Hi-Lo Diner
Coffee
Pretzel Knots – Roasted Garlic, Rosemary, Cheese Sauce
Gary Cooper Hi-Top – Buttermilk Fried Chicken, Maple Bourbon Syrup, Country Gravy, Fried Pastry Dough
Pancake – Whipped Butter, Strawberries, Pure Maple Syrup
Hand in the Jar Pie – Oreo Crust, Chocolate-Peanut Butter Custard, Whipped Cream, Peanut Butter Cookies
Located on the East Side of Minneapolis in a refurbished metal structure Hi-Lo Diner has only been serving guests since 2016, but with an old-timey vibe and great service breakfast on Sunday morning showed precisely why the place generates lines on both weekends and weekdays alike.
Cut off on an attempted visit 24-hours earlier, kitchen issues leaving lights off well past the designated 8:00am opening with only a small paper sign on the door, it was again early that parking was found readily available via private lot, only one couple already present and seating thus afforded immediately though the space would reach full capacity within forty-five minutes.
Celebrated for a menu of Comfort Food and clever Cocktails served inside 1950’s confines, the soundtrack updated and WiFi now offered, it was after confirming the whole menu (except Mashed Potatoes) was available that an order was composed, bottomless Coffee subsequently treated precisely as such with two cups gone and the third filled just as soft and buttery Pretzels perfumed by Garlic and Herbs arrived.
Probably not a great place for those counting calories, the sheer number of scratch-made short-order temptations on Chef Heidi Marsh’s menu simply too vast, it was after several mental flip-flops that “Gary Cooper” was eventually picked from an assortment of Hi-Tops, the stacks featuring everything from Pork Ribs to Peanut Butter piled on a fresh-fried Doughnut here presented with a crispy fried Chicken Breast plus barrel-aged Syrup, thick Gravy and Micro-Greens.
Debating another Hi-Top but also mindful of capacity, more meals to follow and a flight to Las Vegas all in the next twelve hours, it was instead with one of Hi-Low’s famous Pancakes and a slice of Pie plus more Coffee that the morning came to a conclusion, the Flapjack nicely risen and rife with Buttermilk while “Hand in the Jar Pie” married Peanut Butter to a thick Oreo Crust without becoming too heavy thanks to its springy Custard.
www.hi-lo-diner.com
