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It wasn’t just an intense craving for Chinese cuisine that drew me to St. Paul’s Little Szechuan this dreary, misty Sunday afternoon, after all, it’s not like there are a lack of Asian restaurants in the city. Today was different though. I craved spice, and not just any Asian dish doctored up with some chili paste and Sriracha sauce would do. Thankfully, I remembered the Twin Cities’ authentic Asian food guru, Little Szechuan. Specializing in what their website calls “the most popular of the eight Chinese culinary traditions,” Little Szechuan’s menu boasts 100+ dishes ranging from the familiar – Kung Pao Chicken – to descriptions on the more adventurous – Szechuan Cold Bean Jelly, anyone? – and mysterious – Dan Dan Noodle (?) – side uniquely designed by Chinese chefs hailing from the Sichuan Province. What results from a restaurant who is not afraid to incorporate truly traditional flavors and refuses to “Americanize” their dishes, is a refreshing variety of exciting tastes – spicy, savory, piquant, salty, and everything in between. In fact, rumor has it that after trying a dish blanketed in Little Szechuan’s spicy chili peppers, your tongue goes numb, your palate reopens and you start to taste flavors completely differently from then on.

Forgive Little Szechuan’s humble cafeteria-style décor. What the restaurant lacks in atmosphere, they make up in sheerly divine dishes. On our visit to Little Szechuan –

Tick Tock Tea Pot

after sipping down a warming cup of hot green tea concealed in a metal tea pot resembling Tick Tock from Disney’s Return to Oz – my food companion and I let our gluttonous side do the talking and ordered three dinner entrees to share: Fish Fillet in Spicy Tofu Broth ($13.95), Ma Po Tofu ($10.95) and Tea Tree Mushrooms in Dry Pot ($12.95). Don’t let the classic Asian dishes like Sweet & Sour and Cream Cheese Wontons lure you in. What sets Little Szechuan apart from other Asian restaurants is their strength to make you fall head over heels for a “weird” dish. Order something that raises an eyebrow, and you won’t be disappointed.

Our entrees arrived in record time looking vibrantly beautiful.

Fish Fillet in Spicy Tofu Broth

The Fish Fillet in Spicy Tofu Broth was served much like a soup with almost a gelatinous texture. The breaded fish was delicately cooked to perfection, melting with each bite – making it a slight challenge to eat with chopsticks. The dish was also covered with a shower of red Szechuan pepper, bits of tofu and a deft hand of Asian vegetables – Chinese cabbage, sprouts and onions. An utter delight!

Tea Tree Mushrooms in Dry Pot

I was instantly happy that we ordered the Tea Tree Mushrooms in Dry Pot as it was a clean-tasting dish of scallions, cilantro, onions and crisp tea tree mushrooms that cleansed the palate of spice and allowed the taste buds to prepare for the next dish. The Ma Po Tofu was another savory delight, bright red in color, fragrant and fresh with Szechuan peppercorns that did indeed numb the mouth. This particular dish is often described using seven specific Chinese adjectives: numbing, spicy hot, hot temperature, fresh, tender and soft, aromatic, and flaky – and luckily this authentic entree hasn’t been “toned down” for those not familiar with Szechuan spices, making it an amazing and fiery dish.

Ma Po Tofu

Little Szechuan is truly a St. Paul gem. Pay them a visit and your taste buds will thank you for nurturing your adventurous side.

Little Szechuan, 422 University Ave. W., St. Paul, 651.222.1333

St. Paul Farmer's Market.

When it comes to sustainability, Heartland Restaurant has long been one of St. Paul’s finest proprietors of fine dining with a local and organic spin. Once tucked away in the Mac-Groveland location, Heartland recently made the jump to the district often likened to NY’s Soho, Lowertown. This allows it to highlight a relationship between its food and direct farm sources on display at the St. Paul’s Farmer’s Market across the street – a simple paring, yet an innovative idea that subtly links fresh produce with the final product, fresh cuisine. After all, there’s a mindset that goes hand-in-hand with a trip to the Farmer’s Market. While surrounded by delicious organic ingredients and friendly local farmers you may find yourself making tiny goals towards culinary self-improvement. You inevitably start daydreaming about creative recipes for that bundle of Swiss chard in your bag. You want to eat better, to live better…maybe you’ll even take up composting… It’s that steadfast mantra of better living through dining that flows from the hearts and fingers of the chefs in Heartland’s kitchen straight onto the meticulously arranged plates night after night.

Hand-cut angel hair pasta from Heartland. Photo by Steve Rice.

One could call Heartland a foodie’s dream restaurant, because like the mainstays of dreams the nightly menu is constantly morphing, a new set of provocative dishes every evening. This ever-evolving carte, not only provides diners with a multifarious sample of a Heartland’s artistry, but also a mouthful of season-appropriate ingredients. On any given night, one can expect such delicacies as veal bacon glace de viande and Butterscotch duck egg pot de crème on the three course Fauna fixed menu ($40 per person) or chilled golden beet borscht and morel mushroom gnocchi on the Flora menu ($30 per person). Their upscale, chef-driven menus feature ingredients indigenous to the Upper Midwest, including wild boar, salmon, Rainbow trout, savory wild mushrooms and regional artisan cheeses. In past years, the restaurant has received soaring reviews from former City Pages’ food critic, Dara Moskowitz, Mpls/St. Paul Magazine’s, Andrew Zimmern, and the Star Trib’s Rick Nelson, who have praised it for a creative and ingenuous twist on simple heartland-style cooking.

Heartland Executive Chef, Lenny Russo.

Heartland owner, Executive Chef and James Beard Foundation’s 2010 Best Chef Midwest Finalist, Lenny Russo, continues to showcase the best modernized Midwestern cuisine in his newly opened downtown restaurant with a few added bonuses. One, the new space is located in the Market House building (a former shoe factory turned condos) and is significantly larger than the Mac-Groveland location. It features a 80-to-90 seat dining room that overlooks the farmer’s market, several chef tables that wrap around the exhibition kitchen, an in-house, watch-them-work butcher shop and a gourmet market (set to open at the end of August) that will feature Heartland’s own proprietary label products including house made charcuterie, jellies, and stocks and soups, plus and grab-and-go Heartland prepared lunch items.

Can self-improvement really start in the kitchen? After a visit to Heartland, we think you’ll be inspired to say yes. So, maybe start your day with a trip to the St. Paul Farmer’s market and end with a fabulous dinner at Heartland to see if you can make the goal of better living through food a reality!

Heartland Restaurant & Farm Direct Market, 289 East Fifth Street, Suite #104, Lowertown, St. Paul