FebTrike2015menyou

Tropical Turnaround Because You Deserve It X 2

Why not?

We had such a blast last year (scroll to previous posts for menus) that we decided we should just do it again. Who knows maybe it'll be an annual thing.

If you work, shop & live in the local organic food industry there's something so naughty and at the same time so refreshing about serving a whole bunch of pineapple, coconut, plantains and all sorts of other produce that we will never be able to have in Minnesota, much less in the dead of root vegetable season.

So while it might be seasonable to treat you to a:

King In The North: Gin, Carrot Simple Syrup, Egg White, Lemon Juice

You're going to be getting the likes of:

The Surf Savai'i Sour: Rum, Lime Juice, Pineapple Juice, St. Elizabeth's, Orgeat & Blue Curaço 

Tropical Turnaround presents a nice deviation and challenge for Kaitlin and I. For me it's about abandoning my forte of dry & bitter and delving into the realm of Tiki drinks which are big, sweet, spicy & served with flashy garnishes.  For Kaitlin it's a chance to branch out and work with some out of season produce.

Menus should be posted before too long. This is it until Tax Day and after that who knows what the hell will happen. We hope you join us for February Tricycle this year.

Love.

Kisses.

XXXbarkyforever.

12/26/14 Menu

*

Food

shakshouka

spicy tomato chickpea stew with sunny eggs, feta & crusty bread

vegetarian, nf. gf option, dairy free option

baked eggplant, fried onion

with pita

vegan, nf. gf option

roasted cauliflower & squash 

with soy baked tofu & pomegranate lemon molasses glaze

vegan, gf, nf

cucumber tomato salad

minced vegetables, shallot, olive oil, oregano, parsley, lemon, salt

vegan, gf, nf

yogurt

yogurt

Drink

OMW

* Credit for menu inspiration goes to my bizarre summertime nostalgia generally, specifically http://www.tomandserg.com

February 2014 Dr.Anks

I'm kind of excited about this one folks. It's a real departure from our usual emphasis on dry, bitter cocktails. Instead we will be FLAUNTING a series of rather sweet, spicy, strong and flamboyant cocktails that I intend to test tomorrow. Thanks to Hannah for volunteering to be my guinea pig.

The Chi Chi Pache is one I found in an old issue of "Fine Cooking Magazine" that ran an article on Tiki drinks. It's a (coconut) creamy, cinnamon/spice, vodka based highball. Well balanced and tasty.

The Hellfire Punch I found in one of my favorite cocktail books called "The Gentlemen's Guide To Cocktails" a good reference for classic cocktails. The punch is essentially a shandy fortified with rum and spiced with hot sauce. If anyone winds up staying over and finds themselves with an unfortunate hangover....this is what I'll be serving in the morning. Hope you like sleeping in a coffin. ::coffin reference::

The Laughing Zombie is one I found on a pretty extensive Tiki blog that features an already drinkable rum based simplified Zombie that is then topped with a froth of pineapple, rum, sugar, eggs and absinthe. I've never done anything like it and I'm a little nervous, but I intend to fucking cane it.

Beer? A couple of standard Jamaican and Thai Lagers. Good for knockin' back.

Wine? 86

For years now I've joked to Kaitlin "Hey, what if at this Tricycle people show up and I don't have anything to serve but Hawaiian Punch?" Vive La France Theme? Hawaiian Punch. The Classic The Update? Hawaiian Punch. It's always been on the table. At Tricycle "Red" I even had an excuse, but chickened out. At this one, it's finally becoming a reality.

Just in case you're teetotal or preganant or a recovering alcoholic and you don't want to be shafted with Hawaiian Punch, I'm also going to do a mocktail of pineapple juice, lemon juice and thyme simple syrup. I'll also probably have some Reeds Ginger Brew on hand.

Thanks in advance.

We're pretty excited about this one.

It's a TROPICAL TURNAROUND, Because You Deserve It :)

Thanks to all our fabulous friends who voted in the Facebook poll for a February theme. You all inspire us every two months to think up a fresh new menu, and I know I can speak for Mike when I say we're thrilled to see our foray into increased guest participation is a success! While Chewbacca (Foods That ARE Chewie) held a close second place during the first week, Tropical Turnaround has been surging us into spring. I just couldn't be happier with the results because I know I, for one, definitely deserve to see things heat up a bit around here after this wicked frigid Minnesota winter ;)

Now, if you were looking forward to a heart-healthy Mediterranean menu inspired by foods from the great book of Christianity, the New Testament; or if you were up for a dose of cholesterol from all that meat and cheese by bringing Mammal to Me; or if you've been having a Chocolate Fantasy, don't you worry. All these themes and more may still make a return for future Tricycle happy hours. We'll see you there!

Finally, the menu for Friday, February 28, 2014

tree nut, peanut, gluten and dairy free. vegan and paleo options.

Tropical Turnaround: Because You Deserve It :)

Mashed Plantains with Beef OR Tempeh Stew 

Ceviche Tostado: Halibut Shrimp OR Lupin Bean 

Lamb Satay with Sambal 

Gado Gado

A couple of nice pictures from December Tricycle. Thanks Pete!

December Tricycle 2013.......TONIGHT

Friday The 13th. 7PM

This evening's theme will be food & drink the color of red.

Feel free to dress accordingly.

Hope to see you here!!!!

XO,

Mike

 

Late Summer Highlight

Tricycle was the highlight of my August.  Thanks to all who attended in the heat!  

For food, classics were probably the favorites: lil' smokies and creamy pasta salad.  Recipes follow.  I originally wanted to try those dishes I remember from the summertime in my suburban childhood, as a joke or for the sake of nostalgia.  But I found that a couple tweaks to the typical ingredient list (aka using real food) can make a truly tasty dish (thanks largely to mayo, cream and sugar). In drinks, the Root of the Earth cocktails were going fast.  Well done babe.  And a special thanks to Ashlee for contributing Sweet Science ice cream, a big hit!

food spread, smokies not pictured

My creamy pasta salad was inspired by:

http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2012/06/the-best-macaroni-salad-ever/

This "country housewife"s recipes are top notch.  I adjusted just a bit to feature not only pickle relish but pickled piquillo peppers and kalamatas, and I used heavy cream (instead of milk) in addition to mayo as a dressing base.  

My smokie sauce:

1/4c roasted Thai chili paste

1 jar (8 oz) all-fruit grape jelly

2 bottles bbq sauce

1 c ketchup 

1 c water

August Drink Menu

Behold, the August Drink Menu:

As with the food menu, August's drinks follow a trend of "The Classic" / "The Update." Although it may come across as "The Cheap" / "The Bourgeois" all of these drinks have a special place in my heart. Except for the Franzia, which is just Franzia.

COCKTAILS. Captain & Coke was my first drink. I still order it for nostalgia every time I go to The Gay 90's. The Root Of The Earth is a signature cocktail of the Chinatown speakeasy Apotheke in New York City. I was taken there in 2011 by my friends Trevor & Nick and I really loved the atmosphere as well as the drinks. This one struck me in particular and I thought it would be a good rum based drink that would be much more out there relative to Captian & Coke. 

As we speak, I am roasting freshly harvested beets from Kaitlin's garden to make the cognac beet reduction. I have no recipe so I look forward to the challenge of doing this drink justice.

WINE: Franzia. We've all had it. The Argiolas is a rosé I picked up randomly one night and took a liking too. We've served it before at a Tricycle dinner. I'll probably also try to pick up a Provincial rosé or two as well.

BEER: Blatz & Hamm's. Our good friend Kai always keep's a rack of warm Hamm's in his trunk just in case anyone decides it would be good to hang out in the parking lot and shotgun a Hamm's AT ANY GIVEN EVENT. Hamm's has enhanced many a wedding, murder mystery and unpleasant errand. Our friends Calley & Joshua took us to Barley John's where we came to like Little Barley Bitters. It's one of the best lagers I've had the pleasure to drink.

SODA: Artificial Strawberry Soda vs. Natural Strawberry Soda. All of these drinks will be fun to drink side by side, but these two I think will be the most fun to taste the difference.

Hope to see you all there!

August 2013 Menu

Midwest Backyard Potluck

Classic: Pasta Salad v nf
Update: Sweet Potato Salad V nf gf p

Classic: Creamy Slaw v nf gf
Update: Rainbow Slaw V nf gf p

Classic: Lil Smokies and Veggies & Dip v nf gf
Update: Roasted Tomato Salad with Seared Steak or Baked Tofu nf gf; V or p

6/21: Recipes & Prep for Trifle Dessert

1. Bake a sponge cake (or a gluten free cake from a boxed mix).  Cut into pieces.

2.  Make vanilla custard sauce and bärkräm (berry pudding) with any fruit.

 

3.  Layer cake, vanilla sauce, bärkräm and mixed berries

Vanilla Custard and Sponge Cake recipes from:

http://redpandabakes.blogspot.com/2011/03/swedish-summer-cake.html

Bärkräm Recipe (quantities are approximate; this is not a picky recipe):

2 c water
3/4 c honey
2 c rhubarb, chopped
1 c cherries, chopped
1 cup strawberries, chopped
1/4 c cold water
1/4 c potato starch (cornstarch works equally well)

Bring 2 c water, honey and rhubarb to a boil, simmer until rhubarb begins to break down.  Add other berries, simmer until they begin to break down.  Combine potato starch and 1/4 c water, stir until well integrated.  Reduce berry sauce to a low simmer.  Slowly pour starch mixture into sauce, stirring constantly.  Sauce will thicken further when it cools, so it may not be necessary to add all the starch.  Increase heat, boil for 1 minute.  Transfer a bowl and refrigerate until cool.  Serve on its own with a little cream, or as an accompaniment to any delicious Swedish-inspired dessert.  

June Tricycle 2013

Happy Summer!

Tricycle will be open for bar hours:

Friday, June 21st
@ 7:00 PM - X

We will simultaneously be exploring the theme of layers and celebrating Midsommarafton.

Come on over and celebrate the various layers of Swedish culture, Pride month, Summer time and Anything else.

Hope to see you there!

Tricycle F.A.Q.

People often ask questions about Tricycle and I often attempt to address them in blog posts. This is intended to be the definitive blog post that answers the most frequently asked questions about Tricycle. If you're left with questions after this please post them in the comments section.
 
1. What is Tricycle?

Tricycle is a hobby bar and restaurant that Kaitlin and I (Mike) run out of our apartment.

The two functions of bar and restaurant both involve us serving food and drink, but operate a little differently.

BAR HOURS:

About every other month we post Tricycle bar hours on facebook and invite our friends and family. We pretty up the house, get a bunch of interesting people together and then serve them what we consider to be some thoughtfully prepared food and drink. 

Mike specializes in cocktails and Kaitlin specializes in savory vegetarian foods, but we try to make sure there's something for everybody.

Food is served buffet style for bar hours due to the volume of people attending, to enable mingling and to allow for varied arrival/departure times. The food available lends itself to something more than a snack, but not quite a full meal. 

Drink orders are placed with Mike who will spend his time running around frantically mixing, pouring and being sure to have "one for the doctor."

We collect $$$ on the drinks at Tricycle bar hours so as to fund the event itself.

NA drinks are usually $1 or $2. Proper drinks tend range from $3 to $8.

RESTAURANT:

The restaurant function comes into play when someone (you!) decides to make a reservation with us. For the restaurant we work closely with you to determine the best meal we can provide within your budget, dietary restrictions, courses and preferences. We provide seating, an excellent meal and a comfortable/private environment to enjoy it in. We only charge the cost of groceries/wine and we agree on a budget ahead of time. It's a nice way to have a quality meal at an affordable price in a unique environment. We've done graduation dinners, birthdays, anniversaries and have worked with groups from 2 to 8 people.

We work with organic food and locally sourced food as much as possible.

2. So I need to pay? How does the whole $$$ thing work?

While there is no obligation to pay anything, we do collect money during bar hours to help cover the cost of all the food and booze. We have a printed drink menu that lists suggested donations. We take cash and it can just be thrown into the donation jar at your convenience. If you're low on $$$ don't worry about. We'd rather have you come and not pay than stay at home.

3. How did you start doing this?

We've always loved cooking, hosting and entertaining. We like being able to control the menu and we don't like hosting potlucks or BYOB parties. We feel like people should be able to come over empty handed and still have everything they need. We've always thrown two big annual parties (Halloween & Tax Day) and we always wanted throw more, but couldn't afford to. The idea started swirling around because of that problem.

Tricycle finally came to be when our friend Jamie pushed us into action. He wanted to take our friend Theresa out for a nice dinner on her birthday, but wanted it to be affordable and unique. He approached us and asked if we'd prepare a birthday dinner for them. In exchange he made our Tricycle sign (featured at the top of this post) for us.

We've been doing it ever since!

4. Why do you do this?

We do the restaurant mostly to challenge ourselves. It also feels good to be able to provide restaurant quality food at grocery store prices to people.


We do the bar hours because we love our friends and family and want to see them more often. It's a way to get them all under one roof. We also like meeting new people.

5. What's the address?

I'm paranoid about posting our home address anywhere on the internet. If you have our phone # or Email contact us for an address. You can also contact us through facebook. If you're still lost, talk to the friend you heard about us through and get in touch with us through them.

6. Why should I come to Tricycle?

BAR: You should come to Tricycle bar hours to socialize with wonderful & strange people. We pride ourselves on our food and drink, but even more so we pride ourselves on our friends and family.

RESTAURANT: It's a unique and affordable way to have a quality dining experience.


7. Who are you?

Kaitlin & Mike.

Food Prep

From December's Tricycle

La Cuisine Française!