roosterjen's Profile
St. Paul restaurants... best kept secrets?
I agree with Ngon as a hidden gem and good recommendation. In addition to great food they also have a very nice wine list with good prices.
Il vesco vino has an outstanding patio complete with misters to keep you cool as produce. I have always ordered off the appetizer and small plate sections of the menu and have been very happy every time. the WA frost patio is great but the one at il vesco vino is more airy and private.
Restaurant recommendations in Sioux Falls, SD
girasole(s?)--means sunflower in spanish-- it's not too far from the main "cute" part of town. A mexican restaurant with great food, in a strip mall setting, but don't be fooled --food is good (or at least was a year ago)...the original owner opened a new place but not sure what the name is or where located in sioux falls...the people at girasole would know
Quality Indian in MSP
Ghandi Mahal next to Midori Floating World cafe is great. The decor is wonderful, not the sterile feeling you can get at some places. rich fabrics and nice furniture. The food is really good (they do spicy well) and very reasonably priced. They have a lunch buffet EVERY day of the week until 3pm and are open for dinner every night too. check it out!!
Lesbian night out in Milwaukee
I posted the same comments about this restaurant in topic "Great food in Milwaukee" I am simply pointing out that this is a great lesbian owned restaurant and near a popular lesbian bar for the people who are interested
Great Food in Milwaukee
Sugar Maple and the Palm Tavern in Bay View are both non-smoking. These are both great beer places owned by the same guy. Sugar Maple is new as of April this year and has 60 craft beers on tap!! Palm Tavern has an impressive import selection but is much smaller than Sugar Maple. I live in MPLS too...was in MKE last week only for a couple days, made it to both Sugar Maple and Fat Abbey in same day!
Lesbian night out in Milwaukee
If you are planning to go out to Walker's Pint or anywhere else make sure to eat first at Triskele's (Bay View) ----Located at 1801 S. 3rd St. www.triskelesrestaurant.com
A great couple opened this place late in 2007 and they couldn't have done it better. Jolinda is the chef/owner and Lynn is the bartender/owner. Together they have a nice neighborhood place that doubles as a destination dining experience. There are simply prepared dishes in meat, vegetable and seafood categories which makes this a great place for people who have different dining preferences. Prices are what you would expect for a neighborhood place. the kitchen is behind the bar so if you have a seat at or near the bar you get a full view of the chef and kitchen staff hard at work.
Hot Tip: they are open for lunch Tues-Fri (great time to go) and they do brunch on Sat/Sun
Also--Tuesday night is all you can eat mussels for $8
Great Food in Milwaukee
A few of my favorite places to eat:
Let's start with the tried and true places
-Trocadero (east side near downtown) is great any time--some pluses are their happy hours and the fact that they serve good food quite late.
-Three Brothers Serbian restaurant (Bay View) is a must if you are a real diner. The meal takes two hours if you do it right. This is a family owned restaurant and the consistency is unmatched. make reservations and try to go on a week night P.S. they don't accept credit cards!!
--Hi Fi Cafe (Bay View) is one of the only locally owned coffee shops that does a real breakfast and is not classified as a greasy spoon. Lived in Bay View when this place opened and they deserve their success...been there for 12 years now!
--Eagan's Restaurant on Water St (downtown). I had my first real line cook job here 14 years ago. It is also consistent and high quality. Can't say I've eaten there recently but can't see why it wouldn't have only gotten better over the years. They specialize in seafood and it is a fresh as it comes, great raw bar and thin crust pizzas (hopefully still on menu) in addition to great entrees! Impressive bar to boot.
--Crawdaddy's (West Allis) I ate at this place the first day it was open (was a different location then). I have been eating there for 13 years now --I can still remember my first meal and my most recent--the impression is the same. They are the creole kings of consistency. The trout saute which is an appetizer has been on the menu for what seems like forever and it is exactly the same everytime...one of the tastiest things you'll ever eat!!
Everything is good here and the portions are very generous and with the right ingredients--not just a plate filled with potatoes. My sister ordered a crawfish salad once that had so much crawfish tail meat on it that she could not eat it all--we all got some :)
I have not been able to eat there the last two trips home because they are closed whenever I seem to want to go. This is not saying they are not open good hours, just not for me.
Now a few of my favorite new joints:
--Triskele's (Bay View) --this place is a little off the beaten path but very easy to get to and worth it even if it wasn't. A great couple opened this place late in 2007 and they couldn't have done it better. Jolinda is the chef/owner and Lynn is the bartender/owner. Together they have a nice neighborhood place that doubles as a destination dining experience. There are simply prepared dishes in meat, vegetable and seafood categories which makes this a great place to bring a group of people who have different dining preferences. Prices are what you would expect for a neighborhood place. the kitchen is behind the bar so if you have a seat at or near the bar you get a full view of the chef and kitchen staff hard at work.
Hot Tip: they are open for lunch Tues-Fri (great time to go) and they do brunch on Sat/Sun
Also--Tuesday night is all you can eat mussles for $8
--Fat Abbey (downtown-off water st)--this is by the same guy as Trocadero so you should know it will be good before you even see the place. It is! Great Patio(s) and is non-smoking inside (yeah) It just opened at the end of May so not very crowded yet but I'm sure word will get out fast...go now. It is a belgian beer bar featuring a nice selection both in bottles and on tap. The food is also made with many of the beers. I tasted a nice selection of the food there and all was amazingly good. the sweet potato fries are awesome and the trappist wings even better yet. The black berry turkey sandwich (not it's official name) is very imaginative and well executed. I expected nothing less and was not disappointed --have already sent my brother and parents there and they agree 100%. This is within walking distance to Lakefront Brewery so if you want to go on the best brewery tour anywhere and drink amazing beer all day pair these two up and make it an adventure!!
--Good Life (east side-near downtown) This is the oldest new place on my list. Been there for a little while now and it is going strong. Excellent location with an amazing patio on the Milwaukee river (also within walking distace to Lakefront Brewery) They do good Caribbean food often have live music, and did I mention the location :) I have never been for brunch but I hear it's good. If I still lived in Milwaukee I'd be enjoying the Good Life often (couldn't help myself)
--La Merenda (walker's point) --Love this place!! It's a Tapas restaurant -yes only tapas. The menu is "international" so anything goes. Is heavy on latin but by no means dominant. -- I was eating there with friends who own a restaurant and there were at least two other top chefs in there dining the same night so really what else is there to say...
...one small detraction for me was that the portions were so large that I could not eat as many tapas as I would have liked. Small bites should be just that. If you are going with a group of people this may not be an issue or if you are a really big eater :)
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Sea Salt (MSP)
Just ate at Sea Salt for the first time today. (1 hour ago) Pretty terrible. Went at an "off" time. No line and plenty of seating. I ordered my Tilapia tacos and took a seat. After 10 minutes I got up to order a beer, accepting that I was in for a wait. Then when said beer was almost gone I got up to ask where my lunch might be. turns out the staff could not discern between a man and a woman and had given my lunch to a man and his lunch had been marched around the patios three times (after he was already gone as he had eaten my lunch--BTW his was an order of Fried fish tacos-not tilapia) I waited another 7 minutes for my food so approx a total of 35 minutes wait for a single taco order. then the tacos were pitifully small and without any taste what-so-ever. I added salt, hot sauce and lime just to make them taste like something. I am writing this as I prepare something else to eat for lunch. --will not go back and will warn others
any good tasting menus in MSP?
Meritage on St. Peter in Downtown St. Paul will always do a tasting menu, just ask your server or mention it on Open Table if you make a reservation that way. Closed Mondays
