Northeast Social Club

I am beginning to have serious doubts over whether our economy is in a recession or not! Last night I was at Northeast Social Club (in NE Minneapolis, natch) and, much like Risotto, the place was packed wall to wall with people – and their patio was full. Crazy!

That being said – I totally get why! I had a wonderful time in every way!

It’s in a great location, just down the block from Erte’ and The Modern (note to self: must check out The Modern). It’s small with great décor – kind of a French blue textured wall paper, tin ceiling look, some pretty weird paintings on the walls that I kind of dug.

I was meeting JenO and Dee to celebrate my birthday and I got there a bit early so I grabbed a seat at the bar. The bartender seemed a bit slick and gave a “If you need help navigating the wine list, I’m an expert” kind of line. I thought – whatever, you aren’t as cool as you think you are – and ordered the Opolo Mountain Zin (red, of course. Not white. Never white!!). He was pretty excited about what I ordered and said it was his favorite. He handed me the glass – and topped it off with extra “for luck,” he said – and I smelled, swirled and tasted. Oh. Yum. Yum yum yum yum yum. It may be my new favorite as well.

When Dee came, she wanted wine as well but something very smooth, and he says, “Silky smooth?” And at the same time we go, “You'll love the Cline Cashmere…” (Clearly, we both have fabulous tastes - HA!) Overall, I was really happy with their wine list. It’s short, but all stars from what I could tell. We ordered a different bottle at dinner – a red Italian blend, can’t remember the name – that was also great.

We managed to grab a table and ordered welsh rarebit and scallops for apps. Did you know welsh rarebit is basically a cheese fondue over crostini with blue cheese? I always assumed it was some random meat of some kind. The scallops came on a bed of lemony sweetcorn and both dishes were delish! (Not a huge menu selection, but everything sounds and tasted just amazing.)

For dinner JenO had walleye and garlic mashed. I didn’t try the fish but the potatoes were excellent – tasted like they had been made with chicken stock. Dee had the short ribs with a smoked tomato sauce and au gratin potatoes – delicious. And I ordered the chicken hash, which I wasn’t sure about – hash just doesn’t sound that appetizing and gnocchi is always a sure thing. But, I went for it and it was awesome! Moist and flavorful. For dessert we ordered the key lime pie, which was tart and wonderful.

As you can see, I may have a new favorite restaurant! Knowledgeable wine guy, good overall vibe, excellent food and darn good service. I can't wait to take Josh there!

Most importantly, I had such a great time with Jenn and Dee. They are wonderful, wonderful friends!