This week I attended a conference downtown Minneapolis. The conference was at a hotel, and lunch was provided. But still, I felt I had a choice--turkey wrap from hotel catering, or a real lunch?
Should I pause and let you guess which one I chose?
If your guess was, "She said screw the hotel catering, she wanted a real lunch," ding ding ding! You win! I went to Vincent. Which is to say, I went to the exact opposite of dull hotel catering.
Vincent is a French restaurant across the street from Orchestra Hall. It's lovely and peaceful. The menu isn't lengthy, but I still had a hard time choosing. Should I get the cassoulet, a lovely winter treat? The fixed-price lunch with a chorizo frittata and a British steamed pudding of creme Anglaise and chocolate gelato? The traditional Nicoise salad?
Mais non.
What the day called for was a Vincent Burger. Vincent (yes, there's a real Vincent) does his own take on the Juicy Lucy with this creation: ground beef mixed with ground short rib meat and smoked Gouda.
Just think on that for a moment.
You can get it with a side salad, but for the full experience, I recommend choosing the fries instead, and get the side of Bearnaise to dip them in.
You will be very, very happy. As I was. Along with feeling pity for all the conference folks who gamely chowed down on their hotel turkey wraps.
The Teens weren't with me, but I can pretty much predict their response: good, but not as good as Lions Tap. I beg to differ. This is one of my all-time favorite burgers in the Twin Cities. The short rib meat and smoked Gouda raise this well above your average burger.
Also? Vincent has great happy hours Monday-Friday, and the Vincent burger is usually a featured item, discounted heavily from its regular price. Happy hour, indeed.
We are like-minded! Pretty sure I was at that conference. I had every intention of lunching at Vincent for the express purpose of having a Vincent Burger. The one and only time I have had one was truly life-changing. Possibly the best burger in the history of burgers. Well worth the $14.
Unfortunately, I was not feeling well (due to the breakfast items at the conference?) I am still without the Vincent Burger. Oh WHY don't they serve them on the dinner menu? May have to try to get down there for the happy hour.
Posted by: Peggy | February 25, 2011 at 10:32 AM
Mmmmm.. Love the Vincent burger. So delicious. Thanks for the beautiful photos! Made my mouth water.
Posted by: Minnesota Resorts | February 25, 2011 at 02:55 PM
Peggy, you were at the nonprofit conference too? Great conference! But yeah, the food...not so much.
Posted by: Amy Rea | February 26, 2011 at 08:27 AM