Let the road tripping – and the dining – continue in picturesque southeastern Minnesota.
Spouses Matt Brown and Heidi Harstad — he's a Travail Kitchen & Amusements and Pig Ate My Pizza vet; she hails from HauteDish — relocated to her heart-of-Amish country hometown this year to launch Estelle's Eatery & Bar. At their picture-perfect Main Street cafe, Brown relies upon local farms to stock his pantry, and his menu is all about vibrant, $10-and-under salads, sandwiches and spectacular burgers and fries at lunch, supplemented by a few house-made pastas and entrees ($11 to $16) at dinner. Do not miss the showy squash soup. The craft beer roster would not be out of place in a hip Minneapolis gastropub. Lunch and dinner Tuesday-Sunday.
121 Main Av. N., Harmony, Minn., 1-507-886-1234,
facebook.com/Estelleseatery
There's plenty to see and do at the beautiful and fascinating Four Daughters Vineyard & Winery. The great-looking dining room — and adjacent sunny patio — overlook the grapevines, and chef Erik Kleven and his crew turn out all manner of shareable comfort-food fare at reasonable prices. As for the wines (sold in 1-ounce tasting flights, by the glass or by the bottle), the whites are more successful than the reds; best bets are the fruity sangrias and the excellent hard cider, from locally cultivated Honeycrisp apples. Lunch and dinner daily.
78757 Hwy. 16, Spring Valley, Minn., 1-507-346-7300,
fourdaughtersvineyard.com
The latest draw in downtown Rochester — aside from the state's first Dunkin' Donuts outlet, of course, in the Kahler Grand Hotel — is Terza. A sibling to nearby Pescara and Chester's Kitchen & Bar (as well as Hazellewood Grille and Tap Room in Tonka Bay and Tavern 4&5 in Eden Prairie), the focus is on familiar, robust Italian cooking, including pizzas, pastas, build-your-own snack platters and grilled meats. Wines are generally Italian or Californian, and La Vetta, the evening-only rooftop getaway, specializes in small plates and cocktails. Lunch Monday through Saturday, dinner daily.
