Longfellow Grill

Longfellow Grill is one of the modern diner siblings of the Blue Plate Restaurant group (Edina and Highland Grills and Three Squares in Maple Grove). Its proprietors, David Burley and Stephanie and Luke Shimp, are great people and have brought creative, moderately priced food to parts of town that were thin on good dining. But the Grills' menus were static and similar and began to seem tired. Not a few months ago, the owners decided to hire a chef to freshen and provide differentiation between the restaurants.

The changes have been subtle, and the restaurants remain built around creative comfort food. Longfellow Grill, hard by the Mississippi (but with no view), serves eastern stretches of South Minny plus Merriam Park and Mac Groveland in St. Paul. All the restaurants are very kid-friendly with toys and a broad kids menu offering everything from steak to pancakes. The ambience is modern and colorful, though my favorite of the eateries was the original iteration of Edina Grill, now a memory. Service is informal but smart and wisecracking, in the great diner tradition. If you are put off by tattoos, piercings, and massive ear regalia, caveat emptor.

Despite the menu revisions and new recipes, my reservations about the Blue Plate restaurants all revolve around the food. We liked everything we tasted but didn’t love anything. I can’t quite put my finger on it, but there is something about the recipes that lack the kind of sensory punch that stops you in your tracks. It’s the ultimate old standby but not one you crave. (Confession: We arrived after realizing Town Talk Diner was closed Sunday nights.)

From the starters, the pulled pork quesadilla (not barbecue) was tasty, if a little thin on filling, its accompanying black bean salsa had a gray pallor. I can’t endorse the pierogies that dot the menu as a starter and side, filled with a gummy potato cheese puree. Gorgonzola fritters were nice and crispy but needed more of the assertive cheese (they tasted like corn fritters), and the sweetened chimmichurri on the side would get you thrown in jail in Argentina. We had no complaints about a bright poached pear salad with candied walnuts, apple, gorgonzola, and greens in a cider vinaigrette.

Spaghetti and meatballs was far past al dente and the very cheesy tomato sauce evoked Spaghetti O’s, in a good way, as did the dry-ish meatball. Attractive ciabatta garlic bread needed more garlic. (Garlic bread is a lost art.) Slow-roasted pork shoulder was competent with an unexciting barbecuey sauce, bland garlic mash, and a beautiful creamed corn, one of the best things I ate all night here.

We were too full for dessert, though what was on offer could be improved by rediscovering the joys of simplicity.

So there you have it, the ultimate non-endorsement endorsement. Longfellow Grill is a competent, welcoming neighborhood restaurant with something for everyone. But despite the culinary tinkering, the Blue Plate restaurants do not yet appear to have found the spark that elevates their food from good to great.

2990 West River Pkwy., Mpls., 612-721-2711