Red Stag
509 1st Avenue NE
Minneapolis, MN 55413
612-767-7766
http://www.redstagsupperclub.com/
Did you know Minnesota Monthly Wine Week was October 4-10, 2009? I didn’t. My fellow co-blogger, Jen, had to tell me, for shame – I usually like being the one to know these things. The menus and restaurants participating were on a wide spectrum. We settled on Red Stag, mainly because it was the best deal. 2 entrees, 2 desserts, 1 bottle of wine for $50 (and don’t forget your free Riedel crystal wine glass for registering on Wine Week’s site, they are worth $10.95 a piece!).
When I arrived at Red Stag, I sat down to get a lesson in the coasters. I guess white side up means you want filtered water and black side means you want sparkling water. Nice they had the option (and didn’t charge for sparkling!). Next came the flat-bread and rolls, served with a white butter bean puree. I would prefer butter over the bland butter bean, but I appreciate places that try alternative spreads/dips.
The wine was Mountain View Central Coast Cabernet. We found it very yummy. Oaky and full bodied, smooth to drink.
Butternut Squash Risotto
The butternut squash risotto did not win me over on my first trip to Red Stag. The chestnuts were large and too much to chew through – wish they would have been a little crunchy instead of mush. In addition to cubes of butternut squash, the dish also included spaghetti squash. I actually found the stringy squash unappetizing. This dish is normally served on the dinner menu, but I don’t think I will seek it out again.
Milk Chocolate Hazelnut Semifreddo
Now the dessert, it was wonderful. Semifreddo means “semi-frozen” and I found it to be a bit of a struggle to eat it. After one bite, I wasn’t about to sit patiently and wait for it to soften up more. I needed to eat more – as soon as I could. Some may have been flung across the table as I tried to slice a bit off. The dark chocolate ganache coated a fluffy inner center of chocolate. Kind of like a frozen 3 Musketeer bar. Topped with a sprinkle of sea salt and a side of apricot, orange preserve.
Even though I wasn’t that excited about my dinner the first time here, I returned 2 weeks later to try out the “Cheap Date Night Tuesdays”. For $32 you get 2 entrees, 2 desserts and 1 bottle of wine. For the entrees you can pick from a meat dish or a vegetarian dish (but they must be the same so hopefully you and your “date” agree). The wine was a choice between a Chardonnay or Cab. It was the same Cab from Wine Week, which I was extremely happy about cuz that was a nice Cab.
Grilled halloumi on root vegetables
Um, do you know what halloumi is? Cheese. They grilled a brick of cheese and place it over a bed of roasted root vegetables. Oh. Wow. The char on the cheese was fantastic and the flavor on the root vegetables was so enjoyable. It was also served with a side of parsley with lemon. I didn’t see this on the regular dinner menu, which is a shame because I am going to be craving this brick of cheese again, very soon. If you are interested, you can read more about halloumi here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Halloumi
Peanut Butter and Chocolate Bread Pudding
I am not a fan of bread pudding, but with no choice on dessert I was going to be eating it! Thankfully it wasn’t a sloppy mess of bread pudding, but a nice, firm, biscuit size of pudding. I was surprised that I actually thought the bread pudding was dry – I was worried that it was going to be drippy and mushy. It was served on top of a spread of some fruit (strawberry?) preserve. Normally I am all about mixing fruit and sweet dessert, but this didn’t work for me. But like any dessert, I will be the first to finish it!
I finished the evening with a glass of Cristalino Brut Cava ($6). A nice way to finish the dining experience – good conversation with a good friend and a glass of crisp, bubbly in hand.
hungry for wine 