A warm weekend in Minneapolis / St. Paul

by | Oct 27, 2017 | Food & Drink, Travel, USA Travel

In late September we flew to Minneapolis to visit friends and explore the area, and lucky us, it was warmer there than back home in NC! The heat made us a little lazier than we might have planned, but we had a good time ping-ponging across Minneapolis & St. Paul nonetheless.

Much of our time was spent being entertained by these two pups…

play time!  such a good boy!

Saturday highlights

Como Park Conservatory – walkable from our friend’s house, we enjoyed the various plants they have on exhibit. The bonsai collection and beautiful water lilies were especially notable.

water lily pads @ Como Park Conservatory

Muffaletta – a leisurely brunch, the baked French toast was quickly devoured. Leandra’s Benedict was big enough for a football player. She finished about half – putting in a good showing.

Dangerous Man Brewing – quite busy and loud, we were underwhelmed by the beer, as most everything we tasted was rather thin. The logo was awesome and well represented by the clientele.

Indeed Brewing – has two bars, and you aren’t supposed to carry drinks between them. We went for the quieter inside bar, where I tried the Heliotropic Dry Hopped, which was quite good. Leandra had a seasonal tripel.

Minnehaha Regional Park – easy view of the of the famous Minnehaha Falls at twilight. Afterwards, we walked down to the Mississippi River and back.

Minnehaha Falls  Minnehaha Falls

The Sample Room – nice spot for dinner. My cuban was perhaps the messiest sandwich I’ve ever had, definitely knife and fork material, and very tasty. Leandra’s steak tartare was good but the egg yolk was way too large for the portion size. The fries were AMAZING.

tartare @ The Sample Room

Sunday highlights

We started the day at the Minneapolis Sculpture Garden. Smaller than expected, but with a fun range of sculptures (including the famous cherry) and an unbeatable price (free!).

'Spoonbridge and Cherry' @ Minneapolis Sculpture Garden

'Hahn/Cock' @ Minneapolis Sculpture Garden  'Woodrow' @ Minneapolis Sculpture Garden

Wind Chime @ Minneapolis Sculpture Garden

Next we tried the Midtown Global Market, which was disappointingly only half open on Sunday morning. Instead, we decided on brunch at the Happy Gnome. Leandra’s poutine had a sticker in it; thankfully the restaurant staff took it back with apologies and quickly got her a replacement dish. Everyone else enjoyed their choices here, and the beer list is quite extensive.

After brunch we headed out of town to Vermillion Falls, situated next to an old mill. We may have been traveling with some excited canines as well….

peek-a-boo  Vermillion Falls

Old Mill ruins

tired pups in the back

peek-a-boo 2

After dropping said canines back at home and recharging both our phones and our energy levels, we headed for another brewery on our list, Surly. As with Indeed, they asked for ID for all patrons, which is rather laughable at our age. They have an enormous facility, with a large indoor beer hall complete with picnic tables, and an equally large outdoor patio. Since we weren’t eating we went outside and enjoyed the cooler twilight air. I definitely enjoyed their sour beer collection, best of the trip.

Our final stop was back in St. Paul at W.A Frost, a restaurant with a lovely tree filled outdoor patio and food to match. We didn’t get a chance to enjoy the basement bar area but it looked very inviting, especially if the weather is cooler (i.e. most of the time).

Monday morning

On our way to the airport we had breakfast at Tiny Diner with a woman Leandra met during her dumpling class in Beijing two years ago!

Our Itinerary

2024 Trips

San Diego, CA (Jan)
Sarasota, FL (Feb)
Valencia, Spain (Mar)
Mallorca (Apr)
Croatia (May)
Faroe Islands (Aug)
London, UK (Sept)
Bari, Italy (Sept)
Rome, Italy (Oct)
Frankfurt, Germany (Oct)

2022 Trips

Florida (Feb)
NC Mountains (Apr)
Washington DC (Apr)
Valencia, Spain (May)
Hilton Head, SC (May)
Pacific NW (Jun)
Long Island (Jul)
Florida (Sept)
Chicago (Sept)
Poland (Sept)
NC Mountains (Nov)
Euro Xmas Markets (Dec)