Check to see if Little Szechuan or Teahouse might be able to accommodate you - they have authentic food, albeit their menu is typically Szechuan. What about Grand Shanghai in Saint Paul as well?

Definitely worth the visit - it's always a sign that summer is around the corner and their soft ice cream treats - cones, malts, shakes, dipped cones are worth the wait.

Butcher & Boar or Seven have good steaks. Agree Capitol Grille has good steaks but go with something that you can't get in Chicago.

Does anyone know of stores in the Twin Cities area that carry fresh Italian chestnuts? I purchase regular chestnuts at Rainbow and while they are fine for things like stuffing, I'd love to get my hands on some Italian chestnuts for roasting as I find them sweeter. Figured rather than calling a bunch of stores, some of you knowledgeable Chowhounders might know. Thanks

I think the dim sum at Tea House is more northern chinese and doesn't come around on carts. Dim sum is usually cantonese and the dim sum dishes are cooked and brought around versus ordering off a menu.

Second the poster who suggested the Colossal Cafe. I also like the Good Earth.

Ditto that. I was there last night - compared to the University Ave construction of last summer, this one seems to be less of a hassle to get around. I stopped by for pho and then went to Sun Foods off University & Rice and had no issues. I was expecting the worst based on last summer and was pleasantly surprised.

Thanks all for your help. I purchased a box of the Alpen and the level of sweetness seems okay although I didn't care for all the wheat flakes in it. Thanks for the call out on Aldi - with their German connections and the germany chocolate / cookies they have, I did think about giving it a drive by. SOunds like it's just not a regularly offered item. Will need to check out Whole Foods, Ikea & Mastels.

I believe that muesli is made from raw oats which is why it's loose while granola is toasted and "clumpy" (i.e. pieces of oats cling together because they are held together by flour, oil and/ or some other binder). I also think that granola has more sugar and fat but I'm not sure.

I'm disheartened by the boxes sold in the cereal aisle that are labeled "museli" but look like they are basically glorified granola by any other name.

What are people's recommendations on where to buy and what brands - I'm interested in the pale raw oat muesli that isn't held together with a binder with some nuts or dried fruit that is served in Europe with yogurt. It sounds like it might be easy to make but wanted to get some ready mixed some if it's easy to get here. Thanks.

Just by way of clarification - these have been bakery/cafes but no table service. You order your coffee and pastry at a counter, they either bag your pastry or put it on a plate. These places work the same way that a Starbucks or other coffee chain does - you order and get everything at the register and they have some tables/chairs if you want to eat them there.

I was taken aback twice this month. I went to 2 different coffee shops with baked goods and paid with a credit card. My credit card slip had the amount of the purchase (coffee and a bakery item) and a line for a tip and then the total.

What are people's opinion's on what to do with the tip line? I mean, I'm asking the person behind the cash register to pour me a cup of coffee and open the bakery case to hand me my food item. I will occasionally put $$ into a tip jar if I'm a regular customer but it's not something I do automatically.

Maybe it's psychological but a tip jar feels more optional to me than a printed line and a total line, just like you'd see in a restaurant. In fact, at one of the shops, I signed it and didn't fill out either line and the server said "you need to total it" --- felt very uncomfortable.

Thoughts / opinions?

Looking forward to your review. Has anyone been there for food other than dim sum? I see that it advertised that it has new owners - not sure when that happened.

I go to the one in Maplewood. If you're making the trek out that way, call beforehand to see if they have it.

Did you go during the week or the weekend. I used to eat at Bangkok Thai and want to try On's but have seen varying reviews on their service speed and when you go with a 9 year old, a prolonged wait doesn't quite work for us...

With warm weather approaching (or even here, depending on your perspective), Costco sells whole red snapper that's incredibly fresh and with a little bit of salt and put on your grill, served with a couple of lemon wedges or a chimichurri sauce, you can enjoy a bit of whole fish at home. Don't recommend the whole fish that's sold at Asian markets, for the most part - very unfresh given the cloudy eyes and fishy aroma (take it from someone whose grandfather was a commercial fisherman in Northern Japan until his 70s)

I have been there twice - 2 weeks in a row!!!! I have not been the Minneapolis one but I really liked the atmosphere in there. I tried their flapper with the maple syrup and then last week their flapper sandwich with the egg & cheese. I really like the flavor of the flapper but find that their thickness makes them feel/taste undercooked in the middle - I took half of my egg/cheese flapper home because it was so huge and re-baked it the next day and found that it actually tasted better as it crisped up on the outside and cooked up through the center.

Bottom line - I recommend it - check it out if you haven't gone. Both times, I went during the week -once around 7:30 and it was pretty quiet and the other time around 10am and it was crowded up I was able to get a table. Friendly service and the woman at the register is super nice.

butunless things have changed, no ramen, though :(

Wanted to see if anyone else can tell us about where to locate arepas (besides the Hola Arepas truck) - I have a major craving for some

I am heading to Red Wing for a meeting - where in the vicinity of Red Wing's Main Street would you recommend for a nice lunch besides the Saint James Hotel? I've been to the St. James and would like to explore other places within walking distance of Main Stereet. Bev's Cafe? Others?
Thanks.

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Main Street
106 Main St, Star Prairie, WI 54026

Glad to see that they are getting some publicity!

http://heavytable.com/asian-deli-in-s...

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Asian Deli
388 Western Ave N, St Paul, MN 55103

This gem is turning into a family favorite. Location wise, it's off University going south on Western where Mai Village is located. We've only gone for dinner and the food has always been eyepoppingly fresh and flavorful. Restaurant is immaculately clean (unlike some of the Asian places on University between Rice and Victoria that we have gone for pho, banh mi or bun noodle salads).

I don't know what the lunch crowd is like but both times we've gone for dinner, we've been the only ones there. They are not open on Saturday or Sunday - which is a shame because perhaps more families would venture there on a Saturday. If the owners are reading this, I'd suggest that they maybe consider closing Sunday and Monday and opening Tuesday - Saturday to see if their business will grow. I hope that they remain in business and are successful because it is a true addition to the food in that area.,

If you haven't gone, check it out and support this place. We've tried a couple of their soups - tom yum and their red curry coconut noodle soup, their chicken wings and egg rolls as well as their pad sew yew and red curry. Consistently good and a wonderful find.

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Mai Village
394 University Ave W, Saint Paul, MN 55103

I noticed Byerlys/Lunds are advertising a "kobe style beef" corned beef brisket. Has any one tried it? I wonder how different it is in taste/texture from the traditional corned beef....

I get mine at Byerlys/Lunds

Jim - do they just sell food or is it also a market? Also, any idea if they are open at night or are the strictly a daytime operation? Thanks!

Can anyone confirm that the new Peking Garden does indeed serve dim sum? When they moved a couple of years back, I was told that they didn't offer dim sum at the new location.

Give Pagoda Restaurant's dim sum in the University of Minnesota area a try - I've been there twice on Saturdays and have been pleasantly suprised - much better IMO than Mai Village.

Also, while it's not the Hong Kong style dim sum with carts, I hear that Tea House on University Ave is offering a Shanghai style breakfast on weekends that I'm looking forward to.

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Mai Village
394 University Ave W, Saint Paul, MN 55103

Peking Garden
1488 University Ave W, Saint Paul, MN 55104

Does anyone know if they are open for dinner or is it just a lunch place?

I know that Pagoda in Dinkytown has had some mixed reviews for Dim Sum but we've been there twice in the last couple of months on the weekend and I've found that they are much better than our experience with Jun Bo and comparable to Mandarin Kintchen. Food was warmer than Jun Bo where some of our dishes were stone cold coming off the cart and the flavors were authentic (I've had dim sum in Hong Kong and other places in Asia), service carts came around more frequently and the staff were patient in explaining the various choices with people who had not had dim sum previously. I'm not sure that they have the "90 types of dim sum" that they purportedly offer all at the same time.

Best bets - baked bread buns and their steamed items that have a filling in them - the shiao mai, chive dumplings and stuffed fried tofu skins. For their fried items, ask how warm they are or how long they have been on the cart - if you can get them warm, their sesame balls and taro balls are awesome. The best thing that we have had are their various baked bread items - their pineapple buns (stuffed with custard), coconut buns, meat buns and red bean buns. Evidently they are special baked just for dimsum and they are available for carry out - both times, we've gotten 4 additional buns to take home to eat the next day - warm them up for about 5-10 minutes at 200 degrees in the oven and they taste just as fresh as when you get them at the restaurant.

Never seems to be a wait compared to the hordes that are at Mandarin Kitchen - the downside is that they don't offer parking since it's in Dinkytown so you have to park at a meter or somewhere on the street.

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Jun Bo
7717 Nicollet Ave, Minneapolis, MN 55423

Mandarin Kitchen
8766 Lyndale Ave S, Minneapolis, MN 55420

Evergreen Restaurant has it on Saturdays and Sundays and having lived in Taiwan, I can tell you that it's pretty good and authentic. The toasted sesame bun was probably the only thing that I didn't think was that great - they had both sweet and savory hot soy milk and a glutenous rice roll that you can buy on the street carts in Taiwan in the morning.

I have been to the U of MN Teahouse about 2 months ago with high hopes as the one in St. Paul was a ways away to be going there regularly. I loved the decor but the food service and food itself seemed to lack the authenticity that I've experienced in St. Paul. Also, menu was more limited and prices about $2-3 high for each entree. It's a nice date restaurant but I prefer food quality of ambience .....

I went to Trung Nam Bakery in St. Paul and got their delicious croissants last week and also tried one of their banh mi sandwiches. While I thought their banh mi bread was excellent - crunchy on the outside and light on the inside, I didn't think much of their meager fillings and quality of their pate / meat. Also, they just had one meat sandwich and one vegetarian/tofu variety.

I haven't tried the banh mi sandwich at Saigon Restaurant on University Ave and not sure if they are made fresh. The ones at Quang on Eat Street in Minneapolis seem to be premade.

Chowhound experts - where else in Minneapolis / St. Paul should I check out for great banh mi - awesome bread, great flavored fillings, mayo and pate?