Birthday season is one of my favorite times of the year. A lot of my friends and I share spring/summer birthdays which is the perfect time for grilling, patio bars, and excuses to sit outside with beers and cocktails all day long.
Today also happens to be my bestie, Steph’s 26th birthday!
“Happy Birthday, Stephanie!”
My sister and I have birthdays that are exactly one week apart, making her just less than one year younger than me. On April 28, she’ll turn 25 and one week later (May 5, if you want to send me presents!), I’ll turn 26. We’ve done joint birthday parties in the past, but as we got older we started carving out our own lives, as she and I are very, very different.
Anyway, she’s celebrating her birthday this weekend and has asked me for recommendations for Friday night’s dinner and drinks. The problem, is that she hasn’t been particularly clear on what it is she’s looking for. The conversation we just had is below.
Help me out, Twincians. Where should Mir celebrate her 25th that meets her criteria below?
Miranda: anyways, I still don’t know what to do Friday night. I need help! Advice! Suggestions?
Doniree: ok, how many people?
Miranda: still not sure. best guess is appx 12-15
Doniree: what kind of atmosphere?
Miranda : fun, trendy, upbeat. not too expensive- and not chino latino. but something sorta like that- only with more normal good food
Doniree : Broders Pasta Bar (Penn and 50th) – or moto-i (sake brewery next to the Herkimer… think tapas bar, but Japanese – VERY COOL, hip, trendy – would call ahead to see if they can seat 12-15, but I think they can)
Miranda: Broders looks too goofy 
Doniree : GOOFY? It’s probably the one of the favorite Italian restaurants in Minneapolis. family owned, pretty nice
Miranda: ooooh it looks too seafoody
Doniree: broders? no, it’s a pasta place
Miranda: I want something simple like burgers or pizzas or something. but not applebee’s or green mill
Doniree: ohhhhh, you said funky and trendy; I can GET you a good pizza place! give me a few.
Miranda: something in between chain and funky. trendy, but not funky. and not necessarily JUST pizza. i want people to have a choice
Doniree: well, i’m sure you can do pizza AND pasta at broder’s…
Doniree: well, what about Buca?
Miranda: Not Buca. Honestly I’m not a fan
Doniree: throw me a bone here!
Miranda: we just went to a place in St Paul a few weeks ago that was PERFECT. But a lot of the people that were there would possibly come to my bday so I don’t want to go there again
Doniree: where’d you go
Miranda: I can’t think of what it was called, but I really liked it!
Doniree : where was it?
Miranda: St Paul somewhere close to the capital
Doniree: so you want: “something in between chain/funky; trendy, not funky. and burgers/pizza, maybe?”
Miranda: yup
Doniree :::scratches head:::
Miranda or i could just have people over, but it’s fun to go somewhere
Doniree: what about punch?
Miranda: hey where’s that outdoor place near the Dome with the huge patio
Doniree: huge patios are a PLUS. What about pizza luce? That’s all kinds of twin cities’ funk and some of them do have patios.. at least the one in uptown does
Miranda: true… something like that would work!
Doniree: OR if you want to have people over you can order pizza luce – if they deliver to you. they may or may not go that far
Miranda: true
:::pause:::
Miranda: senor wong’s i think may be where we went a few weeks ago
Doniree: OH! that’s where we went last year for my bday. Mir. That place is trendy AND funky. I think our definitions of that are different
Miranda: I guess so… I LOVED it! soooo good
Doniree: wasn’t it?!
Miranda: but I don’t want everyone to go there after we were JUST there like two weeks ago, and yes! but that food was still somewhat normal. I didn’t have a hard time finding something normal on the menu
Doniree: “normal” you are so funny miranda
Miranda: So something LIKE that. With some weird foods but not ALL
Doniree: wtf is “weird”you’re confusing me.
Doniree: ok, you had also told me Mpls, when you asked for suggestions.
Miranda: yeah cause I’d rather be in Minneapolishehe
Miranda: I don’t know!
Doniree: sr wong’s is like latin-asian.
Miranda: true but the stuff on the menu didn’t sound crazy:) what about zelo?
Doniree: i LOVE zelo! have you been there? lots of great seafood and pasta dishes, a patio, downtown – EXCELLENT food, FUNKY CRAZY ART on the walls
Miranda: no i think i meant zeno. ? i don’t know!
Doniree: ok, totally different. Zeno is a wine bar in uptown. small, but if you called ahead you could see if they’d accommodate a big group. last time I was there i had mussels, but I’m sure they have other “less weird” food on the menu
Miranda: Reasonable pricing is a biggie!I think Zeno had a really good pita or something that I had
Doniree: well, ZELO would be a little spendier, so maybe that’d be fun for just you and I to do for a sister night on the town or something
Miranda: oooh nice!
Doniree: ok… so half weird foods, half normal foods in a burger/pizza, but not necessarily JUST pizza place that’s trendy, but not too funky and can seat up to 15 people. (do you see why this is funny to me? )
Miranda: yes yes yes I get it. I hate making decisions! I just want someone to tell me where to go. But I gotta go. Talk to you later! Love you!
Doniree: hahaha well… i’ll keep thinking
~ * ~ * ~ * ~ *
Help! Where should we go on Friday night?!
*mad props to anyone who got the dual Austin Powers reference
Doniree Walker is an aspiring yogini, jet-setter, foodie, and story-teller. She's a writer and geek girl by trade, and a lover and a connector by lifestyle, and is currently obsessed with: train travel, single-serving chocolate milk, and brand new notebooks. Oh, and she's also part supergirl. Wanna be friends? 
{ 5 comments… read them below or add one }
1. Thanks for the bday shout-out, love!
2. You have incredible patience! No offence to Mir, but I was lost at “Broders looks too goofy.”
3. Tugs Tavern. Go!
Ooooh, I love birthdays, and birthday cake, and gifts, and gift wrap…and everything that birthday’s stand for in fact!! x
MJ….pick 3 places that y’all mentioned. Think about if for a little while. Write down pros and cons. First on the list should be will it accommodate my group. After an hr or so, strike one from the list. Think about the other two for a couple of hrs, then strike one from the list. BINGO!
Have fun. Be smart!
Love Dad.
You are sooooo patient with your sister. If I had that conversation with my brother … well, around line 5, I would’ve started laughing my ass off at his indecision … which would’ve led to a huge fight because I was laughing at him. That’s why, when we’re going to visit him in NY in a couple weeks, he just tells us where we’re having dinner and we take it like a man. hahaha.
long time reader, first time commenter…what about Shamrocks. They have a huge patio, not too fancy and sometimes they even have live entertainment. Plus there’s the option of a Juicy Lucy.
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