Mid week road trip to Fargo... need help!

February 11, 2010 7:24 AM

Mid week road trip to Fargo... need help!

I'll be driving from Winnipeg to Fargo next week, with the intention of simply getting the heck out of Winnipeg for a couple of days, spending the 48 hours to get the nice duty exemption, and then heading back. I'll be there for Tuesday the 16th and Wednesday the 17th evenings.

I'm looking for suggestions of where to shop (so far West Acres Shopping Center and Target), where to eat, what hotel to choose, and how to spend our evenings.

The girlfriend and I would like to attempt to see some night life, but we realize it's mid-week in February. We would at least like to get out to a pub for some drinks. We like UK style pubs, live bands, live dj's, local beer, or anything uniquely fargoian. How practical is it to plan on taking a cab to and from the evening destination so we can both drink?

We will be using the car during the day of course, so our options are wider. We would love to know about any smaller areas for shopping or restuarants that we need to try.

I did see this previous question but the parameters were different enough that I felt I should post my own.

Thanks in advance!

posted by utsutsu to Travel & Transportation (5 answers total)

Best answer: I gave some good answers in this question, too -- downtown is the place to go for trendy bars with bands. I'm a decade older than my bar-scene days, but Dempsey's and the Aquarium are supposedly the place to go for bands. Several of the women who work for me frequent Divas and Rockstars, and they're the tattooed, pierced, ever-changing-haircolor types. D&R is out on the edge of town, and there's also The Hub on 25th street, but pretty much everything night-life Fargonian is downtown. If you want real "flavor", meaning visiting at your own risk (but, hey, it's Fargo, knifings are rare), some Bar bars are Rick's, The Empire, The Bismarck and Duffy's. Also, the strip club is usually a happening spot.

Cabs are available, but you'll have to call them - we don't have the big-city "wave down a cab" sort of thing, althought it can be done in the right situations. You can stay downtown (The HoDo is the upscale place to stay), but there's a Radisson and several other hotels, so if you want nightlife and a hotel, staying downtown is the thing to do. Everything is within about a 8-block square area, so walking won't be too difficult unless there has been snow and things aren't shoveled.

Other shopping area: Downtown is the place to go for funky-shop window-shopping and I linked a bunch in that previous question above; if you like thrift shops there's several scattered all around town, otherwise most retail is centered around West Acres, downtown, and East Ten (across the river in Moorhead). There's a few interesting places to shop in downtown Moorhead, but not a lot. As for eating, anything out by the shopping areas are chains; there's more locally-owned stuff downtown. One local burger-arium is Burger Time. Grand Junction subs are also good. The chinese restaurant downtown is a worthy eating place (rather generic, but never outright bad); I'm not into Thai, but the Thai Orchid gets consistently high ratings despite being located in a refitted Hardee's in a rather decrepit part of Moorhead.

You might get more recommendations or ideas from the High Plains Reader, too. They're about as close to a city guide as we've got right now.

My break is almost over; I'll check back if I think of anything else.
posted by AzraelBrown at 8:46 AM on February 11, 2010 [1 favorite]

Best answer: I lived in Fargo for many years and I miss it. Here is what I try to hit when I visit.

The cab idea is very practical. As AzrealBrown said, you will have to call them however.

Definitely hit Burger Time for a drive through burger and fries. It is fast food, but good and local. If you get a chance, try to find the owner's commercials. The man is passionate about his place.

If you get hungry while you are at the bar (and depending on what type of bar), order a Pizza Corner pizza. They are local and quite tasty.

If you are looking for a little more upscale dining, Sarello's was my favorite. Technically that is across the river in Moorhead, but I loved it. Try the citrus sea bass. You can also hit the HoDo and Monte's, which are both downtown.

For local pizza, I love Duane's House of Pizza or Sammy's.

Mexican Village is a local Mexican place (despite the generic name) that is quite popular. Their chips and sauce is a little different but I love it.

I wasn't much of a bar guy. I didn't go to Rick's, but the Empire and the Bismarck can be, interesting. I liked Woody's, which is more of a sports bar I guess. The Turf is right by NDSU, but I never got the stuck up "college bar" feel when I was there. They pour a lot of beer from what I remember.
posted by Silvertree at 11:19 AM on February 11, 2010

Oh, man, I have to turn in my Guide hat for forgetting Duane's House of Pizza. It's the best pizza place in Fargo, hands-down. Sammy's is downtown, and while OK, we've had some not-so-good pizzas from them before. Also in the mexican vein but more fast-foody, The Taco Shop is locally-owned has tacos and "grinders", a sort of sub sandwich.
posted by AzraelBrown at 11:47 AM on February 11, 2010

Yes, Duane's > Sammy's for sure.
posted by Silvertree at 3:47 PM on February 11, 2010

Response by poster: Thanks to both of you for the answer. You've been quite helpful :)
posted by utsutsu at 1:04 PM on February 12, 2010