Snow Date

When you have three young kids, ya gotta work for a date night. And to get a date weekend, a herculean effort is in order. So when The Blizzard decided to come to town and shut down our city this past weekend, you can bet one thing is for sure- you can close down the town, but you can't close down my date!

So against better judgement and frightening weather reports, Mr. C and I decided to brave the elements and head downtown for an evening of rest, relaxation, and of course- food, wine, and fun. We made The Chambers Hotel our home away from home and used it as a launching pad for the ambitious itinerary we had planned. We started with drinks at the D'Amico Kitchen bar, dinner at Restaurant Alma, and then the highlight....Christmas carols around the piano at Nye's. There is nothing like a good 'ole Minnesota snowstorm to bring out the Schnapps crowd and gather 'round the piano and croon "Santa Baby" in your most sexy, slurry voice. Not mine, I promise you. I make it a rule to only watch karaoke, not actively participate. The place was packed, and we sat at the bar and laughed. Alot.

"fads come and go...but Nye's hasn't"

The following day we hit Thom Pham's Wonderous Azian Kitchen for a Dim Sum brunch. Now that the blizzard had kicked it into high gear, not too many people out there were feeling like Dim Sum. When we blew open the huge door to the restaurant the staff literally applauded, deeming us hearty, brave (and stupid?) souls and lavished us with an exhaustive array of dumplings and noodles. If any of you remember the old Nankin, this is it on steroids. Yes, it's in the same location as when we used to sneak downtown and drink the infamous Wanderer punch underage, but the menu is now actually extensive and interesting and Mr. Pham has also assembled an impressive wine list. As we watched the snow cover downtown at an alarming rate we literally ate like it might be our last meal.

After Dim Sum we white knuckled it down the highway (passing numerous abandoned vehicles along the way) for a movie at West End. Nothing says movie date more than a cozy leather loveseat and a martini in the front row of the balcony. Gone are the days of the gnarly ripped movie seat with gum stuck to the bottom of it. Sayonara to the sticky floor beneath your feet with someone's left over popcorn and Jujubees. This place is downright swank- good menu, fabulous bar, and seats so clean I actually took my shoes off and curled up in the enormous lounger with my cocktail. I told Mr. C that for the next movie we saw I was going to bring along a throw blanket and make myself truly at home!

Mr. C demonstrating his "Minnesota nice" by pushing someone out of the unplowed parking lot

After slip- sliding through a few parking lots and pushing a few people out of ditches, we did a little Christmas shopping, a little wine shopping at France 44, and tried our damnedest to find a place for dinner after our reservation at Meritage in St. Paul canceled on us (how dare they?), but by 5pm the city was all but shuttered.

Even Minnesota couldn't weather the storm this time

So after 24 hours our snow date came to an end and it was time to head home and relieve the Newlywed Babysitting Dream Team of Meredith and Brett. It was romantic and adventurous at the same time, this little rendezvous in our own city- we felt like we had it all to ourselves as we braved the elements and found ourselves determined not to be derailed from our plans.

Cheers Mr. C- thanks for a great date!