When you come to the Blue Door Pub, you know you're dealing with a homegrown operation.
Here are just a few reasons:
1.) Spam is on the menu
2.) The brews are localcentric
3.) The words "tater tots" and "hotdish" appear next to each other
But the number one reason why this is a Minnesota joint through and through is the predominance of the Juicy Luicy (or Jucy Lucy, if you will) on the menu.
The owners, who used to broil burgers at the Groveland Tap, saw the popularity of the burger on menus all over the Twin Cities, and knew the fromage-filled morsels had restaurant concept written all over them. So they started scouting locations, knowing that they wanted to stick with St. Paul's Merriam Park neighborhood, and stumbled upon the recently vacated Puerta Azul (that's Blue Door for those of you who chose German in high school).
The tiny space took some imagination, but a few high backed booths, a chalkboard wall and one hell of a menu later, the Blue Door came to be.
Hanging out at the Blue Door, we found evidence of the kind of customer this new eatery is looking to attract. The chalkboard walls next to the booths have college-chemistry equations, colorful out-of-the-lines scribbles, couples' names in hearts and quotes that wax poetic. The only thing you might not see is "Vegetarians + Blue Door = Forever", because while there are good looking salads here, beef seems to be king (with bacon as the heir to the thrown).
When Metromix came to hang out at Blue Door, a little bit of everything came out of the kitchen. To start, bleu cheese bacon chowder and a roasted red pepper and garlic soup with chicken were the soups de jour. The BDP has developed 15 homemade soups (not available all at once) and they're looking at developing up to 30.
While soup is normally the first course that comes to the table, it's not the first thing you'll see on the menu. The Juicy Blucy takes center stage with over eight to choose from. Everything that can be stuffed into a burger is (pizza sauce, pineapple and cheese, cajun spices etc.) "The Blucy" is the flagship juicy, stuffed with creamy bleu cheese and garlic, and it's what Metromix took a cautious bite out of (watch out for the molten cheese that lies within!)
Next on the table was the pub sandwich, which was a crispy and crunchy fried egg stacker layered with butter-bib lettuce and tomato. Finally the burger that had caught our eye online was served up; the Jiffy Burger. A tender burger topped with pepper jack cheese, bacon (there it is again) and wait for it, wait for it ... peanut butter! The only explanation of why this works is to taste it for yourself.
Back tracking a bit, there are also appetizers on the menu (but they are listed below the burgers, which is what we'll do here as well). The Spam bites are a homerun, with a dollop of cream cheese, a dill pickle and the hometown meat crisped up in a deep fried batter (made with kettle chips). The tator tots, hand cut fries and beer-battered green beans are also Minnesatisfying (and you can get a few of them for a reduced price during the after-work and late-night happy hours.
All this flavor really needs a cold brew to wash it all down with, and the Blue Door is the kind of place where brewers come to drink their own beer. One such brew is a new one out of Stillwater called Lift Bridge, come to the BDP to try the Farm Girl as well as seasonal brews from Summit (conjured up just down the way.)
All in all this small burger pub is a unique and comforting addition to the cozy St. Paul neighborhood in which it's housed; and they couldn't have opened at a better time. Grab a few friends and a sweater and come the Blue Door Pub for a tummy-warming and mouth-watering experience.
