One Sunday, after we had a cheese plate at Scusi in St. Paul, my husband wanted to wander over to Groveland Tap to check out their beer selection. It was right next door.

Both Scusi and Groveland Tap are both part of the Blue Plate Restaurant family. We attempted to try out another Blue Plate Restaurant, Longfellow Grill, during Restaurant Week without any luck. I’d also been to the Edina Grill a few years back. And The Lowry is on our list for the future because we have a Groupon to use!

But the trip to Groveland Tap was spontaneous.

We walked in to find a seat at the bar. We walked past all of the stools to the back, but none were empty. There were, however, a bunch of high-top tables in the back. A little strange, I’d say, because high-tops are usually saved for the bar area. Maybe this is the bar area? It was hard to tell because there were kids there, too. The place seemed very family friendly.

The place stunk like a fish fry. The menu showed a fish fry special on Friday. It was Sunday.

The menu was very informative. In addition to food choices was a history of the building as well as a note that the space had just been renovated after a small fire. No one would know. This place had the feel of a dive bar.

The chalkboard list of beers was impressive with over fifty beers on tap! Rob saw one we hadn’t tried before: the Lucid Camo. This is an Imperial IPA from a new craft brewery out of Minnetonka, Minnesota.

What?! Why hadn’t we heard of this yet?

The verdict? A perfect, bitter, hoppy, strong Imperial IPA. We are proud that Minnesota’s high quality craft brewery industry is growing! We are beer snobs and want the best!

Side note: Of course, since it was early April that we found Lucid at the Groveland Tap, we’ve actually found it in a bar/restaurant “south of the river” since then. We’ve been there more than a few times now, so watch for an upcoming post!

I tried the Millstream Backroad Stout. I always like a good, chocolatey stout for dessert. 😉 Other taps of note included a nitro and a Honey Crisp Cask Cider. Not kidding! We didn’t see that one until we were walking out the door…

To go with the beer, we had to have some Beer Snacks!

We tried the Welsh Rarebit. This is something I’ve never had before. I’ve always thought it was rabbit. I guess I’ve just always read it too quickly. But aged cheddar on pretzel bread sounded just fine to me. I’m a Wisconsin girl, afterall… and one of German heritage.

By this time, the fish fry smell was no longer noticeable. Maybe, if you work there, you get so used to that aroma that you don’t realize it’s a rather strong smell that hits customers’ noses at the door…

Rob, the burger guru, also had to try the Juicy Lucy. For those of you not in Minnesota, a Juicy Lucy is a hamburger patty with cheese inside! What’s not to love? Both Matt’s Bar and the 5-8 Club in Minneapolis claim the creation as their own.

Rob’s Verdict: “It’s right on par with Matt’s, The Nook and Gossip’s. All four are quite good.”  But you have yet to find out Rob’s favorite!

The spice of the cajun fries was good, but they needed a little salt. Luckily, there was French Fry Salt on the table!

But…

So we ended up dousing the fries in waaaayyyyy too much salt. 😦 Oh well. Lesson learned.

Another item of note: There was chalkboard list of Red Zinfandels! We absolutely love real red zinfandels for their big, bold, fruit forward, yet spicy characteristics. And while we’d probably stick to beer at this place, it’s nice to know that the Groveland Tap goes beyond your basic House Cab and Chardonnay options.

Will we be back? Most certainly if we are in the area! There are a lot of fun, local menu items as well as so many craft beers, but so little time…

What is your favorite craft beer?

Cheers~
Carrie