What a great way to spend an evening! Grab your dance shoes and your favorite dance partner, then head on out for a scrumptious supper and delightful dancing to live music. Unfortunately, due to the age-old problem that dancers typically don’t spend a whole lot of money at the venue they’re patronizing, it’s hard to find restaurants with "great" dance floors. Because of this, I’ve listed the following ideas WITH editorial commentary!

Dakota Bar & Grill, Minneapolis  Superb, upscale food and great jazz music, but no dance floor! The only way we’ve ever been able to dance there is if it’s not too crowded, and we can push aside tables in the back of the bar to dance on the tile floor. It’s often too crowded to do this, and can also be quite smoky.

Jazzmines, Minneapolis  Once again, here you’ll find great food and ambiance, catering to the jazz crowd. The very small dance area, right in front of the band, is also a traffic path for the wait staff, so you’ll have to keep an eye on your space. It fits one couple nicely, and can squeeze in two couples in a pinch. However, they’re just fine with dancers coming out!

Mayslacks, Minneapolis  This dive bar serves up infamous, garlicy roast beef sandwiches and regularly books dance bands of many musical styles, including rockabilly, blues, rock‘n’roll, and more. There’s a small tile dance floor.

Medina Ballroom, Hamel  This is one of the best dance floors in town! The Medina complex includes a restaurant with very good food, but it’s not close to the dance floor. You have to go downstairs, then through the bowling alley and the bar to reach the entrance of the restaurant. So you can technically enjoy "dinner and dancing" here, but you’ll have to finish one before you can start the other. There’s a full bar in the ballroom, and you’ll always find plenty of fresh popcorn to curb your appetite.

St Croix Crab House Music Cafe, Stillwater  Featuring great food at reasonable prices and a decently sized dance floor, this is a great place to find Steve Clarke and the Working Stiffs and other top bands.  Note that the same owners have now opened the Fridley Crab House on Hwy 65 NE, at the location of the former Shorewood Inn.

Sophia, Minneapolis  This is a gorgeous jazz club with terrific food. And they have a small dance floor! If you go when Charmin Michelle is listed, she’ll cater to the dancers. Other bands may or may not swing some of their tunes, but the music will always be top drawer jazz. It’s a little on the pricey side, but is well worth it for a fun ‘n’ fancy night on the town.

The Times Bar & Cafe, Minneapolis  Great food and ambiance, and they keep lots of jazz music flowing. Charmin Michelle is frequently featured, as is the Wolverines Trio. They have a small dance floor, and are just fine with dancers grabbing a few tiles to strut their stuff. In fact, they’ve started to figure out that it’s a good idea to keep the dining tables off the floor! I’ve heard that there are plans for a larger dance floor, but I don’t know that it’s going to happen any time soon. Again, great food and jazz, all the time!

Withrow Ballroom, Hugo  This cozy, off-the-beaten-track ballroom has a GREAT FLOOR! It’s not what I’d personally consider a "dinner and dancing" experience, since they don’t have a full menu. But they usually have hot dogs and popcorn available, and sometimes nachos, too, to take the edge off the munchies. But the dance floor is terrific! The Withrow is a "set-up" bar, which means they serve 3.2 beer and set-ups (club soda, pop, etc), and you can bring your own bottle of liquor to mix into the set-ups.

Other terrific local dance spots that don’t serve food include Tapestry, Lee’s Liquor Lounge, and the Wabasha Street Caves. Keep in mind the local musicians, such as Charmin Michelle, Steve Clarke, Vic Volare, the Jaztronauts, Tom Hunter and others, that are tuned into the needs of the dancers. When they’re listed, you can count on a good number of swing tunes. There are others that can swing, but they’re not always as aware of what the dancers are looking for.

Okay, there’s a head start for you. Now get out there and have a good time!