The Happy Gnome (6/8/08) Beats Staying at Home

It's no secret that I hate Sunday nights. Sunday morning is great for sleeping in, Sunday afternoon I'm still frolicking through the weekend, but by Sunday night the dread of another work week hits my stomach like bag of rocks. Most of the time this is compounded by severe remorse for overindulging myself the night before or nagging guilt over not finishing my reading for school.

Thinking that a place called The Happy Gnome must be a good antidote to the weekly bout of "I'm going to be sick and stay home tomorrow I swear to God I'll do it," we drove east down Selby and parked in their generous lot next to the St. Paul curling club. We seated ourselves on the outdoor patio, where tree cover was so thick that we didn't even realize it had started drizzling until we asked our waitress why everyone was moving inside. Suckers.

The Gnome has a notoriously long and quirky beer list, which I highly recommend as Step One in treating the Sunday blues. I opted for a Juju Ginger beer, which had a distinct gingery nose but finished light and crisp, just like a good summer beer should. I wouldn't recommend drinking three or four Juju Gingers, but one or two would be a refreshing accompaniment to fish, noodle dishes, or even old-school Chinese food.

We leaned back in what may be the most comfortable wrought iron chairs ever, gazed at the trendy locals in pixie cuts and retro 1950's eyeglasses, and sipped our beers until prompted to place our orders. The Happy Gnome has two menus: a Bar Menu with a full range of modestly priced one-course meals, and a Dinner Menu with heartier and pricier fare. I ordered tilapia tacos from the Bar Menu and was pleased with the choice - two crispy flour tortilla shells stuffed with cumin and pepper crusted tilapia, chunks of fresh avocado, generous sprigs of cilantro, and an underlayer of piquant yet sweet mango pico de gallo. The dish was simple and light, fresh and lively... the perfect pick-me-up on a sticky summer Sunday.

My fellow diner ordered curried beef tips from the Bar Menu, an adventurous dish of beef tips over orecchiette pasta, smothered in a coconut curry sauce and accented with broccolini. I had to taste a few bites before deciding whether or not it worked for me - the coconut milk and curry seeped into the beef tips and soaked nicely into the tender broccolini, but over orecchiette pasta? I ultimately decided that the pasta shapes were the perfect vehicle for cupping the sauce and got over the surprising contrast of dense, eggy Italian pasta pared with an Asian-inspired topper. After all, this is the age of multinationalism, right?

After we cleaned our plates, emptied our glasses, and signed the check, I looked around and wondered how long we could stay before becoming conspicuous. Under the thick tree canopy you could hardly see the gray clouds hanging ominously over St. Paul. The patio lights strung between the branches were going to come on soon, people were laughing and chatting at tables of family and friends, and I neither knew nor cared how much time was left before the clock tick-tocked into Monday morning.