Fried green tomato sandwich with pickled onions (left) and Whitefish salad sandwich (right). Both were excellent!

I met a friend at Rinata last night for dinner. I hadn’t seen her for awhile and it was very fun to catch up. Rinata has an interesting happy hour: everything on the menu is $2 off (including all drinks and food) that ends at 6pm. Cool!

We had some wine – their house white and red were very decent. We had an appetizer with octopus – we were both hoping it was better. It wasn’t nearly lemony enough, and it was served with saffron potatoes – kind of strange for an appetizer, but I’m sure some people like it.

Now, we hadn’t seen each other for a few months so we had a lot of catching up to do. Not to mention – it was 6pm – a wee bit early for us to be having dinner. Regardless, the over polite server came by about every 5 minutes for the next hour asking us if we were ready to order dinner. Yikes – give it a rest!

When we did order dinner, we were pleasantly surprised. All of the entrees at Rinata are pastas – I wish I had looked at the menu before going there since I’m not a big pasta person. Also, there is only 1 vegetarian friendly entree (unless you count the clams then it’s 2).

I had the papardelle with short rib ragu – it was simply yummy! My friend had the linguine with clams – it was also really good. I could tell that the pasta was store bought and not homemade. That was a disappointment. But the clams were really garlicky so that wins big points! (because we all know about my love affair with garlic)

In the end, I’m not sure if I’ll go back. It was decent, but not a place I would tell people they had to go to.

Rinata

2451 Hennepin Ave

Minneapolis, MN 55405

(612) 374-8998

www.rinatarestaurant.com

Sea Salt gets their fish from local seafood store Coastal Seafood (the best place in Minneapolis to purchase seafood and fish). Sea Salt’s menu features an array of tacos, ‘po boys, appetizers, fresh oysters, etc. And everything is fantastic.

I had the calamari tacos with cole slaw. These tacos were on corn tortillas with fresh, homemade salsa. The calamari was fried perfectly, too. I wish the sauce had been really garlicky, but otherwise I would order these again in a heartbeat. The coleslaw was also quite good.

The last time I was there, I tried the tilapia tacos – also YUMMY. But this time I had it with a side of grilled corn on the cob…my favorite. I threw some lime juice, salt and tabasco sauce on it and it was quite good.

The oysters are extremely fresh and delicious, and you can also order beer and wine there.

Gourmet sandwiches. YUM.

I’ve only tried the Italian Hero so far and it is DE-LIC-IOUS. They put this tangy olive tapenade on it and a huge chunk of fresh mozz. Oh yes, fresh mozz. My favorite cheese.

Aside from that, they layer on the ham, salami, etc. Lettuce, tomato. It doesn’t get much better than that. And they serve it with this incredible olive-pepper relish. I must try to get that recipe. The roasted vegetable couscous served with it was just okay.

And to top it off, they serve some great sodas made with cane sugar. No high fructose corn syrup there! (Including the ever-so-loved Bubble Up)

I should also acknowledge that the staff there is really great too. Very accommodating as a first time visitor and extremely fast take out (how does 5 minutes sound?).

Get there now! And let me know what your favorite sandwiches are from there! (Photo coming soon…)

Bewiched Deli

800 Washington Ave. North

Minneapolis, MN 55401

Telephone: 612.767.4330

Fax: 612.338.2108

HOURS

M-F 8-8

SAT 10-6

SUN CLOSED

Sunday, August 17, 11 am – 5 pm

Nicollet Island Pavillion (40 Power Street, Minneapolis, MN see map)

From the Twin Cities Fresh Taste Festival site:

Join us at the inaugural Twin Cities Fresh Taste Festival, a day-long event to celebrate the best in organic, local and sustainable food products and wines.

Set on the beautiful picturesque banks of the Mississippi River at the Nicollet Island Pavilion, the festival will be filled with organic food and beverage vendors – from many outstanding local restaurants and food producers. Sample from 100 organic wines from national and international wineries. Plus, learn from local chefs as they prepare some of their best signature organic dishes.

Tickets:

$55 before day-of

$65 at the door

NOTE: you can receive $3.00 off a ticket with your Minnesota Public Radio Member Connect Card

Jasmine 26 is only open for dinner and is located right around the corner from Eat Street on Nicollet Ave and 26th St. The same owners have Jasmine Deli up the street, which is only open for lunch.

Keeping up with the excellent Vietnamese served at the deli, Jasmine 26 has overly delicious food. Well, let’s start with the interior. It’s warm, cozy, and inviting. Fairly contemporary with dark wood and dim lighting, it’s not too dim to see your food or drinks. ‘Nuf said. On to the food.

We started with the Sea Salt & Pepper Tofu – WOW. I really wasn’t expecting much from this, and I like tofu. This was easily the best tofu I’ve had. It was like it had a really light breading on it, was fried, and was still moist and juicy on the inside. That’s right. I’m talking about tofu. I’d order it again in a heart beak. Come to think of it, I haven’t stopped thinking about it since.

We also had a shrimp crostini fried thing and it was terrible. Don’t order it. It sounded good, but I would like that 30 seconds of ordering in my life back.

On to entrees…I had the Vietnamese ribs served with rice and fresh tomato & cucumber. De-lic-ious! Tender, falling off the bones ribs with a nice lemongrass marinade. Had it for leftovers the next day and it was just as good.

We also had the (can’t remember the name of it now) veggie dish with oyster sauce and ginger. It was pretty good, but there wasn’t enough sauce.

I’m anxious to try the pho and other curries on their menu. I’ll be back soon.

They have a full bar with some fun martinis and the like on the menu. They also serve sake which is always a plus. OH! and it’s affordable. Very affordable for excellent food.

Jasmine 26

8 East 26th St

Minneapolis, MN 55407

(612) 870-3800

Participating restaurants in the Minneapolis area serve tasting menus during lunch and dinner throughout the week (although not all places offer both). Lunch menus range from $10-$30 and dinner menus are $30. Some restaurants also include a wine tasting flight to accompany the tasting menu.

Last year, I visited La Belle Vie during Restaurant Week and it was unbelievably phenomenal. Although we don’t intend to visit it again this time, I’m hoping there will be another Restaurant Week in March like last year.

Make reservations ASAP to get a table – they fill up fast!

Restaurants participating next week that I would recommend:

Azia Restaurant & Anemoni Sushi – they’re offering a sushi/sake menu in addition to regular menu options

menu | reservations | website

Cafe Barbette

Pip’s Plate review | menu | website

Cafe & Bar Lurcat

menu | reservations | website

Campiello – I’m not typically a fan of American Italian, but their menu looks pretty good

menu | reservations | website

Cosmos

menu | reservations | website

Herkimer Pub & Brewery

menu | website

La Belle Vie

menu | website

Masa – I’ll be hitting this up for lunch

menu | reservations | website

Otho Restaurant and Street Lounge – a new place downtown Minneapolis; the reviews on citysearch sound promising; I’ll be hitting this up for dinner

menu | website

Palomino – I’ll be hitting this up for lunch

menu | reservations | website

Red Stag Supperclub

menu | website

Saffron Restaurant & Lounge – Love love this place; I’ll be hitting this up for dinner

menu | website

Town Talk Diner

menu | Pip’s Plate review | website

Vincent

menu | reservations | website

You can see all of the participating restaurants and their menus at the MSP Mag’s website.

Well, now that I’ve been, I will be going back regularly. It was most excellent!

My friend and I had the charcuterie plate with an extremely delicious duck and chicken liver pate….mmmmm. It definitely rivals Barbette’s pate. The salami was a little fatty for my taste, but the cheeses were quite good. I’m not very familiar with cheeses on a charcuterie plate, but hey- I won’t say no.

We ordered one of the nightly specials and one entree off the menu, and they were both great. I don’t eat meat very often- I typically do when I know where the meat comes from or eat at a restaurant where I know the owner takes particular care in selecting high quality, local, organic meat. And for some reason I must’ve been feeling really low on iron because the sound of the Steak special made my mouth start watering.

For good reason, too. The steak was incredible. It was cooked perfectly medium rare with a delicious sauce and incredible pureed potatoes.

The fish entree was also quite good- walleye with a cucumber jalapeno tartar sauce. I’m all about the sauces and both of these dishes were up to par for my taste.

Aside from the great food, we had a really nice bottle of wine with dinner- Hess Syrah. I’m familiar with some other Hess wines and for the price I think they’re quite good. I’d never had the syrah before, but it will be a regular purchase from the liquor store from now on.

One more thing about the cocktails- the basil vodka lemonade drink was incredible. It is the perfect summer beverage…I just wish we had been able to enjoy it on the patio.

The space of the restaurant is a little awkward, but I love the red walls and the tables and chairs. I also appreciate the service there. The staff is quite a crew!

Check it out if you haven’t. It’s an excellent Minneapolis restaurant.

Spoon River

750 S. 2nd St.

@ Chicago Ave. S.

Minneapolis, MN 55401

tel. 612 436 2236

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

Hmmm…I disagree on both counts. The prices were spot on for a great lunch place- sandwiches range from $7-$10, salads range from $7-$10, and their entrees are a little more (up to $20 I believe).

The food was outstanding. I had the shaved turkey mole sandwich with fresh avocado and manchego cheese served on a Spanish roll. It was nice and light, simple and fresh with a tad smoky flavor.

I also tried the roasted vegetable sandwich. This is exactly what a roasted vegetable sandwich should be: earthy, meaty, and full of flavor. The veggie sandwich had portabella mushroom, zucchini, yellow squash, basil pesto and fresh mozzarella. It was delicious.

About the atmosphere. I hold my first impressions very highly. And Yum! just didn’t do it for me. I felt like they are trying too hard to be “cool” and “modern” and “hip.” It felt fake- almost like I was on a movie set.

Also- wtf is up with the music they were playing? Seriously! When we strolled in around 11:30, they were bumping Black Eyed Peas. Then we sat down outside while we waited for our food, and they were playing instrumental Queen followed by CHRISTMAS music. Come on.

Anyway, the food was really good and I’d recommend trying it out for lunch. Not for dinner.