I've been coming to the Dakota County Fair for a few years now, and it always feels like the…read moreperfect prep for the Great Minnesota Get-Together! One thing I really appreciate is that general admission is free... a nice change compared to other county fairs. There's also free street parking available, or you can pay to park in the lot. The fair has all the staples: lots of food vendors, barns with animals, non-food vendor booths, live music on multiple stages, and a ride/game area. Classic fair fun! The night I went was a bit warm, so we didn't try as many foods as usual. We started with cheese curds (served hot and super tasty), then a slice of spicy pickle pizza-- not bad, but not the best either. We ended the evening with a chocolatey whoopie pie, and that was seriously yummmOOO! One area that could use some improvement, though, is the bathrooms. They definitely need a bit more attention-- updating, cleanliness and upkeep could make a big difference in the overall experience. Suggestion: Please highly consider adding a water fountain/refill station for water bottles. Still, it's always a fun time, and I'm sure I'll be back next year!

Family always goes to fair to check out the new hot items. Love the food items and animals. Very…read morerelaxing atmosphere and cool set up with the old city buildings to explore. Never see the same thing twice when we go. Highly recommend.

We were invited as guests of members to golf and have dinner and we loved it…read more The course is in amazing shape, especially considering how dry our summer has been. Not a dry spot on the course. We golfed after a heavy morning rain and no issues with driving on the fairways which helps speed up play. It's not an easy course so if you are looking to better your handicap, this isn't the course to do it. We played 18 holes in less than 4 hours. The staff is great. Very welcoming and helpful. Dinner in the club was also very good. I opted for a Sauvignon Blanc and a burger with chips. Everything was very tasty. So glad our friends invited us to join them.

I was here for an evening gala in November. I loved wearing a gown. As you walk in there's a…read morebeautiful wide staircase. The occasion was an auction for military spouses and recognizing them. Local celebrity Adam Carter of WCCO and his wife were at my table. The ballroom is beautiful. The steak and fish dinner was very good. I loved the champagne. I even got to be a tester for the photographer.

just not a real drive-in , as WE feel , IT'S not family orientated ran an you have to wait TIL…read more the last race is over , for the movie to be shown

God, I REALLY wanted to like this place…read more.. The new trend of nostalgia that seems to have everything classic American coming back in to vogue, Champions Drive-In has totally messed the whole thing up. This is the first Drive-In that I have ever been to that does not allow outside food, water, juice or soda to be brought in. There is actually a car search and seizure policy that they have in place. To put this into perspective, the police and even the border control can not search your car and seize anything they feel they should take without probable cause. But, don't let basic adherence to the time-honored traditions of the classic Drive-In to stand in the way of rampant greed and a clear power trip by the owner of the Drive-In. Instead of bringing your own snacks in and complimenting them with a big fresh popcorn, something hot (like a hot dog) and something cold like an ice cream treat from the snack bar, Champions will only allow you to select from the unhealthy items from the menu (burgers, fries, hot dogs). So, if you have someone in your group like we did (1 person diabetic, one person allergic to gluten and one disabled with Cerebral Palsy and unable to simply eat something from a snack bar) that has a dietary need or if you want to supplement your junk food cravings with something healthy - Champions will not allow it. This was the first of many blunders... Blunder #2 is - simply put - their rules. You can't sit outside your car in a chair, you can't play catch with your kids (in fact, the rules threaten prosecution in that circumstance), you can not turn your dome light on to find your child's pacifier (you will be kicked out)... basically these are the "Drive-In Nazis". Don't believe me? Here are their rules: http://www.elkospeedway.com/rules-and-policies/ This Drive-In is attempting to compete with our only other metro Frive-In the Vali-Hi Drive-In. To contrast the Vali-Hi with Champions - Admission is cheaper at the Vali-Hi, the Vali-Hi allows in outside food, the Vali-Hi allows in outside beverage, the Vali-Hi charges $1.00 for a hot dog while Champions charges $3.50, the Vali-Hi shows 3 movies while Champions shows 2, the Vali-Hi allows grilling (though this is not a feature that I take advantage of or care much about but it is worth a mention) while Champions does not, you can throw a frisbee or a ball at the Vali-Hi while at Champions they threaten prosecution for it and at the Vali-Hi you can sit outside in a chair while the kids lay on the roof or look out the back of a mini-van, truck or suv while at Champions you can't. BUT, at Champions you get to sit in the car with the dome lights off the entire time, your radio playing the audio quietly enough that you don't bother the car next to you (so I assume windows rolled up then) and you get to stand in a long line for junk food while at the Vali-Hi they.... wait, all those things suck! In summary, this new Champions Drive-In has MAJOR changes to do and QUICK or they will be a one-shot try for people on the road back to the Vali-Hi. At this point, I would say Champions Drive-In is Terrible and something you should save your money and avoid.

Ahhh my husbands favorite place to go. Where all the nerds come for their gaming needs. He loves…read moregetting his magic cards here. He has introduced my daughter into the toys here. She usually will find something to buy. Lots of game options. Easy parking. Good location next to lots of other businesses.

(TLDR: Very rude employees, and extremely shady pricing on used cards/trade-in value.)…read more I want to give this place a higher rating because they have a lot of cool and fun products to browse.. But the staff and practices are just terrible. I've been here twice. Both times I was in the shop, I spent a good long while searching through their products and sifting through their bulk trading card bins, and the whole time I was in there I overheard the manager(?) being extremely short and rude with multiple customers. Acting like a smug know-it-all, being annoyed that people were trying to sell things to their store, and even swearing at customers who were being normal/polite with him. Just absolutely bizarre behavior. My other massive problem with this place is the pricing on some of their items, and how/what they offer for store credit trade-ins. I've traded in some vintage cards here before, (both times I was in the shop) and even though I had different employees doing the trade-ins each time, they never failed to lowball me like CRAZY. They tried to tell me they could only take one of my cards as "damaged" condition because it had a couple black specs on the front of the card, and some light white wearing around the backside edges. I lightly scraped my fingernail across the black specs and they fell off.. The card was at WORST "moderately played" condition. I understand that these childhood cards from 25 years ago aren't in pristine condition, but they never failed to pretend like they were in the worst possible condition so they could offer me way less. (Mind you, I was wanting store credit, not cash, which benefits them even more..) The pricing on their used singles cards is also insane. I found a random obscure cheap old card I've been searching for, (non first edition version) but it was being sold for $10.. TCG Player and eBay both show that even the first edition version in near mint condition goes for $3.50. I saw another card I was interested in that was being sold for $100. TCG Player and eBay show that in near mint condition it goes for $46. I wasn't going to complain about the $10 card, but I decided to POLITELY ask why the $46 card was being sold for $100, and the rude manager guy overheard me asking and walked over to interject. He said those cards are the owner of the store's cards, he chooses the prices, that's just what he wants to get for them, they cannot change the price. I politely said "Ah, okay. I'll pass on that one then." then finished my transaction and left. I don't understand how stores with extremely rude staff who also literally try to scam people out of their money can stay in business. Just disgusted with my experiences at this place. Even greedy scalpers I've met at trading card conventions aren't charging $100 for a $46 card.

At Board and Brush, you paint and personalize festive, homey wooden things, like wall quotes to…read morehang in your bedroom or welcome signs for the front porch. And, you do this in what many might call a class, but Board and Brush owner Jenn Fleury told me to think of as a concert or other live event. (This sounds fun - but, unfortunately, it didn't bode well for me or other guests - I want to give you a helpful tip to navigate some policies at Board and Brush. But, more about that will come later.) Your experience with Board & Brush will begin online - there's a website and people choose the date of a pre-set event. Then, you choose what you want to create. There is a set price for this experience - approximately $73 - so any item can be selected. Some items (look for the icon) cost approximately $5 more. I would have appreciated some lower-cost tiers. I chose a project and set myself into motion with the party for my friend, making reservations online. the instructions said that staff would assist with the techniques and color choices to coordinate with my space. Then, not long after this, I needed to cancel. I called first and also sent an email, hoping to get a quick assist. The Board and Brush response: A future-use code and a note, saying, "No refunds." I wrote back explaining more and asking for a cash refund. The response: A link to the "policies" page, and an explanation that workshops are like concerts - and, just like concerts, they did not do cash refunds. So, I hope someone else can do it better. I have an unwanted "credit" and a business owner not offering true help. With this in mind, I don't want the Board and Brush experience now. Thanks for taking the time to read through!

Warning - they will not allow you to either get a refund OR reschedule if you can't make your…read morereservation due to COVID-19 symptoms or exposure. If you book, make sure to not have or be exposed to COVID at least 72 hours in advance of your reservation (in many cases, this is impossible)...no exceptions to the 72 hour advance notice policy. Just lost my business due to their inflexibility and lack of respect for the people who are being responsible in taking the recommended steps to reduce COVID spread.

MacPhail is the best! I took piano lessons there for years and it really upped my quality. Their…read moreteachers are the best, and they get results.

I am wrapping up a 4-week music class that MacPhail school does at the Health Partner clinics…read more Becca leads the one in Woodbury HP and does a fantastic job to incorporate music and motion every week. The typical format is first doing some songs with your kid followed by an instrument (rhythm sticks, double spoon instrument, tone block, egg shaker, cymbals) and ending with storytime using sounds. There are lesson plans shared at the end of class to continue your music and motion at home. To sign up, look out for sign-ups on Health Partner blog.

I've lived in the area for 25 years and recently was the first time I had ever been to the Ames…read moreCenter. We saw a cover band of Queen songs. I'm so glad I was finally able to experience this venue. Parking is easy with free ramp and street parking next door to the theatre. Our seats were right in the middle of the center section. The steepness of the seats was great in that the person in front of you never blocks your view. Drinks were available for purchase and you can bring them to your seat. Staff was super friendly. It felt a little odd to see a 'Queen' concert in a theatre when I felt people should be up dancing and singing but the band did a good job of engaging the audience and the last few songs got the crowd on their feet. Nice experience.

Enjoyable site, though seats are a bit close. Always clean…read more Bathroom is small for number of people, but again kept clean. Seating is fast and enough help to get everyone to their seats. If I recall, no issues with people in front, enough height to see over them, but right next and not easy to get out of seats, without people standing and stepping back. Almost no room for coats (many do not check), but floors very clean, so can be placed on floor

A delightful array of crafts, produce, specialty foods and a break from your typical shopping with…read moreparking nearby in the fresh air Love it

Perfect size farmers market with around 40 vendors that come each Thursday. I always end up leaving…read morewith more bags of fresh veggies and fruit then I can carry so I have to bring a friend or take multiple trips Sometimes Karl's soap will be there and he makes the best soap ever. I literally bought 60 bars last year, which he gave me a deal on at $3 a bar (usually $4 each). The meat vendor has the best brats I've ever had as well. They are pricey at $7.50 for only 4 brats but they are worth it. They also cook and serve fresh brats during the market. My favorites are Italian Mozzarella and the chicken brats. Send me a comment if you have one of those 2 brats and they aren't the best you've ever had, I would like to know where I can get better Fresh bouquet of flowers for only $5! I'm sure this is available at most markets, but have to mention it. If I ever get remarried I will speak to those guys about furnishing my wedding. They have an EBT station which is a great idea but don't see many taking advantage of it. Saw my first food truck this year (2013) so maybe this will be a good spot to eat each Thursday if more catch on. However the brats are so amazing that I'm not sure if I would stop getting those anytime soon Perfect place for someone who wants to juice. Most veggies are only $1 to $2 a bag so you can budget $20 and have a weeks worth of juice.