Culinary Adventure weekend

Just arrived home from an excellent culinary adventure in the Twin Cities. Teresa and I decided to spend a couple days there and find some restaurants we had not tried to hopefully find a couple of gems. We were not disappointed. Our son Jesse started us out on Saturday morning with a great spot for breakfast. It is called Cafe Cravings in White Bear Lake (http://www.cravingsmn.com/). A small place on Cty Rd. E just off 35E that I think might have been a KFC at one time. Jesse suggested their Bananas Foster French Toast but I had Eggs Benedict in mind and that is one dish I absolutely love so if they have it I have to try it. It was excellent! The Hollandaise was perfect; not too lemony and a hint of dill, super soft and light served with their signature Home Fried Potatoes. Those potatoes were very well seasoned with a mixture of seasoned salt, parsley and a smackerel of rosemary.
Teresa had the best surprise of the day. What a way to start a Saturday! Some folks at the next table, which by the way was REALLY close to ours (typical of the rest of them) suggested the Apple-Walnut Pancakes with Cinnamon Sugar and topped with Maple Butter. UNBELIEVABLE!
There aren't many dishes that cause me to say wow with every bite but this one was more than exceptional. The pancakes were amazingly crisp on the outside and almost ethereal on the inside.
The apples were sliced in small dime-sized pieces and sauteed to make them soft. The walnuts toasted and in fairly large pieces. I think the cinnamon sugar was in the batter because that crust on the outside was sugary-crisp and the inside was so light and airy that it defied description. All of that combined with the Maple butter topping was absolutely amazing! Teresa was eating them but allowed me a few tastes and with each one I couldn't help but say wow. I thoroughly quizzed the servers for information on the ingredients and they gave up a few tips they have seen in the kitchen. I am going to try to replicate these and I'll let you know (along with the recipe) how it comes out.
After a trip to Northern Brewers on Grand Ave. in St Paul to pick up supplies for our first attempt at brewing beer, our next stop was Patrick's Bakery in Edina, MN across the street from SouthDale Mall. It's a French Bakery and restaurant and we wanted to try them for lunch. I ordered a cup of French Onion Soup and a Croque Monsieur sandwich. Unfortunately, the soup was just average to mediocre. I was surprised. It was not hot and the crouton was one that was pre-done ahead and then tossed into the soup at service. Not good.
Next was the Croque Monsieur which is a ham and cheese sandwich on very soft white bread with the crusts cut off and a layer of very nice Bechamel on the bottom, then the ham, then some Gruyere cheese. More Gruyere grated over the top and then grilled to melt the cheese and heat the Bechamel ( nice nutmeg in there). They placed it in the Salamander to melt the cheese on top to a nice crust. It was very good and made up for the poor soup. We were too full to try their amazing pastries but we'll be back again because Teresa's mother lives about 4 blocks from the place.
We did some shopping and then back to the hotel for a rest before dinner. Again our son gave us his advice for an Asian place called Orchid near his home in Hugo,MN. It was in a small strip mall on Cty Rd. J just off 35E on the west side. Teresa had a stir-fried beef dish which was good but the Vietnamese egg rolls were truly excellent. they were made with pork and chicken and were incredibly tasty. I had Luc Lac Beef which consisted of Tenderloin beef, onions and crispy potatoes in an oyster sauce on a screaming hot plate and served with an egg that was cooked on it's way to the table courtesy of the smoking hot plate. It was very good and the egg cooked as expected. A very interesting presentation and smelled really great in front of me.
Our final stop for the weekend was back on Grand Ave. in St. Paul's Crocus Hill neighborhood which, by the way contains some of he most fun places to visit if you're a foodie like me. My favorite spice store, Penzey's is right there across the street from our Sunday brunch destination, Dixie's. It's a southern food experience and it is very well done. Champagne Brunch on Sunday is a true delight. We were started off with Mimosas and then launched into their wonderful buffet with perfectly cooked scrambled eggs, corn pudding, excellent Jambalaya, bacon, Cajun sausage, Rib eye Roast with beautiful horseradish sauce and some really good scalloped potatoes. There was also some excellent fried chicken and waffles along with fresh shrimp and Crawfish Cardinale in Puff Pastry( marvelous). You can also order Eggs Benedict or an Omelet of your choice and of course, I tried the Benedict which was served on a fresh baked biscuit with diced country ham and a good Hollandaise which was a bit more lemony than the one at Cravings but still very nice. Desserts ranged fro Choc Mousse to cheesecakes to pies and there was just too much to sample. I highly recommend this place for any day of the week and especially on Sunday.
Happy eating, my friend
Tim