Dear Answer Man, is the Time Out bar and grill in Cannon Falls connected with the one just south of the Mendota Bridge on U.S. 55?
Time out! The Time Out in Eagan closed last summer, so the question is rather moot. Nonetheless, I called Time Out (formerly the Edgewood, a few miles south of Cannon Falls) and was told they're no relation. For hours and more details, call 507-263-3222. But don't call 507-263-3224 , which is the number listed on their Facebook page...I've been doing that for a few days and it's apparently the office fax machine.
Here's another restaurant question, one with a sad outcome:
Dear Answer Man, watt happened to Watts Cookin', the restaurant at the Austin truck stop on I-94. That was the only genuine truck stop restaurant along I-90 from Albert Lea to just about Winona.
That former Petrol Pumper truck stop was bought by -- let's see, who would you guess would buy a choice piece of real estate such as that, along an Interstate highway and across the road from the front gates to Hormel Foods?
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If you guessed Kwik Trip , you should be in real estate. The juggernaut known as Kwik Trip plans to buy that big piece of property and build a deluxe new station and convenience store on one part of it, with the rest possibly being put out for hotel and restaurant development.
The Watts family has been in the restaurant business in Mower County for a long time, and the truck stop had been there since 1988. Over the years, I'll bet I ate at least 100 dinner plate-sized cinnamon rolls there.
The new Kwik Trip will be the third in Austin.
Dear Answer Man, I was looking forward to the Holi spring festiva l (today) in Rochester. Do you know why it was cancelled?
Of course I do. I'm the Answer Man.
The program was to be presented by the Hindu Samaj Temple, which is at 911 11th Ave. N.W. The Indian cultural event was to have been held at Rochester Century High School, but an announcement Friday said that "due to an unforeseen tragedy in the community," it was cancelled. If you have tickets and want a refund, you can contact the Rice & Spice store , at 810 S. Broadway, 507-529-0258, or send an email to contact@histemplemn.org.
I called Rice & Spice and was told there was a death in the Indian community and that's why the event was put off, and it's not clear whether it will be rescheduled.
Finally, to wrap up another week of extraordinary journalism, here's a transcript of a call to the big boss from an elderly reader. He passed it along because it begs for the Answer Man treatment.
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"I have a complaint about why so many of you people are talking about the brutal long winter. It hasn't been any longer than it's ever been, and it's winter time. I can remember a lot of winters when I was growing up that were just as cold. Nobody complained -- it's winter time! If you people don't like winter time, why do you live here?
"I'd like a comment about winter. it's a beautiful time of the year."
Winter is indeed beautiful. It's also been interminably long this year. For people under the age of 40, including me, this has been the coldest winter of our lives, and for many of us, winter was already No. 4 on our list of favorite seasons. So while I'm not a fan of endless, boring belly-aching, it's hardly a shock that people are ready to move on.
Don't bellyache -- ask the Answer Man instead. Send questions to P.O. Box 6118, Rochester, MN 55903 or answerman@postbulletin.com.
