Hazel's Northeast Popping where Pop used to be

Last Saturday, Sharon and I had a chance to try Hazel's Northeast.  This is the place that opened where Pop! A Restaurant used to be in Minneapolis at 2859 Johnson St NE. 

For me that was a bad start, since I liked Pop very much (particularly their salmon burger, which I thought was the best in town and I hope they still serve at their location in St Paul), but I can't really blame them for that.  I am pretty sure they didn't muscle that other restaurant out of the locale.

The place looks just about the same as Pop used to look.  We were thinking about having breakfast, but by the time we got there, it was late enough that we ended up sharing two lunch sandwiches.

I ordered The Traveler (above), a brisket, caramelized onion and horseradish sandwich.  I thought it was very good.  The onion was sweet, the beef was tender and the bread was nicely toasted with good fries that didn't taste like the frozen kind.  If I have a criticism was that the horseradish was rather mild.  Funny enough, Sharon's half was way to spicy because of the horseradish (as in way, way to spicy, to the point she did not finish it).

Sharon ordered a bacon, cheddar and egg burger that was served with syrup on the side to make it more of a brunch menu item.  I will admit that we didn't try adding the syrup, but after having eaten it, I can see how it might have gone well.  The bun was buttery, the patty juicy and the egg appropriately cooked to be inside a sandwich.

Overall, I thought it was a good meal, although I will have to do some convincing to get Sharon to come again after her horseradish overdose.  I think it is worth some negotiation.

A Windy 26.2 - The Eau Claire Marathon Report

If it wasn't because of the high wind, this might have been just as good a forecast as I could have hoped for a marathon.  Cloudy and between high 30's and low 40's.  With up to 24 mph winds, the windchill was in the low 20's.  Still not bad if you have appropriate clothing, until you head into the wind, that is.

The start was a little hectic for me.  I got up at 4:00 AM the morning of the race and was out the door by 5:30 AM.  Drove for 1:45 to make it to Carson Park in Eau Claire with 45 minutes to spare.  Seems like plenty of time, but the parking area was about 1/2 mile from the start line and the lines at the porta-potties were long.  By the time I was ready to rock and roll, it was just under 5 minutes to the gun.  I like to have more time than that to get into 'the zone', so as soon as we got started, stress got the best off me and I started a tad too fast.


A few miles later I calm down and finally get in the mood for a long run.  The wind is really not that bad and the hills are not too steep.  The altitude chart showed most of the hills (several u and down) in teh first 12 miles and then pretty much flat to the end, so by the time I was hitting mile 11 I felt I had it in my pocket.  Here I am nearly 10 minutes ahead of my time and feeling great.  This wind is really nothing.

And then I enter the wind tunnel. And a long one it was.  From mile 11 to mile 19, I basically run into the wind.  It was cold, a tiny bit of snow and it felt like running uphill non-stop.  The picture at right was taken by Lela, a co-worker who was going to run the race had it not been for a stress injury a few weeks before the race.  This is at mile 15 and you can see me leaning forward into the wind to try cut my way into it.

It was pretty miserable.  By mile 18, I wanted to quit pretty bad and it took all the mental toughness I could muster to keep going.  It also helped that between mile 18 and mile 23 I didn't see any easy way to drop out of the race and get a ride to the finish.   By mile 23 I have sufficiently payed my dues and it is really not worth quitting anymore, so I kept going.

My final official time was 4:13:42.  Really not bad given the weather.  Under normal conditions I usually estimate a 4:10 to 4:20 completion time, so right within my expectations.  I do wonder what my time would have been with good weather, but then again that is not here no there.  I can also winder what my time would have been had I been training longer, since I was younger or if I had longer legs ;-)

After the finish, I get a ride to my car by a young woman riding a very small YMCA bus.  I ask her for a good place to have breakfast close by and she recommends the Altoona Family Restaurant.  Before heading back to Minneapolis I make a brief stop there and reload carbs and protein in the for of Eggs Commodore (Eggs Benedict with sausage patties instead of ham) and hash-browns.  The breakfast really hits the spot and nearly makes me fall asleep on the drive back.

All an all a good race.  Glad I drove there and took a look at a new route.  Now I can rest until October.  I have a few other races before then, but no other Marathon until Twin Cities.   Time to kick back and relax for a few day...

Crescent Moon Bakery

We left Friday night on a mission: finding a place to have dinner that none of us has tried before.  A seemingly easy task for four people, but all proposals that we could think of had been tried by at least one of us.  We opted to drive down Central Ave to find a place.  On our way to a Thai place, we saw the Crescent Moon Bakery, an Afghani restaurant on 2339 Central Ave NE.

The multiple neon signs on the window were somewhat at odds.  One advertised the best pizza next to another one that read frozen pizza.  Anyway, after seeing the pictures on the entrance de decided to give it a try.

Not sure of what to order, we chose the sampler platter for four.  I should say the picture below is very misleading.  This was a HUGE platter.  The four of us ate to our heart's content and still took a to-go box that could have fed another two.

In addition to the food on that platter, the meal came with a salad and some pitas.  $60 bought us the meal for four and four bottles of water (no liquor, wine or beer).  Overall a great meal.  My favorite part was the roasted goat stew on the white bowl.  It was tender and juicy.  The lamb sausage (hiding behind the gyro meat at three o'clock on the platter), was nicely cooked, showing just a smidgen of pink in the center. 

We left with two gyro calzones to go (dinner tonight) and the desire to come back to try their award wining ethnic pizza, the house specialty, with Eggplant, Mushrooms, and Black Olives.

Update (May 15): Just yesterday we tried their signature eggplant pizza.  It was barely OK, sot as good as their more traditional middle-eastern food.  It was light (thin crust, no meat and not as much cheese as you usually see in American pizzas), but still not deserving of the Best Ethnic Pizza award it received.

Rachel's... eternally closed no more

Four years ago, when Punch open on Hennepin Ave, it did so next to another restaurant that was also about to open, Rachel's.  The awning has been there since, across from Kramarczuk's, on 222 Hennepin Ave, having us wonder if it was ever going to open (some saying it was open all along but for private events only).

Well, no more...  Rachel's is now open to the public.  The place has somewhat odd decor and a temporary menu (which we were told will soon see additional items, not different ones).  A few Phoenicians made our way to try it and were pleasantly surprised by the friendly staff, quality of the food and low prices.

The menu contains a few appetizers including Monte Carlo wings (both restaurants have the same owner) which we ordered and enjoyed.  We also learned from the waitress that the seasoning on the wings at Monte Carlo tripled over the years as people asked for a stronger flavor.  At Rachel's yo get the original recipe.  

Below appetizers you can find a list of burgers (including one with green olives) a few sandwiches and a short list of entrees.  At our table we ordered a french dip, a turkey burger, some steamed mussels and  a roasted veggie sandwich with brie.  All came promptly and were delicious.  The turkey burger was juicy  with a nice dark bun.  The mussels were plump and tender and were served with fries and toast.  

The roasted veggie sandwich with brie (a baguette really), which I ordered, was in my opinion the best thing at the table.  It was truly loaded with veggies, has the right amount of brie and came in a nice crusty bread.  In short here we have another jewel opening within walking distance from the Phoenix.  Our little corner of the world is getting more and more interesting.  I look forward to see how the menu will expand and evolve.      

Update (May 7): Last night we returned to try the recommended egg salad sandwich.  We were told the salad is made to order and includes no less than 5 eggs per sandwich, so to avoid a protein overdose we opted to share one.  We also opted to try the one with sliced pimento olives.  Definitely a good idea, because the egg salad, while not bad, it is a pretty plain one.  The olives gave the sandwich a good kick.

Cafe Lurcat: Terrific as always

Sunday was winding down and we weren't quite ready for the weekend to be over.  The thought of ending the day with a hastily prepared dinner in front of the TV was just not cutting it.  We worked the phones and text messages and soon enough we found an accomplice.  A few clicks away we also have a reservation at Cafe Lurcat.  A safe bet.


As we waited for our accomplice, Patty Mayonnaise, Sharon and I shared a treat from the raw menu.  The hamachi with noodles and jalapenos looked great on the menu and didn't disappoint when it arrived to the table.  A good pairing to the Sauvignon Blanc we were drinking.


With three at the table, we split their signature salad (an award wining one no less), the apple, cheese and chive salad (pictured at right).  The first time I saw it a few days before, it rocked my salad world.  Salads don't usually look like that.  Apples and Manchego cheese cut up in shoestrings form with a light dressing and some chives.  Beautiful and refreshing with the cheese and the apples complementing each other like an acid and a base.   Great combination.

The rest of the meal was just as good.  Judge for yourself:

House Made Udon Noodles with Chinese Barbecue Chicken and Caramelized  Orange Sauce

Sautee Sea Scallops with Han Hocks and Swiss Chard

And of course their French Fries - Some of the best in town not to take anything away from the fries at 112 Eatery

I am in!

And that is all I have to say!

Masu, The New Kid on the Block

The new kid on the block in Northeast is Masu Sushi and Robata.  How about that... Japanese no more than a few blocks from our bat cave.  The place is nicely decorated with an industrial interior (making it a tad loud due to the hard concrete surfaces) and plenty of colorful Japanese touches to get yo in the mood for sushi.  Particularly interesting is the wall at the end of the dining room entirely covered with the eyes of a Geisha.  Nice touch...

Masu Maki Roll - The house specialty

The place was packed for a Wednesday, but since they opened less than a week ago, it is expected (and I am sure hoped by the owners).  We had a reservation for 6 and ended up having 11 people, but still were able to seat without much of a wait.  The menu has a variety of sushi, small dishes and noodles.  Most of us ordered sushi to start and then some noodles.

The sushi rolls were good, although they were not entirely what I was expecting.  The house specialty and namesake (pictured above), has all its seafood cooked.  The shrimp tempura style, and the salmon very rare but definitely not raw.

Spicy Arctic Char Roll

The Spicy Arctic Char Roll was good, but it had so much cilantro that it was pretty much all yo could taste.  One of the things I like about sushi is that with the fish being raw and the few ingredients usually part of the dish, you have nowhere to hide bad quality ingredients and as a result you get some of the best seafood available.  This might have been the case last night, but the fresh seafood flavor was amiss.    

Pork Belly Ramen

Having recently returned from Tokyo and having enjoyed some great ramen noodles there, we put them to the test.  I ordered the Pork Belly Ramen and Sharon ordered the Tonkatsu Curry Ramen.  OK, perhaps it was not fair to Masu... still, they did not fair too bad.  The pork belly was very nicely cooked.  Fork tender and flavorful.  The poached egg was a vice touch, although I prefer having a soft-boiled egg as we did in Shinjuku.   Overall a very successful dish.

Tunkatsu Curry Ramen

Sharon's Tonkatsu Curry Ramen was also good also not quite as impressive.  The curry, usually the star of a dish with its pungent flavor, was rather mild, but the coating was crispy and the noodles and broth were appropriate.

Overall my review may come across as lukewarm, but I was pleasantly surprised with the place.  Service was very good (even for a new place that is usually trying to come to terms with their initial success), the portions were large enough, the prices appropriate and the decor inviting.  It is not their fault that they caught us just a few weeks from a terrific culinary adventure in Japan.  Being as close as it is to home it could easily become a regular hangout for us. 

Trail Mix 25K Race Report

Terrific race!  I was close to missing it due to an ankle injury, but thanks to Bridget's very poor advice, I run it anyway and had a blast.  Thanks, Bridget.

I run it with my New Balance 800, my only pair of trail shoes.  Needless to say, given the snow, rain and mud everywhere, mine no longer look as clean as the picture.  I really love these shoes.  They are probably the primary reason why I run trail races, to use them more often ;-)

As I am lining up behind the start line and just about 15 seconds before the gun, I see a back of a head I recognize.  Is that Tim?  As I get closer i see that not only it is Tim, but he is with Liz, Rob and Mel, a subset of the Phoenix running club.  The gun goes off and we start running.  I run with them for about a quarter of a mile and then take off.  I see them only once after that as we are running in opposite direction (as the course requires) as I am getting almost to the finish line.

Anyway, no more than a mile into the race, my ankle started bothering me.  I pushed through and the pain never elevated from that.  A day later, I feel great.  I sure feel the hills in my muscles, but my ankle seems to have survived he race.

The course is a series of loops in Hyland Park.  25K requires two loops, those attempting 50k will need to do four.  Anyway, great race.  The terrain has lots of hills and because of the rain the previous day, plenty of mud.  I think that made it more fun.  3/4 into tehrace I was even considering signing up for the 50K (~31 miles) next year.  By the end I was wondering if I could handle another two laps.  Maybe taking it easier.  A lot easier.  Something to think about.

Official time is not yet posted, but my Garmin 205 showed 2:29:04 or 9:36 per mile.  I was quite pleased with that given the elevation changes visible on the uploaded route.

 

Change of Heart

Before finally deciding to drop off the race, I call Bridget.  Bridget is an Ironman finisher, as tough as runners come.  She is the person I can count on when I need bad advice ;-)

It takes me under five minutes on the phone to decide that the pain in my ankle is no reason to stay away from the trail.  "Just pop a dozen ibuprofens and take it easy on the run" is her advice.  Pretty much what I wanted to hear.  So while I will pass on the ibuprofen overdose, I think I will attempt the Trail Mix 25K after all.  

No sooner than I make that choice, the weather forecast starts turning south.  33 degrees (feels like 25), windy (up to 21 mph) and snow showers.  Too late now, the decision has been made.  I will hit the trail in less than 3 1/2 hours.

Third Friday Already?

After a couple of misses, we make it again to a Third Friday Happy Hour at the Phoenix.  Our contribution is Beef Tenderloin Crostinis with Caramelized Onions and Preserved Lemon-Green Olive Mayonnaise.  The snow-flake looking stuff on them was Maldon Salt, probably the most beautiful salt out there.  I am not a big fan of beef, but they came out pretty good.