Very cool environment. Very romantic for valentines drinks and apps. Small dark and intimate with…read morefriendly service. Bartender was very helpful in choosing nonalcoholic drinks! We will be back again.

A hidden gem for the area. I actually am hesitant to give them a five star just to keep the place…read moreavailable for us. Great cocktails and atmosphere. In the basement of the wine bar so your party has options. Great owner and staff too.

On a beautiful day, we decided to make a stop for cocktails at The Velveteen. Upon arriving, we…read moreentered the door and descended dimly lit stairs, then passed through a stone hallway to reach the entrance. The wait at the table was longer than we anticipated but luckily for us, there were some bar seats available. The bartender at the moment was Cameron. He gave us the rundown on the food and drinks and made several recommendations. We started off the evening with the Don Corlone. It was very tasty and also an Andorran Martini. Both drinks were delightful and were semi-sweet but not too sweet. The mixture of the Don Corlione had a perfect blend of citrus and sweetness. We then ordered the pastry puff poppers and they were amazing. The sauce complemented the pastry puffs and the filling left you wanting more. To finish the night we ordered tiramisu, cheesecake, and some bubbles. Thank you Cameron for the amazing service and experience we hope to be back again soon.

Went the day before valentines day. Had a reservation for 9pm. The environment was great, but…read morethey ran out of over half the food items and closed the kitchen early (like 5 minutes after we got there) didn't get to order beefed to try something. Considering we wanted earlier and we took the reservation time they gave us, it was disappointing to not get to eat. The drinks were really fun (bartender was killin' it) and dessert was included in the kitchen so not available but did manage to finagle one of the 4 options and we got the strawberry cheesecake (friends not a strawberry fan but we were hungry) because they wouldn't serve the others or they were out. Really poor planning for such a busy 'date night' weekend. I loved the speakeasy feel and will go back for that. Hopefully we'll get to eat there the next time. Experience a plus. Food a minus Staff, doing their best Bartender - was a mover and a Shaker was definitly on their A game.

We love this semi-hidden gem of a bar & restaurant. Many folks still haven't discovered it…read more They offer fabulous, well priced cocktails & great bar service. They also offer a seasonal menu/kitchen known as the Fiddlehead that should not be underestimated. Check out their website or facebook page for details re: hours & menu options. Last night we tried both the Bahn Mi Salad & Spring Roll Salad and both were fantastic!

Great cocktails, cool vibes, and a fantastic kitchen. Kitchen is a third party that works out of…read morethe location and seemingly has a fresh menu weekly. We got a deconstructed candied Korean bbq bowl, and it was amazing. Highly recommend.

It's a dive bar. The three booths are nicer than what you'd find at a typical dive bar but let's…read morenot kid ourselves. The 5-star reviews describing this place as a cocktail lounge or having met interesting people must be locals having a laugh at those of us who were looking for something unique in WBL. This is not it. It was loud, full of drunk people shouting at each other, and too busy for the single poor bartender trying to keep everyone served. They had a decent bar for mixed drinks but only serve Heggie's pizza for food. They only take cash--unless you're a regular (then they'll take your plastic). So bring cash, get one drink, and then run down the street to somewhere with a better menu and your choice of whiskeys.

You never know what kind of fun stories and fun people you will meet. Great servers. Fun, retro…read morevibe and did I mention you'll have fun stories at the end of the night. Love it here!

A fun stop on our drive home from the north. The space is dark, with an outer space theme. It also…read moreappears there is an enclosed patio, but it wasn't open the day we were there. There are some monthly specials, along with an extensive list of regular rotation cocktails. There is also a note, if you can dream it, they will try to make it. We had some BOGOs to use, so we tried a few different things. Hubs was a little disappointed that there was a drink with goat cheese that was sold out. It sounded so unique and interesting though! I had the Rover, a lemon raspberry gin fizz-like drink and the Peeps special. Both were light tasting, the Rover was delicious. Hubs tried the Gaia's Garden special, not my fave, but he enjoyed it. Worth the hour-ish drive from the cities or if you're up in the Collegeville area.

Welcome to the first stop of my Distillery Passport series! Obbink was an unexpected surprised…read morelocated in a somewhat industrial spot of St. Joseph. With family living near by I thought this would be a great location to begin my journey. As you pull up the spot looks quaint with a metal barn exterior and a large yard and tented patio. Walking in it felt very industrial chic, with wood and black metal interior design. The bartender was absolutely fabulous, we had great conversation and she was able to help my brother and I select a few cocktails that we could be interested based on our preferred pallets. The distillery has a main cocktail menu along with a seasonal menu with approximately 6-8 specialty drinks. My first choice 2.5/5 Rover Club - consisting of gin, egg white, raspberry, and lemon. The initial taste was nice, however the sweet of the raspberry and the sour of the lemon almost seemed to neutralize the drink leaving me wanting a bit more flavor. My brother's first selection 3.5/5 Golden Hands - consisting of whiskey, egg yolk, cinnamon, and lemon. I'm not a huge cinnamon fan like he is, however this had a nice consistency and could make a great drink for those looking for something outside of the box. My second choice 4.5/5 Aurora Haze - consisting of Aurora gin, grapefruit, and lemon. Their "grapefruit martini". This cocktail was right up my alley! The drink was slightly Tarte with a sweeter finish and the presentation was beautiful! I am a sucker for purple gins. Would most definitely return for this cocktail. My brother's second selection 4/5 French Toast - ingredients unknown. It was very creamy with a nice touch of cinnamon. It gave me the impression of drinking the leftover milk in your Cinnamon Toast Crunch bowl. This cocktail was my brother's favorite of the night. Overall this was a nice experience! Even though my first drink wasn't particularly my cup of tea, my last cocktail made me feel better about their selections! My brother also really enjoy his two cocktails. If you're looking for a new cocktail spot to try out, visit Obbink's!

Sometimes in life, you unexpectedly stumble upon experiences that you will treasure for a lifetime…read more And, when you recall the places that you've been, these serendipitous experiences will be the story that you tell. My unforgettable experience at Blue Goose in St. Cloud was created by my interaction with the kind, beautiful bartender, Winters! You can feel Winters' passion about mixology as soon as she asks what you would like to drink. And if you were lucky like me who encountered her and her lovely coworkers/friends around her. It's akin to the scene in Lost in Translation when Bill Murray stumbled on the locals in Japan and being invited to have a great night out with them. I ask winters for a cocktail after being super happy with her spirit suggestion. And she made me a drink that is tart and just right amount of sweetness that leaving me wanting more. I was lucky to get a tour of the speak easy, which further enhanced the night with the shock and awe that one feels when seeing this place for the first time. The history of this place is carefully preserved and enhanced by the Easter eggs that is all around the speakeasy. The tour of the speakeasy was definitely a cherry on top. But what makes this evening an unforgettable one for me is Winters and her coworker-family. It was unplanned but winters and her crew turn my otherwise mundane evening into an unforgettable night. So stop by; try you luck. You can't lose with Winters' cocktails and company.

Drinks were good but service was SLOW! 30 mins or so to take an order. More disorganized than…read moreanything else. More experienced server felt bad and tried to make it up with a discount. However when the bill arrived there was no discount and she wasn't around. Too bad, cool place.

Flora Room is such a cute spot to come have drinks with your friends or on a date. They have a…read morehuge menu of cocktails and they are all so interesting. It was so hard to choose bc everything sounded so good. The bartenders were friendly and helpful. My friend and I sat at the bar and had several drinks before we headed out to our next spot. Was having too much fun so didnt take any photos.

The vibe of this place gave casual yet elegant. It was very speakeasy-esque. The food came from…read morePorzana and was tasty. It was more little bites than full entrees. The drinks were great and the service was good! Definitely a place to hang with your friends and splurge a little!

To be honest, I would not have expected to find such a delightful distillery in a very plain box…read morelike building in the middle of Brainerd. But oh what a great spot to stop with friends. Like wineries in the Midwest, I'm also very cautious about distilleries. Just because you can make Jenn or bourbon doesn't mean that you should. Not the case for this place. We tried an assortment of cocktails. I ordered one variation of a Manhattan and really enjoyed it. This place is punching above its weight. Highly recommend stopping in.

Let me say that this place has only gotten better as it has aged. This is perhaps my favorite…read moreplace in the Brainerd Lakes Area. I recently had a really nice Boulevardier. They have increased their wine products and gotten more creative with their menu, AND they are great at making up new drinks not on the menu. What has not changed is Bill and the great staff's excitement for their product and service. You need to go here.

I have been here a few time before and definitely thought I had already written a review, but I…read moreguess not. I have been here two times in the last week and lemme tell ya.. this is quite the spot. I do suggest making a reservation because everytime I go here it is popping! What a vibey place, the lights aren't too bright, it gives a hip, fun, light energy and is not too pretentious but has INCREDIBLE FOOD AND DRINKS. Right now, one of their specials is whitefish toast.. if you enjoy fish at all, you need this. The fish is light and fresh, they put fresh dill on top and it is placed on top of some toasted sourdough bread perfectly. The fish is flavorful, a lil earthy and I feel as if there are capers or olives in in the fish mixture, whatever it is is fire! The burrata, beets, and citrus is a nice lovely, fresh, light app, the burrata is perfection with the beets and fresh, juicy citrus, drizzled with some oil and random pieces of garlic mixed in, YUM. I suggest ordering bread on the side with this one! The wings here are a staple and always delish. Crispy, hot, and coated perfectly in a light sweet chili sauce.. they hit the spot everytime. The housemade ranch is a perfect dipper. The other day I tried the chorizo and scallops... oh my goodness gracious.. it was a lil spicy and creamy with the bean puree and the scallops were buttery, light and divine! 10 outta 10 would do again. Finally, got the goat cheesecake, gluten free ginger snap crust with poached pears. PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE I want this now and in every lifetime! The cheesecake was light, yet decadent, deep, creamy with a light, unassuming flavor. The crust was delicious and the poached pears added that perfect fruit component. I got Liam as my server both times, he was helpful, attentive, had good suggestions when asked questions and didn't interrupt at all, amazing! This is the spot for any occasion!

LOVE! Beautiful space, kind staff, incredible cocktails!…read more Came to Emerald Lounge for the first time with a friend for a cocktail before dinner. Parking was easy enough to find on the street. We weren't able to find a reservation online, but had no problem walking in on a Saturday evening. We were able to grab a standing spot at the bar. The host asked us a bit later if we'd like to sit down at some bar seats that opened up, which was very kind! I ordered the martini du jour and am obsessed. If you like martinis, this is the spot for sure! Looking forward to retuning!

Seen on social media that they had a SpongeBob pop-up theme going on. We originally planned to stop…read moreby on a Sunday but realized they are open Tue-Sat. Our second attempt we went on a Saturday right when they opened. We were greeted at the door and were told we can pick where we want to sit. It was decorated really cute for the theme everywhere, they had couches, more regular dining tables, barrel tables and bar seating. We opted for a barrel table. The menu for food and drinks were all changed to be named after SB related references which was really fun. We ordered a few drinks, mocktails and food. The food is more so bar food, bites. We ordered pickle roll up's, chicken lettuce wraps, onion rings and they were all very basic and imo not worth it for the prices. I'd prefer to eat some where before and then come here for drinks. The drinks were decent. A lot of them had bitters, which I'm not a fan of at all but I know it's very common at cocktail bars. I did find a few without and went with those. One was called campfire song song. It was like a s'mores espresso martini which I loved. Our waitress was really nice, attentive and in tune with the theme. I loved her enthusiasm. Overall it was really cute and I can tell beyond the theme it's a cute place to grab drinks with friends. I'd for sure come back for other themes or just to just out the normal vibe.

it's been at least 6 months since we were last here, and had we written a review would have given…read moreit 4-5 stars then. We loved the sophisticated vibe and the food and drinks were great Fast forward to today- we walk in to a Sponegbob SquarePants themed bar where there were cheap foil decorations hanging everywhere and the menu items were all named in a SpongeBob theme to the point where you had to read through all the ingredients of every given drink just to figure out what it might be. the food was awful- deep fried and flash frozen. it's still called Pour but somehow they think that haviing theme months is somehow going to drum up sales. It just turns you off. We've always enjoyed the wine bars and were fans of this spinoff until now. Probably won't return.