Longfellow Grill

Longfellow Grill in Minneapolis is our go-to dinner and brunch destination lately. Even though they don't take reservations and we sometimes have to wait awhile for a table, I am in love with this place (thankfully they do let you call ahead to get on the list!).

Longfellow is located just off the River Road on Lake St in Minneapolis, and just happens to be within walking distance to my brother & sister-in-law's house. I didn't even know the restaurant existed until they moved in to the neighborhood but am thankful they did!



Despite the fact that I am just now getting to the most important part - THE FOOD - do not be fooled! Even if this place was a dump (it's not), it would totally be worth it for the menu. My absolute favorite is the walleye burrito, made with fried walleye, lettuce, tomato, Tillamook cheddar, and the best from-scratch tartar sauce I've ever had. I am currently on a fish-restricted diet right now (only one meal of walleye a month) and I save it up just for this burrito. It's SO good! (also, it is only technically on their lunch menu, not dinner, but I've ordered it for dinner approximately 15 times now and nobody cares so yeah, don't be afraid to order it if it's after 4pm).

What else is good? Our favorite appetizer are tempura-battered green beans with plum dipping sauce. My husband and I can finish a basket of those in minutes. It's actually inspired us to try tempura frying basically every type vegetable we get this summer through our CSA. My husband is also a huge fan of their Tennessee bbq pork sandwich. He is a bit of a bbq sandwich connoisseur and loves this one. With your sandwich, you get french fries (awesome) or sweet potato fries (also awesome). Oh and the side salad is so good that I actually order it instead of fries sometimes just because it tastes good.

Finally, a discussion of Longfellow Grill would not be complete without mentioning their awesome brunch (some of the highlights from the brunch menu are also available all day long). They have amazing, huge waffles and pancakes, and many of their omelette and scrambler combos are unique but perfect. In any case, you have not lived until you have attempted to eat their blueberry waffles or french toast.

Good Earth

Where to start? Delicious, great variety, reasonable prices, five minutes from my house, and pretty much the healthiest food you could ever hope to find at a restaurant.



Good Earth's "hook" is that the majority of the food they serve is organic and/or naturally raised. They also strive to get food from local farms when they can. In other words, Michael Pollan approved. This is a huge deal for me, because I only eat meat that is naturally and humanely raised. For most restaurants, that means I'm a vegetarian, but at Good Earth I can pick anything on the menu with a clear conscience. Restaurant food without guilt is pretty frickin' great.

They also have the *best* soups. Every winter, around Christmas time, they have this wild rice & mushroom soup on special that is to-die-for. I actually end up eating there at least three times every December because I love this soup so much. They also have a fantastic corn chowder every fall.

At every other restaurant, I have a favorite entree that I order every time, no matter what. But at Good Earth, there are so many tasty, healthy options that I rarely order the same thing. Sometimes it's soup & sandwich, sometimes a quesadilla, sometimes stir fry, sometimes pizza - it's all really good.

And let's not forget the tea. Good Earth has their own signature tea (Good Earth Original) - you can buy it at the grocery store but for some reason, it tastes 10x better when you drink it at the restaurant. I'm guessing it has something to do with the way it is steeped and/or the ingredients being fresher but I have no idea. I just know it is awesome.

Finally, I love Good Earth because it's great for a one-on-one tea & cookies date with your BFF, dinner with a group of ten, or a much-needed solo lunch during finals. So yeah, if you ever need a date for a trip to Good Earth, give me a call. :)