A Not So Long Northern Plains Story (Part Two)

On Saturday, the Monkeys and the Ambassadors headed to a place called Hell's Kitchen for breakfast. It's one of those "you gotta go there" tourista places. They have a whole corporate aura, some signature dishes, and a keen locale in downtown Minneapolis. The breakfast was good, though I found everything to be on the sweet side. I enjoyed my lemon-ricotta pancakes.

After breakfast (we spotted some red hats at the restaurant, so it's THAT kind of place), we motored over to the river and had a stroll along the old mill district and across the old railroad bridge. It was a beautiful day, and the river was flowing away, just a few ice patches clinging to the shadowy parts of the bank.

Our destination was the Guthrie, Minneapolis' internationally-recognized regional theatre. Our thespian fare for the afternoon would be Shakespeare's Two Gentleman of Verona. As we entered the performance space, it was clear that this was going to be one of those anachronistic productions. The stage looked like the set of a fifties TV show (which it turned out to be, with working cameras and monitors, to boot). I was wary, having had some bad experiences with "re-envisioning" Shakespeare; however, despite the musical number to start off with, I found the production to be pretty consistent and highly entertaining. I'd give it a thumbs up, for sure.

After the theatre, it was off to the Bryant Lake Bowl for a beer and some walleye, and Ikea for too much commerce (rugs and comforters and pillows and place mats and bowls...is that it? I hope so!). Then, an audible was called, as our original dinner destination was scrapped for the neighborhoodly charm of The Blue Door. There, we chowed down on some excellent "Juicy Looseys," burgers stuffed with cheese, purported to be a Twin Cities delicacy. Mine, a classic (American cheese), was pretty awesome, as was the Summit Oatmeal Stout I enjoyed with it.

And, with that, the night was upon us. We retired, prepared for a last hurrah of basketball and breakfast to come.