Among various cultural things I set out to do in my home town of Minneapolis, Minnesota -- visit the newly expanded Walker, stroll through the Sculpture Garden, take in a CD release party, and check out the Art Fair -- I planned to do a lot of eating. And man did I make good on that.

I re-visited one of my all-time favorite restaurants in Uptown, Lucia's. Lucia Watson, herself a 2004 James Beard Award Nominee for Best Chef in the Midwest, opened Lucia's in 1985 in order to celebrate and embrace the diverse food of the Heartland. "Diverse -- hah!" You might scoff about what many view as a "fly-over state." Well, I'd call a melange of Norwegians, Finns, Germans, Hungarians, Poles, Russians, Czechs, Ukrainians, Romanians, Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes pretty deliciously diverse. And just add to that pot the large Laotian, Hmong, and Mexican population and give it a taste. It doesn't need much more seasoning.

Lucia, who studied under Madeline Kamman, is famous for cooking in conjunction with the four distinct Minnesotan seasons and relying on fresh, local, sustainable ingredients. I'd eaten at her restaurant in nearly every season save spring. On this trip, I remedied that.



My starter was large, light ribbons of homemade pasta tossed with morel butter and new peas. Wow, all other raptures over that dish aside, the peas were incredible. So perfectly were they cooked that they still had a slight crunch when I bit into them. Fantastic.



My main was red and golden beet risotto with a carrot coulis. As you can see, it was a stunning bowl of bright colors with even brighter flavors.



My father, the eternal meat and potatoes man, who doesn't like to experiment, took a chance and ordered bison tenderloin with meaty, port-reduced mushrooms and delicately dressed microgreens. He only ate the microgreens when he mashed them in with the rich sauce. The bison was tender, juicy and bursting with flavor. Bison -- not gamey or venison-y at all -- is lower in fat and cholesterol than turkey and chicken and is a good source of thiamin, iron, and protein. Even Dad liked it.

From her book Savoring the Seasons of the Northern Heartland: "Inspired by the wealth of native ingredients, we've blended new flavors with traditional values in bold imaginative ways. This food reflects our need to waste nothing, to savor all that we have, and to share the bounty." And that bounty? It's a ridiculously delicious one.

Lucia's Restaurant and Wine Bar
1432 W. 31st Street (at Hennepin)
Minneapolis, MN
612.825.1572