Midwesterners are crazy about hotdish. Like lutefisk, Jell-O salad or bars, hotdish is one of those ubiquitous menu items abounding in church basements and cozy kitchens across Minnesota. Because it essentially occupies its own food group, we’re paying homage to the almighty entree by seeking out its relatives in local restaurants. But since most eateries simply do not offer traditional hotdish as we know it, we identified baked menu items whose ingredients leaned toward its starchy, creamy soul. We invite you to peruse our local restaurants’ hotdish hopefuls—hearty variations on a regional specialty.
TATER TOT HOTDISH
Cowboy Jack’s Saloon
As one of the only eateries in the Plymouth area that offers true hotdish on its menu, Cowboy Jack’s Saloon gives a wink and a nod to the Midwest’s diamond in the rough: Tater Tot Hotdish. Lasso the classic crowd pleaser in its appetizer form, dubbed the “mini.” If you’re more confident of your passion for spud-studded casserole, know that you can also order the full-sized entrée, too. Appetizer, $7; entrée, $12. 4120 Berkshire Ln. N.; 763.559.0257
BAKED CHICKEN SPAGHETTI
Broadway Pizza
Ever since John Spallacci moved to Minnesota from Gorviano, Italy, in the 1950s and opened his pizzeria, classic Italian pizza pies have been tossed, baked and sold to hungry patrons the Twin Cities over. Fast forward to today, and you’ll find that the menu now features delicious detours from piping-hot ’za. For the closest thing to an Italian hotdish, try the Baked Chicken Spaghetti. It’s a combination of spaghetti noodles, Broadway Pizza’s special red sauce, succulent morsels of chicken, roasted peppers and onions, all loaded into a dish and baked with a healthy amount of mozzarella on top. That sounds like amore to us! $9.99. 13705 27th Ave. N.; 763.551.0155
LASAGNA BOLOGNESE
D’Amico & Sons
To take the icy edge off a winter’s night, make tracks to D’Amico & Sons. The soft ambiance of the restaurant will gently shush you, and before you know it, the only thing on your mind will be the question of which plenteous platter you’ll order for dinner. We recommend the lasagna bolognese with its silky sheets of pasta layered between bolognese, sausage, meatballs, ricotta cheese and thick ruby-red tomato sauce. It will transport you back to your mom’s kitchen table with its homey strata of pasta, creamy sauce and meatballs. We think it’s both rich and satisfying, and will induce contented sighs from around the table. $12.99. 810 E. Lake St., Wayzata; 952.476.8866
OVEN-BAKED PENNE WITH ITALIAN SAUSAGE
Jake’s City Grille
Famous for its generously portioned plates and its casual-yet-contemporary atmosphere, Jake’s City Grille is best described as city chic meets neighborhood casual. This is also the joint where frosty-fingered Minnesotans like to warm up with rich, lick-your-plate-clean baked pasta. The kitchen urges you to order the oven-baked penne with Italian sausage. Served with chewy breadsticks, the penne is tossed with a tomato-cream sauce, and topped with a mélange of asiago and parmesan cheeses before it’s baked to golden perfection and served sizzling to your table. We recommend visiting Jake’s on a Wednesday night when you can get your baked pasta alongside a half-priced bottle of wine. $12.95. 3005 Harbor Ln. N.; 763.559.1595
ALMOND-CRUSTED BAKED BRIE
Spasso
A charming wine bar that’s a stone’s throw from the shores of Lake Minnetonka, Spasso is the spot you go when you’re looking to spoil yourself rotten. Escape the bitter wind chill by stealing away to this warm nook of a restaurant, and put something in your stomach that will sustain and satisfy. We recommend the Almond-Crusted Baked Brie to start off the evening right. It’s served with a toasted exterior and a creamy interior, and coated with a balsamic-honey glaze—delicious slathered on bread or crackers. $9. 17523 Minnetonka Blvd., Minnetonka; 952.224.9555;
MAC & CHEESE
Cooper Irish Pub
When the regular patrons at Cooper aren’t exercising their gift of gab with neighbors and restaurant staff over a pint of Guinness, they’re eyeballing the menu’s hearty dishes. Though the Irish restaurant wears a four-leaf clover on its sleeve, the gustatory offerings run the gamut outside of Irish fare, promising to fill that empty spot in your belly. We like the house mac and cheese with its creamy noodles served hot and aromatic as you nestle inside one of the establishment’s worn-leather booths. For an additional $3.99, you can add two fennel sausages or chicken to your mac attack. $8.99. 1607 Park Place Blvd., St. Louis Park; 952.698.2000
THE SICILY PASTA BOWL
Solos Pizza Café
One after another, perfect pepperoni pizzas emerge from the kitchen on any typical day at Solos Pizza Café. While we’d never knock the Italian pies, we need to give a shout out to the café’s most indulgent menu items: its baked pasta bowls. Available in four varieties, these entrees are veritable carb fests: A slew of pasta shells are made to order and served inside a freshly baked bread bowl. We recommend you try the Sicily Pasta Bowl. It features penne pasta bathed in a creamy marinara sauce, tucked into that crusty bread bowl along with sausage, ground beef, red onions and mozzarella cheese. Some words of advice: You only live once. $6.95. 2700 Annapolis Cir. N.; 763.331.0233
