minnesota fridays

this is the beginning of my second summer of minnesota fridays!  my sister and i decided last summer every friday afternoon we were going to explore minnesota and do things around our home state that we don't typically do and see things we haven't done before.  there is so many awesome things to do in our own state that tourists experience and not me, so we started doing them!!  last summer some of my favorite minnesota fridays was picnic & walker art center, paddleboarding on the lake, alexis bailley winery and raspberry picking among many others.  i am excited for all of the upcoming fun fridays we have ahead of us!! 

for our first minnesota friday of 2013 we decided to get lunch at muffuleta, an adorable quaint restaurant in st. paul, a walk around como park and a trip into the conservatory. 

 

muffuleta gets there fresh ingredients from nearby farms... so much of the menu looked delicious!!! i definitely need to go back soon to try more

i got a black bean burger.. it was so amazing!! it was warm and melty with a creamy cilantro aioli topped with crispy pepperoncinis on a buttery focaccia bun.  amazing!! i was not expecting the pepperoncinis to have a slight crunch but i loved them!!  my mom had the mini muffuleta with there fresh garden vegetable soup. all of us loved our lunch choices. yum!

what made our lunch experience so unique was right after we were done eating (great timing) mother nature decided to come down on us!!  it started with rain.. we were fine outside under the umbrella but all of a sudden hail!! the hail was bouncing off of our table and umbrella into our glasses, laps and purses. hail everywhere!! it was pretty unbelievable and neat to be outside!! muffuleta gave this chocolatey dessert for being troopers outside on the patio- although we decided to stay out there!! there graciousness made us love there restaurant even more.

after our hail lunch the skies dried and we headed to como park for a walk!!  that didnt last long.. we parked and walked through the conservatory.  how have i been to st. paul a million times and never been inside of it before.  gorgeous!!!  i loved every minute of it.  

for the summer time they have one after another of gorgeous fully blooming flowers!! i loved it!! 

haha!! we were enjoying our time at the conservatory! 

by the time we were done exploring the conservatory the pouring rain started again so we headed home before our walk in the park.  it just means we have to come back again soon!!!  it was a very fun and eventful first minnesota friday!