The Rookery *****5/5 stars

When you die, this is where you go. A giant shag carpet covered booth in the middle of a recently gutted, non-descript building in Robbinsdale. Don't believe me? Read on, my friends...

The Rookery is the more casual non-course menu side of the new Travail. (Okay, who am I kidding, nothing about this experience is "casual".) When the Travail peeps did dim sum brunch, I was like, fools be trippin'. This ain't brunch. Then they went and done did this. A real m-fing ten course deal. It makes me lose my good words...

The Travail side. What's with those flat screens, bro?

So thanks to Mr. Fox for setting up this gig for us and six of our favorites. Being that we were a party of eight, they seated us in the VIP Hot Tub. Yep, it's called the hot tub. That place where you go in and get out two hours later with a vague recollection of what just happened. And that's why we have iPhones. Check out these totes adorbs truffled deviled eggs with caviar that were waiting for us when we arrived.

True.

So, it's almost noon. Let's get some drinks. You've got a few options... pressed coffee, and/or a mimosa (grapefruit or orange) and/or a bloody. They also have a Brunch Punch (Campari and gin) or a screwdriver, of which we did not partake (obviously Nicki and Alyssa weren't with us). Standard. Decent.

He's coming to press it.

Of course they back it.

I'm getting all misty remembering this first dish. It's like the first time every time. Okay, the hot tub got to me. All I remember is that this is watermelon gazpacho and some other fantastic shit...

Without.

With.

Oh, hello, pastry cart of amazingness. These ditties cost extra, and they're also your only real sweet treat. This brunch is hella savory. One slap on the face for that.

Classic glazed.

Next course: a little pocket of gruyere and ham. That's a chocolate peanut butter bite in the back.

This is the quiche, my least favorite dish. It was super creamy in texture but lacked major flavor. Next!

Lox and rye and dill. So lovely. Now that you've made it through half of the meal, please enjoy this intermission music.

More mimosas. Dude's sweatin' it out for us. Mad respect.

And we're back! With mussels. What? Not for brunch, you say? I strongly disagree.

Enter the breakfast sausage. This is a cased egg concoction topped with chorizo that will blow your freakin' mind. Best. Ever.

Intimidating, I know. Just do it.

Oh god, we're almost there. This is a rib with a tiny little potato salad. Yes. So crispy and delicious.
By the way, the portions were perfect. Enough to have us fully satisfied at the end. Enough to have us walk out with some degree of comfort.

I just want to swear. 50-day, dry-aged rib eye. WTF.

Dessert. I'm so sick of sorbet, but this had mint snow on it. Snow is the new foam, by the way, which I'm super stoked on. No more saliva on my food, thank you.

Woof. Y'all still with me? Let's wrap this up. What you must know about Travail/Rookery is that the service here is outstanding. These people are passionate about their food and they have an assload of fun serving it, or at least it appears that way. The experience in its entirity is one of pure magic. Your sight, taste, smell and hearing are stimulated in the best way. And when you pet the shag carpet of the hot tub, everything comes together. Walk toward that bright light...

Bringin' the love.

Thanks to all my brunchaholix. Love yaz.

Lane, Jojo, Sherdog, Kel

Kate, Moi, Bernadette, Mr. Fox

The Red Stag ***3/5 stars

Okay, so this whole MN vs. WI thing needs to die. We are pretty much the same when you boil it down. Lakes, trees, beer, passive aggressiveness, Christian guilt... and don't forget that great work ethic! But there's one feature of Wisconsin that I will give extra credit... aside from that tasty, tasty New Glarus brew. Supper clubs. So yeah, MN has them, but they're just too damn modest. WI clubs have flair. They let their freaky, backwoods, old-fashioned-drinking, animal-slaying, antique-hoarding selves run wild. The Red Stag in NE MPLS is an homage to such places.

Ironically, the Stag is an upscale joint. The food and beverages aren't of your average supper club variety or price. And you'll probably not find a brunch like this in Kenosha. Well maybe, but it'll be way more greasy (I mean, don't get me wrong, greasy has its charm).

The menu plays the classics... scrambles, hashes, bennies, cakes, etc... They use local and organic ingredients, and Wisconsin Cheese, of course.

We got this complimentary coffee cake Brunchitizer™.

Look at this sexy Campari and grapefruit. And while we're on the subject of breakfast cocktails, I have some sad news. The bloodies here are terrible. Which is strange because Pat's Tap and Bryant Lake Bowl (the Stag's sister restaurants) have some great ones. Bring those recipes up here, y'all! This one is funky. I don't like to suck peppercorns and other chunky seasoning up my straw.

Above is a greyhound and the granola with yogurt and fruit... the granola was under there somewhere. Below is the veggie hash. Pretty.

Here's the florentine. Ung. Them hasbrowns is real crispy.

And the corned beef hash with two scrambled...

Also, they bring you a vat of fresh jam for your toast.

While not a truly authentic Wisco supper club experience, I have to say the Stag does a pretty nice job of re-creating the general feeling without the extra must, dust and social conservancy. It's a bit on the pricey side for my likes, but it's pretty worth it. HELLO WISCONSIN!

Kitschy.

The Stag beckons.