This week was quit special, I had the opportunity to see The Master Butchers Singing Club. The play itself was good but might I say toooo long. Enough about the play my mind set is all about the food and fun.
There really was not to much time to pick a restaurant that would be near and not too expensive. Hey, how about Level 5 in The Guthrie, what a great idea, its a one stop shop all in one building. Every once in a while I come up with a brain storm and this is my one for the year. Hello...PHM...pitched my idea..sounds great.
Ok, so Level 5 it is. In we go first stop is the bar. One needs to unwind a bit, a cocktail, a little laughter and some conversation. I was a little disappointed to find that the bartender called in sick and his replacement was the barrister. I must say he was so nice and willing to help, I could not just walk away. I made the mistake of ordering a Lemon Drop, not bad but not good...Oh well.
In to the restaurant we go! The place is huge, kind of nice, really nondescript. The menu is small, and pedestrian. I was very surprised that there was no pasta on the menu, maybe something they should take under advisement. I tried the Ruben it was good but very greasy and loads of french fries. PHM had the salmon, small portion but heard it was good.
Just a few suggestions...the wait staff should know a little bit more about the food that is on the menu, god knows there is not a lot to know about.
A little enthusiasm when taking the order would be great.
They need to have a back up bartender just in case.
The tables need to be bigger, please remember that in most cases when 2 people sit at a table they are going to order more then one dish.
I will be going back to The Guthrie but not to Level 5 maybe Level 1 oops that is Sea Change.
That's it for now...Peggers
Sunday, October 24, 2010
Sunday, October 17, 2010
Cossetta Italian Market and Restaurant
Another gorgeous day in the Mini-Apple...what should one do?
Oh, I hear my phone ringing it is my bff Phm...whats going on Peg..what a wonderful day to take a walk around Lake of the Isles and then a little nosh..sounds good to me.
Around the lake we go...almost to the end, my stomach is growling, OK whats next?
How about a ride over to St. Paul's? Lets see what is going on in the other part of town. The first place we come upon is Cossetta of which I have heard many good things but never had the opportunity to visit.
Not sure how to describe the place except to say that it has been around for many a year. There are no frills it is a plain family restaurant with deli style service. There are so many things that look so good, can somebody get me a fork I'm not really hunger I just want to taste...yes taste it all.
I start with the Veal Parmigiana with garlic bread and Mostaccioli Con Ricotta (pasta), sounds oh so delish, add a glass of wine and you are halfway to heaven. I, being a Brooklyn girl, expected the veal to have cheese on top, that is the name veal parmigiana to my disappointment there was none. All in all the pasta was excellent and the garlic bread tasty, so what if I am still looking for the cheese, Where's the cheese?
I have been told that the pizza is excellent so of course I had to try. I tried the sausage pizza. It brought me back to my New York roots it was fantastic.
Well you would thing the feeding frenzy would be over at this point. There is one more thing to ingest...the lip smacking cannoli. Oh, I must remember from this day forward elastic waistband is a must. You just never know when you will need to expand your waist size an inch or two.
What a great way to spend the last few nice days of the fall, then a walk around a lake followed by a good lunch, what a way to go!
ttfn...Peggy
Cossetta
221 Exchange St S
St Paul, MN
(651) 222-3476
Oh, I hear my phone ringing it is my bff Phm...whats going on Peg..what a wonderful day to take a walk around Lake of the Isles and then a little nosh..sounds good to me.
Around the lake we go...almost to the end, my stomach is growling, OK whats next?
How about a ride over to St. Paul's? Lets see what is going on in the other part of town. The first place we come upon is Cossetta of which I have heard many good things but never had the opportunity to visit.
Not sure how to describe the place except to say that it has been around for many a year. There are no frills it is a plain family restaurant with deli style service. There are so many things that look so good, can somebody get me a fork I'm not really hunger I just want to taste...yes taste it all.
I start with the Veal Parmigiana with garlic bread and Mostaccioli Con Ricotta (pasta), sounds oh so delish, add a glass of wine and you are halfway to heaven. I, being a Brooklyn girl, expected the veal to have cheese on top, that is the name veal parmigiana to my disappointment there was none. All in all the pasta was excellent and the garlic bread tasty, so what if I am still looking for the cheese, Where's the cheese?
I have been told that the pizza is excellent so of course I had to try. I tried the sausage pizza. It brought me back to my New York roots it was fantastic.
Well you would thing the feeding frenzy would be over at this point. There is one more thing to ingest...the lip smacking cannoli. Oh, I must remember from this day forward elastic waistband is a must. You just never know when you will need to expand your waist size an inch or two.
What a great way to spend the last few nice days of the fall, then a walk around a lake followed by a good lunch, what a way to go!
ttfn...Peggy
Cossetta
221 Exchange St S
St Paul, MN
(651) 222-3476
Sunday, October 3, 2010
BLVD
Let me paint a picture scenario just to get the feeling!
It is the first Saturday in October, the weather nice but crisp and the hunt is on for yes another new restaurant...what could be better.
The hunt takes us to a fairly new restaurant called Blvd (boulevard)located in the Minnetonka area. From the looks of thinks this place is the flavor of this month. There was about a 20 minutes wait which was spent at the bar reacquainting myself with my favorite martini the lemon drop. Might I say it did fall short of expectations, to the point where I mentioned to the bartender that it needed to be a little sweeter, his reply..you need to taste the sugar on the rim.
Moving on. We (PHM and myself) were shown to a lovely booth that was tended to by a server named Curtis. Cannot say enough about Curtis, the essence of professionalism, new the menu suggested just enough and had a good sense of humor as well.
To the food. I guess the best way to describe would be to say comfort food with a twist. My favorite dish of the month is Mac&cheese but throw in some large pieces of lobster and I will lick the dish...Yum. The next treat was a shaved rib-eye sandwich paired with arugula mayo..can I say heaven. PHM had the barbecue burger and from that side of the table came yum love my sauce and then it was gone. Lest I forget while dinning we tried a house special cocktail called the French 75 but instead of gin I wanted mine with vodka...this was quit tasty. I would have loved to try a dessert but by this time my jeans were stretched to the max.
I liked the place, it is good to see American comfort food done with an upscale twist, and the prices are not going to brake the bank. The atmosphere is very pleasant, the music in the background is easy on the ear and yes there might be a wait but stick with it. You can tell there has been a lot of thought put in to this place and it is nice to see the owner as well as his son keeping a watchful eye, to me it sends the message...We care.
BLVD Kitchen and Bar
11544 West Wayzata Blvd., Minnetonka
763-398-3200; www.blvdkitchen.com
It is the first Saturday in October, the weather nice but crisp and the hunt is on for yes another new restaurant...what could be better.
The hunt takes us to a fairly new restaurant called Blvd (boulevard)located in the Minnetonka area. From the looks of thinks this place is the flavor of this month. There was about a 20 minutes wait which was spent at the bar reacquainting myself with my favorite martini the lemon drop. Might I say it did fall short of expectations, to the point where I mentioned to the bartender that it needed to be a little sweeter, his reply..you need to taste the sugar on the rim.
Moving on. We (PHM and myself) were shown to a lovely booth that was tended to by a server named Curtis. Cannot say enough about Curtis, the essence of professionalism, new the menu suggested just enough and had a good sense of humor as well.
To the food. I guess the best way to describe would be to say comfort food with a twist. My favorite dish of the month is Mac&cheese but throw in some large pieces of lobster and I will lick the dish...Yum. The next treat was a shaved rib-eye sandwich paired with arugula mayo..can I say heaven. PHM had the barbecue burger and from that side of the table came yum love my sauce and then it was gone. Lest I forget while dinning we tried a house special cocktail called the French 75 but instead of gin I wanted mine with vodka...this was quit tasty. I would have loved to try a dessert but by this time my jeans were stretched to the max.
I liked the place, it is good to see American comfort food done with an upscale twist, and the prices are not going to brake the bank. The atmosphere is very pleasant, the music in the background is easy on the ear and yes there might be a wait but stick with it. You can tell there has been a lot of thought put in to this place and it is nice to see the owner as well as his son keeping a watchful eye, to me it sends the message...We care.
BLVD Kitchen and Bar
11544 West Wayzata Blvd., Minnetonka
763-398-3200; www.blvdkitchen.com
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