I'm kinda annoyed by all these three star reviews where they flat out say they loved the food and thought the beer selection was awesome. Â How does "loved it" equal "Ok"?
Anyway, my husband and I ate there tonight and I am definitely a fan. Â I got the burger medium and my husband got the Ploughman's plate and then we split them between us. Â The burger comes with an egg, and I can honestly say it was one of the most delicious burgers I've ever had, aside from the fact that it was a hot mess. Â The Ploughman's plate is kind of liver-heavy, which I like, but it may not be for everyone. Â It was pretty hearty, three cheeses, lots of bread, rabbit liver pate, several other meats that I can't remember exactly and fresh mustard. Â It was delicious and overall quite a nice dinner. Â
We got there at 6:00 and were seated immediately (with no reservations), but by the time our food came, the place was fairly hopping so reservations might not be a bad idea. Â Decor was pleasant, but I could have lived without the "Sows" sign on the women's rest room. Â The waiter was nice and also bore a passing resemblance to Ryan Gosling, but it should be noted that he did not spout any feminist philosophy. :)
I stopped into the Pig & Fiddle recently killing some time with a buddy of mine. Since it was early afternoon happy hour, the only patrons were seated at the bar. We grabbed a table and I started staring at the huge chalkboard beer menu, which was Impressive to say the least. Our server was very nice, and chatted with us about the various international, domestic and craft brews. Pig & Fiddle has an extremely deep beer selection, and (generally speaking) is not for the meek. That's not a bad thing, but don't visit expecting to find the typical commercialized swill many of us are all too familiar with. I had two or three brews that one would be hard pressed to find at many places in the twin cities, or beyond.
The happy hour menu, though small, did not disappoint! I ordered the mini fish and chips that was a perfect snack, and exceptionally good! Crispy golden fried whitefish served with hand cut chips, sea salt, malt vinegar, and a very unique tartar style dip. Simple, but done perfectly - and if I remember correctly it was only six dollars.
Beyond that, I regretfully cannot comment on the remainder of the menu, though it appears to be one I wouldn't mind diving into for a big dinner with friends/family sometime soon!
This is a great watering hole with an impressive and expansive beer selection. Â The only issue I have is that the menu is very unique pub fare that is a on the heavy side. Â I think the menu fits style and character of the bar, but I'm just not a big fan of the selections for the most part (the ham and cheese and ploughman's plate are solid though).
Review Source:I finally got to sit down and enjoy the new pig and fiddle. I had scouted it a few months ago, but went with a group of ten and ordered a pile of craft beer and food.
Great beer list and none of my 3 pints tasted like sanitizer - a miracle these days! the Fulton Ringer is a perfect beer, imho, and it was great on tap here.
I had the rabbit stew and gnocci and it was great and had a nice moroccan kind of taste (touch of cinnamon?) Â The fries are fantastic. Â
The place had a nice mellow pub feel to it and our waiter was great.
I would totally go back which is my version of a thumbs up. A great example of casual dining and killer beer selection.
I just went here last night, after having it on my "to eat at" list for a while.
It was a Thursday night, and I'd say the place was about half full, so we got right in.
The server was very kind, helpful, and attentive. The beer list is wonderful! That's something I look for.
Decor: I think it was a job half done. Part of it has a really cool European vibe to it, dark and vibey. But then you look up and see those nasty ceiling tiles and the floor is a blonde wood. I'm torn. But, the bar was nice, and they also had a fireplace. I can't turn that down.
Food: I ordered the burger, which is not something I normally do. I had heard a lot of good things about this burger from friends, so I had to try it. I believe it had some sort of special mayo on it, and a fried egg. Have you ever had a fried egg on your burger? you haven't had a real burger until you have. OH MY.
My husband got the rabbit stew. I find the concept of rabbit to be weird, but I did love that the menu offered those types of meats and dishes, because I think a true 1800's pub would have those things. I ended up braving a bite of it, and it really was good. Gnochi, meat that tasted like chicken, and interesting spices like nutmeg. It was lovely, though the portion was very small for being $20.
Overall, I say give this place a try. I think I will be back and try it again.
I've been here about 5 times and have always sat at the bar. Â The food is regularly below average. Â I once got inedible French fries and the bartender said "fries are suppose to be really greasy". Â
The staff congregates at the right side of the bar which is fairly annoying to customers sitting at the bar but there is probably nowhere else for them to mill around. Â I've tried not to pay attention but they spend a lot of time cutting down customers and rolling their eyes. Â
They also over serve their libations.  I always have seen many highly intoxicated people drinking there.  I would recommend this place only if you can't walk the  1/2 block down the street to one of the many other neighborhood spots.  I won't be back.
If I were in charge, or at least more in charge of things than I am, then I would mandate that all Hosts/Hostesses get training and certified. Â Maybe it would even come with letters that they could stick at the end of their name, like "C.H." for Certified Host. Ideally, this certification would come with spot checks, oversight, and re certification programs. Â Now, I know, I know, government intrusion and too much regulation and liberty all of that, so let me just say that I would be fine with it being an industry-funded initiative.
Because, if the hosts/hostesses of the restaurant world were better trained then we would have enjoyed Pig & Fiddle. Â Or at least eaten there.
Let me explain. Â We had a Groupon. Yeah, I know the socio-economic stigma that comes with and this IS Edina, but hell, it got us in the door.
So, we went. Â And we have a 16 month old. Â Yes, a family with a Groupon. Â I can smell the excuses pile up. Â But, in my defense, let me just say that is why we went there at motherfucking 5:15PM on a motherfucking Saturday. The Gophers game was over, the dinner rush hadn't begun. The place was empty (well, a third filled.) A little early for us, but otherwise perfect timing. Â
The obviously un-certified, and clearly un-trained (at least that's what I'm hoping) Hostess took one look at us and said.... nothing. Â She stood there and looked at us as, or, rather, through us, as if we were were subjects approaching Her Motherfucking Majesty. Â I thought this place was Irish and had some pretense of disdain for the royals. Â Maybe it's an Orangemen pub. Â
So, no smile, no recognition that someone is in front of her, no greeting. Waiting for US to say, "Hi, thanks for having us this evening at Pig & Fiddle. I hope you've had a great day so far. I hope there's something that you can help us with." Instead, after the long uncomfortable silence I instead chose to say, "Hi. Uh, um, two and a half for an early dinner, please." And she said, looking at the kid, not at me -- "I hope you have a reservation." To which I said, looking at the empty place, "Uh, noooo." And she said, drippingly, "Well. Do you want me to put you on the waiting list?" (Waiting list for what, I wonder -- a waiting list for 2/3 of an empty restaurant's mysterious 5:15 dinner reservations to not show up?)
And, so I said, 5 minutes later to the hostess across the street at Edina Grill: "Hi, thanks for having us this evening at Edina Grill...." Â
Edina Grill, by the way, was awesome.
I had high hopes for this place, despite mediocre reviews. Went in at 6 last night and was seated pretty quickly. We then proceeded to wait and wait to even be acknowledged by a server. Not so much as a greeting, or a "sorry, we're really busy, I'll be right with you." We sat there for 10 minutes while the waitress in our section helped tables who were seated after us. When she FINALLY stopped by our table, it was to say "I'll be with you shortly." Not even an apology. We left immediately. It's a shame, because the atmosphere is great and I was excited to try the beer.
Review Source:Went here for a work happy hour on Friday. Â
Very happy with the wine and beer lists. Â Everyone enjoyed the frites (especially with malt vinegar). Â A coworker and I also shared the beef stew, which was good but the meat was a bit gristly. Â The environment is nice - dark & cozy, perfect as we approach the hibernation season here in MN.
They did do a good job of handling our large party - Â super helpful with divvying up the checks (so bonus points for that).
Just about everyone in the place had a, "Groupon". Â Me included. Â My wife and I were celebrating a special event and the place is a few blocks from our house so we thought we would give it a try. Â
We started out with the, "Sausage Rolls" Â Which are meat sausage wraped in puff pastry. Â For $9.00 you get three sausage rolls wrapped in puff pastry with an apricot sauce and escarole salad which was pretty good. Â Each roll is about 2 inches thick. Â So you are getting about six bites. Â Pretty good, not bad, and a dish you can make yourself. Â Sausage was tasteless, except for the excess of salt in the salad you could mix with it. Â
Second was the, Ploughman's plate. Â A meat and cheese sampler served with some bagette and pickled vegetables. Â It was very ambitious with a potential of lacking. Â Pickled vegetables, the beet was a salt bomb, three cheeses which were a typical Lund's visit, (Blue, Gouda and a Hard chedder), a few meats, chicken liver pate, and a big shot of stone mustard. Â It also had half a hard boiled egg. Â Good value, lots of salt, bad leftover palate that needed a wash. Â
Third, the Pasty. Â Which cost about $13.00 bucks. Â It came with a fries, mashed taters or salad. Â We went with, salad. Â Big mistake. Â Drenched with vinegar and salt, a mixed green salad with radish and yellow cheese curds with oil soaked croutons was next to a salty yet nice loking puff pastry filled with yet, more salty awful that was also dry and lacking flavor. Â Except salt. Â Can't get enough salt in this place. Â DO you like salt? Â Then go here! Â Salt! Â Did I mention they salt their food? Â
Service was good. Â Beer was good. Â Food was gross. Â Ambiance was a leftover Pearson's Restaurant.
This restaurant is very convenient for us so we thought we would give it a try. Â I am not a beer drinker so I can't speak for their selection which sounds like the reason to go. Â The food we had I thought not great. Â It is Irish Pub type food, which lets face it anyone that has been to Ireland knows the food isn't great. Â I had the pasty which was all pasty and minimal meat etc. Â My husband had the corn beef sandwich which was fine. Nothing to get excited about. Â I think the food coupled with the server that made us feel like we were imposing on his time made for a waste of time and money and we won't be going back.
Positive: the atmosphere was nice.
Went there last night to give it a shot.
Open bar area and interior. Â Pretty simple and easy to relax in - Â I dug it.
The beer selection was good, but not overwhelmingly huge. Â Had a few new ones to try - a few faves. Â I was just reading through the reviews and had to laugh at the person who only drank fruity beers here and wanted blue moon .. . .No comment.
Anyways we tried the moules frites. Â The mussels were decent - not the best I've had, but they were good. Â The sauce was nice with the bacon chunks in it and pretty buttery. Â The fries were awesome!! Â We also got a curry mayo to go w/ the fries - that was a nice compliment - not sure if we paid extra for it or not . . .
I ended up getting the coq au vin - it was tasty - the mushrooms in the dish were AMAZING. Â The chicken was good, very tender. Â It came with some small taters and brussel sprouts as well. Â It's a special right now so get it while you can!!
Man ended up getting the pork shank confit. Â It was really good. Â The sides were excellent and the meat was cooked perfectly. Â All that was missing was a straw to suck out the marrow! Â
Overall I definitely want to go back - quite a few things on the menu I still need to try!!
Ok, I'll admit it. I'm a regular. Â The beer list never ceases to impress me, and I love being able to try something new literally every time I'm in. Â My ladies and I come in after work usually once a week (sometimes more!). Â But we love it here. Â The service is unbeatable-- the servers know what we like, and sometimes we even call before we get there to pre-order some food. They go above and beyond to please us, which is awesome.
The food. Forget about it. It's so good! The grilled cheese is a game-changer. They change it seasonally and it's always spectacular. Â Currently it's served with apple chutney and spinach leaves. YUM. Â The Belgian frites have got to be the best fries I've ever had and the curry mayo brings a tear to my eye it's so delicious. Â
Last weekend brought my parents and I had the Bubble & Squeak .It reminded me of Thanksgiving dinner. Had a hash, roasted chicken in gravy and onions with a fried egg on top. Mouth-watering. Â
Recap: Service impeccable, best beer list, delicious European pub fare.
What else do I have to say??
Was only hear for drinks and had a great experience. Good service, amazing beer selection! Will need to come back and try th efood sometime. They had some Octoberfest themed specials that looked so tasty (though seemed priced on the high-end....$20+ for german fare at a bar seems a bit much)
Review Source:A Euro-inspired gastropub in the heart of a midwest suburb - of course, I had to try it out! Sadly it felt like much ado about nothing -- but mostly because the rabbit, duck, sausage profusions on the menu didn't exactly cause my stomach to skip a beat. Â I ended up settling for one of the probably two things vegetarian on the menu - a fancy grilled cheese ( gouda no less). Was I expecting a 12$ grilled cheese to blow my mind - of course! Â It sadly didn't.
So this review is more about the space then..open, modern, sparse. I walked around that for a bit trying to find someone that would direct me to someone at the bar who could take my order. Thankfully once I found the right peeps, the service improved.
In the end, the quick trip to Pig & Fiddle didn't inspire much more than an acknowledgement of a creative moniker.
This was a Groupon meal, love most of em because they are a great way to try new places that I wouldn't if there wasn't a Groupon involved.
I had a reservation for 6:30pm on a Wednesday and didn't have to wait for a table, it was about 1/2 full. Â There was a hostess right by the door and was seated right away. Interesting floor layout they had a very open area in front of the bar, kinda like a dance floor but I can't imagine there to be much dancing but who knows? Â There were tables around the edge of the bar area and a nice dining area in the next room where we were seated at a requested corner table.
I started out with a four flight beer medly from Lagunitas, nice combination and a great way to experience some new brews.
We selected the Grilled Berkshire Pork Sausages with home made kraut to start. Â Enjoyed the different sausages and the kraut that was just like cooked cabbage so very different that the traditional bitter kraut.
Next course were Siberian Dumplings. Â These were 7 very hearty dumplings with cheese inside served in a warm brown butter. Â The dumplings weren't all that big about two bites per dumpling but there were the perfect serving size for me. Â I also added a basket of dark raisin-walnut bread and baguette.
I didn't experience any dishes that were overly salty but then again I didn't try the fries or anything that might have had additional salt added.
I'd come back, Groupon or not.
The food here is not on par with their beer menu. The food tastes like it was prepared by a mediocre cook, not a chef. It's over salted, lackluster, and the presentation is lame. Why have a fancy bar with a fancy beer selection and bother to serve food that brings the quality of the establishment down 2 stars? Also, while I can appreciate a sample, I am not a beer drinker. They had one cider and a few fruit beers...they were all so sweet I couldn't drink more than 2 glasses, their loss because I would have spent at least 20$ on beverages alone if there was a Magner's or something mild like a Blue Moon to drink. If the food was better I would definitely return, maybe next year with another Groupon.
Review Source:I'm so conflicted on this review. Â I'll keep it simple, you decide what it all means.
Service: Incompetent. Jaw droppingly oblivious. Do NOT come here when it's prime time. If you follow my reviews you know I'm a huge softie and really generous on this issue, it's RARE that I call anyone out.
Swiss Cheese Beignets: everyone at my table went into a full blown Victorian paroxysm over these - I was immune. B- but you may disagree.
Ploughman's: B+ - It's really a charcuterie plate, a lot more meat than you'd expect. It is excellent, some of it is a salt bomb. Â Same with the cheese. It's definitely worth doing, though. Had worse.
Cucumber chili gazpacho - A ! Bellissima! It's the one reason I'd consider coming back. Just super awesome, fresh and a little kick. Â Problem? Â The last thing I think when I have this is "oh man I want a BEER!"
Broodje: C- Â Here's where things went awry - the entrees are SO disappointing after the small plates. Out of everyone's food, which included fish and chips, finnish meatballs, smoked ribs - the overwhelming flavor profile was SALT and the Broodje was impossible to eat without being in full blown make a mess need a bib mode.
Pours: Â Very nice, but not the only kid in town for this kind of thing.
Nearest competitor is the notch-down George and the Dragon, and I prefer it. The food isn't as extensive, doesn't try as hard, doesn't succeed as greatly, but the frustrations are not worth it. If you must take that step up in price and be on 50th and France, enjoy the feelings of sanity and calm at Beaujos and have a croque monsieur there.
I give this place 4 stars. the food was amazing!! they have more selections on the menu than the muddy pig. the beer selections is very good and our server was amazing. i went to this place 2 months ago and i thought i rated it.. This place was quit inside and the lights were very dim and reminded me of what a tavern or a pub suppose to look like.. The service was fast and well the food was a bit expensive but i think the quality of it makes up for the price.. i will return to this place again to re rate it..
Review Source:In my opinion, Belgian style beers are the best in the world. Â The beer selection at the Pig and Fiddle is what drew us here. Â This place has probably the largest variety of Belgians on tap of anywhere in the city! Â They also had several local brewers represented including Boom Island and Lucid when we visited. Â
The place has a rather large, open main dining room styled like a European pub. Â The wood floors and high ceiling make it a bit hard to carry a conversation if the place gets busy. Â There isn't much of a hostess stand when you walk in so we drifted towards the bar in awe of the beer selection until someone noticed us and brought us to a table. Â Our server was pretty attentive and was well versed in all the beers on tap. Â He was able to give a good description of each and make recommendations based on our familiarity, taste, and food pairing.
The food was better than average but lacked a bit of pizzazz. The pricing makes dining a good value though and you won't leave hungry--especially if you start with an appetizer.
The meal was memorable enough to make me want to come back.
Just a quick update. Â This place is in my neighborhood so I was bound to be back even though I'm lukewarm on it. Â Several months after opening the menu remains... weird. Â But I ordered the Pig Burger the last time I was there and it was pretty good, although as others have pointed out it is over salted and greasy. Â If it hadn't been salty and so greasy I might be tempted to update my review to 4 stars. Â The fries are also better than my first experience, but as others have noted the fries are all tiny bits and pieces as if they're from the bottom of the bag.
Beer selection is still great, so that makes it worth going to for a cold one after work. Â But for food, head a little ways down 50th to George & the Dragon Pub--now THAT place hit it out of the ballpark when they opened! Â (Make a reservation--they're often packed!)
I've been to the Muddy Pig before, which incidentally, is a fun place for drinks, so when we decided to go here for dinner, I had a pretty good impression.
Full disclosure: I get anxious when I step foot in or near Edina, and 50th and France is definitely in that neighborhood. Okay, I know it's not that bad, but I think subconsciously my enjoyment of the meal was affected by that fact.
Service was fine and the environment was pleasant. The four of us had a pleasant conversation without having to raise our voices or feeling that someone was right next to us.
Sherri ordered the chard and ricotta dumplings, which were very very tasty. I got the fish and chips, but were good, but after eating them, I felt a little greasy because they were fish and chips. Maybe I should have ventured out a little bit and tried something else, but I hate ordering the same thing as my Sherri and I am still struggling with eating non-sustainable meat.
I think that the fact I associate this place with a bar caused me to order bar food. It wasn't bad, but maybe next time I can get over my Edina issues.
Stopped in for a beer post dinner since I heard their list is massive. They were out of Fulton Lonely Blonde so I got to try a brew from Lucid instead. Very good & was actually happy they were out of Fulton as it gave me an excuse to try something new.
Food menu looked good, we plan to come back to try it, but for now, the beer kept us content.
We've recently become obsessed with Belgian brews and after hearing about this place it went without discussion that we'd have to check it out. A group of four of us went on a Saturday night.
Ambiance: it was exactly what I expected a euro-inspired pub to look like on 50th and France. I don't mean that in a bad way.
Beer Selection: There is a massive list of beers, including 36 on tap. After much deliberation I ordered the St. Feuillien Tripel and my fiance ordered the Gulden Draak--both good choices. We later split a bottle of the Chimay Blue Reserve, which I highly recommend for Trappist fans.
Appetizers: The Polish-Style Pierogis were good, but much like others have commented, overpriced. It was $14 for four normal-sized perogies (over $1 per bite) and they weren't THAT good. The more reasonably priced ($8) Swiss Cheese Beignets were better in my opinion, but could have used more of the 'fennel-rhubarb reduction' sauce.
Entrees: I had the Grilled Finish Meatballs which were absolutely amazing. I took my time and savored the lingonberry glaze. The meatballs were served with 'potato puree' and 'cucumber salad.' You could have told me they were garlic mashed potatoes and fresh pickles, and I wouldn't have known the difference, but they were really good.
My fiance ordered the Roasted Lamb Pasty and she was less excited about her choice. She said it was more crust than filling and needed a sauce to liven it up.
Overall this place was pretty good. A little on the above-average side in terms of price, but not obnoxious.
If I could rate both the bar and restaurant...the bar is four stars...the restaurant...two stars. Â
Great beer selection for the beer snobs of the world...but also has domestic beers for those who like to keep it simple.
Of the 4 people at our table...one liked their food. My chicken schnitzel was ok but my frites (fries) were bottom of the bag so they were all tiny and burned. Â A friend had the Pirogies (sp?) Â and wasn't happy about the extremely small portion size. Â Another had the pot roast pasty and thought that it was flavorless. Â The final member of our party had Fish and Chips and loved them. Â
I will also agree with a previous poster that the portion sizes are inconsistent from one dish to the next. Â Some are very large (fish and chips) some are very small (Pirogies)
To call Pig & Fiddle a gastropub is a bit of a stretch, as the "gastro" implies a level of culinary sophistication that is sorely lacking here.
The "pub" part they totally nail - lots of good beers on tap, though mine was served in a cracked glass.
My friend and I both had a grilled cheese sandwich (which if I recall correctly is the only meat-free option other than sides) which includes roasted beets on the sandwich. Â I love roasted beets and this sounded really good. Â But alas, it was not. Â The beets proved to be very off putting on the sandwich, but pulling them off the sandwich left it completely tasteless.
And even if I had not been looking for a meat-free option, I probably still would have ordered the grilled cheese as nothing else sounded particularly appealing. Â If you're going to call yourself a gastropub, you better gastro it up.
The bar area was nice, but the dining room smelled musty.
We had the mussels (steamed in beer and bacon fat!) served with sea salted fries as a starter. The broth was great and the fries were amazing! We shared an order of pierogi. They had the perfect balance of flavor, they were fried just right and the portion was light but surprisingly filling.
Possibly the best service we've ever experienced. Cody anticipated our every need, even though the place was filled to capacity.
5 stars (we'd give more if possible!)
This is exactly the type of restaurant Edina needed.
The craft beer list is fantastic (although I would expect nothing less from the owners of the Muddy Pig).
The food, the charcutery(sp) on the ploughman's plate in particular, was great. Â Service was good considering how busy it has been the two times we have been there. Â Atmosphere is good, the whole place feels very pub-like.
This review reflects a mixed experience at Pig & Fiddle.
They offer a very interesting pub menu, not gastropub, simply pub. It's a nice change of pace and a unique option for this side of MSP. Along with an interesting menu they offer a fantastic beer selection. The bar and beer alone are worth the stop.
Regarding the food. I enjoyed their burger with cabbage. Good flavor, if slightly over-done, but they were busy at the time. My wife ordered the mussels and things went south, quickly. This pot of mussels was overwhelmingly fishy, far too fishy to be palatable. They would be well served to remove this from the menu, it's not a consistent addition anyway.
It's also worth commenting on the interior of the building. They took some strides to create a pub-like design, but fell short. The white drop ceilings and lightly colored laminate tables distract from what is almost a successful design. Some minor improvements to their interior design would go a long way toward completing the targeted experience.
Meh. Â A half-hearted effort.
Sat at the bar. Â First of all, the chairs are pretty high relative to the counter and there are these HUGE brackets holding up the granite which get in the way of your knees.
Decor - very bland. Â Grey walls, mismash of lighting (what's w/the florescent wall sconces?!), tiny wall signs, just clearly not professionally designed. Â Office-building bathrooms (where's the creativity??). Â Spaghetti noodle ceiling panels inbetween wood beams - whose idea was that?? Â The oak paneling doesn't do anyone any favors either. Â Bad speakers. Â One small TV. Â Nothing special or original or exciting or inviting.
Beer list - literally can't read half of it because of the crazy GLARE from the 10 lights shining on the chalk-board.
Beer list itself is just OK. Â MUCH better at Muddy Pig in St. Paul, etc.
They sold out by labeling all glasses with Summit when they really are featuring 28 other craft beers.
They sell Pelligrino but don't have any limes.
Food - AWFUL!!!! Â The "Ploughman's Platter" was almost literally inedible. Â For $13 we got about 4 pieces of 3 different kinds of mystery (not tasty) meat. Â A couple very thin slices of cheddar. Â And some blue cheese. Â Pickled veggies, stale/dry bread. Â A TOTAL RIP-OFF.
Separate order of pickled veggies - listed on  menu as $3, rung up as $4, comes out in a thimble size cup.  Again, a rip-off.
Smallish menu, almost everything over $9, clearly not chef-driven food. Â Almost every entree is 'heavy' too.
Saw someone eating the famous "stew" and it too looked about 2/3rds too small for the $20 price tag.
No outdoor seating? Â Windows should have gone floor-to-ceiling. Â And/or openable, which they aren't.
Overall - sad. Â Don't think it'll last.
I was so excited to try the Pig & Fiddle, especially since it's within walking distance from my house. Â I was looking forward to grabbing a beer, eating some good pub food and watching football games at their bar.
First the good... The beer list lives up to expectations. Â They have 36 brews on tap and I'm pumped to try every last one of them. Â I couldn't tell you what we had, but I don't think you can go wrong. Â For those of you who want a good ole Budweiser, they have that too.
The service was wonderful. Â Our waitress had clearly been in the industry for some time and was both knowledgeable and passionate about the food and drink. Â She was there when you needed her and not a hovering when you didn't. Â Perfection.
The interior has mostly charming attributes. Â Our table, and those of diners around us, was wobbly. Â Our server spent quite a bit of time trying to remedy the problem with coasters. Â When we arrived the dimmed lights were way too low. Â It was almost a little hard to see in there. Â I'm all for mood lighting, but this was a little much. Â On the flip side the column enclosed dining area, complete with fireplace was really relaxing and beautiful looking.
And now the opportunities... I eat out A LOT. Â I have no problem paying for something special. Â This food, for one reason or another, was not special. Â I love the trend of honest European countryside dishes prepared with a bit of additive flair. Â I think the concepts at P & F are good but I do have a fear they may have come to the 50th and France intersection with an inaccurate perception of the type of people who would make up their client base. Â A lot of folks in the area may have extra disposable income to burn, but most of them have it because they're smart about getting a value. Â In that vain, I really do hope they choose to rightsize their portions relative to their prices.
I didn't order any dinner since I'd overdone it at lunch but Mr. S has the Pig & Fiddle Burger ($10). Â To be clear, there is no 'pig' on the thing. Â Don't be fooled. Â Still, I have to hand it to them. Â The flavor on the burger was great, the fries were delicious and the price was right. Â I would order this again.
My dad was along for the ride. Â We were headed to the Edina Film Festival afterward. Â He decided to order some Polish-Style Perogies ($14), real comfort food. Â Perogies are one of those foods that are so incredibly cheap and easy to prepare (a ravioli like pocket filled with mashed potatoes and cheese) that single men everywhere stock them in their freezers for quick heating with some butter in a fry pan. Â Sadly, P & F decided to skimp on what could be such a classically simple dish that satisfies. Â They delivered a beleaguered plate with five small perogies in the center with a little sour cream and a garnish. Â This plate was not worth $14. You actually feel like you've been taken advantage of when you get something like this. You start to sweat and contemplate whether or not you want to be the customer that sends something back. That's not a good feeling to have at a restaurant.
We also tried a dessert ($5, I can't remember the name) touted by our waitress. Â She made it sound like a twist on an apple pie and my mouth was watering. Â When the dessert arrived I almost started to chuckle. Â The scoop of ice cream on top of a vanilla cake--baked with some streusel topping, candied green apples and pineapple--was about the size of a golf ball. Â It was a little absurd. Â It was also a bit dry. Â It could use some version of caramel sauce or just a more generous serving of ice cream to soften off the texture. Â Not surprisingly, we ran out of ice cream well before the cake was gone. Â It was as sad a moment as it sounds.
I'm going to give the place a bit to get their food identity solidified and give them another shot. Â In the meantime I'll keep going for the beers!
YES! I've never been the first one to rate a restaurant before...but I was so excited after eating at this place I knew I had to tell everyone. Â
The beer list is fantastic - they have my fav, Left Hand Milk Stout so I will definitely be back. Â
The food was to die for. Honestly..SO GOOD. I had the Braised Beef Carbonnade and it was the best thing I've eaten in a long time...the beef was so tender and the gravy it was in, oh my...I would have licked my bowl if I had maybe drank one more beer. It came with a delicious mash of veggies (potatoes, carrots, brussels) and that was just as good as the beef. My husband and our friend had the pork shank and that was delicious as well and our other friend had the peasant chicken which was so moist and came with some delicious crispy cauliflower. Oh yea, and we had the mussels as an appetizer...they were steamed in beer and bacon so, seriously...they have to be good. Also tried the chocolate stout bread pudding. Â It was good, but I wouldn't necessarily rave about it.
The price is pretty decent for the quality of the food.
You had better go check this place out soon because as soon as the word gets out, it's going to be a busy busy place.
I will definitely be back!!
My buddy and I were out to see the World Premiere of the new Diablo Cody movie at the Edina Theater and I love the Muddy Pig in St. Paul. I have noticed on 50th and France that a new restaurant was coming into the old Pearson's Restaurant space for months now. I was excited to hear my wife say that it opened a week or so ago. What a perfect opportunity to try it out before the movie for dinner.
Kind of weird, one of the selling points of being on the Minneapolis side is that they were allowed to have happy hour, unlike Edina, which doesn't allow happy hours, (I know, stupid huh) but alas, no happy hour. We entered the establishment and a kind of goofy host guy sat us down and explained to us the beer "Bible" and how there were explanations of every beer. Â There was a nice list of 36 beers I think, some very unique beers, I ordered a Lagunitas IPA to start us off. They seemed a little steep at 6 bucks a beer, especially when it seems happy hour should have been on if they had one.
The menu consisted of about 20 different items, but everything was about $15 or more except for the chicken sandwich and hamburger for the entrees. Â My friend ordered the beef stew dish, and I ordered the chicken sandwich with bacon and what seemed like a beet sauce and a side salad (It also came with fries or mashed potatoes if you wanted it)
I ordered a Stone Arrogant Bastard to go with the entree and it was more of an old ale style than I remembered from tasting it in California, but the smokiness came through swimmingly.
The waitress was new, very nice, but she was still getting acclimated. Â Again super nice. After about 10 minutes my buddies stew came out, it looked a little small for the price it was, but he said it was real good, not as good as the price dictated, but good.
I thought my sandwich actually looked a little better than the stew. The heavily buttered toasted bread, (I know, bad for you, but ohh so good, along with the 2 hearty strips of bacon that came on it were delicious.) It seemed like it was less of a chicken breast than a ground patty, but the purple beet? sauce that came out on it added to the sweetness of the dish that was just heavenly. Seriously, it was a fantastic sandwich.  The salad that came on  the side was pretty good, little hunks of cheddar in it were a nice touch, and although the vinaigrette was good, they didn't allow me to sub Blue Cheese on the side. I thought that was a little odd.
The prices seemed a little steep for dinner at a pub, but the food was great and the clientele was really weird. My buddy was like "What is up with  quirky Edina people?" I have no idea, but it seemed like the snobs of the snobs were in force tonight. People were leaving kids at tables by themselves, weird hosts, strange people just showing up out of nowhere to take our plates away.
Goofy, but overall great food!
Movie was okay.
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