Funky Grits in South Minneapolis

Plan 'A': Victor's 1959 Cafe  

We really wanted to grab a table at Victor's 1959 for lunch today...but the line, as usual, was out the door even in the rain...with a 45 minute wait time.

Plan 'B': Funky Grits

So we headed back on 38th, knowing there would be another choice along the way.  We've had such a good run of great food recently...we're hoping that our over-the-top heat explosion at Asian Street Food isn't an indicator that our great food adventure is taking a downward turn.   Let's see where we go next.

Oh...Funky Grits...usually a big line there, too...but not today.   Let's do it!

Funky Grits Order Counter

This is our first visit, and it's a little surprising that there are only 2 tables of customers and one guy at the counter.  A cashier came over and handed us each a menu....order at the counter, take a number, and grab a table.

It's a pretty good sized space....with a lot of empty space (the somewhat awkward layout may have made it hard to arrange the tables any other way).  Maybe it just seems that way due to lack of customers.  Well, we should get good service then.

We'll have to say, this was quite an uncomfortable experience overall.  The place was pretty empty, so the staff stared at us or had conversations with each other that were so loud that we couldn't have our own conversation.   We were far away from the staff - by the front window - so the kitchen conversations were maybe a bit over the top.

Since we were the only ones that had ordered, we looked expectantly as a server came toward us with two bowls (coincidentally, we had ordered two bowls).  She set them down on the table across from us, looked at the order receipt, then picked them up and carried them to the back and set them on the counter (where the guy was eating) and then, sat down (the sign of a problem).

Then there was a discussion between her and the new employee who had just started working there---obviously the 'new' employee was supposed to help her figure out where this food was supposed to be delivered.   Helloooooooooo.....we're the only ones here now.

A couple of minutes later she picked up the bowls off the counter and brought them to our table.   Don't quite know what the problem was....but that was several minutes for the food to get cold.   Disappointing.

Funky Grits El Sur Grits & Hash

El Sur Grits & Hash Bowl

John's bowl (El Sur grits and hash breakfast bowl) was quite attractive.   Nicely sliced avocado, a big helping of black beans (they turned out to be the high point of both dishes), hash browns, pico de gallo, and crispy plantains.....topping a bowl of white grits.

Funky Grits El Barrio Bowl

El Barrio Bowl

My El Barrio bowl contained two eggs, salsa, grilled peppers and red onion, and hash browns, topped with a helping of tortilla strips.   The outside of my fiber bowl was not very attractive...food was running down the side and there was a big thumb or finger indentation on one side.

The Funky Grits bowls had potential...but they fell short.  

The hash browns in both bowls seem to have been from earlier in the day....cold, hard, greasy....not freshly made (Funky Grits says it's 'chef-driven'; the question is always, but who's executing?).  My bowl had a good serving of peppers, but almost no onion.   The tortilla strips on top made the thing a bit of a mess.  The eggs were well-prepared and the cheese grits were good, but fell short of the fabulous cheese grits at Breaking Bread.   Disappointingly, as I made my way through the cheese grits, there were several hard lumps of cold cheese grits near the bottom of the bowl.   At a place named Funky Grits, this shouldn't happen.

Unfortunately, that was the same moment that John found the big piece of curly hair in his pico de gallo.  It happens...trust me...my baby fine hair is attracted to many places it shouldn't be.  If everything else had been really good, this would have been a small thing.  But John's hash browns, like mine, were from an earlier era...one whose time has passed.   The best part of his bowl was the black beans....wonderfully seasoned and perfectly cooked.   His white grits left us disappointed in taste and texture.

Funky Grits Overall Impression

So, we don't know.   Has Funky Grits...which opened to great hype and big lines...fallen apart?   Or, was this just a rainy Sunday where food wasn't moving through the kitchen very fast....hence the lumpy grits?   Not sure.  

The server was confused, the staff seemed more interested in their very loud conversations than in the few customers present in their dining establishment.   We'd rate this experience about a 2 out of 5.   

Clearly, the foundations (menu options, attractiveness of John's bowl, excellent black beans) were positive signs.   

The poorly trained staff, old cold hash browns, lumpy grits and distractions in the kitchen can all be corrected.   

We hope that those changes improve the experience for future customers of Funky Grits.

Details:

Website:   Funky Grits

Menu:       Brunch & Breakfast

Location:  Google Map