501 Club, Minneapolis, MN
UPDATE July 2010: Just talked with the new owner (as of last Wednesday) of Pizza Joe's Delivery and they've disabled the online ordering and they're switching to fresher ingredients. Apparently there's a name change coming soon as well.
UPDATE November 2010: Pizza Joe's officially changed hands on August 1, 2010 and relaunched as Di Noko's Pizzeria on November 1, 2010. No more online ordering and the pizza is not the same... unfortunately.
UPDATE January 2012: Di Noko's has apparently reinvented itself and again is getting high praises. I haven't had it myself yet, but read this piece about Di Noko's Pizzeria on the Heavy Table. Good news for the area.
I always thought it was funny that when you load up a location on Google Maps and then click "Search Nearby" under the input field it says "e.g., 'pizza'". So one time at a friend's place near Minnehaha I typed it in and Pizza Joe's Delivery showed up. I hadn't heard of them before and it looks like they're new in the last year or so.
When I started the process of ordering online, I was struck by the prices: $9.99 for any pizza. It's $9.99 for a medium, $9.99 for a large, or $9.99 for a large thin crust. It's $9.99 regardless how many toppings you add, although their online ordering limits you to 25 toppings, which is a limit that should probably not be tested. Note there is a $2.00 taxable delivery surcharge so after tip, which you can include before the pizza is delivered, comes to about $16-$17. Pizza Joe's Delivery has the good aspects of big chain delivery pizza without most the negatives. For example, it is incredibly consistent. I've ordered from them three times and there was hardly any variation other than my choices of ingredients. Maybe the same machine that takes my order makes the pizza too? I kid, but I wouldn't care if that was the case. There's a different need when your order pizza for delivery opposed to going out to dine on pizza, right? It has doughy and thick crust edges, the pieces stay in one piece, it's not too greasy, and the ingredients taste fresh. It's great pizza delivery. There's no reason to dial up the big chains. Pizza Joe's Delivery
I'm a cynic when it comes to Red's Savoy Pizza. It's garbage pizza, in the sense where it's an imbalanced mess of stuff strewn together with obnoxiously biting sauce. Their location in Saint Paul is classic with rude staff with a dark, campy interior. It's a staple of Saint Paul and it works for what it is. Unfortunately, they've been aggressively expanding by taking over struggling independent pizzerias.
I visited their location in Hudson, which used to be Barley's Pizza. I remember asking staff there soon after they re-opened if they've changed anything. "No, everything's the same, except the pizza's better now." They were wrong. I avoided visiting the new location in Uptown after they replaced Golooney's East Coast Pizza, which was horrible to begin with. I couldn't imagine it being better. Finally this month I gave it a go. My pepperoni slice took about 5 minutes to get during lunch and was received in tin foil inside a styrofoam box. The cheese was tasteless, the pepperoni were plain and the crust was crunchy on the edge and very soft towards the tip. It was food that satisfied hunger but not much more. I bought a bottle of water at the gas station a block away because I kept having the sensation that I had burned the inside of my mouth and realizing I didn't -- their sauce is crazy weird. I will say the staff is much nicer than Golooney's, so I give them that. The pizza's different, and it's not worse than Golooney's, but it doesn't earn my recommendation. Red's Savoy Uptown
I was surprised to find pizza on the menu on a recent visit to The Bulldog Northeast. I asked the waitstaff when this happened and I was told it was new as of April 4th, 2010. I quickly folded the menu as there's obviously no choice for me but to order the PIzza Margherita with a Grain Belt Northeast.
In short order, my pizza arrived. It'a appropriately listed with the appetizers as it's small: about 9 inches diameter. On first glance I noticed it's quite oily and picking up a piece revealed a bunch of oil on the plate. Biting in, the crust, mozzarella cheese and tomatoes seemed to want to separate from each other. No problem if you're careful or use a fork. My favorite portion was the cheese, which is very fresh, a bit sticky and chewy. The tomatoes tasted fresh and the crust and sauce were decent: a bit on the doughy side but a decent base. It was a bit crispy on the edges. If it was a bit less oily and if the crust had more to it I'd give it really high marks as far as bar appetizers go. Without change I'll have it again either way. I otherwise recommend the Bulldog for their good beer selection and happy hour specials. I've been many times before and you'll see me back there soon. The Bulldog Northeast
Downtime is situated on the University of Minnesota campus in the same building as a student bookstore. It's a bar with a few tables and a stage for live music and feels like a place you'd only find fried bar food. I never thought to check it out until Kyle, who works at the University, told me I needed to stop by to try the pizza. Surprisingly, there's wood-fired oven here and as I found out, the pizza is much better than one might expect.
I sat at the bar and ordered a Guinness thinking it was on tap but she pulled a special can out of the fridge and put it in the machine in front of me, the "Guinness Surger," which uses "ultra-sonic" powers to simulate Guinness from a tap. It still tasted like Guinness to me, for what that's worth, but next time I'll explore some of their taps as they have a few good locals. Ordering is done with a marker and a laminated menu where you fill in boxes. I indicated a small pizza with pepperoni and red sauce. The pizza took a bit of time to arrive -- I think they had to get the oven heated up just for me. This pizza was thin crust but nicely charred on the bottom and crispy. The edges were airy. As it's the midwest, there is a lot of cheese and grease here but it isn't overboard. The pepperoni was quite flavorful too. It's wood-fired Midwestern if there is such a thing and is far better than your regular bar pizza. Students must know how great this is already but if you're not at the U, it's worth a trip to the campus to try this. As far as I'm concerned, it's far better than the insanely popular Mesa Pizza by the Slice a couple blocks away. I'll be back soon. Downtime Bar & Grill
I visited The Loop in Minneapolis' North Loop recently on a weekday afternoon when it was almost empty. I've been here before and it can get rather filled up in the evenings. The menu here does not have many economical options with almost everything, aside from sides, is ten bucks or more. Pizzas are $10.95 and I ordered their Harvester: "fire roasted roma tomato, basil, garlic and fresh mozzarella."
What I received was a thin, chewy in the middle and crispy on the edges pie with chunks of tomato, mozzarella and pesto. Close enough. The tomatoes were fairly ordinary but the cheese was quite good although not very flavorful. Even though the crust was firm and crispy on the edges, it would droop in the middle unless folded, which required cracking the crust, causing the pesto to drip everywhere. It's not exactly bar-pizza friendly. It's quite filling, however. Nothing extraordinary to report here, although on Thursday nights all pizzas are half off and really are worth trying for five and a half bucks. That's when I had my first pizza here and it went quite well with drinking, watching sports on TV and hanging out with friends. The Loop Bar and Restaurant
Every time I've visited Glaciers Café near East Lake Street and Minnehaha I've wondered, "why isn't there more people here? This is great!"
Perhaps it's that "café" is in the name and by a first impression you may not notice there's a larger kitchen behind the counter. There's Wi-Fi and an extensive amount of power outlets available. A selection of four different varieties of Peace Coffee sit ready for dispensing near the cash register next to self-serve filtered water. I stopped by recently on a Monday afternoon and had their flatbread pizza. Anything other than their "Glacier Goodie" pizza with chicken, caramelized red onions, basil and Applewood smoked bacon is a custom order. While I have had a few other combinations before, to compare apples to apples this time I ordered the pepperoni with their cheese blend. The edges were crispy like a thick cracker, the sauce was a bit spicy and had a nice edge to it. The cheeses and pepperoni were flavorful and fresh. Sure, it's a bit greasy but it isn't much to complain about. Overall the pizza at Glaciers Café is light, yet filling. It's very well crafted. While it's not stated on the menu clearly, the pizza is not for one person. My recommendation is to split it with one or two people and save room for the frozen custard. Actually, saving room for the frozen custard is an order. Do not leave without trying it. They usually have chocolate, vanilla and a seasonal flavor on deck -- always ask what it is because it's usually very, very good. If you play the "I've never been here" card, they'll generally give you a small free sample. Glaciers Café is an under-appreciated neighborhood gem. I need to make myself more of a regular. Glaciers Café
I admit it: I like cats and pizza. For Parasole to recently rebirth Figlio as Il Gatto, or "The Cat," I was naturally aroused. If you've been to Figlio before, the bar area has been fully redone and the dining area has been freshened up a bit.
The wood fire oven in the back I saw while walking in was stealing my focus while our waiter was describing what he likes on the menu. It didn't take long to realize that the staff here really knows this menu well and our waiter had a long list of favorites from all sections of it -- except for the pizza which he never even mentioned. I ordered the Margherita pizza anyway. If you're going to start offering pizza with a wood fired oven in the back, you're at least trying, right? Our table received some bread and one of the most beautiful yet concise presentations of olive oil I've seen. A tiny square dish with a little garnish, yet the perfect amount for the bread we received which was strangely cold. Not room temperature, but cold. It was quite tasty nonetheless, especially with the bottle of Angeline Pinot Noir. My date and I kept scanning the menu which was littered with double entendres and sexual innuendo. If there was a way to wrap "kitty" or "pussy" into the description or name of something, it has been completed in menu form at Il Gatto. I also can't imagine that the drink named Smitten Kitten was any sort of coincidence noting the popular sex toy store with the same name a couple blocks down. The “Twig and Berries,” a drink I ordered on another visit had a literal phallic and testicular reference in the drink itself. On the back of the menu you can read about the "Italians' reputation for unrushed lovemaking" which is a paragraph that references Pope Paul III, American taboos about masturbation, "truncated mutual pleasure" and how many Hail Mary prayers could be recited during an Italian lovemaking session all in one swoop. I couldn't tell why I was giggling to myself: was it how frat boy humor could be written so seriously on a restaurant menu or was it the fact that frat boy humor inspired the menu in the first place? Oh, and how do you choose between ordering the "Pistol Tease" and the "Sour Puss" without being sarcastic? My pizza arrived and it was a strange-looking but incredibly appetizing thing: it's what might define Neapolitan-Midwestern pizza if there was such a creation. It has many of the signatures of a Pizza Margherita but the the mozzarella is house made (and quite good but very different than mozzarella di bufala), the sauce had an almost barbecue twinge to it and there was oil all over, even on top of the basil and edges of the crust. The crust was nicely charred on the edges and chewy. The edges were buttery, salty, sweet and greasy at the same time. I couldn't help thinking something was wrong as I was dealing with the dichotomy of staunch Midwestern and Neapolitan influences in the same pizza. What seems like olive oil might be grease -- or maybe it's both. I'm not saying this is bad, however. In fact, before I could even figure my thoughts out on this pizza I had devoured the entire thing. I did say there was a bit of barbecue flavor in the sauce, right? Regardless, this thing was tasty. Upon completion, our waiter told us about the desserts and that the house-made Limoncello shots were worth it just for the presentation. On another visit my date and I ordered these Limoncello shots for four bucks and the presentation is worth seeing once just so you can think how funny it is that someone not only thought it was a good idea but that someone else that works there recommended it. Don't worry, it's still worth it as the Limoncello is quite good. The Bomboloni, which is a fancy Italian name for fancy doughnut holes, is a very tasty dessert. This was echoed by James Norton of the Heavy Table in his observations of Il Gatto which I recommend reading. I should note that they give you more dipping sauce than doughnut, however. I felt like I should have been able to ask for more of the bomboloni just so we could use the rest of the sauce. Overall I like Il Gatto. What makes it uncomfortable and mysterious in its menu and food is fully compensated by its very friendly and knowledgeable staff and the large photos of cute cats on the wall. A lot of "huh, really?" followed up with "well, yum, not bad." Something new, right? I'll be back, meow. Il Gatto
Mayor: R.T. Rybak
Ward 1: Kevin Reich
I disagree with the Star Tribune's endorsement here. This video, for me, sums up why I can't vote for Hanna. Reich is a solid for Northeast.
Ward 2: Cam Gordon
Ward 3: Diane Hofstede
Ward 4: Barb Johnson
Ward 5: Don Samuels
Ward 6: Robert Lilligren
Ward 7: Lisa Goodman
Ward 8: Elizabeth Glidden
Ward 9: Gary Schiff
Gary Schiff is actually my favorite CM in the city. In fact, for any issue I go to a CM with I talk with his office instead of my actual CM in Ward 12. Hey, being three blocks away from Ward 9 is close enough, right? He unfortunately has one of the tougher races in the city against activist Dave Bicking.
Ward 10: Meg Tuthill
Ward 11: John Quincy
Ward 12:
Ward 12 is where I live and I'm in a tight situation. There's four candidates running. Rick Nyhlen is a Ron Paul Republican and Brent Perry is a young Socialist with almost no grasp for city issues. The two Democrats running are Charley Underwood, who has not been traditionally campaigning after he lost the DFL endorsement to incumbent Sandy Colvin Roy. Neither have active websites as far as I'm aware. I haven't agreed with Sandy Colvin Roy on a number of issues and my experience has been that I've been only able to get through to her when she's running for re-election. Charley Underwood and I talk now and then and while we had very opposite positions regarding the recent U.S. Senate race and a few other political subjects, out of the four he's the guy I feel like I can level with and really debate the issues with. That doesn't necessarily translate to effectiveness on the City Council, however. In a recent email, Underwood stated "if I get elected, I am going to scream every time I hear about another subsidy for fat-cats at public expense. If I get elected, I am going to network like crazy to support the neighborhood sustainability programs that can deliver, the sorts of things I have been studying quite intensely for the past year." So I'm in Ward 12 with a Libertarian-lite Republican, a young Socialist, a deep-left progressive ideologue and a politically-savvy center-left incumbent. All of whom I respect, none of whom I'm terribly excited about sending to city hall.
Ward 13:Betsy Hodges
Minnesota Independent has had a fantastic overview of the City Council races starting here.
Park Board At-Large: John Erwin Tom Nordyke
John Erwin is far and away my number one choice for Park Board. He's endorsed by almost everyone under the sky, he's a horticulture professor at the University of Minnesota and also has solid experience with being on a Park Board -- because he was one. I also support Tom Nordyke. Mary Merrill Anderson and Annie Young are vying for the third seat, in my opinion. Mary's the DFL-endorsed incumbent and Annie Young is also an incumbent endorsed by the Green Party.
Park District 1: Liz Wielinski
Park District 2: Michael Guest
Park District 3: Scott Vreeland
Park District 4: Anita Tabb
Park District 5: Jason Stone
This is actually an interesting race, not for reasons I terribly like. Carol Kummer is the incumbent and did not seek re-election. Kummer and the majority if not all of her strong supporters backed Marty Demgen. Demgen dropped out of the race not long after the Minneapolis DFL Convention where the endorsement procedure for this seat got so out of hand it had to be adjourned with no endorsement. After Demgen dropped out, Carol Kummer decided at the last minute to run for re-election again and many of those Demgen supporters followed. Jason Stone, in my strong opinion, should have won the DFL endorsement in the first place. He's one of the most sincere and solid people in city politics and should have been in office when he ran for this seat four years ago. He's in this for the right reasons -- fighting for our park system.
Park District 6: Brad Bourn
Board of Estimate and Taxation: David Wheeler
Charter Amendment #168 : Vote Yes
The Board of Estimate and Taxation (BET) is an obscure 130-year-old, six-person board with a member of the park board, the Mayor, two city council members and two elected officials (who are paid only $35 a meeting) that decides our tax levies, issue bonds and receive audit reports. I strongly favor having our elected City Council be held responsible and accountable for these things, like almost every other major city in the country. This is what this charter amendment does and I'm supporting it. A six-person board with two bottom-of-the-ballot candidates should not be deciding our maximum tax levies. The "Save the BET" group, which is essentially run by the same people as BET reelection candidate Carol Becker's campaign, have been aggressively pushing messaging that implies voting "no" would not only remove the BET but effectively ruin the independent Park Board, be a "consolidation of power" or actually cause less accountability. With all the "Save the BET" and Carol Becker's claims, in my strong opinion, the opposite is true. Let's hold our City Council accountable like every other modern city. The current president of the BET, Jill Schwimmer, who was formally Becker's running mate, wrote a solid editorial encouraging people to vote "yes." It's a must-read. From my understanding, most of the current BET supports its removal too. BET frontrunner Carol Becker's running mate and neighbor DeWayne Townsend entered the race "because [Becker] asked me to run" after it was feared people would run for the seat seeking to abolish its existence. I am not voting for either of them. Even though David Wheeler is voting "no" to the charter amendment, I see him by far the strongest candidate for the Board of Estimate and Taxation if it were to continue to exist. I generally agree with the Star Tribune editorial board's thoughts on this race.
Unfortunately, I don't get to vote on every single race in the city. :-) Also check out my neighbor and friend Brian Moen's picks; almost all I agree with. Have fun at the polls on Tuesday! Do you have different choices? Different thoughts on the race? Please share your thoughts in the comments.
Sauce Spirits and Soundbar opened this summer on Lake and Lyndale and per the name and what I had heard about it I assumed it was a place to get drinks and listen to live music. I had visited only briefly not long after it was opened and saw there was actually a dining area in addition to the stage. I stopped by again, essentially by accident when trying to try out the new Lyndale Tap House which had its opening party the weekend previous but stayed closed the day I arrived to open the next day. Bummed, I looked at the menu posted at the door of Sauce a few doors down and noticed pizza.
Not only pizza, there's more of a full menu here and it felt more upscale than I anticipated. I ordered a pepperoni pie and a pint of Fat Tire. When my pizza arrived, I was a bit surprised that it looked like midwestern bar pizza. In fact, it reminded me of Dulono's Pizza a couple doors down. Tasting this pizza, however, is anything but Midwest-style. Sure, it's tavern-cut into squares but the amount of cheese wasn't over the top -- it was quite balanced with the sauce. The sauce, for a place named Sauce, was actually the most pronounced ingredient: "zesty," the bartender described it as and I can't find a better adjective. It's spicy and hot but doesn't overpower. I asked what was in it and was told it was a secret. My guess is that red pepper plays a large role here. The crust was cracker-like and there wasn't really any grease to speak of -- a rare find amongst pizza that looks like this. In other words, the pizza at Sauce Spirits and Soundbar has all the positive qualities of Midwest-style pizza without any of the negatives. Weird, and impressive. With numerous options for pizza within just a couple blocks, Sauce is one of my new favorites. There's also pizza by the slice on weekend nights until late, a free jukebox and a large vending machine with various CDs from local artists. Cute. Happy hour has $3 taps and wine from 4pm until 7pm. Yes, $3 wine. If I'm not here soon for a show, I'll be back for happy hour. Sauce Spirits and Soundbar