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As of this moment, St. Paul is host to what may possibly be the best to be had in two important categories of foodstuffs:  sandwiches and the sweets.  In a recent personal taste test o the newly trendy French macaron, Sweets Bakeshop handily  took top place, with about a mile of space between them and second runner up.  (Consider that Sweets was up against some of the juggernauts of the baking world; no slouches for competition.)

Says Ly Lo, co-owner and pastry chef at Sweets:  ” A good macaron is a very delicate thing to make.  You have to know how long to fold the almond into the meringue; if you over-fold, the cookies will be wrinkly, and if you under-fold, they will look puffy.  If you bake them too long, they’ll be like a cracker, and if you bake them too little, they will fall.  After they’re baked, you have to pair them up so the two halves of the sandwich match.  We like to think our cookies are a good example of a proper macaron.”

I’ll say.  Up against their competition, Sweets had all of the textbook qualities of the delicate confection, with a crisp-chewy exterior that doesn’t shatter when you bite, vertical “feet” (the bubbles along the edge of the cookie) and a pure color (no browning).  Speaking of color, don’t over look the blue macaron– somethingof a signature item.  Because it’s blue, you might think it holds an overly sweet blueberry blast of sugar, but no– instead it’s salty caramel, an beguiling blend of sweet/salt that will leave you reaching for another.  Why the blue?  “Because we think they taste a little like the sea.”

Since life is indeed uncertain, I’d start at Sweets Bakeshop and then make my way over to The St. Paul Cheese Shop (the one and a half mile distance between them make a perfect bike ride or even a stroll for a fine spring afternoon, with any number of bars in between if you prefer a libation to make your day even finer still).

You can ask yourself all day long what makes a perfect sandwich and you’ll likely end up with fewer answers than ponderings.  At least, that’s what happened to me.  But I’ve got my finger on a couple of those meditations, and if you get your hands wrapped around a St. Paul Cheese Shop sandwich so will you.

Too often, a sandwich is premade and wrapped, left to languish in some cooler, the lettuce going transparent and flaccid, the bread becoming dodgy– I hate to even think about it.  But perhaps a worse sin even than this is the practice of filling a sandwich with dreaded under-premium ingredients.  It’s as though the builders of these sandwiches assume that since things will be obscured by two pieces of bread, you could put wax inside and no one would be the wiser.

But no, a sandwich ought to be a meal between two pieces (of  hopefully superior quality) bread, and if you stripped way the starch, you should  be able to eat that meal on it’s own accord– naked.  Which brings me to my point:  since St. Paul Cheese Shop is a cheesemonger first, and a sandwich shop second, and thus there’s not a chance in hell you’ll find something unfortunate in your ‘witch.’

There’s a list of options posted on the wall, but since they’re made to order (of course) the good people behind the counter (at least one of which is a bonafide cheesemonger, meaning he truly knows his stuff) are happy to accomodate your innermost sandwich desires.  “We’re so not dogmatic here,” I was told.  Awesome.

Options are not only any cheese you see, but also European-style charcuterie and delicatessen meats like Sopressata, Capicolla, proscuitto and like that.  The bread is just right for this sort of thing– sturdy, yet chewy enough that your jaw won’t wonder what hit it the next day.  Finally, don’t overlook the handmade spreads such as sundried tomato, and the lemon hummus– some of the best to be had anywhere around, short of homemade.  One last thing:  McClure’s Pickles.  An addition of these to any sandwich (I staunchly vote for the hot & spicy variety) is like putting Frank Sinatra on your ipod.  Things just got elevated to a new level of great.

Sweets Bakeshop

2042 Marshall Avenue

St. Paul, MN 55104

651-34-7138

St. Paul Cheese Shop

1573 Grand Avenue

St. Paul, MN 55105

651-698-3391

Like it or not, St. Paul does its fair share of playing second fiddle to Minneapolis’ dining scene. Sure, St. Paul has its gems, ones you’d never see on the other side of the river—W.A. Frost, Cosetta’s, and even Mancini’s come to mind. But when it comes to the fresh, new and exciting, St. Paul was due. Thanks to three new eateries (yes, all of which can also be found in Minneapolis) St. Paul has just received a much-needed breath of energy.

Brasa, Premium Rotisserie

When Brasa first opened in Northeast Minneapolis, they were nearly eaten out of product on opening day. Chef/ Owner Alex Roberts (also of the more haute Alma) could be seen hanging out in jeans, hunting for to-go boxes and overseeing beans and rice coming out the open kitchen. It seems the idea of fast, fresh, good food family style struck a nerve with the dining public, and that niche certainly isn’t relegated to one town or another. Grand Avenue got it’s own Brasa this summer, and with its menu of a Southern/ Caribbean style blend of roasted meats paired with sides of rice, beans, and wholesome veggies, there’s hardly anyone who could say no to dinner here.
All proteins are scrupulously sourced from local farms, like fall-off-the bone 12-hour slow roasted pork from Heritage Berkshiere, MN. It should go without saying that all of the meats are available as sandwiches too, like a smoked braised beef with pickled cucumber and jalapeno. Vegetarians can be happy here as well, with a meal of rich, country style cheese grits, creamed jalapeno spinach, and red or black beans seasoned to precision.
Roberts opened this restaurant with a mind towards what he feeds his own family at home, noting that people sometimes mistake restaurant and bar food for real food. “If you ate that way every day, you would probably get sick,” he reminds diners. As such, the food at Brasa contains no MSG, high fructose corn syrup, or processed ingredients. Meat and dairy comes from free roam, pasture-based local farms, and many other ingredients are organic and sustainably raised.
“The menu at Brasa is the kind of food I want to feed to a pregnant woman, a hard working guy, a growing kid,” Roberts adds. Duly noted, and delicious.
Brasa, 777 Grand Ave., 651-224-1628

Barrio & The Bulldog

Goodbye, old jokes about Lowertown rolling up the streets come sundown. My last several visits to the surrounds of Mears Park featured plenty of Pretty Young Things teetering around in stilettos, walking designer dogs and sipping craft beers on sidewalks. The ingenious side-by-side addition of these two hipster watering holes has all but transformed dusty old downtown into a bustling hotspot.
Barrio Tequila Bar by Minnesota’s most famous chef, Tim McKee, picks up where taco joints leave off by elevating sopes and carnitas to haute cuisine. Prices can get a little steep ($4 for a single taco and well into the $10 range for shots of top shelf tequilas) but what you’ll get is an evening worthy of your hottest party dress. Check out happy hour specials twice daily, plus weekend DJ’s.

If you’re after something slightly more casual, just slide on over to the Bulldog, where burgers and hotdogs are just what your belly ordered for soaking up suds, along with a sports/ game vibe proper for jeans and Uggs.
With over 100 beers on the list, bring along your biggest snobs– they’re sure to find something. (If not, hey, you can always bounce over to Barrio and get them tequila happy.)
Bar food favorites are a cut above dive bar standards, such as the B.E.L.T. (bacon, egg, lettuce and tomato). With it’s medium cooked egg, I want this thing for breakfast. Burger fans will love the Humpty Dumpty, with cheese and a fried egg, and, of course you can’t go wrong with a classic Chicago dog (tomato, pickle, onion, relish, yellow peppers and mustard).
Everything is priced under $10, happy hours are twice daily except on weekends, and if you’re in the mood to play, don’t miss the newish 22-foot shuffleboard.

Barrio, 235 E. Sixth Street, 651-222-3250; barriotequila.com
Bulldog, 237 E. Sixth Street, 651-221-0750; thebulldoglowertown.com

To be from the hardworking, salt of the earth pedigree of St. Paul means many things. It means that that your uncle would be embarrassed if he caught you paying thirty dollars for a steak, that growing your own tomatoes is a matter of course, and that a simple supper of panfish, sweetcorn and an iceberg salad is the best meal in the world. Which is not to say that we don’t appreciate the finer things. However, they’d better indeed be fine. Four not-necessarily cheap dishes, plus a drink, worth skipping Sunday night dinner at grandma’s.

Organic Scottish Salmon en Sous Vide, Meritage
The very cooking term sous vide may be enough to send a value-conscious diner packing; and I’ll admit to suspecting that this particular technique of slow-cooking is just a way for egocentric cooks to congratulate themselves. Until now. Chef Russell Klein of Meritage has not only convinced me that salmon doesn’t have to be a yawn-inducing throwaway menu item, but that sous-vide has a real and true purpose– and this is it. The lushness of this unctuous, spoon tender filet has me going on record that this is the best piece of salmon I have ever eaten, and for that it’s a steal at $28.
Mertiage, 410 St. Peter St., St. Paul; 651-222-5670; meritage-stpaul.com

Poutine, Forepaugh’s
Think $11 is a bit rich for frizzled spuds? No ordinary spuds, these. Poutine, a dish that has its roots as Canadian street food has been appearing on menus all over town. Fries smothered in gravy an then topped with cheese curds, it makes would-be snackers understandably giddy. But Forpaugh’s is the only version that’s delivered. In fact, after a lovely multi-course meal at the recently restored Historic mansion, it’s the poutine that stays with me. Chef Don Saunders’ (who can count at stint at the much-heralded French Laundry as part of his resume) version starts with hand-cut fries, and this is important—the all beef gravy sits at the bottom of the paper cone where it ought to be— a logical place for dippin’. Then come the curds and a piquant flourish of pickled chilies. The whole packaged is sealed with spicy-sweet chili glaze. Unbelievably, it’s all done with glorious restraint, so that if you must, you’ll still be able to tuck into an expensive steak after sharing this as a starter.
Forepaugh’s, 476 Exchange St., St. Paul; 651-224-5606; forepaughs.com

Steak Frites, Ngon
It almost isn’t fair to mention Ngon on a list like this one, as the French/ Vietnamese eatery on University is overall one of the best values in town. However, after recently encountering a $38(!) steak-frites on the other side of the river, I was swooning over the discovery of Ngon’s version for half that. $20 will get you an aged 100% grass fed ribeye with a lemongrass-scented demiglass, sweet potato fries, and even grilled asparagus for a bit of green. It also happens to be the most expensive item on their menu.
Ngon, 799 University Ave., St. Paul; 651-222-3301; ngonbistro.com

Tasting Menu, Heartland
Perhaps the most priceless aspect of Heartland Midwestern Restaurant is chef/ owner Lenny Russo himself, the spooky-smart raconteur who, when not cooking, is almost always good for an earful on the politics of food. Whatever you choose on his menu, you can rest assured that it is impeccably sourced with the utmost attention paid to its lineage and subsequent preparation so that it maintains the integral essence of what the Midwest is. Try a 3-course tasting menu for $40.
Heartland, 1806 St. Clair Ave., St. Paul, 651-699-3536; heartlandrestaurant.com

The St. Paul Grill's Bar

Cocktails, St. Paul Hotel
If you want to turn a regular old day into something extraordinary, simply duck into the dramatic lounge of the St. Paul hotel and order your cocktail of choice. Suddenly, you’ll be transported to a more elegant time and place, where your barman bothers with the classic details of mixology, not to mention liquor pours fit for a man (even if you’re a lady). The smoky mirrors reflecting the zillion bottles of booze barely offer space to glance at your own reflection for a reminder you that you’re not in a fedora seated next to Don Draper.
St. Paul Hotel 350 Market St., St. Paul, 651-292-9292; saintpaulhotel.com