Saji Ya - St. Paul

We stopped at Saji Ya in St. Paul after picking up Xcel Energy Center tickets for the John Mayer show. I think Saji Ya is easily one of the top sushi restaurants in the Twin Cities. Being it was a Tuesday night, the restaurant was fairly quiet and we had no problem getting a seat at the bar. I really like their Agadashi Tofu, which is fried tofu served in tempura sauce with ground radish, ginger and scallions. For dinner we went with a couple signature rolls and some nigiri sushi. We shared the crunchy roll with shrimp tempura, masago, spicy mayo and tempura flakes. My favorite of the two was the Super Saji roll consisting of tuna, salmon, shrimp, yellow tail with spicy mayo and tempura flakes.

Saji Ya is located on Grand Avenue near Dale in Saint Paul.

The Sample Room - Minneapolis

I'm not sure how long it's been since my first visit to the Sample Room in Northeast Minneapolis, but it feels like it must be close to ten years. That was back when i was a Nordeaster. I moved to Saint Paul and had kind of forgot about it until a friend of mine was raving about a recent visit. This prompted my return and I'm happy to have rediscovered this gem just down the street from the old at 2124 Marshall Avenue NE.

The Sample Room specializes in small plates and flights of wine, whiskey and more. We went for the Grand Sample Combo Platter which included a choice of any four small plates at a discounted price. We tried the baked goat cheese with oven roasted tomato and basil, meatloaf with homemade smoked tomato ketchup, seared sea scallops, and roasted Brussels sprouts and butternut squash.

I would most recommend the sprouts and squash. I'm not a huge vegetable guy, but these were REALLY good. They are roasted with tons of brown sugar and super tender. Next best was the baked Stickney Hill goat cheese with oven-dried Roma tomatoes and basil oil. This went really well with the home made breads. I liked the seared scallops with pumpkin seed picada. My date thought they were a bit over cooked. Neither of us thought the bison-pork-beef three meatloaf was very exciting. Not bad, just didn't meet it's potential. We split a deluxe cheeseburger with bacon medium rare. It was really solid. For desert we had the bread pudding which was excellent.

The Sample room is open 11am Monday through Friday and 10am Saturday & Sunday. The kitchen closes at 10pm Sunday through Thursday and midnight Friday & Saturday. The bar closes at 1am everyday.

D' Amico Kitchen - Minneapolis

I checked out D' Amico Kitchen downtown Minneapolis. They moved out of there old digs in Butler Square and are now located on the ground floor of the swank Chambers Hotel in the heart of the Hennepin Theatre District. This would be a great spot for a nice dinner or upscale snack if you're holding Orpheum Theatre tickets.


The atmosphere is upscale and trendy but still feels warm and invited. The artwork in the restaurant and hotel are worth the visit.

The menu is grouped by antipasti, pasta and secondi. Our waitperson recommended that we each go with one of each. If I go back I would probably stick to the small plates, as they were the highlight of the meal and after which we were all getting a bit full to really appreciate the main course. The fresh bread served was great and could have easily made a satisfying meal paired with the small plates. I think we went through three baskets.

We started with the mussels, tuna, lamb meatballs and roasted beets. All of these were excellent. The mussels were served in a basil-garlic butter and were so good we ordered some more to share with the table. My favorite was the lamb meatballs served with pine nut, currant and yogurt. These, by themselves, will probably bring me back. The yellow fin tuna was served with avocado and melon and I really liked the roasted beets with pistachio, Gorgonzola and pumpkin seed vinaigrette. The beets with the Gorgonzola is a great combo.

We tried the mushroom risotto, ravioli and butternut squash cappelletti for the pasta course. They were all solid, but I think the standout was the ravioli with bufala ricotta, goat cheese, speck, tomato and basil.

Everyone was pretty full by the time the main course was delivered to the table. We tried the braised short rib, sea scallop, grilled swordfish and chicken under brick. All the dinners were good, but I didn't have anything that would send me racing back.

D' Amico has a great wine list, but the prices are a bit of a hammer. I don't understand why restaurants feel they need to charge three retail.

If you go to D' Amico Kitchen or the Chambers Hotel during the winter make sure to check out the Ice Chamber ice bar and fire pit out in the courtyard.

D' Amico Kitchen is located in the Chambers Hotel at 901 Hennepin Avenue. Right across the street from the Orpheum Theatre. Their phone number is 612-767-6960. D' Amico Kitchen's hours are 6:30am - 10pm Sunday through Thursday and 6:30am - 10pm Friday and Saturday.

7th Street Bistro - Saint Paul

I was sad to learn one of my favorite spots to grab a snack when I have Minnesota Wild tickets has changed ownership. I popped in for a Gyro before the game and unfortunately did not get the same great food I was used to. They used to have one of the best, and biggest gyros in town. Sadly that is no longer the case. I hope the new management figures it out.

Punch Pizza - Saint Paul

If I ask my kids where they want to go to dinner their answer nine times out of ten is Punch. If you are looking for the best Neapolitan style pizza in the the Twin Cities then Punch is where you want to go. They take their pizza very serious here. From the 800 degree wood fired oven to the authentic dough and ingredients Punch will make you feel like you are in Naples Italy. You can choose your own toppings or pick from one of their 18 classic pizzas. If you're extra hungry try the excellent artichoke dip or fresh salad. You can get their pizza to take out, but I think it is so much better when it comes right out of the oven. They offer several interesting affordable wines by the glass, carafe and bottle. Punch is family friendly, but I've seen it get very busy. If you are in a hurry try the restaurant on Grand Avenue. You give up the table service, but you get your food much quicker. At the moment there are six Punch locations. Highland Park, Eden Prairie, Lake Calhoun, Northeast, Wayzata and Grand Avenue. A seventh punch location is opening on the University of Minnesota campus at Stadium Village. I can't think of a better place to start the evening if you are holding Minnesota Gophers Hockey tickets.

Bario - St. Paul

Both Bario Tequila Bar locations are definitely two of the Twin Cities hottest spots right now. I've been to both, and both are great, but I must say I favor the Saint Paul location a little over the Minneapolis location on Nicollet Avenue. The space in Saint Paul is a lot bigger and it's always been easy for me to get a spot at the bar and parking is not a problem. When you go, sit at the bar for better service. They have several house margaritas. You can't go wrong with any of them. The food has also been consistently excellent.

If you go, you have to try the chips and guacamole and the black bean & chicken tostada. They've done an awesome job balancing flavor and texture. If you're holding Minnesota Wild tickets stop at Bario before or after the game for a great sports bar alternative and if it's packed the Bulldog is right next door. Bario St. Paul is located at 235 E. 6th St. across the steet from Smith Park near the corner of Wacouta & 6th. Bario's phone number is 651-222-3250 and you can make your reservations on open table.

Vikings Packers game at the Metrodome - Minneapolis

My buddies from Milwaukee were in town this past week and we were not able to score any Vikings Packers tickets for the big game at the Metrodome in Minneapolis. We decided to watch the game at the Groveland Tap in Saint Paul. The place was packed and the crowd was rowdy. My friends were impressed with the huge tap beer selection. They likened the Tap to a good old Wisconsin Tavern without all the cigarette smoke and Packer fans.