Minnesota/Minnesotans C or D

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obv. Taco Morelos has better food-qua-food, but Little T has atmosphere galore, plus they let you draw on the tablecloths w/crayons!

Matos W.K. (M Matos), Thursday, 22 April 2004 09:00 (twenty years ago) link

oh: mosquitoes and gnats galore = DUD DUD DUD

Matos W.K. (M Matos), Thursday, 22 April 2004 09:03 (twenty years ago) link

I made a thinner wallet chain into a choker which I wore almost nonstop 97-00, my pre-electroclash Coco Chanel decora-chan look.

MCAD students with deadlines probably grateful for the crayons.

I caused a Scot to shudder with tales of mozzies AND midges together.

suzy (suzy), Thursday, 22 April 2004 09:07 (twenty years ago) link

mozzies and midges? do tell

also, upthread you mentioned Southdale as birthplace of postmodernism. explain yourself!

Matos W.K. (M Matos), Thursday, 22 April 2004 09:16 (twenty years ago) link

Midges are the gnats of Scotland, and they travel in swarms. The Scot's head exploded with the addition of swarms of mosquitoes, imagining death by insect bite.

Southdale was the very first atrium mall in the whole world, and had a 'sidewalk cafe' where my mom and aunt worked the 'outdoor' tables. Simulacrae ahoy!

suzy (suzy), Thursday, 22 April 2004 09:21 (twenty years ago) link

MATOS OTM. I just had a VISION return of this waitress at Little T's that I'm sure I hadn't thought about since I saw her a year ago.

Jordan (Jordan), Thursday, 22 April 2004 12:27 (twenty years ago) link

HAHAHAHAHA WALLET CHAINS oh my

VengaDan Perry (Dan Perry), Thursday, 22 April 2004 12:38 (twenty years ago) link

I think the waitress with the phantasmagoric breasts had a wallet chain.

Jordan (Jordan), Thursday, 22 April 2004 12:42 (twenty years ago) link

I find the claims of good Mexican food in Minneapolis suspect, but will defer to those who have the knowledge.

Ned Raggett (Ned), Thursday, 22 April 2004 17:59 (twenty years ago) link

Its authentic. There are real Mexicans here Ned! Most of them work at Taco Bell and Wendys as far as I can tell, but not all of them God bless their hearts.

christhamrin (christhamrin), Thursday, 22 April 2004 18:09 (twenty years ago) link

(Some say we have these immigrants because of our above average social services thought this might not be the case anymore and they all seem to have jobs as far as I can tell)

christhamrin (christhamrin), Thursday, 22 April 2004 18:10 (twenty years ago) link

the whole nicollet "eat street" corridor is the best, good example of a city development thingy done well. little t's, black forest, quang's, rainbow, taco morelo's, now azia (um), and a new chinese place called yummy (double um), the spyhouse (mcad undergrads woo ha!), and tons of other not-for-white people places i've never been in.

g--ff (gcannon), Thursday, 22 April 2004 18:29 (twenty years ago) link

Last time I was in town I ate at a really good Vietnamese place. No idea what it was called or where it was.

Jordan (Jordan), Thursday, 22 April 2004 18:31 (twenty years ago) link

oh and yeah lotus is gross!! and kinhdo is just a regular chinese place, very average.

g--ff (gcannon), Thursday, 22 April 2004 18:38 (twenty years ago) link

minnesota and mpls in particular=classic

all the reasons mentioned above and more

every rock music fan in the world owes themsleves a trip to the 7th Street Entry, the greatest rock club on the planet. Even if the state only consisted of that tiny black room and the Summit Brewery it would still be an all time classic

most passive-aggressive population of human beings to ever grace the face of the earth

chris besinger (chris besinger), Thursday, 22 April 2004 18:48 (twenty years ago) link

Oh I don't know about that, Chris, but if you feel that way even though you know it hurts us that's just fine.

Dan I., Thursday, 22 April 2004 19:10 (twenty years ago) link

chris besinger on the passive-aggressive money....

M@tt He1geson (Matt Helgeson), Thursday, 22 April 2004 19:19 (twenty years ago) link

Ned, it's not great cuisine--at least Little T's isn't. but it's really great fake Mexican, if you catch my drift. Meaning the nachos are fantab and the atmosphere roxor

Matos W.K. (M Matos), Thursday, 22 April 2004 20:04 (twenty years ago) link

Oh okay, that's perfectly fine.

Ned Raggett (Ned), Thursday, 22 April 2004 20:08 (twenty years ago) link

"I'm a bartender and it's fun."

Oh, I forgot... the "National American University" jingle.

Eric H. (Eric H.), Thursday, 22 April 2004 20:37 (twenty years ago) link

oh and duh--for very good Mexican food, La Cucaracha in St. Paul, which Nate Patrin lives down the street from!

Matos W.K. (M Matos), Thursday, 22 April 2004 20:47 (twenty years ago) link

I haven't been there yet. My prob is being so devoted to Pepito's I don't want to go anywhere else.

Eric H. (Eric H.), Thursday, 22 April 2004 21:38 (twenty years ago) link

La Cuc's guacamole will make you its gibbering bitch, for real.

Nate in ST.P (natedetritus), Friday, 23 April 2004 00:32 (twenty years ago) link

couple of good mexican sleepers:

El Rey De Oro on Nicollet & 35th in south...

Chiapas - not sure of the intersection, but it's up on north central by Fat Boy Billiards...

both nice family run joints...el rey specializes in seafood, chiapas is good all around.....I want to marry the salsa that they put out with their free chips and salsa before you order..

M@tt He1geson (Matt Helgeson), Friday, 23 April 2004 01:24 (twenty years ago) link

OK, guys.... do you have Taco John's there?

donut bitch (donut), Friday, 23 April 2004 01:55 (twenty years ago) link

I mean, I shouldn't talk. I'd sooner lick a rusty toilet seat than eat at Taco Del Mar and TacoTime here in Seattle... but I've heard horror stories about Taco John's. Or has it improved since the good ol' days?

donut bitch (donut), Friday, 23 April 2004 01:56 (twenty years ago) link

yeah...Taco Johns is still pretty strong in MN...Taco Bell obv. proliferate all over, but John's are still around, esp. in suburbs and smaller towns/cities...potato oles baby!

i think it's better than Taco Bell, but that's not saying much...

M@tt He1geson (Matt Helgeson), Friday, 23 April 2004 01:58 (twenty years ago) link

You know, there are more places in Minnesota than just the Cities.

Classic: rural Minnesota

Debito (Debito), Friday, 23 April 2004 02:34 (twenty years ago) link

Stearns County is like the secret heart of Minnesota.

Dan I. (Dan I.), Friday, 23 April 2004 03:10 (twenty years ago) link

(excluding St. Cloud, of course)

Dan I. (Dan I.), Friday, 23 April 2004 03:10 (twenty years ago) link

Have we all forgotten our gift to L.A., Paul Magers? Don't hate me for loving the Paul. I'm pouring out my Evian in his honor right now. Sadly, Paul is now dead to me. Big ups to ya, Paul.

And what about Information Society? Also classic.

Now that the trees are blooming, I'll go with classick. Winter makes me cynical and prone to the MN disease of self-conscious paralysis. April thru Sept. makes me want to have long-distance love affairs with the Mage. Classic.

Molly P., Friday, 23 April 2004 03:54 (twenty years ago) link

You know, there are more places in Minnesota than just the Cities.

Classic: rural Minnesota

no diggity!

My homeland, God's country:

http://www.be.blue-earth.mn.us/

M@tt He1geson (Matt Helgeson), Sunday, 25 April 2004 14:44 (twenty years ago) link

It seems that I have arrived at the party long after the decent booze has been consumed and even the nasty bottle of bottom shelf brandy that the housemate from 4 years ago left behind has been finished off. Nonetheless:

Classic =

Everyday People
Uptown Theater
The Plastic Constellations
The Tuna Melt at Grumpy's
Evergreen
D4
Copper Dome
Day by Day Cafe
Run Westy Run circa 'Dizzy Road'
Margherita Club at Bar Abilene
Guitar Band
Dara's food column in CP
Sonny's Ice Cream
CC Club
*I'm* fond of the record store I worked at for 11 years (even if others are not)
CC Club [I only go there once a year or so, but it fulfills it's mission as a pleasant neighborhood bar. In fact, it was overcrowding at the CC which lead to our looking for other nearby places to hang out, bringing us to the Red Dragon. It was so deserted that even on weekend nights, the front room wouldn't fill up. Now all three rooms are packed even on Mondays, bringing us back full circle to the CC where one can sit down and drink (albeit not such fancy boozy drinks). ]

I tried to stick to things that hadn't already been mentioned, but the utter classicness of Lifter Puller, Cows, Replacements, Husker Du, 7th St, Triple Rock, Kevin Cole and Rod Smith cannot be stated enough.

Dud =

People that I like to hang out with moving away to bigger and 'better' places. It makes sense to me that one would want to move to Sydney, Paris or London (especially if it's somewhere you should have been born in the first place- Hi Suzy!), but to me, moving anywhere else in America would be a lateral move and therefore pointless. That said, other people's obsession with NYC is akin to my own fascination with other countries, so I could be more understanding and less pissy about the whole thing.

Chris K

Chris K (suzy), Monday, 26 April 2004 15:41 (twenty years ago) link

That said, other people's obsession with NYC is akin to my own fascination with other countries, so I could be
more understanding and less pissy about the whole thing.

Heh -- the MST3K crew did an enjoyable enough Tolkien parody called Edward the Less which intentionally played on the 'Midwesterners obsess over/worship NYC' stereotype, as described by Kevin Murphy in an interview at the time.

Ned Raggett (Ned), Monday, 26 April 2004 15:46 (twenty years ago) link

Ha ha, I knew it was you on the first sentence! And my mail isn't working!

I thought the category HOUSE PARTIES AT CHRIS K's would be a bit too obscure, but they are classic. And I also have to shake the fist as have never yet been taken to Copper Dome.

suzy (suzy), Monday, 26 April 2004 16:10 (twenty years ago) link

Ah, the Copper Dome . . . where the waitrons call each other Ma and Gran . . . home of hashbrowns so spectacular that I can't eat them anywhere else . . . crepes (which they refer to as 'roll ups') with strawberries, blueberries, peaches or bananas all smothered in whip cream from a can . . . omelettes with cheese and apples . . . so many deliciously abundant pancake combos that you have to close your eyes and put your finger on one to decide . . . the only disappointment on the whole menu (besides the horrific coffee) is the sad state of the potato pancakes (but only because the Black Forest has the market cornered on them) . . . the walls are covered with artifacts from the flour milling industry and there are shelves of old maple syrup tins and such. . . so fabulous! My one regret in life is that I passed by the Copper Dome for 4 years on my way to dress up as a Derham dolly and never knew of the delights inside.

Next time, Suz, next time! (Oh yeah, I discovered your email was down when I sent you a long one that bounced back, which I have since accidentally deleted. I'd call you now, but the internet will be tying up your line. Let's talk soon, though!)

Speaking of those oh so fun parties, I was cleaning the basement last week and found the remnants of the vines we used to decorate ourselves and the drum kit last time we played a show down there. Memorial Day, 1991, the date that we discovered that you were good to play has long has you had downed 2 1/2 drinks but never 3. Good times.

Chris K (suzy), Monday, 26 April 2004 16:52 (twenty years ago) link

Matos, I believe that we were both invited to the same afterparty post Pixies. Though we were couldn't yell over the band member's family table that separated us at the show, I thought we'd be able to converse in a civilized manner at said party. Unfortunately, while I was all for going it was vetoed by the three others with me who had to plan for early arrival to work the next day. Oh well.

Chris K (suzy), Monday, 26 April 2004 17:03 (twenty years ago) link

We have DSL, so line never tied up.

Ed (dali), Monday, 26 April 2004 17:21 (twenty years ago) link

faaack my memory is so awful, i'm terrible on threads like this but YES everyday people YES YES. looking down at myself, everything but my socks and my drawers came from them (shoes, belt, the whole bit). this is true most days!

g--ff (gcannon), Monday, 26 April 2004 18:02 (twenty years ago) link

i wz gonna revive this anyway because our president is in town today! big fundraiser in edina, who's going?

g--ff (gcannon), Monday, 26 April 2004 18:03 (twenty years ago) link

Blech. He can't really be "our" president if he didn't win the election, can he? Since I hate politics (precisely for reasons such as this) I will now shut up about this forevermore.

Chris K (suzy), Monday, 26 April 2004 18:10 (twenty years ago) link

er, i was kidding! fuck bush etc!

i wanted to revive this to ask if anyone has any insights into mn being a red state all of a sudden. what happened? the mall? redistricting? i don't quite get it.

g--ff (gcannon), Monday, 26 April 2004 18:14 (twenty years ago) link

also, i kinda like block e! it's so awful and hollow, destined to be vacant, you can almost hear the capital draining away. it always makes me chuckle.

g--ff (gcannon), Monday, 26 April 2004 18:22 (twenty years ago) link

That's exactly the way I felt about the Conservatory; after the first couple of months, the only time anyone set foot in the place was to escape the weather for a block.

The current state of Block E is far more saddening to me than humorous. I survived many an hour plus bus ride (including transferring) from St. Paul to go to Minneapolis, and Northern Lights in particular, the original location of which was found on the North side of Block E. It was tiny, with the hardcore records and a place to put your skateboard right at the front. There was a row of records down the middle of the rest of it, and on weekends or before / after shows it would be so crowded that the only path through the store was one way. The clerks (Ryan, Rod and Randy) were like gods to me and the role models my parents never wanted me to have. Years later, when Northern Lights moved to a larger location on the next block, Vaughn, the resident lech, would try to convince me to go see 25 cent movies at Fantasy House on Block E. I prefered Shinders, where I would buy import priced copies of the Face and Suzy would read NME and Melody Maker at lightning speed so she wouldn't have to buy them. Rifle Sport Gallery was there, as well as Moby Dick's, home to a 'whale of a drink'. I never actually had a drink there but did peek my head inside once and also saw large numbers of 'patrons' staggering out of the front door and collapsing in the gutter.

Even it's transitionary period as a parking lot had it's saving grace, as it provided a place for Cheap Trick to play for free a few years back.

When go by there now, I see the ghosts of punks, drunks and the business people who would hurrily walk down the sidewalk, dodging the misfits.

Chris K (suzy), Monday, 26 April 2004 20:04 (twenty years ago) link

that sounds really great. i moved here in 00, no golden age for me

g--ff (gcannon), Monday, 26 April 2004 20:27 (twenty years ago) link

Minnestrone/Minnestroneans?

Skottie, Monday, 26 April 2004 21:14 (twenty years ago) link

Vaughn was hilarious, his other popular offer was to invite me and Nancy to *go swimmin'* at his house. Looked like a short Derek Jarman, sounded like Fred Schneider, and rode around downtown in dodgy weather on his bike, wearing Army-issue snowpants upon which he had painted dozens of pink sperm.

OF COURSE BUSH HAS GONE TO FUCKING EDINA. You expect he's welcome anywhere else in the state?

suzy (suzy), Monday, 26 April 2004 21:21 (twenty years ago) link

how the fuck can the Red Dragon still be open? That was one of the dive bars I mentioned way up in the thread, a place where you could reliably drink with losers any time the light was on.

I always thought the CC was an interesting place. On way too many occasions it drew tourist-types looking to have a drink with musical luminaries. But the juke was always good.

The Uptown had a pretty good run back in the late 80s but was really fading by the time the early 90s. Is it even open anymore?

don carville weiner, Tuesday, 27 April 2004 10:33 (twenty years ago) link

Don, Chris K and her friends live around the corner from the RD and the 'rehab' of said dive was down to them.

suzy (suzy), Tuesday, 27 April 2004 11:10 (twenty years ago) link

nine months pass...
o ye twin cities
i only knew you for a year
you are cold then hot rinse repeat
with quiet and good people
you say 'ramp' instead of 'garage'
i think of you as purple because of this USA jigsaw i had as a kid/the vikings
brad radke i salute you
and your lakes, so lovely
do not give me a ticket for 'snow emergencies'
i love you still (except for the utne reader)

mookieproof (mookieproof), Wednesday, 9 February 2005 00:07 (nineteen years ago) link


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