Jacks Prime Burgers & Shakes

Saturday night we decided to go out and celebrate my husband's upcoming 30th birthday!  We received a gift card from some great friends to Jacks Prime Burgers and Shakes and thought we'd check the place out since the reviews on Yelp were fantastic.  Oh my gosh this place is so good.  The burgers were cooked in such a way that we didn't feel overly stuffed when we walked out.  I had the Cheeseburger with regular fries and a mint chocolate chip shake :o)
The best way to describe these burgers is basically they are not greasy at all.  It tasted like burgers off the grill in the back yard.
The restaurant was like you basic burger joint on the inside with long booths and lots of people.  The one thing that was amazing was the projection screen playing Disney movies for all the kids.  It kept my son busy the whole time we were there!  I will definitely be going back to this place over and over and over.

Sopranos Italian Kitchen

Happy Birthday To Me!  Last night my husband and I (kid-free) went to Sopranos Italian Kitchen for dinner before a movie.  This restaurant is fairly new so we weren't sure how the food would be.  It was sooooo good!  We started off with calamari with a Sriracha aoili and tuna tar tar with smoked avocado.  Then came my main course of lobster gnocchi.  I have never had gnocchi before so I wasn't sure what to expect, but the dish was super.  A nice light sauce to balance out the lobster and gnocchi.  Finally we ended with a chocolate caramel budino.  We were in and out in about 45 minutes and the service was great!  Very fast, even with the restaurant full of people.  Of course my mommy brain was turned on and I forgot the camera so you'll have to trust me that everything was fantastic!

Duck Liver? Yes Please!

Every year on our anniversary Brent and I like to try a new restaurant.  This is especially important now that we have a son and can't go out to eat very often.  We chose 112 Eatery for dinner on our 5 year wedding anniversary.  Half of the food we couldn't pronounce, but everything was SUPER!!! 
Complimentary Nuts and Olives before dinner:

We started out with some (hot) Fried Shishito Peppers

I wasn't as adventurous as my husband was, ordering the Tagliatelle pasta with Foie Gras Meatballs.  This dish was so so good!  The meatballs just melted in your mouth.

Brent ordered a bunch of different small plates that included:
Steak Tartar

Frog Legs

Chinese Fried Eggs

And we finished with the BEST dessert I think I've ever had...I could have had 5 of these for dinner!!
Nancy Silverton's Butterscotch Budino.

Rojo Mexican Grill

After a great pedicure from Glamour Nails my sister and I hoped over to Rojo Mexican Grill at the West End for lunch.  Everything was great...the weather...the chips & salsa....and finally the fish tacos!  They came with this great chipotle mayo and sticky rice to die for!!!  I was really impressed and full by the time lunch was over. 

Weekend Recap

What a great holiday weekend!  My husband and I were able to have a much needed date night this weekend and went to Ciao Bella in Edina for dinner.  We had no idea this restaurant existed and it's part of the same people who own Zelo in the Twin Cities (which we LOVE).  The restaurant looked so similar to Zelo with art work on the walls and great local handmade food.  All their pasta is hand made and they have a lady that comes in every night to bake fresh bread!

Since we were baby-free for the night I ordered a yummy Kendall Jackson Reserve Chardonnay...

Here's me enjoying my glass of wine...

We started out with of course Calamari.  These were the largest Calamari rings I think we have ever had.  They also had a citrus aoli sauce that was superb!

Then I ordered Linguine with Sea Bass, Salmon, Ahi Tuna in a red sauce.  What I love about this restaurant is that not only can you get a 3oz glass of wine, but you can get a half plate of food.  The half plate is pretty much exactly the perfect amount of food for me.

After dinner we headed off to see Cirque Du Soleil's new show OVO.  I think I held my breath about a hundred times during the show.  I'm pretty sure that all the performers are made of rubber!  It was such a great memorable show!

The next morning it was time to dust off the golf clubs and shoes and get out all the golf balls!  The first golf game of the summer was Sunday in Stillwater with my family.  Last year it was so humid and hot it was so nice to golf in 60 degree weather and not get off the course dripping in sweat.  Although I did not golf the greatest game it was so nice to know the snow is gone and it's time to golf!

And Monday I spend the day with my two favorite people...

Pinstripes

Pinstripes Restaurant Review:
Well, I had no idea what this place was when one of my friends suggested we meet there for dinner and a little indoor bocce ball.  I walked in and it was so big!  I can't believe I had never heard of it.  They have tons of bowling and bocce lanes as well as a full restaurant and party rooms.  We met in the restaurant at 6pm with no reservations and sat down right away (this should have been a warning).  I ordered a margarita pizza that was just average at best.  Even after eating the left overs today I think i'll definitely go back to play bocce ball on a cold rainy day, but will have to skip dinner in their restaurant.
(no pictures since the food wasn't that great)

Bistro-11

So last weekend I ended up in Tornado town (Loretto) for a sort of bridal shower dinner.  I didn't even know Highway 55 went that far out in the state.  Just when you think you have blown way past it, you come on this tiny town of a few newer buildings and Bistro-11.  Everything grown locally with a changing menu.  It was a very small restaurant, but the food was fantastic.  The bride-to-be had been there about 20 times I think.  We started off with Calamari (my favorite), beef kabobs and baked brie.  I ordered the Coque Au Vin (i've never had it before) and the chicken just fell off the bone.  It also came with a mashed potato puree and green beans (good, but not as good as Grandpa Bud's).  Because they had messed up our reservations we also got chocolate cake (the best i've ever had) and passion fruit cheesecake.
What a great place if you're willing to make the trek out there!

Shanghai Bistro Stillwater Opening

Sushi!
As my son, Max would say "num num num num num".  Nuff said...
Shanghai Bistro had their "soft opening" to their fourth restaurant in Stillwater this past weekend.  Here's the rundown
Location:
Just a few steps north of Main Street in a giant space that includes an outdoor patio for the spring/summer.  Inside it has a center bar all lit up complete with TV's to watch all the Minnesota sports (Twins!) games.  The sushi bar is cleverly located on one side of the restaurant almost making it seem like a totally different place than the rest of the restaurant. My favorite thing: VALET PARKING! 
Food:
Fantastic. 

We started with some appetizers: Crab Rangoon (yum), Potstickers (a family favorite of mine), Shrimp, and Edemame (my husband and I get this at every sushi restaurant we go to).
Drinks: Since I was still fighting off my spring cold I was not able to get my usual alcoholic drink of choice=wine, but the green tea served in its own teapot was very nice.  Great beer on tap and a wide variety of specialty drinks.
Now for the good stuff...SUSHI!!!

We had an array of great sushi rolls including: Red Dragon Roll, Salmon Avocado Roll, John Roll, Spider Roll, and Number 9 Roll (my staple roll I get everywhere).  All the sushi was fantastic.  None of the rolls fell apart before you put them in your mouth (so annoying when that happens) and the waitress told you what every roll was on the plate.

Dessert:

Not your typical Asian dessert, but the Tiramisu was great.  Very light and airy.  Big enough to share!
Service:
Sensational! Our waitress was great.  She was very down to earth and wasn't overly chatty.


Can't wait to go again!!!