As I already discussed on my other blog, I had reason to spend time on the East side of the river last night. Taking the Teen and his friend to the concert in Maplewood with a stop in St. Paul for a band meet-n-greet afforded us the opportunity to dine at one of St. Paul's many historic spots:
Mickey's Diner, right downtown St. Paul. This place is truly a downtown landmark, open 24/7 for nearly 70 years. It's on the National Register of Historic Places.
As you'd expect, the interior is very narrow.
There are a handful of booths on one end. You can use them, if you agree to stay no longer than 30 minutes and spend at least $3 per person. There are signs that make that clear.
The service is friendly (lots of "hons" and "darlins"). The food is classic diner. Breakfast all day, burgers, sandwiches, soup, chili. Of course we went for the burgers, even though this wasn't officially a Burger Quest (both Teens have to be present for that).
The Teen and his friend each had the bacon cheeseburger. Or, as the Teen called it, the fry burger.
I had the patty melt. The other cool thing about Mickey's? The fries are good, but you have options.
Hash browns!
Portions are, of course, sizable. Are the burgers good? Yes. Are they among the best in the Twin Cities? No. Does it matter? Not at all.
Mickey's attracts a varied clientele, from the occasional street person to teenagers in heavy metal shirts to people wearing Legally Blonde ID cards, presumably crew from the touring company that's down the street at the Ordway right now.
Oh--and they have pie.
Apple pie, heated up. Ice cream was offered but declined.
Should you go to Mickey's? Why, yes. Yes, you should.
Isn't Mickey's in some movie that was filmed in St. Paul? If I weren't so senile I would remember which one.
Posted by: kmkat | May 01, 2009 at 05:32 PM