Bar Brava — Restaurant in Minneapolis

It pays to talk to people. We were at a wine tasting at Violet, and another customer recommended this place. So ...off we went. It is rather off by itself on Washington in North Minneapolis. They describe themselves as a wine and tapas bar. A wine bar it is, and a very interesting one. I will get back to the "tapas".

As you might suspect, their wines by the glass were quite interesting. I tried their sparkling white blend pet-nat, Gabrielle, from Australia. Definitely interesting, but not what I was in the mood for. I ended up with the At Roca, a sparkling rose from Spain. Very bright and lovely. My husband opted for a very interesting zinfandel-palomino blend from California, Scythian. He liked it a lot. I liked it too, and I am NOT a zinfandel drinker.

We decided to stay for dinner. They have chefs that work there for one year, so it makes for a continually changing menu. The current chef is from Guatemala, and worked at Fika. The menu is decidedly Scandinavian, and not very tapas-like. However, the food was interesting. I had the torsk, which is a type of cod. It was served on a bed of slightly pickled cherry tomatoes, peas, and yogurt. It was good but it could have been hotter. My husband opted for the salmon with beet risotto. It was served with goat cheese and turmeric, cauliflower on a bed of beet flavored risotto. It was good, but it also could have been hotter.

We said the strawberry rhubarb shortcake for dessert. It was fine.

The menu is not long. There were essentially four starters, a cheese board, four main courses, and two desserts. However, the real reason to go is for the super interesting wine and for the people who are serving it, who know quite a lot about wine. I recommend this place, particularly if you are an adventurous...

My partner and I were absolutely thrilled with our first experience at Bar Brava. The menu was well crafted and we sampled nearly everything. It was a really fun take on traditional Spanish fare. The sardine and ratatouille toasts, papas bravas, and the green dashi mushroom paella were outstanding. The yogurt sorbet with olive oil and edible flowers was a perfect way to finish everything off. We're not wine experts, so thankfully we had great help from our server who selected some funky natural tasting wines with real character. For the quality and portions, the price point was very fair.

What cements Bar Brava as one of our new regular date night spots, above all else, is their service. My partner I went in a few weeks later with some friends from out of town hoping to show off a new spot. After ordering and having our wine poured, someone in our party started to feel unwell (not related to the dining experience in any way) and we needed to head home immediately. The staff at Bar Brava were so kind and understanding, even offering to refill our wine bottle from our glasses so we could take it home. They wished us nothing but the best and did not charge us for any of the food that had already been started in the kitchen. For this, we say many thanks to Bar Brava for their class and courtesy. We will be...

As you can see I NEVER write reviews! I'm writing this because last night I was enjoying this place and over heard two women complaining. I had a feeling they would leave bad reviews. Honestly, I cannot believe they actually did it. So inappropriate! They complained because a young server didn't know exactly what grapes were in the wine they ordered. This place looks to have over 100 bottles of wine. You seriously expect anyone to know exactly what grapes are in each? I'm thinking these women were just in bad moods. The atmosphere last night was so fun and absolutely everyone else was enjoying themselves. The place was sold out. The food was fabulous, the wine was yummy and the service was stellar. I've been here a few other times and always leave happy. Ladies, maybe the next time you're feeling snarky you should stay home with a bottle of wine you're familiar with! Pretty sure there isn't a wine bar or restaurant anywhere where the wait staff knows the grapes used to make all the wines they carry. If you want a place to enjoy some natural wine this is the place. They haven't steered me...