McCormick & Schmick

We visited the Edina location of McCormick & Schmick recently as we had a Landry's Club discount to use from John's birthday. We had been hoping to find a spot in the bar for happy hour, but it was packed to the gills, we so sat in the dining room.

 John had the seared sea scallops with tomato pesto, crab potato hash and sautéed spinach.

I had the shrimp trilogy, which included buttermilk fried shrimp, stuffed shrimp and shrimp scampi with butternut squash orzo.The shrimp were all prepared perfectly and the portion was more than I could finish. 

John also got a complementary creme brûlée for his birthday, which was nice touch by the server even though his birthday was a few weeks prior.

The service was excellent and everything went very smoothly, with the waiter checking back as needed.

Details on our last visit I blogged about: http://whereshouldwegomsp.blogspot.com/2012/04/mccormick-and-schmicks.html

McCormick & Schmick
Galleria Edina, 3203 Galleria
Edina, MN 55435
Phone: (952) 920-1142

DW's Diner

DW’s Diner is a little restaurant in New Hope off Bass Lake Road and Broadway in a strip mall. I’ve been nearby lots of times, but never would have found this place, unless seeking it out. It is a basic, but clean with efficient waitresses and ample parking.

We both had the basic breakfast with eggs, hash browns, toast and meat.

John had the hamburger patty as his meat.

I thought the hash browns were pretty good and my eggs were prepared as requested.

I added a single pancake, just to give them a try and we both thought they were above average. It was a large, thinner pancake, and it had nice flavor. It was huge too!

We found the food and service to be above average. For the price, I think we’d consider going back since it is pretty close to home and there was no wait to be seated.

Deals & discounts: We were drawn in by a buy one entrée get one free deal from the Metro Dining club punch cards, which is good for up to $7 off each month.


DW’s Diner
6028 W Broadway Ave
New Hope, MN 55428
Phone: (763) 561-0419
No website

Minnesota State Fair 2016

I managed to work in three fair visits this year, the first on Friday, August 26th, with my friend Stephanie. We arrived around 11 am and basically wandered around all day. I had no agenda and we had fun checking things out.

 I started with a pronto pup.

 Tom Thumb mini donut machine. 

 The final product. Very light and fluffy and fresh. 

I enjoyed the Premium Blu beer from Schell's again this year. Love the frozen foam! We had cheese curds as well, but I forgot to get a photo.

We stopped by the Minnesota Wine building, to do the wine flights. I tried the whites and Steph went with the sweet and fruity flight, each flight cost $10.

Key lime pie on a stick. Very tart and good. Form Kermit's in Key West, so not made locally, which is maybe OK.

Steph got some Sweet Martha's cookies to take home. We ate quite  few to try and close the lid, but did not do too well. It is a lot of cookies! 

I stopped by the fair Saturday night for awhile to meet Kelly and Michele before the Dixie Chicks show. I started with a burrito from Taco King across from the Miracle of Birth Center. It was very bland and basic, but it was large and quite filling.

I also had the garlic cheese bread with sauce from Vescio's near the Grandstand. I've had it many times before and it was very good as always, but I forgot to get a photo.

Sunday John and I headed to the fair for our day of fair fun. The day started off cool and rainy, but it was not raining by the time we arrived at the fairgrounds.

Bacon from the Big Fat Bacon stand. Just go get this because it is always great!

Fudge Puppy is a chocolate covered waffle on a stick. The waffle was very fluffy and fresh.

John always has to get french fries, these are from World's Greatest French Fries, across from the Food Building. They were hot, fresh and crisp. Very good.

We only tried one new fair food this year, the bang bang chicken from Lulu's in the West End. The chicken was crisp and fresh and the breading was slightly spicy and the dipping sauce was also a bit spicy, but not overly so. I'd highly recommend these.

Another great fair is in the books for us, as we won't be able to make it for the second weekend of the fair. I think three days in a row was maybe a new record for me and maybe too many days in a row. It is probably better to spread it out a bit more next time around.

RS Sports Grill

Now that Redstone in Minnetonka has moved across the street into Ridgedale Mall, the old building has been rebranded as RS Sports Grill. The interior looks pretty much the same as before, but they have added a lot of flat screen TVs all around the restaurant. It would be a good place to watch football or something.

John had a buffalo chicken sandwich with waffle fries and seasoned sour cream. The sandwich was OK, the fries were decent and the seasoned sour cream was acceptable. The buffalo sauce seemed to be simply Franks Red Hot sauce. I guess I had been hoping for something more like the Redstone buffalo sauce, which is very flavorful.

I had the cheeseburger sliders. The hamburgers were cooked perfectly, but did not have a lot of flavor. I did like the deep fried pickles on each. A nice touch.

The service was OK, but I don’t think either one of us were too impressed with them menu selections. The menu seemed a bit limited and what we had was not very impressive. I had been hoping for more creative and better executed bar food, but I think we got average bar food. Hopefully, it time they revise the menu and step things up a bit.


RS Sports Grill
12501 Ridgedale Dr
Minnetonka, MN 55305
Phone: (952) 544-0993

Market BBQ food truck

Market BBQ restaurant is a mainstay in Minneapolis for BBQ fanatics. Earlier this year they rolled out a food truck to join the food truck trend. That works for me, as there are not tons of great BBQ options for lunch in downtown Minneapolis.

I tried the pulled pork sandwich and asked if I could substitute a cookie for the potato chips, which the order taker quickly agreed to. The sandwich was large with a generous portion of pork inside. The bun was fresh and soft. The regular BBQ sauce was a bit bland, but I liked their hot sauce quite a bit. The pork was juicy and had good flavor. The cole slaw was quite good with lots of dressing. The cookie was commercially made, but locally and it was a good snack later in the afternoon, but nothing I’d seek out.

Overall, the Market BBQ food truck is a solid option. There was no line, the service was quick and the food was ready quickly as well.


Market BBQ Food Truck
Twitter: @marketbbq

Bibuta Food Truck

The Bibuta food truck was intriguing to me from the first time I spotted it in Downtown Minneapolis. I read the menu and skipped it, but once I heard it was operated by the Sushi Fix owner, I decided I had better give it a whirl.

The menu consists of two main items, sushi burritos and sushi rice bowls. I was a little apprehensive of the sushi burrito,  but I see it is not wrapped in a tortilla but in soy paper, for a light and flexible exterior. I may have to try that next.

On both of my visits I went with the sushi rice bowls. The first rice bowl was the Sushi Bowl for $12, which contains tuna, salmon, ginger, pickled eggplant, avocado, cucumber and sushi rice. The sushi rice is very good and plentiful too. I liked the mix of the cold fish with the warm rice too, nice contrasts. The fish tasted and looked very fresh as well.

The second time I visited, I tried the Hawaiian poke rice bowl. This is a home run for me, with tuna, salmon and avocado with a light sesame sauce. The fish was very good and the avocado throughout just kicks it up another notch.

I enjoyed both sushi rice bowls and would recommend them to anyone. They are a great way to sample sushi without having sushi.

The truck can often be found in downtown Minneapolis and at Minnesota United FC games. I would recommend following them on twitter for the latest information.

Bibuta Food Truck
Twitter: @eatbibuta

The Depot Tavern

The Depot Tavern is located on the side of the First Avenue building and run by the same owners. We have dined here a few times now and I have never gotten around to doing a review somehow.

The room is pretty basic, but comfortable and clean. The service is always very efficient and the food is definitely elevated tavern fare. The menu has a nice variety with something for just about everyone.

John had the BLT, which is your standard BLT on brioche bread. He really liked the fries though. They are made freshly in house daily and very crisp with excellent potato flavor.

I had the buffalo chicken sliders with fries on the side. The buns were lightly toasted and the buffalo sauce was very good. Everything was freshly prepared.

We really enjoyed our food and found the prices to be in line with similar establishments in the area, and I feel the quality of the food is much higher with the Depot going above and beyond to elevate the bar fare to be higher quality than average. We enjoyed it once again and plan to return. It is a great option near Target Center, Target Field and First Avenue.


The Depot Tavern
17 N 7th St
Minneapolis, MN 55403
Phone: (612) 338-1828
https://thedepottavern.com

Shake Shack Mall of America

We were excited to hear earlier this year that a branch of the famed Shake Shack would be opening at the Mall of America. It is located in the newly redone food court area on the third floor on the North side of the mall. The menu ranges from burgers, hot dogs, fries and chicken sandwiches to frozen custard made into concretes and shakes.

You order at the center, are given a number and you can take a seat until your order is ready. The food was ready pretty quickly and the line to order moved very quickly as well.

I had the Smoke Shack burger, shown on the left, which is topped with with cheese, smoked
Niman Ranch bacon, chopped cherry pepper and Shack Sauce. John had the Shack Burger, on the right, which is topped with cheese, lettuce, tomato and Shack Sauce. Shack sauce is basically their versions of secret sauce and seems to be mayonnaise-based slightly spicy, sweet and sour blend of mayo, ketchup, mustard and spices. I really liked it mixed in with the cherry peppers on my burger. the meat was tender and juicy and the buns were lighted toasted and try fresh and delicious.

The crinkle cut fries were hot, fresh and crispy. Very solid overall. 

We thought the food was very good with burgers that are well above average. The service was quick and friendly as well. I think Shake Shack is a very good addition to the average, run of the mill  fast food options at the Mall of America. The mall could use more quality options along these lines.


Shake Shack
332 E Broadway
Bloomington, MN 55425
Phone:(952) 466-6056
https://www.shakeshack.com

Spring Street Tavern

I'd found a list of best wings in Minnesota on Facebook, so we decided to try one the restaurants from the list out. We stopped in to Spring Street Tavern on a Saturday afternoon for a late lunch.  It was surprisingly busy, but there was an event sort of nearby.

The ambiance is definitely more bar than restaurant and probably not family friendly, more adult-oriented. Seating is at the bar or a variety of high top tables along the front windows and some lower tables toward the back.

We had the Spring wings, which are sauced with a honey-hot BBQ sauce. The sauce was definitely sweet, but not especially spicy. We both liked the wings, they were quite addictive actually and the chicken was cooked perfectly. The chicken skin was not soggy or overcooked as is often the case with wings.

We also tried the Seasoned wings, the menu says are served naked, but it seemed to be coated with a dry rub. I want to call it a ranch flavored dry rub. The flavor was good and not at all spicy. These were also quite good as the chicken was cooked well and the skin was very crispy.

 The tots were hot and fresh and a huge serving. No complaints! 

I hate it when restaurants are too cheap to buy Heinz ketchup. This stuff is not a good substitute.

We found the service to be fine, the waitress seemed very rushed whenever she stopped at our table, but we didn't wait for anything. I don't know that we would rush back, but the wings were quite good, so I'd recommend it for that i you happen to be in the area.

Deals & discounts: We used a discount from the Metro Dining Club good forbid one enter and get up to $9 off the second entree.


Spring Street Tavern
355 Monroe St NE
Minneapolis, MN 55413
Phone: (612) 627-9123
http://www.springstreettavern.com

Boston 6.8 - 6.10.2016

I had a quick trip to Boston in early June for a work conference. I didn't have time to do anything too exciting, but I thought I'd post my food and hotel experiences.

I had a quick breakfast at Terminal 2 at MSP at Barrio. The breakfast sandwich is very, very solid. I also learned to make sure your Trusted Traveler number is in the reservation or you have to go through the regular security line. Or I should have brought my card. Lines are short at Terminal 2 anyway.

I stayed at Club Quarters Boston. This is the smallest hotel room I've ever stayed in for sure. The location was near our Boston offices and it is on the approved hotel list, at the right price, so basically I did not get to pick. Oh well.

hotel room view

Before heading to the face for the afternoon I had lunch at Hillstone near Faneuil Hall. The tuna entree was excellent.

After work I walked over to the North End to try and get in at Neptune Oyster. It was early, and I got a spot at the bar right away. The warm lobster roll was really great.

Afterwards, I stopped by the Cheers at Faneuil Hall. It was pretty touristy and didn't look like the TV show inside or outside at all.

Headed back to the hotel and called it a day, since I'd been up since 5am for the 7am flight.

Thursday I had a conference to attend for work all day, but first I visited Cafe Fleuri at the Langham Hotel. The room was very nice and the crab Benedict was excellent as was the service.

After the conference I walked over toward the Barking Crab. It was a bit windy and chilly outside, and the reviews were very mixed, so I went to the Overlook Bar and Restaurant right behind the Barking Crab.

I had the tuna poke

I had breakfast at Remy's Sports Bar near check-in at the airport. It was not great, but serviceable anyway. There was nothing after security where my gate was, so I ended up going through twice. It was only three gates and not much of a line anyway.

The flight home was uneventful and even though I did not have the time to do much in Boston, I managed to dine at a few interesting places.