MINNEAPOLIS MEMORIES

My trip to the Twin Cities of St. Paul and Minneapolis seemed to bring back memories of dining and theatre. I had spent much of the time in St. Paul, Stillwater and Mall of America.

I was supposed to have dinner in St. Paul but the venue slated was closed for a private party. Headed to Minneapolis and dined at JD Hoyt's at 310 Washington Avenue North. The restaurant looked lively and you can see the kitchen. Known for their grilled steaks. I started my meal with appetizer of Lobster Taco of two soft shell tacos filled with lobster meat, chopped spinach and pepper cheese. Only a bit spicy but soooo good. Steak it was! I ordered a New York Strip cooked just as I requested and with no salt. I could truly taste the flavor of the steak. Sebastian Joe's Ice Cream seemed to be a specialty of the area so I had to order a dish.

Off to the Lab Theatre to see "Rocky Horror Live". The theatre, located at 700 North 1st, is in the Warehouse District a few blocks from where I was staying. Great performance...excellent acting, except that I didn't care for the guy portraying Dr. Frank n Furter. The locals got a kick because he's a local personality.

Mill City Museum wasn't far from the hotel. Minneapolis tourism assisted by sending Bett Santrang. Built into the ruins of what was once the world’s largest flour mill, Mill City Museum is located on the historic Mississippi Riverfront. "Here, visitors of all ages learn about the intertwined histories of the flour industry, the river, and the city of Minneapolis" and I did. The original A Mill, built in 1874, was leveled by a flour dust explosion that claimed 18 lives. That explosion and the resulting fire destroyed much of the riverfront business area, cutting Minneapolis’ milling capacity in half. Rebuilding and Minneapolis Historic Society is why it is here.

As for the Riverfront....Minneapolis has more bridges across the Mississippi River than any other community, including suspension, stone arch, steel truss, and concrete-arch bridges. It's also the site of the first bridge across the Mississippi.
On January 23, 1855 a suspension bridge opened in Minneapolis from Nicollet Island to what is now the downtown side of the Mississippi at Hennepin Avenue. Combined with an 1853 bridge from Nicollet Island to the other side of the river, this suspension bridge completed the very first permanent span anywhere along the Mississippi River. It's a great tour with loads to see and interestingly historic.



I spent much of the afternoon at the Mall of America...which I will do a separate blog about. Back to Minneapolis for dinner at Republic in a particular locale called 7 corners. New restaurant, pub style. Uses local ingredients! Separate bar area seemed quite busy! I had the best ribs ever! Marinated in 5 spices and other goodies. Sweet sauce rather than spicy or salty. Entree was a Butternut Squash Ravioli. Brown butter cream, crispy sage, toasted pine nuts. Totally delicious. Oh yeah...they had Kwak beer! I love that beer! Got a hanger steak salad and Turkey and Apple sandwich to go! Hey, they even make their own ketchup! Good luck to you, Rick Gunztel!!

Just down the block is Theatre in the Round, where I saw the play, "The Reluctant Debutant". I was not disappointed with the acting...a step above Community Theatre.