American • $$$ • 1121 Hennepin Av. S., Mpls. • 612-238-8888
"The Butcher" is, above all other things, a brick-and-mortar tribute to the pig. Power team Jack Reibel and Peter Botcher are meat magicians, with Botcher acting as the butcher in question, while Reibel polishes things with fine-dining, classical chef sensibilities. While it's appropriate to dine here for special occasions, it's equally comfortable playing host to your after-work beer and sammich. The genius menu structure allows you to choose your own adventure, from an $85 cowboy steak for two, to an $8 "Yankee" ham plate -- a build-your-own affair of petit biscuits, a quenelle of housemade cheese whiz, pepper jelly and of course, the ham. Whether you're in it for a feast or a snack, you're in for some of the finest housemade sausage and charcuterie in the region. You'll know you're in the vicinity when curls of smoke on the air lift you from your shoes and carry you into the vestibule. In other words, real deal barbeque takes place in here -- where they're cooking with smoke, not fire. And, the butcher serves ham the way God intended, with the city's most extensive bourbon selection. You'll also find at least 30 beers on tap. It's the perfect place to do Oktoberfest right -- in a sprawling beer garden with a couple hundred of your friends. MECCA BOS
American • $$ • 1612 Harmon Place, Mpls. • 612-767-9080
Maude Armatage was a trailblazing woman's suffragist who served on the Minneapolis Park Board from 1921 to 1951. Thus it seems uncanny that her namesake Cafe Maude's new second location should be situated next to the urban greenery of Loring Park (in the former Nick and Eddie space). Maude's personal motto of "civilized leisure" is rendered in synergistic style here: high-technique cuisine via executive chef Matthew Kempf, a pre-Prohibition-themed cocktail menu and extended beer and wine lists, nightly live music and pro service. Decorative elements like harissa-red accents and golden cushions reflect the North African and Middle Eastern culinary flourishes on the menu, like the vibrant North African flatbread with spiced lamb, onion, tomato, Aleppo, Haloumi, parsley and walnut yogurt and Lablabi chickpea-garlic soup. Inspired by a different region entirely, the Wild Acres duck bahn mi salad has received rave reviews for its interesting assortment of pastrami, pâté and confit on a bed of Mississippi greens. Celebrating the ritual of brunch is an excellent proposition, with perfectly executed classics like buttery-crisp blueberry flapjacks, perfectly poached eggs with spinach and Hollandaise and soul-fueling breakfast cocktails (!) like the Corpse Reviver #27 featuring Beefeater gin, Cointreau, Lillet Rose, lemon and absinthe. All of this civilized leisure made us consider cashing in our retirement accounts to join owner Kevin Sheehy on one of his biannual guided tours of Istanbul. KAT KLUEGEL
Japanese • $ • 602 Washington Av. S., Mpls. • 612-332-3ZEN
"Irasshaimase!" You're likely to hear this welcome shouted as you enter the threshold at Zen Box Izakaya, where the menu is inventive (no sushi!) and the service is as warm as Indian summer. If you're a "drink and a snack" sort of diner (and if not, perhaps you oughta be) then this place is made just for you. It's inspired by the Japanese tradition of izakaya, a one-word descriptor of what life is all about: Have a drink, have a snack, have another drink, press repeat. The snacketizer menu, with commensurate prices, encourages a couple hours of this leisurely behavior: small skewers of grilled meats, nuggets of lovingly fried chicken, little nibblies of edamame and wakame, pristine cuts of raw fish. ... Now have some sips of Sapporo and sake, and bookend it with some sour Japanese pickles, a shrimp dumpling, or perhaps a knee-bucklingly fatty slab of pork belly. And then -- press repeat. Look for ramen in limited quantities (it's one of the few kitchens serving up proper ramen in the Twin Cities), and visit the after-work happy hour for $3 to $5 eats and $4 and $5 libations. M.B.
American • $ • 333 S. 7th St., Suite 190 • 612-259-8636
Mona is the kind of cozy, dark-wooded downtown oasis that you might imagine Don Draper sneaking off to after a heated board meeting for some smoky-smoked oysters and a cathartic Perfect Spring Martini with Prairie Organic Vodka, Beefeater Gin, mint, lime syrup and cucumber. It could also be a perfect pit stop for an aching bike messenger during happy hour for a $3 PBR and a messy snack of crisp suicide fries: a poutine-esque mix of house-made bacon, Caesar dressing and fresh corn. Tucked away in the Accenture building downtown, Mona is a welcome little refuge from downtown work-related storms featuring locally sourced small plates with smoky, Mediterranean influences. Chef Lisa Hanson even makes her own bacon, with pork from Hidden Farm in Elgin, Minn. The scallops with swiss chard, golden raisins, juniper cream and preserved lemon lacked the flavor punch I was expecting but you can't go wrong with the lusty marrow on rotating flavors of toast or a good old-fashioned slab of pork belly sitting on a potato pancake with smoked shallot jus. K.K.
American • $ • 89 S. 10th St., Mpls. • 612-843-2260
Devil's Advocate is a downtown watering hole with an eclectic and expansive selection of 40 beers on tap and some serious balls. Owner Erik Forsberg's dedication to affordable, elevated bar fare is based on a brilliantly simple meatball-and-sauce premise, bun optional. Choose a single ball and sauce combo for $3 or shoot for the stars with the Chef's Sampler ($10) to revel in the ball-sauce possibilities. Pork balls are especially tender, made with co-op-sourced pork shoulder and best enjoyed with the creamy Sunday Gravy to emphasize their luscious porky punch. Chicken balls made with thigh, crispy skin and thyme evoked a feeling of Crock-Pot comfort when accompanied by the creamy mushroom sauce. And the recipe for the vegetarian falafel ball has been tweaked since its opening; the version we enjoyed was impressively smooth-textured and nicely spiced. We only wish there were more of that sauce to slather about. Flavorful sides include braised greens with kale, pickled ramps and a resounding pork zing. The future of Devil's will include down-home live music and an adventurous-sounding cocktail menu (cachaca, anyone?). And of course, plenty of tasty balls for all. K.K.
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Band Box Diner: Breakfast/lunch. Vintage 1930s diner serves up classic short-order grub including pancakes, hash browns, burgers and fries, for breakfast and lunch. (729 S. 10th St., Mpls., 612-332-0850.)
Black Sheep Pizza - Minneapolis: Pizza. A hot-and-dry-burning coal-fired oven turns out pizzas with superb toppings (house-made fennel sausage; mushroom-mozzarella-rosemary; tomato-oregano) on glorious crusts. (600 Washington Av. N., Mpls., 612-342-2625.)
The Depot Tavern: American. The First Avenue spinoff is a casual, friendly paean to all-American fried foods. (701 1st Av. N., Mpls., 612-388-8388.)
