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May 2008


May 20, 2008

Another Mouth to Feed

Sorry to drop off the face of the earth for a while. I’ve been busy with the great pleasure of eating hospital food while we ushered in lovely little Tobiah Rae Grumdahl: 7 pounds, 5 ounces, 20 inches long, loud as a tornado siren, and cute as a bean. Baby Tobi is actually a couple weeks old as I write this, and her appearance on earth has once again brought to the fore one of the most dire food-related issues in the Twin Cities: Seriously, who do I have to kill to get decent delivery food in this town?

So far on this convalescence we’ve enjoyed take-out from Jasmine Deli (twice), Lucia’s (thrice), French Meadow, Holy Land, Common Roots, Los Ocampos, the barbecue counter at the Shuang Hur on Nicollet, and—need I even type it, or is it just taken for granted—the... Read more »

Posted on Tuesday, May 20, 2008 in Dear Dara | Permalink | Comments (6)


May 15, 2008

Corner Table’s Top Secret Forthcoming Market & Deli

Here’s one for the south Minneapolis street team: Start examining the construction permits posted in the windows of Minneapolis storefronts, find the right one, and you will have unearthed the location of the super-secret forthcoming Corner Table Market and Deli.

The Corner Table is a south Minneapolis gem—a local-food paradise helmed by visionary chef and Winona-native Scott Pampuch. I call him a visionary because Pampuch was one of the first chefs in town to source his meat exclusively from local farms, one of the first chefs to connect his city customers with rural farmers through a farmers’ market across the street. He’s also one of the first to make unfussy, chef-driven food part of a local neighborhood.

And now that same Kingfield neighborhood is... Read more »

Posted on Thursday, May 15, 2008 in Dear Dara | Permalink | Comments (4)


May 12, 2008

Tasty Souvenir of Right Now

Voyageur Press’s big, colorful Minnesota Homegrown Cookbook just landed on my desk. Despite the ho-hum name, I have to say that if you have eaten passionately and locally this last decade, it’s a great document. (I say document because it’s a mix of cookbook, who’s-who of local farm-to-table eminences, and an eating-out guide.) It’s divided into six sections—North Shore, Twin Cities area, etc.—each of which includes profiles of prominent players a handful of their recipes. What I like about it is that it seems like a personal yearbook, documenting much of what I’ve been eating this last decade. If you live around here and are similarly interested in food, it’ll be your yearbook too. Read more »

Posted on Monday, May 12, 2008 in Dear Dara | Permalink | Comments (2)


About This Blog

Dear Dara is the place where Minnesota Monthly readers can interact with our dining critic and senior editor Dara Moskowitz Grumdahl. What makes her so special? She’s been reviewing restaurants and covering food and wine in the Twin Cities since 1995, most notably asCity Pages’ restaurant critic, but also for Gourmet, USA Today, Wine & Spirits, Bon Appetit, and Saveur. She’s been included in five editions of the Best Food Writing anthologies, and been nominated for seven James Beard Awards – though, to tell you the truth, most of the time the medals from her four wins are buried under a pile of chocolate wrappers at the back of her desk. This blog will be where she’ll answer your questions, (though probably not all of them), dish on her latest discoveries, reflect on breaking news, and generally bring the plate to the page.

Send your dining questions to Dara! Email her at dmgrumdahl@minnesotamonthly.com.
 

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