The following article was submitted by Tim Gadzinski, the Marketing Associate at the Manitowoc Public Library.
The path to a great experience rarely presents itself in a straightforward manner. At least that’s been my experience with experiences at any rate.
Take for example a situation that arose from a getaway that my wife and I took last August. Initially, we were slated to take an amazing trip to Portugal. However, the Delta Variant had other ideas and that jaunt was postponed (for the second time in as many years, I should mention). While we were naturally disappointed, we decided to make the best of it and utilize our already-scheduled time off to head to the “Lisbon of the Midwest”—Minneapolis!
Minneapolis at this time was just starting to emerge from mandated pandemic protocols and restrictions, which was absolutely fine with us. As much as we wanted to roam, we wanted to do so sanely and cautiously. There were plenty of fun distractions available to us, though—restaurants, bars, cool smaller movie theaters, and, honestly just walking around Minneapolis, which is a pretty fun thing in and of itself if you’re open to things that you didn’t know existed before you start to wander.
One factor, however, really influenced our excursions—it was hot. Crazy hot. 95- to 100+-degrees hot with high humidity hot. Our hotel was in the same neighborhood as the ballpark where the Twins play and even though seats were plentiful, it was too hot to sit through an afternoon game. Which is all that was available when we were there. Have I mentioned that it was crazy hot? Because it was.
We decided to walk back to our hotel after wandering hither and yon through the downtown area to see what was open and what was still shuttered. Walking seemed like a smart thing to do since we were only about a mile from where we were staying and taking a Lyft seemed a little silly. But, golly, was it hot. To say that we were a bit flushed and sweaty would be an understatement. My wife suggested that it might be a good idea to duck into an establishment we were passing for a cocktail (it was almost dinnertime, so it wasn’t an outlandish suggestion) and to get out of the heat. I immediately agreed without paying any attention to either the name of the place or what it even looked like from the outside. I just wanted to be in some air conditioning.
And, boy howdy, what a fantastic suggestion it turned out to be! Though I was unaware of it at the time, Maura (my wife) had done some research and knew that this spot was one of the most-recommended places in Minneapolis for craft cocktails and interesting fine dining. We did come across it randomly that late-afternoon though; there was no master plan. I fell in love with it instantly!
The name of the establishment is Fhima’s Minneapolis and it’s extraordinary—an Art Deco jewel. Opulent, elegant, and a touch fantastical, with just the right dash of decadence. The best way I can describe is that it’s “The Great Gatsby” meets the bar from “The Shining” meets Narnia. Our bartender—whose name I would learn was Madison—made me this incredible concoction whose name I don’t remember. What I remember is that its preparation involved blazing maple shavings, a cylindrical ice cube, a delightful brown liquor potion and s small sirocco of smoke that arose from the chilled glass when the cube was spun and the small beaker of cocktail was poured. I hadn’t even taken a sip and I decided that I’d be ordering another just to watch the preparation again! My wife’s drink involved smoldering sage. In brief, an overall sensory experience.
Tim Gadzinski
I firmly believe in the power of maybe, so even though I was a sweaty mess and I had met Madison only minutes before, I impulsively asked if she’d be interested in doing a virtual program for Manitowoc Public Library during the holiday season. Shockingly, she said that she thought that sounded like a really fun idea, but that she had to check with her manager. I thought that she’d email me a couple days later with a response, but amazingly he was right there, serving as the host. He, too, thought it sounded like fun. Turned out he wasn’t just the manager, but Eli Fhima, the restaurant’s Director of Operations. After a really fantastic ten-minute conversation that had very little to do with creating a virtual event, he agreed that we should go ahead with the program. The details would be worked out later.
So, here’s the scoop: on Tuesday, December 14, at 5 PM, Manitowoc Public Library and Fhima’s Minneapolis will be presenting “The Cocktail Experience,” livestreaming on both MPL’s Facebook page (www.facebook.com/manitowoclibrary) and YouTube channel. We’re teaming up with one of the most spectacular dining/craft cocktail establishments in Minneapolis to help make the holidays a bit more intoxicating! Bartender Extraordinaire, Madison Leverentz, will guide you through the preparation of four total beverages—including the “Monk in the Garden” and Fhima’s take on an Aviation Martini. Should you care to play along at home, make sure to check MPL’s Facebook page for a complete list of ingredients. As an added bonus, we’ll be joined by Eli for a bit of history and a whirlwind tour of this magnificent Art Deco jewel. This is one “Experience” you definitely won’t want to miss!
See what I mean about the path to remarkable happenings rarely being linear?
