The 5 best healthy-ish things our food writers ate last week
From vegan to whole food finds, healthy eats were on our minds in anticipation of all the fair fare ahead of us during the Great Minnesota Get-Together.
The Minnesota Star Tribune
August 26, 2024 at 2:15PM
Fitchn, one of the latest additions to the Downtown East restaurant set, is all about food that nourishes. Joe Clark of Cobble Social House, also in Minneapolis, is behind the concept.
Smoothies, juices and elixirs are on the menu. As are salads, grain bowls and pita sandwiches that are made-to-order at the counter and can be assembled vegan, vegetarian or gluten-free. We were especially smitten with the pretty and nutrition-packed omega grain and lettuce bowl ($11.50). Spinach and chickpeas — along with vibrant watermelon radishes, pickled red onions, goji berries, avocado and edamame — all get mixed with a bright orange-yellow turmeric dressing. There was variety in each compostable-fork bite.
If you want to build on those flavors or make your dish heartier, proteins such as tempeh, roast chicken and salmon ($4 to $6) are available as add-ons. We tried the sesame tempeh and herb-roasted chicken, which further convinced us that attention to flavorful notes was no afterthought in this category, either. (Nancy Ngo)
1024 Washington Av. S., Mpls., 612-584-3010, fitchn.co
Turkey pesto sandwich at the Clover
Chef Jeremy Bechtold might be one of the masterminds behind one of the State Fair’s most outlandish new foods — deep-fried ranch dressing. But squeeze bottles are nowhere in sight when he assembles this wholesome handheld at the Clover, the elevated pub that opened in Rosemount in 2021.
Bechtold, who previously worked at the Happy Gnome and with chef and expert forager Alan Bergo at the former Lucia’s, makes everything from scratch for his turkey pesto sandwich ($17), from the airy focaccia and the punchy pesto to the turkey breast he smokes in-house.
Fries might take it out of “healthy” territory, but we upgraded to sweet potato waffle fries ($1.50 extra) to get more colors of the rainbow onto our plate. Yes, they come with a side of ranch — proof that Bechtold also knows when to leave well enough alone. (Sharyn Jackson)
14845 S. Robert Trail, Rosemount, 651-448-2220, theclovermn.com
Build your own bowl at Poké House and Tea Bar
I was nursing a craving for a poké bowl, but knew that heading to a fancy grocery store to get raw tuna to make the dish at home just wasn’t going to happen.
That’s when I landed on Poké House and Tea Bar in St. Paul off Randolph Avenue near Snelling Avenue. While the Highland Park place is far from the islands of Hawaii, where the vibrant raw fish dish with Japanese influences originated, this nailed that specific craving on a hot summer day.
The casual spot, which has been serving this signature item since 2019, also assuages my kitchen control tendencies by having the option to build my own bowl ($13). It starts with your choice of sushi rice or lettuce, then you can load it up with proteins such as raw fish, tofu or grilled chicken. Next, choose extras like roe, seaweed salad, extra edamame or avocado, depending on the mood. On a day when the sun felt like it was about 4 feet away, the cool diced tuna and salmon were light, fresh and filling. (Joy Summers)
1570 Randolph Av., St. Paul, 651-855-8870, pokehousemn.co
Vegan stews at Bole Express
Following their full-service Bole Ethiopian Restaurant in St. Paul, owners Solomon Haile and Rekik Abaineh decided to open a more casual version in Minneapolis.
The spot, which rolled out the welcome mat less than a year ago in the Seward neighborhood, offers a condensed menu from its sibling restaurant that is designed to get food to your table fast. Still, the Franklin Avenue spot has a good-size menu — tasting platters, stews, stir-fries — with an equal amount of vegan and meat options.
On a recent lunch outing, items on the menu looked so good that we wanted to order everything. We opted for the next best thing: a tasting platter. On this healthy food expedition, we chose the vegan platter, in which you pick two to four stews ($8 to $12) from the eight available. Each order comes with injera rolls, the spongy, fermented sour flatbreads perfect for scooping up the stews.
The shiro, a ground chickpea sauce, and the miser, a red lentil stew, both with a berbere spice that gave off some heat and earthy notes, were great calls and, in fact, our favorites. The gomen, or braised collard and kale greens, as well as the potatoes and carrots in garlic, ginger and turmeric, were also enjoyable. If anything, they served as neutralizing agents to our robust and spicy stews. We left satisfied, knowing that variety is the spice of life. (N.N.)
2111 E. Franklin Av., Mpls, 612-489-6000, boleethiopiancuisine.com
Soup of the day at Rootstock
The Minnesota Landscape Arboretum’s cafe got a refresh this summer, reopening as Rootstock. The new cafe veers away from its institutional cafeteria origins, instead highlighting farm-fresh ingredients to match the verdant surroundings.
The menu, from culinary lead Beth Fisher and executive chef Niki Heber, has lots of vegan, vegetarian, gluten-free and dairy-free options. We found a cold case full of colorful salads and ready-to-go sandwiches. A hot section had soups and Roman-style pizza loaded with veggies.
We opted for the chilled soup of the day, which was a corn and coconut bisque ($9 for a large). A hunk of za’atar-spiced focaccia ($5) turned the soup from an appetizer into lunch. Keeping with an eco-friendly ethos, all the serveware is compostable. We only wish there was a reusable option for a less casual, plated meal. (S.J.)
3675 Arboretum Drive, Chaska, 612-301-1271, arb.umn.edu/rootstock
My third year as the Minnesota Star Tribune’s restaurant critic brought surprises, friendships and, of course, good food.
