D and I were in the neighborhood and looking for a quick snack (not a full dinner), so we decided to pop into this local bar and grill we’d been in a few years back. This place has gotten a recent remodel and looks fantastic inside. New floors, tables, and booths go a long way into brightening this place up and refreshing it. There’s also a really surprisingly improved menu available. Super impressed with the offerings here – including the tap list.
Additionally, they do some special menus. I’m very interested in the Cajun menu special nights and an upcoming Italian menu special nights. Looks like this refresh didn’t stop at the front of the house – well done, whoever helped upscale this place!
We ordered the Armadillo Eggs and Spicy Cauliflower. And a couple of beers, obviously. The Vikings game was on, which meant they had half price appetizers, so we accidentally timed it really well, showing up when we did. And to kill time, D got to check out some claw machines, which is a hilarious draw, but apparently, it works.
The Armadillo Eggs were surprisingly delicious. I thought they were going to be a simple jalapeno popper, but they weren’t. Hear me out: the jalapeno is stuffed with brisket and cream cheese, then wrapped in Italian sausage and bacon, and then smoked and glazed with BBQ sauce. Honestly, this was leaps and bounds better than a jalapeno popper. They’re an appetizer, so everything is small, but don’t let that fool you – it’s about balance. Sure, if it was softball-sized and deep fried like a state fair monstrosity, it would be some sort of food challenge, but this has great ratios where you can taste everything. Loved how well put together these things were.
The spicy cauliflower is like deep fried buffalo cauliflower, so don’t mistake this for healthy. The fry on this was impressive and there’s plenty of buffalo sauce all around the cauliflower inside. It’s served with a side of avocado ranch, which I could have drunk by the gallon. It’s the perfect dip for these little gems.
I’m really impressed with the apps we got here. It’s clear the menu has been elevated and there’s some care that goes into the food prep (including plating, which D cares about more than I do). I’m glad to recommend this place now to friends that are up in the Cuyuna Lakes area for mountain biking or disc golf or camping. It’s got so much more going for it now, and we’re looking forward to going back and trying out some larger menu items. Great job on the update, Croft Kitchen!
7 1st Avenue NW
Crosby, MN 56441
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