It's Over

you can now find all my work at martinandrade.wordpress.com

Burger Origins

There is actually a debate about where the burger originated:

Don't mess with Texas.

A state legislator there is embroiled in a burger battle with Louis' Lunch of New Haven, Connecticut, over which state can claim to be the birthplace of the hamburger.

Louis' Lunch, which opened in 1895, claims to have come up with the marvelous idea in 1900, when a hurried customer requested something he could eat on the run. Republican state representative Betty Brown, however, has proposed a resolution in the Texas legislature declaring Athens, Texas, as rightful birthing ground, noting that Fletcher Davis sold burgers from a luncheonette there in the late 1800s.

Things have gotten heated. Says New Haven mayor John DeStefano Jr.:

"It's a well-known and established fact that New Haven is the home of the hamburger. In fact, New Haven's claim to the hamburger is even supported and documented in the Library of Congress."

In our own research (admittedly web-based), we found yet another city calling itself the home of the burger: Seymour, Wisconsin. There, in 1895, it's said that "Hamburger" Charlie Nagreen started selling the mighty meaty sandwich. (Here's AHT's History of the Hamburger post.)

I vote New Haven.

Open Thread!

Costello's Worth a Look-See

I and a few friends just enjoyed an afternoon at Costello's in St. Paul. It's a very comfy Irish Bar and Grill with very cheerful service. It also has one of the best Buffalo Chicken Sandwiches available. The burger is large and above average, nothing spectacular. Stick with the Buffalo Chicken.

Time to Visit the Gold Nugget

The STrib has announced the Gold Nugget is going to shut down for 18 months as the area where the grill and bar has stood for 80 years (it wasn't always the Gold Nugget) is going to undergo some "Urban Renewal."

As of late September, Wartman will own the Gold Nugget. He and its current owners, Suzanne and Doug Carlson, will serve the restaurant's last bacon cheeseburger at its current location the week of Sept. 18.

The Gold Nugget is typically voted as the best burger in the Twins Cities. In fact, it's not the best burger, but it is in the top five. It's extremely tasty, juicy, near perfect as far as burgers go. You have until September 18th to make the trek there and enjoy one of the best burgers in the area (at least for 18 months).

I know it's been a while...

I wanted to post up this reflection from local humor writer Peter Welle on the closing of the Italian Restaurant Fazoli's.

Right now I'm working in a Twin Cities Burger Tour. That project has left me little energy to write about other restaurants. I'm hoping on turning this blog into a serious priject, but for right now it's on hiatus.

Open Thread!

Anything restaurant related

Lions Tap

Awesome burgers, questionable venue

Andy's Garage

Initial assessment is a thumbs up.

The Great Burger Debate

The blogosphere has picked up a little of the great American burger debate, specifically in Minnesota. Mitch Berg notes a Strib article, and The Night Writer chimes in with his Burger selections.

Read all the comments as well.

Orlando Ochoada and I our working on a Twin Cities Burger tour. Presently the top burgers belong to the Gold Nugget and The Nook.

Tuggs Tavern

On Probation...

Tuggs is a quaint little yuppie bar on the riverfront in St. Anthony Main. The area has a lot of history, and Tuggs plays on that quite a lot. You can sit outside and eat on their porch, which has an excellent view of a power relay station.

The standard Tuggs clientele are recent college grads that reek of yuppie and probably need to try an extended period of poverty. Not to say these people are evil, they're just arrogant pompous and annoying.

Luckily, Tuggs couples their better-than-you clientele with worse-than-Denny's service. I've never seen worse service anywhere. The waitresses are universally inattentive. You do get refills on the soft drinks, if you ever see your waitress. The first time I went to Tuggs it was a busy weekend crowd. The Waitress came by (after fifteen minutes) and asked for our drink order. Fifteen minutes later the waitress came by again asking for our drink order. Fifteen minutes later the drinks came and she took our order. An hour later we were still waiting for the bill.

I thought this would just be a fluke, but the second time I went there, during a slow Tuesday night, the service was the same.

But nothing beats poor service better than ridiculously high prices. It's $2 plus for the pop, and their signature burgers run in the $10 range. Don't even ask about the Beer...

Are there any bright spots? Sure, the Humpty Dumpty burger is a delicious 1/3 pound burger with quality fixin's plus a fried egg on top. They also have a burger topped by hashbrowns. Both are worth a try. Sort of. Tuggs grills their burgers to perfection, with a little pink on the inside.

However, avoid like the plague their stuffed burgers. Their concepts are fine. There's a burger stuffed with cream cheese and Jalapenos. Another has cheddar and bacon, another swiss and mushrooms. These would be tasty, if they actually stuffed enough material into the burger patty to make you be able to taste it. The Jalapeno/cream cheese deal showed up with only a small chunk of cream cheese in one corner of the burger.

The swiss cheese/mushroom concoction showed no signs of ever having been acquainted with swiss cheese. This was the case both times.

If you really need a stuffed burger, go try the juicy nookie burger at "The Nook" on Cleveland in St. Paul. They use a big chunk of Velveeta cheese, it costs half as much, and it doesn't take 'em thirty minutes to make it. Or just go to Matt's Bar or the 5-8 club on Cedar.

However, I don't know of anywhere else in the Twin Cities area where you can enjoy an egg on your burger. Because of that, Tuggs is on Probation.

http://www.tuggstavern.com/

What Makes Me an Expert?

The guy I normally go to these restaurants with is named Orlando Ochoada, he's a bit of a local legend and has a good taste for food. He and I have been going to random restaurants for three years now (sometimes we have a guide like the City Pages, sometimes we just get in the car and drive around). Yesterday at Snuffy's, we were trying to figure out how many places we had visited since we started. We were able to name about 50.

That's a lot of restaurants, and I kept notes on almost all of them. I'm trying to go through my backlog of restaurants, but I get busy with other things so it's bee slow going. Besides the reviews in this blog, I have published 10 restaurant reviews in other small collegiate newpapers, most notably "The Minnesota Patriot."

I use Orlando's sense and mix it with my own, since no one person's sense for food is perfect. I think I have a less sophisticated taste than most other restuarant reviewers, which I think is a good thing. Most people couldn't tell the difference between cajun and texican, so that shuoldn't matter at all. What matters is taste and quality, and that I know.

Snuffy's Malt Shop

Snuffy's Malt Shop is in fact a chain of restaurants that have been in operation for iver 20 years, they have received accolades from as far away as the New York Times for their authentic 50's style parlour.

Snuffy's (the original) is located on S. Cleveland Ave in Highland Park (244 S. Cleveland Ave) near the intersection of Eau Claire and Cleveland. I will write more on Snuffy's after sampling a better part of their menu, but I can tell you, they have the best Malts I've ever tasted, in Minneapolis or elsewhere. Try it soon.

Band Box

Band Box is an old fashioned roadside diner located in downtown Minneapolis just south of HCMC on the corner of 10th and 14th street (Address is 729 s. 10th street). It has a wonderful atmosphere that likens to an earlier day, the days we remember from movies where our favorite protaganists, whether on the run from the law or just traveling the American road our protaganists could rely on a greasy meal that would stay with them as their travels continued.

What would make this establishment perfect were if it were located next to a long stretch of desert highway, with a line of semi-trucks in the parking lot. As it is, parking for The Band Box is not that difficult, 1 hour parking is available across the street.

Be sure to bring cash or a checkbook, no credits cards taken.

Their best offers are burgers, which are cooked until you get a crunchy outer crust of meat and grease, protecting a softer burger in the middle. They use chopped steak, so they're always high quality, if not a little pricey in the 5 dollar range (not including fries). Be sure to get bacon, unlike some restaurants they use thick cuts of quality bacon that is just delightful in itself.

The Band Box also has fries that are greasy, very greasy. VERY greasy. I loved them.

The Band Box is open everyday from 7am to 4pm, serving breakfast all day.

While sitting there I was reminded of my favorite roadside diner scene in any movie, the final scene of "Spaceballs" when Barf and Lone Starr (Played respectively by Bill Pullman and John Candy) witness an alien creature emerge from a patron and do a musical number for everyone in the diner. After consuming those fries, I was certain I had my creature consuming me from the inside. That's the sign of a good grease joint.

http://greaseforpeace.com/

Juicy Lucy

There are plenty of styles of this burger around. It's called the Juicy Lucy, and the concept is simple; cook the cheese inside the hamburger.

Around Minneapolis there are plenty of places to pick up this burger, Matt's Bar on 35th and Cedar, The 5-8 Club where Highway 77 and Highway 65 meet. You can get them at the Turtle's Supper Club in Shakopee (Not that good) or at Tuggs in the St. Anthony Main area. However, the best Juicy Lucy is located in Saint Paul.

The Nook, just across the baseball diamond of Cretin-Derham Hall, uses Velveeta cheese in their Juicy Lucy. They also use a lot more cheese than other places. The service is quicker, and the atmosphere in quaint and cozy. It's small, and very relaxed.

Also, if you're not in the mood for Velveeta, they do have pretty good hamburgers anyway. Located on Hamline South, near Randolph and Hamline, this is a burger joint you have to try.

Best Hot Dog in Minnesota

Some of you might not know this, but the best hotdogs in the Twin Cities are in the Metrodome. That's right, the beloved Dome Dog, a hefty price to pay at $4.50 but it can't be beat. According to a Sports Illustrated article I read some time ago, the Dome Dog was the best hot dog in all of Major League Baseball. That's saying a lot.

Sure, a trip to a ball game can be costly, the cheapest tickets are 6 bucks, you pay $3.50 for a soft drink to go with your Dome Dog, and the seating is uncomfortable as all get out, and parking is a pain. However, the Dome Dog is a double bypass in a bun. And here's a little hint, if you show up on Wednesday night during the baseball season, the Dome Dog goes from $4.50 to one dollar. That's a bargain.

For information and tickets:

http://minnesota.twins.mlb.com

Goodbye Pizza Shack

The Pizza Shack, first opened in 1957, closed its doors yesterday. The popular police hangout (and location of a grisly murder in 1992) served some of the best Chicago Style thin crust pizza in Minneapolis. It was open late (3am) and had late night delivery. It also had a fine selection of pastas and other dishes.

My favorite appetizer was served at "The Shack" were a fried potato creation called a "Jo Jo"

"A tasty way to die" as Orlando Ochoada would say.

The Jojos at the Shack are similiar to others available. They are simply slices of potatoes about a quarter inch thick that are battered then deep fried. What made these different is that they had a thinner, crisper crust, almost like they were fried at a higher temperature than most other places. It had a flavor you couldn't quite figure out, it was more than an interesting french fry variation.

Luckily, this style pizza can still be found at Delano's on Lake street. It's a chhesy, quality home made from scratch variety that can only be found in the big city.

The Shack had also always offered cheesecake on the menu. I had never had it, but always thought about it. An hour before the Shack was gone forever, I had some cheese cake. Though it had none of the qualities normally necessary to make good cheese cake, it was one of the best slices of that dessert I have ever had.

http://www.startribune.com/stories/462/5461743.html

Looking for a Chic-fil-a in Minnesota?

http://www.chick-fil-a.com/Home.asp

There is only one Chic-fil-a in all of Minnesota, and that is at the University of Minnesota's Student Union (Coffman Memorial Student Union).

I enjoy the sandwiches thoroughly.

Bordertown Coffee

315 16th Ave
Minneapolis, MN 55414
Phone: 612-379-7277

As I'm now done with college, I'll start my reviews here with a short introduction to the only coffee shop I ever visited. Bordertown Coffee.

I must admit, I do not like coffee. I don't like it black, I don't like it with cream and sugar, I don't like the uppity collection of uppitinos that are offered at most venues. However, I do make a exception, I do like Chai.

I rarely get any, but I do like Chai.

Bordertown Coffee has Chai. It also has a huge selection of standard designer coffee stuffs, most of which I know nothing about. The prices are about normal for a coffee place. The atmosphere is quite enjoyable. The building is an historical building that used to house a fraternity, now I think it still houses a Christian frat, I'm not sure. It has comfortable couches and tables to sit at.

So far this sounds like a standard fair. However, Bordertown has an awesome assortment of homemade brownies, pumpkin bread, banana bread, bread pudding, and other delights. They are made from scratch, and their treats far surpass anything you can find on campus.

In fact, I am hard pressed to think of anywhere you can get homemade banana bread of this quality. When I ordered a slice this morning, I looked at the portion and was not impressed. I should have known better. That slice was very heavy, and ended up being quite filling.

If you're a regular to the U of M campus, or just stopping by for an event, get your coffee (and a treat) at Bordertown Coffee.

All About This Blog

I have come to realize that maybe the best thing to do with an addiction is to turn it into a productive habit. This is not always possible, but my love for food is different. As a longtime Twin Cities resident, I have visited some of the best restaurants this state has to offer. Hopefully, over the course of my blogging career, I will be able to dispense my accumulated knowledge. This is where I start.

And unlike the reviews you might read in the City Pages, you'll be able to find and afford these places I suggest.

Marty