Where is the Best Upscale Casual Dining in Minneapolis, Minnesota?
Stopped in here just for drinks before meeting friends at a different place. We sat at the bar. The bartender did make some great drinks but the service was slow. Apparently they had a DJ coming in too, because he was setting up while we were drinking. The place still has it’s ambience and some of the trendy crowd still seems to be there, but it’s lost some of it’s lustre. I don’t know that this can be attributed just to Fhima’s though. For a while there St. Paul was the scene when all the places clustered around Lawson were new. They drew some of the Minneapolis crowd away and some of the 9 to 5’ers stuck around to check out the new places, but I think on the whole for the trendy scene St. Paul is played out. It seems with the new bars and clubs opening, once again Minneapolis is the late night destination.Pros + Still the same Fhima’sCons – *STILL* the same Fhima’s
I’ve enjoyed seeing Signature transform itself over the years. I’ll go back to this incarnation because of the ambiance and the careful preparation of food, but I thought the place could use some subtlety. great crab cakes, served drenched in maple syrup, drowning in dried blueberries, atop heavy rice. salad oversauced and also used sweet /heavy flavors (berries, huge clumps of cheese) to add body where it wasn’t needed. Nathalie was charming, but didn’t get that we were having an intimate dinner and so didn’t want to chat with her. All in all, I want this place to work, and hope it does so by evening out its palate and service.Pros + reasonable price, quiet ambiance, friendly, boldCons – uneven food style, uneven service
I have been here about 5 times. Twice in the dinner area and three times in the bar. The food is good, but the real reason to go is for the atmosphere in the bar (which is loud and usually fun). Sludge and Lake are occasionally in the bar doing their radio program, which provides extra entertainment. The TV’s are huge and the bar is set up well and has many house specialites. The main rooms don’t have any TV’s which is dissapointing for a place the is more of a sports bar then a restaurant. Long story short…skip everything else and enjoy the bar and the great atmosphere!Pros + bar, TV’s, drinksCons – sit down area
My husband surprised me with a date nite at Alma. It was our first time there. Everything about it from the ambiance, service, and food was outstanding! We both did the 3 course tasting menu. I asked the server to have the chef/bar manager choose a wine pairing for each dish. They put together a lovely smaller portion wine flight that went with each dish beautifully. The lovely Cava sparkling wine upon arrival is classy and festive. Each dish was more interesting and amazing than the last and left us both eager to plan our next date night at Alma. My husband and I both thought the celery root souffle was out of this world. Can’t say that I’ve had a lot of celery root in my day, but the flavors of this dish just reminded us of the comforts of home. We didn’t have time for dessert, so they brought me out a glass of tawny port for dessert instead. How cool, is that? Our server was friendly, attentive, knowledgeable and made awesome recommendations. Thank you! Can’t wait to
Broder’s delivers the perfect recipe for relaxation and flavor, but should consider the customer’s experience a little bit more.The ever circulating menu – though still wonderful – is recirculating upon itself a lot and it seems needs some new inspiration from the outside. That said (and in an impossible catch-22) don’t’ change a thing. Broder’s is the perfect summer evening retreat. For love, or for loss.Pros + Still one of my favorite restaurants.Cons – Noise and Light Levels
