The daily digest of Twin Cities culture | Secrets of the City

I can't remember any year in which people were as eager to ring out the old and ring in the new as they are this time. Lots of us just want 2008 to be over with, and we're prepared to stay up till midnight just to make damn sure the year doesn't linger a minute longer.

There is less agreement on the best way to celebrate: one last blow-out for old-times sake, or do we start the living next year's resolutions the night before - you know, living sustainably, and sensibly and within our means? In either case, there are lots of options.

Okay, this is the day to check and see what's left in the fridge and needs to get served up before it spoils, and it looks like we have enough left-overs to make up a meal: a half-cooked review of the new Strip Club in Saint Paul, news of an upcoming beer dinner at North Coast in Wayzata, and a Mardi Gras dinner at Barbette.

Still haven't decided where to go for New Years Eve? Besides the usual suspects, and the places I wrote about last week in Part I the options range from free champagne and hors d'oeuvres at midnight at the new Driftwood Char Bar, three- and five-course options at First Course, and a seven-course gastronomic blowout at North Coast in Wayzata.

The French figured out a long time ago that it isn’t just what you eat, it’s how you eat it: Slowly. In small courses. One course at a time. That might sound smart, but in the Minnesota marketplace, it can be a tough sell. The logic of the local restaurant economy is that if you’ve got to raise prices—as restaurants often do—the best way to make diners feel like they’re getting value for money is to dish out big portions. Enormous portions. The result? Diners eat too much, pay too much, and still take half of their meals home in a doggy bag.

The New York Times had a fascinating story last week, Food 2.0: Chefs as Chemists. Cutting edge chefs like Wylie Dufresne of WD-50 in Manhattan, and Grant Achatz of Alinea in Chicago are experimenting with