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Psycho Suzi's Motor Lounge, Minneapolis, MN (restaurant) |
martian-tiki
Grand Member (first year) 
Joined: Sep 19, 2009
Posts: 309 |  Posted: 2010-11-05 11:00 pm Permalink
Some of the photos I took on 9-09-2010 around 9PM to document how Psycho Suzie's Motor Lounge looked at their original location before it moves to the new one.
It was a cold cloudy night and most of the customers had the sense to be inside. I also heard some people thought the camera flashes were lightning. The natural gas torches do provide some heat.
[ This Message was edited by: martian-tiki 2010-11-05 23:06 ]
[ This Message was edited by: martian-tiki 2010-11-06 09:15 ]
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Quince_at_Dannys
Tiki Socialite
Joined: Mar 29, 2004
Posts: 146
From: Command Records International HQ
| Posted: 2010-11-29 10:04 pm Permalink
Psycho Suzi's
1900 Marshall Avenue NE (several blocks south of their old spot.)
Minneapolis, MN
Psycho Suzi's has moved to a new, bigger location. I got to check it out on Saturday, and I thought I'd post my initial impressions.
Atmosphere: MUCH bigger space; maybe 5 times bigger than the old one. They are in the former Gabby's, which is an interesting building to start with. The downstairs is the family-friendly dining area with a somewhat expanded menu and cocktail menu much like the old one, with the addition of a few new drinks. Upstairs, the former dance floor has been turned into a stage for the house band(!). Limited food menu in the upstairs area, but there are 3 themed bars each with it's own arsenal of specialty cocktails. Overall, very high "TiPSY" factor and great lighting. Outside, they are building a HUGE patio which overlooks the Mississippi River. It's gonna be amazing when spring hits.
House Band: GREAT house band. Basically they do a bunch of faithful Martin Denny covers and they do a nice job with unique instrumentation. One of the guys has a theramin which they use to their advantage on their version of the Star Trek theme. The theramin guy also switches over to harmonica for a nice Tommy Morgan style exotica sound. Overall, it really creates a nice, relaxing mood.
Cocktails: This was the weak point of Suzi's in the past, and one of my biggest criticisms. But brother, they have addressed this in a big big way. The downstairs dining area now offers an excellent classic daiquiri made with Mount Gay rum and real lime juice. The Mai Tai is the standard Vic's recipe with the addition of a little pineapple juice and a nice float of dark rum. A little sweet, but not gross sweet—they are now using fresh citrus and homemade sugar syrup. Upstairs, one of the bars offers tiki shots (I didn't go there). The bar that really got my attention was the "Ports of Pleasure." One of the drinks I tried had fresh lime juice, cinnamon and orgeat. Another had dark Jamaican rum, lime and Maraschino liqueur; yet another one was based on lemon and pineapple with a little orgeat for flavoring. Best of all, they were all unique and complex in flavor, had fresh citrus, weren't overly sweet, and utilized good quality rum. I was extremely impressed with the quality of the ingredients and the adventurousness of the recipes. Even the drinks that weren't my favorite, I couldn't fault with being low-quality in terms of ingredients. I don't think it's a stretch to say the best drinks here are as good or better than any I've had at ANY of the tiki establshments of Boston or Chicago. And if you know me, that's saying a lot
Food: Similar fare to what they had before: excellent pizza (which has always been Suzi's strong suit), hearty appetizers and sandwiches, and burgers which are new to the menu. I almost wish they would add some asian fare—fried rice and egg roll.
Service: As always, friendly servers with as much personality as tattoo ink. Sometimes you would have to wait for awhile at the old location, and I think when it's busy the new place can have the same problem. The dreaded bill split-up at the end of the evening is a lot more painless nowadays--the best cocktails can now be ordered sans mug, eliminating the confounding mug deposit that you normally would have to subtract out when dividing up a large tab.
Kudos to owner Leslie Bock on creating a genuine Twin Cities desination—if you're in the area don't miss it! I'll check back in with some pictures soon
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I, Zombie
Tiki Socialite
Joined: Jul 14, 2003
Posts: 539
From: the Les Baxter Grotto (Minneapolis)
| Posted: 2010-12-06 8:49 pm Permalink
I agree with Quince-at-Danny's. Vastly improved drinks and the House Band is a tremendous addition. I've gone twice. The second time, we did have one horrible cocktail that was very reminiscent of the old Psychos - totally undrinkable AND YET it came in a hand-carved out pineapple which was terrific. I would have loved to order the old school Daiquiri and had it in the pineapple!
I encourage people to go - especially now, while it's still good. Yeah, that's right: I fear it will go down hill (drink wise), but maybe not. Maybe if enough people encourage them to stick with the fresh juices and the top shelf booze for at least a handful of core cocktails.
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MNZombie
Tiki Centralite
Joined: Nov 14, 2007
Posts: 50
From: Lakeville, MN
| Posted: 2011-01-19 3:43 pm Permalink
I haven't been to the new location yet but judging by the video they went all out!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uS55Cr3hAq8
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croe67
Tiki Socialite
Joined: Jan 05, 2003
Posts: 1010
From: Land of Cheese & Beer
| Posted: 2011-01-19 3:49 pm Permalink
& they've got 3 cool new swizzles, too, I hear - created just for them.
Can't wait to see the new digs!!
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Bora Boris
Mr. Unreasonable
Joined: Mar 25, 2005
Posts: 2401
From: Boogie Wonderland
| Posted: 2011-01-19 4:35 pm Permalink
Quote:
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On 2011-01-19 15:49, croe67 wrote:
& they've got 3 cool new swizzles, too, I hear - created just for them.
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Ooooh Very Nice!! 
Could someone please cough up a picture?
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ted tiki
Tiki Socialite
Joined: Oct 11, 2004
Posts: 186
From: minneapolis
| Posted: 2011-01-20 08:47 am Permalink
A buddy of mine was in charge of the new drink menu and did his job well. The place isn't just a bar-it is an event if you go on a weekend night. The downstairs main bar/restaurant lost some of its cozy appeal with the massive expansion, but you have to try really hard to find a reason not to like going to Suzies.
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croe67
Tiki Socialite
Joined: Jan 05, 2003
Posts: 1010
From: Land of Cheese & Beer
| Posted: 2011-01-20 09:40 am Permalink
Quote:
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On 2011-01-19 16:35, Bora Boris wrote:
Quote:
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On 2011-01-19 15:49, croe67 wrote:
& they've got 3 cool new swizzles, too, I hear - created just for them.
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Ooooh Very Nice!!
Could someone please cough up a picture?
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What?
Like this?
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jpmartdog
Grand Member (5 years) 
Joined: Mar 27, 2005
Posts: 650
From: Amesbury, Mass
| Posted: 2011-01-20 1:54 pm Permalink
looks great in the video-
swizzles are red hot!
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Bora Boris
Mr. Unreasonable
Joined: Mar 25, 2005
Posts: 2401
From: Boogie Wonderland
| Posted: 2011-01-21 10:02 am Permalink
Quote:
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On 2011-01-20 09:40, croe67 wrote:
What?
Like this?
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Very Cool, Thank you Caroline!
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I, Zombie
Tiki Socialite
Joined: Jul 14, 2003
Posts: 539
From: the Les Baxter Grotto (Minneapolis)
| Posted: 2012-05-24 1:29 pm Permalink
Quote:
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On 2010-12-06 20:49, I, Zombie wrote:
I encourage people to go - especially now, while it's still good. Yeah, that's right: I fear it will go down hill (drink wise), but maybe not. Maybe if enough people encourage them to stick with the fresh juices and the top shelf booze for at least a handful of core cocktails.
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Well that didn't last long.
Go for the GREAT band (Exotik-a-GoGo) and the terrific tiki vibe. Ignore the more than occasional bad staff attitude and stick to beer.
[ This Message was edited by: I, Zombie 2012-05-24 15:52 ]
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