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Champagne and Orange Juice
Power, moms to the tenth power is how we might describe Mother's Day 2020. Because a lot of moms have suddenly also become teachers, daily temperature takers, full time cooks, game keepers, tent pitchers, and sourdough makers alongside their normal duties of actual jobs and ministers of we're-gonna-make-its. Special shout out to the sandwich generation, my fellow Gen X moms who have both children and parents to have anxiety dreams about. If you can't see your mom this weekend, have the fattest box of cheffy takeout delivered to her door, and put a ridiculously expensive bottle of bubbles in the back of your fridge for next year's party. If you're living with a mom, samesies, but crack that bottle on Sunday. And load the dishwasher: the way SHE likes it.
Doing Good in the Neighborhood
>> All Hands MN, the collective of local distillers making sanitizer together, has buddied up with others (as you do with distillers). Joining forces with Johnson Brothers distributors, Lunds & Byerlys, Kowalski's, Cub Foods, and Hy-Vee, the group has promised to donate 1 million meals to Second Harvest Heartland. They'll fund this by sales of the All Hands Sanitizer which is now available in these grocery stores. Buy bottle, clean your hands, fill someone else's pantry.
>> My Burger is driving their food truck (aptly named B.E.R.T., the "Burger Emergency Response Team") straight to the badass hospital workers. I know you wanna buy them a hot burger and fries (that's an appropriate salute) and all it takes if a click to donate $5 for a hero's lunch.
Virtual Gatherings
>> Hooches & Smooches Happy Hour at 4:30 today on FB live, is all about Rosé All Day just in time for Mom's Day. Fresh mom Eliesa Johnson of The Restaurant Project will be drinking pink and showing us how to take the best Instagram shots of our takeout restaurant food. Don't forget to check out our new MSPtv line up!
>> On Sunday night, Fox9 and MPR are co-hosting #ShineOnMN, a benefit concert with Dessa, Jeremy Messersmith, and more shiny celebs. They're playing to help support Springboard for the Arts and Second Harvest Heartland's Minnesota Central Kitchen. Tune in and pony up for a good cause.
>> You know what you need to get you off the couch: a treat. Sign up for the Virtual Root Beer Run which happens all month, and treat yo'self to running and root beer. Your registration benefits People for Parks, and gives you access to prizes weekly for scavenger hunt items, best root beer float, best planned obstacle course, bet pet involvement, and more.
Pizza Farm News
+ The Stone Barns Pizza Farm in Nelson, WI will open this weekend. Drive in and they'll meet your car to take your order and they'll have a limited menu to start.
+ The Red Barn Farm of Northfield is open! They are doing call ahead ordering and asking to use Venmo for purchasing. They'll be open Wednesday and Friday nights.
+ No word on A to Z in Stockholm.
Newsy Bits
+ COMING SOON: There are some people who are serious optimists and are moving forward with opening new restaurants in a pandemic. Billy Sushi will open for takeout on Tuesday, Grocer's Table in Wayzata will open June 2, and Smoke BBQ will light up Lonsdale on July 12.
+ Lots of local restaurants have banded together to form the Twin Cities Restaurant Coalition. The goal is to represent a lot of different restaurants in order to give the Governor a FULL picture of what it might look like to re-open restaurants. From the city to the out-states, everyone needs to figure out what the next few months look like.
+ Some people are having trouble feeling good about celebrating the James Beard Award nominations, in the face of losing so many of our everyday restaurants. But I have to believe that celebrating goodness, wherever we find it, doesn't diminish anything or anyone else. Make room in your heart, it only makes us stronger.
New Take Out
<< MOM'S DAY TAKEOUT LISTED RIIIIIIIIIGHT HERE! >>
>> Well Minnesota's Largest Candy Store will open for the season this weekend, so the big yellow barn will be glowing. They are requesting that you wear a mask if you go, and they'll be limiting the amount of people in the store (to 200 at a time, though the place holds 600). I'm sure there are lots of feelings about this.
>> Fig & Farro in Uptown is back open to help the meat-free eaters find some snacks. Open 11am-8pm, Tues-Sun, find some buffalo cauliflower, yucca fries, a plant-based patty melt and more.
>> Moroccan Flavors is now offering takeout from the Midtown Global Market. Look for family-sized meals, like kofta or beef tagine, Wed-Sat, from noon to 6pm. A meal for two is $30 and meal for four is $55.
>> Gianni's in Wayzata is doing curbside and it's not just big steaks. They have their great spun salad, stuffed hash browns, and that steak burger oh boy. Plus you can grab some of those prime meats for grilling on your own.
>> Bar Brigade is back with breakfast, lunch, and take-n-bake dinners for your harried weekdays. They're open M-TH and taking the weekends off, so grab those grilled polenta cakes or roasted chicken thighs before you chill.
>> Cute little sandwich shop Zetta's is turning themselves into Yeah Yeah Taco this weekend with a whole new menu. Fancy pot roast taco with fried cheese, best pork burrito, elote & sweet potato bowls: all this can be flipped and mixed and shake you from your rutted rut. Fr-Sa, 5-9pm.
>> Is it time to get fancy? Murray's Steakhouse is doing takeout! Yes the steak sandwich is available, and so is a whole raft of the legendary garlic toast. Have you ever had their Tennessee Hot Chicken? I have not! But now I will! Tu-Sat, 4-8pm.
>> Did you see Brit's Pub is back online? For carry out chums, of Scotch eggs, fish 'n' chips, cornish pasty, chips and curry, and other sundries. Dream of lawn days, loves. Tu-Su, 4-7:30pm.
Check out our full MSP Takeout, Curbside, and Delivery Guide that we try to update daily.
Gone for Good
>> Pour one out for Muddy Waters which had a long and important place on our local dining scene. In the mid-90's, I used to sit at the original location with a friend while we dreamed of escaping to San Francisco. If you want to show some love, their St. Paul venture Dark Horse Eatery is open for takeout.
>> Bar Luchador has decided that with all the uncertainty of what the resto world is in for, they will not re-open. They leave a sheet-pan nacho sized hole in the heart of Dinkytown.
