Bloody Mary Review : The Loon Cafe

Place: The Loon Café

Location: 500 1st Avenue North, Mpls, MN 55403

Day: Thursday March 15, 2012

Time: 1:25 p.m.

Temperature: 57 degrees

Indoor/Outdoor: Indoor

The Loon Café is located in an area I’ve never been very fond of going to on an evening out, so I admit that I was apprehensive of going there mid-day on a Thursday as well. My friend and I made our way there by foot, so the displeasure of parking was eliminated. Street parking and ramp parking are your most likely options here, unless you walk or ride the light rail, both of which are far better options than trying to find a spot.

Mid-day ended up being a good time to hit this location. The place was pretty much vacant with the exception of some lunch-hour stragglers and a few others. We got seated right quick. The place was clean and the staff very polite and friendly. Bring on the Bloody Mary.

The flavor of the Bloody was spicy like crazy, not to say that it didn’t have flavor to coincide with the spice though. A beer chaser was assumed by the wait staff and delivered along with the drink, ( always a plus in my point-of-view ) though it was average in it’s flavor and didn’t seem to do much to accentuate the bloody mary. The extras were minimal, which is fine as long as the flavor of the bloody is present. Of the extras were a lime wedge, an olive and a pickle skewer. On a side note, I also ordered a cup of chili for a luncheon meal and discovered, while being unexpectedly small portioned based on it's somewhat higher price, it was pretty dang amazing in flavor. Highest recommendations for the chili.

End results:

Location : C

Parking: D ( Street Metered and Ramp Parking )

Bar/Restaurant Appearance: A

Staff: A+

Bloody Mary Appearance: A-

Bloody Mary Extras: C

Bloody Mary Itself: A

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As an added bonus, my friend ordered a Summit Maibock beer.

His review was that it was average. Good and refreshing with a lighter flavor than expected.

Bloody Mary Review : Darby's Pub & Grill

Place: Darby's Pub & Grill

Location: 315 N. 5th Ave. Mpls., MN 55401

Day: Thursday, February 23

Time: 5:15 p.m.

Temperature: Around 34 degrees

Indoor/Outdoor: Indoor

Yet another try at Darby's Bloody Mary. Was the first one a fluke? Would this be just as good? You Betcha! The staff have gotten, if possible, even more personable. The pickle just as a-frickin-mazing! And the drink, another wonderful $3.00 surprise. The space looks empty in the first image below, but trust me, it took a while for me to get that shot as the rest of the place had plenty of patrons.

The extras haven't grown any since my last visit, and there wasn't any addition or inclusion of a beer chaser, but the $3 basket of fresh, hot french fries has grown in size to almost double my first trip. That had me smiling pretty wide. Makes it easy and nice to be able to share a basket with friends and put a smile on everyone's face.

End results: ( same as previously tested )

Location : A

Parking: B ( Street Metered Parking - but easy to find a space)

Bar/Restaurant Appearance: A

Staff: A+

Bloody Mary Appearance: A-

Bloody Mary Extras: B

Bloody Mary Itself: A

Price: A ( $3.00 + tax )

Sunday Morning Break: Buddy's Grape

Place: The LowBrow

Location: 4244 Nicollet Ave. Mpls., 55409

Day: Sunday, February 19th

Time: 9:10 a.m.

Temperature: Around 37 degrees

Indoor/Outdoor: Indoor

Ok, so it's not a Bloody Mary, but it sure was dang good. Blend it with Bacon infused Pancakes, Ream Minnesota Maple syrup and a big plate of hash browns, Great customer service, Great ambiance. All in all, a Great experience. Nice break with an old friend for a Sunday. Price for the meal and a soda $13.07.

Bloody Mary Review : Darby's Pub & Grill

Place: Darby's Pub & Grill

Location: 315 N. 5th Ave. Mpls., MN 55401

Day: Monday, January 30

Time: 5:10 p.m.

Temperature: Around 39 degrees

Indoor/Outdoor: Indoor

In a rather unusual location comes a rather fantastic find.

Not expecting too much I ventured with friends from work to this out of the way 'pub & grill' and discovered something ... well, unexpected. Fans of Darby's wont be disappointed by this review. In fact, it's probably something they already are aware of and have been trying to get others to try as well.

Now, by unusual location, I definitely am implying that it's off the beaten path. First you see the sign located just off 5th Avenue. Brightly lit, and pretty easy to identify. Two markers on each side of the alley point the way down towards the bars entrance.

The alley has strings of lights overhead, but with very little activity in the alley I wasn't sure if I was even going in the right direction. The signs pointed this way though, so I grabbed my sense of adventure and headed down the deserted alleyway.

At the end of the alley was this sign pointing the way onto a deck.

The train track side deck was hugely expansive, yet still as empty as the alleyway was, so the feeling of uneasiness was still on high alert. I can imagine that in the Spring and Summer this deck is probably full of people, but this is January, in Minnesota. The only outdoor people you might run into out here would have lit cigarettes in their hands. No smokers here today. Go figure. The view of the city from this deck, on the other hand, was amazing! I can see why they built the deck where the did, and the size they did.

And now for the blogs purpose, the Bloody Mary.

First the price. THREE DOLLARS! Seriously, just $3! Shouldn't expect too much from a $3 drink anywhere. The extras were minimal, with just a pickle skewer, an olive and a wedge of lime. My first bite of the pickle was an absolute joy. No idea where they get their pickles, or if I just hit them on a good day, but to tell you it had a flavor worth eating would be a major understatement. I've never cared much for olives, so let's just say that it was ... an olive. Perfect olive taste. Just an olive.

Then the first swig. Heavier on the spicy side, but not overwhelming. Good tomato flavor, nice mix, not watery, but not too thick. An excellent flavor of celery salt around the rim just added to the drinks enjoyable factor. The staff were ALL friendly and courteous. The french fries ( the only food item I ordered : also $3 oddly enough ) were crisp and delicious. Overall, I'd say that this is a place worth bringing friends and returning to. Good food, good drinks, friendly staff and an unexpected price. You just need to get over a fear of walking down a deserted alley. Call it an internal strength building exercise.

End results:

Location : A

Parking: B ( Street Metered Parking - but easy to find a space)

Bar/Restaurant Appearance: A

Staff: A+

Bloody Mary Appearance: A-

Bloody Mary Extras: B

Bloody Mary Itself: A

Price: A ( $3.00 + tax )

Bloody Mary Review: Joe's Garage

Place: Joe's Garage

Location: 1610 Harmon Place, Minneapolis, MN 55403

Day: Tuesday, January 24, 2012

Time: 5:30 p.m.

Temperature: Around 22 degrees

Indoor/Outdoor: Indoor

Well, this blog entry probably isn't going to win me a lot of friends, but blogs are about opinions, and this one is mine. Joe's Garage has been a neatly tucked away bar/restaurant that I've enjoyed many times over the years. The food is an excellent fare with a good price. In warmer weather you can choose to sit out on the sidewalk patio, or venture up to their open air, rooftop patio area. The location is nicely tucked off the busy Hennepin Avenue, and right along Loring park, making for a quiet get-away when gathering with friends. Parking car be a pain in the butt on evenings, but daytime parking has never been a problem for myself. There's a nice separation of the bar and the restaurant, giving both types of patrons a pleasant experience. The staff is well trained in what they do and are just the right amount of friendly to make you want to return again and again.

Now for the bad news. The Bloody Mary. The price was a moderate $7.20, which is about average for a downtown bar. The bartender was polite and even went so far as to inquire if I would like a beer chaser. I accepted the offer. The extra's that garnished the drink were both plentiful as well as flavorful. The complete offering of which included a pickle, and onion, a banana pepper an olive and a wedge of lime. The salt lining the glass rim had an odd flavor to it, and not in a 'good' type of odd. The drink also had an odd flavor to it. I wouldn't describe it as having a good tomato flavor. It was high on the spicy end of the spectrum, and what it lacked in flavor it made up for in burn. It wasn't watery, but it wasn't thick either. In fact, it had a perfect consistency for a Bloody May, just not a perfect taste. It wasn't overwhelming in alcohol flavor, which is what makes it difficult for me to describe.

The beer had a good taste to it, but if it were a bottled beer and I walked in knowing it's name, I wouldn't order it over an MGD. All in all, based on this experience, I doubt I will ever be ordering a Bloody Mary here again. That's ok though because they do a fine job mixing my other drinks of choice and there food more than makes up for a single bad experience with a drink.

End results:

Location : A

Parking: B ( Street Metered Parking) - Free on Sunday's

Bar/Restaurant Appearance: B

Staff: A

Bloody Mary Appearance: B

Bloody Mary Extras: A

Bloody Mary Itself: D

Price: C ( $7.20 )

Bloody Mary Review: The Happy Gnome

Place: The Happy Gnome

Location: 498 Selby Ave., St Paul, MN 55102

Day: Tuesday, December 20

Time: 2:30 p.m.

Temperature: Around 34 degrees

Indoor/Outdoor: Indoor

The Happy Gnome is a nice bar/restaurant with lots of warmth and friendly atmosphere. Woodwork lines the room and a well placed fireplace accents the space perfectly. Plenty of room for moving around with friends, and lots of parking space. ( Which always draws to mind the question "If it's illegal to drink and drive, why do bars have parking lots?" ) With over 75 beers to choose from, the humor isn't lost on me that I ordered a Bloody Mary and it arrived without a beer chaser. Guess they don't want to run out. LOL! I'm sure I could have gotten one if requested, but as always I chose to see what the bar does instead. The bartender had a good sense of humor, which tends to go a long ways in my decision to return to an establishment.

There wasn't anything to frilly about The Happy Gnome, but it did have pure comfort. A chalkboard sign on the wall offered you a choice of specials, and the dining area was kept well separated from the bar area allowing diners to relax and eat in peace while drinkers ... well, drinkers drink.

As for the Bloody Mary, the review isn't as good. It wasn't horrible by any means, but it was a bit over spiced and stronger on the alcohol side than hoped for. This gave it a bit more of a water taste, while knocking out the flavor and burning the gullet. The "extras" were on the lower end of the scale. A lime wedge, a pickle, and an olive, were all that adorned the rim of this cocktail. On the bright side, it did come with a salt ring, but just your average celery salt and nothing major to write home about. The price also was a bit of a down turn. At about $7.68 for the cocktail, I'd like to have gotten more out of it than just a burning tongue.

Would I visit The Happy Gnome again? You bet I would. One drink does NOT a bar make. The atmosphere and the staff, the parking and the location, each of these add up to an excellent experience. I would very much like to go back and give the food a test run. Would I visit the Happy Gnome again just to get a Bloody Mary. Sadly, no. Would I visit it to get a Bloody Mary that gives a buzz and a kick? Maybe, but plenty of bars can offer that. I like my Bloody's to have flavor and a meal attached at the top. A matter of taste.

End results:

Location : A

Parking: A ( Street & Lot Parking)

Bar/Restaurant Appearance: A

Staff: A+

Bloody Mary Appearance: B

Bloody Mary Extras: C

Bloody Mary Itself: C

Price: C ( $7.68 )

Bloody Mary Review: W.A. Frost & Company

Place: W.A. Frost And Company

Location: 374 Selby Avenue, St Paul, MN 55102

Day: Tuesday, December 20

Time: 11:30 a.m.

Temperature: Around 34 degrees

Indoor/Outdoor: Indoor

This place is one of those gems that you would swear you only find in cities such as Chicago or New York. Best description would be to call this place "Total Class." While the menu was not set to break the budget ( in fact, it was set to prices of an average diner ) the food was outstanding! The atmosphere, outstanding! The service, outstanding!

The Bloody Mary ...

The extras were well chosen and added an interesting twist with the addition of pickled beans. A VERY well chosen addition indeed. The flavor mixed well and added a nice compliment to the drink. The Bloody Mary was a bit on the spicy side, and did offer a good kick. Those faint of heart to spices may opt for a different drink. The flavor of the mix was well proportioned to the amount of alcohol and had good tomato flavor without being watery. A beer chaser was actually offered by the waitress as an option as opposed to just being assumed. And an excellent choice of beer chasers it was. Not sure what the brand, but it definitely had flavor to spare. My only negative critique of this cocktail would be the lack of a salt ring on the glass—something noticed by one of my fellow diners ( who had chosen the same drink ) as well.

If it appears by the photo below that there was quite the substance to this drink with plenty of thickness via additives, you would be correctly envisioning it. Nothing to choke on, but plentiful enough for me to describe this drink as having "pulp."

End results:

Location : A

Parking: B ( Street & Lot parking)

Bar Appearance: A

Staff: A+

Bloody Mary Appearance: B

Bloody Mary Extras: B

Bloody Mary Itself: A

Price: Unknown ( Purchased for me )