Thrifty Hipster Review

Thrifty Hipster used to be a great website that was an invaluable tool when looking for great food and drink specials in the Twin Cities... but not anymore. What used to be a clean, easy to use website was recently transformed into a mess that is so broken it's mostly unusable. This was a classic example of change simply for the sake of change, and adding useless bells and whistles that just slow everything down and annoying visitors. This is absolutely one of the worst websites on the internet.

To begin with, this website is just an eyesore. The colors are ugly pastels, there are ads and banners everywhere, and the layout is way too busy. Change the colors, move some of the ads, and simplify the layout. Why do I have to scroll down just to reach the menu? Move the logos and shift the real content up.

On the left is a menu bar where you can scroll through the restaurant listings, but for some reason you have to click on them twice in order to bring up the info in the main frame. You click on the name, which brings up another button that says "more details," which you have to click on to see the details. Why do I have to do this? Do they have the second button come up because they think people are going to keep accidentally hitting restaurants for which they don't want more details? That's insane. This may sound like a petty complaint, but if I'm clicking through a few different restaurants, having to click twice just to bring up a pointless second button gets annoying. Just skip the "more details" button and go straight to the details after I click on the name of the restaurant.

Even worse is that clicking for more details doesn't just reload the single frame, but the entire page. This is annoying as hell and will make you want to throw your computer across the room. This means the scroll bar with the list of restaurants resets itself every time you click on a link for more details. So if you are going down the list in alphabetical order and click on a listing for a restaurant that starts with, say, H, the entire page reloads and the list goes back to A. This is some poor website design that could be easily fixed with a couple changes to the code.

Even worse than worse is how there's an overlayer that appears explaining how the website works, as though most people who are coming to the page are new to the internet or something. Trust me, Thrifty Hipster, we can figure it out on our own. We don't need these instructions even once, let alone a dozen times randomly as I navigate through the page. Seriously, this thing kept popping up and I had to click on close over and over again. If there's a way to turn it off, I couldn't figure out how, and that was the one piece of information they left out of the instructions. Maybe if I log-in through facebook it'll remember me and stop giving me this pop-up, but I'm not going to do that. Why should I have to do that?

So... Thrifty Hipster. What once was a great, handy, easy to use website has been turned into an annoying, broken, mess. The logo does say "beta," but it's said that for at least the past six months or so, and these complaints are so fundamental that they never should've been there at all. If you want to use this website, the only functional way that isn't completely annoying is with an iphone or other device, since the mobile site is just straight text with links that work.

The Malt Shop

I've been going to The Malt Shop a lot lately, because my friend Jester is desperately trying to become their mayor on Foursquare. I think she gave up on that because she realized that becoming mayor of a restaurant is impossible unless you actually work there, since eating out that often will only end up making you fat and broke. Well, The Malt Shop will make you fat, anyway, but probably not broke, since it's a super good but super cheap diner in South Minneapolis that has great burgers, awesome fries, and, of course, malts. Even if Jester didn't want to be mayor, we'd go there anyway.

I'll admit, the place doesn't look like much... which is actually just a polite way of calling it a dump. It's not dirty or gross, just plain and boring and maybe a little garish in their choice of decorations. But it's also charming and nice and feels authentic. The website says it was established in 1973, and I bet they haven't changed or updated much in these past 39 years. In fact, I would've gotten the same impression if they website had said they were established in 1953, or even earlier. This was the kind of place I would've gone to with my parents when I was a kid, and that they would've gone to with their parents when they were a kid. Long story short: It's a diner, and a darn good one.

Fish and Chips

I've been there a bunch of times, and only once did I get something other than a burger. I always intend to not get a burger, since I want to try the whole menu, or close to it anyway, but the burgers are so good I almost always break down. And since they have a pretty decent collection of different burgers, I'm eager to try them all as well. The one time I didn't get a burger was when I got the fish and chips. They were pretty good, but far from the best in the Twin Cities. They came with a pretty good but not all together exceptional tartar sauce, and were served in small pieces of four instead of large pieces of two. Weird, but not a deal breaker. Anyway, they were good, but if you want fish and chips, go to Brit's Pub, the Anchor, or The Local.

If you want a burger, however, go to The Malt Shop.

Jester always gets the LS Burger, which is a bacon cheeseburger. I've had the Malt Shop Supreme, which is basically just the LS Burger with mushrooms and avocado, and it was amazing. I've also had the Black and Bleu burger (Cajun burger with bleu cheese) and the Megamelt (pattymelt), both of which were also amazing. Well, maybe amazing isn't the right word, since I wouldn't call any of these the absolute best burgers you'll ever have, or even the best burgers in South Minneapolis. But they are delicious, perfectly prepared, and pretty big. Oh, and the most expensive burger on the menu is still only $8.99, and they all come with a pile of some of the best french fries around. They're thick -- but not too thick -- and taste fresh and delicious. Also, I like my burger cooked medium rare, and The Malt Shop chefs actually cook them medium rare every time. This sounds like a small thing to rave about, but it's odd how rarely this happens (no pun intended).

Maltshop Supreme... I think

Black and Bleu Burger

Megamelt

They also have a few different local beers on tap for about five bucks. At least, I think they're on tap. They serve them in a glass anyway. I wish I had tried more of the menu so I could talk about it, but, honestly, the burgers are so good I don't feel like I'm missing much.Of course, they also have malts, but I've only had a sip of somebody's and thought it was pretty great. Everybody always seems to get one and then raves about them. I'm not a big malt guy, so I wish I had more to say about the drink for which this place was named. I texted Jester and asked her for a couple lines about the malts for this review, and this was here reply:

I don't know what to say. They're yummy and fun to dip the fries in.

So... there you go.

The service ranges from excellent to awful, depending on whose section you're in. I don't want to get too personal, but the entire wait staff is attentive, friendly, and helpful, except for this one guy who's actually a huge jerk. You'll know him if you get him, and if you don't get him, you'll have no complaints. Anyway, that's The Malt Shop. Check it out if you want a great, cheap meal in a fun, cool place... just don't check in on Foursquare! Let Jester be mayor already.

Bubble Up is Back!

This is just a friendly public service message to let everybody know that Bubble Up is back at Jackson's. This is exciting news. Bubble Up, in case you're unaware, is one of the world's best sodas, and for some reason Jackson's stopped stocking it for the past few months. I emailed them about it a while ago, and they said it was a problem with their distributer or something.


Anyway, the long, dark winter is over, and Bubble Up has returned. Go get a bottle today.

Manny's Tortas

Manny's Tortas is one of those Minneapolis institutions that critics always rave about and newspapers award as one of the best sandwiches in the city year after year, but until today, I'd never actually tried it. Well, now it's my turn to rave about it. Manny's Tortas is the bomb.

I went to the Midtown Global Market this morning because I had to renew my driver's license and they have a DMV location in the basement. That's always the start to good story, right?

"I was at the DMV this morning..."

Actually, I do have a good story. I was in line to get my number, and the woman manning the front desk got into some kind of altercation or argument with her current customer. After a couple minutes, she threw up her hands, stormed off, and yelled, "I don't get paid enough to deal with this!" She came back a few minutes later with her supervisor who took care of things from there. It was pretty exciting.

Anyway, I was talking about Manny's Tortas. If you've never been to the Midtown Global Market, it's a really cool little plaza full of various shops and eateries from different regions and cuisines. It's a fun place to get lunch, and I've tried many places and never gotten anything bad yet. Today I decided to try Manny's because, even though I wasn't hungry at all. I had just had breakfast and biked over to the Market early to beat the lines at the DMV. But I can't go to the Market and not get something to eat. Originally I was just going to grab a sandwich to eat later, but after watching the girl behind the counter cook and assemble my order, I suddenly found myself hungry again.

I ordered the chicken torta, but they were out of chicken, so I switched to the steak. I wasn't heartbroken since I choose chicken at random from the huge list of options. To be honest, I don't know what a torta is, but I assumed it was some kind of sandwich since that's what was in all the pictures. I ate one, and I'm still not sure what a torta is. But I'm assuming it's a sandiwich, since that's what the thing I put in my mouth looked like.

It was grilled steak on a roll, and smothered in some kind of sauce, cheese, and various vegetables, that included but maybe not limited to lettuce, tomato, onion, and jalapenos. There may also have been some kind of refried bean sauce on there, or at least the sauce had a hint of bean flavor. Anyway, I didn't really care what was on it because it just looked and smelled great. And then I tried and it it tasted amazing. This was seriously a serious sandwich. It was kind of like a Mexican cheesesteak, if that makes any sense, and I honestly mean that as high praise. I love cheesesteaks. And now I guess I love tortas too.

It was $7.45, which was a bit pricey for lunch, in my opinion, especially since it wasn't exactly a huge sandwich. But the quality and flavor were super high, and it did come with a bag of potato chips. Not sure why it didn't come with tortilla chips, but whatever. Potato chips are good too. The sandwich could've been spicier, but they probably had hot sauce available at the counter, but I dunno since I took it to go.

Anyway... Many's Tortas. Check it out next time you have to get your drivers license renewed. Or anytime, I guess. It was damn good.

Dulono's Pizza

Dulono's Pizza
(612) 827-1726

607 W. Lake St.
Uptown, Minneapolis
55408

The other day my friend Jester told me that Dulono's was her favorite pizza in the Twin Cities. We weren't in a confessional or anything, and it only came up because she mentioned she was going to have left-over pizza for dinner that evening. I asked her were the pizza was from, and then history was made. Or something. Anyway, all of this is my roundabout way of saying a new pizza place was recommended to me by a source I trust, which was very exciting for me because I love pizza and thought I'd already tried it all, or, at least, all that mattered.

Dulano's has no website, so I wasn't able to study a menu before I ordered. This was slightly frustrating because I didn't know all that they had to offer, nor did I know how much anything was going to cost. On the other hand, not having a website does make a pizza parlor feel that much more authentic, as though maybe it's run by an old Italian couple who don't even own a computer.  But, whatever, I was ordering pizza, so it's not like I needed the Rosetta Stone in order to decipher the riddle of Dulono's cuisine. I found the number on some website (maybe Yelp or Urbanspoon, or some other such place. Hey, maybe somebody just found their phone number here!) where they have those pointless reviews that are all written either by somebody who loves it and says it's the best place in the Twin Cities or by somebody who hates it and says their food is pure, unadulterated crap. I just ignored the reviews, found the number, and ordered my standard pie: sausage, mushroom, and onion. That's about as perfect as pizza gets, in my opinion, and usually good enough to be edible even if the pizza is mediocre, but refined enough to be close to a religious experience when knocked out of the park.

Dulono's wasn't quite a religious experience, but they definitely knocked it out of the park. I can't concur with Jester that this is the best pizza in the Twin Cities, but even after one time I'd definitely put it in my top ten and absolutely everybody to give it a try. Dulonos is damn good pizza.

I got delivery, and judging by the time log on my phone, I called at 6:22pm and it arrived at 6:59pm. I know the time it arrived because the delivery guy called me as he pulled up out front of my apartment. I'm not sure why he called since I have a buzzer that's clearly labeled in the front of my apartment building, but maybe it's just a policy they have to avoid any confusion. Either way, it seemed like a courtesy to me, so I give them props for that. So... 37 minutes for delivery isn't fantastic, but since it was Friday night, it's not bad either. I'd say their speed is about average, but I'm willing to say that anything under an hour on a Friday night in Uptown is on the good side of average. The delivery guy himself was very pleasant and nice, but it's not like I stood an chatted with him very long.

The pizza cost... I don't know, to be perfectly honest. They told me over the phone, but I immediately forgot right after I hung up. The delivery guy said it would be "nineteen dollars and some change," so I just gave him the 23 bucks I had in my pocket. He said thank you, wished me a good night, then left. That was the full extent of our relationship, but I wish him well in all his future endeavors.

The pizza looked like typical Minnesota thin crust pizza, with the pie cut in a grid instead of in slices. Having grown up on the East Coast, this was one of the most difficult things to which I had to acclimate myself when I moved to the Midwest about 8 years ago, but I've since learned to appreciate this style. Every slice starts to feel a little different, since some have crust, some are from the middle, and some are those itty bitty corner pieces that everybody fights over because they're so cute. To be overly critical, Dulono's pizza cutter was maybe in a rush that night, since my grid was really off center, so half of the slices were bigger than the other half, and they were all a bit crooked since the lines were slightly askew. But, again, this isn't a huge deal since it also makes the place feel more authentic.

But who cares about their lack of a website, the personality of the deliver driver, and the style they used to slice the pizza? How does it taste already?!

Well... it tasted great. I'm not the world's biggest fan of thin crust pizza, but this was quite good, and still soft enough that it didn't feel or taste like that cardboard-style lots of places have out here. The sausage was tasty and the veggies seemed fresh. The cheese was cheesy and not overly greasy. But the best part was the sauce, which was sweet and tangy and definitely one of the best sauces I've ever had. One of the reviews I read recommended some pizza that comes with extra sauce, and I definitely would consider that next time... if I ever learn the name of it because I still haven't seen a menu. Anyway... great pizza.

If it's not my pick for the best pizza in town, that's only because Luce and Parkway are just so damn great. But this is very close and well worth 19 dollars and some change. Just go give it a try. Jester wouldn't steer you wrong.

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Dogwood Coffee Bar

This is my mug, not theirs

Dogwood Coffee Bar is exceptional coffee in search of a better coffee shop. It's gourmet coffee that is well worth the gourmet price, but I'll probably only get it when I'm taking my coffee to go.

Dogwood Coffee was already a well established and well respected locally owned coffee roaster, but the location in Calhoun Square in Uptown, Minneapolis is their first stand alone coffee bar. They serve single-cup brewed coffee from their own locally roasted beans, which means that every cup you get is made just for you while you watch and hasn't been sitting in a pot for who knows how long. The end result is a delicious, fresh-as-can-be cup of coffee, of course, but it's also a lot of fun to watch the process. Dogwood is sort of like the Benihana of coffee, and it's worth checking out for the show as much as the cup of coffee you get at the end of the performance. Lots of coffee shops brew by the cup using the same tools as Dogwood, of course, but the open layout of this place makes the baristas' efforts almost impossible not to watch, and they are all very friendly and open to questions and comments about anything coffee-related. This is very cool, but do take note that it'll take around five minutes or so to get a single cup of coffee, so this isn't the kind of place to stop into on your way to work.

However, it's also not really the kind of place to stop and chill with a cup of coffee either, which is a shame because drinking a great cup of coffee is almost like a religious ritual, and when it all works out right, it's something to be savored. Dogwood is just... uncomfortable, and I mean that literally. There were two plush chairs, only one of which was taken when I went the other day but they were both pushed so close together that had I sat in the free one my legs would've become entwined with those of the other gentlemen. And, no, I couldn't move the chair, because the layout is long and narrow leaving zero space for anything to be nudged even an inch. There's also a bar by the window with a bunch of stools, and I have sat their before but this time I had my laptop and was going to do some work, so I wanted a chair. I opted to sit at one of the four or so tables with actual chairs around them, but immediately regretted this decision since the chair was hard and incredibly unforgiving on my bottom. Also, the legs of the chair were too narrow and jutted forward to far, so it was almost impossible to find a comfortable place to put my legs.

Making my coffee

When I looked around for a power outlet, I found only one, but it was already in use. One of the sockets was taken up by the laptop of the guy who was already taking up the comfy chair spot, and the other was taken up by a lamp. Now, I'm not one of those self-entitled snobs that thinks every coffee shop needs to have enough outlets to supply every customer's electronic devices (laptop, phone charger, heating pad, vibrator, or whatever you're bringing to a coffee shop), but it does seem like a smart decision to have more than one, single power socket available at any given time. I'm not saying that only one socket is a deal-breaker, but it's something the owners should probably look into if they want to cultivate returning customers, or if they just want to please people who review coffee shops on their blogs.

Oh, and just to be clear, the chair thing kind of is a deal breaker.

This used to be a Starbucks

The bar itself is quite lovely, however, with a lovely design and a very open, airy feel, even though the space is actually quite narrow and confining. Dogwood is located in the front of Calhoun Square that, perhaps ironically, used to be a Starbucks years and years and years ago. If you remember that Starbucks, this place has the same basic shape and dimensions, only they seem to have knocked some walls down so it feels more open, and there are lots of windows looking out on Hennepin Avenue that should make for great people watching during the summer.

They offer pastries from Rustica Bakery, but I didn't get anything so I won't comment on the taste, freshness, or selection. I have been to Rustica, however, and can comment that the stuff I've gotten there is usually overcooked and so flakey more of the pasty gets on my shirt than in my mouth, but lots of people rave about them.

Dogwood Coffee Shop is definitely a great idea for a coffee shop (a hand-crafted coffee bar run and serviced by a local coffee roaster), but there is still much to be desired from their execution. If this place was more comfortable (meaning chairs that don't actually hurt to sit on) and offered a couple more outlets, I'd probably come here a few times a week. On the other hand, it's probably a good thing that this place is kind of awkward because I definitely can't afford a $4 cup of coffee more than a few times a month, but you'll notice that I never once complained about the price because the flavor, taste, and freshness are well worth what their asking, and maybe even worth more.

I say... check it out. It's good coffee, and there are plenty of chairs and couches in and around the rest of Calhoun Square to chill on.

Ice Ride

I saw this odd site outside of Calhoun Square on the corning of Hennepin and Lake. I'm assuming it's a promotional ad for the Nice Ride bikes that are available to rent during the summer here in the Twin Cities. Anyway, I just thought it was pretty cool. And, yes, that's a real bike encased in real ice.

Cheapo

Uptown Location on Fremont between Lake and Lagoon

I probably go to Cheapo way too much. I'm the current Foursquare Mayor of Cheapo, and I've only been checking in on Foursquare for a little over a month. It helps that I live so close that it's only a five minute walk from my apartment, but the real draw is in the name: There's a lot of cheap stuff here, and you've gotta go often to find the best deals. And if that means I have to go four or five times a week, so be it.

Cheapo is a small, independently owned chain of stores that sells music and movies, both new and used. I think there's either three or four locations in and around the Twin Cities, but I'm not really sure since their garish website is kind of hard to read and even harder to navigate. The stores themselves are also garish, but at least they are organized well and make browsing easy. I've only been to the Uptown store, but it's basically just a giant room the size of an airplane hanger with row after row of CDs, DVDs, records, and even VHS tapes as far as they eye can see. Maybe they even have laserdiscs, but I wouldn't know since I've never owned a laserdisc player so I've never looked.

When I go, the first place I head is the section for their recently arrived inventory of used DVDs, which are sorted by the day they arrived. So if it's Monday, I head to the section labelled "Monday" and then work my way backword, usually a day or two until I reach the point in the week when I last came. Since the refresh these sections daily (multiple times a day, actually), I go often because the great stuff will sell out quickly, so you've got to get their at just the right time to find the great deals. That's how I got the Godfather trilogy for ten bucks. That's how I got all six Star Wars films on Blu Ray for about 40 bucks. That's how I got the entire Rush Hour series on DVD for five dollars. Ok... so maybe not everything I buy is great, but when you go you can get what you want. Do you unnderstan' the words that are comin' outta my mouf?!

And just to be clear, I only shop there for used stuff, since their new movies and CDs are way overpriced. As much as I want to support local businesses, when a new movie or CD comes out, I'll probably buy it at Target, since something that they sell for ten or twenty bucks will be twenty or thirty bucks at at Cheapo. But if you don't mind used stuff -- and why wouldn't you? Who are you, the King of England? -- Cheapo has the best selection in town.

There's even a huge section of stuff that is "$4.95 or Less," which mostly contains stuff that no normal person would want to buy, but luckily for me I'm not normal. A little while ago I managed to find the entire Matrix trilogy for about two bucks each. There's always something in this section that's worth picking up for a few bucks, as long as you're willing to pick through dozens of copies of Spider-Man 3, Superman Returns, and various movies you've never heard with pictures of actors like Michael Biehn and Jeff Fahey on the cover.

I'm not at the point where I'm on a first name basis with all the employees, but that's only because I'm antisocial and they're all a bunch of hipsters who seem too cool to chat with that geeky guy who comes in, like, every freakin' day. That's not an insult to them by the way. If I were them I probably wouldn't want to talk to me either. Actually, one of the reasons I feel comfortable returning way too often (and I've been known to go twice in one day) is because they don't try to chat with me. If I'm buying the Rush Hour trilogy on DVD, I don't really want to have a conversation about it. I appreciate the fact that these people allow me to live in my shame without any kind of commentary or judgment.

So that's Cheapo. Check it out if you love music and movies and hate spending a lot of money, just be sure to say hi to me when you stop in.