eat + drink

Oh, to be a college student again -- if only for the food. In Dinkytown, the diminutive commercial district near the University of Minnesota, nearly 40 eat-and-drink establishments squeeze into a roughly five-block area, a dining critical mass unmatched anywhere else in town. It's impossible to highlight them all in a one-page guide, but here's a quick overview.

Some Dinkytowners are bona fide classics. Al's Breakfast, the neighborhood's 14-seat heart and soul, has been specializing in delicate pancakes studded with blueberries and walnuts, gently poached eggs and genre-defining hash browns since Dwight and Mamie Eisenhower called the White House home. Vescio's Italian Restaurant, a fixture since 1956, continues to turn out its reliable red-sauce favorites. Shuang Cheng has been the place for affordable, smartly prepared seafood for 17 delicious years. And there are few purveyors of the all-American burger-fries-malts combo better than Annie's Parlour, which also offers an out-of-this-world hot fudge sundae.

There was a time in the late 1990s when it seemed as if these four dining stalwarts were just about the only reasons to visit D-town, which felt depressingly down and out. Then Jason McLean took command of a landmark drugstore and converted it to the Loring Pasta Bar, and the neighborhood roared back to life, thanks to a funky, one-of-a-kind setting, approachable fare, student-minded prices, tons of live music and primo people-watching. (McLean's similar revival of the Varsity Theater, just up the block, was equally welcome.)

The area's other culinary savior has been Georgia Sander, left. She's the owner of Kafé 421, a three-year-old charmer that plucks flavor profiles from all around the globe -- a bright borscht, superb crab cakes, tender fried calamari, scallops with a coconut risotto and a fine rendition of bouillabaisse -- without charging round-trip-ticket prices. Chef Ian Pierce keeps regulars on their toes with sharp daily specials (mellow catfish livened up with a snappy Thai curry sauce, a rich veal osso bucco), and the short, nicely chosen wine list is obviously designed for exploration. Sander doesn't forget her work/study-salaried audience, either, with small-plate ($5) happy hours, $7 lunches and half-price wines on Monday and Wednesday. Live music is heard on Wednesday and Friday nights.

Part of the neighborhood's appeal is that it is constantly in flux, and the 2007 school year is no exception. There's a new owner and a new menu at the former Bangkok Thai Restaurant, and a new name, too: Thai Rocky Spring Restaurant. Starlight Coffee has morphed into the Marrakech Cafe Coffee Shop & Mediterranean Deli, and a former CD store is set to become Pagoda, self-billed as an "authentic Asian cuisine." The biggest bummer is that Chowgirls Killer Catering has dropped its swell lunch service, although co-owners Amy Lynn Brown and Heidi Andermack will open up their tiny-but-sweet cafe for groups of 10 or more who call in advance.

The quirkiest newcomer is Cereal World & the Minnesota Popcorn Connection, which is pretty much what it sounds like: A munchiesfest, featuring 25 breakfast cereals (from sugar-coated Lucky Charms to all-Americans such as Corn Flakes), mixed with a slew of fruit, nuts, candies, syrups, yogurt and, of course, milk; there's also a ton of flavored popcorns (sour cream and chive, grape, jalapeño, chocolate fudge brownie and tangerine are a few). The afternoon soap operas are free.

A quick bowl of Trix made my sweet tooth long for my undergraduate days, many of which were capped with a visit to the late, great Bridgeman's, a 14th-and-4th fixture until it disappeared in the 1980s. At least Espresso Royale down the block has the good sense to feature a half-dozen flavors of gelato (made locally by Caruso's), the neighborhood's only scoop counter. As coffeehouses go, this one is choice. Although it's part of a chain, its slightly battered, Beatnik-y setting avoids the Caribou-Starbucks corporate vibe.

The Purple Onion, which occupied the former Bridgeman's location for what seemed like forever, at least until it lost out to a pair of fast-food chains, has relocated to roomier and far better-looking digs a block away. That move meant an expanded kitchen that turns out salads, prepared-to-order sandwiches and sweets at moderate prices; there's a sweet sidewalk patio, too. The Steak Knife, with its huge list of dirt-cheap fast-food eats (hardly anything over $7), reminds me of an updated version of another long-gone Dinkytown haunt, the Best Steak House.

Asian flavors can be found at tiny Camdi Restaurant (Vietnamese, with a sizable vegan selection), China Express and Hong Kong Express (both basic Chinese), all of which do the low-price, fast-service thing. The district's only juice bar, Bobaboca Tea and Cafe, blends up bubble teas and hot teas, fruit slushes and soups, too, along with cold noodles and sushi. And two stalls down -- under an impressive glass dome, surely the city's most architecturally distinctive food court -- is Little Taj Mahal, a sweet, wonderfully fragrant Indian restaurant with a budget-priced buffet lunch.

Pizza and college go together like fraternities and beer, and D-town is blessed with two of the city's top by-the-slice shops. Purists will appreciate Duffy's Dinkytown Pizza, which features a marvelously chewy crust, a robust red sauce and a decent shredded mozzarella before going on to a mix-and-match list of more than 36 mostly traditional toppings. There are calzones, too, along with thick lasagna and a few salads. The crust is crisper (and the setting even more cramped) around the corner at Mesa Pizza, and the choices are more inventive. The chicken 'zas take their cues from Alfredo, Buffalo, Cordon Bleu and other culinary signposts; there's an awesome smoked ham/smoked bacon/grilled steak/barbecue sauce combo, as well as riffs on burritos, cheese-stuffed potatoes, tacos, Philly cheesesteaks and more. Slices stick around the $2 to $3 range at both joints, and both also keep late weekend hours (to 2 a.m. at Duffy's, 3 a.m. at Mesa).

This is definitely an all-nighter kind of neighborhood. Burrito Loco, a home-grown Chipotle (minus the eco-friendly mindset but plus cocktails, sold in a mind-boggling variety of daily and sometimes hourly specials), wraps jumbo-sized burritos until 3 a.m. Thursday through Saturday. The basement-level Dinkytowner Cafe, with its rib-sticking breakfast-anytime menu, keeps the pancakes flapping until 4 a.m. Saturday and Sunday. And talk about your Happy Meals: Even the neighborhood's always-busy McDonald's, housed in what might possibly be the ugliest structure in southeast Minneapolis, has deep-fryers simmering to 3 a.m. daily.

Rick Nelson • 612-673-4757

Rick Nelson • rdnelson@startribune.com