by Jeremy Iggers | 7/27/09 • Is it an art gallery? Is it a Restaurant? This much is sure: the Hot Plate Diner at 52nd and Bloomington has the most impressive collection of paint-by-numbers art I have ever seen. At least five different images of Jesus, two of the Virgin Mary, and oodles of poodles, cocker spaniels and sad-eyed clowns. The buttermilk pancakes with caramelized pecans were just about perfect. There’s a lot more that I would like to try, especially on the lunch menu, when chicken pot pie, meatloaf and tater tot casserole are featured.

Iggers Digest is the blog of Jeremy Iggers, the TC Media Alliance’s executive director. Jeremy is also the creator of TCFoodies, a local food networking site.

Hot Plate Diner, 5204 Bloomington Ave. S., Minneapolis, 612-824-4794.

Also worthy of note: the cheapest wine prices I have seen anywhere. The house wine is $3.50 a glass, and marked down to $2 for happy hour. Cheaper still are the Bandit varietals – Pinot Grigio, Chardonnay, Merlot or Cabernet, bottled (if that’s the right word) in one-liter Tetra Paks. They’re priced at $4 a glass, or $10 a bottle, which works out to just over $1.50 a glass. I haven’t tasted them, but somehow Tetra Pak Merlot sounds like the perfect pairing for tater tot casserole and paint by numbers poodles.

Author: Jeremy Iggers

Jeremy Iggers is a journalist, university instructor and social entrepreneur with interests that include food, philosophy and global-local connections. Previously, he was a staff writer for the Minneapolis Star Tribune and publisher of the Twin Cities Daily Planet. He lives in south Minneapolis with his wife Carol and two cats.