The Butcher Block - "Smoking Section Please"

The Butcher Block – “Smoking Section Please”

308 East Hennenpin Ave.
Minneapolis, MN 55414
612.455.1080
thebutcherblockrestaurant.com

The Dinner


I went to the Butcher Block the other night and it was good - not “knock
it out of the park” good, but good.  We ordered the beef carpaccio to start, which was a generous
portion, and a little difficult to eat (a positive in my book, I like

rolling up my sleeves for dinner).   I’m a pepper guy and would have

liked to add a little to the carpaccio.  I was surprised not to find a
pepper mill or salt shaker on the table (a little cocky maybe?).  While we
enjoyed our carpaccio ,our server was outside puffing on a few
Parliaments.  Nothing complements a good dish like the smell of

ashtray.

The second course was rigatoni alla norcina (house ground pork

sausage, truffle cream).  A good dish, I’d order it again.  The house ground sausage definitely elevated this dish above a run-of-the-mill pasta with sausage and the rich cream sauce makes it a great one to share.

I’m a sucker for short ribs, so we did that for the third course.  The

short ribs were decent, but starting to get a little dry.  I still
enjoyed them though.  The roasted potatoes with the horseradish aioli were a nice addition to the dish and I appreciated having something different than garlic mashed potatoes.

Dessert was horrible.  The chocolate torta was dry and lacked flavor.

Apparently the chef knew it too, so he went to the newest trick in the
book and added caramel and sea salt. I guess we should have listened to our server when she recommended the torrone.  Next time we know.

The Breakdown
Service:  Besides inhaling a cloud of smoke, our server was pretty

good.  She gave us several suggestions and was attentive.  She seemed
to lack wine knowledge which would have been nice as I’m not to

familiar with Italian wines, although she made up for that somewhat by offering tastes of several bottles we were considering so that we could choose our favorite.

Atmosphere:  A good little date spot, but that windowless dining room is a real bummer on a beautiful evening in NE.

Food:

Carpaccio: Solid

Rigatoni Alla Norcina:  Solid

Short Ribs: Decent

Dessert: Sucked

Overall, I would and will return for the carpaccio and pasta at
reasonable prices (especially when a trip to Surdyk's is also
involved), but it won't make my most-frequented list.