Minneapolis weekend

Emily wanted to go on a weekend trip with me to eat and explore.  YES!!  We narrowed down on Minneapolis for a few reasons.  Neither of us had checked out the town before.  It is not far from NYC so we could do it in a weekend.  There is definitely a food culture happening there and plenty to do.

pizzaovenWe got in on Friday morning and hit the town running.  I had some reccos from my friend at Red Stamp and Emily had put together a serious list on Foursquare.  Our first stop after the hotel was Pizzeria Lola.  They have a huge wood fired oven in the middle of the restaurant putting out excellent pizza.

cauliflowerWe started with spicy roasted cauliflower while we waited for our pizza.

pizzaThe pizza was top.  Thin crust with crispy pieces of pepperoni and fennel sausage.  It is called My Sha-Roni.  So good.

patissiesThere are a bunch of bakeries in this town which probably go back to the dozens of flour mills that inhabited Minneapolis in the early 1900’s.  It’s in their blood.  We stopped at Patisserie 46.  The place smells amazing the minute you set your foot in the door.  We went with the chocolate hazelnut flourless tart and a peanut butter chocolate chip cookie.  The cookie was perfect.  Small pieces of chocolate inside a soft yet crusty cookie.  I’d love that recipe!

cherryspoonIt was time to take in the Walker Museum.  They are in the process of massive outdoor construction of the park surrounding the museum.  The iconic cherry in the spoon seems shipwrecked.

holes1-3The museum is amazing.  We started with the putt-putt golf installation on the terrace.  The temperature is roughly 93 and humid but for 9 holes we went for it.  Super fun and clever holes.

chrislarsonLand Speed Record by Chris Larson.  He took took a group of items from Grant Hart, the drummer of Husker Du, whose house caught fire and destroyed a lot of his things.  Larson categorized what he had and they filmed it.

womennakedThe other exhibit that takes over the majority of the museum is from the permanent collection over the past 75 years.  It is incredibly well curated.  I took a slew of photos.  The first room is pieces that came from the Guerrilla Girls, feminist activists artists starting back in 1985 who have created public service announcements around the globe.  I love this.

rapeThis one is particularly relevant right now.

bitsandpiecesLawrence Weiner…this piece in many ways describes the show.  Work from Donald Judd to Ellsworth Kelly to Frank Stella to Lee Bontecou to Rothko to Jasper Johns and Lichtenstein, Joan Mitchell and Giacometti.

walkermodel 1967This show gave the nod to the first person who led the museum and collected a tremendous amount of work in a short time for the museum.  This is a rendering of the model for the museum in 1967 by Edward Larrabee Barnes.

walkerartgalleriesMartin Friedman, the director of the Walker commissioned this from Richard Haas in 1979.  A trompe l’oeil of the museum.

scissorsNever saw this before.  Running scissors by Sigmar Polke.

trishaTrisha Donnelly had two pieces in this exhibit.  Beautiful videos.

lucasblockThe other exhibit is called Ordinary Pictures.  This is by Lucas Block.

shopOne of the best gift shops.

greenWe walked back to our hotel through the park.  So green and lush.

foundatinNot sure when the park was built but it is really well thought out with tennis courts, water fountains, amphitheaters, etc.

booksandsuchWe went back for a little R&R before heading out to the North Loop for a bit of shopping and dinner.  Our first stop was Martin Patrick, a mens concept store.  There are a few things for women but mostly men.  Also furniture, sheets, clothing, barber, body and hair products and other accessories.  A new fangled department store.

shinolaThen to Shinola.

wilsonwillysWilson & Willy’s

foundryThe Foundry Home Goods.

restaurantThen to dinner at Spoon & Stable.  A really beautiful restaurant with soaring ceilings, a long bar and a good vibe.  We sat at the bar and watched the plates being created for all of us.

breadWe split everything.  It was definitely the call.  The bread and butter they serve you is delicious.  A whole wheat sourdough with sweet salty whipped butter.

eggpeasThinly sliced snap peas mixed with sunflower seeds and a parmesean vinaigrette and a crispy pheasant egg sitting on top was delicious.  Just the right balance of flavors and perfect for the season.

scallopsTheir scallop crudo has been on the menu from the start.  Thinly sliced scallops served raw with green apples, shiso, chilies and a scallion vinaigrette.  Thumbs down from me on this one.  Didn’t do anything for me.

pastaSpaghetti nero was calling our name after watching the guy at the bar eat is while we had a drink. Black ink pasta topped with mussels, shrimp, octopus, fine herbs in a red sauce.  Really good.

ducksTwo slices of a dry aged duck breast served over a wheat berry porridge with fiddlehead ferns, poached rhubarb and duck jus.  Nicely done.

dessertHad to have dessert.  After all we are on a little vacation.  A chocolate profiterole topped with a brown sugar marshmallow that has been roasted.  Wow.

and moreWe weren’t done.  They gave us this little box of treats.  Definitely some highs and lows as everything is but we loved it.  Back to the hotel to pass out.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Comments (Archived):

  1. pointsnfigures

    Love Minnie. Been there a bunch. My grandparents lived in St. Paul. We go up to the north shore (Grand Marais) every year where the best donut shop on the planet resides. West of Minneapolis is Lake Minnetonka. It’s absolutely beautiful there. Minneapolis/St. Paul people are extremely nice (and Scandinavian!). Tough place to be in the winter but the people there embrace it.

    1. Gotham Gal

      extremely nice people. didn’t get over to st. paul. next trip!

      1. pointsnfigures

        when I worked for 3M out of college, we used to drive to all the boat bars on the beaches of Lake Minnetonka. It was quite a scene.

  2. Ella Dyer

    So glad y’all enjoyed your trip; I find the Twin Cities very pleasant (even in the frigid cold). We go often as our granddaughters live in St. Paul where their parents have Shish (http://www.shishongrand.com/). Check it out next time and tell them Grandma Ella sent you 🙂

    1. Gotham Gal

      will do.

  3. CCjudy

    I like the art of Polke and I love his scissors – never saw that before… Thank you!

  4. Gail Davis Silberman

    Even though I am off to Italy in 2 weeks… U are definitely giving me an inspiration to see more of the U.S I have not explored … Love that you posted this … Xo

    1. Gotham Gal

      Have a great trip

  5. Dan Wick

    Looks like you did it up right so far! Glad you enjoyed our fair city. Thanks for the love!

    1. Gotham Gal

      Wait til u see tomorrow’s post.

  6. jeffgrillo

    All the food that you posted looks beyond delicious. It really puts to shame the sandwich that I just consumed at Starbucks.The walking scissors made me laugh.

  7. John Thorbeck

    Great mom/daughter tour. I grew up 225 miles north of Mpls., and my daughter, Kate Rogers, is Exec Editor of Pillsbury.com. I forwarded your note so she can enjoy a NY’ers whirlwind take on the Twin Cities food scene. Did you consider Bachelor Farmer?

    1. Gotham Gal

      Bachelor Farmer…tomorrows post!

  8. Erin

    Appreciated the Guerilla Girl stuff.