On the Road Again

Wow, it's been a while since my last post! It's been a busy month for me, one during which I was on the road a couple of times. Three weeks ago, Karen and I managed to get away for a long weekend trip to Minnesota. My high school friend Chris was getting married in Minneapolis, so we headed back to my home state for the wedding and took the opportunity to spend some time with my mom and sister. It was Karen's first trip to the Land of 10,000+ Lakes, so I wanted to take her around for a tour of the Twin Cities. We checked out the most obvious tourist attraction, the Mall of America, on our first evening in town. Due to the timing of our flights and the wedding events, we only had one full day to take in the scenery, but we were able to fit in a tour of downtown Minneapolis and take a nice drive around Lake Calhoun. We also drove around the University of Minnesota campus and saw the site of the collapsed bridge. In the afternoon, we took a long walk in the Minneapolis Sculpture Garden next to the Walker Art Center and enjoyed the fabulously warm and sunny weather.

While we were there, I wanted to introduce Karen to some regional food specialties. Unfortunately, our trip took place a week after the State Fair ended; otherwise, we probably would have sampled some food on a stick. I wasn't sure where we could go out for some authentic hot dish, so instead I decided to take her out for a pannekoeken breakfast. Despite living in one of the world's food meccas, I have no idea where one can get these Dutch pancakes in the Bay Area, but you can definitely find a few restaurants in the Twin Cities, such as Pannekoeken Huis, that serve these Dutch treats. The location near my mom's house recently closed, but fortunately there is another location not too far away. There were a lot of pannekoeken selections from which to choose. I settled on the bacon pannekoeken, while Karen went with the rhubarb special and added in some fresh strawberries. My mom ordered a non-pannekoeken dish, much to my surprise, as she missed a chance to order her favorite banana cream Dutch pancake. While the pannekoekens were tasty, I must admit that I was slightly disappointed that our server didn't run out of the kitchen, with hot skillets in hand, announcing the arrival of our order to the rest of the diners. Then again, it would have been quite amusing to see our tall, tattooed waiter calling out "Pannekoeken!" as he delivered our meal.

Served Up on a Stick

Earlier this week, SF Gate food critic Michael Bauer attended the Association of Food Journalists conference in my home town, the Twin Cities. While he was there, he and the 60 or so conference attendees from around the country took the opportunity to visit the annual state get-together, the Minnesota State Fair. In his blog, Bauer writes about his visit to the festival, an homage to the state's agricultural heritage and a celebration marking the end of another summer past.

While the fair features a multitude of art and science exhibits, musical performances, and carnival rides, I would argue that it is the food that draws people to this event year after year. Indeed, for a brief twelve short days at the end of each summer, the state fairgrounds become the proverbial center of the culinary universe. You see, among the 4-H livestock judgings, the farm equipment displays, the roller coasters, the REO Speedwagon concerts, and the stock car races lies the true raison d'être of the State Fair: food-on-a-stick. As any true Minnesotan knows, it is not the molecular gastronomy nor the Slow Food movement that marks the leading edge of the culinary world today, but it is rather the answer to the simple question,

"What food can I serve on a wooden stick this year?"
As Bauer notes, the Minnesota State Fair is the home to all foods served on a wooden skewer. From walleye pike-on-a-stick to alligator-on-a-stick to spaghetti and meatballs-on-a-stick to Reuben Dog-on-a-stick to macaroni and cheese-on-a-stick to pork chop-on-a-stick to the classic Pronto Pup, the State Fair has it all. You can even get hotdish-on-a-stick, complete with cream of mushroom soup dipping sauce, though I'm not sure why it took until 2006 before someone revealed this secret to the entire world. Of course, you can find other culinary gems there such as deep fried cheese curds and cinnamon sugar lefse, but it's the food-on-a-stick that brings the people back year-in, year-out.

This food-on-a-stick phenomenon is not just restricted to the Upper Midwestern food scene. Folks visiting the Texas State Fair can now enjoy peach cobbler-on-a-stick. Sadly, the cobbler is the only entry for the Big Tex Choice Awards this year. Hopefully, if all goes well, you will be able to enjoy Fried Coke-on-a-stick at the next state fair.

Hometown Food Scene

I just read a New York Times article about the emerging food scene in the Twin Cities. Several notable chefs, like Wolfgang Puck and Jean-Georges Vongerichten, have recently opened their doors in the burgeoning downtown restaurant scene. I'm definitely looking forward to checking things out the next time I'm back home.

Jeremy Iggers bids adieu

Jeremy Iggers, food critic for my hometown newspaper, the Star Tribune, and fellow college alumnus, writes his final restaurant column today.