Visited here on a recent weekend up at the cabin nearby. I was impressed. Its small, but it is…read morevery well done. The doll exhibit that was there when I visited was not my cup of tea, but my 5-year-old loved it and the staff were extremely helpful and friendly. Its a really nice space. Their exhibits turn over pretty frequently, which is impressive. Overall a great place to visit when in town, and I plan to be back!

A great art museum to visit regardless of size. Staff is extremely helpful and informative . There…read moreare visiting artists, there are local artists , besides the renowned Francis Jaques Museum and Art. There is a significant amount of consignment art from popular artists like Les Kouba . Hours are usually 9 to 4 but check their website to confirm. It is always free to visit. But bring money because you will not want to go home empty-handed. Here is their website. http://jaquesart.com I ordered beautiful Christmas cards from them .

Haddie's been throwing clay since the 80s, and the charm of her person, studio and pottery is more…read morethan enough to keep her in business for many more years to come. I bought three pots today for replanting my succulents, and the others in my group bought an (actual) chalice and another small pot. As we were leaving, she sent four baby succulent leaves with us for adding to our own little starter gardens. Haddie's a great conversationalist, artist and person - go see her!

We've been visiting Black Bear Pottery annually for the last 5+ years, and more frequently since we…read morebought a lake property up in Garrison. While the studio is a bit off the beaten path, I highly recommend a stop. Great place for hand made gifts for birthdays, holidays and special events. My favorites are the coffee mugs and lanterns, though I have quite the collection of bowls too.

Ive been going to this since I was a little girl. unfortunately have to say it really has gone down…read morehill. My mom is full Norwegian so she loves to go to the lutheran church right in town where they are selling homemade Lefsah but you have to get there early!! they go out fast. The line for beans goes at a decent pace but you could be standing there for about 15 min. the beans were okay but have to say this year ... a let down. i felt like something was missing either sweetness or just some more salt or even some bbq just something. They do give a good amount for it being free so it really cant hurt you to try out!! The vendors as well though have really gone down hill there used to be so many and now its subpar.

"July 18, 6 pm Burying of the Beans Ceremony. The beans, prepared by secret recipe behind locked…read moredoors, are buried in huge cast iron kettles and cooked over a wood fire for 24 hours. Join us for this special ceremony. July 9, 11:30 am The bean pots are raised and volunteers serve a delicious bowl of beans, bun and lemonade to thousands of attendees. July 10 & 11, 9-4 Craft Fair along the Paul Bunyan Trail. Over 100 booths!" A festival about beans... word...

There's a reason that many people call this the best meat raffle in Minnesota. I love a good meat…read moreraffle, even though I'm a vegetarian. It's fun to play and I just give the prizes to one of my friends. The Jenkins VFW meat raffle truly is one of the best out there. For starters, all the meat comes from the butcher in Emily, Minnesota, which I have been assured is the best out there. I don't know. I don't eat meat. This meat raffle has a very precise set of rules. You have to buy the tickets at the right time. You have to line up in the order the numbers are called. And above all else, you are not allowed to touch the meat. I repeat, do not touch the meat. They will wrap it up in a bag for you after you claim it and when you bring it back to your table then you can touch it if you still choose. One of the really cool things about this meat raffle is that they do it in multiple rounds. The first couple rounds are packs of meat worth seven dollars. The next is $10. And then it escalates to $15. Regardless of the value of the meat, each ticket is still only one dollar. It's a ton of fun. The the bar is spacious. They have both live and video pool tabs to play in between rounds of the meat raffle. This is just such an awesome place to hang out. The weight staff is excellent and super friendly. They have a decent selection of beverages and make a good bloody Mary. The kitchen is open at four and there's often community events going on. This is an excellent VFW and I encourage you to visit.

I'm giving this a 5 star because it's about the best version of a VFW/American Legion in the area…read more First off, I love their meat raffle that is very generous AND has high quality meat. Second off, their Wing night on Tuesday is great. The wings are cheap, crispy and very tasty. Beyond that they have friendly staff, stiff drink and decent things like burgers. You should to here. It's far from gourmet but still amazing.

Visiting from Montana. House red wine was great! The atmosphere had a nice cozy and friendly vibe,…read moreespecially since the owner came to our table and offered us a tour. Very impressed with the customer service, owner who is very personable and of course the wine. Definitely recommend!

I'm truly sorry about the low rating, but I'm so pissed off after stopping at the winery today…read more Even though there was no event on the back patio, the owners had decided that the patio would be closed because it was "too hot and the air quality wasn't too good." We've been stopping at Dennis Drummond for years (in the summer only) and never had this problem in the past, although once we were told that they didn't want the staff going out to wait on us on the patio (no problem, since we grabbed our wine, glasses, and pretzels inside, paid for everything, and we didn't need anyone to wait on us). First, today's air quality was better than it has been earlier in the week (wildfires in Canada caused very smoky conditions for the previous two days). Second, we noticed two people sitting at a table outside in FRONT of the establishment--was the heat and air quality any better in front than in back? Third, in Minnesota, many of us LIVE for warm weather when we don't have to wear coats, boots, hats, etc. Fourth, this is a resort area, and we don't know of any other establishments with outdoor seating that won't allow patrons to sit outdoors, a fact we proved when we stopped at two other places after our disappointing stop at Dennis Drummond. Fifth, this place has NEVER been very busy when we've stopped there--can they really afford to turn away local business, or do they rely on people renting the place for events like weddings? For those of you familiar with the Brainerd Lakes area, can you imagine Ernie's, Zorbaz (both on Gull Lake), or Moonlight Bay (on Crosslake) refusing to allow guests to sit outdoors in the summer? That would NEVER happen. We had a gift certificate we were going to use, but now I don't know when we would ever use it. I'm still so mad I could spit.

What a fun store! There are many beautiful items to purchase. We purchased gifts and love what we…read moregot. There are wood kits for young and old alike. I love that there are creative things for sale to get people working with their hands. This is a small business so shop small and support a local store!

Great popcorn, comfy seats, friendly staff Would watch a movie here again - blanket recommendedread more

Like the others state, nothing too spectacular here. Heck, i'm just glad there's a multi-cinema…read moretheater in Brainerd. The popcorn wasn't as bad as others have said. I thought it was pretty good... just enough butter on it (okay, so maybe alot). They have the little seasoning station like other theatres, so you can put the ranch seasoning, etc on your popcorn. (I didn't try... but my Dad likes that stuff.) We went to the 7pm show on Oscar night, and it was pretty bare. Couple that with the snowstorm... and we were only 6 people in the theatre. Nice... Comfy chairs... and only $8.50 for a movie. Nice!! :)

Such a fun theater to view newly released movies and high demand favorites! It's one of our…read morefavorite date night spots.

Love aitkin. Please support this theater! Does a great job of selecting shows!! In a wonderful town…read morewith other great places to go and lots of delicious food.