Week 10 - Key's Cafe

Our 2011 Brunch Tour sadly came to a close at Key's Cafe on Sunday, April 16th.  Key's was definitely another one of my favorite stops on our tour. Actually, I think we saved the best for last. We did call and make reservations but when the first part of our group arrived, they said they didn't take reservations.  Go figure! They didn't tell us that on the phone, but at least we gave them a heads up about our large group.  We did have to wait for about 10 minutes to be seated. Our table was up front in the bar area, which I prefer. It's a great place for people watching and I did see a handful of people I knew. The only problem with all the action up front, it can be pretty noisy.  Everyone's food was amazing!!  One of us ordered two plates of food and everyone else cleared most of their plates. When we are at brunch no matter what Sunday it is, our shirts are always a topic of conversation with other brunchers and Key's was no exception.  Everyone was curious to know what 'The Breakfast Club' was all about. One patron even took a picture of the back of our shirt to post on her personal blog. This was a fun place where I could of hung out for a while, maybe because it's such a busy place with people coming and going....great people watching! The only problem was parking.  Key's is located in The Foshay Tower in downtown Minneapolis and it's street parking if you're lucky enough to find a spot, or ramp parking. I would not recommend parking in the TCF parking ramp like Matt did unless you want to spend 20 minutes getting to your car. He couldn't find an unlocked door back into the ramp. That could of been because it was Sunday, but still not easy or fun. There are some outdoor parking lots just a few blocks away that might be a better way to go.  I work downtown and we order from Key's all the time and they do deliver! Great food, good prices! Every time I've been there or ordered their food at work, I've never been disappointed. I will be back!  They also have daily Happy Hour from 3-7pm.  Even though our tour has come to an end, we plan to start up again in the fall, so keep checking our blog for restaurants some of us try for brunch in the meantime, or watch for our new restaurant schedule later in the year.

Week 9 - The Loop

Sunday's forecast was sunny with a strong chance of FUN!  When we arrived at The Loop, there was a large booth waiting for us with a sign that read "Welcome to the Loop" with Breakfast Club written below. I thought that was so great. We did make reservations, but when we arrived it didn't seem all that busy. It was my first time at The Loop in daylight hours and I have to say it looked completely different, but in a good way. For being a night club on the weekends, it was very clean and showed no signs of being open until 2:00 am the night before. Our entire table ordered the brunch buffet which was $12.95.  We had all been together the night before, maybe a few of us over indulging a bit too much, and we couldn't wait to eat.  We all rushed to the buffet and filled our plates. When we got back to our table our wonderful waitress was right there asking if we wanted an omelet or a Belgian waffle to go with our already ridiculous amount of food. Of course I got the waffle with strawberries and whip cream and it was delicious!! The large Mimosa's and Bloody's were just reduced in price from $6 to $4. I'll take another Mimosa please! And Tap beers were $3. It all made for a delicious inexpensive Brunch. It was the first home opener weekend for the Minnesota Twins and the game started at 1:10.  During our meal, some decided they could still purchase last minute tickets and most of  the breakfast group went to the game. The Loop is within walking distance to the stadium, so we just walked over there following brunch. I think the walk was much needed after how much we all ate. All and all, I love The Loop. Can't wait to try something off their regular menu next time.  The Loop is an Iowa Hawkeyes bar and I have a good friend that is a huge Iowa fan.  I know I'll be back as soon as their season starts, along with our normal Friday and Saturday outings there as well.

Week 8 - Edina Grill

50th and France, Edina Grill was a busy Sunday. They don't take reservations and had a line out the door. They recommended calling an hour prior for a large party so they were warned. We were able to have one drink in their large bar area before being seated. Do not order a Bloody Mary unless you like your drink to taste like taco's. Mimosas are made with "Tang"...I think!  I just saw one and decided not to order. Food was fantastic and everyone was happy. Manager and staff were friendly and location has free parking. The line was still out the door when we left. Definitely will be back.

Week 7 - Joe's Garage

This Brunch followed a pretty crazy birthday weekend. Joe's is newly remodeled and has an outdoor rooftop patio that we are looking forward to trying out this summer. Joe's just recently started serving Sunday brunch. Some of us at the table wish we would have ordered what the person sitting next to us had ordered. Everything was very good, average prices and nice wait staff. Not too crowded.

Week 6 - Bryant Lake Bowl

Week 6 took us to the Bryant Lake Bowl. Unfortunately they do not take reservations, so a couple of us had to go at least 45 minutes early in order to get a table for our large group. The restaurant is small and can hear the sound of bowling in the back ground. Doesn't seem like a kid friendly environment but there was lots of kids there. This was only my second time there and I ordered the french toast both times and licked my plate clean. Parking is convenient in the back of the building and I've heard of some celebrity sightings but none on that Sunday. Average prices, great bloody's.

Week 5 - Bulldog N.E

Our trip to Northeast!  Everyone's food was fabulous...except mine! I do not recommend the corn pancakes, Dry, Dry and more Dry...with chunks of corn. Our wait staff was great. We had such a good time at the Bulldog, that most of us went back the following Friday for March Madness and spent the afternoon there, and I did not order the corn pancakes. Had a delicious burger and can't wait to go again.  In Northeast it's mostly street parking and the Bulldog is located close to other venues. After brunch, we went bowling at Elsie's. All around fun Sunday!

Week 4 - C.C. Club

C.C. Club is your typical corner dive bar. Very small menu and only one chef but the food was surprisingly good. Recommend their french toast for $4. Smaller group this week and the ones missing were bummed. Our tab was interesting and almost looked like a piece of notepad paper with food handwritten on one side and drinks on the other. It took us awhile to figure out our individual tabs. We celebrated Matt's birthday and brought in our own cupcakes. A random patron came over and helped herself to one. Interesting crowd! It's so dark inside if you're at the C.C. during daylight hours, be sure to put on your sunglassses before leaving the building. In spite of everything, I'm looking forward to my next adventure at the C.C. Club.

Week 3 - Ike's

Ike's was one of my favorites! You can tell by our large group everyone was looking forward to it. They seated us so we had a great spot all to ourselves. Our waiter was fantastic! You can pick your main selection and all sides come family style. While you wait the table gets a gigantic sticky bun. Tons of food and they never stop bringing more. Bloody's were a big hit but about $10 a piece. Tab was about $50 per person so I'm sure our waiter was happy with our large group.

Week 2 - Hell's Kitchen

Note: Wait staff at Hell's Kitchen wear flannel pajamas on Sundays. Kind of strange. You are probably wondering why the gentleman on the left is wearing pajama pants. "Bloody Mary spilled all over you by the waitress = free round of drinks for the table + free appetizers + free PJ PANTS = Priceless Sunday." Poor Kevin took one for the team. Our waitress was so upset about spilling the drink we hardly ever saw her again. Food was great, recommend their homemade peanut butter and jams. Drinks were pricey, got a round free, thanks Kevin! Also had a nice low key musician that was very relaxing. Parking isn't convenient and make sure to make reservations. Enjoy Hell!

Week 1 - Famous Dave's

Our first stop on our Brunch Tour was at Famous Dave's in Uptown, a Rockin' Blues Brunch Buffet w/ Galastic Cowboys. Our table was a little too close to the stage and a few of us were hungover, some more than others, causing the noise to be too much for the few suffering from the night before. Also it was difficult to carry on a conversation. Buffet was good but a little pricey at $16.95. But on the other hand, they have a $3 Bloody Mary Bar, very large Mimosas and Screwdrivers. The group is probably not in a big hurry to return but overall food and drinks were good!