3rd- brit's pub, minneapolis
6th- psycho suzi's, minneapolis
8th- chez colette, bloomington
9th- brit's pub (yes, again), minneapolis
10th-13th: vegas food (including rosemary's restaurant and db brasserie)
15th- asian hon, shakopee
17th- punch pizza, eden prairie
21st- mort's deli, golden valley
24th- 98 pounds, bloomington
27th- khan's mongolian barbeque, richfield
29th- cave vin, minneapolis

3rd- brit's pub, minneapolis (c-)

i have a cold, i wanted soup. i got a bowl of the still-amusingly named cock-a-leekie ("the classic Scottish soup of chicken, leeks and barley simmered in a rich chicken broth," $4.95). i couldn't taste much of anything, but they really needed to clean the chicken a bit better as it had a few hunks of grisle in it. (not sure if that counts as 'things found in food that are not food' or not but i am feeling too lazy to stick in in there at the moment).

it wasn't horrible otherwise. not good, not horrible. that's about what they do here most of the time. like the side salad i got ($2.95), with two cherry tomatoes, slices of cuke, mushroom, red onion and croutons on some mixed greens. lots of blue-cheese in the dressing. not impressive, not crap. good service, too. today. sometimes that lacks here.

6th- psycho suzi's, minneapolis (b)

for my 'it's not my birthday' activity, after a trip to mrs. kelley's tea warehouse sampling event (featuring b.t. mcelrath chocolates), we headed to psycho suzi's for lunch because i thought... tea and tiki. alas, since i am suffering a cold and am on more cold and allergy meds than usual, i stuck with an irish coffee (because the caffeine negates the effects, right? a tiki would've put me under....)

and what goes better with irish coffee than cheese curds? ($6.95) we split a basket, with the house red sauce. they were better than when i was here a few years back, they tasted almost tempura like, though it was a beer batter. the sauce could've used heating up. and i like more salt on my curds (that was just me, of course).

i split a medium 'ultra bird' pizza (with enough left over for breakfast) with someone ($15.85), though the lunch individual pizzas were also a good deal ($6.65, with your choice of sauce and two toppings)- the other person went with that. the ultra bird had "grilled chicken, onion, fresh tomatoes, feta and mozzarella cheese over our white-wine sauce' and was served on the traditional crust. (though the deep dish that was served at a nearby table also looked like the real thing, a la chicago... maybe some other time...).

i liked the crust a lot, one of the better ones in town. alas, the ingredients needed tweaking. the chicken was good, they should lose the sad tomatoes during this time of year (spinach is a natural on this one), the onions were raw (or rawish) and they should've been carmelized, the feta was lost, and the white wine sauce needed a bit more punch. having said all that, it was decent enough as a whole, but i did dump tons of hot pepper flakes, salt, pepper, and grated cheese on it. i would've liked to dunk it in bbq sauce or something for a flavor blast. a bit bland. redeemed by said crust, and lots of cheese. mmmm, cheese. i'd get a different kind next time.

decent enough service (though a bewildering array of people stopped at the table for seemingly specialized things- drink server, main server, water pouring person, then some random person... i lost count after a while). post-smoke ban, it didn't suck to be in here. and since it was daytime, it was pretty scarce. it looks better at night, though.

8th- chez colette, bloomington (b-)

since there's only so many french-style restaurants in the area, and i like to go french pour ma anniversaire, i ended up here this year. for a hotel restaurant, it was pretty good.

the positives: the kir royale ($8), which is creme de cassis and champagne, was better than vincent's version (to me, anyway) as the champagne was less dry. the fries weren't so bad, about a b or so, and they brought aioli when i asked for mayo. the cheese and olive rolls from the bread basket were very tasty,

and the best for last, they have a cheese menu that you can order by the ounce. i got supposedly an ounce of a 'brie' charmant from wisconsin ($1.75 per ounce) which was a nice starter cheese, though not so triple cream, a mix crottin ($2.45 per ounce) goat cheese which was also on the milder side, and the gorgonzola amablu ($2 per ounce). i would say i ended up with actually 2-3 ounces of each (they did know it was my birthday), and had a plethora of blueberries, strawberries, raspberries, small grapes, and spiced nuts on it. with a dash of honey, it would've been perfect. very nice though.

the negatives: the 'french bread' in the basket had the right crust, but tasted too much like wonder bread inside... sadly, they served it with the cheese plate. i mostly ignored it. the server had on cologne i was allergic to (though not tons of it, just enough). the chicken in the roast chicken entree i got ($17.50 with the side of fries) was more like a coq au vin-styled item than roast. it was served in a wine sauce, with non-crispy skin. that was wrong. the chicken was tender, but not so flavorful.

the web site is so out of date as to include a restaurant they closed in the hotel, and have the menu out of date, too (prices and items). and speaking of the menu, the 'parisian plate,' where you get four smaller 'courses' on one plate (for $21.75) had vegetarian options only in the salad part of the menu, and there was no swapping out. there was tons of stuff that one could be allergic to or not eat for other reasons on there, also (shellfish, lots of it), but i bet lots of people just can't chose that option. so good concept executed badly. points off.

less than french: service was good to start, but got less so when tables of 10 and such walked in. the place looks quasi-french (brass railing and such), and while i understand you can't play french tunes all the time and holiday music is seasonal, but marian carey? very bad call. and the tv in the bar that you can see from where we were sitting in the restaurant set to espn? not so much working for me either.

it didn't charm me or impress me enough that i would head back there, even though it wasn't horrible (which, given the whole brk situation, is fine with me in most cases...).

9th- brit's pub (yes, again), minneapolis (b)

i wanted soup, mostly. maybe a sandwich. something simple, as i'll be eating a lot of elaborate food this well (and have already). i wasn't in the mood to spend $10 on a bowl of soup at vincent's, i ended up here before the pub quiz finale again.

since the cock-a-leekie didn't go so well last time, i went with the "sir winston's cheese toasty" ($8.95), which is 'imported english cotswold and cheddar on griddled country bread with tomato soup." it's a cup of cream of tomato, and is quite nice. and the sandwich was decent enough, if not a shade underdone. but it had plenty of cheese. it hit the spot.

since i was very early, i had good service, too.

10th-13th: vegas food, las vegas, nv

december 10

rosemary's restaurant (a)

they still have that most excellent deal- on wednesdays, women eat half-price. so the three course menu is $27.50 (versus $55, which is still not bad when you check the menu prices for individual courses. it's a high end place for locals, pretty much).

all five of us at the table opted for the three-course menu. you get to choose an entree and two other courses, whatever you want (soup, salad, app, dessert, whatever... so if you want an entree and two desserts, go for it...). well, i also had a bellini with peach puree, too ($10). because it was such a festive occasion. and the peach was fresh.

after checking in to see if there were any food allergies and such, and letting us know vegetarian options could be created if needed (other than the ones on the menu), they brought out the amuse bouche, a very nice mushroom bread pudding that set the mood. the bread came out next, which they set on your bread plate, one of each kind. tonight's rolls were an indulgent white chocolate pecan roll, and also a potato roll. everyone was into the white chocolate pecan, but the potato roll proved to be less popular (a lot of those being sent back) due to the difficulty of opening one up. they were a tad on the hard side. not that they were bad, just difficult to deal with.

i did leave some roll on my plate (though i am sure i could've asked for more) for the next thing i ordered, the special app of smoked duck and shiitake mushroom tortellini with fried basil in a very machengo cream sauce. since it was bad form to lick the plate (something that doesn't always stop me... ahem...), i used the roll to get every last drop. very tasty combo indeed, with the right amount of savory filling in the slightly sweet sauce. i would've liked mine a tad warmer, but it was just warm enough for me not to send back to reheat.

since the starter and the dessert were rich courses for me (plus most of the rest were things i either didn't eat or had allergies to). i opted for a lighter main course and was glad i did. it was the "sesame seared arctic char, sho-mai vegetable slaw and ginger soy butter sauce.' the fish was done perfectly, the slaw had some crunch to balance the textures in the dish, and the plate itself was lovely.

a few other things i sampled were the blue cheese slaw (i like mine better, mostly because the ratio of cheese to slaw is about 1 to 1, but theirs is as good as can be barring that), and some fried onions that decorated other plates (best season ones i've ever had).

dessert was next. though not on the dessert menu, i did inquire as to the availability of a cheese plate. the main server checked with the chef, and indeed they put one together for me. and since i had said it was a birthday celebration for me (and mom- which it was), they wrote happy birthday on both of our dessert plates in chocolate. and put candles in them, too (mine was in a piece of fruit, not cheese...).

i ended up with whipped goat cheese, an english cheddar, and some maytag blue cheese (about 2-3 ounces each) with a few nuts, balsamic, apple butter, and some toasts. a smear of honey would've been nice, but since they don't usually do one, i didn't expect something as impressive as this, really.

to end, they brought out the petit fours, a bourbon chocolate (which even i liked, and i'm not a chocolate person), peanut butter buckeyes (think an upscale nellie moe bar in round form), and lemon bars (that needed a bit more lemon.

service was once again quite exceptional. besides the willingness to make the cheese plate, and checking food allergies, water was refilled before you got to half the glass, the staff all knew the menu and the beverages, they were willing to go the extra mile. servers were chosen for their personality. they do the old-school service (where multiple servers come out to present the food).

last time i gave them an a+ (one of the few places i've ever done so). i knew it was risky coming back, because it's hard for a place to stay that great. i'd say they're still quite up there (the flaws were small ones)- there were dishes that people at the table flat-out refused to share (pecan pie, for one). it's my favorite place to eat in vegas.

december 11

wendy's (at the fashion show mall food court) (c)

egg and cheese biscuit for breakfast, with their tots. or round tots and a diet coke ($4.29). i've had worse fast food breakfasts, and breakfast out tends to suck for me. not flavorful, but could've been worse. some jelly or something on the biscuit would've been nice. this was the only time i had to eat at the infamous food court.

buffet at the wynn (a-)

mom and i went for a late lunch ($21.95 per person) with part of our room credit. used to be that every buffet had a long line, and you queued for your food. now, with the bad economy, no line. (vegas seemed tons emptier from the airport to the strip to the hotels... but that's another story).

whereas i had a lot of things, most of the time i didn't take that much, maybe a bite or two. i feel bad wasting tons of food, and if i hated something, i didn't want to toss a lot of it. if i liked it, hey, i could get more.

can't say i loved the layout here. soup and salad on one end (right), sandwiches on the other in the line (left), and then after the sandwiches, it was asian-inspired, mexican inspired, american, the carving station, bread, italian, cold salads, and fish... i think. the dessert station was in the middle.

i started with breads (the cranberry nut and corn muffins were tasty, the rest, including crostini, plain, breadsticks, and the pretzel were decent enough), a bit of above-average creamy mushroom soup, quite a bit of smoked trout and salmon (both excellent, and this was one of the two things i got more of... some of the cheeses being the other, of course), and a selection of cheeses (a nice blue, some good havarti, gouda, and parmesan, passable cheddar). the cheddar and gouda showed signs of sitting out a bit too long (dry on the edges).

from the italian section, both the pizza and gnocchi and pumpkin sauce weren't quite up to snuff (the pizza needed a cripser crust, the gnocchi was a bit heavy). asian foods fared a bit better, though the spicy tuna roll had the chewy nori, when unbound it was good. the udon with tofu was also flavorful. i liked the guacamole in the mexican foods, and the roast chicken in the american foods.

since i love turkey (when done right) i opted to have a mini-thanksgiving dinner. the roast turkey was better than i expected, moist and tender and tasty, especially with the not from a can tasting cranberry sauce. the mushroom gravy was nice too. the mashed potatoes were better than most buffet versions (which i usually won't eat, as they tasted like box, not potato). i wasn't fond of the stuffing, though.

desserts were a mixed bag. most of the baked goods weren't my thing (the mint/chocolate one, vanilla cupcake and pumpkin pies were one bite and gone). the pumpkin muffin was ok, but the key lime bars were quite excellent, and i also enjoyed the ice cream with toppings ( i went with vanilla with butterfinger bits and slivered almonds). i did have a bit more blue cheese at the end. why not. (hey, it's not like i was eating dinner after this...).

beverage service was brisk (in a good way).

mom didn't quite eat her share of things, but she thought what she had was good (ribs, chicken, a few sides). i would say that bar the desserts, it was one of the better buffets i've been to, including the one from last year. there was more good and less bad in general. i think the slightly spendier (than most all-you-can-eat buffets in vegas) price is probably worth it. the quality of the food is higher and includes some higher end items (some of which i can't/don't eat- shrimp, plain and in salads, crab in salads, the ribs, lamb, the smoked fish, etc.), the foods are clearly labelled, and it was very clean. plus the room has some prints of steve wynn's art collection, and the furniture isn't packed in. the people aren't either.

december 12

viva mc donald's (f)

the eggs were crunchy (i went back to the counter for new ones). the rest food was tasteless and sat in my stomach like a rock. i was here as mom thought that the viva mc donald's (which had opened the day before) would be different. have elvis (he is everywhere, you know) or something. but it's the same crap food, only with different furniture.

weiss restaurant/deli/bakery, henderson (b)

decent enough deli in the desert. the matza ball soup was quite good, though hard to eat. it was a big matza ball (done to perfection, which is hard to do with the large ones, they're usually undercooked in the middle) in a smaller bowl of chicken soup (good, real roast chicken, nice veg and a flavorful broth), though the long strands of spaghetini was an odd choice of noodle that made it harder to eat (i used a fork for that).

i got the soup and with a half sandwich ($8.95). the half-sandwich is half a deli one, so it's still about half as large as your head. i opted for chicken salad on challah. the chicken salad was also tasty. (i usually don't order it since the stuff is usually swimming in goop, but here they had just the right amount of it. the challah was a bit sweet (the kind i like). would've been better toasted. i should've asked, alas. i asked for the lettuce, tomato and onion (otherwise it comes nekkid).

they forgot my pickle, though. and to refill water without asking. and it took almost too long to get seated (we were about to leave)- we weren't even acknowledged at the door for over five minutes. the place is packed, they need more help.

db brasserie (a)

though the wynn has other michelin-starred eateries and others that have had high praise rained upon them, i'm sure it doesn't surprise anyone that i went to the more casual french one to use up the rest of our credit, daniel boulud's version of a brasserie. it's one of the few places that you can see the 'shows' that the wynn does on their 'lake of dreams' every half-hour or so (there's another restaurant and a bar, but if you're not at those, you can't even see them from other parts of the hotel, let alone the strip), with lights, music, video, and/or animatronics.

we started with a bread basket that had some amazing fig bread, some white country-style bread, and the right sort of baguette (unlike chez colette, ahem). i went ahead and had a glass of cremant ($11), a sparkling wine that's champagne not from the champagne region of france. i forget the exact sort, but it wasn't as dry as most french champagnes i've had.

mom opted for the three course dinner, which is available until 7 pm. it was $48 for a menu that would usually would've cost $71. the savings are worth eating on the early side. you get a choice of one of three options for each course. for starters, she went with the pate de campagne forestiere with homemade pickled veg (including carrots, onions, tiny cornichons, and peppers) with some very tasty wheat country bread (ordinarily $15 by itself). next up was steak frites ($42 usually), a 10 ounce sirloin with onion compote. i, of course, ate her fries. after a hit of salt, they were not quite as good as i would expect (even with the aioli) but still rated highly. with my higher standards for the locale, i'd put those at a b+. she finished with a clafoutis with vanilla ice cream ($14 usually), with cherry being the seasonal fruit. (what the seasonal fruit is in the desert, well...).

i was tempted by the three course menu. it would've made more sense, but i really really wanted things that weren't on it. though my first course was- pumpkin soup, creamy with a few chunks, with huckleberry, what i think were sunflower seeds, and spiced chantilly cream served with a gingerbread muffin ($14). probably the most spendy soup i've eaten, and i'd have to say it was worth it.

it was the second course where i had to waiver. i wasn't up for coq au vin or skate (and don't eat the steak part of the frites). i wanted mr. quack on my plate (and i was probably the only person there that refered to it as mr. quack, though did managed not to call it that when i ordered). 'mr quack' was the crispy duck confit with foie gras 'crouton', braised red cabbage, sweet potato, celery, and quince ($32). and the duck, it was very good. especially the crispy skin, of course. i would've liked more of a foie taste in the 'crouton' (it was more of a small croquette sort of thing, and there were two of them). the rest, well, i ordered the dish knowing i'd not eat the cabbage. i'm not fond of it. i should've asked if i could swap it out, but as i ate the fries (and mom had some of the cabbage), it worked out. it seems like they would swap things or make a vegetarian dish upon request.

for dessert, well, hell yes i had cheese. they have their own happy little cheese home, away from the main kitchen, where all the nice cheeses live on marble counters, at room temperature (and i got confirmation that bouchon wasn't quite as forward with me about theirs as they could've been). i chose the three for $15 option. you can get three, five, or seven cheeses of your selection or do one of their themed 'tours' (such as french or seasonal). my selections were a delice d'argental from the champagne region of france (triple cream cow's milk semi-soft enriched with creme fraiche) that was rich yet delicate, from the basque region of france (a creamy semi-soft sheep's cheese that get it's rind singed, thus, brulee) that was a bit nutty and smooth, and a rogue smokey blue (a forward blue from oregon) that was also nutty, but a bit more forward than i prefer my blue cheeses.

and this cheese plate was done so nicely that i even took a picture of it (available upon request, i haven't posted it yet). the tomme brulee, especially. they had a device that shaved it into long strips they arranged into a flower. it was strangely beautiful, i almost didn't want to eat it. they had honey, cherry preserves, red grapes, raisins *on the vine*, spiced pecans, green apple slices, dried apricots and figs, plus more of the fig bread, raisin bread, and some baguette. ah, the happy cheese place.

service, though there was a server swtich early on, was pretty flawless. besides the usual, when i inquired about the temperature of the cheeses (after being burned at bouchon, as mentioned), i was taken to the cheese counter of happiness (not it's real name). they did also write 'happy birthday' on mom's dessert (not the cheese plate, no room). it wasn't quite like rosemary's service, not quite that old school, but it had touches of that (napkin folding when you leave your seat). they serve around the 'shows' at the lake of dreams.

it had the usual french sorts of touches (brass rail, a bit dark), more modern furniture, and glass patio doors (it was a bit too cold to have them open). and the bathroom there... perhaps my favorite ever. fully enclosed rooms, the most interesting light fixtures, and all the thoughtful touches (waste recepticle right where you'd need it to be after opening the door with a towel). loved it enough to go over and above the dining credit we had and think it worth every penny.

december 13

flatbreadz (f)

more crap breakfast. quel unsurprise. this time it was a 'hash brown casserole' ($4.50 or so) with supposedly egg, cheese, peppers, and onions. it looked good, it tasted like nothing (even with a pound or so of ketsup, salt, and pepper on it... it needed hot salsa, badly). and it didn't seem to have peppers, onions, and egg, and only a bit of cheese.

also ordered an untoasted cinnamon raisin bagel to eat on the plane later (not sure of the cost). i got a toasted plain one. it took a very long time to convey i didn't want a plain bagel. or a toasted one. also, they charge for soda refills ($1.49 for the soda, $.79 per refill). odd- they had sandwiches to go, but not on flatbread(z).

15th- asian hon, shakopee (b-)

there's a charge for water now, it's bottled only. $.50, but still. annoying. admittedly, the buffet is $4.95, they need to make their money somehwere. anyway, the food was much the same, but i had to wait for cream cheese wontons, and some of the chicken dishes were a bit mushy. they had egg drop soup, and it didn't taste all cornstarchy like many can. soup was necessary on a day like today. more random things this time- chex mix, tortilla chips, cheddar cheese potato chips, canned pineapple chunks. but it's still decent for the price, i guess.

17th- punch pizza, eden prairie (b)

why was i here when it's not my favorite place to get pizza and i tend to think i should like it better than i do? well, they had a coupon for a free margherita pizza on their facebook page, i was in the 'hood here and needed a quick dinner. and free is good.

discuss- the time i've liked this pizza the best is when i have a cold that is killing most of my tastebuds. but hey, this time the crust was crisp, and not overly burned, and everything tasted decent enough (after i tossed hot pepper flakes and salt on it, they don't have cheese shakers anywhere that i can see). it was still underly decorated (cheese was skimpy and not a lot of basil, either), but hey, decent enough for a free dinner.

21st- mort's deli, golden valley (d)

another hell of a disappointing deli experience, but this one holds up slightly better on two counts- the pickles (especially the sour ones) were quite good. the plate comes with sour, half sour, and some pickled green tomatoes which were interesting, but not my thing. we also had a good server (who offered us lots of pickles, natch... the water refill was thrown off as i ordered hot tea, and got a large pot of water with it... and when that was refilled, i even got a new teabag. $1.99 for that, by the way).

but the kitchen lacks grace. it shouldn't take close to 25 minutes (on the verge of leaving time, and we would've if the food hadn't come out just then) to bring a hot dog platter and a sandwich to a table. especially as larger tables that had sat down after us and ordered after us... say it with me... got their food first.

mrs. brk had the hot dog platter. for $6.99 you get two giant kosher hot dogs with what looked liked decent buns, cole slaw, potato salad, and house-made kettle chips. she liked the kettle chips. i thought a few were underdone (not crispy at all), and they needed salt (well, mine did- i ended up dunking them in ketsup). her meal was a good deal.

of course my rachel sandwich ($12.99) was just a mess. rye bread that wasn't quite toasted enough with barely any sauerkraut, no detectable thousand island dressing, one slice of not melted cheese for a very large pile of dry as a bone to the point of curling up and hardened turkey that had a few small bones and gristle in it.

when i mentioned to the server (they asked) that they may want to let the kitchen know they may wish to clean the turkey a bit better, plus it was a bit dry, the kitchen replied that they were surprised as they roasted it themselves. um... the cleaning it a bit better part, that's the part i wish to make known. no bones about that. (sorry, but you knew that was coming.) not the dry part. the kitchen wished to make me another sandwich. i had already eaten half (after weeding out the worst of the turkey, adding spicy mustard, cole slaw and some pickles that i had sliced up to make it passable). i did not wish to eat more. and if i did, well, pastrami jack's and crossroads deli are both closer and better, alas. or i can make one myself.

i will say i still miss the lincoln del....

24th- 98 pounds, bloomington (b-)

not as good as what i think is the best of the chinese buffets around town that i've had, szechuan star but pretty solid. this may be the second best. i expect if i could eat shellfish i'd like it a lot better, as there's lots of it on display... mussels, crawfish (i had some on my plate before i remembered my allergy... and i thought... well, i have an epi-pen... but... no.... bad idea.... sigh), crab legs, crab (and krab) in the sushi... etc.

i pretty much stuck to chicken and veg. though i did go for the cali roll and some krab sushi. they were better than any other buffet sushi that i've had. the fish tasted fresh (not the best ever, but hey, it is a buffet) and the nori wasn't at all chewy, my main complaint on the lower end sushi. they don't fill up the sushi trays so much, though. and when the better bits are out, they go very fast.

of the chicken dishes, most were just ok, except for the 'barbequed' ones (a la yakitoki, more or less) and the fried chicken wings. those were spot on. the tokyo, pepper, general tso and the rest of the chicken were passable. nothing to go back for after a sample.

i did also try a couple of fish dishes on the buffet, the snow fish (just ok) and a fish of mystery i had a sample of that was very buttery and tasty (and bony) that had no label and disappeared by the time i went back for more.

as for the rest, the cream cheese wontons were bad, the veg egg rolls good, lo mein and onion rings (why they were there, who knows) somewhere in between. the soup didn't interest me (i like egg drop, it wasn't on offer). the steamed sesame seed puffs with red bean paste in them were probably my favorite thing there.

i went with the ice cream (not ice milk) for dessert, as the fresh fruit didn't thrill me (hard avocados, seeded grapes, bananas in mysterious red sauce, etc.). it was good, especially with the almond cookies (better than szechuan star's by far) crumbled in them.

mrs. brk had different things (beef dishes, more veg, etc.) than i but thought much the same thing... slightly less good than szechuan star but well worth trying, at least once. i guess i expected it to be slightly better, as there was a very high ratio of asian-americans there (i'd say 90% of all the people in the join) which usually points to a very good experience. so it has to be the shellfish... right? stupid allergy. anyway.

prices were very reasonable, given the amount of shellfish. $12.99 for regular adult, $11.69 senior. lobster was extra. you do get your choice of beverage, too. we each went with hot tea. and this was probably the only place i've seen that served more tea than coffee. they walked around with a coffeepot full of tea for refills, which came at an adequate pace.

the place nice in a basic way decor, not overwhelming or cheesy. after we had been there a while, the asian music came off the system, and we got christmas music, which was amusing.

27th- khan's mongolian barbeque, richfield (b)

still decent but of course not as good as i remember from my college days. went for lunch (one bowl they bbq up is $9.50, not sure how much the all you can eat option is). they have hoisin sauce on the table, besides the sriracha and soy sauce, i think that's new. as is the salmon, i think, which made it more interesting for me, as i can't do most of the other meats beyond mr. chicken.

i forgot at lunch at lunch the baotse are extra ($1.90 for two of them). the soup with the app was good, but the chicken wing and crisp crackery thing didn't thrill me to death. some of the veg is still cut too big. service was still ok. it was around 1:30, 2 pm when we ate, the place was still pretty busy, which seemed odd.

29th- cave vin, minneapolis (a)

we were all set for wine and cheese at lucia's wine bar, but they were not set for us, being that they are closed mondays. who knew? not us. since uptown is getting lighter on places to have some liquor in a setting that people aren't apt to yell 'whooooooooooo' in (see: a place called cowboy slim's going into the former campiello there), we headed to not so far away cave vin to partake.

despite liking it quite a bit, and it not being too far from my house, and even mentioning i wouldn't mind revisiting it when i went last, i haven't been here since the sole food outing back on '05. perhaps it's just not very on the radar of anyone, as in that 'hood things like cafe maude get all the attention. but this place is far from neglected by the people in the 'hood. for a monday between holidays, the place had very solid business (even someone getting a massive takeout order). it's very nice to see.

perhaps because mondays are half priced wine nights (tuesdays may also be, if you believe their online wine list and menu, which are not up to date)... any bottle on their list, and some are in the $70+ range. a killer deal. we ended up with a san giuseppe prosecco ($32 original price, $16 on half price night), which does carry you through a meal well from apertif to dessert. it's not overly sweet, but i liked it as it wasn't dry. besides splitting the wine, we split the whole meal. on half-priced wine nights, it's a very budget-friendly place to go, though it doesn't necessarily appear to be.

it's freaking odd that a place this french has no cheese plate, though. the closest we could get was a 'baked french feta (with) red and yellow peppers, kalamata olives, capers and croutons' ($7.25). the feta we think was a cow's milk, as it was mild and creamy and didn't have a bit to it like a sheep's milk one. it held together well, yet spread beautifully. i wonder how long that has to go in, because that strikes me as a very good appetizer dish to serve at home. naturally, we had to ask for more 'croutons.'

of course we also go the garlic frites with aioli ($5.95), which i remember enjoying with mussels last time (and believe you me, i would've ordered it again sans the whole allergy thing). the garlicky goodness and the lighter aioli are still great, though still not quite as good as vincent's, as they don't quite have the softer potato bits inside, these are more all-around crispy.

the breadbasket was also a plus. it wasn't a baguette, but it had a crisp crust (vinegar? buttermilk? who knows what made it that way), and a middle that wasn't as airy as a baguette, but had the nicer qualities of a white bread (spongy, soft, thick). the herbed butter was also lovely. after killing the first, we did have to ask for more, as per usual i was a bit of a lightweight with the wine and needed a bit more food to quell some of the effects. dessert was a quel buttery tarte tatin (apple) with sebestian joe's vanilla ice cream on top ($7.25). quite nice indeed.

we don't think the place realized it would be that busy that night, as there were only two servers on duty (and they doubled as hosts, too). given that contraint, service was friendly and as efficient as possible, i think. relaxed, in a good way.

it's a nice place to transport yourself a bit closer to france.

 

 

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