Edina celebrates St. Patrick’s Day in its own special way—urbane, with a bit o’ fun. There are no parades here, but you’ll find plenty of fine Irish-inspired food and drink. Edinans can go out and celebrate in true St. Paddy’s Day style, yet stay close to home. So go green for a day with shamrocks, shillelaghs and sustenance inspired by the Emerald Isle. Enjoy traditional favorites such as corned beef and cabbage, shepherd’s pie, Irish soda bread, Baileys Irish Cream cake, Guinness cake, stout Irish ale or green beer.
Eat, drink and have a happy St. Patrick’s Day. After all, each one of us is Irish for one day a year.
SHEPHERD’S PIE, GUINNESS CAKE
Beaujo’s Wine Bar & Bistro
There are about as many different versions of shepherd’s pie as there are villages in Ireland. New world potatoes are mashed and baked with old world flavors. Beaujo’s styles its take on the classic crustless pot pie by filling a ramekin with minced lamb and beef, along with a mix of peas, carrots, onions and celery ($11.50). Chutney-like Worcestershire sauce and a sprinkling of rosemary and thyme add a dash of seasoning. A crowning layer of mashed potatoes seals the meal. Everything in the shepherd’s pie is housemade, including the Worcestershire sauce.
When it comes to dessert around St. Paddy’s Day, you can have your cake and Guinness too. An infusion of the Irish stout beer bakes malty, moist richness into a housemade chocolate cake. True to the fun of this holiday, the Guinness cake resembles a small pint of the signature beer. A dark dense, cylindrical cake is capped with a generous topping of frothy cream cheese frosting. $7.75. Pair the Guiness cake with a pint of brew for an additional $6.25.
Beaujo’s Wine Bar & Bistro
4950 France Ave. S., Edina
952.922.8974
beaujos.net
CORNED BEEF AND CABBAGE, IRISH STOUT AND ALE
Pig & Fiddle
A corned beef and cabbage dish fits Pig & Fiddle’s rural European-inspired menu. The traditional Irish entrée has become a St. Patrick’s Day special and a pub-grub shamrock star. Everything is housemade, down to the brisket that pickles in brine for at least one week. A labor of love, the meat is cooked slowly for eight hours. The corned beef and cabbage dish is enlivened by a surprise splash of stout beer, part of a rich, brothy sauce. Potatoes, carrots and onions round out the hearty dish, which seems made for a cold spring day. Think New England boiled dinner with a strong Irish influence. $17. The St. Paddy’s Day celebration carries over to the beer selection. with Murphy’s Irish Stout and other Celtic ales. The price varies with variety of beer.
Pig & Fiddle
3808 W. 50th St., Minneapolis
952.955.8385
pignfiddle.com
GREEN BEER
Pinstripes
One day a year, the luck of the Irish comes by the pint in the form of beer dyed green at Pinstripes. The artisan Fulton Lonely Blonde adopts an emerald shade to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day. The smooth, slightly sweet notes of this craft beer from Northeast Minneapolis shine through the fizzy clouds of a Gaelic green tint. Kick up your leprechaun shoes and enjoy a beer deal that won’t cost you a pot of gold. $3 per pint.
Pinstripes
3849 Gallagher Dr., Edina
952.835.6440
pinstripes.com
IRISH CREAM TORTE
Queen of Cakes
Queen of Cakes tips a baker’s toque to all holidays, and St. Patrick’s Day is no exception. Celebrations are a good excuse to pull out all the stops with elaborate cakes. For St. Patrick’s Day, a cocktail of a cake is fashioned into a tiered torte, a made-from-scratch European-style creation laced with Baileys Irish Cream. The masterpiece features layer upon layer of buttery white cake and toffee-flecked whipped cream. A dousing of Baileys-infused simple syrup atop each cake layer adds a jolt of warm chocolate-coffee liquor-based notes. Frills of fluffy whipped cream rosettes form the finish. The Irish cream torte steers clear of more commonly used American buttercream. This regal dessert is worthy of any leprechaun on your list. $20 for a six-inch cake, other sizes available, pre-ordering suggested. Queen of Cakes Design Studio
7104 Amundson Ave., Edina
952.942.7628
queen-of-cakes.com
ST. PATRICK'S DAY BURGER
Red Cow
The Red Cow celebrates its first St. Patrick’s Day in true Donnybrook style. For this neighborhood tavern, where burgers reign supreme, an Irish-themed hamburger is sure to become a limerick legend. Take traditional Irish pub fare and add a Red Cow twist, and a new favorite burger is formed—fun, fresh fusion food at its blarney best. The life of the party flows with an Irish lineup of beers, including Guinness, along with Irish-style local craft brews and imports from the Emerald Isle. Should the good luck of the Irish bring good blessings to the weather, the Gaelic festivities may spill onto the outdoor patio.
Red Cow
3624 W. 50th St., Minneapolis
612.767.4411
redcowmn.com
IRISH SPIRITED CUPCAKES
Sandi Oh’s Cakes
Made-from-scratch cupcakes boast strong personalities at Sandi Oh’s Cakes. The addition of craft beer or top-shelf liquor puts a kick into an imaginative line of cupcakes year-round. Come St. Patrick’s Day, the essence of the Emerald Isle bakes right into these spiked sweets. An infusion of 2 Gingers Irish Whiskey, Jameson whiskey, Baileys Irish Cream or Guinness adds a sophisticated adult taste that balances out cupcake sugary sweetness. Gaelic-flavored specialties, from the frosting down to the cake, include Irish whiskey caramel, Baileys buttercream, Jameson ganache, Guinness cake, and apples poached in cinnamon and 2 Gingers Irish Whiskey. Colorful, one-of-a-kind cupcake names that sound more like rock groups hint at the unique taste experience that each cupcake offers. Try the inebriated vanilla Irish Car Bomb (named after a bar drink with an Irish trio of alcohol: stout, whiskey and cream), Hot Irish Mess or Monkey La La for a cupcake with Celtic-style punch. Call ahead to order these palate-pleasing gems. $26.99 for a dozen standard cupcakes or 24 mini cupcakes (minis).
Sandi Oh’s Cakes
7102 Amundson Ave., Edina
651.319.2048
sandiohscupcakes.com
CORNED BEEF AND CABBAGE, GREEN BEER
Tavern on FranceSt. Patrick’s Day celebrations have a mature yet festive tone at Tavern on France. The luck of the Irish takes shape in a homemade corned beef and cabbage entrée with garlic mashed potatoes,. $13. Good Irish cheer comes by the glass: Select domestic beers feature a tint of shamrock green on St. Patrick’s Day.. $4.25 per glass of green beer, $3 during happy hour.
Tavern on France
6740 France Ave. S., Edina
952.358.6100
tavernonfrance.com
IRISH SODA BREAD
Wuollet Bakery
Sure as shamrocks, when St. Patrick’s Day rolls around, Irish soda bread makes an appearance at Wuollet Bakery. The celebrated Celtic bread comes in two flavors, sweet or savory. Sweet white tea cake-like round loaves are studded with plump dark raisins and finished with a leprechaun dusting of sugar. The darker savory version features whole wheat nuttiness and stick-to-your-ribs heartiness that is truer to Old World Irish origins. Either way, the homemade bread melds buttermilk moistness with a baking soda lift for leavening. The soda and buttermilk react and form a dense crumb permeated with air bubbles that fancy a slathering of butter. The bread makes an ideal pairing with corned beef and cabbage. If you love this Irish staple, why end the joy after St. Patrick’s Day? Irish soda bread can be special ordered at any time one day in advance. $7.25.
Wuollet Bakery-Edina,
3608 W. 50th St., Minneapolis, MN 55410
612.922.4341
wuollet.com
