Dining Out, Mickey’s Diner, downtown St. Paul, Minnesota, October 2007, all photos © 2007-2012 by QuoinMonkey. All rights reserved.
out to lunch weekends
ah, it’s nice to have a break
blue nightowl sandwich
Sebring 100 Jukebox (Top), Mickey’s Menu (L bottom), Mickey’s Nightshot (R bottom), downtown St. Paul, Minnesota, October 2007, all photos © 2007-2012 by QuoinMonkey. All rights reserved.
-posted on red Ravine, Midnight, Saturday, January 12th, 2008
Hey, QM, how fun to wake up to your midnight post. It reminded me of getting a craving for diner food in the middle of the night ; – ).
I did a writing practice this morning of how I’m not one for big breakfasts. I was thinking afterwards, what is my favorite meal, then?
I do love having lunch out with friends. I met up with a few friends (bloomgal and Jana, who’ve commented on the blog, and another friend named Janice) for a wonderful barbeque lunch on Friday. Lunches are definitely good.
I think dinner is always enjoyable for me, because it’s one in my family that we always sit down for. And I love sharing dinner with friends, especially at home, cooking and talking, the smells in the kitchen.
I suppose all meals are wonderful when you take the time to cook, eat, laugh, enjoy. But lunch out, breaking up the day that way, something especially enjoyable about that.
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ybonesy, I love going out for breakfast. I often order it for dinner. Dinners are fun, too, to spend time with friends and family, relax, talk, maybe watch a movie. But there is something about a big breakfast (around lunchtime) that is comforting to me.
I should clarify and say I rarely eat much for breakfast early in the morning. But when I go out, it’s usually later and I order a big breakfast with eggs, toasts, hashbrowns, bacon, maybe corned beef hash. I always get the hash out – never make it at home.
The Good Day Cafe is one of our favorites right now. Or Maria’s Cafe on Franklin. There are lots of good breakfast places here though. Ummm. I’m getting hungry.
BTW, Mickey’s is an institution in St. Paul and a place I am drawn to to photograph. It’s a real slice of life every time I go there, a mix of locals and people heading to events downtown. The food is what you’d call greasy but good. I think it’s open 24/7. But I rarely head over that way that late at night.
There’s one in downtown Minneapolis I like called Peter’s Grill. Another institution. Good homegrown kinds of food. Easy to walk to if you work downtown.
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QM, I really like the ripples of color reflected in the shiny jukebox…brought on memories of listening to Fats Domino singing “What’s the Reason I’m not Pleasin’ you,” on the juke box in the closest eating place to where I lived in Berkeley. Can’t remember the name of the little place, but they had the best char-broiled hamburgers I have ever eaten, before or since!
That song, as well as Fats’ rendition of “Blueberry Hill” seemed always to be filling the air, along with the fragrance of the smokin’ meat.
Liked your haiku too! here is mine for today…
Serena
On the window sill,
wrapped in soft, elegant fur
Queen of ev’rything!
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Woops! Just spotted my typo in the poem…should be window NOT “sindow” DUH!
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QM, I love old diners also! J & I found a great one not far from home. They serve breakfast all day long. I usually order 2 poached eggs on toast (they make the real deal poached eggs) ,bacon & homefries. Sometimes will switch to corned beef hash.I love it & J can’t stand it. I will also stray to creamed chipped beef oever toast & home fries. J thinks of that as an evening meal & we just had it 2 nights ago for supper. This diner makes everything from scratch. Gotta love those old diners! The best one we ever ate at was one in a small town when we went to The Little Grand Canyon in Northern PA. The name of the diner escapes me. But I know we have photos somewhere & that it is a very popular place in that area! D
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Now, my eyes are playing tricks on me…guess there wasn’t a typo…excuse me!
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Thanks, Marylin. The old jukebox does take you back, doesn’t it? I love the full standing ones, too. They are starting to make a comeback. And you can still find them in some of the vintage places. (I don’t mean the digital ones either, but the read deal.) I love how they sound like the old days with all the needle pops and ticks.
Queen of ev’rything! I can sure relate to that. Around here, Kiev’s the Queen. And she is sure to let Pants and Chaco know it, at least once a day. Thanks for sharing your haiku. It’s kind of a fun practice, isn’t it.
Do you have any little diners around your neck of the woods that you frequent today? When I used to live in out West Montana, we had some great ones.
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Marylin, I caught that one – I usually don’t edit them out of people’s comments…but in the poetry, it seemed like a gracious thing to do. 8) So your eyes are not playing tricks! Though mine are getting worse by the year.
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oh, diddy, I love creamed chipped beef over toast & home fries. Mom used to make the chipped beef for dinner sometimes growing up. It’s hard to find anymore. I also love to get the meatloaf and mashed potatoes. Or hot turkey sandwich. Now my mouth is really watering.
BTW, Marylin, I wanted to mention that I have typos all the time when I comment on other blogs. We just can’t catch them all in this fast-paced medium. It’s something we all do in blog world.
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Hmmm, I wonder what you ended up eating for brunch today, QM ; – ). I worked out at noon and came home famished. Made a turkey salad sandwich with some leftover turkey roast and a guacamole salad. Mmmm, I feel so happy now. Do you ever let your hunger go until you just about keel over? I do all the time. I have one of those bodies that, since I’m really more attuned to my mind than my body, I can ignore until I’m so weak I come home and stuff my face with anything I can find. I’m glad I actually took the time this round to make good (for me) food instead of eating the lemon tart that’s sitting on the counter.
Creamed chipped beef over toast…I think I’ve had it once. I wish I could say that I liked it, but it’s a little rich for me. I wouldn’t mind a bite or two. On Friday I ate my entire barbeque brisket sandwich, which was served on a hogey roll, and I thought I was going to float home. I had indigestion all day, and I skipped dinner that night. A delicate flower, that’s me 😉 . But seriously, I grew up eating pretty lean foods, and I find I can’t take the rich stuff now.
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I guess I’d be a boring date to take to a diner. I’d order a plate of onion rings and a shake 8) .
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yb, just checking in before rustling up some dinner. We had baked potatoes for lunch. Now getting ready to make a vegetarian Sloppy Joe Mix. I love barbeque of any kind. I grew up on a lot of it. And a lot of high fat, rich foods which are common in the South (though that has changed a lot).
No chipped beef when you were growing up, huh? What did your Mom make for dinners? Sounds like she cooked pretty healthy. Okay, off to make dinner. Quiet Sunday here.
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LOL, no, I doubt very seriously if you’d be a boring date! Food isn’t everything! Hey, onion rings are pretty rich. The salt of an onion ring and the sweet of a milkshake – that’s my kind of diner snack. 8)
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Yes, onion rings are definitely one of those rich foods I can’t pass up. I don’t like burgers much — I might have two a year. Remember when we went to Lotta Burger in Taos that time? I hadn’t eaten there since I was in my 20s!
I guess my dad was health-conscious. His parents died at the age of 35ish each, so Dad probably had a good reason to eat healthy foods. He made oatmeal for breakfast, that kind of thing. Mom never cooked breakfast, even though her mom made eggs and bacon and other fixings every morning for breakfast. My mom didn’t like eggs at all. And dinner was enchiladas, beans, tacos. Almost always a salad or fresh vegetables. Not a lot of meat — if she cooked pork chops, they were grilled almost to the point of being leather-like. She’s a great cook now when it comes to anything New Mexican, but she’ll admit to not being a good cook in general.
Anyhow, my family calls me a “granola girl,” I guess partly because I’ve always eaten granola and yogurt and fruit instead of fried eggs and rich foods. I do like bacon!!
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Mmm, baked potatoes for lunch. I loved baked potatoes. Potatoes are one of those essential foods. They seem to have everything they need in and of themselves.
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QM, We don’t have what would actually be called diners.
Favorite lunch place now is a bakery where everything is made from scratch…sandwiches, hot & cold, soups, salads. The County Museum Board, that is “who we answer to,” decided we must keep the Archives open during the lunch hour, so my co-worker & I can’t enjoy that hour out.
Fortunately, the bakery does deliver, so we think we will have them bring us lunch once a week. Not much of a choice in restaurants here.
Thanks for not only editing my poem, but letting me know that you did…even more important, since now I know my eyes (and/or mind) aren’t quite as bad as I thought! Whew!
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I still have a thing for those old time diners. I like the ones that have the small jukebox at your table. Of course the food is rich, but what the heck! It for me me , is a meal that is meant to be enjoyed! I could not not go to the diner on a daily basis. Those who know me personally know that in no way could I devour that much food in one meal! D
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Diners are great. I always love to sit at the counter…and just watch. I get some great shots just sitting my camera on the counter… clicking without looking.
We have 2 very old ones on Route 66. One that makes the best date shakes…(and I don’t even really like dates)! The other, a total trucker stop that Elvis once ate at.
The waitress’s (and thats’ what they call themselves) are always so cool.
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H, diners are great people watching places, aren’t they. I haven’t taken too many photos of people inside diners. But I was tempted the last time I was in Mickey’s. Walking into that tiny dining car is like walking into another world.
When I take the time to do leisurely road trips (like vacations with Liz) we like to go into local diners along our travels. There are distinct flavors to every part of the country. Some places, you can tell from the stares, you’re an outsider the minute you walk in. Other places are welcoming.
The rural diners in North Dakota, Montana, New Mexico, Nebraska, Minnesota are something. There is a whole underground diner culture going on!
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This post also brings to mind a tv show on The Food Network. It is called Diners, Drive-ins, & Dives, which is hosted by Guy Fieri. He visits these types of eateries all across the U.S.. I think it is fascinating! D
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diddy, is the Food Network on cable? Either I haven’t been paying attention or we don’t get it. We do get a couple of food channels. One has this woman with a Southern accent, she’s famous but her name is escaping me. Quite humorous.
We have this roving reporter here named Jason Davis that travels across the state doing little mini-documentaries on places in Minnesota. Once in a while, he does a diner or someplace fun to eat. I like to pay attention to the history of diners. They almost always started with someone’s home recipe and a Vision around Food!
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QM, yes The Food Network is on cable. I think the Southern lady you wrote about is Paula Deen. She is my favorite! I asked for & received one of her cookbooks for Christmas. She is the proprietor & owner of The Lady & Sons restaurant in Savannah Georgia. She tells stories about her life & I believe she has also written a book about it. Quite a remarkable woman! D
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I take back what I said about eating mostly healthy food. Tonight I made tacos (with ground buffalo and cubed potatoes), and somehow, even though I also made a salad, I feel bloated. Tacos are probably served at The Owl Cafe (LINK) in San Antonito, NM. Maybe not.
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Oh wait, here’s an even better link for The Owl Cafe, with a shot of the main counter: http://www.nmgastronome.com/nm/burgers/owl.htm
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ybonesy, that’s a great link to The Owl Cafe. What a great history it has. When can we go there?
diddy, ah, Paula Deen. I bet it is her I was thinking of. I’ll have to pull up a photo. She’s so funny. Liz and I saw her in a movie recently, too. She showed up in a food scene. I can’t remember what movie it was now. Let’s go to The Lady & Sons restaurant in Savannah Georgia in June (when we all meet down there for our reunion). 8)
You know, the family history on our side is also planted in Savannah (as well as Augusta). Mom and Uncle B. have traveled there together to dig up more details. But Mom and I didn’t make it last trip (ran out of time). So I want to go to Savannah for at least a day in June. Are you and J. up for it?
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We haven’t really talked much about going in June. We have so much going on that time of year. We have the camp & also our trip to the Outer Banks in August. Our week there with the kids. A lot will depend upon when he returns to work. I long to visit her restaurant & also Savannah! Time will tell! D
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diddy, no pressure! Just sowing some seeds. 8)
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QM, well even if J cannot make the trip, perhaps I could tag along? D
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diddy, nothing would make me happier. 8) Of course – you are very welcome to tag along. Would you like to? I’ve also told Grits and R3 about the trip. But I know how busy people can be. And most people these days plan vacations way in advance in order to even carve out any time off at all.
I’m still working on Liz as I’d love to show her part of where I grew up. And she’s never been to the South before. I smell some fun geocaching coming up (she’s much better at the technical parts than I am, but I’m very intuitive when it comes to finding caches).
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QM, of course I would love to go! I enjoy learning about J’s family history as much as I do my own. Of course a lot will depend on timing , etc. I was on red Ravine last night at the same time MOM was. Our paths always seem to cross that way. However, I have spent a few days reflecting, not willing to submit comments. I did find the story of her shooting incident quite amusing. I can visualize that moment as though I were present at the time it occured! It brought to mind her comments about how much older she felt she was young & how it is now the opposite for her. How true those words were. I think she is coming full circle! (The post I should be typing on!) Always…D
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diddy, okay, we’ll have to see about the timing. That hasn’t been firmed up yet. I noticed this morning that you and Mom had been on at the same time last night. Eerie how that happens. I did notice the same lines you did about Mom’s comment in the Circles post – how she was always old for her age in her teens, and now she’s young for her age. It is amazing how things seem to reverse as we age. All that wisdom comes creeping in, too.
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QM, I’m watching a special on the Food Network on the show I talked about earlier “Diners, Drive- Ins & Dives” & they just featured a place in St. Paul, MN called The Nook. It looked like a pretty interesting place & now I’m wondering if you have ever been there? D
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hi diddy, I’ve never been to The Nook. I had to look it up and found a review on someone’s blog. It looks like a great place to get a burger and fries. I did run across one review that said they had the best fries in the Twin Cities. Can’t believe I haven’t been there!
Hey, when you come to the Twin Cities, we’ll go to The Nook. It looks like the formal name is Casper & Runyon’s Nook – Saint Paul, MN.
Here’s the blog review I found:
Casper & Runyon’s Nook – Saint Paul, MN on Twin Cities Hotspots (LINK) – This small tavern is located at 429 Hamline Avenue near the corner Hamline and Randolph right across the street from Cretin Derham Hall
Hey, I thought of J. yesterday. Liz and I went to Art Shanties on Ice on Medicine Lake. They had the best ice houses. Liz took video. I got some great photos. Maybe I’ll do a post. Happy Sunday!
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QM, hope you are having a relaxing Sunday! The Nook got a great review on the show & the customers had a lot of positive comments on the food. Who knows? We just might show up in the Twin Cities!
J would enjoy the ice houses on Medicine Lake! I hope you do a post on the experience you & Liz had!
Have a great day! D
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