Birdhouse. Hmmm. Sounds cute. It keeps coming up on Yelp, and it's a child of Stewart Woodman (Heidi's)... could be promising. The famous row of two-story houses on Hennepin and 25th that have turned over several restaurants is now home to this vegan-friendly estab.
New neighborhood signs. Like.
Their press is on display. You can tell people want to love this place before they've even tried it... I wasn't sure what to expect, since Heidi's didn't blow my mind, but I'd say I was optimistic. We decided to sit outside cuz it was cloudy and not the normal "hot as hell" mid-day that we've been having.
My handsome date.
So the logo graphic is pretty cool and the menu was easy to read. We ordered up drinks. Me: fresh squeezed OJ. Bran: bloody mary. The menu is pretty short, but it's got a variety of sweet and savory options. Gluten-free options abound. I'm not a snob when it comes to health food or expensive locally
sourced food, for that matter..but it had better taste damn good.
I'm kicking myself for not having ordered one of their fresh juice spritzers which seemed to be a favorite amongst the other diners. This OJ was overly sour. But at least it wasn't laden with pesticide, right? The bloody was kind of a bomb...not "da bomb", just a bomb. As in, not great. It was really watered down, and came in a tiny glass for $9. At this point I'm thinking "Lyles is only a few blocks away... can we make a break for it?" Fake OJ and potatoes from a bag sounds really good right now...
Here's the quiche. Yep, it has no crust. Gluten-free. I should have expected. And such a dainty portion, but it had great flavor. And those are sunflower and dandelion greens. Yeah, it tasted like I was grazing in the back yard. They were so bitter and chewy in texture. Not a fan. Can I just get some spring mix over here?
The benny. Kinda sad. They made you pay extra for the spinach, without that, I don't know what you would have left...since there's no hollandaise or meat or veggies. But that would be too indulgent? I'm waiting for Jillian Michaels to jump out of the bushes and make us do two-minute drills in between bites. But, this hundred-calorie meal is barely providing enough energy to walk back to the car.
In general, this brunch was really disappointing. Over-priced, tiny portions and forgettable dishes. It has to be said: Birdhouse is definitely for the birds.
