SAffRON Restaurant & Lounge

SAffRON Restaurant & Lounge

123 N 3rd Street

Minneapolis, MN 55401

http://www.saffronmpls.com/

SAffRON Restaurant and Lounge is located on 3rd Street N right in the heart of the warehouse district of Minneapolis, across the street from the 112 Eatery. SAffRON specializes in contemporary Mediterranean and Middle Eastern cuisine. I had been wanting to dine there for some time but had difficulties coercing my wife and friends to try Mediterranean or Middle Eastern style food. In this case the reward definitely outweighed the risk.

We arrived at the restaurant without a minute to spare with our friends waiting patiently at the table. The decor and sleek style of this restaurant is definitely befitting of the location. You can choose to sit in the comfortable lounge area or at the bar as you wait for your table. That is, if there is a wait. The restaurant was only half full most of the night. Could be the economy but it was defintely not the food. The dining area has high ceilings and a moderate amount of seating for its patrons. Not stuffy like some of the higher end restaurants in Minneapolis, the atmosphere here was warm and inviting, as was the staff.

The menu at SAffRON has three sections. A MEZZE section which consists of small plates to give each person at the table a taste. Then a SMALL PLATES section in which each plate serves approximately two people, kind of like a salad course and finally the ENTREE section which consists of your main course and a side. Per the recommendations of our waiter, we chose two items off the MEZZE section. The sheep's milk feta with marinated peppers and capers and the kofta meatballs with tomato-harrisa sauce and mint. The feta was amazing and the meatballs went along quite nicely. For the SMALL PLATE course I chose the beef carpaccio with truffled brown butter vinaigrette, hazelnuts and tarragon. It was really good, my wife even ate some and she is not a fan of raw meat. Our friends raved about the goat cheese croquettes with romesco, frisee and sherry vinegar. Kind of like a fried cheese balls on steroids. For an entree I chose the chicken with eggplant lovash, exotic spices and tahini. It was the best damn chicken I have had in a long time, cooked and spiced to perfection. The burrito looking eggplant lovash and the tahini really was so good it could have been the main course. My wife and our friend Susan both chose the salmon and clam "tagine" with saffron, peppers, olives, fennel and potatoes. Both enjoyed but said it could have been made with less sauce. Susan's husband Chris had the three course tasting menu and all I can remember from his was that the appetizer and duck were awesome. For dessert my wife and I split the blueberry trifle which consisted of passion fruit curd, vanilla cake and white chocolate ice cream which my wife talked about in the car the whole way home. Susan had the chocolate "Napoleon" which consisted of chocolate custard, chocolate phyllo and spiced chocolate ice cream which seemed to go over well.

The service was excellent, our waiter was patient with us, made great recommendations and was really passionate about the food and wine. They had booked the restaurant our for a private party that evening starting at 10pm and the owner Saed Wadi welcomed us to stay if we desired.

We all really enjoyed our meal and the atmosphere of SAffRON. For me, it was the most satisfying dining experiences I have had in some time. Chef SamehWadi and his brother Saed have a great thing going here. Our waiter told us to keep eye out on the food network because Chef Wadi will be making a visit there soon. Although he was not very clear about the details. I highly recommend checking SAffRON out, whether its date night, a business dinner, or a night out with friends you will not be disappointed. Even if you have a picky eater in your group go there and tell them to order the chicken.

Ratings from 1-10:

Food 10
Atmosphere 9
Service 10
Noise 7
Price: Moderate to High

Firelake Grill House

31 South 7th Street
Minneapolis, MN 55402
http://www.firelakerestaurant.com/

The Firelake Grill House is located in the Raddison Hotel in downtown Minneapolis on South 7th street not far from Nicollet Mall. I learned about Firelake last year from Minneapolis St. Paul Magazine's "Best Of" in 2007. What intrigued me was that they emphasized locally grown and raised food in their dishes. I have returned three times since my original visit and unlike many downtown restaurants there food is always consistently good.

My family and I arrived 5 minutes before our 7:30pm reservation. We found that the restaurant was quite empty for it being a Saturday night in Minneapolis. If you walk into the restaurant through the revolving doors on South 7th Street, you will find yourself standing in the bar. Its actually a bit confusing for the first time patron because the host/hostess stand is located at the entrance in the lobby of the Raddison Hotel. You have to walk through the restaurant to get to the host stand. The Kitchen is located at the back of the restaurant from the street and is an open style allowing patrons to see the cooks scurrying about. The main seating area of the restaurant is not very big but when you include the bar, its decent size. They also have two private party areas one separated by a curtain and a larger one with doors on it. If there is one negative about this restaurant it is the atmosphere, some people may be turned off by the fact that its located in a hotel.

If it can be grilled, pan fried or cooked in a rotisserie, there is a good chance you might see it on the menu at Firelake. For starters we chose the ciabatta brushetta with three spreads and the Walleye Sliders. We get the brushetta every time. I love the three different spreads that come with, Olive, Pesto and Tomato. This was the first time I tried the Walleye Sliders. I don't know why they call them sliders, when they are more like a fish cake. Two for $2.95 and I would take them over most crab cakes found in other Minneapolis restaurants. For our second course, my brother and I both had the grilled goddess salad. I am not a big fan of grilled salads but this was pretty good and the homemade green goddess dressing was exceptional. My dinner course consisted of the hickory rotisserie lamb that had a marjoram mustard glaze with farro and English pea risotto. I definitely made the right choice, the lamb was cooked medium and it had a nice crust on the outside from the wood fired rotisserie. The glaze and risotto went along with it perfectly. The ladies both had their award winning heirloom corn crusted walleye with lemon-tarragon remoulade which lived up to its reputation. Because it was fresh water fish month my brother had to the sunnies shore lunch dinner, which had the same heirloom corn crust served with fries and lemon-tarragon remoulade. Although not as enthusiastic as me over the lamb, he seemed more than satisfied with his Sunnies.

The service was a bit slow but nothing worth complaining about. I have to give the waitress kudos for the lamb recommendation. However, she could of been a little faster with greeting and drink service.

Firelake is a staple for me and my family because their food is always consistently good. Chef Paul Lynch continues to put out a great product and has received many awards and accolades for his accomplishments. I love the fact that he uses locally grown and produced foods in his menus. I do wish that he would bring back the elk steak, there was something really special about that. My only worry is the is the sustainability of Firelake, the restaurant was only half full at 7:30pm on a Saturday night. Lets hope this is related to high school graduation parties and the exceptional weather rather than the atmosphere of the restaurant. One thing is for sure, this is not our last visit to Firelake.

Ratings from 1-10:

Food 9

Atmosphere 3

Service 5

Noise 4

Price: Moderate (not much on the menu is over $25)

The Herkimer Pub & Brewery

2922 Lyndale Ave S

Minneapolis, MN 55408

http://www.theherkimer.com/

The Herkimer Pub is located in the Lyn-Lake area of Uptown Minneapolis, basically across the street from the now closed JP's American Bistro. I had heard good things about the Herkimer and with a little luck by way of my Sister-in-Law offering to babysit, my wife and I were able to have a casual night out there. We were able to secure a last minute reservation there by way of opentable.com™.

After arriving at the pub we had to actually search out someone to seat us. All the tables had reserved on them but the sign in the front said "Seat Yourself". After a quick discussion with the bartender he pointed out the manager and said "he will seat you". Not a very good first impression. The place stunk of moldy beer which to be expected, it is a pub after all. There is a large oval bar in the middle of the restaurant and most of the seating consisted of high top tables which surrounded the bar. The kettles of beer can be seen through windows on the left hand side of the bar as you walk in. They have an outdoor patio with seating on Lyndale Ave and the view is much better now considering there is no longer road construction.

The menu has your typical pub style fare which boasts appetizers, award winning mini burgers, sandwiches, soups, salads and house specialties which appeared to be a bit more eclectic. We started out with an appetizer of citrus grilled chicken skewers serve with a host of thai peanut, honey chipolte and ranch dipping sauces. I was pleasantly surprised when these arrived. The portion size was large and the chicken was grilled perfectly. The peanut and chipolte dipping sauces were great. They also have a pub sampler appetizer on the menu that looked really good as it went by, too much for two people to eat though. For dinner we both chose to have the award winning mini burgers. I had the mini-macs, all beef, special sauce lettuce cheese (you get the idea) and my Wife had the mini veggie burgers, a black bean falafel patty, cucumber, tomato and chipolte mayo. The mini burgers were good but not exceptional. I recommend ordering them with their sweet potato fries which were amazing.

The Herkimer is obviously a brewery therefore we had to try their beers. We tried what they consider their light beer and the gold medal winning Alt. Both were really good! It would be shameful not to try one of the brews in this place.

The service was very good other than the slip up when we walked in the pub. Our waiter was very attentive always making sure we had full beers in front of us. The food came out in a timely manner an we never felt rushed.

The Herkimer Pub is a great place to go for a casual night out. You can hang out and watch the game on T.V. or play shuffleboard with your friends. They call themselves an upscale brewpub, I personally felt as if it was more of your prototypical type brewpub. I didn't see any fashonista's hanging out there. Owner Blake Richardson has a really good thing going there in a great location. I would definitely go back with friends for another casual night out.

Ratings from 1-10:

Food 7

Atmosphere 6

Service 4

Noise 4

Price: Economical

Nick and Eddie

1612 Harmon Place
Minneapolis
http://www.nickandeddie.com/

Nick and Eddie is located in Loring Park just down the street from the Walker Art Center. A vogue spot for restaurants like Joe's Garage and Cafe Lurcat. As a matter of fact they are all on the same street. After a last minute decision to have dinner with my Wife, Sister and Brother, I was able to secure a reservation with them. This has not always worked to my benefit as a food critic. However, something about their menu spurred my appetite so I decided to take a risk. A risk I believe paid off.

Nick and Eddie is a great fit for the area. It has that artsy fartsy aura to it. Emminating from casual manner and dress of the wait staff, to the overall decor of the restaurant itself. It has a large L-shaped dining and bar area with high ceilings which makes it feel bigger than it actually is. We sat in the back of the restaurant, which is not quite as picturesque as the front.

Getting to the food, the menu is not huge. It had 7 appetizers, a couple soups & salads and 7 main courses to choose from, plus dessert. Dinner came with a bread service which was a scary start to the meal. Either jazz it up or forgo it completely. For an appetizer we had the Nick and Eddie Smorgasbord Platter which consisted of blini w/gravlox, whitefish salad w/potato pancake, pirogi, shrimp, and meatballs. Not bad for $10 and a nice sampling of each. For dinner, I had the Spicy Steak with mashed potatoes & collard greens which was really good! I had the impression that it was a skirt steak but when it showed up it was more like a NY strip. Nicely marinaded and spiced with all sorts of peppers, complimented with mashed potato's and perfectly cooked collard greens. My Wife had the Grilled Salmon and my Sister had the Grilled Chicken, both liked their food as well. The only disappointment of the night was my Brother's Prime Rib. Although, he may have liked it more if ordered medium instead of medium rare, per our server's recommendation.

The service was great but its hard to beat when "head waiter" and General Manager Doug Anderson is serving you. Something sort of comforting about having the owner serve you and he was 3-4 with his recommendations

Nick and Eddie was a surprise to me. My expectations were not high considering it was a last minute reservation and they actually had availability on a Saturday night. The food for the most part was really good. I heard they recently acquired Chef Steve Brown (from Porter & Frye) for the kitchen and Doug's Wife Jessica is supposedly a great baker and pastry chef. Maybe this is exactly what the doctor ordered and based upon my meal I would definitely go back. Their Sunday brunch sounds like a good opportunity for this.

Ratings from 1-10:

Food 7

Atmosphere 8

Service 9

Noise 2

Price: Economical

Hell's Kitchen

80 S. 9th Street
Minneapolis
http://www.hellskitcheninc.com/

Hell's Kitchen has been in business for 7 years and has recently moved into its new underground space which used to be Rossi's Steakhouse. You actually feel like you are stepping down into the depths of hell as the walk down the stairs into the red and black interior of the restaurant. The space is sprawling. Once you check in you have the choice of bellying up to the bar in the main part of the restaurant or you can head down a hall that leads into yet another bar and dining area. My feelings were that the space definitely fits the name of the restaurant.

Prior to the move, Hell's Kitchen had always been known for it's breakfast fare. Needless to say I was a bit concerned about going there for dinner. The dinner menu consisted of your typical bar food with a more spendy entree section. They also have a "breakfast all day" section which I should have stuck to for dinner. I chose the Bison Burger with white cheddar cheese and bacon served with sweet potato fries and chipotle mayo. Yes, all of Hell's Kitchen burgers are made with bison chuck. For the most part, I enjoyed the burger except for the fact they forgot to put bacon on it. My wife had the lobster tacos, which in no way shape or form were actually tacos, more like lobster enchiladas. They were good but not really worth the $25 price tag. Per the recommendation of our server my brother had the BBQ ribs which he though were less than adequate, dry and tough. His wife had the side Cesar salad which as enormous and the baked penne with vegetables. She was less than excited about her choices as well.

The service started out slow and improved only slightly after ordering our drinks. My sister-in-law's salad came out with her entree and the forgot to put bacon on my burger. Got to have my bacon. The food did come out quick after ordering it. The server expressed her concern for the arrival of the salad but not a word about my bacon, at least she didn't charge me for it.

My overall visit to Hell's Kitchen left me confused. They have a great name and venue but the food did not live up to the hype. Bare in mind most of the hype was in reference to their breakfast. Chef owners Mitch Omer and Steve Meyer really has a good thing going here with the name and the venue. My feelings are that a little more emphasis on the dinner menu could be a huge overall improvement. After looking at there breakfast menu on their website, I definitely have to go back and try it.

Ratings from 1-10:

Atmosphere 8

Food 5

Service 5

Noise 5

Price: Moderate, mixed drinks were expensive.

112 Eatery

112 N. 3rd Street
Minneapolis
http://www.112eatery.com/

I had the pleasure of eating at 112 Eatery the other day with a client from work. I have heard great things about this restaurant since it opened four years ago. I tried many times to get a reservation on both Friday and Saturday nights with no success. At one point I tried to make a reservation 5 weeks out and they were booked. I recommend a weeknight if you don't feel like making reservations six weeks in advance. Or, just show up and eat at one of the bars.

I understood immediately upon entering the restaurant why its is so difficult to get a reservation. The restaurant itself is really small. We sat at the small bar on the main floor right as you walk in. There is also a second level which has another bar and more seating. I did not actually look at this section of the restaurant but from what I understand its not huge either.

The menu is set-up with appetizers, entrees and sides. Some of the entrees could be ordered ala carte. Knowing my appetite, I stayed away from this portion of the menu. Although, I hear the 112 Cheeseburger is to die for. We Started out with and order of sea scallops in butternut bean sauce and blue prawns with rooster mayo. Both were absolutely amazing and cooked to perfection. For my main course I had the tagliatelle with foie gras meatballs and my client friend had the maltagliati with oysters & beurre blanc. Both were pastas of some form. I had to ask the server for a translation. Pronunciation aside the pasta was wonderful.

112 Eatery definitely lived up to all the hype for me. The food was amazing, different and moderately priced. The service was excellent considering we were seated at the bar. The drink prices were pretty much in line with restaurants in the warehouse district. Chef Isaac Becker and his wife Nancy St. Pierre have it figured out. Her taste buds and his creativity in the kitchen is a recipe for success. I can't wait for my next visit to their restaurant!

Ratings from 1-10:

Food 9

Atmosphere 8

Service 9

Noise 2

Price: Moderate

Town Talk Diner

2707 1/2 East Lake Street
Minneapolis
http://www.towntalkdiner.com/

After seeing the episode of Diners Drive-Inns and Dives I had to check this place out. Lets just say this is not your average diner. If it is considered a diner, it should win the prize for the most trendy. Its not a huge diner but we only waited 5 or 10 minutes to get a table. It is split with the bar on left and the restaurant on the right as you walk in.

Seriously, what diner has a full bar? I knew there was a reason going to like this place. The beers are served by bottle or can. When they are ordered in the can they come with coozie's to keep them cool, nice little touch I thought. Town Talk is also known for its mixed drinks. I might be daring enough to try the Bacon Manhattan or a Kentucky Cousin during my next visit. Or if your are feeling adventurous you could just order the 40 of PBR and be done with it.

The menu is set-up with appetizers, salads, sandwiches, burgers and entrees. I guess you could say your typical diner food but a bit more eclectic. The best part about it was that nothing priced over $18! We started out with an appetizer of frickles or fried pickles which were great. For dinner I had the Kitchen Sink Burger which was as good as could be expected. My brother, on the other hand had the Brat Burger, which he still has not shut-up about to this day. Its served with spicy kraut, which he really liked. My wife had the Turkey Burger, which she too thought was very good and my bother's wife had the Organic Tempeh Sandwich. She said it was good but she wasn't quite as excited as her husband. The burgers come with Garlic Parsley Potato Fries which were to die for. No kissy face after that though.

Our trip to Town Talk Diner was great. The service was excellent and the food was way better than you would expect to eat at a diner. I would defintely return to try an entree and their bacon infused Burboun. Town Talk was recently sold to Thero Restuarant Group. So I guess one could say that it is no longer Chef Owned. Chef Tony Callies still runs the kitchen and Nick Kosevich is still behind the bar. Hopefully it has not lost its spark and I look forward to returning soon!

Ratings from 1-10:

Atmosphere 8

Food 7

Service 7

Noise 5

Price: The food was very affordable. The drinks were suprisingly inexpensive.