Chatterbox Pub Bloody Mary

In February of last year, we decided to stumble into Chatterbox Pub over in the Corcoran neighborhood of Minneapolis for a cold dreary late Saturday afternoon lunch.  We eschewed the board games and classic Atari play for some burgers and a towering good Bloody Mary at the bar with an antipasto-plate-on-a-stick shoved in it.  Given their BMs are 1/2 off from 2 - 5pm every day, it was a wise choice on our part, I would say.

Sweet Action in a Kettle of Fish

Steps away from the infamous Stonewall Inn in New York is a comfy neighborhood pub called Kettle of Fish. With low ceilings, dartboards, and a cluster of comfy worn in brown sofas, it's like hangin' in your buddy's basement rec room.

Tried a Sixpoint "Sweet Action" ale and it a was indeed a "sweet" experience. Slightly sweet and bitter with a good structure. This was listed on a beer menu written in marker on a sheet of paper taped to the bar, so I don't think it is broadly available.

Herkimer has got Gose

If you are in the twin cities, go to Herkimer and get the Gose. It is a cross between a Belgian Wit and a Berliner according to the menu. I'm not sure what that means, but it's good stuff and very distinctive. Maybe it was the orange slice garnish, but to me it's sort of like Blue Moon, if it went to the dark side.

Put that nutmeg in yo margarita

I love margaritas. On the rocks with no salt. I am enjoying this one at Innuendo in Saint Paul. With Patron Silver, it is a very good drink. With a little whole nutmeg, it is fabulous! I had to suffer through several Cher songs and a losing game of pool to experience it but the bar is cool so I will be back.

Montreal - Cafeteria: One Plush Lunch

Cafeteria :: Plateau, originally uploaded by markj.

A city with a strong cafe culture like Montreal requires an ample supply of establishments that morph throughout the day from coffee house to lunch spot to happy hour to dinner to after hour bar. Last year, we delighted in Java U as a stellar example. For this trip, Cafeteria seemed to have been designed to fit the bill and was a new experience for us.

After our first thwarted attempt to get lunch at Schwartz's Deli, we defaulted to Cafeteria. The name is slightly ironic as there are no lunch ladies or melamine dishes to be found in this joint. The decor is plush red velvet seating, dark luxurious wood tables and a melange of textures in every wall, floor, and lighting treatment. The entire facade of the restaurant opened out into the street beaconing us in with a hip rhythm-driven vibe that almost seemed out of place at 12:45pm on a Wednesday afternoon.

Inside were a couple of young dudes surfing on laptops while sipping on draft beer, a few groups of young people noshing on burgers & sandwiches and the too-cute bartender casually providing drinks to the servers who nonchalantly kept the show rolling.

I opted for one of the 3 selections of Moules et Frites (mussels & fries). This version was cooked in an arrabiata tomato sauce that was mildly spicy. In Minneapolis, I noted that a lot of high-end bars/lounges offer mussels or fries, but this was the first encounter I had with them paired as an entree. The mussels were delightfully fresh and the sauce was flavorful enough to invite my bread and fries to play. At $12CAD, it was an excellent value and an appropriate lunch to welcome me to Quebec before setting my credit card on fire at more extravagant venues.

NYC(5of5) - The Room - a very dark place

thomas.jpg, originally uploaded by herman melville.

After a night of gorging and pool-playing with our agency partners on a recent trip to NYC, my boss and I were sidetracked from our route back to our hotel and lured by a colleague into a tight and lively little bar called "The Room". I am usually a bit suspicious about any place that goes by nondescript names or titles. In New York, however, I think minimal names signify, "Yeah, that's all there is to the name - shut up and appreciate how cool this is!" Okay, when in Rome . . .

The Room was terribly dark - darker than any place I ever expected to be with my boss, but the crowd had the right casual neighborhood vibe and there were a few stools at the far end of the bar so we got comfortable. They featured a broad selection of obscure beers written in chalk on the wall and dispensed from a series of taps protruding from a brick wall behind the bar. I fail to remember what beer I had there, but I'm sure it will not be on offer again if ever I return. Some things are best left to the moment and some menus are best if they are allowed to expire.

Whitey's and boobage

I got diverted from my normal Tuesday night hangout to a saloon called Whitey's in NE Minneapolis. Had a Blue Moon. Okay bar but I was shocked to witness the Minnesota breast enhancement society walk in and make a scene. I didn't realized gross boob jobs hung in threes!

Old fashion tipple

If you need to drink bourbon in the middle of the week, I strongly endorse the "Old Fashioned" route. Susan at JetSet hooks me up with a good one every so often.

One of these offers a touch of civility that my other perferred cocktail, the Manhattan, can suggest, but not match. The downside of this drink is the strange urges I get to start smoking cigars and referring to women as "broads" about halfway through it.

3 days of Mexican

This was not planned, but I've just completed a three day Mexican series - sort-of . . .

Friday:
After the Of Montreal concert at First Avenue, my companions and I dropped in at the Chevy's "Fresh Mex"; downtown for Margaritas and snacks before braving the "Y'all Come Back Saloon" - a local institution that never ceases to be popular with the boys. I had eaten dinner earlier in the evening, so I ordered the "Guac My Way" which was promised to be a table-side fresh preparation of Guacamole just as I wanted it. The cheerfully flirtatious server bounded over with a tray of fresh avocados and various accoutrements so that he could try to match my taste preferences. I asked for it chunky, spicy, a touch garlicky and a some salt for good measure. To my horror, his bowls contained garlic powder, very sad looking chopped tomotoes and no salt to speak of. In the end, it ended up bland and tasteless despite his best intentions. After sucking down the 12oz "Blue Agave" margarita, I decided to forgive him and Chevy's for their transgressions. It was just confirmation that if I want a good bowl of Guac - My way - I have to make it myself.

Saturday:
In preparation for my Sunday dinner, we decided to drop by the Midtown Global Market to pick up some things that I didn't trust my local grocery store to carry in good quality (ripe plantains, Mexican queso fresco, and fresh tomatillos). We were pleasantly surprised to see how busy the stalls and shops were on a Saturday night. We opted to cap off our shopping with dinner at "A la Salsa"; - one of the few sit-down establishments in the market that has been getting rave reviews. I started the meal with the first of my 2for1 Mojitos which tasted much like the kind I get when I'm in Mexico or the Caribbean - light on the lime, balanced on the mint and sugar, and just enough rum to make it worth the while. We moved on to the first course of Tostones con Camarones where they took thick fried planks of plantains and topped them with perfectly grilled shrimp topped with this delicious spicy mango salsa. My main course, a Pollo en Mole Poblano - a delicious quarter chicken covered in a rich, ever so slightly sweet mole sauce with two savory tamales on the side - was a delicious exercise in simple complexity. I love a good mole poblano that can balance out the sweet, the chocolate, and the various spices to make it a brain-tingling experience. The A la Salsa folks did not disappoint.

Sunday:
I cooked for us tonight and reached for my friend Rick Bayless for inspiration. I live and die by his "Mexican Everyday"; cookbook so I picked two recipes for this meal: Gulf Coast Rice Pilaf with black beans and plantains supporting Spinach/Mushroom Enchiladas in Salsa Verde. While the pilaf was very good, the enchiladas again stole the show. The sauce is a simple mixture of fresh tomatillos, garlic and jalapeno chilies reduced and then balanced with some stock and crème fraiche. Although the assembly is messy (you dip the tortillas in the sauce, roll in the filling and serve, rather than rolling in the fillings, saucing and baking before serving) the result is fresh, fragrant and intoxicating. I paired this meal with a glass of Cabernet Sauvignon that I opened yesterday, but kept fresh in my newly refurbished "Pek Supremo" wine preservation system. More on that in a future update.

Hastening spring with tequila

On Tuesdays I visit my favorite bar, Jetset for some much needed chill time with my favorite set of alcoholics and talking heads. Susan, the bartender and owner makes perfectly balanced cocktails and runs a tight ship.

This week we finally broke the 3 weeks of deep freeze so I took the occassion to enjoy a margarita on the rocks with no salt. I think a drink like this hastens the coming of warmer days and more occasions to drink tequila.