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21. À la carte

    Too Much of a Good Thing

    There's a lot to like at Brickhouse BBQ, but the menu needs focus

    By James Norton

    Published: August 13, 2008

    "The fox knows many things, but the hedgehog knows one big thing." Isaiah Berlin cataloged a pantheon of writers and thinkers using this bit of old poetry, but it's also a...

22. À la carte

    Comfort Zone

    Weighing in on Fat Lorenzo's classic pizzas and hoagies

    By James Norton

    Published: August 6, 2008

    One bite of the pizza at Fat Lorenzo's and you know you've found something remarkable. The single slices ($3-$3.73) sprawl across the plate like deflated cheese zeppelins (they...

23. À la carte

    East Meets Midwest

    At humble Azuki, the sushi is so good you'll swear there's an ocean nearby

    By James Norton

    Published: July 30, 2008

    After putting down your chopsticks at the end of a meal at Azuki, you may be tempted to ask: Did this restaurant get lost? Doesn't it belong in San Francisco, where nondescript...

24. À la carte

    Five tips for enjoying 98 Pounds' Chinese/sushi buffet

    Rule No. 1: No Scarfing

    By James Norton

    Published: July 23, 2008

    The newly opened 98 Pounds buffet in Bloomington has sparked a surprising amount of positive online buzz for what is—in essence—a straight-up Chinese buffet with a...

25. À la carte

    Where every bloke knows your name

    Merlin's Rest is everything you want in a British pub

    By James Norton

    Published: July 16, 2008

    If libraries are where esoteric knowledge goes to quietly retire, Merlin's Rest is just the opposite: It's where obscure trivia grabs a black and tan and chats up the brunette...

26. À la carte

    Ricky Shaws brings some flair to the traditional Chinese menu

    Find takeout with a twist in Maple Grove

    By James Norton

    Published: July 9, 2008

    As gastronomic genres go, Chinese food has had a pretty rough run. The granddaddy of Asian ethnic cuisine in the United States, the Chinese restaurant now stands 36,000 strong....

27. À la carte

    People Food

    Citizen Cafe hits the neighborhood restaurant trifecta: Reasonable prices, creative cooking, and genuine passion

    By James Norton

    Published: July 2, 2008

    Soul: Some restaurants got it, some don't. It's a difficult thing to nail down with any certainty—in general, it's easier to talk about the technical execution of various...

28. À la carte

    Strange Brews

    Looking for the weirdest, most obscure beers in Minnesota? They're at the Four Firkins.

    By James Norton

    Published: June 25, 2008

    Every once in a while, you meet a True Believer. A hardliner. The type of person who glows from within with a laser-like intensity. The type of person who, if struck down in...

29. À la carte

    Love Indian food? Take a trip to Gandhi Mahal

    Travel the spice route to 27th Avenue

    By James Norton

    Published: June 18, 2008

    If you're a fan of northern Indian cuisine—with its luscious, fluffy pieces of naan and deeply spiced, creamy curries such as korma and the Westernized favorite, chicken...

30. À la carte

    The Cheese Artist

    Scott Erickson's creations aren't just food, they're a form of self-expression

    By James Norton

    Published: June 11, 2008

    Cheesemaking happens on many levels. There are 250,000-pound-a-day operations that ship out cheese using fleets of tractor-trailers, and—on the other end—there's a...

31. À la carte

    More Maria, Less Luigi

    Dining at the schizophrenic Totino's Italian Kitchen

    By James Norton

    Published: June 4, 2008

    Totino's Italian Kitchen—open since 1951 in general, and for the last couple of months in its new Mounds View location—is the kind of place that can start a fight...

32. À la carte

    The Wings of Angels

    Chelly's fried chicken treats are a little bit of heaven in Minneapolis

    By James Norton

    Published: May 28, 2008

    CHELLY'S CAFE 3758 Nicollet Ave. S., Minneapolis 612.825.6464 There can, will, and should be arguments about what "best" means when applied to just about anything in the...

33. À la carte

    Wrong Turn

    At Nordeast Eatery, meals too often go south

    By James Norton

    Published: May 21, 2008

    If you've ever wanted to know what it's like to feel pure, primal rage directed at a plate of strawberry-stuffed French toast, head over to the Nordeast Eatery. Place your...

34. À la carte

    Thai Soul Food

    Ruam Mit Thai dazzles with its take on classic dishes

    By James Norton

    Published: May 14, 2008

    RUAM MIT THAI 475 St. Peter St., St. Paul 651.222-.871; www.ruam-mit-thai.com The recently reopened Ruam Mit Thai, in downtown St. Paul, has a wall covered in framed...

35. À la carte

    Hit or Miss

    Señor Wong is not quite right

    By James Norton

    Published: May 7, 2008

    SEÑOR WONG RESTAURANT 111 Kellogg Blvd., St. Paul 651.224.2019; www.senorwong.com Stop me if the formula sounds familiar: lots of affordable appetizers from the...

36. À la carte

    Shh! Colossal Cafe is great

    A food writer reluctantly reveals his secret spot

    By James Norton

    Published: April 30, 2008

    COLOSSAL CAFE 1839 E. 42nd St., Minneapolis 612.729.2377 To the best of my knowledge, restaurant critics have no formalized and universally applied code of ethics. If one were...

37. À la carte

    The Great 2008 Dog Crawl

    A search for the Cities' best franks

    By James Norton

    Published: April 16, 2008

    As spring advances, hot dogs get increasingly delicious. They evoke street vendors, ball games, and grill-outs, and, as the temperature starts its creeping climb toward...

38. À la carte

    Roseville's China Jen is an old-school adventure

    A quest for the elusive soup dumpling leads to a rough-around-the-edges find

    By James Norton

    Published: April 9, 2008

    CHINA JEN 2193 Snelling Ave., Roseville 651.633.3113 Word on the street is that there's a humble little Chinese place in Roseville that has soup dumplings. There's no shame in...

39. À la carte

    The Best of Both Worlds

    What do you get when you cross the cuisines of Ethiopia and Singapore? Good things. Very good things.

    By James Norton

    Published: April 2, 2008

    T'S PLACE 2713 E. Lake St., Minneapolis 612.724.8868 • www.tsmpls.com"Fusion" has become a dirty word among those who love good food, and not without reason....

40. À la carte

    Qoraxlow: enigmatic, but rewarding

    The East African spot on Lake is irresistible

    By James Norton

    Published: March 26, 2008

    Enter the word "Qoraxlow" into Google and all you get are a bunch of barebones listings, all referring to the enigmatic, windowless East African restaurant located at Lake...