Secrets of the City

Everything old is new again. You just havw to be careful that you don’t relocate outside everyone’s comfort zone, or you’ll lose people. A friend of mine moved back from The OC, got a job at Honeywell Labs (in Nordeast), bought a house in St. Anthony… Then found out that his group is being moved to Golden Valley.

Rich Varda, Target vice president of store design, said having large numbers of employees at a central location cuts down on travel time when different departments need to meet. “A certain amount of things you can do by phone or e-mail, but sometimes you really have to be in rooms talking face to face,” he said.
Varda said there is no set timetable for expanding the Brooklyn Park campus. But the long-term goal is to create a complex that replicates the environment and services downtown Target workers have, including proximity to housing and retail, he said.

Yeah, because splitting your workforce between downtown and an exurb a jillion miles outside of downtown is really going to cut down on travel time. Good luck recreating downtown at the very edge of the metro, too!

But this part did make a good point:
McCabe said employee surveys revealed that workers at the other locations didn’t feel like they belonged to the company.

There’s certainly some cultural differences between some of the offices where I work, but that’s probably more related to the fact that there was a recent merger between two companies and each building came from one of them. The HQ is different too because it’s more ‘business’ people than tech people. We stand out like a sore thumb when we go there for meetings.

it’s just a way to keep employees from leaving the building for lunch

it’s just a way to keep employees from leaving the building for lunch

I would love to work downtown for just that reason. The whole skyway lunch crowd thing fascinates me.

Erica, you eating in the skyway restaurants seems like it would be an improvement from your current culinary exploits.

WTF with Taco Johns in the skyway? You’d think they were giving that horsemeat away with the way these pasty white automotons line up most days….especially Tuesdays.

yeah if I could join the skyway lunch crowd I could maybe meet a lady or four.

I’d love to find out where the off-the-beaten-path guys who work downtown, ie: creative types, eat lunch? I only see a sea of boring Skyway guys who look the same: suit, tie or khakis, and stand in line at Pot Belly. Urgh.

Here’s a start:
Zen Box
Brothers Deli
Turtle Bread
My Burger Box
Good to Go
Sushi Place (name?) just E. of IDS Center
Falafel King
Pizza Andrea (2 locations)
Greek Grill & Cafe

I didn’t include the ground level or more formal seated options, of which there are a ton.

The creative types are working.

OMG I love PotBelly and Taco John’s is popular because there are hardly any in the Twin Cities and the 6-pack and a pound is the best deal for anything.

I work across the river. Come over sometime!

Ok, so I’m not a creative type. Just a computer nerd. ):

Potbelly’s is good enough (though the sandwiches could be a tad bigger), and the line moves really quick…but the best thing about the IDS Potbelly’s is the inclement-weather-people-watching from the window seats…same for D.Brians over by Target on the mall.

Erica, you eating in the skyway restaurants seems like it would be an improvement from your current culinary exploits.

My co-workers have no qualms about driving 8 miles to Shakopee (from Eden Prairie) for Taco John’s, and we’ve driven the other way a couple times to Yangtze at 394/Park Place. But going to Midtown Global Market is out of the question, much less downtown. So Eden Prairie Center food court it is. At least there’s no creepy World Trade Center picture at the food court. And there is a Potbelly. Mmmm… Potbelly…. :9

Or I could stop having lunch with them.

I’d love to find out where the off-the-beaten-path guys who work downtown, ie: creative types, eat lunch?

I see a lot of these guys eating out of the trash cans on Nicollet.
When it’s warmer they are usually sleeping in Peavy Plaza.

Maybe if I tell them there’s a Taco John’s in the skyway….

gotta pay for parking DT, so that probably would scare them away.

My winter blahs have peaked and I can’t wait for Spring patio dining on the mall and tanned Targetrons.

Simpleton, funny, but not exactly the answer I wanted.

Here’s a start:
Zen Box ————-> Too crowded
Brothers Deli ——–> Yes, pickle bar rules
Turtle Bread ———> Good soup, that’s bout it
My Burger Box ——> NASTY
Good to Go ———> Where is this?
Sushi Place (name?) just E. of IDS Center —-> Tensuke? Excellent
Falafel King ———-> SUPER NASTY
Pizza Andrea (2 locations) ——–> Where is this?
Greek Grill & Cafe —————–> never heard of it

I am usually pretty disappointed w/ skyway eats. I treat myself to Tensuke about once a week, but that’s not feasible on a regular basis at $10+. Beyond that, I haven’t found really anything that I want to eat. Except Ike’s $12 roast beef sandwich (see Tensuke).

I am always amazed by the number of Subways, Taco Johns and Taco Bells the Skyway supports, but they are always jammed.

Potbelly is awesome. Extra hot peppers, Oreo milkshake.

I also work “across the river”… but in St. Paul. The only skyway food I’ve been high on is Mr. B’s BBQ in the Fifth Street Center.

Back when I worked in west Bloomington (near QBP), we ate at the same Southdale/Southown locations as when our office was at 77th & 100.

When I worked in St. Louis Park, by the high school, my regular eats were at the Hopkins Mainstreet Chipotle, and maybe the next day I’d go to a different one so they didn’t know I was eating burritos almost every day. It was lunch, and good exercise to ride my bike about 8 miles up and down the SWLRT trail.

Pizza Andrea (2 locations) ——–> Where is this?
Greek Grill & Cafe —————–> never heard of it

Pizza Andrea is located right behind the US Bancorp Center in the highland bank court; the other one is way north I think. Greek Grill is in City Center in the skyway towards 33 South 6th street.

The problem I’ve noticed with most corporate office parks is that if you dont start work at 5am you end up parking 10-15 minutes away from the office. It would be nice if they built parking garages but they never seem to do that.

You totally forgot to mention Franks A Million!!!

You can get a burger and fries for, like, $1.75. Granted you’ll need a triple bypass afterwards, but chocolate milk is 35 cents!!!

Plus, if I never ever have to eat at Subway again for lunch it will be too soon. It’s like poison to me after six years of working downtown.

Subway: Eat Gross

Oh, and Shelia, the “creative types” don’t lunch in the skyway. They lunch at Pizza Luce on 4th Street in the warehouse district. Warehouse district for creative types. Downtown skyways for suit and tie middle managers.

Oh, and Christine, I believe there are a # of ad agencies downtown, not everything creative is in the almighty Warehouse district. Being newer to Skyway life, I can’t fathom a large percentage will get in their parked car, which is at least 5 blks away, drive over to a new parking spot by Lucé, then drive back to middle-manager land. If you think they’ll hoof it to hang in the Warehouse, it ain’t true because it’s MN-snowta, and most people won’t walk far. People I know cab it to go a few blks to Target.

I have to admit that I’m kind of jealous of skyway culture. I still get lost almost every time I go in them, so I usually just tough out the cold and walk on the street. Nothing is ever open by the time I can get down there anyway.

I get over to the Warehouse District when the weather allows (HH @ Runyons is a personal fave)…but I’ll be goddamned if I’m gonna brave the cold or the slush in my Kenneth Coles for Pizza Luce. I’d much rather walk the indoor mile to the Pizza Andrea in the Towle Building and get some real NY slices.

Rule of thumb:unless it’s going to help get you laid, do not change shoes in order to walk to a lunch destination. 10 weeks ’til spring.

I thought the ad agencies were in the warehouse district. And the strip clubs. But whatever. Creative types are galore in this city no matter where you are! You don’t have to look for them! Just bring a copy of “Dr. Who” with you on the bus and they’ll flock to you.

Who the hell drives to work anymore? That’s so ‘06.