Restaurants
Best of the Twin Cities | Local PicksDirectory List
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Enjoy the lively and creative New American cuisine served up by a youthful and talented staff. Try the penne with chicken in sherry cream sauce, thyme, and Romano cheese or the fettuccine with caramelized garlic, pine nuts and basil. Menu varies seasonally, but it always includes risotto, grilled pork, beef, chicken, pasta and a vegetarian entrée.
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UPTOWN. This hip, sleek member of the Wolfgang Puck family of restaurants is right at home in Walker Art Center, where museum-goers enjoy haute New American fare with a decidedly Asian kick. Views of the Minneapolis skyline are prominent as you feast on fresh butterfish, short ribs, tempura shrimp, and roasted Cantonese duck. Ingredients are amazingly fresh, allowing for the food's true flavors to come bursting forth. Don't miss the signature dessert Spoon, Cube, and Cherry which mimics the famous Claes Oldenburg sculpture, Spoonbridge and Cherry, in the Minneapolis Sculpture Garden.
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NOKOMIS. Hearty southern Italian cuisine comes to South Minneapolis in this cozy restaurant. Yellow-gold paint and whimsical decorative touches create an intimate, welcoming space. Octopus with saffron potato and citronette makes for an unexpected starter, while updated classics like spaghetti with tomato and veal meatballs and gorgonzola-crusted steak with wild mushroom ragu populate the entrees menu. Arrive early on weeknights to sip half-price bottles of wine between 4:30pm and 5:30pm.
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SEWARD. Smartly decorated Birchwood is a coffee shop and cafe that also moonlights as an art gallery. Food offerings have a strong vegetarian slant and are prepared using fresh, locally grown, organic ingredients. Menu items range from pizzas and sandwiches to Tofu Creole and a quiche of the day. Birchwood also serves non-vegetarian items, including salmon cakes and turkey burgers. Breakfast and Sunday brunch are popular with locals, too.
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GRAND AVENUE. The long tradition of scrumptious food creation on Grand Avenue continues with the Butter Bakery Café. Whether taking a leisurely stroll down Grand Avenue or heading to work, you'll find Butter Bakery Café to be a quick and convenient stop where you can satisfy your cravings. If you're stopping in for breakfast, try the huevos burrito with scrambled eggs, cheese, potatoes and salsa or the omelet with potatoes. For an early lunch, try the fresh Patsy's BLT or Roast Beef sandwich. This popular Minneapolis breakfast restaurant and bakery also offers free high-speed, wireless Internet access for added convenience.
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SOUTH MINNEAPOLIS. Younger sibling of El Meson (an energetic Spanish-Caribbean spot on Lyndale), Café Ena's specialty is Latin fusion cuisine. The intimate, subdued atmosphere fosters just the right environment for warming up to dishes you might not have tasted before. Start with chile en hogada (roasted poblano stuffed with ground beef, mango, and cucumber) while deciding on your main. When the time comes, the choice will be tough pan-seared turkey with homemade mole, cardamom-blackened salmon over sautéed artichokes, or filet of corvina wrapped in a banana leaf but not without delicious reward.
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BLOOMINGTON. This charming restaurant has the distinction of delivering authentic, mouthwatering French cuisine. Elegant Chez Colette recaptures the ambience of a quaint, 19th-century Parisian café or brasserie dark wood accents, banquette seating, and tulip lamps. Favorite dishes include garlic-tinged bouillabaisse, coq au vin, crepes, and braised lamb shank with garlic potatoes.
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Chez Daniel
2800 American Blvd W Embassy Suites Bloomington, MN 55431 US +1-952-888-4447BLOOMINGTON. For truly excellent French cuisine, look no further than this hotel restaurant. Everything about Chez Daniel exudes class, from its elegant yet informal atmosphere to its innovative menu. Among the restaurant's more popular items are steak au poivre, smoked salmon, and sautéed tiger prawns. Leisurely meals usually go on for a good while, especially when Chez Daniel's wine list gets involved.
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DOWNTOWN. Keeping pace with the sleek, sexy aesthetics of the Graves 601 Hotel requires a restaurant designer's A-game, and that's just what happened when the plans were drawn up for Cosmos. Modern and cool, the space features furniture with low-profiles and clean, distinct lines, giving it a dramatic vibe that suits the downtown Theater District just right. The dinner menu lists inventive numbers like celery root tart and vanilla-butter poached lobster with sweet onion curry. Sunday "blunch," meanwhile, includes tasty benedicts, corned beef hash, and after 11am, even grilled pork loin and grass-fed Minnesota rib-eye.
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GRAND AVENUE / DOWNTOWN. Grand Avenue's D'Amico & Sons offers a trendy, even upscale option for those craving excellent Italian take-out. This serve-yourself, deli-style restaurant has the charming look and feel of an Italian grocery, carrying everything from olive oil to traditional herbs and spices. Surprisingly good entrées include their seafood ravioli, margherita pizza and yellow fin tuna. If you're in a hurry at lunch, you can even fax in your order.
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