We stopped by The Muddy Pig in St. Paul one snowy afternoon when Rob's brother, Sam, was visiting us a few weeks ago. It's a little hole-in-the-wall with a nice, simple, but high-quality menu and a great beer list, so it's exactly the kind of place that goes on the list when one of our brothers visits.

I got the Buffalo Chicken Salad and was really pleasantly surprised when they served me a big salad (with no croutons!) with a whole, juicy chicken breast on it. The seasoning was more of a dry-rub than a Buffalo sauce, which I wish I had known so I could have gotten balsamic vinaigrette instead of blue cheese, but whatever--it was delicious. Rob and Sam enjoyed sandwiches and a few beers and we had a great time.

As you can probably tell already, I can't recommend this place enough. We take everyone who visits us here at least once, and then I daydream about it until we go back again. If you're ever in the area, make sure you stop by for breakfast or brunch one day; but don't you dare go without me!

The Happy Gnome has recently become our favorite spot to have lunch. When Rob's brother Dan came to visit us a few weeks ago, Rob put together a list of places that had awesome beer selections. We stopped by The Happy Gnome for lunch and loved it so much that we were back again the next day for dinner. They have a huge selection of beers and quite a few hard ciders, as well, but it's the burgers that keep us coming back. Any burger that comes topped with pulled pork is fine by me. The adorable neighborhood and the fact that their mixed greens salad is so good that sometimes I actually want it instead of fries helps, too.

I always get a Bloody Mary and the Angus Cheeseburger without a bun or cheese, and Rob gets a beer and the Game Burger, which is bison and elk and comes with lingonberry mayo. Everything is good.


Service 4/5
Atmosphere 5/5
Prices & Specials 3/5
Paleo-Friendly 5/5

I'm back with another Twin Cities restaurant today, but instead of Happy Hour, we're going to go to brunch, which, in my opinion, is pretty much Happy Hour with breakfast.
Rob and I walked around a farmers market a bit one Saturday morning and soon decided that we were starving. We headed to Uptown, which is quickly becoming one of my favorite Minneapolis spots to eat. Bar Abilene is big, with lots of natural light, $5 bottomless mimosas, and a Bloody Mary bar.

Rob and I have been celebrating weekends together and exploring new restaurants in the Twin Cities by doing a little research and hitting up happy hour specials. I love happy hour.
Last Friday, we ventured to Stella's Fish Cafe & Prestige Oyster Bar, a fun place in Minneapolis with fabulous rooftop seating. There is a rooftop happy hour, but it's not available on Fridays. So we took advantage of the indoor happy hour that was going on and sat inside by a window, feasting on oysters, ribs, a spicy tuna roll, peel-and-eat shrimp, and a couple drinks each. They're serious about that two-for-one drink special, and Rob laughed at my surprise when, after ordering a glass of wine, the server brought me two, right then and there.



I hope you enjoy me sharing our restaurant adventures in Minneapolis and St. Paul with you! I'm hoping it will be a fun way to document all of our favorite places, while simultaneously encouraging our friends from home to come visit immediately.