Chicago's Christkindlmarket (Daley Plaza), Chicago, IL

This was a chilly, outdoor treat on a sunny Tuesday. We avoided the after work rush and shopped in the afternoon. Though I hadn't been back in at least a decade, I was pleasantly surprised by the offerings and amount of handmade items, many from Germany (as the name of the market would imply).

If you have a chance or desire, go check it out. You'd certainly place some gifts under the tree that someone will cherish.

Van Buren Street Pedestrian Bridge, Milwaukee, WI

2000 words

Kyatchi, Minneapolis, MN (Kingfield)

After a quick stop at the chiropractor  (aka, back-cracker), I needed to delay heading out in rush hour traffic and decided this 9-month old newcomer would fill the bill.

I don't have the whole story, but one of the brother-sister co-owners, Sarah, gave me a good amount. She was very conversational, like I've never experienced in the Twin Cities before. In the long run, Kyatchi is hoping the neighborhood's face lift helps lift the commerce all around.

I don't know about that, but I can say for sure that I loved everything I tried and NEED to go back.

The menu sticks to the Japanese theme of their name and offers a wide variety of dishes, including: sushi/sashimi, yakitori, donburi, and even their take on hotdogs (recently awarded best dog in town).

I loved the menu and had a hard time picking just a couple items. I settled on two yakitori (traditional Japanese grilling) items and a donburi (rice bowl). I had Japanese peppers and beef on the grilled skewers, then light a fluffy chicken meatballs in the rice bowl. It was all delicious.

As a small thank you,  I also was given two saki tokens for my next visit - who wants to go?

How do you spice up Thanksgiving?

Beer!

CôV, Wayzata, MN

Very delicious mushroom-swiss burger with fries, busy night, great energy. Post-dinner walk in the crisp night air was a nice ending.

The World's Best...lipbalm

It's hard to explain why... wait, I can explain why:

- Smaller height to fit better in pocket/purse, but wider at the same time to cover lips fast

- Pleasant, non-gender specific, non-cloying scent, almost unscented but not quite

- Twist mechanism is pretty hard to twist... which is perfect so it doesn't spin up in your pocket while walking

- Smooth formula that goes on easy and lasts

- It has a cool Euro-vibe

See, it's true. It also helps to have friends in Scandinavia, which is where it's sold. Tack så mycket.

"Metamorphosoup" / Bare Bones Puppets, St. Paul, MN

It's a little hard to explain, but in a nutshell, each Halloween local puppeteers, artists, musicians,  performers, and volunteers spend three months putting together a performance celebrating the changing of the season and remembering loved ones lost.

Is held on the St. Paul side of the river front, south of Minnehaha Falls. It's all outdoors, with straw bales for seating and the night sky for added ambiance.

This was a sight to behold and pleasant music for the ears. I tried my best with the pictures, but I'd highly recommend going instead.

Nothing like a little fire on a Saturday night...

This was a portion "in the deep sea", with the little bit of light only coming from those creatures that made it themselves - it was really cool

Do you see the man in there?

There's two men in the Triceratops

Yeah, they kind of fought each other

Add caption

These guys were maybe 8-12' tall, on stilts, on uneven ground

Can you make out the stag? Kinda?

You can learn more about attending or being involved HERE.

The last Halloween in Delano, MN

The friends that have hosted me many times now are moving back towards the cities... this was the last Delano Halloween for now. We did it up right, including "pregame" food, decorations, tally sheet, and even fire color packets. I think the 108 trick or treaters appreciated the efforts. I know I did.

Beans fortified with more beans, bacon and hotdog pennies

Mu-hahahahaha!

I have heard simple copper powder will provide this effect

Happy Halloween

Corner Table, Minneapolis, MN

My second time, during restaurant week, just go...

Appetizer of smoked salmon rilette, very good with baguette

Main dish was the lightest gnocchi I have ever had, with Hen of the Woods mushrooms, a creamy Gruyere-based sauce who's origin I forget but loved the light green color

For dessert, they had me at "chocolate cake"... plus caramel, whipped cream, and some sort of burnt sugar brittle/meringue. Chewing the brittle basically fused my teeth together for a few minutes - like if you've ever bite down on a half-sucked Jolly Rancher

You're helpless to resist...

Terzo / T3RZO Vino Bar, Minneapolis, MN

A few pics from a quick, solo, weeknight dinner. I would love to take a moderate to big group here. The people are great, and the food and drinks follow their lead. 

I started with a drink, Indeed Brewing's Sweet Mamma Jamma

They do something nice with some of their beers by offering a 10oz pour. In some cases the ABV is so high that the city requires this smaller size. In my case, I like being able to have some of one and then some of another if I so choose

Each night they offer a different $1 bite of something interesting. If I recall, this was peppercorn whipped goat cheese, arugala, walnut and red grape. It usually does not disappoint, especially for a buck

The other side of the same spoonful

I had one of their porchetta sandwich selections that they do very well. This one was porchetta with truffled crimini mushroom and garlic-parsley aioli. Not BBQ or smoked pork either, but just really nice slow-roasted pork. They give all the sandwiches an Italian spin rather than anything with American flavors. I mean, this place is part of the Broder's family of restaurants (three kids, three joints).

While I ate, the bartender was nice enough to give me some drink samples too - I had 2-3oz of a great Dog Fish collabortion with an Italian brewery (now forgot which) and 2-3oz of a very nice Sangiovese-based red wine.

Though everything was pretty filling, I went whole-hog (pun intended) and grabbed a scoop of almond gelato to finish the meal.