Yes, I get a kick out of Billy Joel’s music, even though it was mostly beyond the boundaries (there were boundaries?) of what we played on the Morning Show during my MPR days.
I even like Joel’s lyrics, though some passionately contend that his writing and everything else about him is terrible.
This might be true. My Billy Joel opinion is more of a feeling. He meets the man-with-two-first-names rule, which is a basic requirement for pop stars (Michael Jackson, Elton John, Tony Bennett, Dean Martin, etc.).
I’m not interested in writing a defense of his sound and his style, but Joel’s songs are catchy and he’s just about my age but he still looks good, which is not that easy. Plus, I admire anybody who can play the piano and sing at the same time.
But finding the courage to say I like Billy Joel in public may be as close as I’ll ever get to knowing how it feels to be a state legislator from a conservative part of rural Minnesota who is voting for same-sex marriage today. You know you’ll get slammed for it, but what the hell? Sometimes you just have to admit that fair is fair.
Plus, he’s been around so long. Here’s one of my favorite Billy Joel songs, recorded decades apart so you can have him with a full head of hair, or without.
Been to any good restaurants lately?
Trail Baboon 
I see no shame in loving BJ. I have long been a fan. I love his piano and the stories he weaves with his songs.
PJ introduced me to a very good restaurant in South Minneapolis – Himalayan Restaurant (a most practical name), near Franklin and Riverside. Price, portion size and taste were all excellent. She has tried many things there and hasn’t been disappointed and I will be back.
For something completely different, I really liked the Kenwood, in, of all places, the Kenwood neighborhood (NW of Lake of the Isles). A lovely place with delicious food.
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Is this the new one right next to Birchbark Books?
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Good morning. I’m with you, Dale. I like Billy Joel, although his music is not my favorite kind. As for restaurants, eating out in the Twin Cities is our favorite thing. Lucia’s is our top favorite. We tried the Ice House for the first time recently and the food there there was excellent. We had the added pleasure of hearing Phil Aaron and Gordy Johnson entertain us with some very good Jazz music while eating our dinner. I had a small plate with an excellent salad. The small plate was a tasty soufflé and my wife had a very good dish featuring mushrooms. I heard their chicken dish is also very good and it looks like every thing on the menu is good.
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I have several “favorite” restaurants, depending on what type of food I’m in the mood for. I tend to prefer smaller ethnic restaurants, and we’re blessed with some real gems here in the Twin Cities.
Near the very top of my list is the Barbary Fig on Grand Ave. in St. Paul, an unassuming little gem that serves Mediterranean food. The owner, Hadj-Moussa, is from Algiers and a lot of the food he cooks is from there; his tagines. Essentially Hadj does all the cooking, so the menu is short, but there are always daily specials that are worth checking out. I’m looking forward this fall when I have talked Hadj into letting me spend some time with him in the kitchen to learn some of his secrets.
I’m hoping that today’s blog will reveal some hidden gems that I have not yet discovered.
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Rise and Shine Baboons!
I like BJ just fine–I thought Barry Manilow was who everyone hated.
Meanwhile, restaurants–so many restaurants, so little time–here are a few:
Cafe Latte St. Paul Everything is good, desserts are out of this world.
Pat’s Tap Minneapolis–great brunch and excellent wallpaper (Vintage–French poodles in outfits).
Hominy Grille-Charleston SC–fabulous Shrimp and Grits, Chocolate pudding that is worth the calories
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Ectopic post below PJ’s for some reason. Barbary Fig is wonderful!
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Barbary Fig is really yummy. Haven’t been there in far too long.
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We ate in several wonderful restaurants when we were in London. The most memorable was Launceston Place, a restaurant in Kensington said to be one of Princess Diana’s favorites. It had just received its first Michelin Star, and the food was absolutely wonderful. It has a website http://www.launcestonplace-restaurant.co.uk/
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I have the utmost respect for great tunesmiths, which is what BJ is. So many melodies that stick in your head. He’s got decent piano chops, too. And you haven’t lived until you’ve sat at a real piano bar singing “Piano Man” with 5-10 other mildly buzzed baby boomers on a Friday or Saturday night.
One of my fave restaurants is Sontes` in Rochester. They strive to be locally-sourced, organic where possible, and support the food/wine/art community in SE Minnesota. Basically a tapas restaurant, they do some full plates as well, and offer tasting menus and “comfort food” prix fixe menus regularly. The chefs they’ve had over the years have been immensely creative, and the service is consistently as good as any service I’ve gotten in any restaurant. The servers are true pros in the European tradition and know the food and the wine inside and out.
Not cheap, but you will leave knowing you’ve had a truly fine dining experience set in a relaxed, convivial atmosphere. (Geeze, do I sound I I”m writing ad copy??) 🙂 Worth the drive.
Chris in Owatonna
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Thanks to my general poverty I do not “do” restaurants any more, but our love for Afghani food was so strong it was one of the reasons my erstwife and I bought this home. At the time, the only Afghani restaurant in America was in the neighborhood (Caravan Serai). The owner burned out and left the business a decade ago, but it remains the restaurant I enjoyed most in my life. My daughter gets teary-eyed at the memory of Caravan Serai takeout.
My current favorite is one PJ might like: Everest on Grand. It serves Tibetan, Indian and Nepali food. I think I got food poisoning there once, but I’d go back in a heartbeat.
As for Billy Joel, my feelings have been mixed. Some of his stuff is okay but I remember being a little resentful. He was one of the richest musicians on the planet and he slept with Christie Brinkley. I remember thinking that if he sang a “poor me” song I would throw something at the radio.
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I have fond memories of Caravan Serai as well. It was a fun place to eat, sitting on huge cushions on the floor in a room where a black parachute was draped from the ceiling to give you the feeling of being in a Beduin tent. The food was good too. When they first opened they didn’t have a beer and wine license, but if you discretely handed them a bottle of wine in a brown paper bag, they would take in into the kitchen and decant into a teapot and bring it to your table to be enjoyed in small porcelain cups. Nowadays when I get a hankering for Afghani food I go to the Khyber Pass, more sophisticated restaurant with excellent food.
You’re right, Steve, I like Everest on Grand, and eat there a couple of time a year.
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I remember my first visit to Caravan Serai vividly. I was newly separated from wasband (so this must have been in 1974) and had decided I didn’t need to eat at home by myself every night, so I screwed up my courage and headed to Caravan Serai for a nice dinner I hadn’t cooked myself. The young Afghani man who greeted me seemed completely rattled by the prospect of an unaccompanied female diner. He rushed to the kitchen where I overheard him saying in a panicky voice to the owner, “what should I do with her?” He calmy responded, “show her to a table.” They made sure I was seated as far away from other diners as possible. Clearly serving an unaccompanied woman was not something that occurred at Caravan Serai often in those days.
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I mourn the loss of Caravan Serai. Sob.
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Like Steve, my economy keeps us from eating out very often. We do splurge once a year on “Family Day” in July for Melting Pot in downtown Minneapolis. Hot melty cheese is about the best thing there is.
I was also a Caravan Serai fan — I didn’t know the particulars of the closing, but since it followed on the heels of 9/11, I have often wondered if the prevailing anti-anything-not-“American” had done them in. I’m actually glad to hear it was owner burnout!
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Lest anyone think we eat out a lot, we don’t, maybe once every six weeks on average. And I’m a great believer in Groupons that really stretch your dining dollars. I’ll usually buy Groupons to restaurants I haven’t tried before, so if the experience is less than satisfactory, at least we haven’t spent a whole lot of dough. I have discovered or rediscovered several ethnic restaurants this way.
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I knew the owner well. She was a high-stress gal in the best of times, and then she had a kid who was a nightmare to handle. She picked up a contract to cook for the schools. When she saw how much less work that was than running a restaurant, she bailed. Our family was devastated by the loss, but I don’t blame her. That’s a tough business to be in.
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I can’t recall TLGMS playing Billy Joel. Memory tells me that Tom Keith was a fan of Anne Murray, and Dale was not, I assume Dale found Anne Murray too mainstream and conventionally popular, but I don’t recall that ever being made explicit.
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I will admit to seeing Billy Joel in concert – his Nylon Curtain tour. I had seats that were sort of off to the side of the stage, which meant I mostly had a view of the back of Mr. Joel’s head, but also meant I had a great view of his hands dancing on the keys. Good concert. “Goodnight Saigon” was a memorable moment that evening.
As for restaurants – I am lucky enough to live in a corner of SW Minneapolis where lots of good, small restaurants have been popping up. On the corner of 46th and Grand there is Patisserie 46 (mouthwatering pastries, sweets and breads…if I could live on their chocolate croissants I would do just that), Kings (they have a really great fruit & cheese plate and good wine), and Cafe Ena (just darn yummy – sort of Latin/Cuban/Puerto Rican style with a twist or three). George & the Dragon Pub on 50th and Bryant has the best onion rings I have ever had, and they make their own ginger ale from fresh ginger and simple syrup. Prima is just around the corner from me serving up delightful Italian food, and a new yogurt place went in a couple doors down from there. There are bunches I haven’t tried yet (like Lynn, around the corner from George & the Dragon), and old standbys that Daughter loves like The Malt Shop and Curran’s (which has been around long enough that it was my aunt’s high school hangout…good, basic food, and still owned by the Curran family 50+ years since it opened).
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Yes, Prima has been a reliable stand-by for a long time. Ravioli with squash and sage butter… mmmm.
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Prima has a birthday club thing where you they will email you a coupon for “buy one entree, get one free.” I have found it makes growing older a bit nicer if I sign up for a few coupons like that so I have something to enjoy (and doesn’t require me cooking it myself).
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I live in a restaurant wasteland. Bismarck is a little better. Fargo a little better than BIsmarck. Nicole’s Fine Pastry in Fargo is quite good. In my town, Applebees is the most popular place. A small organic restuarant finally opened downtown, and I am surprised it is still in operation.
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Small wonder you and your husbands are such enthusiastic cooks, Renee.
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How many husbands does Renee have?
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Wouldn’t you like to know!
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Yes, I would. 🙂
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When I traveled West I used to long for a decent salad. ND, SD and MT restaurants advertising “salad bars” usually served no fresh green salad at all but instead various composed salads featuring pasta and mayonnaise.
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Love the whiplash effect of your question today, Dale. We have a wonderful new restaurant up here in northwest suburbia called Milton’s (vittles, vino, beer). And Gigi’s Cafe on 36th and Bryant in S. Mpls… I could go on – love ethnic places and those with a bistro vibe.
I never even knew it wasn’t cool to to say you like Billy Joel – I do a lot of head bopping when his songs come on the radio… personal favorite is “Still Rock & Roll To Me”…
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I don’t do restaurants much, not because I don’t like to, but because it costs so dang much. I usually get water with my meal and don’t order dessert (because I’m too full to eat it), and I still don’t like getting the bill. Call me a cheapskate.
Last restaurant I went to was Prima in February. My sister was here and we used my birthday coupon (she also has a Feb. birthday) so we got 2 meals for the price of one. Before that, it was the Himalayan and before that…um, um, I don’t remember. Oh yeah, Sara’s Table in Duluth last summer.
Sometimes I like to go out for dessert. Usually that’s ice cream – Izzy’s is my favorite and I can hardly wait until their shop in Minneapolis opens. I’m also hoping to go to Patisserie 46 sometime soon.
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I am always amazed at the very large selection of good restaurants in the Twin Cities. I put Lucia’s in Uptown at the top of my list due to the very excellent food and their support of sustainable farming and local food. Hope Creamery got it’s start with help from Lucia Watson who recognized the high quality of the butter and told the new owner of the creamery to tell the operators of many other restaurants in the Cites that they should try that butter. Lucia Watson gives talks at sustainable agriculture meetings and invites farmers who provide her with ingredients to a special dinner for them at her restaurant.
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Dale identified Billy Joel as one of those men-with-two-first-names. My contact for wold management issues at the MN DNR used to be Mike Don Carlos. The man with three first names.
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Three first names! That’s pretty good. Although if you used my dad’s middle name, he could have had three first names, too.
I wonder if Tom Keith was a rock star? He had Dale’s “basic requirement for a pop star.”
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In case you can’t guess, that is “wolf management.” Dang.
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I was guessing world management, but wolf management makes more sense in the context.
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I’d put in a good word for Hillside Fish House in Marshland, Wisconsin. Good food, nice feel to the place. If you go there on your birthday your entree is half price. And they will let you bring your own wine.
Cafe Latte does a nice tea in the afternoons – little sandwiches and scones, and a dessert is included.
Another favorite place to go, especially when the weather is nice, is Day By Day on West 7th. They have the nicest patio in town.
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ah, that patio. In earlier days, the great buckets of toys were a draw for us. Also close to daycare back in the day. I have fond memories of going there with another tired mom and child more than once.
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Which restaurant are you referring to, mig? I’m guessing Day By Day since it’s relatively close to where I think you live.
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Day by Day is an old favorite with my Breakfast Grlz.
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I’m a kid of the 70’s. I love Billy Joel. My faves of his have to be Honesty and It’s All About Soul.
My ex wife and her mom were always the food afficionados. But one place that I really liked was the 128 Cafe by St. Thomas.
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Yes, tgith, 128 Cafe is really a surprisingly good little restaurant, tucked away in a place where you don’t expect to find one. Another unpretentious little place that it can be a bit of a struggle to find because of one way streets and it’s proximity to the freeway is Babani’s in downtown St. Paul. Also, let’s not forget the Tanpopo Noodle Shop tucked away behind the Black Dog Cafe next to the Zen Center in Lowertown St. Paul. I love the ambiance of that place, and their Japanese food is simple and delicious.
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It seems odd now, but the Twin Cities used to have very few decent places to eat. When I got here in 1960 anyone who wanted a really special meal would go to a steak house, with Murray’s being the most famous. The one alternative, where they cooked in a more interesting way than in neighborhood eateries, was Charlie’s Cafe Exceptionale. That was it . . . and look at the dining scene now!
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In those days, if you had a hankering for something exotic and ethnic, you could choose between Italian and chow mein.
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Yeah, and pretty awful chow mein at that. What was the name of the big Chinese place on Hennepin right downtown? Never understood why that place was so popular. I didn’t arrive in the Twin Cities until 1972 and by then things were already looking up. I’m guessing that Caravan Serai opened in Highland Park in 1973.
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Nankin.
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And not far from Nankin was Cafe di Napoli.
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Yeah, you’re right, Steve, Nanking. I remember being aghast upon learned when I started working for the law firm that it was one of the founding partners’ favorite restaurants. There food wasn’t bad, just not authentic.
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Gosh, I had forgotten about Cafe di Napoli.
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Cafe di Napoli’s food was so-so, but you had to go there for the decor and the memorabilia.
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and the waitress hairdoos
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Nobody out here wants to pay even reasonable prices for good food. The only thing I hear when people go out to eat is how expensive it was and how small the portions were.
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Sounds like husband. One of the best meals I’ve had in the Twin Cities was at Ristorante Luci. Hans was completely baffled by the menu choices. He likes food to come in package deals where all you have to do is choose between soup and salad, and what kind of potato you want. I ordered their daily tasting menu and he ordered the only item on the menu that sounded familiar to him: ravioli. While I was enjoying my five course feast he sat there grumbling about the price of his small serving of delicate, handmade ravioli. I’ve never been able to entice to go back; fortunately I have other dining companions who are not so easily intimidated by a menu they don’t understand.
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Son#2 is my most usual companion and he tends to order much the same sort of thing wherever we go (different standards for different types of menus) but he will branch out if I encourage him.
Otherwise, I’m so used to going out with willing-to-try-anything dining companions that I am baffled by the few who are so narrow in their ability to go beyond the familiar. I say, if you’re an adult and not on the autism spectrum, you should be adventurous and curious.
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OT – BiR, I saw your note late yesterday about a gardening field trip… haven’t seen an email yet, but if I can fit it in, I’d love to join. It was quite a bit of fun last year at PJ’s… especially seeing Lisa in her green dress!
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I asked Robin what would be useful, and she said WEEDING, though it’s premature right now, so probably in June. We can talk at:
BBC on the 19th, 2:00 here in Robbinsdale…
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It’s not too early to weed at my place…took a little walk around the yard this morning (pre-Friends School Plant Sale, had to see what has come up so I can plan my purchases) and I saw PLENTY of weeds.
I want to help in the gardening thing for Robin & Bill…it was tremendous fun at PJ’s last year and it seems appropriate to reciprocate since Robin organized that.
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I’m physically limited, but I’d still like to come in case there is something I can do. And for sure I’ll want to record the event with a photo. Sorry about the wrist, Robin. Get well soon.
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I was just looking at our calendar and realized that we are not going to be available for Blevins on the 19th. Regarding the weeding thing at our house, if I am on the ball at all, there will be minimal weeding necessary, which means maximal sitting around and talking, eating and drinking, which would be more fun anyway. You certainly welcome to gather here.
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Duh! You ARE certainly welcome…
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This is OT, I suppose . . . but the MN legislature just voted to endorse gay marriages.
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I’m pleased, of course, but it’s hard to be excited. It wasn’t exactly a profile in courage. The legislature did the right thing but only when it was clear that the issue was going that way whether they backed it now or not. It was just a matter of time.
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OT – House OKed the same sex marriage amendment. Fabulous.
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Well, actually, it’s not an amendment but a bill. On to the Senate! I am so excited.
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PJ’s right. It has to go to the Senate now. But I think that a positive vote there is a foregone conclusion.
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I really feel like dancing in the street, and if it weren’t raining, I might be.
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I’d dance in the streets just because it WAS raining. We are very dry here. Good for the MN House.
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I’m a wuss, Renee. I welcome the rain but don’t want to get wet.
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Well whaddya know, some good political news!
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No one has mentioned my beloved Highland Grill yet, so here it is. I go there with a notebook when I need to sort something out for myself. I don’t know why that place works for me, but it does. Weekends it is crazy busy and noisy, but early afternoon, just right.
I’ll sign on and admit I like Billy Joel’s music. I also like Renoir paintings, and that is not very sophisticated either. I’ll live with that.
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Highland Grill will torch your creme brulee at your table. You gotta love a place that does that.
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My Daughter-in-law loves Crème brulee and the Cities. I will have to tell her about the Highland Grill.
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I’m always interested in trying new restaurants when I’m in the Cities and I will have to write down some the ones that were mentioned today. Before the end of the year we will be living in the Cities and I will have even more opportunities to try some of those places.
I look on eating out at good restaurants as a interesting activity equal to paying for tickets to a good show of some kind. I do like to eat at home and don’t go out to eat too often. However, trying out the food at places with attractive menus is one of my favorite activities and I don’t mind spending a little money for a good meal.
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Yep, I’m taking notes too, Jim.
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Jim, right near where you will be living in South Minneapolis is the Longfellow Grill. It is owned by the folks who own the Highland Grill, and I’d assume the food there is equally splendid.
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I have tried both of those on trips to the Cities and like them both.
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Forgive me but this had to be done:
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Thank you.
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I love this one…used to know it by heart back in the day!!
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Where has Tim gone?
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business trip, maybe?
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I very much enjoy going to the Quang Restaurant on Nicolette Ave where they wonderful noodle soups and other tasty Vietnamese food at very reasonable prices. It is a Vietnamese restaurant where you see lots of Veitnamese people. It isn’t one of those Americanized Veitnamese places that do not cater primarily to people from Vietnam.
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We used to have one awful Chinese restaurant in town. Son worked there when he was in High School as a dishwasher, busboy, and prep cook. Our favorite story from then is the time son had to wash the kitchen floor, and obviously did a poor job. He said that the owner chewed him out in Mandarin and very broken English, ending with “Gabe, why you do such sh** job on floor? Health department shut us down!” He must have improved, because when he was ready to leave for college, the owner asked him if he would be willing to work in Fargo at her sister’s restaurant. Her sister needed good help, she said. Now, whenever he messes something up, we ask him “Gabe, why you do such sh** job on floor?”
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🙂
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Who has taken our Tim?
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Yoohoo, tim, where are you? Surely you have something to contribute to this topic?
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Thanks for the songs Dale; that is one of my favorites too. We saw him in concert, I think we sat with Anna for the Nylon Curtain tour. The music was great but I also remember a mostly bare stage with grill work in the deck and all the audio monitors below deck grill. And Billy ran to the side of the stage and hung from the lighting cables. (Did you notice the tel-promter running the song lyrics in the second video?)
There was a touring dance show created around his songs. ‘Moving Out’ with choreography by Twyla Tharp. It wasn’t the greatest plot, but the music was good.
Our current favorite restaurant is Maggiano’s in Chicago (and other locations). They have a gluten free pasta plus you get a take home pasta besides your main meal. Eating once there will feed you for another three days.
There was a place called ‘Edwardo’s’ in Rochester that we frequented alot. They had fried Mozzarella sticks that were the size of an eggroll. And if you ordered the fried cheese curds they came heaped on a dinner plate. Celebrated my 25th Birthday party there.
I had a blue cheese burger at a bowling alley once, the likes of which I have never had again.
Down in Arizona there was a pizza place… Pizza Roma maybe? Had the BEST garlic bread!
And just up the street, ‘HaHaChinese’… bad bad Chinese.
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