Draft Horse – Minneapolis, MN

This place had been on our list to try for a few different reasons, but it took us forever to get here. The place is proud of the fact that it leverages local (and in many cases in the same building) suppliers of meat and veggies for its delicious sounding menu. They’ve got a few star items and we tried to get a couple of them. 

We had to wait a bit for a table, but we were expecting that. So we grabbed a few beers and watched the servers bring out delicious smelling plates to various tables. We chatted up the bartender and a couple of servers that helped us make our decisions. We got seated and as we were looking at our menus, the table next to us kept offering their food for us to try. They had ordered too much and were SUPER generous about sharing with us and another table. Really Minnesotan and really awesome.

We ordered a meat plate to start with, since it’s difficult to go wrong with those. We also got a pork cassoulet to share. For our entrees, D.Rough got a roast chicken pot pie and I, after changing my mind a few hundred times, decided on the pork shank.

The meat plate and pork cassoulet came out first and we dug in. Great mixture of meats on the meat plate, and each one tasted different (sometimes the meat boards end up tasting the same, but I like variety of this one). Great choice.

The pork cassoulet was quite good. I would get this again, without question. The beans were nice and soft and not grainy and the rustic bread complemented it really well.

The chicken pot pie was good, but not great. I know D.Rough was expecting more flavor, but it was just ok. Plenty of food, but we wished it had more flavors in it (aside from a boat-load of onions).

The pork shank was massive. Really waaaaay too much food. I should have split this between two or three people. The rub it had was fantastic, so I was pretty stoked about eating the rest of it. The skin was a little thick and chewy in spots, but one I got down to the meat, it was incredible. I really loved the flavor of this giant chunk of meat. The seasonings on the outside had clearly soaked into the meat below and gave this meat serious flavor. It was perfectly cooked, as well – not dried out.  I’m glad I got it, but I’d only get it again if I were sharing with a few people. It’s not a one-person portion.

Great restaurant with a slightly higher price tag than our usual stops, but we’re glad we went there to have a nice date night.

Top 5 things about Draft Horse
1. Pork Cassoulet
2. Pork Shank
3. Meat Plate
4. Super friendly people that shared their food with us
5. Love the locally-sourced food

Bottom 5 things
1. Wished the Roasted Chicken Pot Pie were better
2. It's upscale pricing
3. You're going to have to wait, since it isn't very large inside
3. Nothing else was bad!!!

www.thedrafthorsempls.com

Wrestlepalooza 9 – Minneapolis, MN

I can’t believe I’ve been to almost all of these ridiculously fun semi-pro wrestling events. Each one is more fun than the last. I’ve reviewed these before, but I wanted to keep it in front of you so you can remember to buy your tickets to these always-sold-out events. It continues to be like a huge party sponsored by PBR with wrestling, burlesque, and bands. It’s such a good time.

I got to see one of my favorite wrestlers lay some waste in the ring as well – Cody Rice: The Husky Heartthrob. He’s so fun to watch (and also to hang out with).

Here’s a couple more photos to remind you of the awesome times we have. Just go, for your own sake. Go.

Also, I love seeing people legit cry at these things. 

 

Mucci's (for donuts) - St. Paul, MN

Mucci's is one of my favorite donut places in the Twin Cities. I've reviewed this place before and they absolutely kill it every time I've gone there. The small restaurant is a nice homey Italian restaurant at nights, but on Saturday and Sunday mornings, they make upscale donuts.

For example, these donuts are Blood Orange glazed and Pistachio glazed, respectively. They were absolutely incredible.

We also got a slice of their homemade pizza for breakfast. Brilliant idea, Mr. Niver. Thanks for making me give you all my money at all of your restaurants. hahaha

www.muccisitalian.com

The Naughty Greek – St. Paul, MN

D.Rough found some online photos of the food from this place and we dropped by one night we didn’t feel like cooking. The small shop has about 6 tables in it, so you may have to take your food to go if there’s no room. The menu is on the wall and explains things pretty thoroughly – and otherwise, you can ask the staff if you have any questions. We ended up getting a pork gyro platter (with an upgrade to naughty fries – which means they add some feta to the top), a pork gyro sandwich, and baked feta pastries drizzled in honey.

The platter is pretty large and comes on a mini-cookie tray. It’s got all the toppings you could want and a mound of meat. I also LOVE that they cover the pita in olive oil before serving it – something more places could take a hint from. The pork flavor was fantastic and there was more than enough – in fact, I couldn’t eat the entire thing. That doesn’t happen very often. The fries are very crispy, which rules, especially when you have to take half of them home to reheat the next day.

The pork gyro sandwich was basically the same thing, but comes all wrapped up in one package – no assembly required. Maybe slightly less meat than the platter, but it’s still got plenty. Really delicious.

The baked feta was great. Truly. I think you’re probably going to want to split one of these for two people, but if you reeeeeeally enjoy eating a block of feta on your own, no judgment here.

The owner, Angelo, came out and we chatted about D.Rough and my trip to Santorini a few years back. He’s got family in Greece and has been to Santorini himself. We swapped some good stories and assured him we’d be back (to both Santorini and to his restaurant in St. Paul).

For the record, they do serve Greek beer and wine here, so that doesn’t hurt anything.

Looking forward to our next visit here. We loved it. 

www.thenaughtygreek.com 

Naked Chicken Taco – Taco Bell

As usual, Taco Bell has knocked it out of the park on their new menu item. I wasn’t sure what I was going to be walking into with this thing, but I do love fried chicken. So, when Taco Bell told me they were making a taco shell out of fried chicken, I knew right away I was in. I thought I might be bummed that there wasn’t any ground beef in the taco, but the meat-flavor of the chicken was surprisingly good, and the crispiness of the fried part also added to the whole situation.

I’m a fan. Thanks for rockin’ it once again, Taco Bell test kitchens. You keep doing what you’re doing.

Spoonie’s – London Mills, IL

I saw someone post a photo of a gigantic deep fried pork tenderloin at this place this fall and I knew if I was ever in the neighborhood, I’d check it out. Sure it’s an hour and a half drive from my parent’s house, but that’s about as close to “in the neighborhood” as I  was likely to get to the 392-person town in central Illinois nowhere near an interstate.

I walked in and everyone looked at me. When they didn’t recognize me, they kept looking at me. I quickly ordered a PBR to set everyone at ease. Apparently, everyone that eats here knows each other.

Damn I miss small-town life. It’s tantalizingly simple and honest. Seriously, I miss these kinds of places. The inside is decorated with craft-y signs like “$5.00 charge for whining” and “you can’t fix stupid” and “Today’s menu: take it or leave it”. It’s also got that always-under-construction feel to it with some exposed studs on the wall.

They’ve got a huge patio on the side of the building for the warmer months. I  bet that place gets hoppin’ in the summer.

The bartender/servers were really nice and helpful. They made sure I got what I needed to drink and a menu. The place was almost full, even at lunch on a Thursday. And a lot of those people were ordering pork tenderloins. The menu had quite a lot of things on it, many of which visit the deep fryer before getting put on a plate. There are also plenty of sandwiches and pizzas to make sure no one starves here.

The tenderloin didn’t actually take that long to cook, and I was really happy about that. The thing is much thicker than I expected. Yes, it’s really large, but I thought that would be because they pounded it thin and wide. It’s wide, but it’s actually got some pork in there to contend with.  The flavor was actual pork and not just brown/fried. The guy working the fryer knew what he was doing, as well. No greasy flavor and not just overdone crunch. Well played, Mr. Fryer Guy. It comes with a regular sized bun (which my friend referred to as a Pork-T yarmulke), which means – based on the bun size – that this should be four sandwiches.

I promised my wife I wouldn’t try to eat the whole thing, and I didn’t. I basically ate three sandwiches by eating all the way around the bun. I’m sure I could have finished it, but I wouldn’t have fallen asleep on the country roads of Illinois. And also probably would have been in pain, but that’s beside the point. It was a great sandwich and I think the largest one I’ve ever tried to eat. The second closest would be the one in Indiana at Big Daddy’s.

If you’re ever driving near Peoria, Illinois, and have some time for a lunch excursion, it’s worth the drive.  You’re not going to get fancy beer here, but you will get full, and you’ll be happy about it.

Spoonie’s Bar & Grill

103 3rd St.

London Mills, IL 61544

 

Hamburguesas El Gordo – St. Paul, MN

A rare lunchtime-date with D.Rough led us to a restaurant we had heard about. It’s in a small complex of shops on Payne Avenue, housing a brewery, a fruit smoothie shop, a barber shop, a jewelry shop, and a Mexican restaurant. The Hamburguesas El Gordo is almost a glorified food stand in this little complex, but it’s definitely worth stopping at. They’re known for ridiculously massive burgers and hot dogs… also burritos and tacos, oddly enough.

D.Rough and I both decided we needed the signature burger – it’s one beef patty, cheddar cheese, mozzarella cheese, ham, mayonnaise, lettuce tomato, onions, jalapenos, bacon, avocado, ketchup, and mustard. D.Rough added pineapple to hers, and I added a fried egg and salchichas (hot dogs) to mine. Apparently, the standard version didn’t have enough toppings. We also ordered the supreme french fries, you know, in case there was room for some filler.

The food came out in just over five minutes, and thankfully we got there right before a long line formed. The food was pretty impressive, to say the least.

The burger meat itself tasted great – we don’t think it was a frozen patty, which is always nice. The toppings were pretty impressive. I was surprised at how well the whole thing stayed together, probably because I had to smash it down pretty far to even get it in my mouth. I will tell you the total stand-out ingredients of this burger were the avocado, the fried egg (which was fried hard, not runny), and the pickled jalapeno slices. I really enjoyed this burger more than I even expected to. Well done on both the accuracy of the name and also the quality of my lunch.

The fries were good. Actual cut potatoes and loaded with toppings (mainly sauces – crema, hot sauce, ketchup, mustard, and jalapeno slices). We didn’t even eat half of these since were plenty full from the burgers. We decided that the next time, we’d get the asada (steak)-covered fries.

We also laughed that they have double burgers – which would probably kill someone. They also have mini burgers, and a double mini burger (which would likely end up being just a regular sized burger – hahaha).

This place is great and I’m glad we checked it out. I’m assuming the other items on the menu are going to be just as good, based on the showing we had at lunch! Cheers!

Hamburguesas El Gordo

990 Payne Ave.

St. Paul, MN 55106