Minneapolis Favorite: Barbette

Barbette is definitely in my Top 5 for favorite restaurants in Minneapolis, MN. Everything about it is enjoyable: the service, the atmosphere, the food, the drinks (specifically the martinis), the wine selection, the price.

I finally made it in for brunch on Sunday. The coffee was exceptionally strong and tasty- very chocolately (similar to the Birchwood Blend made by Peace Coffee…another favorite). I tried the Eggs Florentine…WHOA. I didn’t think I liked tomatoes. I have to retract that statement if I’ve ever made it. The oven dried, marinated tomatoes made the dish. They had a rustic, earthy, full flavor that went really well with the light lemony hollandaise and perfectly poached eggs.

Other favorites:
• they make the best vodka dirty martini
• delicious carrot cake
• their menu changes frequently
• their wines are affordable and typically very good
• their fish selections are always incredible
• fries are always crispy and served with an incredible saffron aioli
• they purchase as much as they can from local companies (yay!) and typically the foods are organic when possible

I could go on and on…

Owner Kim Bartman is rumored to be opening a new restaurant in NorthEast pretty soon, called the Red Stag. Should be excellent based on the success of both Barbette and Bryant Lake Bowl.

Barbette
1600 W Lake St
Minneapolis, MN 55408
612-827-5710

Review: Good Day Cafe Minneapolis

I went to Good Day Cafe with some friends yesterday for lunch. It’s quite good. We had quite a variety of menu items and we were all pleased with what we ordered.

The interior design is very nice – rustic wood structure with a soft color palette. It’s very modern with a quiet and soft feeling, very inviting.

The staff was quite attentive. Our server in particular was excellent. Although they just opened on Wednesday, he was extremely knowledgeable about the menu and gave us excellent recommendations.

The four of us started with a round of fresh fruit smoothies. They were excellent! Talk about good food that tastes great and is good for you. We sampled the Tropical, Carrot, Pomegranite, and Berry smoothies. I’d have to say the Carrot and Pom smoothies were my favorite of the four. The Carrot smoothie was silky in texture and had apples, banana and yogurt in it. The Pom was nicely tart with a great addition of acai fruit. The Tropical and Berry smoothies were favored by 2 of my friends. The Tropical was a little too coconutty for me, but it was the best tropical smoothie I’ve tasted. And finally the Berry – it was to be expected of a strawberry, raspberry, blueberry smoothie.

For lunch, the menu offers a variety of breakfast, soup, salads, and sandwiches. Between the four of us, we had the Fried Egg Sandwich (definitely my favorite- I’d go back just for that), the Vegetable Sandwich, the Rachel, and we also tried one of the daily specials- Walleye.

The Fried Egg Sandwich was so perfect. It was the perfect level of saltiness and not too rich. The egg was perfectly cooked- just a little runny. Also on the sandwich was very delicious ham, tomato, and cheese.

The Vegetable sandwich was also delicious. It was light but full of flavor- sprouts, cucumber, lettuce, tomato, and some sauce that reminded me of a cross between hummus and tzatziki in flavor. The fries were excellent as well- served with spicy ketchup (yummy!).

The walleye was good. It was breaded but it wasn’t very bready, it was pretty light. The lemon garlic aioli served with my fries went really well with it. I was also told that the GDC potatoes were great and the cole slaw was fresh, crunchy and tasty. I didn’t try the Rachel, but I was told it was good. The bread might have been a bit much, but overall it was good.

In the end, I can’t wait to go back to Good Day Cafe! Oh, and did I mention it’s really affordable? My vegetable sandwich was only $6.75- a steal.

Other things I should mention- the bathrooms are very nice and clean. They also have a changing station in the women’s bathroom and it sounds like there is one in the men’s bathroom as well.

Review: Town Talk Diner, Minneapolis MN

GO THERE NOW! EARLY!

That’s the best thing I can tell you about the Town Talk Diner located in the Seward neighborhood of Minneapolis.

Town Talk Diner
2707 1/2 East Lake St.
Minneapolis, MN 55406
612.722.1312

We spontaneously went there after a long day of galavanting around town ending up at the Midtown YWCA.

It was 6pm and we were starving. First of all, who eats at 6pm? Apparently if you want to eat at Town Talk Diner, you better be there before 6pm. Sure it was Saturday night, but we got the last table when we walked in.

A few general comments about the place: exceptional waitstaff, clean bathrooms, great decor, and of course, awesome food.

It’s rare to find a restaurant that provides the level of service that Town Talk Diner does. They understand the importance of working together as a team to get the job done right. Adam was our server – knowledgeable, pleasant and overall delightful to have as a server.

Although the entrance is tight, we made our way into the dining room side (this is an addition to the original space). The host and the entire waitstaff attended to us throughout our entire meal. This is the level of service you might expect from a 5 Star restaurant.

When we sat down, there was the most delicious aroma coming from the table behind us. We asked Adam what it was. His response was like heaven rolled into a cheese platter: “Garlic parsley fries.” Seriously. Does it get any better than that?

We had a hard time trying to decide what to eat even though we knew the garlic parsely fries were a must. The menu is fun and everything sounds good – or was that because I had just finished working out and hadn’t eaten all day? Hmmm…I think not.

We both started with salads – grilled romaine w/Caesar dressing which was delightful, and a green salad that I’m told was equally as good.

We both had burgers for our main course – again with the garlic parsley fries. I had the home-made veggie burger that had a great Greek twist to it. The burger itself was excellent in an oozing-out-of-the-bun-when-I-take-a-bite kind of way. It was topped with tahini sauce and a cucumber yogurt sauce. De-lic-ious!

And of course the garlic parsley fries were just as delicious as they smelled. Mmm mmm good! Go there just for the fries – you won’t be disappointed.

The cheeseburger with bacon was cooked perfectly to order – medium rare – and was also quite good.

We didn’t have room for dessert, but we’ll be back.

In addition to burgers and fries, Town Talk Diner serves up excellent fish dishes, pasta, breakfast, a great selection of beer and wine, and last but not least, a list of Adult Shakes. We didn’t try any of those, but I’m sure we will when we get back.

And for those of you reading this that are afraid of garlic parsley fries, I have 2 things to say:

1. do not fear the garlic parsley fries – they have flavor
2. if you can’t quite get into the garlic parsley fries thing, then they have regular fries too

Curry Fish Tacos Recipe

I’m constantly reinventing fish tacos, but I think this curry version is my favorite. It’s very easy and can easily be served as a main course when having company over for dinner. You can also mix up the fresh herbs. If all you have is thyme and mint, try it out! Use what you have and what is most fresh. And as with most recipes on this blog, you may need to adjust the measurements. I’m writing this down from what I think is accurate. Try a citrusy sauvignon blanc with these fish tacos. Serves 4.
Curry Fish Tacos

1# firm white fish – my favorite is red snapper, but walleye, cod or tilapia work really well too
juice of 1 lemon
2T fresh chopped oregano
2T fresh chopped basil
S&P
1T curry powder
2T extra virgin olive oil
avocado, sliced
romaine lettuce, shredded
lemon-garlic aioli (recipe below)
tortilla shells – I really like using spelt tortillas instead of corn or flour

Cut fish into strips about 1″ wide and 4″ long. Combine lemon juice through evoo. Marinate fish for 0-20 minutes. Don’t wait too long or the lemon juice will turn the fish into cevice. Heat a little bit of evoo in a saute pan over med-high to high heat. Saute fish until cooked through. If you have a gas stove, warm the tortillas over an open low flame. Or wrap them in foil and heat them in a 200 degree oven.
Serve tacos with lettuce, avocado, and lemon garlic aioli. If you like, serve with lime wedges for a fresh squeezed citrus flavor. These go really well with sweet potato fries.

Lemon-Garlic Aioli

1 cup mayonnaise – I like to use olive oil mayonnaise for this particular recipe
3 cloves garlic, minced
juice of 1/2 lemon

Combine ingredients and use as a spread.

Sweet Potato Fries

1 large sweet potato will make enough fries for 2 people.

Peel and cut sweet potatoes into strips. Heat 1″ oil in a pan over high heat. Fry sweet potatoes and sprinkle with salt before serving.