Chef without His Own Restaurant
What do the best chefs in town have in common? They were once sous chefs. The
fellow to keep an eye on these days is Peter Botcher, who is chef-genius
Steven Brown's right-hand man. Frequent Levain diners will recognize Botcher as
the bearded redhead standing next to Brown, helping him turn out some of the five-state
region's most wonderful food, including one of the year's best meals-a nifty roasted
boneless squab, stuffed with its own liver, a Botcher creation, according to Brown.
4762 Chicago Ave., Mpls., 612-823-7111
New Restaurant
Isaac Becker and his wife, Nancy St. Pierre, rearranged the local culinary landscape
by opening a small restaurant downtown Minneapolis and offering a deeply personal
cooking style. In a world dominated by 200-seat mall restaurants, focus-group-driven
eatery concepts, and a risk-adverse dining audience, 112 eatery flew
in the face of conventional wisdom and proved that guts, talent, and integrity
still matter. At the toughest dinner table in town, you'll feel like you're
at a restaurant in a city that's all grown up. Don't skimp-take advantage of
Becker's smaller offerings and don't miss the lamb sugo over hand-made stringozzi
pasta or the sautéed escarole with anchovies and other unusual side dishes.
112 N. 3rd St., Mpls., 612-343-7696, 112eatery.com
Sweet Delivery
Chocolate chip cookies-warm, gooey, Ghiradelli-chocolatey, with a touch of oatmeal
crunch-are delivered straight from the Tank family's oven to your door via Mini
Cooper. It's best to order a day ahead, but if you're as addicted as we are,
you can pick them up yourself at Tank Goodness. Open weekdays; $20 a
dozen (two-dozen minimum for delivery). PS: The Tanks have added cinnamon rolls
too (a.m. only, one-dozen minimum). 3002 W. 50th St., Mpls., 612-824-8265, tankgoodness.com
Bakery (Reason To Enjoy a Carboholic Relapse)
Our town has been blessed with several great bakeries, but Rustica is
second to none. From its faultless baguette to a focaccia with none of the cakey
textural handicaps that plague this loaf at other places, every day brings a
great regular menu, and a specialty bread selection. The Cañadas de Azucar,
a Sunday and Wednesday sweet bread, and the Friday challah are both worth the
trip, but the best may be the daily miche, a dense country loaf. Try the Danish
pastries and frangipani tarts when available, and if you see a chocolate tartelette
in the pastry case, jump on it. 816 W. 46th St., Mpls., 612-822-1119, rusticabakery.com
