The 5 best things our food writers ate this week

Try driving down St. Paul’s University Avenue with the windows rolled down on a Saturday night without getting hungry. Our trip began with zero intentions for food, but the aromas were irresistible. As we approached the intersection of Dale, the scents of ginger, garlic and good fried things emanating from Basil Cafe were undeniable. It’s a restaurant I’d been meaning to visit for years, and now I’m mad about all the years that have passed when I could have been enjoying lingering date nights, mornings with fresh made Thai tea and all the food on this menu. Plus, there’s a parking lot! (A hot commodity along the Green Line.)

Inside, Basil Cafe’s tables are set with rich textiles, decorated with a mix of faux greenery and twinkle lights. It reminded me of Ngon Bistro in its mix of romantic dining room and casual openness.

We ordered a parade of dishes that culminated in the Khao Mun Gai Taut ($15). A juicy chicken thigh is battered, fried crispy and sliced into strips topped with crunchy garlic bits, served alongside chicken fat-colored rice (golden) and a gingery homemade sauce that is greedily scooped and poured over everything.

Even though we came during the peak of dinner, service was brisk, effusively friendly and incredibly helpful. The server greeted regulars by name without missing a beat in caring for us newbies. In the wealth of great dining along this thoroughfare, we might just have a new favorite. (Joy Summers)

585 University Av. W., St. Paul, 585basilcafe.com

If you love falafel and all things burgers, why not combine them into one notable veggie burger? That’s the idea behind this mashup that is the Encino Man, or “cualafel” veggie burger ($15), on the menu at this downtown Stillwater eatery.

Falafel ingredients are combined with riced cauliflower, the latter a key component in keeping the patty from getting dry while smoothing out the texture. The restaurant’s house sauces and seasonings further enhance those Mediterranean-forward flavors. A unique, original, refreshing and flavor-packed bite that was a nice break from meat-based dishes, while leaving nothing wanting.

218 N. Main St., Stillwater, wildharebar.com

The iconic breads are right there in the name, but this now 30-year-old bakery and cafe has plenty of other staples people return for, again and again.

The soups you could, and should, make a meal of. An eggy breakfast, served well into the afternoon, like this smoked salmon and spinach scramble ($15.50), feels lush and indulgent for an everyday plate of eggs. The requisite crispy-craggy breakfast potatoes has shaggy skins that give way to cloudlike interiors. The thickest, fluffiest pancakes, with crunchy butter-fried edges, are surely a contender for one of the best in the Twin Cities. And massive cookies you select yourself from baskets while you wait.

At the flagship, you can watch bakers at work, grab a quart of soup or a frozen pizza from the case and leave with arms full of bread. Three decades in, Turtle Bread remains the kind of neighborhood fixture that feels indispensable. (Sharyn Jackson)

3421 W. 44th St., Mpls.; 4205 E. 34th St., Mpls.; 4762 Chicago Av. S., Mpls.; turtlebread.com

The Pick of the Patch ($15) is among the drinks on the fall menu bar manager Jake Jarecki has debuted — the cocktail’s architect was general manager Erik Santo — and it hits all the autumnal notes. Gin and pisco are the spirits in play, and they’re given an imaginative boost by pumpkin butter, cardamom, a curry tincture and a splash of lemon to accentuate the flavors. Garnished with a sprig of rosemary, it’s as looky as it is tasty. (An NA version would be most welcome.)

This drink is also a reminder that recipe development can be as creative behind the bar as it is in the kitchen, where Pink Ivy also excels. Among the highlights of our standout meal at Viorica and chef Michael Shaughnessy’s restaurant: melt-in-your-mouth tender Korean beef lettuce wraps, a vegan grilled mushroom dish I could eat on repeat, and pan-seared scallops that were among the best I’ve eaten. Hopkins’ Mainstreet is worth your attention. (Nicole Hvidsten)

712 Mainstreet, Hopkins, pinkivymn.com

StepChld in northeast Minneapolis recently rebranded. Now called Kizzo, the place has taken the more casual, sports bar route. Beef marrow and salmon platters of the last five years are no longer. While casual menu items of mostly handhelds remain, the kitchen has updated those mainstays with new recipes (an exception being the Cooper Burger, which remains in its original form).

Surveying the new menu online before heading here, I spotted familiar dishes, albeit revamped, such as the wings and mushroom tacos, but was bummed to see my favorite dish, the Ethiopian birria tacos, was missing. But as luck would have it, the day I visited happened to be when the tacos ($15 for three) were put back on the menu, a result of customers being vocal about how much they missed the dish, a staff member explained.

Like with the burger, this dish has come back in its original recipe form, according to staff. And that’s a good thing. A recent Thursday night football game filled the room as diners embraced the new while also returning to the familiar. And the latter includes this fusion of Mexican birria taco with Ethiopian spices that I’d happily drive across town for again and again. (N.N.)

24 University Av. NE., Mpls., kizzorestaurant.com