WOW! This past Sunday we had a wonderful, adventure filled day. We did one of our favorite things- eat breakfast out. Its been a while since we have gone out for breakfast so Steve thought he would find something fun and interesting for us.
A crowded cafe, beautiful weather, good food, and great company, what a way to start the day. We went to brunch at the Aster Cafe down by Nicollet Island at St Anthony Main. It was a cozy cafe right by the Mississippi river with a beautiful view. Can you imagine what its like when the sun is shining; it’s warm out and people are enjoying themselves. Asters has a patio area where you could enjoy just that.
They have a small, but tasty brunch menu, which is sure to satisfy just about everyone.
Brunch Menu
We each had a scrambled egg sandwich. Jackie’s had the egg sandwich with spinach and cheddar cheese and Steve with brie and bacon each served with a couple orange and grapefruit slices.
Spinach & Cheddar and Bacon & Brie with Orange & Grapefruit Slices
At 11 am a live jazz band began to play. Aster Cafe features a lot of live music throughout the week, in fact almost everyday. Go to their website, http://www.aster-cafe.com to check out the full schedule.
The combination of good food, great company and a fun live band made for a wonderful Sunday brunch and the perfect start to a fun day. We both would totally go back and recommended it to anyone.
After breakfast we took a relaxing 20 minute walk across the Stone Arch Bridge and headed to the Mill City Museum.
Walking along the Stone Arch Bridge
The Museum offers so much history about both the flour industry and Minnesota. The Mill was one of the driving forces in Minneapolis’s economy back when it was in operation.
To give you a slight “history lesson” … the wheat from the Dakota’s, Montana, and Minnesota made the milling company so large that it was the largest flour producer in the world at one time. In 1928 Washburn Crosby Company and others merged, creating General Mills. General Mills has grown to be one of the largest food companies in the world! The Mill was in operation till 1965, shut down because the technology became obsolete. It was believed that squaters moved into the building and one night in 1991 a small fire was started to keep warm, getting out of control, burning down the Northeast side of the mill.
Image from the street outside the museum of the area where the Mill burned in 1991.
In 2001, construction began on the museum, opening in 2003. While there take in the Flour Tower, interactive activities and talk with all the wonderful volunteers. They all were so knowledgeable and willing to share with you what they know about the history of Mill.
Check out www.millcitymuseum.org for more information.
Minnesota has rich history and great food to try along the way. We would highly suggest making a day out of visiting the Museum starting off at Asters for some brunch and great music.
Historyeats 