It's Lions and Tigers and meatloaf, oh my! Everything on the menu is music to your ears at the Tiny Diner
Monday, April 11, 2016 at 5:00AMStory and photos by Julie Craven
It's a diner, a road trip and a sustainable food lesson, complete with beehives on the solar roof.
My first visit to Tiny Diner was prompted by its proximity to Steven B’s Yarn Garage. (Now that makes total sense if you're into needle arts and you've just enjoyed a yarn gala event!) The menu blurb describes Tiny Diner and Farm as “a little collaboration farm and diner counter. We're trying to figure out, through seeds and soils and systems, how we can live sustainably today so we've got a ripe and delicious tomorrow.”
Tiny Diner’s menu certainly is diner food meets local movement. Yessica suggested the Grateful Bowl for a first time visit. Roasted veggies, brown rice, quinoa, kale, tofu, pepitas, avocado, wild mushrooms and roasted garlic make for what she described as a super filling and super tasty dish. Her next recommendation was the Greek salad for something a bit lighter. When I asked her what they were most famous for, she called out everyone's diner favorites, patty melts and grass fed beef burgers.
Our group of three landed on a Mediterranean Chicken with organic brown rice, spinach, feta and artichoke hearts, in a marinated tomato sauce, and two orders of the patty melts. Savory, colorful, delicious!
Tiny Diner definitely has a neighborhood feel. Yessica shared that not every guest lives nearby but there are a lot of regulars, particularly in the summer. Both Claudia and Cheryl have visited this Powderhorn neighborhood favorite in the summer and agreed that herbs and the pollinator-friendly plantings in the backyard garden are both lovely to look at and are a bit of a culinary education.
The dessert lineup has three home runs according to Yessica - Flourless Chocolate Cake with blackberry sauce, Carrot Cake with spiced walnuts and a House-Made Crisp. The crisp is seasonal and tonight it's peach and blackberry. I made an exception to my chocolate-for-dessert rule and ordered the crisp. Warm and tasty! Crunchy oatmeal cookie-style crisp and a generous portion, more than enough for the three of us to share.
And the Tigers and Lions? Michigan! The dinner menu features a city of the month in their “Plates Across the States” series and this month it's Detroit. Great fun with Motown inspired specials, throwback menu mentions and a tribute to revitalization in another great American city!
Location: 1024 E 38th St, Minneapolis, MN 55407
Website: tinydiner.com
Julie Craven can be reached at julie@millcitymedia.org
