Mingling in Minneapolis

Minneapolis, Minnesota is a city unlike most. Combining humble, small-town friendliness with a cosmopolitan, youthful energy. Minneapolis stands out among the Midwestern cities for its excellent atmosphere and liveability. It’s far from the boring, archaic, gloomy small town it's sometimes portrayed as in movies, and the locals don’t all speak funny, as the movie Fargo would have you believe. These are a people who know how to live life, and live it richly, sparing nothing when it comes to good times and having fun.

Begin your visit to this city at its very unique center of urban art, the Minneapolis Sculpture Garden. Here, you will find a wide array of interesting sculptures, from wooden swings, to large, complex metallic forms, it’s a great place to stroll through, and is especially fun for the kids. Take photos next to the Spoon and Cherry, perhaps Minneapolis’ best-known landmark, which makes for some great photos. Kids really get a kick out of this. The Garden, like most attractions in Minneapolis, is free.

From here, head to the nearby Nicollet Mall for some shopping and people-watching. This long pedestrian street (with bus service only allowed on the streets) hosts a great number of good shops, bars, and restaurants. It’s a perfect place to hang out on any day and at any time. Stroll to the end of the mall, and head for the Mississippi River. Behind the Hyatt hotel, you’ll find a path leading to the very scenic and romantic Stone Arch Bridge – a must for every visitor. Across the bridge, you’ll find Southeast Minneapolis, the college-town-within-a-city, home to the sprawling University of Minnesota campus. There is a great nightlife scene here, with a youthful buzz.

No visit to Minneapolis is complete without checking out the Mall of America. It’s the largest mall in the United States, and one of the largest in the world. Home to hundreds and hundreds of shops, a great amusement park for the kids, neat underwater adventure exhibits, and much more, it’s a great place to bring the family. It’s located 15 minutes south of downtown in the suburb of Bloomington, and is easily accessible with or without a vehicle (see transportation info below).

For dinner, head over to Uptown Minneapolis, a great neighbourhood with many trendy shops and restaurants. This is THE nightlife center of Minneapolis, and the party’s go on well past midnight.

Quick Tips:

Try the cheese curds. Simply put, this Minnesotan staple is a tasty treat. Usually served deep fried in batter, these gooey morsels are melt-in-your-mouth delicious, and use some of the finest locally raised cheese. Try them pretty much anywhere - they're very popular here. A half pound will cost around . Try them at the Santana Market, near the Stone Arch Bridge in Southeast Minneapolis. Here, the middle eastern owners serve them up with a special twist - a seasoning with curry and other exotic spices!

Make sure you are as polite as possible here. Minnesotans aren't as uptight as many of us, and won't appreciate curt, cold mannerisms. This is the part of the country where people wait for red lights to turn green before crossing the street, and where a "hello" to a stranger is commonplace. Show some teeth and give out grins to people who pass you, and make sure you stop to chat with the friendly folk if they introduce themselves. Slow down the pace a bit and relax like the Minneapolites.

Best Way To Get Around:

Minneapolis is a great city to walk in, and more scenic and safe than your average city. Most of the sights downtown, such as the Metrodome, Nicollet Mall, Loring Park, and the Minneapolis Sculpture Garden, are easily reachable by foot. The Stone Arch Bridge is a foot-only destination, but it is open to cyclists, so stick to the walking paths.

You definitely don't need a car in Minneapolis to get around. The city is remarkably connected by public transit. You will find that the Twin Cities' excellent bus network, Metro Transit, will get you anywhere fast and cheap. They have an online search engine where you can plug in where you are and where you want to go, and get detailed instructions on which buses to take and where to transfer. Find this on their website at www.metrotransit.org.

In 2004, Minneapolis opened its new light rail network in the city, the Hiawatha Line, which runs from Hennepin Avenue in downtown Minneapolis to the Mall of America in Bloomington. This is a fast and popular way to get between the mall and downtown, and I highly recommend it rather than buses. The light rail also makes stops in Uptown Minneapolis, the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport, and many downtown stops.

Fares for the bus run between .50 and .75 depending on where you are going, whether the bus is express or not, and the time of day. In the downtown core, buses are 50 cents. The city offers day passes for and 6-hour passes for .50.

The Minneapolis International Airport is located in the center of the metro area, and is served by many airlines, the major one being Northwest Airlines. Amtrak stops downtown, and Greyhound makes its home on Hennepin Avenue, just two blocks from the Nicollet Mall. All forms of transportation are frequent.

There is a great intercity bus service now, run by the British company MegaBus. They offer rates to Chicago (the only destination) for per seat if you book in advance. Visit them online at www.megabus.com for more information.

Enjoy your stay!

Pepito’s Mexican Café is one of Minneapolis’ best Mexican restaurants. Located in South Minneapolis, it’s a good choice for those who want quality at low, low prices.

Upon entering, you’ll fall in love with the restaurant’s straightforward concept – having fun while enjoying great food. The lively atmosphere, surely encouraged by a few too many Corona’s, is evident upon entering. Football on the overhead televisions, patrons laughing and sharing tales about their day, all while being served up what truly is some of the best Mexican this side of the border.

A couple buddies joined me for dinner here, and we were promptly seated by a cheery young lady, who brought us some excellent freshly-fried tortilla chips and handmade salsa to begin, on the house. We dug into it and I was instantly impressed by the quality and attention to detail at this restaurant.

We ordered three Cokes, and the waitress brought us a pitcher of Coke at no extra charge. This was great, as we didn’t have to worry about waiting on refills, but the soda did eventually become flat as it sat out in the open. You win some, you lose some. We passed on the Coronas tonight, which were readily available for a reasonable price ($2.50 per bottle).

I ordered a three-item combo for my meal ($9.99), consisting of enchiladas, chili rellenos, and excellent sides of Spanish rice and black beans with guacamole. My meal was delicious, prepared with the finest ingredients. The use of lime in the dishes was one of the highlights – more than other Mexican restaurants, but in no way detracted from the flavour. The food was fresh, hot, and filled the spot on this evening with buddies.

The servings are large, as well. Out of the three of us, we all ended up taking most of the food home. This may be due to our self-ruined appetites consuming bowlful after bowlful of chips and salsa, but it’s also to due with the fact that you won’t be ripped off here. The value is tremendous at Pepito’s.

The waitress came along not too long after we finished the meals with sombreros, wrap-arounds, and asked us to line up for a photo. It was a very fun evening already, and the staff made it that much more fun. We lined up, shouted "Ole!", and smiled for the camera as we were both entertained and embarrassed simultaneously. In any case, the staff go the little extra mile to make your meal not just a time to eat, but to have great times with great friends.

"Looking to try something new?" My friend casually asked me. I sure had my hesitations when I heard this, but I responded with a casual "Sure." Soon after, my friend and I were headed into Minneapolis’ splendid west bank district for a meal at a small Ethiopian restaurant. Knowing nothing about Ethiopia, much less its cuisine, I thought "it’s probably like Moroccan food." How much more wrong could I have been?

I walked in, surrounded by exotic décor and some interesting, delicious smells filling the air. My waitress was clearly not Ethiopian, but instead a local college student, I surmised. The credibility of authentic Ethiopian cuisine was regained when I was told the owner and chef was a recent immigrant to the United States, bringing along with him the secrets of his homeland’s unique cuisine.

I sat down, ordered a Coke (a guy has to have a bit of normalcy during the meal, right?!), and glanced over the menu. I could pronounce nothing, but there were English translations explaining each dish. The selections were similar, but still different, from Indian cuisine, mainly focusing around stewed legume dishes and some meat combinations. I ordered a sampler platter ($19.99 - Gosa Gosa C) which I shared with my dinner companion. The waitress had no trouble pronouncing the names of the dishes featured on the sampler platter, and I was blown away when I learned that to get the job at the restaurant, she had to memorize all the dishes!

I was astonished when the waitress brought out a huge plate, perhaps 1.5 feet across, filled with clumps of food. At this restaurant, everyone eats off of the same plate! The food sits atop of a piece of sponge-like Ethiopian bread, which we soon referred to as "the washcloth." Your meal comes with one piece of this very heavy, soggy, but delicious bread, and addition pieces cost $3 per piece. There are no utensils here, either, and the food is eaten by ripping pieces of bread off, then scooping food into them. Cutlery is available, though, for those who don’t enjoy eating with their hands (although they will roll their eyes at you).

The food was delicious, with a variety of different beans and lentils lightly spiced and served around the tray. In the center of the dish are a series of sauces, which are used to spice your food. Yogurt is one of them. My favorite dish was the lamb and potato mix.

The food here is heavy, and you will walk away very full. It is most definitely not equitable to Indian food or Moroccan food, and is in a class by itself. I would definitely not recommend this restaurant to families with children, as they will probably not eat a thing. It’s a great first date idea (just be sure you tell him/her first!) and can be pretty romantic (and strange) feeding each other with the small soggy pieces of bread!

Visit the Blue Nile online at: www.bluenilempls.com

Rotisseria is a great little pizza/chicken place located in the heart of Uptown Minneapolis, near Calhoun Square. It’s a great place to hang out with friends after a movie at the local cinema.

The restaurant prides itself on its slow-roasted, Peruvian rotisserie-style of preparing chickens. Its slogan, "It’s Poultry in Motion," says it all. Walking in, you’ll immediately see proof of this claim, with chicken after chicken slowly turning on the grill. The scent is almost intoxicatingly delicious, but strange, as it's mixed with the overpowering scent of pizzas, which in my opinion distract. Many more people frequent this place for its pizza-by-the-slice, which is a shame.

I walked up to the ordering counter and was greeted by a Peruvian staff member, who quickly took my order for the rosemary-grilled rotisserie half-bird, along with rosemary-garlic roasted potatoes and mixed vegetables. My food took no more than 30 seconds to be served. The chef selected a plump, juicy chicken off of the spit, chopped it in half lengthwise, scooped up some of the hot roasted potatoes, and garnished with veggies, placing it in my hands moments later. For those with more adventurous palates, the restaurant offers many interesting sides, like fried yucca.

I sat down at one of the many tables and dug into my meal, which was hot and excellent. The $8.00 plate was a good value, served with a zesty pale-green hot sauce. The bird was of pretty high quality, and the roasted potatoes seasoned to perfection. For those who prefer pizza, my friend didn’t seem too enthused by his slices, which seemed to be standard by-the-slice quality. Slices were decently priced though, in the $3 range.

The restaurant is packed with people coming and going, enjoying the nightlife of this great area of town. It is open late, until 3am every day, so it’s popular with the after-closing-time bar crowd. It’s family friendly and pretty noisy, so bring the kids for a quick meal while you’re in the area. The food is not classy, though, and served up on paper plates, so don’t expect too fancy of a restaurant. It’s a bare-bones, serve-it-up hot eatery where people get in, eat fast, and get back out into the action, all for under $10. I highly recommend it.

Arguably Minneapolis’ best-loved restaurant chain is Famous Dave’s BBQ. With locations all across town and one hugely popular one in the massive Mall of America, the restaurant is home to good times and great food.

You’ll be ecstatic to be eating in such fun surroundings. The walls are covered in a cookhouse-style ranch setting, with fishing gear, trapping equipment, and other neat furnishings strewn across the walls. Some might be offended, as some restaurants feature (what I believe are real) taxidermies on the walls. Other than that, it’s a great place to bring family and friends for what may be the best BBQ outside of Kansas City.

The rather extensive menu has items for almost every budget – from cheap but filling sandwiches to hot plates of three-item BBQ. I ordered the latter, with succulent BBQ pulled pork, chicken, and rib tips, along with drunken apples, corn-on-the-cob, and coleslaw. Corn bread is complimentary.

Each table has an old pipe fitted to it, with a paper towel roll on it for easy clean-up of the excellent BBQ sauces on offer. The sauces include 6 different flavors, from rich and sassy to a spicy Georgia mustard. Each sauce is as unique as this restaurant, and all are available for purchase at a very reasonable $3.99 per bottle. Try them all, they’re really what make the meal as good as it is.

After dinner, try one of the warm peach cobblers with vanilla ice cream, or perhaps a milkshake. Try your meal with a sweet tea (cold black tea sweetened with sugar – not Nestea Iced Tea). If you order an Iced tea, you will receive a cold, unsweetened black tea with ice. Make sure you specify "Nestea" or "Raspberry iced tea" or ask what sweetened varieties they have on offer. And if you make a mistake, don’t worry, they’ll get what you want at no extra charge.

The restaurant is a great place to bring the little ones, who will receive fun kids cups for their drinks, and have access to a wide variety of non-BBQ items on the kids menu. They also get crayons and coloring sheets.

The restaurant can get both very busy and very pricey at both its Mall of America and Calhoun Square (Uptown) locations. If you’re looking to escape the crowds, try to location across from the Har-Mar Mall in Roseville, just north of downtown Minneapolis on Snelling Avenue. Here you’ll have the place to yourself.

There is covered outdoor seating in the summer months for those who want to relax. Full bar with extensive beer menu is available.

Visit Famous Dave’s online at: www.famousdaves.com

The Minneapolis Sculpture Garden, an 11 acre park located on the grounds of the Walker Art Center, is the perfect place to come and relax on a warm summer day. Here, you’ll find some of Minneapolis’ most famous landmarks.

The park is located west of the downtown core, just off of I-94 at exit 231. To get here, exit onto Lyndale Avenue South, and turn right onto Vineland Place west. If you’re coming from downtown, take Hennepin Avenue south to Lyndale Ave, and turn onto Vineland.

The park can also be accessed from the Loring Park neighborhood by the rather nice pedestrian Irene Hixon Whitney Bridge, that crosses over busy I-94. From here, you’ll be able to take a good number of photos of downtown Minneapolis and the skyline, as well as the Basilica of St. Mary, before heading into the camera-happy sculpture gardens.

There is no fee to enter the Minneapolis Sculpture Garden, so once you arrive feel free to hop right in. Metered parking is ample on Vineland Pl., and is just a short walk from the Garden itself. Begin your walk around this excellent park by following the crowds (or the well-trodden paths on the slow days) to see the most popular sculptures.

The main highlight and most popular sculpture is perhaps Minneapolis’ best known landmark, the Spoonbridge and Cherry. This sculpture was built by Claes Oldenburg and Coosje van Bruggen, and is considered to be the centerpiece of the park. Several families of ducks and geese make their homes in the shallow ponds surrounding the Spoonbridge and Cherry, which make photographs extra fun.

Don’t miss the odd-shaped stick sculpture next to the Spoon and Cherry, which looks like a window being raised on four slilts. Here, one can center the Minneapolis skyline perfectly in "the window" and create a very nice photograph of downtown, the Spoon and Cherry, and the window structure all at the same time.

Another highlight to the park is the impressive swinging sculpture, which basically consists of a large board suspended in the air by four massive cables attached to adjoining wooden beams. The board is quite popular with the kids, who jump on it and try to balance themselves on the artwork. It’s great fun for us adults, too. Unlike what you might expect, the board does not swing gracefully, but is erratic and rigid, making the balancing act quite a challenge!

On your way out of the Sculpture Garden, don’t miss the greenhouse, which houses some interesting plant life. It’s located next to the parking area, near the entrance to the park. It’s a good place to cap off your visit to this excellent park.

No food or drink is available on site most of the time, but the occasional snack cart can be found. But, it’s best to bring your own.

To learn more about the Minneapolis Sculpture Garden visit: http://garden.walkerart.org

The Mall of America is where American Patriotism meets Commerce, the heart of a culture that prides themselves on excellent shopping. Like most things in America, the concept is go big or go home. This massive 2.5 million sq. ft. mall, located around 15 miles south of downtown Minneapolis in the suburb of Bloomington, is home to over 520 stores and services, a small amusement park (no longer the Peanuts-themed Camp Snoopy, but a generic kids park now), an Underwater Adventure exhibit, and many good restaurants.

While many Americans mistakenly believe that the MOA (as it is locally referred to) is the largest mall in the world, that honor currently goes to the West Edmonton Mall in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. It is, however, the largest mall in the USA hands-down, and the center of fun and excitement for this Midwestern city.

Begin your visit to the mall by entering via any one of the four impressive wings of the mall. Seeing everything can take up a good portion of your day, so plan accordingly. I’ll leave the shopping up to you – it’s pretty much a standard mall in terms of stores but it’s fun to explore nonetheless. For the kids, a stop at the underwater adventure park is a must-do. Here, you can visit with the sharks and other marine life, for a nominal fee. The kids love it, and you will too.

Visit the amusement park in the center of the mall for some entertainment. The hours are sketchy for a lot of the rides, especially during winter and on weekdays. There are a couple of decent rides to note, those being a pretty fun (even for adults) water log ride and a decent roller coaster. Standard fair-food is available all around the amusement park. It’s usually very deserted, and crowds will not be a problem (when I visited we were the only people there besides two other families). Day passes are available for rides, costing around $20. Single rides are in the $4 - $5 range.

The views of the amusement park are great from the rather extensive food court on the third level, of which there are two wings. Choose a wing, and then choose an eatery. Highlights here are the Johnny Rocket’s old fashioned soda shoppe, Famous Dave’s BBQ (excellent), Hot Dog on a Stick (which makes excellent frozen lemonade), and the many eateries serving up cheese curds, a local fried snack that is simply a must-try.

Some of the notable stores and services in the mall include the cheese shops, which often provide some delicious samples of their products. A nice bag of seasoned cheese raw curds runs around $4. Other stores include the very nice Minnesota gift shops (pick up cheap souvenirs) and the excellent Atlantic Book Warehouse (sells good books for up to 80% off cover price).

To get to the MOA, take I-35W south to I-494, then head east on I-494 to the mall. Follow the signs.

www.mallofamerica.com