medium, I had the medium. Even though it wasn’t the spice level I would prefer, I still think my only complaint of the dish is that the cheese didn’t hold up to other paneer I have had. But don’t get me wrong, I still loved the dish.

One bonus at The Vegetarian is the seasoned rice. Adding a little flavor to the rice makes the whole dish have an added layer of flavor that ended up in me having no leftovers! With no leftovers to pack up, it was time to head out. Probably the best timing also because I was about to start in with another sneezing attack. There were a couple of times the spices being cooked in the kitchen wafted out to the front and made it a bit difficult to not cough or sneeze. Some real cooking was being done back there!

Oh and something to note: We happened to have a bottle of wine in the car (always a wise move to just travel with a wine selection of your own, right!?) and asked if we could bring it inside to drink. That doesn’t seem to be a common occurrence in MN, but I think it is being allowed more and more. We weren’t able to here, but the owner came out later and told us he was working with the city to make that happen and be sure to stop by again so we could really party. 🙂

Read Full Post »

Domino’s Pizza

Domino’s Pizza
4552 Bloomington Ave So
Minneapolis, MN 55407
612-823-3030
www.dominos.com

Yes, you read the title of this post correctly. Last night I fell for the smartest marketing campaign ever and tried Domino’s “new” pizza. If you haven’t heard about Domino’s “Pizza Turnaround,” you can watch this documentary. If you don’t trust the Domino’s employees and focus group members, you can watch Stephen Colbert’s take on the whole thing.

What sparked my interest? Well, Domino’s admitted that their pizza was bad, and made an effort to fix it. That’s crazy! As far as I know, other companies have not done that, nor would they. Maybe I am totally gullible. Maybe I am more willing than the average gal to give something a second chance? In any case, this reinvention campaign succeeded in persuading me to try the new Domino’s pizza.

I know, Domino’s is relying on suckers like me to make this work.

I haven’t eaten Domino’s for several years, so my memories have faded. I am sure that I didn’t hate the old Domino’s, but with so many other options, I just never ordered it.

The new pizza is topped with 100% real (what was it before?) mozzarella, mixed with a bit of provolone. Its sauce features a “medley of herbs” and a “red-pepper kick.” The new crust is “garlic-seasoned hand-tossed crust with a rich, buttery taste.”

You’re curious right? Don’t worry…nobody will know if you keep reading.

But first, a little bit about the ordering process. If you order online, not only do you get to see an image of your pizza as you select ingredients, but you get to watch the “Tracker” as they prepare your meal!

Events occur in real-time.

Beep. Boo. Beep. Boo.

I placed my order at 7:29 pm (with an estimated delivery time of 29-39 minutes).
Derrek started making our pizzas at 7:30.
Derrek put our pizzas in the oven at 7:33.
Derrek went out to smoke by the dumpster at 7:35. Wait, sorry Derrek–I just made that up.
Derrek double-checked our order for perfection at 7:41.
Luke left the store with our order at 7:45.
Luke rang the doorbell at 7:55. I verified that his name was really Luke.

I didn’t want an imposter delivering my pizzas.

I was happy that the pizzas were still very hot when they arrived. We ordered one with onion and green pepper and one with pepperoni and mushrooms.

Here are my observations:

– The crust was fairly flavorful with hints of butter and garlic which were much stronger on the outer edge of the pizza.
– There was no big ridge of dough on the outer crust, and the toppings went almost to the edge. This is good!
– The sauce was perhaps thicker than in the past, and there wasn’t a ton of it. Just the right amount for me.
– The typical spices are certainly identifiable in the sauce, along with a definite kick from hot pepper.
– The cheese was pretty bland and had the same weak structure that I recall from the old Domino’s pizza.
– The vegetables were fresh, crunchy and decently sized.
– The pepperoni was thin, overcooked and crispier than I like.
– There were tiny green sprinkles on top of all the other ingredients. Flakes of basil or oregano? I couldn’t taste them but they made the pizza, er…fancier.

The new Domino’s recipe seems to be an improvement over the old version, but you are still getting average “delivery” pizza. If you expect that, you may be pleasantly surprised with what you get. It was cheap (we paid $5.99 for each 2-topping medium pizza), and plentiful (providing dinner for two plus a couple of lunches). I would order it again.

*Please keep in mind that if you want to try this “new” recipe you must order a hand-tossed pizza.

If you try it, let me know what you think!

Read Full Post »

Nalapak: Restaurant Review CLOSED

Nalapak Indian Restaurant
4920 Central Ave NE
Columbia Heights MN 55421
763-574-1113
http://www.nalapak.com/

I hope this outing is one of several future research excursions. I need to research which I like better – Southern Indian food or Northern Indian food. Or maybe I just need to learn more about the differences and similarities between the two. Or maybe I just need an excuse to eat more Indian food. While I sort out my reasons, here is a trip to a predominately Southern Indian restaurant…

I fancy the coupons and a new favorite site of mine is Groupon! The other day the special was for $15 you could buy a $35 certificate to Nalapak. Nalapak is a strictly vegetarian Indian restaurant that offers both Northern and Southern cuisine. There was a note on the door warning all Groupon coupon holders that the coupon, even though not stated on the form (or fine print), did not include lunch. Good thing we showed for dinner!

After a bit of confusion, among those of us at the table, we realized different menus were handed out among the 3 of us. The menus listed different items and different prices. This continued to create ongoing confusion, however all menus at our table said 25% off bottled wine Sunday-Wednesday (but be sure to ask when you order if that is true!). Turns out they were out of all bottled wine but one type of white. We asked to look at it because the server didn’t know what it was off-hand. I don’t know why we bothered to ask. It was Monday, we were going to order of bottle of whatever they had left! The remaining bottled wine was a Gewürztraminer. Ha – no wonder why the poor server didn’t want to try to pronounce it. I will admit, it is a type of wine I am not all that familiar with… turns out it was nice, sweeter than I would normally drink, but pretty refreshing. It was from Chile, vintage 2008.

They don’t have naan (traditionally a Northern item) on the menu, which threw me, that is a staple I order at every Indian restaurant, but on the other hand it was an opportunity to try Paratha. We ordered garlic Paratha for the table ($4), which was described as pan roasted wheat bread. It was a flat bread, like naan, but much more doughy. It was nice and crisp from the pan roastedness (what? I am sure that is word), but I missed my naan.

For the entrée I selected Cheese Aloo (Potato) Vindaloo and was told they no longer have that, but they have Paneer Vindaloo, which is really the same thing: cheese and potatoes in a spicy sauce ($13). Call it whatever you want, I just want cheese and potatoes! This is a usual Indian entrée order for me, so it was good to compare to other similar orders from the past. It didn’t even dawn on me, until a dinner buddy mentioned, they didn’t ask the level of spice we wanted. Oh no. I worried I would be in trouble. The description said “spicy sauce”. Turns out I could handle it. I thought the paneer (a homemade, mild cheese) was very nice and plentiful. However, I don’t know if I was really sold on the rest of the dish. I found maybe 2 pieces of potato, buried in too much sauce and the sauce tasted like tomato paste with chili powder (or some kind of spice).

Highlights:
1. Paneer is just so yummy. This mild, homemade cheese was some of the best I have had.
2. I appreciated the amount of extra rice that was immediately served. I forever seem to be asking for more rice when I am out.

Wishlist:
1. More attentive service. Everyone was nice, however we always had to be the ones flagging someone down when we wanted food, the bill, water, a correction to the bill, etc.
2. It was cold! But this is MN and being seated by a large old window does not help regulate the temp on nights when that chill is in the air.

Read Full Post »

The Grand Dining Room: Restaurant Review

The Grand Dining Room
Grand View Lodge
23521 Nokomis Avenue
Nisswa, Minnesota 56468
http://www.grandviewlodge.com/fine-dining.asp

Hungry for Wine (and friends) took a field trip this winter and traveled to the great “up north” for our annual spa weekend. Initially, we were devastated to find out that our usual restaurant was closed for the season, but perked up when we learned about a 5 course wine dinner upon check-in. The dinner was a joint effort between the new Headwaters Wine Cellar and the Grand Dining Room, both at Grand View Lodge in Nisswa, Minnesota. We called ahead to make sure they could accommodate a vegetarian (Ann!) and made our reservations. After a relaxing day at the Glacial Waters Spa (also on the Grand View Lodge property), we were very hungry and excited to see what our favorite resort had to offer!

Arriving at the historic lodge (built in 1918) we were warmly greeted by a blazing fireplace and a cozy table for 20 with centerpieces of assorted cheeses and 4 empty (soon to be filled!) wine glasses.  We were also greeted by the gentlemen of the evening: Tim Edmunds, Sommeiler and Michael Manders, Executive Chef. Both seemed very excited to welcome us to the feast! Mr. Manders had prepared special vegetarian dishes for Ann and announced them with pride in addition to the scheduled menu.

Assorted cheeses
The first pour of wine was the crisp and delightful Gramona Cava from Catulunya (Spain). This cava is made in the true “champagne” style of fermentation, meaning the bubbles are created inside the bottle (as opposed to prosecco for example, which is fermented as a large batch in stainless steel barrels). Every cheese sample was a favorite. We sampled goat cheese on olive, brie on toast with a cranberry reduction, manchego with olive tapenade, tellegio with tomato..

Spiced Pumpkin Salad
The second course was by far the best salad anyone in the group had ever tasted. It was comprised of baby arugula, spiced pumpkin, french lentils and herbed goat cheese (with a sherry/sugar dressing). The salad was served with the fragrant  Hugel “Gentil” from Alsace (France). The wine was crisp, floral and paired brilliantly with our new favorite salad. Hugel & Fils have been making wine since 1639 and unfortunately, in the U.S., it is hard to come by outside of restaurants.

Cioppino and Roast Red Pepper Soup with Garlic Toast

The third course is where the dishes diverged. The chef was kind enough to create two different meatless courses. The regularly planned soup for the evening was a tomato base with snow crab, mussels, shrimp, corn and paprika. It was bursting with veggie flavor and, as you can imagine, plump sea creature goodness! For many of us it was our first experience with this kind of soup, and I think the overall impression was very positive. (But thank goodness for our beautiful white napkins, which were not so white by the end of the meal!) While everyone struggled with the shellfish in the seafood soup, Ann practically inhaled her rich, roasted red bell pepper soup. It was not a soup filled with overwhelming flavors, but it was creamy! We are pretty sure it was a cup of straight half & half with a red bell pepper puréed right in–and that works just fine!

The soups were accompanied by a glass of Rocca delle Macie Rubizzo Sangiovese from Toscana, Italy (boy, that is a mouthful!). The dry Sangiovese warmed our tummies and enhanced the flavors of both soups.

Braised Boneless Short Ribs and a Vegetarian “Beef” Wellington

The short ribs were tender and very good. They were made with seasoned flour, a red wine reduction and served atop a caramelized mixture of parsnips and fingerling potatoes. We were quite pleased with the color of the meat. As you can see from the photo, it was slightly pink and shiny with yummy juice. For the meatless entrée, the chef created an over-sized and over-stuffed puff pastry filled with all sort of veggies, along with Boursin cheese and a meaty-like portabella gravy. It was also served on the roasted fingerling potatoes and caramelized parsnips. On the 2 hour drive back home, Ann spent hours lamenting the fact that she forgot her leftovers in the fridge. Put puff pastry or deep fried anything in front of her and she is the happiest person around (you should have seen her eating fresh fried doughnuts the other night). Just writing this post made her sad all over again for not having the leftovers in her belly also.

The wine for the main dish was Robertson Winery Constitution Road Shiraz from South Africa. Its strong black pepper flavor added a nice spice to the dinner. The flavor didn’t linger long, but we still really enjoyed this wine.

Fall Fruit Crumble
Our dessert consisted of apples, pears and cranberries under a crunchy oat crust and cinnamon spiced whipped cream. The fruit was a bit too raw–we would have preferred a few more minutes in the oven. The crust was also a bit too dry, but after four fabulous courses, this was not a huge concern. A glass of Quady Electra (California) was served with the last course. This dessert wine is 3% alcohol and made with late harvest muscat. It was very sweet, with a hint of effervescence, just as dessert wine should be. Ann found it very sweet, but not so syrupy that she couldn’t handle it. Jen adores sweet dessert wines and was caught stealing leftovers from the early departing dinner guests.

People of the world, if you get a chance to attend a wine dinner at Grand View, do it! You will get great food, smart wine pairings with an educational component, a comfortable and luxurious setting, excellent service staff, and a very memorable evening. Grand View does not have any wine dinners scheduled for 2010, but when they do we will be sure to post them on our Wine & Food Specials Page and in the comments of this post.

Read Full Post »

Good Day Cafe: Restaurant Review

Good Day Cafe
5410 Wayzata Blvd.
Golden Valley, Minnesota 55416
763-544-0205

‘Tis the season for comfort food! And Good Day Cafe is the place to find it.

I started brunch with warming my chilled hands around a nice cup of warm tea. When I initially ordered it, I was presented with a large, metal box – filled with all sorts of tea bag flavors from Mighty Leaf tea. I settled upon Vanilla Bean, a lovely smell to get the senses going. I spent awhile going back and forth on what to order and finally the words came out of my mouth, “I would like the Fried Egg Sandwich, with no ham, please!” For $9.95 you get a large sandwich of fried egg, avocado, tomato, onion and cheese – served upon a brioche. I was a little disappointed that once served the bottom slice of bread was soggy (tip: flip over the other half of the sandwich quick, when the sandwich cools down the sogginess goes away a bit), however it was still really good! How can you go wrong when you have a large slice of avocado topping a sandwich? The side of sliced potato and onions, served with a spicy ketchup, were also fantastic! Sure wish I had more of those.

The inside of Good Day Cafe definitely fit the concept – it sure was diner like. Bright colors and lots of booths. The table has all the extras you could need: extra silverware, napkins, straws, hot sauce and of course, salt and pepper. I appreciated having it all right there because it was hard to get our server’s attention during this busy Wednesday lunch hour. Also, the inside is pretty open which I think lead to the bad acoustics, it was really loud. So loud that my dining buddy and me had to lean forward to hear each other and we couldn’t just lean back and settle into the cushy booth.

My favorite comforts:
1. I don’t enjoy soggy bread, but the non-soggy portion was really good. I didn’t realize that brioche toasted so nicely, still soft and easy to eat.
2. The overall menu was mouth-watering, there were several yummy brunch-like goodies that I would like to go back and try.

Not so comforting:
1. Why no website? I guess I am spoiled in this day and age, but I enjoy scoping out the menu before I head to a new place.
2. Can be tricky to find! I overheard 2 other customers on their cell phones saying, “No, you turn down the dead end street, then turn into the parking lot that will eventually connect to the Cafe’s lot.”

Read Full Post »