Review: The new Psycho Suzi’s Motor Lounge
I was weary when I heard Psycho Suzi’s Motor Lounge was moving to a new location. I was fond of the old location and patio and was afraid that the restaurant would lose some of its appeal in the move. Boy was I wrong (although it seems like the hipsters and bikers have abandoned this joint). The new Psycho Suzi’s is like nothing I could have ever imagined. We went to Psycho Suzi’s on Saturday evening and I had hear previously that the wait is often 3 hours on a weekend. I found this mind boggling but called ahead to book a table for a party of 10. I was told that they do not take reservations and we should call ahead. This was bad info as calling ahead was pointless and we were told it was still a 3 hour wait. We worked with the manager a bit to deal with finding a spot for 10 people to hang out and ended up at the upstairs bar. Suzi’s has three bars with separate menus and options. It was a little frustrating that I couldn’t get my favorite tiki drink upstairs but I ended up with another tasty concoction. The upstairs bar is amazing. It’s very dark and decorated to truly take you to another place. The live band, Exotik a GoGo, was really fantastic and played “enchanting sounds of Jazz instrumentation over jungle rhythms, tropical birdcalls mixed with vibraphone, and the pseudo experience of being transported to an exotic island destination.” The music was perfect for the atmosphere and was really enjoyed by everyone. This band was not merely in the background, they were something to really pay attention to.
I was worried that the food quality might suffer with such an increase in capacity and a flood of orders. The food however, was consistently amazing throughout the night. The cheese curds were fantastic (but for the cold, refrigerated pizza sauce served with them – would it kill you to heat it up??) and the cheese fondue and tater tots were very tasty (I really liked the spicy sauce that came with the tots). My favorite deep dish pizza was also cooked to perfection. I also got to sample a bunch of different cocktails since I was with such a large group. Every tiki drink I tried was amazing. Suzi’s has the best cocktails in the Twin Cities. I have no idea how they come up with some many unique, interesting, tasty and intoxicating drinks!
All in all, this place is worth the wait. I fear, however, that this restaurant will really only be available to those willing to go at 4:30pm or on a Monday at 2pm (and those people will hang around fo 3-4 hours!). It’s truly chaotic to deal with the parking scenario (plan on parking a couple blocks away unless you take advantage of the $3 valet) and it’s also chaos trying to get a table. When we left at 11:30pm, there was a line of about 50 people waiting to get into the place. Once the weather really gets nice, this is only going to make matters worse. Even though the patio will open up some space, the demand will no doubt be exponential. It’s hard to knock a place for being so great and popular but I wish it was a little less appreciated so going there would be less of a pain in the butt. I chose not to post any pictures of my evening because it was hard to take good ones when it’s so low lit and all of the photos online make this restaurant seem 1000% less calm and exciting than it is in actuality.
Mender of Broken Dreams
HOT TIP: If you have a group, order the Mender of Broken Dreams. This drink to be shared by more than a few is a complete spectacle like you’ve never seen before in your life! This drink includes three tiers of a whole bottle of prosecco, lots of run and various liquors and fruity nectars ($58). Only available at the upstairs Hidden Cover bar.
