Welcome back to The Flyover, your daily digest of important, overlooked, and/or interesting Minnesota news stories.
"Nice Things" Report: We Can't Have Them
Nothing to do here but echo the chorus of "fuck," "noooo," "this sucks," and "devastating": Palmer's Bar, a goddamned West Bank institution, will close in September after a 119-year run.
"This has been an incredibly difficult but necessary decision and we are devastated to do so," the announcement, which hit social media late Wednesday night, reads.
I feel sick!
Open since 1906 (it was Carl's Bar back then), Palmer's is a fixture of the Cedar-Riverside neighborhood and of the Minneapolis music scene, with live music most nights of the week both at the bar and on its massive, perfect patio. Known for the annual Palmfest—which will take place one last time on July 25-27—it's been a home to countless musicians over the years, and was recently a launching pad for the punk fest Caterwaul.
The Strib's Jon Bream has a nice history of the bar here (gift link), including recent history: Local musician Tony Zaccardi bought Palmer's in 2018 with current owners Pat and Sarah Dwyer, the folks behind Grumpy’s in Northeast, but Zaccardi is no longer an owner. Last call at Palmer's is September 14.
Then, just this morning, the Strib reported that Annie's Parlour, a goddamned Dinkytown staple since 1974, has closed. The nostalgic burger and malt shop just reopened last year after an extended pandemic closure; we visited in 2024 and found its timeless charm still intact. Tony Rimarcik, son of original owner John Rimarcik, says there were “a multitude of reasons that it was time to close,” which the family “realized over the last several months.”
Not to be dramatic, but just in case this is a rule of threes thing, I'd get over to Hard Times Cafe and Stub & Herbs as soon as humanly possible.
Bad, Bullshit Bill and Its Impact on Minnesotans
Well, the U.S. House of Representatives just passed that bill, sending it to the president's desk. So what does that mean for Minnesota? For one, it's estimated to raise household energy bills by about 28%, as Brian Martucci reports for the Minnesota Reformer.
According to nonpartisan think tank Energy Innovation, the bill will "kill nearly 23,000 Minnesota jobs, slash state gross domestic product by $22 billion and raise household energy bills by $2.7 billion," Martucci writes, all of which sounds very cool and good. (Worth noting: Two disgraceful Minnesota companies, 3M and Great Clips, publicly endorsed the bill, which represents a seismic transfer of wealth to the ruling class.)
Also for the Reformer, Michelle Griffith and Izzy Wagener write about the bill's slashing of Medicaid and resources for low-income families, even as it gives tax cuts to the richest 5% of American taxpayers and wildly inflates defense and immigration enforcement spending.
“This could affect benefits for as many as 150,000 Minnesotans in the near term through cuts to benefits, or outright stripping people of their benefits altogether,” Zach Rodvold, public affairs director for Second Harvest Heartland, said in a virtual press conference Wednesday. “Over time, it will affect every Minnesota SNAP participant because it makes it harder for benefits to keep up with costs over the next 10 years.”
Happy Fourth of July, everybody. I'm seeing red, but not white and blue.
Evil Neighbor Steals Baseballs
Y'know, I've made plenty of mistakes in my life, but I've always tried to conduct myself in such a way that I couldn't be compared to a villain from a children's movie.
Not so for a Blooming Prairie household, which Bring Me the News's Joe Nelson reports is going viral for "hoarding" foul balls hit during youth baseball games. (They're more or less the scary dog from The Sandlot before we learned from its owner, James Earl Jones, that the seemingly monstrous pooch was actually misunderstood!) A video posted to Facebook shows the neighbor in question, who is reportedly taking 10 or more balls a game at a cost of $10 per ball.
Buddy, it's not like finding an abandoned ball on the back nine—those kids were gonna keep using them. But the news isn't all grumpy owners and stolen balls; BMTN reports that the Minnesota Twins saw the video and have offered to donate a bucket of baseballs. Now that's some downright neighborly behavior.
Wanna Be the Strib's New Food Critic?
After four years as the Star Tribune's restaurant critic, Jon Cheng stepped down last month, writing, among other things: "I miss being anonymous and without the pressure to overly dissect."
...do you hate being anonymous and love the pressure to overly dissect? Well, what are you waiting for—take his job!
"The Star Tribune is seeking an experienced, adventurous, fair-minded critic to evaluate our dynamic and evolving local restaurant scene and help our audience make choices about where to spend their time and money," according to a job posting that went up June 30. Think you've got what it takes to be the state's only remaining full-time food critic? Send along that resume/cover letter/clips.
