Bryant Lake Bowl

Bryant Lake Bowl is great for a quick dinner out with the family or an evening of food and entertainment with friends.

One of the best reasons to support this local business is because it’s their mission to give back to those folks who are making positive change in this world. Bryant Lake Bowl supports schools, churches, and local organizations that fight hunger, social justice, the arts, the environment and sustainability.

EAT

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This restaurant has a menu with a wide range of choices including vegetarian, vegan, and meat options. While they do have a dedicated kids meal, it’s your typical mac-n-cheese, hamburger, and grilled cheese selection.

Early Bird Breakfast Specials M-F 8am-10am
Happy Hour is M-F 3pm-6pm and Su-Th 10pm-2am: $1 off tap beers, glass wines, rail cocktails, specialty cocktails, $4-$7 appetizers, and $2 late night bowling (M-Th 10pm-2am).

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BOWL

  • Adults

    • $4.50/game: All day Monday–Thursday and Friday–Sunday until 6 p.m.

    • $5.00/game: Friday and Saturday evenings

    • $2.00/game: Sundays after 6 p.m.

  • 12 and under: $2.75/game

  • Shoes: $2.00

  • Socks: $2.25/pair if you need to purchase them. All bowlers must wear socks.

Generally, 4 to 6 people can bowl on one lane.

Bumpers are Available upon request

 WHEN IS OPEN BOWLING? :

  • Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday 11:30am-2am

  • Thursday, Saturday, Sunday 8am-2am. 

  • Bowling is closed: M-Tu-W-F 8am-11:30am

THEATER

From poetry to comedy to live music, Bryant Lake Bowl hosts nearly-nightly theater events. Click HERE to read more about upcoming events.

SPECIALS

Neighborhood Night every Sun 6pm-2am: Discounts on local beer, wine and $2 bowling!

Cheap Date Night™ every Mon from 6:00-Midnight: 2 special Entrees, 1 bottle of wine(or 2 tap beers each), 1 round of bowling all for $28.00 per couple

810 West Lake Street – Minneapolis, MN 55408 

Hours
Breakfast=   8am-3pm 7 days/week
Lunch/Dinner=   10am-Midnight 7 days/week
HOLIDAY HOURS: Opening at 5pm on Thanksgiving, opening at 5pm on December 25th, and opening at 9am on January 1st.

Sovereign Grounds

Located on the corner of 48th and Chicago, Sovereign Grounds is a community coffee shop owned and operated by a Minnesota couple who immigrated to the U.S. from Turkey. Hakan Sezer and his wife, Kris roast and brew 100% Arabica coffee in the shop each day. They also make every item on their menu right in the shop which includes and array of sandwiches, salads, quiches, and desserts. My favorite items are the 3-salad plate and homemade cakes. 

The best part about this place is the room dedicated to kids so you can sit back and enjoy a cup of joe or lunch while your kids play. They have small, plastic climbing structures, riding toys, and tons of handhelds all in a large carpeted area. Tables and chair line the room so parents can work, eat, or socialize without having to sit on kid-sized chairs. 

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 The play area is great and something I'd like to see in more coffee shops around town. However, I feel like it needs a little scrub down and revamp. Some toys look a little grimy and after the lunch rush, the floors are a disaster. But overall, the concept is great and my kids love it! 

In my experience, the playroom can get packed around lunch time. If you're looking to meet new people this might be a good time to go. Lots of families are local and happy to chat. If you're looking for some quiet time, try going during the typical napping hour. Sometimes I take my kids around 2:00 so they can play and I can work in a quieter zone. 

(612) 825-6157
813 EAST 48TH STREET
MINNEAPOLIS, MN 55417

Monday - Saturday  6:30AM – 8PM
Sunday 8AM – 8PM

Copper Hen

We stumbled upon this little ditty the other night. Holy Jesus, my gut hates me. But my tastebuds love me. After striking out on finding reservations at nearby restaurants, we found Copper Hen had a table available so we thought we'd give it a try. This is a farm-to-table restaurant with tons of great items on their menu.

I'll start by saying that this place is not really kid-friendly. There are no kids menus or coloring pages to entertain them while you wait for the food. Luckily, we managed to keep them entertained with their amazing display of desserts located at the front entrance. The boys took trips back and forth trying to decide what dessert they were going to have after dinner. You guys, the selection of cupcakes, cookies, and pastries was to die for. There were sprinkles, fruit, and chocolate morsels covering every crafted dessert. 

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The menu is meat-heavy so, as pescatarians, we found the dinner choices slightly limiting. We started out with the soft pretzels which come with warm house-made ale cheese "whiz". Yum #1. The pretzels were so warm and gooey and, although the cheese looks like that pumped nacho cheese, it's not. It was homemade deliciousness. 

We ordered the baked macaroni and cheese for the boys, which came in a small cast iron skillet and was topped with pretzel bread crumbs. Jason and I shared the fish special and the lobster loaded farmer fries. Holy glutton party! 

As delicious as these items were, I'm hoping to see more vegetarian and kid-friendly items on their menu in the future. 

The boys didn't eat much of their mac-n-cheese since they filled up on pretzels and cheese. 

Contact
612-872-2221
2515 Nicollet Ave
Minneapolis, MN 55404
info@copperhenkitchen.com

Hours
Tue-Thur 11 am – 10 pm
Fri 9 am –11 pm
Sat 8 am – 11 pm
Sun 8 am – 9 pm

Fig + Farro

This recently-opened Uptown joint has a small but delicious menu of vegetarian comfort food.  And, more importantly, they have an excellent play area to keep kids entertained while you're waiting for a table or eating (or both).  Like, really top-notch as far as restaurant play areas go.  There is a two-story wooden A-frame playhouse that our kids loved.  There is no railing on the second level, but it's only about four feet off the ground, which presents only a minimal-to-moderate risk of injury so long as your kids are...say...three or older.  Chalkboard walls with lots of colored chalk, a cozy reading corner, and a giant stuffed tiger are among the offerings of this creative play space. 

The warm shabby-chic decor and young hipster-y staff, along with the aforementioned play area, give this place a very different vibe from Figlio, the beloved, bustling, quasi-Italian institution that long occupied the current Fig + Farro space.  (Side note: Walking into this place made me feel nostalgic and old, because I have very specific memories of going to Figlio in high school, and feeling so grown up--being in a loud, cool, Uptown restaurant without my parents, ordering "tortellini alfredo" or whatever.)  

Anyway, the food at Fig + Farro is very good!  Maple-glazed brussels sprouts were predictably delicious, as was the shepherd's pie, stuffed with a savory mixture of potatoes, carrots and other vegetables.  And, in my opinion, it's hard to go wrong with shakshuka (a North African dish featuring eggs poached in a mixture of tomatoes, peppers, onions and spices). 

I hope the menu will continue to expand and shift, as the chef and owners find their groove.  They do not have a kid-specific menu, for instance.  Not that it's necessary in order to feed kids at a restaurant, but the regular menu only has a few options that most people would consider kids-friendly, e.g., macaroni and vegan "cheese", raw veggies and hummus, and couscous.  This seems like something they might want to modify if they are courting families as a customer base--which it seems like they are, given the lovely play space. 

Nonetheless, they are off to a great start.  Our visit was very enjoyable, to the extent eating in a restaurant with a four-year old and a one-year old can ever be considered "enjoyable."  You should go!  

https://www.figandfarro.com/

Calhoun Square
(Lake + Hennepin, street level)
3001 Hennepin Ave S
Minneapolis, MN 55408
hello@figandfarro.com
612.208.0609

 

Common Roots

Grab a quick bite with your little one at Common Roots Cafe. Located in the Uptown neighborhood, this coffee shop focuses on making food with organic, locally grown ingredients. They estimate that about 50% of their menu items are made from ingredients grown within 250 miles of the shop. Check our their values page to read more about how awesome they are. 

The menu includes an array of breakfast items from sweet to savory. After 11am they start serving lunch which includes soups, sandwiches, and small "noshes". Dinner is served at 4pm and happy hours goes from 4:30 to 6:00 daily with $2 off cocktails, beer, wine & noshes. 

The kid's meals are all made from the same local and organic ingredients and include a side of fruit. I love the wide range of choices for all types of eaters. 

2558 Lyndale Ave S, Mpls MN | (612) 871-2360

HOURS:

Monday - Friday
7 am - 9 pm

Saturday & Sunday
8 am - 9 pm

HAPPY HOUR:

4:30 to 6p daily
$2 off all beer, wine, cocktails, and noshes!

HOLIDAY HOURS:

July 4th: 8a-2p
Thanksgiving: Closed
Christmas Eve: 8a-2p
Christmas Day: Closed
New Years Eve: 8a-2p
New Years Day: Closed

JW Marriot

We stumbled upon this hidden gem in the Mall of America. The JW Marriot has a restaurant on the main level called Cedar & Stone Urban Table. It's a bit on the pricey side but totally worth it. The ambience is nice, the food is delicious, and the service is great. There's an extensive wine list and the drink selection has some pretty tasty, handcrafted cocktails. The best part however, is their kids menu. There are tons of healthy, delicious choices! My kids loved the picking out their meal from the "This + That + The Other" menu. What I really appreciated was the care they put into our kids' experience there. They brought over an activity book with crayons and a cute cup full of water and a fun straw for them right when we sat down. After we ordered they brought over a plate of sliced apples and cheese for the kids and offered skim, 1%, 2%, or whole milk as well. I love that they had all those choices. You can also pick from chocolate milk, juice, or soda. 

My husband and I share the roasted tomato pizza, roasted cauliflower, roasted beet salad, and the Minnesota cheddar cornbread. It was all DELICIOUS! I highly recommend the cauliflower. It had crunchy kale chips sprinkled on top and sweet and spicy peppers mixed in. Yum!!

Whole(sum) Kitchen

We stopped into this small shop for lunch this week and I was pleasantly surprised. Thinking this was just a smoothy and coffee joint, I was relieved to see a much wider menu that included juices, smoothie bowls, salads, and grain bowls. Everything they offer is healthy and full of energy-boosting ingredients. Totally my kind of food. There isn't a "kids menu" per se but there were items on the menu that kids would like. If your kids like fruit there's overnight oats and chia parfaits that are packed with fruit. There's also a big selection of natural juices and smoothies that are sure to please. Check out their Acai bowls which they claim "look like ice cream". 

My kids would never touch a salad or grain bowl, but I thought they were DELICIOUS! Instead, my boys devoured a fruit and yogurt parfait and an overnights oats bowl with strawberries and bananas. Selfishly, we always try to find lunch spots that have good coffee. Unfortunately, I didn't love their drip coffee. Although I'd like to come back and try their cold press nitro tap which wasn't working that day. 

The space includes a cute cushioned seating area that is fun for kids. I was disappointed that the bathrooms did not have a baby changing station. 

Coming in January they are adding lots of new items to their menu- look for our updated review.