Tilia, Minneapolis

I came out to Minneapolis yesterday ( on the hottest day of the year here ) to spend the day at Red Stamp to basically brainstorm.  Many of the companies I am involved with meet every six weeks to two months to look at the big picture.  I certainly talk with Erin and email frequently but having everyone get together and just hash out ideas and a vision provides an incredible value.  It was really a great day.  Over the course of the summer there will be two different launches which will really set Red Stamp up to be the leader in the space of modern correspondence. Very exciting.

After a day of strategy we set off for drinks at Erin's house and then to Tilia, a relatively new restaurant in the neighborhood of Linden Hills.  I believe the restaurant has only been open a few months.  Besides the fact that they were not prepared for the heat, it was so hot in there, but the food was delicious.  We ordered a bunch of things to share.  Our server created the flow of food which made no sense at all but we just all went with it.

Our first round out was three different dishes.  Shrimp with spring peas, grilled scallions and a spicy scampi sauce.  Light with a nice balance of flavors.  Excellent.

Roasted chicken thighs sorta jerk style.  I love chicken thighs.  These were boneless and perfectly cooked with a spicy jerk sauce.  Loved these.

Slightly seared scallops served with a puree of carrots with marinated mushrooms and a light curry sauce.  Simple light dish but again with a little kick.

Round two was the one special of the day.  Fish and chips.  Little crusted deep fried cod over yukon gold potatoes that had been roasted, smashed and then fried and served over sauce.  I think the sauce was an edamame sauce.  A nice twist on a classic dish.

Potted meat of the day.  Last night was duck.  Potted duck served with roasted shallots, a spicy mustard and grilled bread.  Very Parisian and this particular dish seems to be cropping up in many restaurants.  Really well done.

Beet salad, which should have come first, was hard to enjoy after so many layered flavors.  Really well done I just wish it had been round one.  A mixture of beets with pickled carrots, red onions, toasted sesame and a yuzu vinaigrette.

We only split one main course which was the Tagliatelle pasta.  Wow.  Spring peas, fiddle heads (seasonal), truffle parmesan.  Simple yet absolutely delicious. 

These brussel sprouts are some of the best I have ever had.  Carmelized with walnuts and little chunks of ham.  I could have had a whole bowl to myself.

Fish Taco Torta.  Deep fried fish with a creamy peppadew slaw, cilantro and lime.  Simple and different using the bun instead of the taco.

Then what we all were waiting for but had hit the wall.  It wasn't so much that we had too much food, after all there were six of us splitting appetizers but it was so damn hot.  BLT Hot Dogs.  Two hot dogs with crispy bacon, sliced tomatoes, pickled caulitlofwer, mayo and mustard.  I had a small bite.  Fantastic but I too had just hit the wall.

No desserts.  We were hot and done.  Tilia was terrific.  The menu is just exactly what people are eating today with their own twist. They have taken classic dishes and give them their own spin.  The food was really good, well prepared and I loved the vibe of the place.  When I come back to Minneapolis, I'd love to go back to Tilia.  If Tilia was down the street from me in NYC, I'd go back this week.