Our Story

Katie: It was a Monday afternoon, I had plans to meet up with a friend named Kate whom I had only met once before at a Sharon Van Etten show at First Ave a few months prior. We met up at a local St. Paul institution, Mancini’s around 4pm and sat at the bar where we were the only patrons until a couple regulars strolled in as the work day ended. About 30 minutes into our drinks, Kate asked me if I was okay with a couple guys from Iowa linking up with us. I was a bit apprehensive as we had only just met and “guys from Iowa” threw me for a loop but she assured me they were good company so I said “sure! More the merrier”..how midwestern of me. 

JOSH: Nathaniel and I were up in Minneapolis at an AirBNB on a work trip part of which was to meet up with Kate, a guest who had stayed at Nathaniel’s AirBNB previously and had mentioned she knew a fish purveyor who we might be able to source from for Cafe Mir. We had returned to our AirBNB for an afternoon rest and reset when Nathaniel mentioned that Kate had reached out to see if we were available to meet up with her and a friend to have a drink and chat at Mancini’s, which was unknown to me but Nathaniel knew of its whereabouts and in fact was near a property for sale in St. Paul the two of us had come to the Cities to check out. We accepted the invitation and set out on our way.

Upon arriving at Mancini’s, we met Kate and her friend Katie at the bar, made some smalltalk and ordered drinks proceeding to then navigate to a corner booth to relax and chat. As it turns out, Kate’s friend Katie and I hit it off pretty solid right from the start. We had both recently lived in LA and as it turns out we even lived in the same part of the city at the same time and while we never have been able to confirm we were in the same spot at the same time we surmise that the possibility exists. Drinks, stories, laughter, a move to the patio for fresh air and sunshine, and a few hours later Katie announced that she had to part ways to go to a show she promised her drummer friend she’d attend but I knew in the back of my mind I wanted to figure out how to see her again, possibly even later that night. 

KATIE: I vaguely recall the Iowa lads arriving and ordering drinks at the bar but I distinctly remember moving to a big red leather booth in the corner of the bar that has clearly never been updated since the 80s. After briefly making small talk, Josh and I realized we had a lot in common having lived in LA and moving back to our midwest hometowns, love for music, etc. We moved from the booth to the patio, then we all took a little walk around the neighborhood before heading to one last spot. As the afternoon turned into early evening, I realized it was time for me to leave to go on a date I had planned a few days before. Ope! So I told them all I had to take off (omitting the date part) and said my goodbyes. I can’t say at this moment I really felt sparks yet but there was clearly a reason I felt compelled to hide the date situation. However, I did admire those baby blues because it’s impossible not to (If you know, you know). 

JOSH: After Katie’s departure the three of us decided to go grab some dinner and Kate recommended  a quaint little spot in St. Paul, Hyacinth, so onward we proceeded. After a fantastic dinner and a good number of glasses of wine we settled our bill and decided to part ways as Kate was ready to head home and call it a night. Nathaniel and I on the otherhand were full of tenacity and excitement for the night and in our semi-inebriated goodbyes I couldn’t help but ask Kate if she would mind giving me Katie’s phone number. She seemed excited at the request and told me that she would only give it to me if I promised that I really liked her because “Katie is one of the good ones, so you better treat her well” I assured her I was genuinely interested and she gave me the digits. 

KATIE: Later on (while on my date), I got a text from Kate saying something along the lines of “josh loves YOU!” and asked if she could give him my number. I didn’t think much more of it than he enjoyed our hang and sent along my digits. Thinking him and his cousin Nathaniel just wanted something fun to do in the city while they were in town, I texted him back and invited them to meet up at the bar I was at while ON MY DATE. Oops. Let’s just say my date wasn’t so thrilled with the scenario and Josh quickly picked up on that and retreated into the night. 

JOSH: I texted Katie half expecting her to not respond as she said she was heading to a show but excitement overtook me when she replied that she was at Mortimer’s in Minneapolis hanging out with a friend and invited Nathaniel and I to join! We ordered a car service and headed to Morty’s. Upon arrival we went up to the bar, ordered beers and before I could text Katie that we had arrived we saw her at a high top table across the room with her “Friend”. It was at this moment that I realized her “friend” might be a date that she had planned prior to meeting me, which at this point only encouraged me as I was sure she was interested since she INVITED ME to crash her date! Nathaniel held post behind the bar to observe as I approached Katie and her dude, the initial greeting although awkward was not entirely uncomfortable but discomfort set in as Katie almost immediately excused herself to the restroom and left the two bulls to engage in confused conversation. To be truthful, this guy was cool and I enjoyed talking to him, but I felt guilty and awkward for imposing so as soon as Katie came back I said I was tired and bid them ado. Nathaniel and I reunited at the bar, finished our drinks, and took a car back to our airBNB. Drunk, tired, and exhausted I shed clothes and laid down to rest only to be beckoned by phone vibrations caused by Katie’s communication of a photo of the stained glass above the bar and a subtle but encouraging message of how cute the bar was and I should come back and see it. Being dead tired and knowing the situation, I knew there was no going back so I told her I was cozy in bed but would love to stay in touch… and off to sleep I drifted…