If there is one meal that summarizes most of the eating Martha and I did in Sweden, it would have to be the one we ate at Rolf’s Kök (pronounced “shook”), just north of central Stockholm. No fancy restaurant, Rolf’s was one of many restaurants downtown focusing on husmanskost, everyday Swedish cooking. Husmanskost restaurants generally […]

As I was biking through downtown Minneapolis on my way home from work yesterday, I noticed the new exterior at Solera, a tapas restaurant that I have enjoyed many times. I didn’t enjoy the new look. I find the Spanish flag awnings are a bit garish – not to mention nationalistic – compared with the […]

Yesterday marked one year from the first post on marthaandtom.com. What better way to celebrate than Simple, Good and Tasty’s dinner tonight at Brasa? Alex Roberts and his crew whipped up a sumptuous – and seemingly endless – feast of comforting local food, served family-style. (If you haven’t yet tried Brasa in St. Paul or […]

As I’ll be stuck at work this afternoon, I decided to volunteer on my own this morning to get started on what Common Roots is calling the final harvest. Details below. It’s been a great season for the Common Roots garden. The garden has already provided 1300 pounds of produce! Frost is predicted soon, so TODAY […]

As Tom mentioned, we had a lot of fun with his parents this weekend. They arrived on Friday in time for Surly Beer at Common Roots and dinner back home. Saturday morning we headed to the Midtown Farmers’ Market. Though we had planned on tamales from our friends at Fireroast Mountain Cafe, they hadn’t yet […]

This past Thursday I headed to Fenn Valley Winery with parents to sample a few Michigan wines on my last day there. While waiting for the Tasting Room at Fenn Valley to open (11 a.m. Eastern, sharp), we stopped for a slice of pie at Crane’s restaurant. They sell frozen pies at their counter and […]

As far as trendy foodie obsessions go, I am more of a pizza guy than a hamburger guy. I’m not as die-hard as some, but I have observed a number of the pizza-nerd pieties: I’ve eaten D.O.C. Pizza Margherita at Antica Pizzeria dell’Arte. I’ve waited two hours in line to try Roman pizza at Da Baffetto. […]

Martha and I celebrated our anniversary at Restaurant Alma last month. Alma is well-liked in Minneapolis and I’m not going to add my voice to the chorus by writing a review; suffice it to say that its reputation is deserved. Instead, I’ll just document our meal for your vicarious pleasure. Course One: Parmesan Flan and Bison […]

If you live in the Minneapolis area, you may have noticed Common Roots Café is starting a garden behind (and around) two houses just behind the café. Much work has already been done: the two homes are undergoing major renovations, plenty of asphalt and contaminated soil were removed, and new topsoil and compost were brought in. A pile […]

Hipster party!