A Special Place for a Special Evening in the Mill District of Minneapolis

We recently visited Sanctuary for the second time in as many months, this time to celebrate our 17th Wedding Anniversary.  The Sanctuary is a cozy 20 table resaurant located 1 block from the Guthrie Theater in the Mill District of Minneapolis at 903 Washington Ave. South.

An A+ Atmosphere

Instant relaxation best describes how we feel settling into our booth - The fireplace, the stone wall running the entire length of the restaurant, lights turned down low, and music that sets the mood yet fades into the background.   This place just gives off a good vibe.

Minnesota Nice with a Sprinkle of Sophistication

Or should I say sophistication with a sprinkle of Minnesota nice?  Whatever, the Sanctuary seems to have perfected the art of making their guests feel special.  Starting with 5-Time award winning maitre de, and Sanctuary Partner Michael Kutscheid, the staff treat service as both a profession and art form - warm, welcoming, knowledgeable with, yes, just the right amount of "sophistication" to make our experience special.

Our Meal Was as Delicious as it was Beautiful

Chef Patrick Atanalian, a native of Marseille, France, and once named Best Mad Genius Chef by City Pages, stopped by our table to say hi and extend his best wishes on our anniversary.  After enjoying a cocktail, we were ready to savor the flavor.  Chef Patrick and his team served us a work of art that surprised, and delighted our taste buds.

ginger beer potato soup finished with garlic chili creme fraiche

dayboat sea scallops, hangar 1 chipotle vodka eggnog sauce, shishito peppers, asian pear and red tobiko caviar

certified black angus beef, speck ham risotto, black truffle ketchup sauce, jalapeno confiture

Follow Sanctuary on Twitter or Facebook to stay on top of special events and new additions to their menu.

Join Mill City Commons' Annual "Turkey, Dressings and Extra Helpings" Drive, December 1-19

Join Mill City Commons (MCC) members and friends for the fourth annual Turkey, Dressings, and Extra Helpings drive.  This is a wonderful opportunity to do good this Holiday season and throughout the winter!

Ways to Help:

TURKEY:  Tax-deductible financial donations ($10-15, or more if you wish) to provide Holiday dinners for 50 families in North Minneapolis.  Any additional funds will be used to stock a local food shelf. 

Financial donations accepted December 1-15.  Mail checks payable to Mill City Commons to: 117 Portland Avenue #213, Minneapolis, MN 55401.

10 - 12 volunteers are needed Monday, December 19, to help pick up, pack and deliver groceries to Ascension School.  Volunteers will meet in the North Star Lofts parking lot at 10:00am.  Call (612-455-3329) or email Linnea (info@millcitycommons.org) at Mill City Commons to volunteer!

DRESSINGS: Donate cold weather clothing (hats, scarves, mittens) for all ages, and job interview clothing for adults, to benefit our neighbors at People Serving People. 

Clothing donations accepted December 9 -16.  Drop off clothing items at:  MCC Office, 17 4th Street or North Star Lofts, 117 Portland Avenue.

EXTRA HELPINGS: Donate small new or gently used gift items like books, jewelry, and cologne/aftershave, for individuals and families at Exodus Residence and Mary’s Place. These are the only gifts some residents receive.  

Gift donations accepted December 9 - 16.  Drop off gift items at:  MCC Office, 17 4th Street or North Star Lofts, 117 Portland Avenue.

Volunteers needed Saturday, December 17, to sort and deliver the clothing and gift items to People Serving People, Exodus Residence and Mary’s Place.  Volunteers will meet at 10:00am at North Star Lofts. 

Call Linnea (612-455-3329) or email info@millcitycommons.org at Mill City Commons to volunteer, or if you have questions. 

Breaking News - Mill City Summer Opera Coming to Mill City Museum Courtyard

THE NEW MILL CITY SUMMER OPERA COMPANY TO STAGE PAGLIACCI UNDER THE STARS, IN THE RUINS OF THE HISTORIC MILL DISTRICT JULY 12-20, 2012

A venerated opera staged among old city ruins may sound like an exciting event in Italy, or other parts of Europe. But coming in 2012, a newly formed Minnesota-based opera company called The Mill City Summer Opera (MCSO) is hoping to make its outdoor opera premier as enriching and as enjoyable as its location is accessible and memorable — under the stars inside the historic Ruin Courtyard of the Mill City Museum, along the Mississippi Riverfront!

Adding to the rich cultural life of the redeveloped Minneapolis milling district, The Mill City Summer Opera will present its first production, Leoncavallo's Pagliacci on July 12, 14, 15, 18, and 20, 2012 at 7:30 p.m. All performances will take place in the Mill City Museum courtyard. In the event of rain, performances will move inside the museum.

The production, which will include seating for 400 — will feature two staging areas connected by a bridge over the access ramp to the ruins space. Musicians performing the music for the opera will be above the staging, at a height of the second row of windows on the north wall, distanced from the production so as to not overpower the singers and audience with sound. The opera staging, including costuming and sets, will also reflect the era of the first fire at the mill in 1878.

The MCSO company and board, which includes Minnesota composer Libby Larsen and White Bear Lake native, Mezzo-soprano Heather Johnson, who this past summer performed at the Metropolitan Opera in New York, has appointed a superbly talented Artistic Team featuring Artistic Director David Lefkowich and Music Director Brian DeMaris. It also has formed an educational alliance with The Lundstrum Center for Performing Arts on Minneapolis’ north side, to help educate underserved engage students about opera and to engage them in the summer production.

Toys for Tots Drop off Site in the Mill District

According to the U.S. Marine Corps Reserve Toys for Tots Minneapolis website, the 2010 local Toys for Tots campaign distributed over 300,000 toys to children in the community.

The need is still great in 2011, and it's easy to contribute a toy or two at a convenient drop off site here in our neighborhood:  Bridgewater Lofts Sales Office at the corner of 11th Avenue South and Washington Avenue South.  Call 612-341-4000 for office hours.  There is metered street parking or free indoor retail parking (entry on 11th Avenue South side).

Click here for a full list of drop off sites in Minnesota (listed in alphabetical order by city name). 

Tonight - Leo Kottke at the Guthrie Theater

Time: 7:30pm

Location: Guthrie, Wurtele Thrust Stage, 801 2nd Street South

For the past three decades, Leo Kottke has pursued a unique musical vision that has placed him among the foremost acoustic guitar stylists of our time. Kottke's ability to embrace folk idioms and pop melodies as readily as he assimilates jazz and classical influences makes him unique among guitar virtuosi.

Over the years, Kottke has worked in the studio and shared concert stages with everyone from Lyle Lovett, Mike Gordon, John Fahey, T-Bone Burnett and Rickie Lee Jones, to Paco de Lucia, Pepe Romero, John Williams, John McLaughlin and Joe Pass. Since the guitarist's 1969 debut, 12 String Blues, recorded live at a Minneapolis folk club, Kottke went on to release over 30 studio albums, consistently winning over new fans while continuing to surprise and delight longtime aficionados.

Zen Box's "Meat and Potato" Recipe on KARE 11 [Video]

Co-Owner/Chef John of Zen Box Izakaya, 602 Washington Avenue South, was recently featured on KARE 11.  He demonstrated a traditional Japanese winter meat and potato dish called Nikujaga.

If you haven't yet had a chance to experience this new Zen Box location, consider treating yourself to a reprieve from the Holiday madness.  Not only is their food delicious, it's simply a welcoming, feel good environment.

The Week Ahead in Mill City / November 28 - December 4

Each Monday morning we provide an easy to reference list of events and activities for the week ahead in the Mill City neighborhood.  Submit your events here...

Monday, November 28

Leo Kottke at the Guthrie

Tuesday, November 29

Minneapolis Heritage Preservation Public Meeting

Upper River Forum

Wednesday, November 30

Elegant Entertaining with Local Flavors Class at Local D'Lish

Thursday, December 1

Members Double Discount Holiday Shopping Weekend at Mill City Museum

Friday, December 2

Live Music at Crooked Pint Ale House

Live Music at Aster Cafe

An 'Eventually' Christmas: Holidays at the Mill at Mill City Museum

Members Double Discount Holiday Shopping Weekend at Mill City Museum

Minneapolis Beard & Moustache Club Meeting at Grumpy's

Winter Wonderland Cocktails Class at Local D'Lish

Saturday, December 3

The Royal Guard at Central Library

Members Double Discount Holiday Shopping Weekend at Mill City Museum

Marbled Paper, Holiday Cards and Ornaments at MCBA

Live Music at Crooked Pint Ale House

Live Music at Aster Cafe

Star Tribune Holiday Cookie Contest Winners at Mill City Museum

Washburn A Mill Tour at Mill City Museum

Guthrie's How'd They do That Workshop: A Christmas Carol

EQ Spoken Word: Remi Kanazi and Jamaica Heolimeleikalani Osorio at The Loft

Sunday, December 4

Talk & Taste: Urban Gardens at Central Library

Members Double Discount Holiday Shopping Weekend at Mill City Museum

Vikings and Denver Broncos at the Dome

Quick Weeknight Meals Class at Local D'Lish

1850s Holiday Party at Ard Godfrey House

Minneapolis Park and Rec Board Posts Winter-Spring Activities Guide

The Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board’s (MPRB) new Winter-Spring Guide (November 2011 - April 2012) is available online and at recreation centers and libraries citywide.

The Guide highlights popular recreational opportunities available at parks, lakes and recreation centers throughout Minneapolis, and features activities, amenities, events and sports for youth, teens and adults at recreation centers.

Once winter weather conditions allow, the park system’s award-winning outdoor recreation facilities become available, including ice skating, skiing, snowboarding and tubing. The Guide lists hours for ice rink warming houses, ski chalets, tubing and snowboarding areas and recreation centers.

For updates on your favorite winter activities, sign up for paperless, electronic emails specific to your choice of topics.

HUGE Turn Out for 2011 Turkey Day 5K

It was a perfect Thanksgiving morning for the 2011 Turkey Day 5K (unlike last year's single digit temps and blowing snow), with over 12,000 runners, walkers, wheelers and pets participating.

This Weekend in Mill City / November 25-27

Events this weekend in and around the Historic Mill District and Minneapolis Riverfront Neighborhoods.  Have an event to share?  Contact us...

Friday, November 25

Drop the Mic! The Light Within at the Guthrie (2 Nights)

Live Music at Crooked Pint Ale House

Sophia Shorai at Aster Cafe

Northstar Storytelling League Tellabration! at Open Book

Saturday, November 26

Live Music at Crooked Pint Ale House

Brian Bates with Sara Renner at Aster Cafe

Taste Twin Cities Downtown Minneapolis Skyway Tour

Northstar Storytelling League Tellabration! at Open Book

Sunday, November 27

Eating Local Through the Winter Class at Local D'Lish

The Mad Ripple Hootenanny at the Guthrie

The Man Who Talks to Turkeys

The action starts at the 45 second mark.  Happy Thanksgiving!

Giving Thanks for a Great Place to Live [Video]

We originally posted this video in the Spring of 2011 - enjoy!

From Seven & Sixty Productions:

With all the possibilities around the world, what is the “it” that keeps people here in the Twin Cities? We suspected the answer to the question "Why We're Here" was both simple and incredibly nuanced -- worthy of art. We took our camera to the streets of Minneapolis and St. Paul to find people willing to talk, unscripted, on film. The result is our collective love poem to the Twin Cities.

Why We're Here: Twin Cities is a six-minute film that explores what unites us, and unites us here, in the Twin Cities. Filmed on location the spring and summer of 2010 in Minneapolis and St. Paul, Minnesota, the film features an original score by John Munson of the New Standards, the Twilight Hours, Semisonic and Trip Shakespeare, camerawork by Adam Olson and editing by Sam Heyn.

Visit http://www.sevenandsixty.com/ to post your response and tell us, with all the possibilities that exist in the world, why you’re living where you do.

Produced in association with the Minnesota Culture Club. Visit them at http://mncultureclub.com/

Hunger in Minnesota? You Betcha - 1 in 10 Minnesotans Run Out of Food Every Month [Video]

From Seven and Sixty Productions:

Hunger-Free Minnesota, a statewide initiative designed to reframe hunger as a solvable problem, asked us to create a short piece to help launch their three-year $40 million campaign. Together we agreed that the film should be less about facts and figures and more about the stories of real people needing food assistance in the state. Our idea was to create something that would express our shared humanity and connection. We hope we succeeded.

Filmed in May 2011, we traveled throughout the state and spoke to Minnesotans using food support at food shelves in Rochester, Duluth, and outside the metro area in St. Paul Park.

We were fortunate that one of our favorite musicians, the talented Mason Jennings, agreed to let us use two of his songs in the film. Please, drop us a line and let us know what you think about the film. Thanks for watching.

To see more of our work, visit us at http://www.sevenandsixty.com/

Visit Hunger-Free Minnesota at http://hungerfreemn.org/

Reminder - West River Parkway Closed Tomorrow Morning 8:00am-10:00am

The annual Turkey Day 5K will kick off the Thanksgving Holiday again this year, which will close a few local streets for a few hours in the morning, including 2nd Street South and West River Parkway.

Cub FOODS Distributes 2,000 Thanksgiving Meals for People Serving People families as Part of Unity in Community Campaign

The holidays are a time when families look to celebrate the joy of the season with a traditional turkey meal that includes all of the trimmings.  But for those living on the fringes of homelessness and hunger, it’s difficult to envision securing even the simplest of meals.

This Thanksgiving season, thanks to Cub FOODS, 2,000 free turkey meals will be distributed to formerly homeless families and clients of People Serving People (PSP), Simpson Housing Services, Project Pride for Living and St. Stephen’s Human Services at a special distribution event.

During a November 21 event at People Serving People, 150 families, many of whom used to stay at PSP, were invited to recieve frozen turkeys and dinner ingredients.  Hundreds more families who did not attend the event will receive gift certificates.

“Homeless families have a long journey to stability.  Through the “Unity in Community” effort, Cub is helping PSP and our partner organizations give these families hope for tomorrow and a good start on the road to recovery.  Indeed, Thanksgiving is the one day where everyone deserves a place at the table,” emphasized Daniel Gumnit, CEO, People Serving People.

Special Guests Included:                 
- Mr. Sherman Patterson, Policy Aide for Minneapolis Mayor R.T. Rybak
- Cathy Ten Broeke, Coordinator, End Homelessness, Minneapolis/Hennepin County
- Mary Tingerthal, Commissioner, Minnesota Housing Finance Agency

MinnPost posted a story yesterday on one of the families attending this event.  It's a great example of the difference PSP and events like Unity in Community make.

Unique Floral Arrangement from City Gardens' Flower Mill says 'You're Special'

We are fortunate to have City Gardens' Flower Mill in our neighborhood (231 10th Avenue South, in the Bridgewater Lofts building).  

Every arrangement I've received from Dave - Birthday, Valentine's, or most recently, Anniversary - has been unique and absolutely gorgeous.  He just asks Dan to create something special - and voila, a work of art comes together.

Dan and Kaia's shop is filled with super fresh flowers and lovely gifts.  If you want to show someone how special they are, give them a bouquet from City Gardens' Flower Mill.  612-332-7377 

Mill District Based Foundation Combats Youth Prostitution - from @TheJournalMPLS

From The Journal:

The Women’s Foundation of Minnesota is spearheading a five-year, $4 million campaign to fight the prostitution of girls in the state.

The foundation based in the Mill District has raised $2.6 million so far and plans to award its first round of grants totaling $340,000 to agencies and nonprofits in January.

Read the full article...

The Week Ahead in Mill City / November 21-27

Each Monday morning we provide an easy to reference list of events and activities for the week ahead in the Mill City neighborhood.  Submit your events here...

Monday, November 21

Public Skating at the Dome

Tuesday, November 22

Minneapolis Park & Rec Board Meeting

The Perfect Pair Wine Dinner at Spill the Wine

Wednesday, November 23

The Depot Rink Opens for the 2011-12 Skating Season

Thursday, November 24

Turkey Day 5K

Friday, November 25

Drop the Mic! The Light Within at the Guthrie (2 Nights)

Live Music at Crooked Pint Ale House

Sophia Shorai at Aster Cafe

Northstar Storytelling League Tellabration! at Open Book

Saturday, November 26

Live Music at Crooked Pint Ale House

Brian Bates with Sara Renner at Aster Cafe

Taste Twin Cities Downtown Minneapolis Skyway Tour

Northstar Storytelling League Tellabration! at Open Book

Sunday, November 27

Eating Local Through the Winter Class at Local D'Lish

November 27, 2011, Sunday - The Mad Ripple Hootenanny at the Guthrie

"Gold Medal Plaza" Office Building Planned for Mill District

The office building planned next to the Zenith Condos has a name - Gold Medal Plaza.  Details below:

Download - Gold Medal Plaza

At the Guthrie / Behind the Curtain with "The Sunshine Boys" - Part One

One of the most highly anticipated events of the season will be the union of Guthrie dream team Raye Birk (Faith Healer, Third) and Peter Michael Goetz (1776, The Government Inspector), playing cantankerous vaudeville comedians in Neil Simon's popular comedy The Sunshine Boys, directed by Gary Gisselman (Lost in Yonkers, A Christmas Carol). Despite their comedic chemistry onstage, the one-time famous duo "Lewis and Clark" can't stand each other offstage. The shenanigans that ensue when these seasoned stage partners are coerced to reunite for a CBS television comedy special will likely make this ticket one of the hottest -- and most hilarious -- in town.

The Guthrie Theater is located in the Historic Mill District of Downtown Minneapolis.