Originally Posted by
BrianMinn
Two of my favorite less expensive places (everything under $20) in southwest Minneapolis (the city, not the suburbs) are Broder's Southside Pasta Bar and Cafe Twenty Eight. The latter has a lot of local organic meats, and a good beer selection (Surlys draft plus many Belgian). Look at
http://www.broders.com/pasta-bar/index.html or
www.cafetwentyeight.com for menus.
Loring Pasta Bar in the East Bank campus ("dinkeydome") area is also a good inexpensive choice, but it can be very noisy, especially when there is live music and the bar is busy. It has mismatched furnishings and an aging hippie feel, but is very popular with graduate students as well as young professionals and a general mixed clientale.