The Gold Nugget Tavern and Grill/ Minnetonka

I'm not sure if the Gold Nugget is new or just improved. This is the first I have heard of it, through a friend who suggested we meet there. Alas, we did not meet this time. But Mr. H and I took our hungry stomachs there, while in the area one evening.

The decor and atmosphere is nothing special. It reminds me of a small version of Houlihan's. I like Houlihan's - but I get sick of the same atmosphere almost every restaurant I go to in the 'burbs. It seems they are either dingy and old, or super yuppie. I would love to see someone open innovative and fun places,. Psycho Suzi's? Galactic PIzza? SOMETHING?

We opted to sit outside, since it was a nice Tuesday evening. We were a-thirstin (when AREN'T we a-thirstin'??) so we ordered up off the drink menu. Usually, these menu's scare me at $8.00 or so per drink (and usually real crappy ones.) Nope! These were around $5.25-6. Nice work. I ordered an Electric Lemondae. Citrus vodka, limoncello, blue curacao, and sour? 7-uP? Lemonade?? BAH. I don't remember (that'll teach me to wait so long before blogging!!) Mr. H ordered what was basically the equvalent of a gin based Mojito.

They came soon enough. Our waiter was so-so, service was not super fast and he made no lasting impression on me. Except when I asked to use his pen, he said "ok...but make sure I get it back!!" like he was really concerned. Ummm, ok there fella. Anyways, our drinks came, and I am pleased to say they more than made up for our waiters d-bag attitude. (i stole that term from you, Chad!) Let me introduce!

Electric Lemonade

I must say that lemonade drinks often scare me. They are too sour or sweet fo my taste. Seeing there was blue curacao in this soothed me, since that will mellow out any sour with it's mild orange flavor. Plus, it's a purdy color! This drink was really good. Sweet, not too strong, just right. Yum

The Gin Mojito thingy!

When I think of mojito's, I feel sort of bewildered and sad. The ingredients are my thing, so much so it makes me want to burst into song. However, the 3 or 4 mojito's I've had simply aren't that...good. And they are usually expensive. This one was no exception, ringing in at $7.50. But then....I drank some. I almost sang. It lived up to every expectation my taste buds and brain hold for these ingredients. Before you even sip any, when the glass comes up to your lips, take in the aroma of earthy fresh mint, clean gin and bubbly soda water. I had some major drink-envy going on here.

After all that adoration, we ordered food. They have lots of basic things on the menu - sandwiches, salads, chili, soup and...2 different kinds of pasta (which confuses me. Why only two, I wonder?) It isn't the cheapest place - you will pay around 9 or 10 bux for a burger, 12 bux + for pasta's, entree's e.t.c. I got the roast turkey sandwich: turkey, provolone, avocado, bacon, and garlic mayo on sourdough. With fries. Mr. H got the pulled pork sandwich. Here's my breakdown:

Turkey sandwich:

This sandwich was goooood. Anything with bacon + avocado combo wins me. However, these can both be a texture challenge. This sandwich did just fine. It was firm, and not goopy, not mushy or too soft (all pet peeves, unless you are eating a PBJ!) The bacon was nice and firm, without being too chewy or tough. Nice job. The fries were shoestring style, which is my least favorite. However, these were really decent. I didn't have to salt them. And even though they're thin, they are quite satisfying. My only gripe (and is usually always my gripe with toasted bread sandwiches) was the bread. It Captain Crunch'ed up my mouth for the next few days. How can this tough scratchy bread dilemma be resolved??




The pork sandwich
I have no idea, but my Mr. H seemed to be in heaven judging from the ridiculous facial expressions I observed.

Greats:

-The specialty drinks = cheap and gooood.

-The fries are yummy and salty enough on thier own

-Solid sandwich ingredients = yummy sandwich you cant stop eating.

Not so-greats:

-The waiter was kind of a tool

-It's the same as every other restaurant i attend in the suburbs

-The sammwich ruffed up me' mouth

-It's too expensive for a broke bum like me to go to very often

http://www.goldnuggettavernandgrille.com/