World Street Kitchen

It's not the fault of World Street Kitchen that their cuisine didn't live up to my expectations, considering the fact that everybody who talks about it describes it as the most amazing culinary experience in the Twin Cities. When you go in expecting to be amazed, just being mildly impressed is turned into a disappointment. But I liked it ok. I thought it was pretty good. I'll probably even go back again, if only to give them another chance to amaze me. But I didn't love it, and I can't say I really understand the hype.

The place is nice, in that stripped down, retro kind of way where the ceiling's pipes are exposed and everything is unpainted wood. This is what every new restaurant looks like these days, and that's fine because it must be saving the restrauant industry millions of dollars on paint and varnish. Then again, I bet some construction companies charge extra to give restaurants that less is more feel. Anyway, I do like that look and thought that WSK's space was attractive and well designed, but they should get better chairs. Skimp on the paint and the ceiling, but make sure your chairs have cushions.

The service is one of those order at the counter, get a number, then wait for your food to come kind of deals. That's fine with me, although when they are busy I get stressed out because I hate having to order food before I am guaranteed I'll have a table, doubly so at a place that has a big sign that says to order before claiming a table. But feel free to disregard that sign because, frankly, that's unenforceable and too much to ask of soon to be paying customers. But when my sister Tanya and I went on a Thursday evening, the place had a nice crowd, but plenty of tables and booths to go around. The server behind the counter looked like every other hipster in every other Uptown Eatery, but she had a lovely smile and she was very friendly and helpful.

For my meal I got the guacamole appetizer and a Yum Yum Rice bowl with chicken, broccoli, and shiitake mushrooms. Tanya got a Yum Yum rice bowl with Korean BBQ short ribs and kimchi. Mine was ok, hers was better. A friend of hers recommended the yum yums, but with the caveat that we asked for the sauce on the side. Tanya did just that, but I did not. Perhaps this is why hers was better, but perhaps it's just that beef always trumps chicken. Anyway, mine had too much sauce, which was way too rich and way too salty. Even with the sauce on the side, Tanya's was also too salty. The flavors were good and the ingredients went well together, but yeah... too salty. And order the sauce on the side.

The guacamole was good, if bland, but it came topped with edamame and pickled onions, which I found off-putting. I don't like edamame, and they certainly have no place with guacamole, and since they are identical in color they were hard to avoid. The chips were homemade and fantastic, however, and probably the best part of the meal. That's not a knock at the other selections, that's just how good these chips were. I dunno if they have salsa, but if so, I'd try that next time.

They also have a decent tap selection, but I'm off drinking so I didn't peruse it. I got a can of soda, which was fine, but at a place like this, they really should have fountain drinks available. I finished my can before the food came, and I wasn't about to buy another one. Have a fountain so I can get refills.

Anyway, that's World Street Kitchen, a very nice little restaurant with an interesting menu and great service, but not one that I'm going to rush back to anytime soon... but I will probably amble back there eventually.

White Castle Breakfast

Don tries the new White Castle waffle sliders:

The New Walker Library

When I first visited the newly renovated Walker Library in Uptown, Minneapolis, I'll admit I was underwhelmed. Perfectly decent library in an attractive, spacious building, but for some reason I was expecting something... monumental. Maybe because they completely gutted the old building, maybe because the renovation took so long, or maybe just because the Downtown library is such a brilliant architectural achievement. I walked in and it just seemed like a library.

But then I came back a week or so later to hang out, and I realized it didn't smell, the carpet wasn't stained, the walls weren't pealing, there were no homeless people sleeping on the couches, and I didn't feel like I was in somebody's dank basement. A perfectly fine library in Uptown might be something monumental after all.

The old Walker library was literally in a basement. You walked into the main entrance, which was just a stairwell that went underground to a subterranean dungeon. The best thing I could say for it -- other than that it's a two minute walk from my apartment -- is that it was always cool, at least temperature-wise. Remember the slot on the front door where you could return books either after hours or just without having to go inside? It just dropped the books onto a slide that spiraled around and around until it reached the basement. Ridiculous.

Anyway, this isn't in a basement, which means it actually has windows. In fact, it's all windows, at least on its front three sides. The back leads to a parking garage, but in the front its bright and offers a great view of all the condos being constructed through-out Uptown. They've also replaced all of the future with a variety of tables and chairs that are pastel colored, which looks jarring at first, but it's pretty cool and fun. The only problem with the variety of chairs is that some are less comfortable than others, and like most from this style of retro chairs, the ones that look the most enticing are usually the worst. But none are terrible.

There is no roof-top patio, which maybe isn't worth mentioning. Why did I think this would have a roof-top patio? I dunno. I just did. The previous library may have been in a basement, but above ground it did have a cute little park area. Of course, I never sat there because I didn't want to sit on one of the benches and prick myself on some used syringe. That park was gross and nobody's going to miss it. The Library letters sculpture is preserved and placed around back, near the entrance to the parking area, in case you were curious. I was happy to see them again.

You can rent an iPad, which is pretty neat. It's free with a library card, but it asked for a pin number, which if I have, I don't know what is is. I'm sure one of the librarians could help me out, but I don't care enough. Why would I do with an iPad for two hours that I can't take out of the library? Also, if it's damaged or lost while in your possession, there's a $500 replacement fee. Fair enough.

So how are the books? I dunno. I have a Nook. There are a lot of books on my Nook, and this library is a comfortable, lovely place to read them. Check it out.

Don Ate That Part 1: Microwavable Cheeseburger

Mac's Fish & Chips

Mac's Fish & Chips opened around the corner from my work a couple of months ago, and I've been meaning to write this review already, but frankly I've just been too busy eating there. Long story short: Mac's is a fish and chips joint, which already makes it a worthy destination, but luckily it's also a pretty good one.

I was born and raised in New England and spent my summers on the beach eating at shacks just like Mac's... sorta. Minnesota is a land-locked state (sorry, Minnesota, but none of your ten thousand lakes count) far from a real beach or local fishing village, so of course it's not going to compete with what I had as a kid... but nothing ever does. 

Think of Mac's as sort of the Matt's bar of fish and chips. For comparison's sake, I'd call the Anchor the 112 Eatery of fish and chips, and Stella's... well... I honestly can't think of any reason to go to Stella's. But I was talking about Mac's: You go up to a counter, order from a menu that includes fish, clams, chicken, and shrimp, get a beer, then sit down and shove it all in your face then leave happy. Before it was a fish and chips joint, the space used to be a yoga studio. For some reason I find that hilarious, and if every yoga studio in Minneapolis turned into a fish and chips joint, the world would be a happier place.

As I said, they opened a couple months ago on the same block where I work, so I've been there enough times that I've already worked my way through their menu. Here are my thoughts:

Halibut:  The most expensive item on the menu, and also the best. It's a huge, flavorful, flaky white fish. Remember the opening of the Flintstones where Fred orders those brontosaurus ribs that are so huge they tip over his car? That's how I felt when the guy brought over my halibut. The fish literally stuck over the tray and looked so big I thought the table would tip over. But I'll be honest: at first glance I wasn't that impressed with the sight. I thought it looked like long john silvers and assumed it was going to be all hard batter with little to no fish inside, but then I took a bite and it was perfect. The batter was perfectly tender, the fish was perfectly cooked, and... this is important... it tasted like fish without being fishy.

Walleye: A Minnesota staple. I certainly never heard of walleye until I moved out here. I suppose this is the freshest fish in the place, and as the mid-priced option, the value basket has become my regular choice when I stop in. It's not as huge a chunk of fish as the halibut, nor is the flavor quite as exceptional, but it's still perfectly cooked and a great piece of fish. This is what I always get, and it's what I'd recommend first.

Cod: Good, but not all together exceptional, and seems to vary in quality from visit to visit. The first time I tried the cod was as a sandwich, and it wasn't very good. It was small, had too much batter, and tasted like a fish filet from McDonald's. I later gave it another shot as part of a value basket, and it was way better. It was actually good, but still not as good or flavorful as the walleye or halibut. It's cheap, though, and it's probably what people get for their kids. It's ok, but I recommend spending the couple dollars more and getting something better.

Shrimp: Fried jumbo shrimp. These were great, and surprisingly huge. They were lightly battered, so you could really appreciate the shrimp flavor. Not much you can say about fried shrimp other than that they were plump and delicious. I only got these once, however, because they are a bit pricy for the amount you get. That's not necessarily a complaint since shrimp is just one of those things I'd need to eat a dozen of before I'm full.

Clams: Good, but not great, and maybe disappointing if only because I was so excited to see clams on the menu. As I said, I grew up in New England, and fried clams were a staple of my childhood cuisine, and these didn't quite live up to my memory. They were fine and had the same light breading as the shrimp, but they didn't have enough clam flavor, and were a little too thin and not thick as they should be. I might try these again as a sandwich to create a clam roll, but then again I'll probably just get the walleye. I don't want to sound like a snob, but if you didn't grow up on the Atlantic ocean eating clams, you might love these more than I did.

Chicken: The only thing on the menu I'd maybe call bad, but because I love the place so much I'll be charitable and just say they weren't too my liking. The chicken itself was clearly of a high quality, but the batter just didn't work for me. They tasted like chicken made with the same batter as the fish and cooked in the same oil, so they were some kind of amalgam of chicken with fish flavor, if that makes any sense. I think they should use a lighter batter, or just the breading they use for the shrimp and clams. I just didn't really care for them. Having said that, however, I did eat the entire order, so they weren't awful.

Fries: Freshly cut french fries. Not much to say here, other than that they are pretty good and perfectly compliment the fish.

Cole Slaw: Yeah, every order comes with cole slaw... but wait! It's actually pretty good cole slaw. It just tastes like lettuce and cabbage mixed with butter milk. Sometimes the butter milk is light, and sometimes it's just swimming in liquid, but it's pretty tasty. I almost never finish the entire portion (because it's still cole slaw, after all. Who actually eats cole slaw?), but I usually have a few bites and enjoy the flavor.

Salt Water Taffy: Sometimes my meal comes with a piece of taffy, sometimes it doesn't. I'm not sure  if I just get lucky sometimes or if I'm just unlucky other times. Anyway, it's pretty good taffy, but they should work on their consistency a little.

Cheese Curbs: A friend of mine got the cheese curds once and I tried a piece. I don't care about cheese curds so I don't feel qualified to comment. They tasted like other cheese curds I've tried, for whatever that's worth.

Everything comes with a pickle slice and the world's smallest piece of lemon. I'm not sure if the lemon is just supposed to be a garnish or if they just think one drop of lemon juice is all anybody needs. Either way, it's weird and kind of pointless. Either have a real lemon wedge or no lemon. Luckily there's plenty of malt vinegar on every table, which is the main reason I get fish and chips anyway. I drown my fish in that stuff. I'd drink malt vinegar straight from the bottle if I could. I don't want to go off on a rant here about Anchor Fish and Chips, but they don't have malt vinegar available, just white vinegar... because that's how they do it in Ireland. So to that I say, thank you Mac's for being unpretentious and accommodating to reasonable, expected requests from customers.

The service is another reason why I keep coming back over and over again. Everybody is just really nice, really friendly, and really eager to please. It's the kind of place where people immediately say hello when you walk in, then yell out thank you when you go to leave. It's just a friendly staff that creates an inviting environment. None of them are named Mac, however.

The decor is sparse, and kind of oddly decorated. One wall has a giant mural of a fish, another wall has pictures of boats in some Alaska-like setting, and another wall has a giant poster of a Where's Waldo drawing. Weird. And they always play old school country music, like Merle Haggard, George Jones, etc. I think the mural is really cool and I love old school county, but the the atmosphere does feel like a bit of a mish-mash of clashing styles. But I don't really care as long as the food is good, and luckily the food at Mac's is great. I say check it out.