The
Marquette Hotel has remade Basil’s, its atrium aerie, with a real plan for
turning this ordinary and glum eatery into a relevant and resonant dining spot.
The
candle lighting in the evening may be too dark for some, but with wood floors
and a creamy tin ceiling, Grand Café is one of the more romantic spots around.
The lounge at La Belle Vie
offers the same great food, plus a thrilling bar menu that
doesn’t make you feel
like you’re missing anything by snacking instead
of
dining.
The
most complete aspect of Cue’s offerings might be the desserts of
Carrie Summer,
a veteran of New York’s Morimoto and Jo Jo. This
national talent is executing at
a ridiculously high level right out of
the gate, and her dessert menu deserves a
standing ovation.
Spoonriver is the second restaurant currently
owned by local chef and
cookbook author Brenda Langton, whose
vegetarian-oriented Cafe Brenda
has been a Warehouse District landmark for more
than twenty years.
In an industry where Asian chain restaurants are
synonymous with
inauthentic dumbed-down fare, Big Bowl offers a safe entry point
into
the fabulous world of Asian cuisine.
Pazzaluna, for years one of the most popular restaurants in St. Paul, may finally be able to join the ranks of the critically acclaimed ones as well, thanks to the recent arrival of Italian master chef Rino Baglio.
The 600-seat (1,000 with banquet room) Chinese restaurant was built to satisfy the ever-expanding Chinese and Asian communities’ demand for wedding and holiday banquet services—and the crowd reflects it.
The informal service and “aw shucks” hospitality seem to say “you betcha!” But the prices and sophisticated fare achingly put Margaux into the category of ambitious Euro café.
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