Located in the lower level of the St. Paul Hotel, the M ST Cafe is a super solid choice for breakfast or lunch. No dinner here - they are only open from 6:30 AM to 2:00 PM. I've had four breakfasts and one lunch here this week. I can't say enough about how enjoyable everthing was. Every person I interacted with- the hostess and three servers were wonderful -- they were engaging, friendly, pleasant, courteous, and funny - all the things you hope for. So not only was the service great, but the decor is beautiful - check out the venetian plaster look on the columns. They have menu service at both meals, but also a very cool sideboard- it's more or less a mini buffet. I had three breakfasts of the fruit sideboard. At $10.95, it was a bounty of excellent fruit (three kinds of melon, pineapple, strawberries, grapes, and grapefruit, plus oatmeal, yogurt, devonshire cream, nuts, raisins, and fresh banana bread. What a great healthy way to start the day. Today, I didn't go as healthy, I ordered a breakfast quesadilla that was absolutely scrumptious. Don't drool on your keyboard when you leer at the photo. We had lunch here on Tuesday, I ordered a cup of their wonderful wild rice soup and a chopped salad with chicken and salami. Both were great, and the soup was divine. Truth be told, I loved the M ST Cafe. Fair pricing, great food, great service and a luxurious setting. What's not to love??
(4)
Tamara S.
We went for breakfast and got prompt and friendly service. The atmosphere was a little fancy, I almost hesitated when I saw the decor, but the food was great. Had a northwestern omelette that was delicious. It came with hash browns and toast so it was very filling. The only complaint was that the restaurant only had 3 other tables occupied when we entered and the hostess bunched us all together in the center of the dining area. We were so close together you had to scoot your chair in when people walked by. It was annoying considering the restaurant was basically empty. But next time we know to ask for a better table prior to being sat.
(4)
Marsha W.
I ate here for a co-worker's going away party. (Lunch) I highly recommend that you Sideboard. What's Sideboarding? It simply means you have the buffet. I had some amazing tilapia and grilled asparagus. If you're more into meatier side of things, they have sliced beef which I was told by another co-worker was excellent. Swanky room with excellent service. They will also validate your parking which will save you a cool $8 in parking fees.
(5)
Kristine K.
Had brunch at the M St Cafe. Valerie was our waitress, she was fabulous. Attentive, without being intrusive. I had the cornflake encrusted French toast with hashbrowns, it is the best. My husband had the buffet. I would highly recommend the French toast, it is my favorite breakfast.
(4)
Meggan E.
First time here last Sunday for brunch. It was great! We came on the later end and still received fresh food options on the buffet. Loved that the buffet was not sprawling and zeroed in on making quality options all for $20.95 a person. My brother ate up all the juicy prime rib he could. Thought we'd roll him out. This is the best salmon I've had in a brunch buffet, prepared fresh light and in a yummy butter sauce. I shared an omelette from the make your own omelette bar. The guy did a great job by keeping it from getting rubbery; it came out fluffy. We all loved the salad bar, limitless shrimp and eggs Benedict(not super rich). The desserts were offered in miniature size servings so you could squeeze it in or try a couple. Will go back should another occasion invites it.
(5)
Lan F.
I live in the western burbs, work downtown Mpls, I have no reason to go to St. Paul. I honestly go about one time a year (voluntarily). I had a meeting in St. Paul around lunch time and my contact for my meeting asked me out for lunch. I was intrigued. She took me to M. Street (lower level of St. Paul Hotel), it is quite the grandiose staircase that made me feel like I was going down the Titanic and hoped that Leonardo DiCaprio was waiting for me below, alas he wasn't there. I was delighted to learn about their Sideboard. It's a fancy term for a dang nice buffet. It had a Salmon Wellington, pancetta risotto, pesto pasta, tomato bisque soup, and great looking salad bar. All for $12.95. Seriously, what a steal!! The service was impeccable. I would've given it 5 stars if the decor and ambiance didn't make me think I was going to sink in a ship at the end of it all.
(4)
Vince C.
Meh. An odd experience. No one was at the front desk when we arrived. We waited and saw someone that we knew and chatted at their table and returned to the front. Still no one there. We asked a server and he said someone should have been there to seat us. We explained that no one was for the past five minutes and he said that we could sit wherever we liked. At that moment someone came out of the back and began staffing the front. When we sat, the staff was confused about why we were sitting at this table and seemed to not know who was our server. I get it, though. If there is a system to seat people and assign the tables, this can throw things out of whack. The breakfast (from the menu and the buffet) were ok. The fresh fruits were excellent and the buffet was pretty standard fare. Nothing special. Closed very early on Saturday, so not open for a quick lunch. If you have your choice, visit the main bar and restaurant upstairs instead.
(2)
Laura E.
I just got back from my second lunch this year at M Street Cafe. Both times I had the Griddle Burger with mixed green salad - simple, satisfying fare with unique relishes. Atmosphere is professional but not snobby, and service is attentive and oriented toward professionals (bill was split automatically, fast, and so on).
(4)
Amy R.
I love trying different places for brunch. This wasn't one of those times. Had high hopes since it was in the St. Paul hotel. I've had way better for a lot cheaper with a lot better service. They ran out of a lot and it took awhile to get replenished.
(2)
Leah O.
M Street Cafe is in the lower level of The Saint Paul Hotel, a claustrophobically-classy place where I feel 100% out of place 100% of the time, no matter how much I dress up. The cafe, though, caters to the corporate crowd who are just looking for a solid lunch in the food wasteland of downtown St. Paul. And M Street provides. Their blackened salmon sandwich is DELICIOUS (complex and fresh), their three cheese panini is usually underdone, their wild rice soup is mostly butter + cream (not complaining), and everything's at a pretty steep price point ($10-15). You can do their salad bar for $9, which includes a cup of soup and pasta salad- which is probably the best deal in the house. But! The service is consistently solid. Today at lunch I asked our server if there were any rolls to go along with the soup, and he said no- but came back 10 minutes later with an entire bread basket from The Saint Paul Grill upstairs, including a solid ciabatta and a fragrant, dense raisin rye. Dude did not have to run himself upstairs to satisfy my bread habit- but he did. He also mentioned that all servers at the M Street and Grill are union- SOLD, my friend. M Street will be our go-to when in St. Paul for lunch from now on.
Once upon a time, the M was a place that I used to like to take my team for lunch or my wife on the days when she was in town. Those times have passed. As recently as early 2012, the sideboard had days with items such as prime rib or strip loin with sides such as yukon gold mashed potatoes and the absolute best cream of mushroom soup. The food was cooked just right and the service was very good. Scroll forward to March 2013. The menu at this once decent restaurant has been dumbed down. No longer will you find top notch dishes like the prime rib. They have been replaced by kalbi flank steak. The quality of the sides has declined in my opinion as well. When I went there yesterday, the jasmine rice was very stick and mushy. The stir fry consisted of only pea pods, pepper and onions that were floating in a pond of sauce. Couple the food with the poor service and you have a recipe for me not going back again, which is a shame. I emailed the manager of this restaurant on this and have yet to get a response and doubt I will. I guess I will save some money and just not come back. . .
(2)
E. C.
Checkout their side board menu online and choose the appropriate main that you like. I try to avoid the fish days and opt for the flank steak and lamb days. They are delicious and flavorful and are carved right in front of you. The seafood mains are not among my favorites as the fish ends up overcooked as it is on a heating table. Great ambiance for that lunch time meeting or nice lunch with a group I think. And it is great that they now offer validated parking in the Lawson ramp while you dine!
(2)
Jason D.
3.5 stars overall, but only 2 for my dish. After discovering that Mertiage did not open until 10:00 for brunch, on Saturday I made a quick backup plan and directed my breakfast companions to M Street. It was 9:00 on a Saturday (stop thinking Piano Man), when we walked in. The place had a few people, but was fairly empty. We were greeted with a very friendly host that offered a coat check and "three for free" option. M Street validates for three hours in the Lawson Ramp. Once seated we were brought water and offered coffee immediately. After a couple minutes the server came over and greeted us and asked if we needed more time; we did. I ordered the Corned Beef Hash. That was not what I expected. The beef and potatoes were finely chopped, almost ground up. I did not care for the texture of it. The taste was pretty good, especially the horseradish hollandaise sauce. The eggs on top were almost fully cooked. I was not asked how I wanted the eggs done, and I expected them to by more runny. The hash was accompanied by two small pieces of toasted french bread, which were pretty plain. My breakfast partners enjoyed their meals quite a bit more than I did. Both the Andouille Benedict and Northwoods Omelet looked fantastic, and both were given a thumbs up. The server was attentive and not too intrusive. The host gave us a sticker for the Lawson parking validation at our table. My overall experience was pretty good, I wish I'd liked my food more. I plan to return and try something else. Maybe an omelet.
(3)
Justin D.
Very disappointing. 1. Eggs were visually runny, and tasted flavorless (no seasoning?) 2. Bacon was out at the buffet 3. Orange juice was out at the buffet 4. Once orange juice was restocked (10+ mins later), glasses were out. 5. Pretty sure there were supposed to be bagels, or were bagels at the buffet, but never saw any... the pastires that were there went fast and weren't restocked. 6. Options were very minimal. Bacon, eggs, sausage, potatoes. Then a fruit bar, and cereal. Seriously, many other hotels have a much bigger selection and it's free. Sausage and bacon were good, once stocked. I really don't suggest going here, there are plenty of other great options around, please check them out.
(1)
Harper K.
Was in town for my brother's wedding, staying at The Saint Paul Hotel. The morning after the wedding, starving and exhausted, we wandered down to the hotel restaurant for a late breakfast around 10:30. I don't know whether it was our bad luck or they were understaffed, but the place looked in disarray.. and it wasn't like the dining room was full (not even close). The hostess is running around trying to bus tables and it appeared that there was only 1 server working, so we waited like 15 minutes to be seated (with at least 3 other couples in line behind us) in a practically empty dining room, just to order the breakfast buffet. More ridiculous still was, as soon as we sat down, more servers miraculously emerged from the shadows, and it seemed like each server only had like 2-3 small tables... Everything seemed like it would be fine, until we realized that all of the happy diners had OTHER servers, i.e., not ours. She was slow and absent minded at best, sort of a little spacey... at one point, she came to check on us (we were finishing our food) and asked if we were done. I looked at her and responded "no, I think we are still working...". She nodded, then proceeded to clear my husband's plate. Weird. Anyway, the lackluster service seemed to be only at our table, so maybe it was just an off day... The hotel breakfast buffet was all around pretty average (eggs, bacon, sausage, fruit, cereal, etc.), but definitely not worth the $40 we paid for it. If you're staying here and have the time for breakfast, you're better off going to get some fresh air and walk to Starbucks or Mickey's Diner or something.
(2)
Joe I.
This is my absolute favorite place to go for "business lunches". It is an easy and nice walk from where I work, and the food is great. Ordering the sidebar is what I always do, and always encourage my guests to do as well. Doing so eliminates the time spent waiting for your order making the business meal more efficient and helps keep things on schedule. The sideboards are two levels - salad only or salad and a meat/potato/noodle station. The meat is cut for you and the accompanying options range from seafood noodles, to salmon, rice and soups. I think the food is good - better than what I have gotten in the past upstairs in my opinion...and the servers seem nicer as well (though in all likelihood its the same crew). It is not too spendy and I totally think you get what you pay for. Worth it.
(4)
Brian H.
Went here for lunch with a bunch of coworkers. Very nice atmosphere but the food was only ok. I had the BBQ brisket side bar (buffet). There were only about 6 options, including sides. The brisket was ok but very fatty. Next time I would order off the menu. Prices were reasonable, especially for the St. Paul Hotel.
(3)
Eileen H.
3.5 stars, actually. We went here for the brunch buffet before my niece's confirmation mass. It's inside the St. Paul Hotel, so I kind of thought it would be a little more upscale, but it was just your run-of-the-mill brunch buffet that any Ramada might have. So we had just gone to Fogo de Chao the night before, and what's the first thing I do? Head straight for the prime rib station, of course! It was kinda like the "hair of the dog". To treat a meat hangover, just have some more meat! Anyway, the prime rib was really, really good. However, the absolute best thing they had was the malted mini-waffles with caramelized bananas and whipped cream! I think I got my money's worth on those alone! And what's better to eat after mated mini-waffles with caramelized banans and whipped cream? Chocolate mousse! That was yummy, too. Everything else was just average. The eggs benedict was not great--the eggs were overcooked and the english muffins were hard from sitting in a chafing dish for a long time. All in all, not a bad place for brunch. But if you're looking for something fancy, this is not it.
(3)
Creig A.
Lunch was a breeze at M. Street Cafe. They validate parking at the Lawson Ramp so I took a client to lunch there when I had other business in town. The "Sideboard" was nicer than a buffet, which I suppose is why they call it a sideboard and not a buffet. A carving station served up some corned beef the day I was there and I enjoyed the salmon, salad and the tomato bisque (although it was too salty). Nothing earth shattering, but good, higher end food. Not as expensive as the fine hotel would lead you to believe and the service was impeccable. I would go back.
(3)
Alex C.
Go on-line and check what they have on their sideboard before going. I had their egg sandwich once and it was pretty good. The buffet is good and offer a normal sized salad bar and a pasta, fish, and meat options as well as a selection of vegetables and risotto or mashed potatoes. The fish is sometimes overcooked and the meat dish (side board) is hit or miss. If you happen to hit the prime rib, tender loin, or jerk pork then you're in for a treat and the food is truly awesome. If not this then you may feel a bit ripped of for the $15 dollar buffet.
(3)
Dave J.
We hosted a post-wedding Sunday brunch here, and they executed it flawlessly. We had originally estimated that 40 people would come, then it became closer to 75 people, and ultimately, we had a brunch for 90. The management made sure there was plenty of food and the bill was accurate. I thought the food was quite good, and many people gave us compliments.
(5)
Sean H.
I can only offer a limited review as we just had brunch here. All in all I give the hotel high marks for historic style, but the Sunday brunch was mediocre. I must confess that I am somewhat of a buffet brunch snob in that I've been to some of the higher end spots out there and am always comparing to those. In this case I felt the selection was average. My eggs benedict had been sitting put wayyy too long and the muffin was too hard to cut. The omelet station and the mini waffles are the highlights. Service was friendly and the atmosphere modest.
(3)
Nate K.
Even though the M Street Cafe does not do dinner anymore (which is a tragedy), i feel compelled to rate it because it gave me one of the best nights out ever. About 8 years ago i was taking a girl out to the Ordway for a night of dinner and theater. The only problem is that she was (and is) a vegetarian and we lived in Minneapolis. Yeah get the picture? But as i ran down the list of top flight restaurants in the Twin Cities I happened upon the M Street Cafe to which i was told that they dont really have much for a vegetarian (like every other call i made that afternoon). However, 20 minutes later i got a call back from the Executive Chef "Bruno" who told me that he could do something special. The next half an hour was spent telling this Chef everything food my date liked and what he could do to make the night special. What we got was a custom made 5 course meals (one veggie and one normal) that were perfect from start to finish. When we arrived at the restaurant, the hostess pulled out custom menus and sat us at the furthest table away from the kitchen so our food would travel the entire dining area before it reached our table. Each course perfectly complemented the one before and it was all done at a very reasonable price. Best of all the Chef came to our table and introduced himself and made sure each dish was to our liking. It was amazing. Today, the M Street Cafe only does breakfast, lunch and weekend brunch - but the concept and the people is still the same and if you need a special place to take someone - put the M Street Cafe at the top of your list.
(5)
Jim M.
I was staying at the St Paul hotel all week, and today (Friday) was the only day all week that I was free for breakfast so I figured I would stop stop in at the M: this turned out to be a mistake. Service was friendly, or as the locals say, "Minnesota nice", and once the hostess got off the phone I was seated with a server coming over immediate with coffee and water, and I decided to have the special, a white cheddar, tomato, onion, spinach and ham frittata, with breakfast potatoes and sourdough toast. The toast was excellent, well toasted, fresh and cut thick enough to still be soft and pillowy in the middle (although the butter was already applied when my meal came to the table and it was significantly heavy, but I know I was in the upper midwest...): this was by far the high point. The breakfast potatoes were very poorly cooked, with no crisp on the outside, and were undercooked to the point of still having some crunch on the interior. However, the really, really irritating item was the star of the show, the "frittata": this was no frittata as I have ever had it. This was actually an open faced omlette, with overcooked eggs topped with slightly watery fresh tomato, spinach, onion and ham mixture that was completely covered with cheese. I was in a bit of a rush to catch a flight, so I did not get into feedback with the staff: the only saving grace was it was fast, which many hotel restaurants cannot lay claim to, which gets it 2 stars.
(2)
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Address :St Paul Hotel,350 Market St
Saint Paul, MN, 55101
Takes Reservations : Yes Delivery : No Take-out : No Accepts Credit Cards : Yes Good For : Brunch Parking : Valet, Street Good for Kids : No Good for Groups : Yes Attire : Casual Noise Level : Quiet Alcohol : No Outdoor Seating : No Wi-Fi : Free Has TV : No Waiter Service : Yes Caters : No
Dan R.
Located in the lower level of the St. Paul Hotel, the M ST Cafe is a super solid choice for breakfast or lunch. No dinner here - they are only open from 6:30 AM to 2:00 PM. I've had four breakfasts and one lunch here this week. I can't say enough about how enjoyable everthing was. Every person I interacted with- the hostess and three servers were wonderful -- they were engaging, friendly, pleasant, courteous, and funny - all the things you hope for. So not only was the service great, but the decor is beautiful - check out the venetian plaster look on the columns. They have menu service at both meals, but also a very cool sideboard- it's more or less a mini buffet. I had three breakfasts of the fruit sideboard. At $10.95, it was a bounty of excellent fruit (three kinds of melon, pineapple, strawberries, grapes, and grapefruit, plus oatmeal, yogurt, devonshire cream, nuts, raisins, and fresh banana bread. What a great healthy way to start the day. Today, I didn't go as healthy, I ordered a breakfast quesadilla that was absolutely scrumptious. Don't drool on your keyboard when you leer at the photo. We had lunch here on Tuesday, I ordered a cup of their wonderful wild rice soup and a chopped salad with chicken and salami. Both were great, and the soup was divine. Truth be told, I loved the M ST Cafe. Fair pricing, great food, great service and a luxurious setting. What's not to love??
(4)Tamara S.
We went for breakfast and got prompt and friendly service. The atmosphere was a little fancy, I almost hesitated when I saw the decor, but the food was great. Had a northwestern omelette that was delicious. It came with hash browns and toast so it was very filling. The only complaint was that the restaurant only had 3 other tables occupied when we entered and the hostess bunched us all together in the center of the dining area. We were so close together you had to scoot your chair in when people walked by. It was annoying considering the restaurant was basically empty. But next time we know to ask for a better table prior to being sat.
(4)Marsha W.
I ate here for a co-worker's going away party. (Lunch) I highly recommend that you Sideboard. What's Sideboarding? It simply means you have the buffet. I had some amazing tilapia and grilled asparagus. If you're more into meatier side of things, they have sliced beef which I was told by another co-worker was excellent. Swanky room with excellent service. They will also validate your parking which will save you a cool $8 in parking fees.
(5)Kristine K.
Had brunch at the M St Cafe. Valerie was our waitress, she was fabulous. Attentive, without being intrusive. I had the cornflake encrusted French toast with hashbrowns, it is the best. My husband had the buffet. I would highly recommend the French toast, it is my favorite breakfast.
(4)Meggan E.
First time here last Sunday for brunch. It was great! We came on the later end and still received fresh food options on the buffet. Loved that the buffet was not sprawling and zeroed in on making quality options all for $20.95 a person. My brother ate up all the juicy prime rib he could. Thought we'd roll him out. This is the best salmon I've had in a brunch buffet, prepared fresh light and in a yummy butter sauce. I shared an omelette from the make your own omelette bar. The guy did a great job by keeping it from getting rubbery; it came out fluffy. We all loved the salad bar, limitless shrimp and eggs Benedict(not super rich). The desserts were offered in miniature size servings so you could squeeze it in or try a couple. Will go back should another occasion invites it.
(5)Lan F.
I live in the western burbs, work downtown Mpls, I have no reason to go to St. Paul. I honestly go about one time a year (voluntarily). I had a meeting in St. Paul around lunch time and my contact for my meeting asked me out for lunch. I was intrigued. She took me to M. Street (lower level of St. Paul Hotel), it is quite the grandiose staircase that made me feel like I was going down the Titanic and hoped that Leonardo DiCaprio was waiting for me below, alas he wasn't there. I was delighted to learn about their Sideboard. It's a fancy term for a dang nice buffet. It had a Salmon Wellington, pancetta risotto, pesto pasta, tomato bisque soup, and great looking salad bar. All for $12.95. Seriously, what a steal!! The service was impeccable. I would've given it 5 stars if the decor and ambiance didn't make me think I was going to sink in a ship at the end of it all.
(4)Vince C.
Meh. An odd experience. No one was at the front desk when we arrived. We waited and saw someone that we knew and chatted at their table and returned to the front. Still no one there. We asked a server and he said someone should have been there to seat us. We explained that no one was for the past five minutes and he said that we could sit wherever we liked. At that moment someone came out of the back and began staffing the front. When we sat, the staff was confused about why we were sitting at this table and seemed to not know who was our server. I get it, though. If there is a system to seat people and assign the tables, this can throw things out of whack. The breakfast (from the menu and the buffet) were ok. The fresh fruits were excellent and the buffet was pretty standard fare. Nothing special. Closed very early on Saturday, so not open for a quick lunch. If you have your choice, visit the main bar and restaurant upstairs instead.
(2)Laura E.
I just got back from my second lunch this year at M Street Cafe. Both times I had the Griddle Burger with mixed green salad - simple, satisfying fare with unique relishes. Atmosphere is professional but not snobby, and service is attentive and oriented toward professionals (bill was split automatically, fast, and so on).
(4)Amy R.
I love trying different places for brunch. This wasn't one of those times. Had high hopes since it was in the St. Paul hotel. I've had way better for a lot cheaper with a lot better service. They ran out of a lot and it took awhile to get replenished.
(2)Leah O.
M Street Cafe is in the lower level of The Saint Paul Hotel, a claustrophobically-classy place where I feel 100% out of place 100% of the time, no matter how much I dress up. The cafe, though, caters to the corporate crowd who are just looking for a solid lunch in the food wasteland of downtown St. Paul. And M Street provides. Their blackened salmon sandwich is DELICIOUS (complex and fresh), their three cheese panini is usually underdone, their wild rice soup is mostly butter + cream (not complaining), and everything's at a pretty steep price point ($10-15). You can do their salad bar for $9, which includes a cup of soup and pasta salad- which is probably the best deal in the house. But! The service is consistently solid. Today at lunch I asked our server if there were any rolls to go along with the soup, and he said no- but came back 10 minutes later with an entire bread basket from The Saint Paul Grill upstairs, including a solid ciabatta and a fragrant, dense raisin rye. Dude did not have to run himself upstairs to satisfy my bread habit- but he did. He also mentioned that all servers at the M Street and Grill are union- SOLD, my friend. M Street will be our go-to when in St. Paul for lunch from now on.
(4)John W.
I recently visited m street café for their Sunday brunch. The atmosphere brings you back to the good old days of a fancy restaurant which is exactly what you pay for. The food was good but nothing fancy. The chef carved prime rib was over done on the outside but the center was still quite good, especially with the au ju sauce on top. The tomato bisque soup was good but again nothing fancy. Over all there are plenty of options if you go with people wanting many different options and is a great place to spend with family and friends.
(3)David J.
Once upon a time, the M was a place that I used to like to take my team for lunch or my wife on the days when she was in town. Those times have passed. As recently as early 2012, the sideboard had days with items such as prime rib or strip loin with sides such as yukon gold mashed potatoes and the absolute best cream of mushroom soup. The food was cooked just right and the service was very good. Scroll forward to March 2013. The menu at this once decent restaurant has been dumbed down. No longer will you find top notch dishes like the prime rib. They have been replaced by kalbi flank steak. The quality of the sides has declined in my opinion as well. When I went there yesterday, the jasmine rice was very stick and mushy. The stir fry consisted of only pea pods, pepper and onions that were floating in a pond of sauce. Couple the food with the poor service and you have a recipe for me not going back again, which is a shame. I emailed the manager of this restaurant on this and have yet to get a response and doubt I will. I guess I will save some money and just not come back. . .
(2)E. C.
Checkout their side board menu online and choose the appropriate main that you like. I try to avoid the fish days and opt for the flank steak and lamb days. They are delicious and flavorful and are carved right in front of you. The seafood mains are not among my favorites as the fish ends up overcooked as it is on a heating table. Great ambiance for that lunch time meeting or nice lunch with a group I think. And it is great that they now offer validated parking in the Lawson ramp while you dine!
(2)Jason D.
3.5 stars overall, but only 2 for my dish. After discovering that Mertiage did not open until 10:00 for brunch, on Saturday I made a quick backup plan and directed my breakfast companions to M Street. It was 9:00 on a Saturday (stop thinking Piano Man), when we walked in. The place had a few people, but was fairly empty. We were greeted with a very friendly host that offered a coat check and "three for free" option. M Street validates for three hours in the Lawson Ramp. Once seated we were brought water and offered coffee immediately. After a couple minutes the server came over and greeted us and asked if we needed more time; we did. I ordered the Corned Beef Hash. That was not what I expected. The beef and potatoes were finely chopped, almost ground up. I did not care for the texture of it. The taste was pretty good, especially the horseradish hollandaise sauce. The eggs on top were almost fully cooked. I was not asked how I wanted the eggs done, and I expected them to by more runny. The hash was accompanied by two small pieces of toasted french bread, which were pretty plain. My breakfast partners enjoyed their meals quite a bit more than I did. Both the Andouille Benedict and Northwoods Omelet looked fantastic, and both were given a thumbs up. The server was attentive and not too intrusive. The host gave us a sticker for the Lawson parking validation at our table. My overall experience was pretty good, I wish I'd liked my food more. I plan to return and try something else. Maybe an omelet.
(3)Justin D.
Very disappointing. 1. Eggs were visually runny, and tasted flavorless (no seasoning?) 2. Bacon was out at the buffet 3. Orange juice was out at the buffet 4. Once orange juice was restocked (10+ mins later), glasses were out. 5. Pretty sure there were supposed to be bagels, or were bagels at the buffet, but never saw any... the pastires that were there went fast and weren't restocked. 6. Options were very minimal. Bacon, eggs, sausage, potatoes. Then a fruit bar, and cereal. Seriously, many other hotels have a much bigger selection and it's free. Sausage and bacon were good, once stocked. I really don't suggest going here, there are plenty of other great options around, please check them out.
(1)Harper K.
Was in town for my brother's wedding, staying at The Saint Paul Hotel. The morning after the wedding, starving and exhausted, we wandered down to the hotel restaurant for a late breakfast around 10:30. I don't know whether it was our bad luck or they were understaffed, but the place looked in disarray.. and it wasn't like the dining room was full (not even close). The hostess is running around trying to bus tables and it appeared that there was only 1 server working, so we waited like 15 minutes to be seated (with at least 3 other couples in line behind us) in a practically empty dining room, just to order the breakfast buffet. More ridiculous still was, as soon as we sat down, more servers miraculously emerged from the shadows, and it seemed like each server only had like 2-3 small tables... Everything seemed like it would be fine, until we realized that all of the happy diners had OTHER servers, i.e., not ours. She was slow and absent minded at best, sort of a little spacey... at one point, she came to check on us (we were finishing our food) and asked if we were done. I looked at her and responded "no, I think we are still working...". She nodded, then proceeded to clear my husband's plate. Weird. Anyway, the lackluster service seemed to be only at our table, so maybe it was just an off day... The hotel breakfast buffet was all around pretty average (eggs, bacon, sausage, fruit, cereal, etc.), but definitely not worth the $40 we paid for it. If you're staying here and have the time for breakfast, you're better off going to get some fresh air and walk to Starbucks or Mickey's Diner or something.
(2)Joe I.
This is my absolute favorite place to go for "business lunches". It is an easy and nice walk from where I work, and the food is great. Ordering the sidebar is what I always do, and always encourage my guests to do as well. Doing so eliminates the time spent waiting for your order making the business meal more efficient and helps keep things on schedule. The sideboards are two levels - salad only or salad and a meat/potato/noodle station. The meat is cut for you and the accompanying options range from seafood noodles, to salmon, rice and soups. I think the food is good - better than what I have gotten in the past upstairs in my opinion...and the servers seem nicer as well (though in all likelihood its the same crew). It is not too spendy and I totally think you get what you pay for. Worth it.
(4)Brian H.
Went here for lunch with a bunch of coworkers. Very nice atmosphere but the food was only ok. I had the BBQ brisket side bar (buffet). There were only about 6 options, including sides. The brisket was ok but very fatty. Next time I would order off the menu. Prices were reasonable, especially for the St. Paul Hotel.
(3)Eileen H.
3.5 stars, actually. We went here for the brunch buffet before my niece's confirmation mass. It's inside the St. Paul Hotel, so I kind of thought it would be a little more upscale, but it was just your run-of-the-mill brunch buffet that any Ramada might have. So we had just gone to Fogo de Chao the night before, and what's the first thing I do? Head straight for the prime rib station, of course! It was kinda like the "hair of the dog". To treat a meat hangover, just have some more meat! Anyway, the prime rib was really, really good. However, the absolute best thing they had was the malted mini-waffles with caramelized bananas and whipped cream! I think I got my money's worth on those alone! And what's better to eat after mated mini-waffles with caramelized banans and whipped cream? Chocolate mousse! That was yummy, too. Everything else was just average. The eggs benedict was not great--the eggs were overcooked and the english muffins were hard from sitting in a chafing dish for a long time. All in all, not a bad place for brunch. But if you're looking for something fancy, this is not it.
(3)Creig A.
Lunch was a breeze at M. Street Cafe. They validate parking at the Lawson Ramp so I took a client to lunch there when I had other business in town. The "Sideboard" was nicer than a buffet, which I suppose is why they call it a sideboard and not a buffet. A carving station served up some corned beef the day I was there and I enjoyed the salmon, salad and the tomato bisque (although it was too salty). Nothing earth shattering, but good, higher end food. Not as expensive as the fine hotel would lead you to believe and the service was impeccable. I would go back.
(3)Alex C.
Go on-line and check what they have on their sideboard before going. I had their egg sandwich once and it was pretty good. The buffet is good and offer a normal sized salad bar and a pasta, fish, and meat options as well as a selection of vegetables and risotto or mashed potatoes. The fish is sometimes overcooked and the meat dish (side board) is hit or miss. If you happen to hit the prime rib, tender loin, or jerk pork then you're in for a treat and the food is truly awesome. If not this then you may feel a bit ripped of for the $15 dollar buffet.
(3)Dave J.
We hosted a post-wedding Sunday brunch here, and they executed it flawlessly. We had originally estimated that 40 people would come, then it became closer to 75 people, and ultimately, we had a brunch for 90. The management made sure there was plenty of food and the bill was accurate. I thought the food was quite good, and many people gave us compliments.
(5)Sean H.
I can only offer a limited review as we just had brunch here. All in all I give the hotel high marks for historic style, but the Sunday brunch was mediocre. I must confess that I am somewhat of a buffet brunch snob in that I've been to some of the higher end spots out there and am always comparing to those. In this case I felt the selection was average. My eggs benedict had been sitting put wayyy too long and the muffin was too hard to cut. The omelet station and the mini waffles are the highlights. Service was friendly and the atmosphere modest.
(3)Nate K.
Even though the M Street Cafe does not do dinner anymore (which is a tragedy), i feel compelled to rate it because it gave me one of the best nights out ever. About 8 years ago i was taking a girl out to the Ordway for a night of dinner and theater. The only problem is that she was (and is) a vegetarian and we lived in Minneapolis. Yeah get the picture? But as i ran down the list of top flight restaurants in the Twin Cities I happened upon the M Street Cafe to which i was told that they dont really have much for a vegetarian (like every other call i made that afternoon). However, 20 minutes later i got a call back from the Executive Chef "Bruno" who told me that he could do something special. The next half an hour was spent telling this Chef everything food my date liked and what he could do to make the night special. What we got was a custom made 5 course meals (one veggie and one normal) that were perfect from start to finish. When we arrived at the restaurant, the hostess pulled out custom menus and sat us at the furthest table away from the kitchen so our food would travel the entire dining area before it reached our table. Each course perfectly complemented the one before and it was all done at a very reasonable price. Best of all the Chef came to our table and introduced himself and made sure each dish was to our liking. It was amazing. Today, the M Street Cafe only does breakfast, lunch and weekend brunch - but the concept and the people is still the same and if you need a special place to take someone - put the M Street Cafe at the top of your list.
(5)Jim M.
I was staying at the St Paul hotel all week, and today (Friday) was the only day all week that I was free for breakfast so I figured I would stop stop in at the M: this turned out to be a mistake. Service was friendly, or as the locals say, "Minnesota nice", and once the hostess got off the phone I was seated with a server coming over immediate with coffee and water, and I decided to have the special, a white cheddar, tomato, onion, spinach and ham frittata, with breakfast potatoes and sourdough toast. The toast was excellent, well toasted, fresh and cut thick enough to still be soft and pillowy in the middle (although the butter was already applied when my meal came to the table and it was significantly heavy, but I know I was in the upper midwest...): this was by far the high point. The breakfast potatoes were very poorly cooked, with no crisp on the outside, and were undercooked to the point of still having some crunch on the interior. However, the really, really irritating item was the star of the show, the "frittata": this was no frittata as I have ever had it. This was actually an open faced omlette, with overcooked eggs topped with slightly watery fresh tomato, spinach, onion and ham mixture that was completely covered with cheese. I was in a bit of a rush to catch a flight, so I did not get into feedback with the staff: the only saving grace was it was fast, which many hotel restaurants cannot lay claim to, which gets it 2 stars.
(2)