Bar La Grassa
The Scene
Bar La Grassa is the first official New York meat-packing district, tres cool restaurant to land on the edge of the hippest hood in the city, the North Loop. Lots of warm wood, beautiful lighting, and a great Johnny Cash photo on the back wall. It’s a neighborhood joint that is a ten.
The Food
I love that the pastas are available in two sizes — so you can sample several small plates if you like, and I do. Favs so far: pappardelle with veal ragu; orecchiette with braised rabbit, paccheri with milk braised chicken. Oh, and if you like sushi, don’t miss the calamarata with raw tuna — cold/hot/salty — amazing.
Wine
Yes, please. From Oregon, Tuscany, Luigi, Piedmont, and on it goes. Very affordable and very, very nice.
The Team
Twice nominated for the James Beard Awards — Executive Chef Isaac Becker is in charge of as gifted a team you will find in any city. Can Minneapolis get any more incredibly capable, creative and talented chefs? Amazing. The staff is fun, gracious and professional, and it’s a treat to see some familiar faces from 112 Eatery in the neighborhood taking care of my table.
The Shizz
Okay. Sit at the open kitchen bar in the back, order the bistecca for 4 — it delivers all the meaty “yeah baby” you need to make it through the winter. The skate wing is like a weekend on the Brittany coast — the real deal with lemon and capers and crunch on the outside and melting oceanic heaven in each bite. Here’s where one of the gorgeous, metallic whites on the list is a must.
Wait! Flash back to the antipasti. The brushetta with soft eggs and lobster is a must. Try the spicy halibut with a cherry pepper oil once and you’ll find yourself detouring to the bar on your way home from work to just try it one more time to see if it is really that good. It is. The beet and avocado with citrus reminds me that there is a part of the world that still sees the sun — delicious. One more — the complex, earthy and utterly impossible to stop eating chicken and foie gras polpettone — wow.
The Unexpected
Not only is Isaac ever present, but rock star meat man Eric Sather is kicking out the jams with meat extraordinaire — proscuitto, mortadella, confit, salumi. (If this sounds wonderfully familiar, perhaps you’ve had the fortune to sample his wares at Clancey’s Meats in Linden Hills.)
Thanks Isaac and the Team — North Loop says “Welcome” and stay forever.
DINING HOURS
MONDAY – THURSDAY 5 PM TO MIDNIGHT
FRIDAY – SATURDAY 5 PM TO 1 AM
SUNDAY 5 PM TO MIDNIGHT
Full kitchen service until closing.
BAR HOURS
MONDAY – SATURDAY 5 PM TO 2 AM
SUNDAY 5 PM TO MIDNIGHT
www.barlagrassa.com
Bruce Huisinga
JB Hudson Manager
Food Connoisseur
