Butcher and the Boar

John and I visited Butcher and the Boar for our Christmas celebration this year, on the day after Christmas. A busy holiday season caused things to be a bit delayed this year. Our reservation was not until 8:30pm, so we went to Eli's for a drink beforehand since it is just a block away. We thought we could maybe get in early at Butcher, but we ended up sitting at the bar for appetizers and drinks.

candied beer nuts - very tasty snack and great with beer or cocktails

The hot link croquettes were also very good and a bit more substantial. they are basically sausages with a bit of breading around them. The dipping sauce was a bit spicy too.

It was our reservation time and the hosts had not come to get us as promised so we checked in again and they seated us right away. I think they forgot we were there waiting.

Our server was with us right away and provided good service throughout our visit.

It was pretty much a given that we ordered the smoked beef long rib with Tabasco molasses sauce. The meat was tender and the sauce gives just the right amount of kick.

The cornbread was very good and came with a flavored butter that had some sweetness to it.

The smoke roasted potatoes were quite good and really did have a nice smoky flavor. We shared everything and found we still had food leftover to take home.

We found the food and service to be just as good as our last visit a couple years ago. This is great news as I think there have been some changes with the chef and staffing. Though I can't believe it has been that long since we ate in the dining room, we have been there to visit the patio a few times.



The Butcher and the Boar
1121 Hennepin Ave
Minneapolis, MN 55403
(612) 238-8888
http://butcherandtheboar.com/

Butcher and the Boar patio

We visited Butcher and the Boar after attending a Vikings game in Downtown Minneapolis a couple weekends ago. After the game we met up with a couple friends to catch up a bit and then decided to find somewhere to eat before heading back home.

The patio was pretty quiet when we arrived around 4pm and we just seated ourselves. The patio food menu is abbreviated compared to the dining room menu, but still had plenty to choose from. I should have taken a photo of the menu as I can’t find it online.

We started with the jalapeno corn dog. This was really great with a very crisp exterior and not at all greasy. We dipped it in regular ketchup. They had a spicy ketchup available as well, but with the jalapenos in the breading, it was too spicy.

John had the big brat with kraut and that is exactly what he got. It came on a griddled buttery bun.

I had the loaded foot long hot dog. I’m not even sure what was all on this hot dog, but it was great. From what I can recall there were jalapenos, fries onion straws, cilantro, sour cream, mustards and some assorted red peppers and onions. It ended up tasting like a very fun version of slaw on top of the hot dog. The bread was griddled and very rich and buttery flavored.

I enjoyed the Butcher and the Boar patio a lot. The food choices were affordable; I think we spent around $33.00 before tip and that included a couple of beers too. I should note that the patio opens at 3pm daily and the inside restaurant does not open until 5pm daily.

Here is the link to our visit last winter:
http://whereshouldwegomsp.blogspot.com/2013/02/the-butcher-and-boar.html

The Butcher and the Boar
1121 Hennepin Ave
Minneapolis, MN 55403
(612) 238-8888

http://butcherandtheboar.com/

The Butcher and the Boar

I was beyond excited to visit the Butcher and the Boar for our anniversary dinner this year. It opened during the last half of 2012 and I have been reading about it ever since and trying to think of an excuse to visit. It is not often a restaurant lives up to all of the hype surrounding it, but the Butcher and the Boar was everything I expected, if not more impressive.

The interior was rather understated with a large wood bar on one side and the dining room and kitchen on the other side. The floor is covered in pennies, which add a bit of shine and texture to the floor.

We started with the smoked olives. Wow, who knew you could smoke olives. They had a light smoky flavor with some garlic cloves in the dish as well that added to the flavor. These are a very tasty snack.

We ordered the highly recommended smoked beef long rib with Tabasco molasses BBQ sauce. The meat was very tender and delicious, though a bit fatty in some spots. The crispy edges were especially good. The sauce was amazing; savory, sweet and spicy all at once. I think they could apply that sauce to almost anything and it would taste amazing.

The blackened cauliflower seemed to be seasoned with cumin. It was very delicious and just lightly sauteed.

For dessert we tried the s'mores which are molten marshmallow, manjari chocolate ganache inside, dogwood coffee ice cream and graham crackers. The s'mores were awesome and had great flavor, though they were barely warm when they arrived at the table. I wish the marshmallows had been hot. The bits of chocolate ganache inside the marshmallows were a fun surprise. I enjoyed the coffee ice cream more than I expected, mostly because the coffee flavor was not too strong.

The service was very good. We had a short wait when we arrived, but once seated everything went very smoothly. I think we used a lot of restraint in ordering and did not over-order on the entrees. There were a lot of items we wanted to try! It was the perfect amount of food and our bill was not as expensive as we thought it might be. I am looking forward to returning soon. I'd really like to try some of their sausages because there were a bunch of interesting combinations not commonly seen in this area.

A word of warning, we made our reservations over six weeks in advance in order to get in at a prime time on a Saturday night. I would recommend planning ahead as well as I am sure they will be very busy for some time to come.

The Butcher and the Boar
1121 Hennepin Ave
Minneapolis, MN 55403
(612) 238-8888

http://butcherandtheboar.com/