First stop on the way in: St Paul and the Happy Gnome. Go for the beer, stay for the beer. I will give props to the bison/elk/bacon burger of meatastic-ness but the rest of the food was nothing to blog about.
Stay at uber hip W Foshay, the art deco building oozes cool and the room's swank mini-bar (that we did not touch), made me wish I had worn something a little more...gangster moll. The Prohibition bar way up top was great for views and atmosphere, but light on cocktail snobbery.
Saffron, a Mediterranean/Middle Eastern restaurant in downtown, is where we ended up for dinner. Splitting delicately spiced small plates we sampled anchovies with harissa and preserved lemon, and kofta meatballs in tomato/mint sauce. Both we packed full of fresh and balanced flavors, the anchovies were a real hit- the preserved lemon cutting right through the oily fat of the fish and the earthy spice of the harissa. We then moved onto the lamb carpaccio and fresh beans with lemon and dill. The lamb and a wonderful combination of sweet fatty flavors with a hint of wildness and tart acidity. The beans were nice, nothing to write home about.
Located in the Graves Hotel is cocktail nirvana. Bradstreet Crafthouse is the kind of place you take someone who knows cocktails. Really knows cocktails. An inventive menu, classics and twists, attention to technique, glassware, house made bitters/syrups/etc all served to make this place truly at the pinnacle of the resurgence in the art of the cocktail. I could have watched all night. They even had specific shaped and sizes of ice for various drinks. My best cocktail was one created on the spot- he did a little twist on a Manhattan involving a dropper of Laphraoig and a spruce flavored liquor. I still dream of this place.
Breakfast at Hell's Kitchen. All kitsch, no bite. I guess its cool to be served by surly hungover hipsters in their jammies, and Ralph Steadman does some art for the place; but that does not make the food any better than any other urban diner.
Getting our sushi and ramen fix, we headed over to St. Paul for Saji Ya. Pretty sweet house ramen, and the lunch box special was satisfactory as well.
The last stop before we left the Twin Cities was a beer store located in the burbs. A good well rounded selection of imports, local and domestics. Nothing outrageously hard to find, but I was pleased to see that the beers was organized by style and not geography. This a great way educate and help people find beers similar to ones they already like. It encourages people to expand beer horizons!
Thus stocked at the Four Firkins, we headed back to Wisconsin well fed, having slept in a swank hotel, and with beer. The Pilgrims would have been proud.
