Where in the Minneapolis-St. Paul metro can we still find a reservation for Christmas dinner?

December 23, 2008 6:59 AM

Where in the Minneapolis-St. Paul metro can we still find a reservation for Christmas dinner?

Googling turned up a recent article in the Strib, but that list doesn't look too promising. Ideally we're looking for a traditional Christmas dinner which is priced somewhere between Old Country Buffet and the St. Paul Grill.

posted by nathan_teske to Food & Drink (6 answers total)

Have you tried Open Table? I'm not sure whether you're looking for Christmas Eve or Day, but I just found plenty of open reservations in Minneapolis in the lunchtime range on the 25th. I also read an interview with a local chef recently that said his restaurant doesn't allow Open Table reservations for major holidays, so if you see a restaurant that looks like it doesn't have openings, and you really want to eat there, try calling anyway.
posted by vytae at 7:11 AM on December 23, 2008

That article mentions the Monte Carlo, which I can vouch for as a great place to eat. I called and they still have openings on both Christmas Eve and Day. The rest of their food runs toward "traditional" (my friend always orders liver and onions there) so I imagine that their Christmas menu will include some traditional Christmas food.

Otherwise, I can't imagine you would have a difficult time if you just called around to a few places. There are millions of restaurants in Mpls/StP and many are open over the holidays. Popular places like Manny's will always be booked well in advance but there will be loads of other restaurants with great food that will still have openings.
posted by triggerfinger at 7:24 AM on December 23, 2008

2nd-ing open table. I use it for these occasions.
posted by thilmony at 7:25 AM on December 23, 2008

The St. Paul Pioneer Press has a slightly different list of restaurants open for Christmas dinner.
posted by BradNelson at 9:01 AM on December 23, 2008

The Oak City in Bloomington has an acoustic act booked for Thursday, so they are probably open. I haven't been there when there was music, but the food was good and the price was right. The bottle of Muscato was great.
posted by soelo at 10:44 AM on December 23, 2008

Response by poster: Thanks for your answers everyone. We've settled on Moscow on the Hill which, in addition to being open and yummy, is also just around the corner
posted by nathan_teske at 8:57 PM on December 23, 2008