Back to the Bar

So if you know me, you know one of my biggest joys in life is a well-crafted cocktail. And this was a very good week for them!

I started by meeting my friend John last week at Volstead's in Eagan. Volstead's is tucked behind a red door at a place called "Burgers and Bottles" in a little strip mall, and it's a lovely little speakeasy. The tables were all reserved (at 3pm on a Friday?), but John and I bellied up to the bar, had some lovely cocktails, and enjoyed catching up. John was my first "real" boss, when the Ordway Center opened in 1985, and taught me a lot about customer service. He also has a wicked sense of humor (especially after a drink), so it was a lovely afternoon! I started with "In the Pink" (ok, but their pink gin was a little too sweet), and then "The Empress" — I do love me some Empress 1908 gin!

The next night, I met my friend Emily at Momento in downtown Saint Paul. It's where Pazzaluna used to be, which is a place that holds so many good memories for me. It's been redone with a much more casual feel with burgers and sandwiches and such, and was nice. I had a rhubarb collins and a beer — but again here, the most important part was the company! We closed the place down, and their staff could not have been nicer.

Last night, on our weekly date night, Patrick and I went to the Emerald Lounge, which I think I have mentioned here before. It's run by my friend/neighbor Mary's daughter Molly (HOW can she be old enough to run a bar? she is permanently 10 in my mind), and in just a short time has become a favorite for us. Last night we sat at the bar, appreciated the reverence with which the bartenders treated the drinks (a Green Lotus Grogg for me — though my fave remains the Anne with an E — and a perfect martini for Patrick), and had some chips and dip. On the way out, we ran into Mary and her husband Bill, plus our old friends the McCartys, then our friends Tracy and Jed coming in for their anniversary, and then our friend Lara!

From there we went home and grabbed the dog, then headed to Saint Paul Brewing, where the beer is good and everyone is always happy to see Brutus! Last night was no exception. Haze of Infatuation for the win — they have a new hazy, but it's not half as good.

Tonight, I met my friend Erica for happy hour at GusGus. It's a good thing I got there early, because that little place fills up fast! It's cozy and charming and I had a perfect "Tea Swift" and delicious fries, and Erica and I caught up on a hundred things in a  relatively short time.

Patrick and I ended the week at the place where our love of hyper-local craft cocktails began, at Lawless, which re-opened for regular service tonight. In the last 2 years they've done some outside service and their holiday event and innumerable cocktail kits, but sliding up to the bar tonight for just a normal drink there was truly coming home. None of our "usual" bartenders were behind the bar (we've had a history of being handed from main bartender to main bartender like some kind of unusual legacy), but the feel and the smell and the tastes were just as they had been, and it felt so good.

I will meet you for a cocktail at any of these places, any time!