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Food + Dining
Best Restaurants

2008 Readers’ Poll

March 2008

By Adam Platt

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Five of our Critics Picks are star performers on your Ten Best list (below), but five aren’t. It’s not hard to explain the divergence. Critics are jaded. We eat for a living, on someone else’s dime. We seek innovation, originality, ambition. We admire chefs who experiment and push the boundaries of what’s possible. Those priorities guide our perspectives on a restaurant. Most of you have different priorities. You seek hospitality, consistency, predictability. You value, well, value—after all, it’s your money. Some of you are jazzed by what’s new and different, but more of you are loyal to what works. There are foodies out there who sneer at readers’ polls such as this. Though it inevitably reflects a widely divergent set of tastes and expectations, it also incorporates a more holistic and down to earth set of standards, because it reflects the tastes of real diners. Pazzaluna, The Capital Grille, and Chambers Kitchen—three wildly different restaurants—are newcomers to the Top Ten. They alone are a great indicator of the diversity of opinion that makes up this survey. Thanks to Sarah Howard and a marvelous crew of interns for shepherding this massive undertaking. Please dig in.

Find out more about any of these local restaurants—visit mspmag.com’s online Restaurant Guide.

Ten Best Restaurants (and how they ranked in other categories)

1. 112 Eatery
1st late night dining
3rd comfort food 

2. Kincaid's
1st bar menu
3rd (tie) service
3rd (tie) special occasion
5th (tie) happy hour deals
5th (tie) power lunch
5th seafood

3. St. Paul Grill
1st power lunch
3rd (tie) Twin Cities institution
3rd view
4th brunch
4th dessert
4th service
4th special occasion
4th wine list
5th (tie) romantic
5th (tie) steak  

4. The Oceanaire Seafood Room
1st seafood
3rd (tie) service
3rd (tie) special occasion

5. Manny's Steak House
1st steak
4th Twin Cities institution
5th (tie) wine list

6. La Belle Vie
1st service
1st special occasion
1st wine list
2nd French
2nd romantic
3rd creative cocktails
5th dessert

7. Jax Cafe
2nd brunch
2nd outdoor dining
2nd service
2nd special occasion
2nd Twin Cities institution
3rd romantic
5th (tie) neighborhood restaurant
5th (tie) steak

8. Murray's (tie)
1st Twin Cities institution
3rd steak

Pazzaluna Urban Italian (tie)
2nd after-work scene
2nd happy hour deals
2nd Italian
3rd bar menu
3rd wine list5th creative cocktails

9. The Capital Grille
5th (tie) power lunch
5th (tie) steak
5th (tie) wine list

10. Chambers Kitchen
1st stylish atmosphere

Categories

African/Somali
After-Work Scene
Bakery Café
Barbecue
Bar Menu
Beer Selection
Breakfast
British/Irish Pub
Brunch
Burgers
Chinese
Coffeehouse
Comfort Food
Creative Cocktails
Day-Trip Restaurant
Dessert
French

Greek
Happy Hour Deals
Indian
Italian
Japanese
Late-Night Dining
Latin American
Mexican
Middle Eastern
Music
Neighborhood Restaurant
New Restaurant
Outdoor Dining
Pizza
Place to Take Kids
Power Lunch
Romantic

Salads
Seafood
Service
Special Occasion
Steak
Stylish Atmosphere
Sushi
Thai
Twin Cities Institution
Vegetarian
Vietnamese
View
Wine Bar
Wine List

African/Somali [top]
1. Safari Restaurant
2. Blue Nile Restaurant
3. Fasika

After-Work Scene [top]
1. Zelo
2. Pazzaluna Urban Italian
3. Brit’s Pub
4. Redstone American Grill
5. The Local

Bakery Café [top]
1. Cafe Latté
2. Patrick’s Bakery & Bistro
3. Panera
4. French Meadow Bakery
5. Lucia’s
Edelweiss

Barbecue [top]
1. Famous Dave’s Barbeque
2. Market Bar-B-Que
3. Rudolph’s Bar-B-Que
4. Ted Cook’s 19th Hole BBQ
5. Cap’s Grille

Bar Menu [top]
1. Kincaid’s
2. Café Lurçat
3. Pazzaluna Urban Italian
4. Solera
5. Champps
Figlio

Beer Selection [top]
1. Old Chicago
2. Happy Gnome
3. William’s Uptown Pub and Peanut Bar
4. Brit’s Pub
5. Rock Bottom Brewery

Breakfast [top]
1. Keys Cafe
2. Al’s Breakfast
3. Hell’s Kitchen
4. Good Day Cafe
5. The Original Pancake House

British/Irish Pub [top]
1. Brit’s Pub
2. The Local
3. The Liffey
4. Kieran’s Irish Pub
5. Claddagh Irish Pub
Keegan’s Pub

Brunch [top]
1. Lake Elmo Inn
2. Jax Cafe
3. Nicollet Island Inn
4. St. Paul Grill
5. Afton House Inn
Grand Cafe

Burgers [top]
1. Matt’s Bar
2. Casper & Runyon’s Nook
3. Convention Grill
4. Red Robin
5. Ike’s Food & Cocktails

Chinese [top]
1. Rainbow Chinese
2. P.F. Chang’s China Bistro
3. Big Bowl
4. The Great Wall Chinese
Little Szechuan
5. David Fong’s

Coffeehouse [top]
1. Caribou
2. Dunn Bros
3. Starbucks
4. Nina’s
5. Spyhouse Coffeehouse

Comfort Food [top]
1. Modern Cafe
2. Keys Cafe
3. 112 Eatery
4. Grand Cafe
Tria Restaurant, Bar & Market
5. Ike’s Food & Cocktails

Creative Cocktails [top]
1. Chino Latino
2. Town Talk Diner
3. La Belle Vie
4. Bank
5. Pazzaluna Urban Italian

Day-Trip Restaurant [top]
1. Harbor View Cafe
2. Bayport Cookery
3. Afton House Inn
4. Confluence
5. The Nortons’ Restaurant
St. James Hotel
 
Dessert [top]
1. Cafe Latté
2. The Cheesecake Factory
3. Lake Elmo Inn
4. St. Paul Grill
5. La Belle Vie





French [top]
1. Vincent A Restaurant
2. La Belle Vie
3. Fugaise
4. Forepaugh’s
5. Salut Bar Américain

Greek [top]
1. Christos
2. It’s Greek To Me
3. Santorini Taverna & Grill
4. Gardens of Salonica
5. Dino’s

Happy Hour Deals[top]
1. McCormick & Schmick’s
2. Pazzaluna Urban Italian
3. Figlio
4. M & S Grill
5. Kincaid’s
Palomino

Indian [top]
1. India Palace
2. Taste of India
3. New Delhi Bar and Restaurant
4. Bombay Bistro
5. NalaPak
Surabhi Indian Cuisine

Italian [top]
1. I Nonni
2. Pazzaluna Urban Italian
3. Buca di Beppo
4. Broders’ Pasta Bar
D’Amico Cucina
5. La Grolla

Japanese [top]
1. Fuji Ya
2. Origami
3. Ichiban Japanese Steakhouse & Sushi Bar
4. Sakura Restaurant
5. Nami
Saji-Ya

Late-Night Dining [top]
1. 112 Eatery
2. Figlio
3. Chino Latino
4. Solera
5. Pizza Luce

Latin American [top]
1. Babalú
2. Chino Latino
3. El Meson
4. Pop! Restaurant
5. Solera

Mexican [top]
1. Masa
2. Boca Chica Restaurante
3. Pepitos Salsa a la Salsa
4. La Cucaracha
5. El Loro

Middle Eastern [top]
1. Holy Land
2. Saffron
3. Emily’s Lebanese Deli
4. Shish A Mediterranean Grill & Cafe
5. Abu Nader

Music [top]
1. Dakota Jazz Club & Restaurant
2. Fine Line Music Cafe
3. Rossi’s Steakhouse
4. Nye’s Polonaise Room
Babalú
5. The Times

Neighborhood Restaurant [top]
1. Pop! Restaurant
2. Muffuletta Café
3. Grand Cafe
4. Tria Restaurant, Bar & Market
5. Broders’ Pasta Bar
Jax Cafe

New [top]
1. Bank
2. Saffron Restaurant & Lounge
3. Fogo de Chão
4. Crave
5. Cafe Maude

Outdoor Dining [top]
1. W.A. Frost & Company
2. Jax Cafe
3. Stella’s Fish Cafe & Prestige Oyster Bar
4. Tria Restaurant, Bar & Market
5. Solera

Pizza [top]
1. Punch Neapolitan Pizza
2. Pizza Luce
3. Broadway Pizza
4. Red’s Savoy Inn
5. Pizza Nea
Carbone’s Pizza

Place to Take Kids [top]
1. Fuddruckers
2. Perkins
3. Buca di Beppo
4. Champps
5. Rainforest Cafe

Power Lunch [top]
1. St. Paul Grill
2. Mission American Kitchen
3. Bank
4. Zelo
5. The Capital Grille
Kincaid’s

Romantic [top]
1. W.A. Frost & Company
2. La Belle Vie
3. Jax Cafe
4. Afton House Inn
5. Grand Cafe
St. Paul Grill

Salads [top]
1. Cafe Latté
2. The Cheesecake Factory
3. Q. Cumbers
4. The Good Earth
5. D’Amico & Sons
Applebee’s

Sandwiches [top]

Seafood [top]
1. The Oceanaire Seafood Room
2. McCormick & Schmick’s
3. Stella’s Fish Cafe & Prestige Oyster Bar
4. Red Lobster
5. Kincaid’s

Service [top]
1. La Belle Vie
2. Jax Cafe
3. Kincaid’s
The Oceanaire Seafood Room
4. St. Paul Grill
5. Afton House Inn
Lake Elmo Inn

Special Occasion [top]
1. La Belle Vie
2. Jax Cafe
3. Kincaid’s
The Oceanaire Seafood Room
4. St. Paul Grill
5. Afton House Inn

Steak [top]
1. Manny’s Steak House
2. Ruth’s Chris Steak House
3. Murray’s
4. Morton’s the Steakhouse
5. The Capital Grille
Jax Cafe
St. Paul Grill

Stylish Atmosphere [top]
1. Chambers Kitchen
2. Cosmos
3. Palomino
Solera
4. Kozy’s Steaks and Seafood
5. Bellanotte

Sushi [top]
1. Origami
2. Fuji Ya
3. Sakura Restaurant
4. Nami
5. Saji-Ya

Thai [top]
1. Chiang Mai Thai
2. Sawatdee
3. King and I Thai
4. True Thai
5. Tum Rup Thai

Twin Cities Institution [top]
1. Murray’s
2. Jax Cafe
3. The Lexington
St. Paul Grill
4. Manny’s Steak House
5. Lake Elmo Inn

Vegetarian [top]
1. Cafe Brenda
2. The Good Earth
3. Birchwood Cafe
4. Spoonriver
5. French Meadow Bakery

Vietnamese [top]
1. Quang Restaurant
2. Mai Village
3. Pho 79
4. Ngon Vietnamese Bistro
5. Lotus
Que Nha

View [top]
1. 20.21
2. dock cafe
3. St. Paul Grill
4. Stella’s Fish Cafe & Prestige Oyster Bar
5. Lord Fletcher’s Nicollet Island Inn

Wine Bar [top]
1. Lucia’s
2. Cesare’s Bistro and Wine Shop
3. Beaujo’s Wine Bar & Bistro
Heartland Restaurant
4. Bev’s Wine Bar
5. Spill the Wine

Wine List [top]
1. La Belle Vie
2. Afton House Inn
3. Pazzaluna Urban Italian
4. St. Paul Grill
5. The Capital Grille
Manny’s Steak House

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