Dinner at Victory 44

I've had Victory 44 on my list since it first opened. But, it wasn't until I read We Got Served's review of it that I moved it to the tippy-top of my list. Not long after, I was looking for a new place to try for dinner with friends, and the choice was a no-brainer.

Nestled within an unassuming spot in north Minneapolis (I swear the only other thing I remember seeing on the same corner was a Domino's), the vibe at Victory 44 is awesome. The space was jam-packed with a nice, low-key atmosphere on our visit. And even with a bunch of people all around us, the tables were spaced well enough that you didn't feel like you were part of everyone else's conversations.

Even the light fixtures were cool...

And, cooler yet - Victory 44's menu is ever-changing. The chalkboard serves as your guide. During our visit, we opted for the tasting menu - five courses for $30. Two notes: 1. if you pair it with wine for $50, you get a fairly generous half pour with each course, and 2. it's requested that the entire table participate if you get the tasting menu (that's right...even the finicky eaters...ha).

The first course was the beet in textures. I'm not a major fan of beets, so the beet-driven menu almost made me reconsider the tasting menu option (remember though: all for one and one for all). In the end, even I had to admit that this dish packed a lot of flavor. Beets of varying degrees with a tasty sauce and crumble.

Then came the scallops. I cannot even begin to describe how fantastic these were. SO rich. SO melt-in-your-mouth awesome.

And then, the main event: hanger steak with a bleu cheese butter and...wait for it...more beets. :) Actually, this was so incredibly well prepared and well-paired together that it was my favorite part of the whole meal. I'm still day-dreaming about this amazing steak.

Next up was a composed cheese plate with soft cheeses, a tangy jam and more crumble. This was a great follow-up to the steak and transition from dinner to dessert.

And lastly, the dessert course: coffee, peanut butter banana. If I could think of a critique for our meal, this would be it. Overall, it was pretty good. I don't like coffee, but it was barely noticeable. It did however seem to add to the crunchiness, which I wasn't crazy about. And the filo dough was a mixed bag for me. The ice cream and puree were delish.

It certainly wouldn't be a stretch to say that Victory 44 is the best restaurant I've eaten at so far in 2012. The whole meal was fantastic. The ambiance perfect. And while maybe a bit off the beaten path, well worth the trip.

Lunch at Wise Acre Eatery

I'm not sure whether I should be excited about this or worried, but I've been eating at a lot of good restaurants lately. Apparently so much so that I'm backed up in posting about them. (And maybe just a tad bit worried that I'll forget about eating at home altogether.)

One of the best recent examples is Wise Acre Eatery on Nicollet in south Minneapolis. This is probably our finest local example of farm-to-table (as you can read in this City Pages review from last summer). Even just spending two seconds on the restaurant's website will prove it with the colorful farm-meets-food photos and the Gone Farmin' rationalization for being closed on Mondays.

Located in a former oil station - and still featuring the garage door that opens onto an outdoor patio - the space is adorable.

It's quaint and small and lovely. At the counter you can purchase items ranging from pastries to eggs, and the bar at the back makes everything from sustainable coffee to homemade sodas.

Greenery is strategically placed around the space, making it feel even more natural and homegrown. It's also incredibly complimentary to the overall ambiance.

I'd heard good things about their housemade sparkling sodas, so I tried a lemon verbena version. While it was quite refreshing, I think the combination of its sugary sweetness and it taking a little while to get to me (it seemed our server forgot about it) made me wish I would've just stuck with water.

For my rural dinner/urban lunch selection, I ordered a full meal of beef roast, cranberry macaroni and cheese and brussels sprouts. Ooh la la :)

Oh, you know I totally ate all of this! Because I'm a brussels sprouts fanatic. Because I love grass-fed, tender beef roast. And because there probably is no better pairing than creamy mac n cheese with cranberries. 

What a delightfully satisfying lunch. And with so many seasonally-changing menu items, I'm excited to go back for breakfast or "urban dinner." :)

NYE Dinner at Rinata and Crashed Ice Event

This post is going to bring together two very different events - one that I should have posted about already (New Year's Eve dinner at Rinata) and one that took place this weekend (Red Bull Crashed Ice in Saint Paul).

Let's start with Rinata. I've always heard good things about its Italian fare and had it on a list of spots to visit but just never seemed to find the time. Then, when planning for New Year's Eve dinner at the last minute, I remembered reading this great post from The Heavy Table about five good restaurants people are overlooking. I figured it was a sign I should try to score NYE reservations. And, I did! For six!

Rinata, with its lovely Christmas decorations still hanging, had a lovely, intimate ambiance. With just a few tables in each of three rooms, every nook and cranny was packed when we arrived (I took the shot below on the right just as we were the last to leave so as not to interrupt other diners). The whole space felt warm and cozy on the snowy evening.

As we placed our wine order, our server brought out some fantastic bread with olive oil and tapenade. We were already off to a good start.

We then ordered two appetizers for the group to share; my selection was the bruschetta with cannellini beans, pancetta and roasted brussels sprouts. I give it solid marks for presentation and an interesting combination of ingredients. Overall, though, I thought the beans were just a little too much and ended up drying the app out a bit (of course, this could partially be attributed to my non-love of these white beans, though I keep trying to convince myself otherwise). One friend suggested that it might have been better had the beans been pureed...that might not be a bad idea :)

The second starter was the crostini with roasted mushrooms, caramelized onion and bleu cheese. As a lover of all things mushroom and bleu cheese, I thought this one was very enjoyable.

And then - the main event. I ordered the gnocchi with balsamic braised short ribs and roasted mushroom pan sauce for my entree. OMG. This was outstanding. The short ribs were so tender and flavorful, and the gnocchi perfectly prepared. I was really blown away by this dish and ate every. last. bite.

I was really impressed by how reasonably priced everything on the menu was given the caliber of food. It was all well-prepared and quite generously portioned. And another thing I really enjoyed about our Rinata experience was the staff. We had a fantastic server who was absolutely delightful. Plus, the restaurant was very accommodating when I called to adjust my reservation (even on NYE!).

So, if you haven't yet tried Rinata in Uptown, consider this a little nudge.

******

On to the Crashed Ice event. This weekend, the steps of the Cathedral in Saint Paul became home to a steep, icy and winding track for the Red Bull Crashed Ice World Championship, where nearly 200 skaters from around the world came to compete. It's estimated that more than 80,000 people swarmed the streets of Saint Paul to take in the action. I joined the mad house for a bit Saturday evening. Here are just a couple of photo highlights from the event :)

Christmas Treats Perfect for Holiday Parties

I meant to post this before traveling for work all last week. Oops...you'll have to appreciate seeing it now even though you're probably so over Christmas :)

If you remember my Thanksgiving pumpkin gingersnap cheesecake post, you remember that I practically had to bribe the family to eat it. So, I decided to go a different route for Christmas - one that didn't require as much time and energy. My parents hosted Christmas dinner, and I opted to provide the pre-meal fare.

It started with peppermint-flavored puppy chow (recipe found on the back of a Crispix box). What a fun, holiday twist on one of the world's greatest guilty pleasures! To make it, you start by melting a bag of semi-sweet chocolate chips with a stick of butter. Once melted, add a 1/2 or full teaspoon of peppermint extract (I went with the full teaspoon). Next, mix the cereal and chocolate together.

Place the chocolate-y cereal mixture into a large baggie of powdered sugar. Zip it up and shake to coat the cereal.

Let it cool, and you're ready to put it in a container of your liking and serve to your loved ones. This is my 'cookie jar' that I bought at Sur La Table a couple of years ago. I just love the look of it and that it's easily transportable (in fact, I made this peppermint recipe for two holiday gatherings this year).

I paired the sweet treat with a delightful holiday-themed cheese tray. I saw a friend post this to Facebook in early December and was totally sold. Then it started popping up all over Pinterest as a perfect option for holiday entertaining, and I knew I had to make it.

I used cubes of cheddar, colby-jack and pepper-jack cheeses, along with grape tomatoes and baby dill pickles to make the little tree. Days before Christmas, I picked up the perfect serving tray at CB2, my favorite new home store that just opened in Uptown.

And, what a relief. Family happily devoured these Christmas treats. Maybe I'm on to something... :)

Dinner at Home: Grilled Cheese

As referenced in a recent post about my visit to the Burnett Dairy Cheese Store in Wisconsin, I've been making up a few tasty kitchen creations with my cheese choices. Most notably, I used the cranberry muenster cheese to make fancy grilled cheese sandwiches at my friend's suggestion.

Oh, baby, these were wicked good.

I started by melting some butter in the bottom of a frying pan and placing a slice of whole grain bread in the pan. Next up, a layer of turkey (I like the Healthy Ones low sodium brand you can get sliced up at the grocery store deli counter).

Then, a generous layer of cheese followed by another slice of bread and a tad more butter to brown the second side.

Mmmm....melted gooeyness!

Paired with a nice little side salad (romaine hearts, grape tomatoes, shredded cheddar cheese and Ranch dressing), the turkey grilled cheese is perfect for the season. And so awesome, I had it twice in one week :)

Dinner at Masa

I recently met friends for dinner at Masa, the Mexican D'Amico restaurant in downtown Minneapolis, which is pretty perfectly situated on Nicollet Mall.

I have to point out right away that I quite love the look and feel of Masa with its full range of colors and impressive decor. The exposed kitchen gives patrons an inside glimpse at a bustling and well-run staff.

This was my second visit to Masa in the last few years, and after having really enjoyed my first visit, I had fairly high expectations for the second visit. We ordered a couple of appetizers to share, starting with the serrano relleno - two serrano peppers filled with queso and lightly fried in meringue batter. They come served with charred tomatillo and chile piquillo salsa. I didn't know what half of those things really were, but the important translation = HOT!

Frankly, it was just a bit too spicy for me, and my mouth was on fire so I couldn't really even enjoy it. Even my more adventure-seeking companions were gulping down water like it was nobody's business.

To tame things down a bit, we paired it with the gordita - a masa cake griddled and fried with carnitas, guacamole, red onion and salsa.

This was much more up my alley, and I definitely enjoyed my third of the app.

For my entree, I went with the choice of three tacos, served with rice and frijoles charros (pinto beans stewed with onion, garlic and bacon). The three tacos I selected were the 1. steak (marinated skirt steak with lettuce and onions), 2. chicken (shredded chicken with chipotle crema) and 3. carnitas (roasted pork, cilantro, onion and lime).

In general, I was pretty much so-so on this meal. What I liked: the chicken taco, which was actually very delicious, and the beans, which packed great flavor. The carnitas taco was good, though I've certainly had far better versions at other spots throughout the city. The rice would have been good but it was under-cooked, and the steak taco actually didn't do anything for me...I thought it had a funky taste and left half of it on my plate.

And, on top of the meal not meeting my expectations, our server was a bit off. Surrounded by other well-meaning and attentive servers (one who even stopped at our table to see if we needed anything), she just seemed kind of indifferent. Not bad necessarily...just not really into it.

I wasn't quite ready to give up after dinner, so I insisted we order the one absolute favorite thing I remembered from my first visit for dessert: the churros. Oh, the churros. Served warm with a rich, hot chocolate dipping sauce, I was sure these would save our meal. By the time they came to our table, I forgot all about taking a picture and dug right in!

They were almost as good as I remembered, but at that point, I think we were all just a bit disenchanted with our dining experience. I'm still debating whether I'll give Masa another go in hopes that this was just an off night...but with so many other great restaurants to choose from (including D'Amico's Lurcat, which ranks as one of my all-time favorites), the jury is still out...


20 Day Holiday Workout Challenge
I'm still trucking on the 20 Day Challenge and hoping I'll hit 20 come Dec. 25...just need to work out each of the six remaining days!

1. Tuesday, Nov. 29: spinning and core classes at the gym
2. Thursday, Dec. 1: spinning and core classes at the gym
3. Sunday, Dec. 4: hot power fusion (yoga) at Corepower
4. Monday, Dec. 5: personal training session with my workout buddy at the gym
5. Tuesday, Dec. 6: hot power fusion at Corepower
6. Wednesday, Dec. 7: cardio and strength training at the gym
7. Saturday, Dec. 10: a game of racquetball at the gym (probably more chat session than kick butt workout)
8. Sunday, Dec. 11: candlelight flow at Corepower
9. Monday, Dec. 12: brisk late-night walk through Uptown (forgot I had after-work New Year's Eve plans!)
10. Tuesday, Dec. 13: hot power fusion at Corepower
11. Wednesday, Dec. 14: cardio and strength training at the gym
12. Friday, Dec. 16: candlelight flow at Corepower
13. Saturday, Dec. 17: cardio and strength training at the gym
14. Sunday, Dec. 18: candlelight flow at Corepower