Category Archives: Minnesota

May 7, 2014 · 8:10 pm

American Swedish Institute and Room and Board Outlet – Minneapolis!

We followed a Volvo into the parking lot and parked our Ford next to a Saab – which seemed like an appropriate way of arriving at the American Swedish Institute in Minneapolis. The museum is a hybrid of an elegant over-the-top 19th century Turnblad Mansion with rococo ceilings, elaborately carved mahogany woodwork and the most remarkable assortment of tiled stoves I’ve seen, plus an equally elegant but very spare Scandinavian modern wing with pristine white walls and spotless floors and pale wood.

 

 

As expected, the exhibit we saw of exquisite papercuts  (the art of “psaligraphy”) by Danish-Norwegian artist Karen Bit Vejle were remarkable – huge, intricate, lovely, I cannot imagine how she does such lovely things with a small pair of scissors. The papercuts were exhibited in both the modern wing and scattered around the mansion, which was cool. We also were impressed with the paper cuts (see below) of St. Paul artist Cindy McKeen, who  studied at Grinnell and at Drake and whose work was reportedly influenced by her rural Iowa childhood. I found out later her work is on sale at Ingebretsen’s, the well-known Scandinavian Gift shop in  Minneapolis.

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The day before, we went to the Room and Board Outlet in nearby Golden Valley – and I found EXACTLY the chair I was looking for (or pretty darned close!) for $600 off the catalog price. How amazing is that? We saved an extra $100 or so on shipping. I am a longtime fan of Room and Board but never knew there was an outlet – this is the only one in the country and it’s only open on Saturday and Sunday. The place was packed and as I wandered around looking for “my chair” – I suddenly spotted it in a remote area of the cavernous warehouse, surrounded by couches similar to the I bought for full price a few years ago. But another woman spotted “my chair” too and promptly sat on it. I waited nervously for her to leave then jumped into it and held on for dear life until my husband arrived and could go fetch a salesclerk. It was the only one in the whole place!image

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May 6, 2014 · 2:38 pm

Bar La Grassa; Patisserie 46 in Minneapolis

imageWe were tempted to return to our longtime favorite restaurant in Minneapolis – Lucia’s in Uptown – but we (or make that I) decided to be a little more adventurous. Glad we did. We had a fantastic meal at Bar La Grassa (BLG)  in the Warehouse district  9check out the deer popping out of the facade above!) – eating wonderful Italian food that Des Moines, alas, doesn’t have much of. As advised, we nabbed two seats at the bar overlooking the very busy chefs who seemed to be effortlessly whipping up endless plates of inventive pastas and bruchetta. We had a hard time choosing what to eat from the extensive menu but it helped that you could order half portions of pasta. We loved everything we tried – tomato-based bruschetta with creamy ricotta (a lot of the ingredients here are reportedly source from Bologna); another bruschetta topped with carpaccio, greens and shaved Parmesan. The pastas were all excellent – we had raw tuna atop some extremely spicy and orange pasta made with hot chili oil; pasta with a veal ragu; and black pasta in a light squid-flavored butter with perfectly cooked mussels and roasted tomatoes. For dessert, we split a chocolate panna cotta that came with a crisp delicious flat cookie. Perfect (but we were too full to finish it.) This place even got me to eat lima beans – which were served as a free amuse buse (or whatever the Italian version of that is) marinated with bits of cauliflower, carrots, etc. We were also very glad we had reservations because as promised, on a Saturday night, the place was jam-packed. Great place!!

For lunch on Sunday we went to Patisserie 46 on 46th and Grand – I remembered getting a bread at this place three years ago and seeing the amazing looking sandwiches. This time the sandwiches weren’t on display but the ones we ordered were fantastic – a grilled panini with brisket, cheese and light horseradish (must remember to do this with my leftover brisket) and a delicious BLT with lots of crispy hearty bacon on a chewy baguette. The pastries and breads and sorbet also looked terrific. Next time!

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May 3, 2014 · 10:42 pm

Minneapolis by bike, the lakes, minnehaha falls, river; be’witched, salty tart, room and board outlet

imagefantastic day riding our bikes around the lakes in Minneapolis. Sure it could have been a little warmer, but it did get up to 55, which is practically a heat wave here and it was sunny, most of the time. We have long wanted to bring our bikes here to try out the nation’s most bike-friendly city, or so it’s been called (although a couple from Portland, Oregon who we met today at our b&b weren’t sure if it could beat Portland.image

must admit it beat Des Moines, much as I am a fan our our trails. These are just so well laid out and organized, with two trails, one for bikes, one for walkers, most of the time – at least on the portion of the grand round trail we rode.

then the scenery! I am still deciding which lake I want to live along, not to mention which of the many mansions and lovely homes. We rode from the lake of the isles to lake Calhoun and lake harriet(which as a very Nordic looking bandshell and then along a winding creek full of water, bordered by a parkway with more lovely homes to minnehaha falls which was full of water that came crashing down into the creek. There were still some very solid blocks of snow down there.image

we rode north along the Mississippi! past the first lock and dam; the frank gehry-designed museum at u of Minnesota ((which doesn’t look as shiny as it once did) and then to the super cool new Guthrie theater with the navy blue cantilever deck and behind it the old Gold Medal Flour mill that’s become a museum. the mill “ruins” park with the shell of an old building is on my list to check out more. We kept riding to the warehouse district and north loop where we tried be’witched sandwich shop (on washington age) and were more impressed with it than last time. Excellent pastrami sandwich and pulled pork sandwich.

We rode back to our Lowrey hill b&b through downtown on Nicollet Mall(good place for cyclists) , stopping to wave to the Mary Tyler Moore sculpture (or Mary Richards) then thru loring park and over the way cool siah aramanji bridge over one of the worlds more confusing intersections, past the sculpture garden and the Walker art center? great and pretty flat and easy ride.

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May 3, 2014 · 4:34 am

back in Minneapolis– evelo’s and spyglass coffee in uptown and Salty Tart

nice to be back in Minneapolis after three years. We stayed at our favorite b&b which we found 24 years ago, Evelo’s, an old charming house with parquet floors, shabby chic furnishings and a gorgeous collection of art nouveau Tiffany stained glass lamps. The owners were at the opera until 11 so we easily killed a half hour at the spyglass coffee house, nearby on Hennepin. bit precious but the coffee really was impressive (mine supposedly had a hint of s’mores which we decided would probably taste like a charred marshmallow with a little bit of grass on it after having fallen off the stick I dangled over the fire. Didn’t pick up that hint.)

On Saturday afternoon we went to the Salty Tart Bakery in the Midtown Global market, an international bazaar  of sorts in a cool old former Sears store. The bakery was sadly out of its famous brioche. Not to worry, they appeared at breakfast at Evelo’s on Sunday.

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April 28, 2013 · 5:30 pm

Nordic in Minneapolis

Not sure we’ll get to Minneapolis again as soon as I like but when we do, these suggestions from Travel + Leisure are worth trying:

Bachelor Farmer – with the city’s first rooftop garden

The American Swedish Institute’s Fika, serving open-faced sandwiches (smorgas) (which looks a bit like the cafeteria at IKEA)

Union – run by a former staffer of the famous Copenhagen restaurant Noma.

FIKA, the Cafe at ASI

 “More than a museum cafe, this bright spot is a serious attempt to integrate local ingredients in dishes that are faithful to the tradition of “fika,” an institution in Sweden.” –New York Times

FIKA is the American Swedish Institute’s new Nordic-inspired café inside the Nelson Cultural Center.

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March 8, 2013 · 9:25 pm

Hanging out in the Minneapolis airport..great places to eat

We were not looking forward to our three hour layover in the Minneapolis airport en route to Phoenix from Des Moines but it turned out to be better than expected. We found a surprisingly good restaurant and decided to splurge since it was a Saturday night and we were stuck in an airport. And by splurge I mean paying $10 for a fancy sandwich with top-notch ingredients as opposed to $5 at Subway. We ate at a wine bar called Surdyk’s Flight in the “airport mall,”  which  has small plates, sandwiches, salads and paninis served in a sleek alcove with a few booths, each with a flat screen TV showing a movie with the sound off and English subtitles. Our sandwiches were excellent, served on crusty baguettes from what we were told is one of the best bakeries in the twin cities, Rustica. The restaurant itself is an offshoot of a well known wine shop in Minneapolis. (Hence the word “flight” in the restaurant’s name.)

One sandwich was salami with a thick slab of fresh mozzarella, aoili, greens. The other was Applewood turkey with thick slice of Manchego cheese, aoili, quince jam. My husband had one of his favorite beers, Bell’s from Kalamazoo., Michigan. The place even had two of Iowa’s finer products, La Quercia prosciutto and Templeton Rye. We shared a Rustica ginger molasses cookie for dessert and all toll managed to easily kill over an hour at dinner.

On the way back to Des Moines, with another three hours to kill in the Minneapolis airport, we ate at the super sleek Japanese sushi and noodle place Shoyu in Concourse G. The food was really good (and pricey) – we had very crispy chicken and mushroom wontons with cilantro and smoked chili glaze and shared an entree –  Tokyo style pork ramen with hard boiled egg , wakame, memma, and togarashi (none of these items were familiar except the egg) and a Rush River Amber Ale from River Falls, Wisconsin. We ordered on an Ipad (not the one I am typing on now) and watched chefs cook in an open kitchen. Brave new world here. The waiter told us the new restaurants in Concourse G are part of the airport’s overhaul last August and some were conceived with the help of well-known Twin Cities chefs.  Shoyu, for example, was the offspring of Tanpopo noodle house in St. Paul’s warehouse district.

Also in the foodie flyer’s heaven of Concourse G, we  found Mimosa, an upscale French restaurant, and Minnibar, a cafe that looked like a set from the Jetsons (serving “globally inspired sandwiches created by Chef Andrew Zimmern). There also is a new high-design upscale “food hall” in Concourse G (and other mini-halls elsewhere) that is markedly different in appearance and offerings from the old-style “food court” that still exists in the airport (along with fast food chain outposts sprinkled here and there including Starbucks, A&W, Subway, Godfather’s Pizza, Quiznos Sub, DQ, Chick-fil-A, Sharro ).  While the courts have the usual Chinese and Mexican fast food, the halls are sleek and cleanly designed with little areas selling upscale fro yo, lots of fresh fruit, eccentric assortments of candy (goo goo clusters from Nashville but alas no Hi-Chews, from Japan), cleverly packaged travel items, from nausea pills to backpacks.

Of course we were looking for some humble popcorn after sharing our pricy entree and appetizer at Shoyu. No such luck.

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December 2, 2012 · 12:08 am

where to stay along the Mississippi in Iowa, Wisconsin and Minnesota

One of the worst nights we’ve had was staying aboard a boat that doubles as a hotel of sorts along the Mississippi River in Dubuque Iowa. It seemed like a good idea but the quarters were cramped and strange; the boat was docked beside not only a busy road but a railroad track so it was noisy; and we were the only people aboard. Given that this boat was among the recommendations listed for where to stay along the Mississippi in a 2009 issue of a Minneapolis based mag, I’m not sure how the other recommendations will be. But here they are just in case:

– Golden Lantern Inn, Red Wing, MN

– Tritsch House B&B, Alma, WI (this is a really nice little river town!)

– Alexander Mansion, Winona, Mn.- Wilson Schoolhouse Inn, LaCrosse, WI

– The Hancock House, Dubuque

– Mont Rest, Bellevue, Ia. (long been curious about this place)

– Tatanka Bluffs, Redwood Falls, MN

– Belle Rive, Lanesboro, MN

– Oakenwald Terrace. Chatfield, MN

– Woodland Trails. Hinckley, MN

– Inn at Sacred Clay Farm, Lanesboro, MN

– Solglimit, Duluth, MN

– Blue Heron, Ely, MN

– Loon Song Bed and Breakfast, Park Rapids, MN

– A.G. Tomson House. Duluth, MN

– Covington Inn, St. Paul, MN

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September 25, 2012 · 2:06 am

Taking the bus to Laguardia – and nabbing an earlier flight home in Minneapolis

I paid $2.25 (the price of a bus ride) to get to Laguardia airport this afternoon which is much better than a $40 cab ride – not as fast of course, but not as long as I feared. It took me an hour – from the time I picked up the M60 bus at 106th and Broadway to my arrival at Laguardia’s Terminal C – and frankly seemed faster than the express bus I rode into the city (for $12.50).

I had a three hour layover in Minneapolis so of course my arrival and departing gates were minutes away from each other (as opposed to my outbound flight when I had 37 minutes to get from one end of the airport to the other.) Noticing that there was an earlier flight to Des Moines (at 7:15 vs. 9:30 p.m.) I went to the gate for the earlier flight to see if I could get on. There was room but Delta wanted to charge me $50 (which United wasn’t going to do when I tried to do the same thing a week ago in Boston). So I said no thanks but then the Delta person saw that my 9:30 flight was overbooked so she waived the $50 fee. So here I am home – although my bag won’t arrive until 11 p.m. So I guess it pays to ask and stand your ground….at least sometimes!

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March 23, 2012 · 2:24 pm

To check out: the St. James Hotel in Red Wing, Minn. – ghosts and all

Friends spent a few days earlier this week exploring the area around Red Wing Minnesota, and recommend the St. James Hotel, where they stayed.  Good to know. In the recent past, we’ve done more exploring just to the east of the Mississippi River in Wisconsin, north of LaCrosse, Wi. in towns we really enjoyed including Alma, Stockholm and Pepin. Maybe it’s time to do a little more exploring on the Minnesota side.

When I googled the St James, the word “haunted” came up – apparently the place has a reputation for housing ghosts! More below from a 2008 story I found:

Ghosts linger in Southern Minnesota

Heather Edwards
staff writer

Armed with a copy of Christopher Larsen’s “Ghosts of Southeastern Minnesota,” I headed south to catch the last of the autumn colors and get into the Halloween spirit.

There are many supposedly haunted spots in Minnesota, and the southern part of the state is no exception. I decided to check out some of the ghostly spots; on the morning of my day trip, the skies were appropriately spooky, with fog enveloping the car as we drove down Highway 61.

My first stop was the St. James Hotel, 406 Main St. in Red Wing. According to “Ghosts of Southeastern Minnesota,” the hotel was built in 1875 on the remains of an Indian burial ground and has a long history of ghostly occurrences. For example, a new employee once walked into her office and found a note, written in childlike script, that read, “Who are you?” Later, she would find another note that read, “I know who you are.”

Was this a trick played by a fellow employee? Possibly. But the employee who found the notes kept sensitive information inside her office, and so the office was always locked. She was only one of a few employees who had a key.

In addition, chefs working in the hotel’s basement have seen faces – no bodies, just faces – staring at them. Housekeepers have seen something move in a nearby room, but when they investigate, nothing is there.

Guests have been affected by the strange happenings as well. In fact, several guests have left in the middle of the night because the blinds on their windows were flapping on their own accord.


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November 19, 2011 · 12:26 am

minneapolis – top bike-friendly city

When we were in Minneapolis last month – we wished we had our bikes as we watched people gliding along beautiful bike paths along the Mississippi. So no big surprise that it’s at the top of this mag’s bike-friendly cities – although it can get awfully chilly  for bike riding up there.
Minneapolis, the largest city in the “Land of 10,000 Lakes,” is adding 57 new miles of bikeways this year, with plans to add another 183 miles during the next 20 years. With these efforts, Minneapolis nabbed the top spot in Bicycling magazine’s Top 50 list of bike-friendly cities and was designated a Gold-level bicycle-friendly community by the League of American Bicyclists. To learn more about the city’s trails, visit TrailLink.com.

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