I work from home on Fridays and today I was itching to get out of the house and see the sunshine that has been blaring into the windows from the place that I like to call “not work”. At about five to noon I headed out the door, with the dog in the backseat because he was not about to let me out of his sights for one minute, and began looking for a place to eat lunch. I swung by Johnny’s for a look-see but found nothing of interest to write about (no one was even there) so I moved on to the corner of Cedar/42 to check out where Bucky’s once stood. Again, nothing new happening there either. As I was pulling away from the real downtown Apple Valley, I remembered that next to Rascal’s Apple Valley Bar and Grill a new place opened up late last year in the space that was once occupied by Daria’s Mediterranean Deli and Cafe. It seemed to still be open so I parked the car, under the shade of a tree at the other end of the lot, and headed over to ValleyGirl Espresso Bar and Eatery.
As I walked in, I was greeted by one of the owners working the counter and I looked towards their chalk board menu on the wall but could only find a reference to the sandwiches and not the items themselves. I asked what sandwiches they offered and was given a single orange sheet menu that listed the options. They offer several different sandwiches (hot or cold):
- Turkey: basil pesto, tomatoes, and provolone cheese
- Roast Beef: tomato, horseradish, cheese and tomato-bacon vinaigrette
- Ham: swiss, tomato and choice of stone ground or honey mustard
- Vegetarian (hot only?): fresh mozzarella, tomatoes, balsamic and a sprinkle of sea salt ($5.25)
In addition to the sandwiches they also offer wraps (not listed on the menu but maybe the same?) along with cookies and soups. Half of their space is occupied by small gifts like flip flops, books about musicians and food, women’s clothing, and various trinkets. Aside from the Anthony Bourdain No Reservations picture book I wasn’t interested in any of it but it seems mostly targeted at females which is the main theme of their space according to an article written about them in the MNSun. Aside from the sandwiches they offer various coffee drinks named after music legends (Janis Joplin, Joni Mitchell) references to hippies and (Sunshine on my God Damn Shoulders) John Denver 1960s and 1970s music playing on the speakers.
It took a bit for my sandwich to be made but the wait was pretty much worth it. The panini was perfectly cooked (I hate when they are undercooked) with the cheese melted and the flavors melding perfectly. The basil pesto was probably not homemade but it was decent enough and didn’t overpower the flavor of the tomatoes. It was a pretty damn decent sandwich for $4.95 and it definitely hit the spot today. I will certainly be back in the future if I’m looking for a quick and simple sandwich and I was very happy with the price.
The two owners working the counter were very friendly and kept me smiling. They left me to enjoy my sandwich and write my review while they unpacked a shipment of goods from one of the major restaurant suppliers that pulled in as soon as I did. They did mention that they got meatballs “in” today and that next week they are planning on having a meatball sandwich. It would certainly be good with the provolone they were without today but I’m not sure I understand why they have to get the meatballs “in”. Perhaps some freshly made ones would work better. I wouldn’t mind trying that or the vegetarian sandwich out as both sound pretty good.
Overall, nothing ultra fancy here and not a place I’d come for anything other than a quick sandwich but a local coffee shop that certainly deserves a look if you’re looking to eat near Cedar/42 and don’t want to hit one of the national chains that prevail in this general area. It certainly beats McDonalds, Raising Cane’s, Taco Bell, or DQ.
Address:
ValleyGirl Espresso Bar and Eatery
7703 147th St W
Apple Valley, MN 55124
Phone:
952-953-1963
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August 15th, 2008 at 2:42 pm
Hope the make it, there have been three decent places in there now. Daria’s was good, the Mexican place that went in after Daira’s was excellent.. Apple Valley doesn’t seem to be able to support these small local places. The Thai place next door has changed hands about 3 times in the last few years.. the food used be good in there, now it’s so filthy when you look around I’m hesitant to order. There may not be better places around but there are certainly cleaner ones..
I’ll have to give it a try, I’m more the coffee culture scene than a lunch sandwich sort..
August 15th, 2008 at 2:44 pm
I actually read the reviews on the Thai place and would have stopped in there if I hadn’t eaten at Ronin last night while Kim was out in Minnetonka. Guess I’m glad I didn’t.
August 15th, 2008 at 3:17 pm
Hey, speaking of that Thai place next door, we used to go there regularly, until several years ago. We were enjoying our dinner, when an irate take-out customer stormed in the door, and into the kitchen. He was returning some sort of creature he’d received as a bonus with his order. I couldn’t see what it was, but it was bigger than a bug and smaller than a cat. That’s the last time we ate there, thank you very much.
I hope the coffee/sandwich shop makes it. Vertigo was there for quite a long time, wasn’t it? That was a cool place.
September 14th, 2008 at 2:36 pm
Your blog is fairly predictable. Almost every entry that is Apple Valley related HAS to have a comment about “the real downtown Apple Valley”.
Nice review of the sandwich shop, though :)
September 14th, 2008 at 2:38 pm
Elizabeth,
~75% of my visitors are first timers and never return. The 10% that come back more than 5x will just have to suffer :)
September 14th, 2008 at 2:43 pm
Well, those of us who return definitely notice it…
I live in Apple Valley and I like both of its downtowns for different reasons. I hope that they will finish the “construction” or whatever the heck is going on by the “new” downtown though. At least clean it up. Will that road ever not look like it’s a 3rd world construction problem gone wrong? Seriously.
I guess our property taxes will be increasing this year (somehow the assessors decided our home has increased $30K in value… even though the market seems to be tanking). Maybe that will provide the funding to fix that area?
September 14th, 2008 at 2:46 pm
Elizabeth, your discussion belongs in the proper thread but with no development possible due to the economic downturn, all the tax dollars in the world won’t solve the problem.
January 4th, 2009 at 8:36 am
folks,
give valley girl a chance! if you’re dying for that latte or mocha they’re the place. the owner, jackie, used to work for NWA. her daughter, sara works there also. i can’t vouch for the food, but i can for the coffee. before you go “downtown” for a cuppa joe, give them a chance.
bb