Ford vs. Chevy

Matt's vs. 5-8.

One of the cool things about south Minneapolis is it is home of its own culinary phenom: the Jucy Lucy. A few neigborhood joints in St. Paul have gotten on the Jucy Lucy bandwagon, but the source of the Jucy Lucy is deeply rooted in south Minneapolis. Either the 5-8 Bar of Matt's first created the Jucy, depedning on whom you talk to. My gut tells me Matt's is the kind of place that would spawn a Jucy Lucy.

If you are unfamiliar with what a Jucy Lucy is, click here for a nice historical overview.

Emily and I have been to Matt's at least a dozen times. I love their fries and on occasion have had two Jucy Lucys in one sitting. We've also been to the 5-8 many times, but last night I had their Jucy Lucy for the first time.

It's a tough call deciding which is better, but Matt's is probably the winner based on overall dining experience. Both places have lousy service, but it's easier to forgive Matt's since they typically staff only one server and cook to run the whole place. I liked the 5-8 Jucy Lucy because it was a little bigger, so you got more hamburger flavor, but this wasn't enough to overcome the superior fries you can get at Matt's.

Then there is ambience. Now that Matt's is smoke free, you actually get the fun of being in a dive bar without all the smokey side effects. The 5-8 feels like you are in any other sports bar. Like a smaller Champps. But either way, you can't go wrong.

Now the question is, do I go check out the Jucy Lucy imitators? There's Adrian's (we used to live 50 feet from the place, literally), Williams (not likely, I think you have be under 23 to hang out there), and the Cardinal (the closest Jucy Lucy to where we live now). Or do I leave it to this guy?

My arteries and heart would probably prefer the latter.