The 5 best things our food writers ate this week

It’s the cuisine mashup whose time has come: crispy bites that blend the best of American and Chinese breakfast comforts. Congee hash browns ($5 each) are one of the new menu items at Saturday Dumpling Co., the all-day eatery that just opened in the former Cafe Ceres in the Armatage neighborhood.

“We thought about what this neighborhood had lost — breakfast and coffee,” said Peter Bian, culinary mastermind and co-owner with his spouse, Linda Cao.

“Chinese people, we don’t have a crispy breakfast potato situation,” he said. “We thought about what would our version be?” The answer is to take his childhood favorite day starter — congee, a brothy, starchy rice, and make it hash brown. In the SDC kitchen, Bian and chef Chandra Walbolt combined the best of all worlds: creamy rice breaded in potato starch, wrapped in shredded potato and fried into a new all-day craving. Served alongside ginger scallion sauce, it comes with the bonus of being vegan and gluten-free.

This new cafe is the first to include a breakfast menu, and the only one of their three locations to order these — for now. Pair them with a cozy cup of Hong Kong milk tea for maximum flavor enjoyment. (J.S.)

5401 Penn Av. S., Mpls., saturdaydumpling.com

All the sad taproom closing announcements, including Invictus, Schram Haus and Fair State Brewing in recent weeks, gave us extra incentive to show love to a local establishment making moves to secure its future. Fulton recently added a full kitchen to its North Loop taproom, allowing for an expanded, in-house menu. (Previously, Airstream kitchens, food trucks and snacks were the lay of the land.)

From wings to beer-battered cheese curds and sandwiches to burgers, dishes from chef Brandon Ricigliano are meant to go hand in hand with Lonely Blonde, Sweet Child of Vine and other Fulton beers along with a selection of seltzer and THC offerings. In the end, the pretzels and cheese ($11) left the biggest impression. Pretzel sticks arrive piping hot, are sturdy yet chewy and nicely finished with thick, chunky sea salt. It’s then served with beer cheese that Ricigliano said incorporates four cheeses, “subtle spices” and Fulton’s Chill City golden lager. It was fondue gold for this pretzel pairing.

414 6th Av. N., Mpls., fultonbeer.com

Corn tortillas have their place, especially when it comes to more meaty tacos, but flour tortillas are a way of life in parts of Mexico and the Lone Star State, mainly in central and south Texas where they serve as a crucial foundation for breakfast tacos (and fajitas, carne guisada and, honestly, whatever you like). Having recently moved here from Austin, Texas, I’ve almost run out of my frozen supply of flour tortillas that I brought with me, which is cause for concern.

Recently I visited Galvan Foods & Tortilleria, a tortilla producer and taco stand at the St. Paul Farmers Market, which operates out of the new indoor space with a kitchen, serving pozole, a variety of tacos and breakfast burritos. Owners Roberto Galvan and his wife, Angelica Diaz, have roots in Texas and Mexico: Galvan’s family is originally from McAllen, and he grew up and worked as a chef in Dallas; Diaz’s family is from San Antonio.

They make their own tortillas — both corn and flour — using recipes and techniques passed down from their great-grandparents. Made with nixtamalized organic heirloom corn, the corn tortillas are admirable, tasting earthy and nutty. But it’s the 7-inch flour tortillas ($8 per dozen) that stand out. The ingredient list is simple: organic flour, salt, lard, baking powder and distilled water — resulting in fluffy, delicate, buttery, blistered, pillow-like tortillas. They taste like pure nostalgia.

Naturally, I immediately alerted Texas expats living in the Twin Cities about these excellent flour tortillas, and the responses ranged from “Omg — this is so important!” to “This might be the greatest intel I’ve received since moving!!!” to “That’s awesome!! They look legit!!!” As you can tell from the sheer number of exclamation points thrown around, these expats all have tortilla-shaped holes in their hearts. And Galvan’s flour tortillas can help make the Upper Midwest feel a little more like home. (Raphael Brion)

There are caramel rolls, and there are caramel rolls. This is a caramel roll you have to see to believe. Baked fresh at the sunny daytime cafe in Burnsville’s Heart of the City, its size is almost comical. But the taste and execution of this supersize sweet ($8.95) is serious business. The height provides ample real estate for the intensely flavorful swirls of cinnamon baked in — and for the pecans and pools of buttery housemade caramel sauce that top it, with room to spare for a scoop of butter. (Our server brought even more caramel, just in case.) The texture was surprisingly light and fluffy and, despite the size and caramel bath, was not overly sweet.

With only two of us, and breakfast yet to come, we packed up most of it. The leftovers barely fit in the box, which held another small container of caramel — just in case.

Jensen’s has been on the corner of Nicollet Avenue and Burnsville Parkway for 20 years. It was started by local restaurateurs Brian Hehr and Doron Jensen, who also own Jensen’s supper club in Eagan. There will be a wait on weekends, but the efficient kitchen and front of house keep things moving. Should you find yourself with extra time, the Ficus & Fig gift shop next door is worth a stop, too. (Nicole Hvidsten)

12750 Nicollet Av. S., Burnsville, jensenscafe.com

Having worked up an appetite when running errands in the north metro, we checked out the Roadside in Blaine, the neighborhoody spot featuring burgers, sandwiches, tacos, bowls, salads and a smokehouse menu.

Chef Jordan Antus said it takes six hours to caramelize 5 pounds of onions, which reduces down to less than a pound, to achieve the depth of flavor. He incorporates cream cheese into the dip to give it more body as well as fresh thyme for herbal notes. After that, it needs a day to set. “All those ingredients need to hang out and get to know each other,” Antus said.

And now that we’re in the know, it will be hard to be in the area without stopping by for this upgraded version of chips and dip. Also worth exploring are the juicy pub burgers and crisp wings with just the right subtle, smokiness. (N.N.)

12530 Ulysses St. NE., Blaine, theroadsidemn.com