Common Roots Cafe

Rating:

Here's what I admire most about Common Roots Cafe.

It's how the south Minneapolis restaurant makes a valiant effort to leave as dainty a carbon footprint as possible, yet does so without piously wrapping itself in some kind of hemp shroud. Locavore-to-the-max mentality, yes. Pounding that do-gooder message into its customers' brains with the heel of a well-worn Birkenstock sandal, no.

Not that the restaurant doesn't give itself an occasional back-pat. A few discreetly placed green-is-good signs let diners know that, for example, nearly 18,000 pounds of kitchen and dining room waste have been composted rather than dumped in a landfill since the restaurant's doors opened last summer, and that takeout containers are made from a compostable material. "For us, 'local' is not just a buzzword," one poster intones. "It means we are doing business by keeping dollars in our community, lessening environmental impact and making food that tastes good."

Fair enough. It's not as if owner Danny Schwartzman isn't walking his talk; heck, the guy is practically sprinting a four-minute mile. Besides, it's all true, especially that last part about the food. It does taste good. And that's what really speaks volumes.

Starting with bagels. Minnesotans accustomed to the pale, puffy frauds that pass for bagels in this region will not recognize the amber-tinted, so-chewy-you're-getting-an-aerobic-workout beauties that baker Megan Johnson and her team so skillfully produce. They begin with Minnesota-produced flour and honey (and a bit of malt powder from Wisconsin), hand-form them with obvious care, top them with poppy seeds, sesame seeds or bits of onion and finish them on a thin, fragrant layer of cornmeal. Finally, a bagel Minnesota can be proud of!

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