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Santa Eating Dinner at Home
Ok, here we go. Let’s get this year packed up and out the door with a bow on it, shall we? We have just a few weeks left of this [insert flowery expletive here] year and it feels like if we play our cards right, we might get our restaurants and bars back for 2021. Most of them. So let’s level up our gift giving game with local restaurant merch, let’s book our holiday dinner meal kits early, and support the hustle of pop-ups for takeout while we can. Santa’s watching.
Doing Good in the Neighborhood
>> Red Cow and Red Rabbit are celebrating next Tuesday's National Bartender Day by offering a FREE meal to anyone in the restaurant industry. All locations will be offering a complimentary meal from 11am– 3pm, for those that call and order from the featured service industry menu found on social media. Just present a 2020 paystub and an ID when picking up the meal. To support those who are supporting others, maybe non-industry wonks want to throw them a takeout order this weekend.
>> Get this on your cal for next Mon., Dec. 14. Community Food Project is teaming up with our favorite digit warmers, Hot Hands Pie, to raise money for YWCA Minneapolis Resource Hub. Together they are hosting a pop-up selling burgers, fries, and shakes to-go, with $5 from every burger sale going to the charity. This will boost their warm hat and sock drive, and I know y'all want to be burger-fed boosters!
News/New Stuff
+ I have a good pal who told me she's smitten with a new bagel hustle and I trust her. Bagel Taïm (10 points for umlaut) is a pop-up shop working from the CityFoodStudio. Hot, oven-fresh bagels are yours for pickup or delivery, with a variety that includes herbs de Provence, everything, and cinnamon & sugar. Just fill out the form and plan ahead, they are already booked out through Dec 19, but will get back to regular Tue/Th sched after the holidays.
+ You've probably already seen the new iteration of the former Popol Vuh, which is this cute bakery market known as Viv!r. If not, what are you waiting for? An engraved invitation from Frida Kahlo for burritos and Mexican Coke floats? Wow, I want that.
+ While this news came out just before the turkey coma, it's good to say it again: Revival is coming to SLP.
Adjusted Sails
>> Union Hmong Kitchen has switched up their residency for the winter. Originally at Republic (see note below), Yia Vang and company are now hunkering down at MidCity Kitchen, which sits nicely between Minny and Paul (right down the block from Dual Citizen Brewing whose beer I quite like). Takeout starts again tonight! And if you think I haven't Secret-Santa'd myself that tabletop Fire Grill Kit, you'd be wrong.
>> Pajarito has a cool pop-up with legendary Barbary Fig owner Brahim Hadj-Moussa. Owners Stephan Hesse and Tyge Nelson have been close with 30+ year restaurant veteran, who's offered them mentorship and advice over the years. Together, tonight, they all launch a special menu for Fig Fans as takeout from the St. Paul Pajarito. The $50 dinner for two includes warm olives and almonds, tartine with artichoke and goat cheese, lamb shank with mushroom and butternut squash, plus potato galette, and a little pear and frangipane dessert. It's not at the Edina location yet, but you can still get great takeout or delivery from over there.
>> It's a good time to pay homage to those who helped you get where you are. Over the next three weeks, Gavin Kaysen is running a special Spoon and Stable takeout program in honor of his mentor, Daniel Boulud. On Thu-Sat, you can order dishes inspired by Lyon, France where Boulud grew up, which was also the inspiration behind Bellecour. Look for classics like French onion soup, coq au vin, and the Frenchie burger. Ordering is available 24 hours in advance, so plan a Gallic date night at home. Might I suggest the movie La Vie en Rose or Mademoiselle C over Emily in Paris?
>> And just up West Seventh, the cutest place for rainbow lattes is busting out a bit. Cafe Astoria Side Hustle is taking the coffee cafe's show to Payne Avenue for a three month residency at Cook St. Paul. Running from Tu-Sat from 7am-3pm, this is your breakfast sandwich and toast haven: brioche with fried egg and porchetta, curried beef omelet with sambal aioli on baguette, among others. There's a notable Filipino vibe in some of the dishes, like the Tocilog- Breakfast of Champions bowl, with Filipino garlic rice, sweet tocino pork, fried egg, with cucumber and tomato.
>> This Saturday is Fried Chicken Sandwich Night at Cafe Alma. That means there are no less than three versions of their magazine cover-worthy (ahem) crispy chicken sandwich ready to be grabbed. The First Born with charred jalapeno aioli, the St. Anthony with tomato jam and cheeses, or the K-LA with house kimchee and a soy-ginger glaze ... how will you choose? Ask which bubbly they have to go with those.
>> Kill your case of the Mondays when Bap and Chicken pops-up at Lowry Hill Meats. Kimchi sausage bibimbap seems like a thing to eat for your cold soul, online orders open that day at 4:30. I say jump on that.
Closes, Cancellations, and Cuts
// Was a rough week to start, but to clear it up: Grand Cafe is a Jamie Malone restaurant that is currently working virtually through meal kits created in her other restaurant, Eastside. It will not return to the original space at 38th and Grand, but will rise again in another way, in another place.
// Justin Sutherland announced that he will shutter Handsome Hog after service this Saturday, with the real hope of coming back to life when they are allowed to open fully again. Wanna help make sure that happens? Buy some spices and rib rubs, great stocking stuffers!
// The Town Hallers are circling the wagons. The brewpub enterprise has closed both the Town Hall Tap and Town Hall Lanes for the short time being. The original Town Hall and the burgerrific Town Hall Station remain open and ready to serve you takeout.
// Republic Seven Corners, which was hosting Union Hmong Kitchen's residency, has closed until further notice. While it originally posted as a temporary closure, it has no current plans to reopen in the near future.
