By Tim McGovern

It may happen to you.

You find a pair of Pop Tarts on your plate for breakfast with the kids.

For lunch, you select a value meal. The three-course combo is ordered by number.

Dinner? Whatever’s quick and easy in the fridge to nuke or something from the freezer to pop in the oven.

By Rob Lawson

The Jazz Company Cafe, located on Colorado Street in downtown Prior Lake, lives up to its name, with a relaxed atmosphere, full of cultural and artistic décor, as well as the fresh aroma of coffee. The walls and ceiling are painted shades of light beige that contrast nicely with darker cool browns. The furniture, new but seemingly retro, is stainless steel, patio-type ware. The chairs, backed with leathery, orange cushions sit by tables with shiny, kaleidoscope-like tabletops.

Spasso in MinnetonkaBy Richard Crawford

Spasso, a new Italian restaurant in Minnetonka, offers a flavorful addition to suburban dining.

You have to root for a restaurant that tries as hard to please as does the newly-opened Lake House Grill in Prior Lake.

"We police the lot, align the wood chips and make sure there are no weeds out front," said owner Stuart Erickson. "When you come in, we open the front door for you."

Opened June 12, Lake House Grill is striving to be a family-friendly restaurant featuring excellent food, excellent service and prices that won't make you take out a second mortgage on the old homestead.

The good news is each and every one of the 18 secret ingredients in Victoria House’ signature pepperoni soup makes the short drive to Victoria well worth it.

The bad news is no one is going to tell you what the 18 ingredients are.

Top secret
“We had to buy the formula separately when we bought the restaurant,” said Daniel Lee, one of three co-owners who bought Victoria House from its previous owners in 2000.

I have a confession to make: Before I had a baby I was a bit of a curmudgeon about children. My niece was nice but other people’s kids were sort of annoying.

The first time I went out to eat with my daughter I brought a stack of reading material. I thought I was going to drink a cup of coffee, eat a light lunch and leaf through a magazine.

Ha!

She wanted to eat.

And spit up.

And cry.

Other patrons looked at me with disdain. Couldn’t I do something?

Is it possible that one of the best delis in the Twin Cities is in an Eden Prairie strip mall run by two guys named Jack?

It sure is.

It was 30 years ago when I came face-to-face with my first honest-to-God deli sandwich, at Rose’s Deli and Bakery in Portland, Oregon. Memories of that incredible thinly-sliced rare roast beef pilled sky high on caraway rye bread still linger.

I enjoyed a sunny Saturday afternoon from large picture windows inside The Green Room in Waconia. The recently opened restaurant is small and casual, with a seat-yourself atmosphere perfect for lunch with close friends or a family outing.

The restaurant is co-owned by Tom Peterson, Keven Kvalsten and Matty O’Reilly. Kvalsten was last a sous chef at The Corner Table in Minneapolis, and Peterson and O’Reilly own 318 in Excelsior. Peterson is also a working musician, playing bass in a band called the New Primitives.

In the barbecue wars, which almost always run hot, smoky and messy, Baker’s Ribs owner Al Killion will stake his ribs, beef brisket, sausage and sauce against any joint in the Twin Cities.

And Killion has ammunition in this red-hot battle. Not only do customers rave about the barbecue at Baker’s Ribs, so do the critics.

Critics, diners love it