Something new to do in the Twin Cities

I have lived in MSP for a number of years. I am always looking for new places to eat, drink and have an overall great time. Not really looking for a dive bar or established restaurants, since I know where most of those are from experience. Looking for something that may have slipped under my radar or just something off the wall that I have not heard of before.

I know this is vague, but anything new would be welcome.

Something new to do in the Twin Cities

I%26#39;ll tell you of a few places that are somewhat new, because I%26#39;ve seen them open in the past 4-5 years.

And they%26#39;re near me, meaning I%26#39;ve been to all of them often.

Two of them are pretty low-key, casual palces.

Riverview Wine Bar

I love it there. Relaxing (esp. when it%26#39;s walking distance from your house!) with a great selection of wines, tasting flights and a small but excellent menu for pizza, salads and deserts (and cheese plates and apps). The people who run it there are the hardest working people in the biz, I%26#39;m sure of it. They%26#39;re there every night, it seems. They will take the time to make you familiar with everything on site. And they%26#39;re not stingy with their wines.

Sea Salt

At Minnehaha Park. Mostly sea food (crab cake sandwiches, Po%26#39; Boys, calimari, fish tacos, walleye, clam fries, etc) but they do sell beer and wine. It really is nice to sit out in such a beautiful area (near the falls, under those massive oaks) and munch on sea food and sip a beer. The scenery is amazing. And you can hear the falls from the patio. They also have ice cream, btw.

The third place is a little nicer, more of a place you could go for a nice dinner.

Al Vento

50th Street and 34th Ave. S, Mpls.

Before 6 you can get half-price bottles of wine (or martinis that my wife likes, but I don%26#39;t). The pasta dishes are great, as are the entrees (lamb, chicken, pork, etc). Interesting how they turned such an ordinary building into an intimate setting. Although the deck seating is pretty nice too if it%26#39;s sunny.

Something new to do in the Twin Cities

Take a cooking class at Cooks Of Crocus Hill.

http://www.cooksofcrocushill.com/

The one I took was not at all hands on, in fact it was more like a glorified dinners out, similar to sitting at a ';chef%26#39;s table'; many restaurants now have. I took the Steak %26amp; Scotch class earlier this year and loved it, really good time.

Disclosure: My brother-in-law is the Scotch part of the above class so I have some built in bias.

Hmmm, sounds interesting... what about the restaurant at Intelligent Nutrients? Looks like somewhere out of Europe. And St Paul has a ton of places to try around downtown up Cathedral Hill and around the Summit/Selby area. Also, check out the best of restaurants on TwinCities.Citysearch.com - there appear to lots of new places listed.

Wow, these are some great selections. We have meant to go to the Riverview Wine Bar for some time now and after mntoathens recommendation, we need to go there. Al Vento, Cooks of Crocus Hill and Intelligent Nutrients sound like great options also.

Thanks so much.

Up for a drive? Harbor View Cafe in Pepin WI is outstanding.

http://www.harborviewpepin.com/

With the leaves soon changing it%26#39;s a spectacular drive for a great meal. Make sure you look at their hours, don%26#39;t assume they will be open.

jemanep,

A few things about Riverview Wine Bar:

1. Parking is tough if it%26#39;s peak time (after work, weekend night, etc.) because it gets pretty busy and the budget theater (Riverview Theater) is across the intersection. But don%26#39;t be deterred. You can always park a block or two away -- nice neighborhood for walking. Also, even if it%26#39;s busy they will let you wait for a table in the connected cafe and let you order a glass of wine from there to wait. It%26#39;s a nice place as well, although not quite the same. And the wait usually isn%26#39;t long.

2. Someone in the group should order a pizza. They%26#39;re handmade crust pizzas in the Italian (thin. crispy crust) style. I%26#39;ve tried them all and I like the Corleone the best.

3. Dessert there is always great and changes weekly if not daily.

4. You could combine your visit with a visit to the theater. It%26#39;s a budget theater showing movies already out of the main theaters and it%26#39;s a beautiful facility -- retro. It is a gem of a theater built back in the %26#39;40s and maintained in that era%26#39;s style. Good popcorn too.

Cafe Twenty-Eight, Linden Hills area of Mpls. Great bistro w/Surly on tap. Perfect spot to anchor Linden Hills-area shopping and/or Lake Harriet walking trips.

http://www.cafetwentyeight.com/

Bahn mi Vietnamese sandwiches from places along the University Ave. strip, Frogtown area of St Paul. My favorites are from Saigon Restaurant (on N side of Univeristy just E of Dale) and Trung Nam French Bakery (N side of University Ave, near intersection of Grotto). French bread, cilantro, carrots, daikon, meat of choice (incl. some not for faint-of-heart), and spicy mayo. Beats any chain sub, and is a good value (used to be a true bargain until recent run-ups in food prices).

Chatterbox Cafe (Mpls. midtown and Ford Pkwy St Paul locations) Decent homestyle food, several beers on tap (incl. a house brew) and, best of all, early-generation video games.

Centennial Lakes area of Edina-- think ';what Arbor Lakes area of Maple Grove wants to be when/if it grows up.'; Zamboni-maintained ice in winter, warming house w/skate rental, walking paths all around, plentiful benches, maze, paddle boat rental, place to run your radio-controlled boats, fishing (annually stocked by DNR), tough mini-golf, manicured croquet pitch, and several restaurant options (sadly, stuff higher-end than Macoroni Grill hasn%26#39;t done well).