Downtown
Presenting 10 Bars with MPLS's Favorite Happy Hours
[Photo: Republic, Minneapolis 81]
Last Friday, we asked readers to name their favorite bar happy hours. This time was bars-only, and there was a nice, healthy response to our moderately unhealthy query in the comments section.
Here now is a map presenting 10 reader favorite bar happy hours. Some were touted for expansive HH food menus or extra hours (or days) of happiness; others garnered fans thanks to unique options, like a 2-for-1 bloody mary, local beer specials, or special Prix Fixe (PBR, shot, cigarette); others were simply a good deal on a classy cocktail. They're here in roughly geographic order; and if your favorite is still missing from the party, do add it to the comments. (Note: Restaurants were exempt from the running this time around; but get ready to spill those HH restaurant picks soon.)
Where to Eat for Minneapolis/St. Paul Restaurant Week
[Photo: Corner Table, one of our picks for restaurant week, Corner Table website]
Restaurant week is scheduled to run from Sunday, February 24 to Friday, March 1, with 54 restaurants participating in Minneapolis, St. Paul, and a few outlying suburbs. How it works: Participating restaurants offer a multi-course menu (with some options) for $10-$20 for lunch and $15-$30 for dinner.
But how to know if you're getting a deal or if you're just being strong-armed into three courses that you would never even order a la carte? We've parsed the list for you and come up with our best bets for getting the most out of restaurant week: places that give you options for each course, and also seem like they give you your money's worth. You can also see all the restaurant week menus here and judge for yourself.
Have a great meal at one of the restaurants on the list? Get a bum deal? Let us know in the comments, so we can all benefit from your restaurant week triumphs (or tales of woe).
One Two Three Sushi Bringing Fresh-Made Rolls to Skyway
One Two Three Sushi
80 S. 8th St. (Second Floor of the IDS Tower)
Phone: (612) 354-3040
Status: Opens at 11 a.m. today
As they continue to expand their burgeoning sushi empire, Sushi Avenue—the parent company of the acclaimed Masu Sushi and Robata—will open its first "fast casual" spot in the skyway today. One Two Three Sushi will be making sushi to order, with diners selecting their ingredients as they move along a service line (think: Chipotle style). In addition to fresh-made rolls, One Two Three will also have three different ramen bowls and four steamed bun options on the menu. According to the Journal Mpls, the 763-foot space only has room for 16 people to dine-in; business will be mostly focused on takeout orders. There will also be pre-made sushi available for skyway dwellers who really need to grab-and-go.
One Two Three Sushi will be open 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., Monday through Friday; closed Saturdays and Sundays.
· One Two Three Sushi Facebook Page
· New Sushi Spot Opens in Skyways Next Week [The Journal MPLS]
· All Coverage of One Two Three Sushi [Eater MPLS]
The Eater Mpls Heatmap: Where to Eat Right Now
Restaurant obsessives want to know what's new, what's hot, which favorite chef just launched a sophomore effort, etc., and more often than not, tipsters, readers, friends and family of Eater have one question: Where should I eat right now? What is the "it" (ie, newest) place of the moment?
Thus, we offer the Eater Heatmap, which will change often to continually highlight where the food-focused crowds are flocking to at this very second. This time around, please welcome two new spots to the map, both representing for Longfellow: Parka and Blue Door Longfellow.
Did we miss your personal favorite hot, new restaurant? By all means, let us know in the comments or email the tipline.
Heidi's Stewart Woodman Weighs In on 'Food Truck Wars'
Where there are great food trucks, there is great food truck backlash. And backlash to the backlash. Yesterday, reports came out that some downtown restaurant owners had formed a group called the Downtown Food Committee to discuss the negative impact of food trucks on the downtown brick n'mortars. Today, Stewart Woodman—chef and co-owner of Heidi's and Birdhouse—jumped in the fray with a piece for TC Daily Planet, in which he likened the Downtown Food Committee to communists, suggesting they use a hammer and sickle as their logo. From Woodman's article:
What's odd is that I don't see anywhere on the agenda a proactive conversation about what they can do better to compete with food trucks, how to make your food more interesting, or give out free back rubs, nothing.This is 'merica son, freedom ain't free, that means that if another guy or gal has a killer idea, it might kills yours. You gotta jump in with both feet and fix your product to get it where it needs to be, ain't no two ways about it.