A week ago Sunday I walked across the Wabasha Bridge to the Irish Fair at Harriett Island. The backdrop of the city along the river on a blue sky day is a spectacular setting for any event. There was the usual assortment of food and drink vendors, arts and crafts displays, Irish dancers with curly haired wigs, and musicians at multiple stages singing Irish tunes. One tent had a dog exhibition going on that included terriers, water spaniels (looks like a poodle, don't call it that to the owner) and of course the Irish wolfhound ....the big big dog that hunted the wolf to extinction in Ireland so many years ago. My building has a 30 lb dog limit and it might be hard to sneak it in without neighbors noticing. Even though in terms of population the German and Scandinavian ancestry wins out, St Paul feels like it has a large Irish community especially with in your face landmarks like the Cathedral....and of course the pubs. The newest pub in downtown won't be Irish however. The Amsterdam Bar and Hall is due to open this September in the old Pop/Fhima restaurant spot. Can they break the curse of that location? I think so if they just give people what they want which is basically interesting beer choices. A week ago the Mayor's office gave an open to the public speech at the Amsterdam location about the coming year's budget. I stopped by to mainly see the construction progress of the space. I was greeted with a copy of the menu and a coupon for a free Broodje (little Dutch sandwich). I didn't stay for the Mayor's speech (too many folks in suits and the construction odor was unpleasant), but I will be back when they open in September to collect my Broodje. When I think about Dutch food I think herring and Belgian style fries. Those are on the menu, but Loempia, the little Indonesian spring roll is on the menu too. Now I'm excited. I remember "Lumpia" from my time living in San Francisco when a Filipino coworker brought them to potlucks. I dreamed about those for years but can't remember now why they are different from any other crispy fried spring roll. Guess I will find out in September.
Tuesday, August 23, 2011
View from Harriett Island
A week ago Sunday I walked across the Wabasha Bridge to the Irish Fair at Harriett Island. The backdrop of the city along the river on a blue sky day is a spectacular setting for any event. There was the usual assortment of food and drink vendors, arts and crafts displays, Irish dancers with curly haired wigs, and musicians at multiple stages singing Irish tunes. One tent had a dog exhibition going on that included terriers, water spaniels (looks like a poodle, don't call it that to the owner) and of course the Irish wolfhound ....the big big dog that hunted the wolf to extinction in Ireland so many years ago. My building has a 30 lb dog limit and it might be hard to sneak it in without neighbors noticing. Even though in terms of population the German and Scandinavian ancestry wins out, St Paul feels like it has a large Irish community especially with in your face landmarks like the Cathedral....and of course the pubs. The newest pub in downtown won't be Irish however. The Amsterdam Bar and Hall is due to open this September in the old Pop/Fhima restaurant spot. Can they break the curse of that location? I think so if they just give people what they want which is basically interesting beer choices. A week ago the Mayor's office gave an open to the public speech at the Amsterdam location about the coming year's budget. I stopped by to mainly see the construction progress of the space. I was greeted with a copy of the menu and a coupon for a free Broodje (little Dutch sandwich). I didn't stay for the Mayor's speech (too many folks in suits and the construction odor was unpleasant), but I will be back when they open in September to collect my Broodje. When I think about Dutch food I think herring and Belgian style fries. Those are on the menu, but Loempia, the little Indonesian spring roll is on the menu too. Now I'm excited. I remember "Lumpia" from my time living in San Francisco when a Filipino coworker brought them to potlucks. I dreamed about those for years but can't remember now why they are different from any other crispy fried spring roll. Guess I will find out in September.
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