Twin Cities Restaurant Blog

Sak's Sport's Bar ~ Vadnais Heights, MN

Cuisine: American, Burgers, Wings, Pasta
Restaurant Features: Bar, Games, Happy Hour, Pull-Tabs, Sports Leagues ( Volleyball, Broomball, Boot Hockey and Dodge Ball)
Location: Vadnais Heights, MN
Address: 1460 Co. Rd. E. East Vadnais Heights, MN 55110  651.484.6119

Bar Hours: Sun-Thurs 11a-1p  Fri-Sat 11a-2p

Kitchen Hours: Sun-Thurs 11a-10p  Fri-Sat 11a-11p

Links: Sak's Sports Bar Website     Google Map

Atmosphere: Located on County Road E just a block from Hwy 61, Sak's Sports Bar is in the location formerly known as Bentley's restaurant.  The space is pretty big, with a couple of different seating areas.  Pictured below is the gaming side of the restaurant, with dart boards, pull-tabs, several large  flat-panel TVs and bar-height tables.  The other side of the restaurant has a large bar separating two additional seating areas, one of which is the main dining room and the other is a row of booths running parallel to the bar.

Sak's is also known for its Outdoor Sports.  Leagues are available to play Volleyball, Broomball, Boot Hockey and Dodgeball.  Sporting areas not pictured.

Menu:  Appetizers include Buffalo Wings, Ranch Wing's, Crispy Chicken Wings, BBQ Ribs, Spicy Pork Sliders, Boursin Sliders (green chile ketchup, boursin cheese and fried onion strings), Hot Dago Sliders, Classic Sliders, Slider Platter, Pulled Pork Quesadillas, Fried Chicken Quesadilla, Nacho Bar (chips with melted cheese and all other ingredients on the side to make-your-own), Garlic Cheese Bread, Bucket of Fresh-Cut Fries, Walleye Fingers, Onion Rings and Tator Tots Bucket, Warm Chips with Charred Corn and Black-Bean Salsa.  They also have Chicken with Wild Rice soup and a Soup du Jour

Salads offerings at Sak's include Asian Chicken, Chopped Cobb, Cranberry Almond, Chicken Club, Red, White and Blue (red onion, bleu cheese), Beef and Garden Salad, Bird of Paradise, and Side Salad.  Any salad can be halved during lunch M-F.

Sandwiches include Hand Craved Butcher Sandwiches (beef brisket, ham or turkey breast), Italian Chicken Hoagie, B.A.L.T., Crispy Chicken, Grilled Chicken, Battered Walleye, Twisted Tuna (on English muffin with guacamole, bacon and melted Swiss), Honey Mustard Chicken Salad, Cucumber Chicken Classic, Grilled Vegetable Melt, Chicago Hot Dog, The Cuban, Buffalo Chicken Wrap, California Turkey Wrap, Chicken Gyro Wrap, The Monster Club and Millionaires Steak Sandwich.  All sandwiches and burgers come with kettle chips but you can upgrade to fresh-cut fries, onion rings or tator tots for $1.59

Burger options are the Classic Ground Chuck, Cowboy (bbq, bacon and cheddar), Bleu Cheese Lover's, Ranch Burger, Cheeseburger, Shrooms and Swiss, Juicy Lucy, The Big Sak (two patties), and The BMFB (18 oz patty with all the classic fixin's!)

Pasta Specialties include BBC Pasta (broccoli, bacon and chicken with penne and chipotle cream sauce), Chicken Al Fresco and Pasta, Big People Mac and Cheese (caramelized shallots and four cheese sauce), Blackened Chicken Pasta, Chicken Meatballs and Spaghetti.  Half-sized pastas available for lunch M-F.

Entrees at Sak's are the BBQ Ribs, Grilled Top Sirloin, Grilled Marinated Chicken Breast, Beef & Beach (sirloin and walleye), and Beer Battered Walleye Fillet.

Price guide: Appetizers $ 5-9  Salads $7-10  Sandwiches/Burgers $7-9  Pasta $9   Entrees $13-20
Weekly Specials:
Tuesday- Sliders 3 for the price of 2

Wednesday- $.25/wings

Happy Hour M-F 3-6pm  7 days 9-11pm ~ 2 for 1 on all drinks  Select half-price appetizers

What We ordered: My companion and I visited Sak's during Happy Hour and opted to go with a couple of the half-priced appetizers from the Happy Hour menu.  We started with 2-for-1 Blue Moon draft beers and the pork quesadillas which turned out to be an awesome choice!  The shredded pork was tender and flavorful, nestled up with melted cheddar cheese and sauteed peppers and onions.  In addition to the filling being great, the crisp and flaky, buttery flour tortilla was browned to a beautiful, dark golden brown.  It was drizzled with sour cream and cilantro and served with a unique black bean and charred corn salsa.  Delicious!

 

We ordered another half-priced appetizer (why not at that price?), the Alley Cat's Ranch Wings.  The ten wings were fried then tossed with melted butter and ranch seasonings, and served with ranch dressing on the side.  These wings were pretty good if you like ranch flavor, which I thought was a unique but very smart way to season the chicken.

 

There were a number of sandwiches on the menu that sounded good to me, but I decided to order my standard Reuben from the Daily Specials menu.  I thought the Reuben was very good.  The deli-style corned beef was sliced thin and piled high with tangy sauerkraut and melted Swiss cheese on a lightly toasted rye bread.  It came with a generous serving of crunchy, seasoned kettle chips.

 

My companion ordered the Juicy Lucy with fresh-cut fries.  Juicy indeed! The beef was cooked perfectly and inside was a hot cheesey mixture of American cheese, cream cheese and green onion.  The generous helping of fresh cut fries were also very good, not too greasy but just salty enough.

Service: We were able to get a table for mid-afternoon lunch without a problem and were seated at a booth in the bar area.  Our overall service was decent.  The hostess who sat us was friendly and the male server we had was nice but he didn't seem very personable or outstanding in any way.  Drinks were filled as needed and food came reasonably fast.
Overall Impression: Another great sports bar to try in the Vadnais Heights/White Bear Lake area .  Wide selection of appetizers, sandwiches and burgers on the menu all at very reasonable prices.  Great Happy Hour specials!

Crave ~ Mall of America, Edina, and St Louis Park, MN

Cuisine: American, Sushi, Seafood, Steaks, Pasta
Restaurant Features: Bar, Happy Hour
Locations: Mall of America, Edina (Galleria), St Louis Park (Shops at West End)

Addresses & Maps:

Mall of America- 368 South Avenue Bloomington, MN 55425 952.854.5000 (3rd Floor Across from Macy's)

Edina- 520 W. 70th Street Edina, MN 55435  952.697.6000

St Louis Park-1603 West End Blvd. St. Louis Park, MN 55416 952.933.6500

Hours: MOA- Lunch 11a-4p  Dinner M-Sa 4p-10p Sun 4p-8p

Edina- Lunch 11a-4p  Dinner M-Th 4-10p Fri-Sat 4-11p Sun 4-9p

St Louis Park- Lunch 11a-4p  Dinner M-Th 4-10p Fri-Sat 4-11p Sun 4-9p

Links: Crave Website  OpenTable Reservation

Atmosphere: The Mall of America location of Crave is on the 3rd floor of South Ave, across from Macy's.  The restaurant is large and spacious, with a large bar off to the left side near the entrance and a sushi bar centrally placed along the wall in the middle of the main dining room.  Although the majority of seating is at tables throughout the dining room, there are also several high-backed booths that allow for more privacy.  The lighting is dim and romantic, with mood lighting created by the illuminated art behind the sushi bar and the softly glowing candles at each table.

The kitchen is open along the back of the restaurant, with subtle views of the place where the chefs work their magic.  The lighting from the kitchen also gives the nearby tables a soft glow.

Menu: The menu changes seasonally and features natural, organic and locally grown ingredients.  All beef is certified beef.

Appetizers on the new Fall Menu at Crave include Calamari, Chicken Satay, Lemon Garlic Wings, Pita & Spreads, Seared Scallops, Baked Crab & Artichoke Dip, Pesto Shrimp, Mini Burgers, Gingered Beef Eggrolls, Artisan Bread Basket, and Edamame.

Salads offered include Asian Noodle Salad, Atlantic Salmon, Steak Niçoise, Starter Crave Salad, Starter Caesar, Starter Roasted Beet & Walnut.  Soups include Hearty Tomato Pesto, Roasted Chicken & Wild Rice, and Leek & Potato.

Pizzas and Flatbreads at Crave are also quite popular.  Flatbread choices are the Roasted Chicken (with pesto, sun dried tomato and portobella mushrooms), Grape & Apple (with Amablu cheese and honey), Thai Chicken (a peanut sauce with cilantro, Asian cabbage and marinated cucumber), and the Napoleon (with garlic prosciutto). Pizzas include Pepperoni or Sausage, Margarita, Shaved Ribeye and the Chipotle BBQ Chicken.

Sandwiches on the dinner menu include Steak Sandwich, Ahi Tuna Steak and Crave Burger.

Pasta selections at Crave include Seas Scallop & Shrimp Fettuccine, Fettuccine & Roasted Mushrooms, Shrimp Scampi Al Fresco, Roasted Chicken and Penne, Baked Truffle Macaroni, Baked Cheese Penne, Spaghetti Pomodoro, and Ravioli Bolognese. Crave offers the option of a half-order of any of their pastas.

Crave has a nice selection of dinner entrees as well, such as the Grilled Petite Tender, Grilled Ribeye, Crab Crusted Filet Mignon, Tuscan New York Strip, Brined Pork Tenderloin, Chicken Stir-Fry, Crispy Half Chicken, Mango & Prawns, Grilled Ahi Tuna, Pistachio Crusted Salmon, Minnesota Walleye, Miso Glazed Sea Bass

The sushi selection at Crave is also pretty extensive.  Nigiri and Sashimi offerings include Crispy Rice Bars with Spicy Tuna, Scallops Poppers, Amaebi (sweet raw shrimp), Hamachi (yellowtail), Hirame (flounder), Hokki-Gai (surf clam), Maguro (red tuna), Mutsu (escolar), Sake (salmon), Suzuki (striped sea bass), Ebi (cooked shrimp), Unagi (cooked eel), Masago (smelt roe), Tako (octopus), Tobiko (flying fish roe), Wasabi Tobiko, and Seaweed Salad.

Maki Sushi offerings are the Tekka (tuna), Sake (salmon), Negihama (yellowtail and scallions), Unagi (cooked eel), Kappa (cucumber), Spicy Shrimp Cones, Chipotle Ocean Roll, Keilani;s Roll (shrimp tempuraavocado, wrapped with eel), Mexican Roll (yellowfin and escolar with avocado, cilantro,  jalapeños and spicy mayo), Number Nine (crunchy Spicy Tuna Roll), Dragon Wraps, Rainbow, Caterpillar, Spider, Veggie Roll, Tempura Roll, Spicy Tuna, California, Minnesota(cooked smoked walleye), Dynamite, Spicy Salmon, Crunchy Roll and Fire Roll.  There are alsoa  couple of sushi combos like the Sushi Sampler, Sushi Lunch Combo and Sashimi Lunch Combo.

Crave also has a delicious selection of desserts that changes seasonally.  The Fall desserts at Crave include Golden Raisin Bread Pudding, Key Lime Pie, Molten Chocolate Cake, Vanilla Bean Cheesecake, German Chocolate Cake, and Coconut White Cake.  The dessert menu also includes a variety of after-dinner drinks such as the Girl Scout Cookie and Buttery Bailey's, Ports and Dessert Wines, and hot cafe drinks.

Price guide: Appetizers $8-13 Salads $8-15 Pizza/Flatbreads $12-13 Pastas $14-24 Entrees $24-37 Nigiri/Sashimi $6-10/order  Sushi Rolls $7-19/order
Happy Hour Specials:

What we ordered: My companion and I started with a couple of the Crave specialty cocktails, the Cranberry Smash and the Blueberry Lemonade.  The Cranberry Smash was made with vodka, ginger ale, mint leaves and cranberry juice.  The Opulent vodka revved up the drink but it wasn't overly strong. The ginger ale gave it a pleasant sweetness that I wasn't expecting, but the cranberries were tart enough to counter the sweetness.  I loved that the cranberries were frozen into ice cubes and floated at the top.  The Blueberry Lemonade was also very good and slightly sweeter than the Cranberry drink.  Excellent blend of flavors.

 

The Pesto Shrimp appetizer came highly recommended by our server so we started with that.  What a great start to a great night of food! The sauteed tiger shrimps were served on little slices of crostini toast that had been topped with oven-dried tomato, and then the shrimp toast was covered with pistachio pesto.  The shrimp was perfectly cooked so it was tender and complimented the crunch of the toast.  The pesto sauce was creamy and rich, a perfect sauce to go with the shrimp.

 

The Panko-Crusted Scallops also sounded really good so we tried an order of those as well.  These scallops may have been some of the best I have ever eaten! The scallops were large and coated with a layer of panko bread crumbs before being seared to a golden brown in the pan. They were cooked so that the meat was tender enough to melt in your mouth, yet the panko and seared edges gave it a nice crunch.  The scallops were served with a dressy arrangement of picatta buerre blanc and fresh field greens.  The butter and capers added the perfect touch of saltiness to compliment the sweetness of the scallop meat.

 

Sushi Chef Tony Lam brought us a special sampler platter that included a Mexican roll, ceviche, flying fish roe with quail egg wrapped in salmon,  amaebi (sweet raw shrimp), crispy rice bars, prawn heads, and three different fish mixtures atop cucumber slices.

The Mexican roll (pictured top right in photo above) is Crave's most popular roll and became my new favorite after just one bite.  This roll is the perfect marriage of Mexican and Sushi, two of my most favorite foods.  It had both yellow fin tuna and escolar with avocado, cilantro, a slice of fresh jalapeño and spicy mayo wrapped in rice and seaweed.  It is then topped with a soy citrus sauce (ponzu), and chili oil with fresh lime juice squeezed on top. It was so good! I loved the spiciness of the jalapeño, and the lime and cilantro gave it a fresh citrus twist.  The tuna and the escolar inside the Mexican roll were very tender and not at all fishy. Bravo!

The Crispy Rice Bars were also wonderful.  The rice cake was like a thick chewy rice cracker and had a lot more flavor than ordinary sticky rice.  It was topped with a heaping pile of spicy tuna mix, flying fish roe, and sliced jalapeno pepper. The combination of textures went together really well and I enjoyed it quite a bit.

 

The ceviche was one of my favorite items that Sushi Chef Tony Lam made for us to try.  A very thin slice of potato was fried with tempura batter and then topped with sliced raw fish that was marinated with a citrus soy sauce, scallions and fresh chili peppers.  It was packed with flavor and the tenderness of the fish paired with the texture of the tempura potato went perfectly together.

The sushi was so good we ordered even more of Sushi Master Tony's creations.  Clockwise From Lower Left: The Mexican Roll, Fire Roll, Number Nine, Dragon Wrap (top right), Hokki and Hamachi Sashimi, and Scallop Poppers (pictured in photo after the one below)

The Number Nine was filled with pieces of shrimp tempura, spicy mayo, kaiware and yama gobo wrapped with salmon and avocado and topped with a sweet soy based sauce. The Fire Roll was filled with pieces of shrimp tempura, cucumber, kaiware and yama gobo wrapped with a spicy salmon mix and topped with chili oil.  This one was nice and spicy, just the way I like it.  The Dragon Wraps were also good.  Instead of rice, this roll is made with an egg omelet wrapped around  spicy tuna, fresh water eel, avocado, fried green onions, crunchy flakes and miso dressing.  Served in two big rolls.  The Scallop Poppers were also excellent. The scallops were baked in spicy dynamite sauce then wrapped in salmon and topped with crunchy panko flakes. Loved the combination of flavors and textures. 

For my entree I ordered the Crab Crusted Filet MIgnon. This was outstanding! The filet was thick and cooked medium, as I requested.  It had a creamy crab and cheese mixture with just the slightest hint of buttery breadcrumbs baked on top and served on a bed of lobster cream sauce.  This absolutely melted in my mouth. The crab and cheese together created a rich flavor that went slendidly with the tender and juicy beef.  Herb roasted new potatoes and buttery seasoned baby carrots were also served, both were very good.

My companion had the Miso Seabass.  The perfectly-cooked Korean miso sea bass was served atop a bed of steamed white rice and adorned with baby bok choy and a crimson ponzu sauce.  Asian pickled cucumbers sat layered atop the fish.  This dish was delicious as well! The flavorful yet mild sea bass went really well with the sweet, fruity panzu sauce.

 

Despite being extremely full after enjoying all of this delicious food, we also tried a sushi dessert.  What an extraordinary creation this was! The middle of the the roll had homemade vanilla-bean cheesecake and a slice of fresh mango then wrapped with a thin layer of rice and topped with a thin slice of strawberry. The roll was arranged atop a drizzling of chocolate and vanilla sauce.  The cheesecake and rice were such a unique combo of flavors and textures and together it was like a thick, fruity, creamy and sweet rice pudding.  So different and so, so good!

Service: We had exceptional service at our first visit to Crave.  The hostesses were very friendly and our server, Dawn, was very knowledgeable about the menu and had some wonderful suggestions about appetizers, entrees and cocktails too.  We ordered a lot of food and took our time but never felt rushed since food was paced perfectly.  The restaurant wasn't too busy (nor was the Mall in general) on this pre-holiday-shopping-season Tuesday evening and we were able to get great customer service and attention from everyone all the way up to the manager.

Overall Impression: The culinary and sushi creations were outstanding. I tried quite a variety of foods and loved every single thing.  The Mexican Roll should win an award! There is quite a variety on the menu and the Happy Hour specials are a really good deal.  Great place to have a casual yet elegant dinner and worth every penny for the fine ingredients.  The service was exceptional.  I can't wait to go back again soon!

Oak City ~ Brooklyn Center & Bloomington, MN

Cuisine: American, Bar & Grill, Fish & Seafood, Pasta, Steaks
Restaurant Features: Bar, Flat Screen TVs, Happy Hour, Kids Menu, Live Music, On Site Parking, Sunday Brunch
Locations: Brooklyn Center & Bloomington, MN
Addresses and Maps:
Bloomington- 5001 American Blvd Bloomington, MN 55437 (952) 746-8887
Brooklyn Center- 2590 Freeway Blvd Brooklyn Center, MN 55430 (763) 503-3561
Links:  Oak City Website

Atmosphere: The Brooklyn Center location of Oak City is located next to Country Inn & Suites Hotel, on the frontage road that runs along the north side of 694.  The building is a decent size (formerly TGIFriday's), with the dining room arranged into several distinct eating areas to allow for more privacy.  The section my companion and I sat in had several two-person booths, other sections had bigger booths and also some tables. The decor of Oak City is sophisticated contemporary, with gold accents and fun quotes throughout the restaurant (hanging on walls and also embedded into the backs of the booths).

 

Above the booths in the middle of the restaurant are these cool metal sculptures made to resemble Trees.

 

There is also a large bar area when you first walk into the Brooklyn Center location, with seating at the bar and also several high-topped tables.

Menu: Appetizers at Oak City include Walleye Fingers, Captain Crunch Chicken Strips, Mini Black Angus Burgers, Salmon Dip with Pita, Spinach & Artichoke Dip, Mile High Nachos, Pot Stickers, Chicken Wings & Boneless Wings (6 sauces).

Oak City also serves Flatbread Pizzas including Margherita, Signature Sausage, Spinach & Artichoke Heart, BBQ Chicken and Traditional (sausage or pepperoni).

Appetizer Salads include House, Caesar, Candied Walnut and Spinach and Applewood Bacon.  Entree Salads include Chicken Caesar, Portabella, Peppercorn Tenderloin, Candied Walnut, Spinach & Applewood Bacon, and Cashew Chicken.

Specialty Sandwiches at Oak City include Chicken Ciabatta, Oak City Philly, Walleye, French Dip, Chicken Chipotle, Oak City Club, BBQ Chicken, and Smoked Turkey. 

Burgers include Portabella and Gorgonzola, Oak City Classic (roasted onion and tomato with provolone),Bourbon Teriyaki Bacon Cheeseburger, Hickory Burger (smoked gouda and chipotle bbq sauce), Cheeseburger and Basic Burger.

Entrees include Fajitas, Fish 'n Chips, Chicken Tenderloins, Baby Back Ribs, Herb Roasted Chicken, Choice Top Sirloin, Burgundy Peppercorn Steak, Tenderloin Medallions, Sirloin & Walleye Combo, Ribs & Chicken Combo, Shrimp Scampi, Tempura Shrimp, Canadian Walleye, and Sesame Crusted Salmon.

Pastas include Cajun Chicken Alfredo, Chicken and Pesto, Pasta Fresco, and Tortellini Baronessa.

Oak City's Desserts include Chocolate Lava Cake, Caramel Apple Pie Sundae, Turtle Cheesecake, Upside Down Sundae, White Chocolate Raspberry Cream Cake, and Cheesecake.

There is also a lunch menu served M-F 11am-3pm

Kids Menu includes Walleye Fingers, Fettuccine Alfredo, Grilled Cheese, Chicken Fingers, Macaroni & Cheese, and Mini Burgers.

Sunday Brunch:

• $10.95/ Adults   $5.95 Kids 5-12   Free/ Kids 4 and Under
• 10am-2pm
• Scrambled Eggs with Cheese, French Toast, Bacon, Sausage, Cheesy Hashbrowns, Mashed Potatoes, Pecan-Crusted Walleye, Tilapia, Shrimp Alfredo, BBQ ribs, Swedish Meatballs, Steamed Broccoli, Pork Tenderloin, Clam Chowder, Pasta Salad, Lettuce Salad, Cakes, Pies, Cheesecake, Chocolate Mousse

Price guide: Appetizers $ 7-11   Salads $ 4-13    Sandwiches/Burgers $8-11  Entrees $10-25  Desserts $5-7

Happy Hour:

• Daily 3-6:30p & 10p-12a
• $2 Appetizers (Buffalo Wings, Rock Shrimp, Walleye Fingers, Mini Burgers w/ Fries, Fresh Tortilla Chips & Salsa
• $4 Flatbread Pizzas )margherita, BBQ Chicken, Oak City Signature, Spinacc & Artichoke, Traditional)
• $2 Rail drinks & 16 oz Domestic Taps  $3 Vodka Redbull  $4 Long Islands
• $1 off all other drinks

Weekly Specials served 4-9pm:
Monday- Any Burger on Menu $5.95 
Tuesday- Any Pasta on Menu $9.95 and 1/2 price bottles of wine  
Wednesday- All You Can Eat Snow Crab $19.95 (includes bread, soup or salad, veggie and choice of potato 
Thursday- All You Can Eat baby Back Ribs $12.95  
Friday- All you can eat Walleye Fingers $11.95 
Saturday- 12 oz NY Strip $10.95  
Sunday- Roasted Chicken $8.95 and Kids 12 and under eat free off Kid's Menu (one per paid adult)
What I ordered: I was really in the mood for a sandwich and the Chipotle Chicken looked perfect for me (and it was!).  The chicken breast had been marinated in chipotle spices so the juicy tender meat was very flavorful and also had somewhat of a smoky flavor to it.  The breast was grilled and topped with melted Manchengo cheese, which was creamy and also slightly smoky.  Large slices of fresh avocado and a spicy chipotle sauce complete this sandwich which is served on a fresh toasted bun.  The combination of flavors and textures in this sandwich were a big hit, my only complaint is that the bun seemd too small and the ingredients wanted to slide right out.  The shoe string fries were cooked a little too long (from frozen) and were on the hard side, with many small pieces of too-crispy-to-eat potatoes.

 

My companion asked for a suggestion on the Burger Menu and was told to try the Portabella Gorgonzolla Burger.  Fabulous creation of flavors and textures! The large freshly-made burger patty was made with 1/1 lb of fresh ground Angus beef and then grilled to order, with a giant sauteed protabella mushroom cap and a hearty portion of gorgonzola layered on top of the beef .  This burger was so big that it deserves a bigger bun.  Awesome choice!

Service: We were greeted by the hostess within a few minutes of arriving and were shown to our table.  The restaurant wasn't too busy after the dinner rush on a Tuesday, but it was at least five minutes before we were greeted by our server.  Our server was friendly and gave us great suggestions about the menu but wasn't always there when needed (refills, box, bill, etc).  Our food was served reasonably fast and overall the service was decent.
Overall Impression: Great sandwiches and burgers at Oak City! Prices seemed slightly high but comparable to other restaurants of the same caliber.  Would love to try Oak City's Sunday Brunch and the weekly specials look great too

Loring Pasta Bar ~ Minneapolis, MN

Cuisine: Italian with Asian influence, Pasta

Restaurant Features: Bar, Live-Music

Location: Minneapolis (Dinkytown)

Address: 327 14th Av. SE. Minneapolis, MN 55414 612.378.4849

Links: Loring Pasta Bar Website  Google Map

Atmosphere: Breath-taking and romantic! Located inside a beautifully renovated building in Dinkytown (formerly known as Gray's Drug Store) , the Loring Pasta Bar is an amazing site to see.  Ceilings are 2-3 stories high, with an upper-eating area overlooking the court-yard style main dining room.  Large trees and beautiful plants line the perimeter (glass windows are often opened or removed during summer months to really give you the feeling of eating outdoors.)

Soft candles and Live Jazz music really add to the romantic feeling of the Loring Pasta Bar during dinner hours.  Restaurant/Nightclub? Late night DJ's have the place grooving throughout the week for local U of M students (and others!) to enjoy.

 

Menu: Appetizers include the infamous Artichoke Ramekin as well as Beef Skewers, Calamari, Shrimp and Spicy Tuna Sushi Roll. Pasta dishes include Fettuccine Carbonara, Goat Cheese Tortellini, Spaghetti, Portabello Ravioli, and Vegetarian Orzo.  Small selection of entrees include Grilled Salmon, Beef Tenderloin, New York Strip, Seared Raw Tuna, and Stir Fry

Loring Pasta Bar Menu

Price guide:  Appetizers- $5-9, Pasta- $10-13, Entrees- $17-23

What I ordered: We were given a giant basket of bread while we looked over the menu, but also decided to order the Artichoke Ramekin (Came highly recommended)....Creamy, cheesy with big chunks of artichokes and a spicy kick.  Delicious!

I had a very difficult time deciding what to order off the menu, but finally decided to go with the Roasted Chicken and Mozzarella Ravioli.  I was given exactly seven raviolis, each stuffed with a bite-sized amount of strong-tasting Italian cheese.  The menu claimed it was mozzarella, but tasted very strongly like goat cheese to me.  Rather than incorporating the roasted chicken inside the pasta, the roasted chicken was mixed into the tomato and garlic mixture and placed atop the ravioli.  The dish was good, but nothing I'd be dying to go back for anytime soon.

My companions had better luck than I when it came to selecting from the menu.  This seared-raw tuna atop fresh spinach leaves and drizzled with a sesame-soy-ginger sauce was excellent, reminiscent of the Japanese dish, Tuna Tataki.  Very much Japanese-influenced.

Other companions ordered the Crusted Salmon and the Portabello Ravioli (topped with corn mixture).

The desserts at Loring Pasta Bar were awesome. Pictures on the left is the flourless chocolate cake.  This dessert was like no cake I have ever tried in my life, instead it was very creamy.  Reminded me of the filling to a truffle or a really thick & creamy, rich mousse. The dessert pictured on the right is the cheesecake with chocolate and cherries ala mode.  My companions and I were not expecting the cheesecake to be chocolate flavored, or we would have ordered a completely different dessert.  It was very good, but too much like the chocolate cake.

Service: The Loring Pasta Bar is always packed on the weekend, a reservation for any size party is a very good idea.

Overall Impression: Very swank!  I think "Pasta Bar" is a little bit misleading, as the Loring Pasta Bar is not your classic Italian restaurant, but the food is good and the prices are decent.  Definitely a cool place to take out-of-town guests, as it is very unique!