Stockmen's Truck Stop

I think the Stockmen’s Truck Stop made it onto our list of potential places to try because Heavy Table had a post on it several years ago. Well, it is still there and still a solid choice for decent breakfast food.  It really is a truck stop with a little diner. Most of the other diners seemed to be regulars and know one another and the servers as well. We seated ourselves and the server came to take our drink order right away.

John had hamburger steak, eggs, hash browns and toast.

I had bacon, eggs and hash browns. The food was all good and arrived quickly. The portions were generous as well.

I’m not sure Stockmen’s is worth the drive across town, but the food and service are solid. It is not fancy, but you can’t go wrong here either. If you live in the area it is certainly worth checking out.



Stockmen's Truck Stop
501 Farwell Ave
South St Paul, MN 55075
Phone: (651) 455-3044

Hi-Lo Diner

We went back to Hi-Lo Diner the other day. We went during peak hours and waited a good 20-30 minutes for a table. The place is popular! Apparently, they are coming up on the one year anniversary as well.

This glazed donut was amazing, super and fantastic! Warm and fluffy as can be. We ordered it as a starter and it helped the wait for the food seem a bit shorter.

I had the Zie Local Yolkel omelet filled with ham, gruyere cheese and fresh herbs with hash browns on the side. It was OK, not amazing. The hash browns were really good though. Fresh potatoes, crispy on the exterior. 

John had the Tex Max, which was a burrito stuffed with chorizo, hash browns, scrambled eggs and pico de gallo and topped with enchilada sauce, melted manchego and cheddar cheeses and seasoned sour cream. This burrito was a monster, and very flavorful. 

We were seated at a small two person booth/table off to the right side of the restaurant. The service was a kind of slow and not quite as friendly as our previous visit.

Hi-Lo Diner

4020 E Lake St

Minneapolis, MN 55406

Phone: (612) 353-6568

www.hi-lo-diner.com

Hi-Lo Diner

We have been intending to visit Hi-Lo Diner since it opened last year. I guess the thought of a long wait has kept us away. We visited late afternoon for a late lunch on a weekend and only had to wait a few minutes for spots at the counter.

I had a Hi-Top special topped with lobster, avocado, hollandaise, poached egg, onion and peppers. I should explain that I Hi-Top is not a donut, it does not have a hole, but it sort of tastes like one. This was sweet and savory, with the Hi-Top being sweet and everything else more on the savory side. It sounds crazy, but somehow it all works great together. It is like an updated eggs benedict that is much easier to cut than a toasted English muffin.

John had the crispy chicken sandwich topped with apple bacon slaw, hi-lo pickles and roasted garlic aioli with a side of crinkle cut fries. He said it was perfect and loved the crinkle cut fries.

The service was excellent! Everyone was very friendly and recommended dishes to try for our first visit. They even checked back to see what we thought after the food had arrived and they were not even our server. We enjoyed our meal immensely and there were a lot of interesting looking items on the menu I’d love to go back and try next time.

The diner is a bit larger inside than it looks on the outside as well.  There is seating around the edges of the room at tables and booths and seating at the counter that runs the length of the interior as well. The diner was built in 1957 and came from Gibsonia, PA. It looks great inside and out and is a great addition to Minneapolis.

Hi-Lo Diner
4020 E Lake St
Minneapolis, MN 55406
Phone: (612) 353-6568
www.hi-lo-diner.com

Nighthawk's brunch

We made it to Nighthawk's again the other day for brunch. We arrived around 10:30am on a Sunday morning and got right in. Lucky I think maybe. We were seated at the front bar.

John had the blueberry lemon pancakes. They were very good with lots of large blueberries inside.

I had a special that day, the brisket hash. It was smoked brisket on top of smashed potatoes with pickled onions, guacamole and topped with an over easy egg. The brisket was phenomenal. It has a wonderful smoky flavor and was very tender and fell apart when I touched it with the fork. The smashed potatoes were better than I expected as well and when you got a bite assembled with some basket, potato and guacamole it was the perfect brunch food.

I loved my food on this visit and look forward to going back again soon. I can't recommend Nighthawk's enough for brunch.


Nighthawk's
3753 Nicollet Ave S,
Minneapolis, MN 55409
(612) 248-8111
http://nighthawksmpls.com/

The Nicollet Diner

We visited Nicollet Diner on Eat Street in Minneapolis for the first time awhile back for a weekend breakfast. It was not too busy when we arrived and we easily found parking on the street. We were seated quickly in a booth along the windows on the side.

We both had the All American breakfast with two eggs any style with your choice of bacon or sausage, served with crispy hash browns and a biscuit, toast or English muffin. We both substituted pancakes instead of bread on the side. While the food was good, I was just not overly impressed by anything.

The pancakes were OK, though the menu said they were made with buttermilk, I really could not taste it in them.

We found the service to be a little on the slow side. It seemed to take awhile to get our order taken and for our food to be ready. The place had not filled up that much since we arrived either.

Deals & Discounts: We had a coupon from the Entertainment Book, good for buy one entrée get  the second entrée free for a maximum discount of $10 off.

The Nicollet Diner
1428 Nicollet Ave
Minneapolis, MN 55403
Hours: Open 24 hours
Phone: (612) 399-6258
http://www.thenicolletdiner.com/

Nighthawk's

I've been hearing some buzz about Nighthawk's for awhile now, probably since they opened this spring, but we had not had a chance to visit yet. It is operated by the same chef that owns Haute Dish in downtown Minneapolis, so you can expect updated takes on classic dishes, but in a much more casual atmosphere than Haute Dish.

It is basically a diner concept, with lots of bar and counter seating. I think it would be a great place for brunch as well. We were seated at the counter overlooking the kitchen, so we got to check out the food as it was being made and coming out. We each had a drink, but I forgot to get photos of them. A full bar is available with interesting cocktails and craft beers.

We shared an order of french fires with malt vinegar mayo. The mayo was not as strongly flavored as I expected it to be, it just had some extra flavor. The fries were crisp, fresh and perfect all the way around though. You could tell they were made in house.

John had the French dip, which was topped with Gruyere, shallot jam, beef fat mayo and a side of au jus. It was served on a baguette with just the right combination of softness and crusty edges.

I had the Nighthawk's hot dog, which is a Kramarczuk's foot long dog topped with dill mayo, red dragon cheese, spicy mustard, giardiniera and shoestring potatoes. The poppy seed bun was nicely toasted and I liked the dill mayo instead of a pickle. The pickle always falls out anyway. The hot dog had a nice snap and I liked the presentation in the metal holder.

The food and service were both excellent. We were in and out in a short amount of time too. It wasn't overly busy, when we arrived, though people were waiting for tables when we left. I don't think reservations are accepted, so plan accordingly.


Nighthawk's
3753 Nicollet Ave S,
Minneapolis, MN 55409
(612) 248-8111
http://nighthawksmpls.com/

Darcy's Cafe - Grand Forks, ND

We visited Darcy’s Café on our last trip to visit family in Grand Forks for breakfast on Sunday before we left town. We visited at John's sister's suggestion, she had wanted to try it for awhile, so we all met there for breakfast. It is a cozy little place, probably fitting into the dive category, since the ambiance is non-existent and the dining room is utilitarian at best. Customers are seated around a U shaped counter or at small tables around the edges of the room. If it is busy, the line may spill out the door.

We were seated at the counter pretty quickly. The service is certainly quick and efficient, it seems lingering is not encouraged.

 David had the French Toast. The portion was really generous and the toast was light and fluffy.

I had eggs over easy with hash browns, bacon and pancakes. The bacon was crispy, eggs cooked perfectly and the hash browns tasted freshly grated. The pancakes were good, but not the best I’ve ever had. They were a bit heavy, not as light as I would have liked.

John had scrambled eggs, hash browns, sourdough toast and hamburger patty. The toast was a good sourdough and the hamburger patty was cooked perfectly too.

This is probably one of the best places we have visited for breakfast in Grand Forks. The food is freshly made and of good quality at great low prices, with quick service so you really can’t go wrong.


Darcy’s Café
1015 N Washington St
Grand Forks, ND 58203
(701) 775-4050