Dario TODOTC.com To Do in the Twin Cities Restaurants Dario Date: May 31, 2024 323 N Washington Ave Suite 100 Minneapolis, MN 55401 Phone: (612) 614-2560 www.dariorestaurant.com

Dario
One of the problems with going to the latest & greatest restaurants in the Twin Cities is the fear of overpaying and being underwhelmed. That is not what we found at Dario the latest of the hot places to go in the Twin Cities. I like to get the worst of the place out right away. They don’t have much for parking, but they do have Valet. But in 2 hours at 7 on a Friday night I never saw anyone there parking cars. There that is the worse thing I can say about Dario. I slipped into a lucky position and had no issues. And within two blocks there are more than 100 places… not a big deal.

First of all, Dario is clean with floor to ceiling windows. We went on a rainy evening and it was like being at an upscale restaurant in NYC… picturesque. The furnishings are all nice. Of course, liking pink might be a little important. There IS a lot of pink. After being seated from some very nice door people you are handed two pieces of paper. One for drinks and one for a food menu. Why do we ever need more? The only times people need a larger menu is when people are picky or have food issues. Do everyone a favor and go online before you get there to get a clue if you have those issues. We usually do before we make reservations to see if they have what we eat. Which is pretty open.
We eat basically the same courses when we go out: an appetizer, maybe bread, a salad, and a main entrée with a glass of wine each. It keeps our bill about $100 something which we believe most people can afford once a month if they desire.
One of the problems with going to a place with artistic chefs like Dario is what do you limit yourself to. We had a beet appetizer which both look & tasted incredible. Then we had a potato appetizer which was good then, as a radish fan I could not pass up their radish appetizer. Boy was I right, it was best thing we had and looked great.

One of the problems of having three apps at $16 each and an extra glass Nebbiolo oh and dessert to celebrate… going to Dario. Is our bill went from $99 to $159… wonder how THAT happened?

At an Italian Restaurant we would expect great Italian Wine and Dario did not let us down. E had a Correggio Nebbiolo, and I had a Mendiola Barbera for $17 each. They BOTH were GREAT wines, something we rarely say at a restaurant. We always pay $12 for wine, paying $5 more for a great wine paired with their food is what we expect at a fine restaurant, and we were not disappointed.

For an entrée we had Halibut for $36 which was good and well presented. The only problem is it was served with the radish appetizer which again was incredible. Tough comparison when an appetizer beats the entrée and again we HAD no bad food!

E was so thrilled with the meal and wine we finished with a desert which we shared because they only had one left. It tasted like butterscotch pudding which I like, it was the piece de resistance.

Our bill was $159, which is more than normal but as I said earlier, we ordered much more than normal. Had we not and shared as we always do… you can probably eat at Dario for $99 for two if you share. The problem is what do you go without. Anyway, yes top ten, yes we will return and it is just a few blocks down Washington from North Loop Wine so we might make this a regular.
E told me to talk to the manager and compliment them. I’m not the type to say I’m a food critic and you are acceptable. I am more I was at a dog field trial last week, a rocket launch a couple of weeks ago, a mushroom hunt last fall,,, and you have a nice place with good food. I’m not qualified to do most of what I do in life. He was very gracious for the minute or two we spoke. I wish more owners/managers would take the time. It sure is appreciated for those of us just looking for a great Friday night.   Put Dario on your calendar, took us 6 weeks!

Contact us Dennis@ToDoTC.com