Great suggestion...always good food and almost never too loud to hear your companion.

Without any sense of location or preference, there is a infinite universe. So, three places that have a more "romantic" feel.

Our go to spot is Grand Cafe. You could get out for $100 if you order well, but easy to go over that. I love the feel of the place (better after dark.)

Another odd little intimate space is 128 Cafe on Cleveland across from St. Thomas. Yes, it is a basement, but I find it a nice place to connect with my dining companion.

And, Al Vento is another favorite, but can generate quite an array of opinions on this board.

Rustica has the best texture and flavor.

I would suggest Buon Giorno in Lilydale, they have a great cheese selection and usually 00 flourer.

Someone needs to explain the Strip Club to me. I don't get it. I had a mediocre, and really expensive meal there. Service was indifferent and the space not all that cozy. Why do you like it so much?

+ 1 for Ngon, but also since you are going so early, lots of options in my mind.

-Muffuletta (the only Parsole place I like)
-Cafe Biaggio-on University (generally quiet on the weekend, at that time you might be alone.)
-Craftsman (might be 25 minutes and little pricey, depends how you order-but I love the space and feel is quiet and adult)
Also look at the places along Selby and Dale/Western (La Grolla, kind of sweet space, or Moscow on the Hill (never been.)

Kitchen Window and Clancy's both carry spanish chorizo.

I have had good luck with the Comte at Costco. Big hunk, but as you indicated, it has lots of uses.

Embarrassed I cannot spell or type--El Meson, what was I thinking.

So sad to read this in the paper this morning. El Mason was a frequent (every couple of months) mid week stop for us. The food was almost always good and the prices reasonable. It had that nice combination of feeling like more than a burger joint, but not quite fussy and pretentious. You could get a nice glass of wine without cashing in bonds, too. I will personally miss it. (The space was in need of some sprucing, but no complaints other than that.)

Cafe Ena is great, but a little harder to get to from my end of the world and bit more than I spend on a mid week meal. (There is something about that over $20 entree price point that still hits me as making a place more "special occasion." )

So, where do we go now for a good Spanish/latin-influenced meal?

I just had a lovely happy hour experience at La Grolla last night. The calamari was very nice (the zuchinni that came with it a bit greasy) and gnocci was pretty good too (thought I am not sure I have a sense of the perfect gnocci, only what I enjoy.) I haven not eaten there in years and was meeting a friend. I thought the patio would be nice; the weather was not. Has anyone had dinner there lately? I am just wondering if my mini meal was representative of a whole dining experience.

The Happy Hour by the way is a great deal. My $3 glass of pinot grigio was perfect for the evening and $6 apps were great. It was less than $40 for two--I was stuffed and we had dessert!

I did go for breakfast in the last week. It was good. My husband's quiche was tasty and crustless and came with very fresh greens. The portion was small. My omelet was very good. A friend had the wild rice pancakes. They were good, but dry (I think that is the nature of wild rice pancakes.) They came with plenty of butter and syrup and she could not finish them as she found them very filling. The house made sausage was well received...I am not a sausage fan.

All in all, it was fine. The place was very quiet, the patio looked pleasant (if it hadn't been 90 degrees outside). Service was efficient. We ate early on a Saturday and were almost alone.

I would go back, but not sure I would race back. It was pricey (omelete and quiche both about $10) and if you are looking for big piles of food, this is not a good choice.

I scanned the dinner menu and now cannot remember any of it. So either it did not impress me or I am just losing my memory (both distinct possibilities.) I will look forward to hearing from someone who dined there for dinner.

Vincent-- a few blocks down on Nicollet. Always good and quiet enough you can carry on a conversation.

I believe he is staying at 169 and 394. He is not too far from the whole host or places in St. Louis Park--at West End. I have enjoyed the Cooper, but there a bunch of other places in the area, too. http://www.cooperpub.com/. Easy to get to, relatively easy parking for multiple cars if not everyone fits in one. Blue Point is lovely and if your expense account can handle it, that is a great suggestion.

I was in Tacoma on business and we ended up at Indochine at 1924 Pacific Avenue. The food was indeed delicious, but the serving sizes were huge! I wish our server had told us how significantly we over ordered. It kind of made me mad since I was in a hotel and didn't really have an option to take any leftovers home.

The crunchy tofu app was great. It must have been a pound of tofu. The spring rolls were fresh and the serving size a bit more reasonable. The potstickers were not my favorite-too porky for me, but I think there were at least 10 of them on the plate. (Ah, you start to see the problem. We were all famished and each ordered our own appetizer only to see they were not designed for single person consumption.)

I got the tuna--very nicely prepared and tasty. I didn't try the salmon, but my co-worker enjoyed it. The walnut shrimp was good, too many lycees for my taste and the sauce reminded me of a good Minnesota fruit salad with kind of sweet dressing. The honey walnuts were the best part by far.

The atmosphere is very pleasant, and if the weather had been better a nice after dinner walk would have been very possible.

To all restaurants: if you have huge portions, great. Just let some innocent out-of-town guest have a clue!

I think the trick is to know the cross street. There are often back alley access paths to parking lots or at least off street parking. Last year I was able to get to On's without driving on University at all.

Just had dinner there last night,but had not been for any other incarnation. It was OK. I had the mussels, and I thought they were over cooked. My husband and friend had the burgers and thought they were good. Someone ordered the oyster app and said it was quite tasty, however it did arrive with our main courses. Pizza that had nice flavor, but I like a more crisp crust. Service was fine. Nice beer list.

Portion sizes were OK to me. The burgers came with nice side of fries. I could not finish my mussels, though I had to ask for some bread (and I didn't love them.) The pizza was about 8-9 inches and pretty well topped. There were other options on the menu, nothing all that "out there" either in price or description.

Like so many places, I would go back, but would not drive across town for it.

I went a month ago or so. It is fine, a pleasant experience for sure. I felt like it was very suburban in feel. (Clean, boring, almost sterile.) My dining companions disagreed and liked the ambiance more than I did. Our service was almost fawning--not always a bad thing. My friend sent her drink back, and they remade it to her liking, no questions asked.

The nutrition info on the menu is interesting. The "ever dieting" woman in me appreciated it. The "foodie" person was not so interested. I split the bison burger and a salad. Both were well executed, but nothing special. I believe someone else had a pasta dish they enjoyed. We had a wild mushroom risotto (I think) as a starter. It was very well done.

My comment was that it was a very nice place--someplace everyone could find something to eat with a full bar. I live at the other end of Lake Street. And I cannot imagine making the trip just for the food.

It is very large, and very popular. We were told there would be at least a 45 minute wait on a Friday night around 7. When we decided not to wait, we were found a table right away. Not sure if luck or the threat of leaving got us in faster.

So give it a try. I do think if I lived near-by, I would dine there on occasion.

Thanks for all the suggestions. We did end up at Shish. It was good choice. The raspberry marble cake was good (not great), I was a little overwhelmed by the frosting (and I love frosting.) Others got the mounds bar--very nice --and the red velvet cake which was lauded by all who ate it. The coffee was good, the vibe perfect after Scusi which was really loud.

Dinner at Scusi should be another post. It was a great choice and really reasonably priced --$150 for five including a bottle of wine and tip.

I am dining with some friends at Scusi. I am looking for places that might be good for dessert around 9, 9:30 on a Friday night. We could always stay at the restaurant, but changing it up might be fun. I am not so interested in something too bar-like, and want a place that is welcoming to "just dessert" and has a decent cup of coffee.

The only thing that came to mind off the top of my head was Shish. (I have always looked at their dessert case, but never actually had anything.)

Cafe Latte has lost some its luster for me. I have not been recently so if there is a vote for that, suggest it.

Thoughts please and thank you.

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Shish Mediterranean Grill
1668 Grand Ave, Saint Paul, MN 55105

Cafe Latte
850 Grand Ave Ste 1, Saint Paul, MN 55105

Scusi
1806 St Clair Ave, St Paul, MN 55105

Here is an old thread to check out. http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/793328
Most of the discussion was during the summer, but it may provide a few ideas for you.

Kitchen Window has carried it in the past so good place to look.

Have you tried my "go to" for odd stuff--Surdyks?

Coops perhaps, or some of the italian grocery stores--Cosettas, Broders and that place in NE i can never remember the name of--Delmonico's Italian Foods. Clancy's had a fennel pollen sausage, so I might try there, too.

Please report back. It is lovely stuff, and I would love to know where you found it.

We had dinner at True Thai last night. The food was good, (especially the Thai Duck), but the place is in need of a good cleaning and new carpet and they were out of half the beers on their list (which was stained and food-covered.)

I have noticed that a lot of places have let some of the aesthetics go. Bathrooms not maintained, walls not cleaned by tables. etc. Is this a product of the economy? Is this a sign of a restaurant on its last legs? I am not clean freak, but I do like my dining choices to be at least relatively clean.

I think True Thai will be a take out choice going forward. Anyone else noticing this issue?

I kind of agree with the Dairy Queen. I want to love it, but I don't. It can be packed even mid week and I am not so inclined to wait for a table on a Tuesday night. I love the vibe and the beer, but have kind of been disappointed in the burgers. I think some of them try to do too much--too many toppings and flavors to really be successful.

The new one is opening just a few blocks from me, and I will likely try it, but I might stick to some non burger options.

I have not been for quite awhile, but the food is nothing special. I have veggie friends who kind of like the veg shephard's pie. I prefer the more "traditional" fare to their burgers which have never impressed.

Oh no. Such a tasty dive and a cheap Friday night outing.

Any thoughts on where to find French Toulouse sausage and/or duck sausage? We make cassoulet every Christmas and have used kielbasa successfully, but would really like to try something more authentic if we could find it. Would prefer Minneapolis or St. Paul proper, but might be willing to travel

My thought on places to check included Clancy's--other suggestions please.

It is a chain. I used to eat there often when I traveled to Dallas for business. I kind of like it. Lots of options, including some pretty healthy ones. It was always good for a group because everyone could find something to eat. I would not suggest it will rock your world, but that area could use a few more lunch options since everything is always packed.

One of my co-workers brought some into the office. I thought they were good, but would agree that they seemed kind of greasy. They were crispy on the outside, and it was a nice texture to eat, but there was a definite oily residue on my fingers when I was done. Not sure if people think this is good or bad: the cinnamon sugar doughnut tasted like a mini-donut.

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Donut Cooperative
2929 E 25th St, Minneapolis, MN 55406

We were there last Saturday. It was fabulous. For apps, the lardo was yummy, and something I would never make at home! I had the cassoulet and took about half of it home. It was a lot and very flavorful--lots of different meats and sausage, but all identifiable with their own flavors. The cauliflower was very good, well seasoned, well cooked and also not a small portion. Enjoy your evening. Saturday was my first time in the new space and it did not disappoint in any way. The bill was impressive, but so was the food and the service.