Here's one that I put together last basketball season for some guys a bit younger than you that were coming in for a hoops game. Take a look at this, and then we can tweak it depending on your group.
O.K. Here is your itinerary:
You want your Hilton buddy to hook you up with the Double Tree at 11th and Lasalle, that will be the best Hilton location for you.
Here is your plan for Friday:
You might skip this plan and just move to (E) on the map (which is totally cool), but read the explanation at the end.
Check in and hit the bricks. (A) on your map
Follow the map, your first stop is Brit's Pub (B) on your map. Grab a pint there (no rooftop bocce ball in the winter for you...sorry). Quick, 1 beer/C-tail stop. Move a couple of blocks to The Local (C) on your map, which sells more Irish Whiskey than any bar in the US. Both of these stops might not be hopping even if you arrive late Friday (as stated in previous post). The map from there depends on your time of arrival. **Option -- Stop right next-door to Barrio for tequila shots, and they show old spaghetti westerns, projected on a huge screen over the bar, an occasional spot for a group of "hens" hitting downtown---avoid The Newsroom across the street, it's not for your group---also resist going into Zelo (a block away, north), too old of a crowd for your group (The Local might also be too old, but it's a wildcard on Fridays)**. The next stop that I suggest is The Depot on 1st Avenue (D) on your map. I only suggest this because it is part of the First Avenue bar, "the bar that Prince built". It might only be worth sticking your head in and then moving on, depending on what's going on. Sorry, but there is no "must see" band at First Avenue or The Entry...don't worry, you don't know what The Entry is, but some awesome bands play there. Anyways, it's only a one-bump stop before you move on. Depending on ETA you might be running out of time by now, and not really seen any hopping places. But the most logical route takes you to Kieran's (E) on our map. Good bar, but now you are in the teeth of the bar scene in Minneapolis. Guys don't need any direction other than placing them in this area and you'll find a spot to hit. Stay on 1st. Avenue, keep moving northwest, you might wander a 1/2 block right or left from there.. There are a couple of spots on Hennepin, but probably not worth walking around to get to. Plenty of trouble to get into on 1st. I won't even bother listing them.
Sorry for the huge map:
So, it's Saturday morning, and you have all day.
First thing is breakfast. You need to fuel for the day, so start at Hell's Kitchen, a brisk 4 block walk from your hotel. You will not be disappointed.
The rest of the day? Since you have a car I would head to "The U" campus to take a look around. Personally, I like walking campuses to see the old architecture, etc. I would park in Dinkytown and start walking. You need to burn off last night, and you need to earn your beers, so wear some walking shoes, and get moving. You can check out the
WAM The Weisman Art Museum on campus, even if you don't go in, it's a cool building to check out. There is a bridge right next to the WAM that you can walk across to the West Bank that crosses the Mississippi. People who don't grow up with the Mississippi running through their state seem to enjoy that, but we're just too used to walking over the river for classes to even notice it anymore, sadly. On the west bank there are some great bars, but you want to walk right back across the bridge and hit Stadium Village to some of the places for lunch/beers that people have mentioned before...Stub & Herb's, Sally's, et.al.
Now it's the big part of the weekend. You've gotten back to your hotel, rested a bit and ready to hit it again. Take a cab. Take a cab to Psycho Suzi's Motor Lounge, and then you're walking (easy) for a while. Suzi's has some really good food, google the menu and trust me. Worst case scenario is that you have a couple of good drinks there and then walk to The Sample Room and eat there. Not a bad place, good food (but over-priced) (and the owner is a bitch) (but she's hot (1998 hot)). Sample Room might be too low key for your group, but it's a good stop before you keep walking to Grumpy's, it's probably your longest walk of the weekend between stops, but it's still only about 10 minutes. Spend a little time at Grumpy's and then head north to The Gastof, a traditional German bar and restaurant. Try the Boot. See the map below for the route:
O.K. You're in "Nordeast" Minneapolis and far from your hotel. Call a cab (cabs DO NOT wander around nordeast...call ahead...install cab4me, etc.) and head to Nye's [Esquire Magazine - Best Bar in America and Top Ten Bars You Must Experience Before You Die, and the home of "The World's Most Dangerous Polka Band. RIP Ruth Adams]. Avoid the restaurant side and head to the bar side. Just ask the bartender for "A Polish". (Like Poland the country, not polish, like you're cleaning a table). You might get 3 or 4 different beers when you get a round, but that's how it goes there. You won't even be able to pronounce the names of the beers, but that is part of the experience. If Nye's has nothing going on, there is a whole bunch of bars a couple of blocks from there. Cab it home, and hope you can make it through Sunday.
It's Sunday morning and now we have to deal with the Al's conundrum. First, let me tell you that I love Al's, spent many a blissful morning there. But if you stay downtown, I'm not sure it's the best option. Hopefully, you've already been to Hell's Kitchen, and if you want a uniquely UofM experience, Al's is your stop...no question. It's a small, cramped place where you rarely sit next to the person you walked in with. Make sure you grab a paper or some other reading material and stand behind one of the 10 or or stools and wait for a spot to open. Might be the best breakfast you've ever had. A close second would be Key's Cafe, just a couple of blocks from your hotel (I'm still working on the assumption that you take the Hilton that I recommended).
Now you have some dead time before the 5pm start of the game. Honestly, after breakfast I would walk over to Loring Park, go over the bridge and wander around the sculpture garden. You have time for it before you head back to Stadium Village or Dinkytown for your pre-game.
***Rationale - You can go to any large city, find bars, have fun, make memories. The plan that I set out tries to put you you into places that are unique to The Twin Cities. Every city, town, or little college village has plenty of places to have beer, pizza, tacos, etc. and you would probably have a great time. My best memories come from finding the out of the way places. Take a little or a lot of what I've offered.
