Minneapolis – Nokomis East
What You Should Know About Moving Into Nokomis East area of Minneapolis
The Nokomis East Neighborhood Association (NENA) encompasses four distinct South Minneapolis neighborhoods: Keewaydin, Minnehaha, Morris Park, and Wenonah. Nestled amidst the natural beauty of the Mississippi River, Lake Nokomis, and Lake Hiawatha, these neighborhoods boast a unique and historically significant location. Originally advantageous for Native Americans and later settlers due to its proximity to water bodies, the area has preserved its natural allure, now manifested in well-maintained parks that attract both residents and visitors.
Beyond its scenic appeal, NENA stands out for its excellent transportation accessibility, bordered by highways and the light rail system. The neighborhood is a hub of diverse local shops, eateries, and both local and chain stores and restaurants. The presence of various trade schools contributes to the neighborhood’s rich diversity. However, the true strength of these communities lies in their unwavering commitment to fostering a strong sense of community.
NENA plays a pivotal role in uniting community members through celebrations and special events, providing a platform for residents to voice their opinions on neighborhood issues and encouraging local investment. This collective commitment to community well-being is what makes NENA a standout and thriving association.
History
The Nokomis East Neighborhoods have a rich history, with parts of the area once hosting a Native American Village until approximately 1880. Situated between Lake Nokomis and the Mississippi River, below Lake Hiawatha, this location proved vital for both Native Americans and settlers who relied on bodies of water for travel and survival. Minneapolis, known for its commitment to preserving natural wildlife, dedicated much of the land to remain as parks rather than undergoing extensive development.
The allure of the area attracted numerous visitors, drawn by the scenic beauty of Minnehaha Park and the Falls. This early popularity contributed to the development of the neighborhoods, aided by rail transit as early as 1865. With the subsequent evolution of highway systems, these neighborhoods became even more sought after due to convenient access to both Highway 62 and 55. Today, the well-maintained homes in the area reflect the pride and satisfaction of its residents, continuing a legacy of preserving the natural charm that has defined the region for centuries.
What Are The Benefits Of Buying A Home In Nokomis East?
Buying a home in Nokomis East comes with a range of benefits, making it an attractive choice for potential homeowners:
- Natural Beauty and Parks: Nokomis East is surrounded by natural attractions, including Lake Nokomis, the Mississippi River, and Lake Hiawatha. Residents can enjoy the beauty of these bodies of water and the well-maintained parks, providing ample opportunities for outdoor activities and relaxation.
- Historical Significance: Parts of the neighborhood were originally a Native American Village until around 1880, adding a rich historical context to the area. The commitment to preserving natural wildlife has led to the retention of parks, contributing to the neighborhood’s unique charm.
- Transportation Accessibility: The neighborhood benefits from convenient transportation options. Early rail transit in the area dates back to 1865, and with the development of highway systems, residents enjoy easy access to both Highway 62 and 55.
- Community Engagement: Nokomis East Neighborhood Association (NENA) plays a pivotal role in fostering community engagement. Through events, celebrations, and providing a platform for residents to voice their opinions, NENA contributes to a strong sense of community.
- Diverse Local Amenities: The neighborhood boasts diverse local shops, eateries, and businesses, providing residents with convenient access to amenities. The presence of trade schools further adds to the neighborhood’s vibrancy.
- Well-Kept Homes: Still today, homes in the area are well-maintained, reflecting the pride and satisfaction of residents. This contributes to a visually appealing and welcoming community environment.
Overall, buying a home in Nokomis East offers a blend of natural beauty, historical significance, community engagement, and convenient living that appeals to a variety of homeowners.
Bossen Field Park - ( 5701 S 28th Ave, 612-230-6400, website)Bossen Field Park was mostly created to suit the Bossen Fields. There are a number of fields at the location along with a basketball court and sports facility. There is also a playground and a pool. These are just a handful of parks that make Minneapolis the best park system in the country.
Keewaydin Park and Recreation Center - ( 3030 E 53rd St, 612-370-4956, website)Keewaydin Park is much smaller and connected to Keewaydin Elementary school. It has a picnic area and playground, sports fields and a small pool.
Lake Nokomis Park - ( 2401 E Minnehaha Parkway, 612-370-4923, website)is one of the most well known parks in south Minneapolis. The park is right on the shores of Lake Nokomis and has so many different things to offer. There are sport fields and courts, walking, biking paths and skiing paths, a pool, a boat dock, a playground, art, fountains, a fishing pier, a grill and picnic area, an ice rink, and a horseshoe pit. But the community really enjoys the beach. It is one of the larger beaches on the Minneapolis lakes.
Morris Park and Recreation Center - ( 5531 39th Ave S, 612-370-4934, website)Morris Park is a typical park with a picnic area and playground, sport fields and a pool, but what makes it unique is the skate park. It is one of the few parks in Minneapolis that has a skate park.
Nokomis Naturescape Garden - ( 5000 E Lake Nokomis Pkwy, 612-724-5652, website)Nokomis Naturescape Garden (5000 E Lake Nokomis Pkwy, 612-724-5652) is on the shores of Lake Nokomis and home to many monarch butterflies. These are beautiful gardens that are maintained by volunteers.
The Longfellow Gardens - ( 3933 E Minnehaha Pkwy, 612-230-6400, website)The Longfellow Gardens are also located within the neighborhood association. It is a landscape garden along a creek dedicated to the writer and poet, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, who wrote a poem about Minnehaha Falls. There is also a replica of his home near the gardens.
The Nokomis East Gateway Gardens - ( 4224 E 50th St, 612-724-5652, website)The Nokomis East Gateway Gardens were developed after the blue line of the light rail came through the area and left some land unused. This land was turned into beautiful wildlife gardens.
Nokomis Shoe Shop - ( 4950 S 34th Ave, 612-724-1406, website)Nokomis Shoe Shop, which has been around for 80 years. It is a family owned store that started off doing shoe repair. It has since grown and in 2003 it opened a second location in Crystal, MN. The shop is big on customer service and sells a wide range of work and outdoor shoes as well as socks and some clothing.
Orange Rhino - ( 4913 S 28th Ave, 612-868-4914, website)Orange Rhino is a clothing store that sells only organic items. It is owned by a husband and a wife that screen print their designs on hoodies, onesies and tees. All the materials are organic, fair trade and made in the USA. The shop originated in the neighborhood but has been spreading very quickly not only in the USA but all over the world.
Oxendale’s Market - ( 5025 S 34th Ave, 612-724-4474, website)Oxendale’s Market is the community grocery store in NENA. This store is dedicated to keeping everything local. This means that the produce is local, and the employees live and shop locally as well. Their goal is to strengthen their community through groceries and good service. Each of these shops is local and are vital to keeping the neighborhood feeling more like a community, even within the city of Minneapolis.
Berry Sweet Kitchen - ( 5406 S 34th Ave, 612-345-7376, website)If you’re looking for a genuinely homemade meal you need to stop at the Berry Sweet Kitchen. This restaurant uses all natural and fresh ingredients to create some of the tastiest and most beautiful masterpieces when it comes to food!
Boss’ Pizza & Chicken - ( 5501 S 34th Ave, 612-727-2677, website)Boss’ Pizza & Chicken is a newer spot that has only been open in Minneapolis since 2014. It is quickly becoming a favorite because of it’s quality food, delivery services, and the fact that it is open until 3am! This gives you a taste of the many other restaurants in the area.
Sandcastle - ( 4955 W Lake Nokomis Pkwy, 612-722-5550, website)The Sandcastle is a particular favorite because it rests on the shore of Lake Nokomis. The American style food is served over the counter, which is perfect for a day at the beach.
Sassy Spoon - ( 5011 S 34th Ave, 612-886-1793, website)Sassy Spoon is a restaurant that caters to the gluten free public. The entire menu is gluten free so those with food allergies involving gluten can eat anything and everything!
Town Hall Lanes - ( 5019 S 34th Ave, 612-767-3354, website)
The biggest draw for nightlife in the Nokomis East Neighborhood Association is Town Hall Lanes. It is a pub with a bowling alley and one of the largest beer menus around. People love to meet up here with friends late at night, grab something to eat, get a drink and bowl for a couple hours. It is a relaxing but fun environment.
In 2013, Minneapolis adopted their Climate Action Plan, which put into place a comprehensive set of emission reduction strategies. These strategies cover 3 areas: Buildings and energy, Transportation and land use, Waste and recycling. For buildings and energy, the goal is to reduce energy usage by 17%, and generate 10% of electricity from local, renewable sources. On the residential building side of things, Minneapolis is proposing a "home energy audit" as part of the Truth In Housing program (TIH or TISH, Truth In Sale of Housing). This would require sellers to have an energy score when listing their house for sale. They are proposing that the TISH inspectors be trained to perform this component of the inspection process. The end result of this energy score would be a single number, for example 37 on a scale of 1 to 100. 100 would mean that the house would have virtually no energy costs. Another part of this program is to make incentives for sellers to improve their homes energy-wise so that they can get a higher sale price due to energy efficiencies. If they don't, the buyers will at least have some knowledge about the energy efficiency of the house, making it an incentive to them to improve the house energy-wise. Also on the residential side of things, Minneapolis is proposing a "time of rent" energy disclosure for renters. Renters currently have no way of knowing how much their utility bills will be before renting a unit. The disclosure would be mandated so that renters could compare units on energy efficiency. This would give incentives to the landlord (owners) to improve their buildings to make them more attractive to the rental market. On the commercial side of things, some of them already have to do an energy score of sorts and disclose to purchasers. Minneapolis would like to extend that to all commercial buildings. They also have an Energy Reduction Challenge called the "Kilowatt Crackdown" to encourage commercial buildings to reduce usage. For renewable energy, Minneapolis is trying to create policies that promote renewable energy, develop a "solar-ready" certification, and encourage "net-zero" buildings. Making a building "solar-ready" adds virtually no cost at the time of construction, and would potentially have some value to purchasers. This would involve adding some structural supports and electrical conduit so that solar could be installed without adding structural support to the roof trusses, and/or digging in walls to add conduit. Both of these items can be added at a very low cost when in the construction phase. What is a net-zero building? Basically net-zero means the building (or house) would generate all the energy it needs to power the building itself. This generally means that the building is super insulated so that it requires less energy to heat and cool the building, as well as solar panels to generate the energy it needs. Oftentimes this type of building uses geo-thermal heat pumps to heat and cool the building, running off solar energy. You can read more about "Net-Zero" buildings at this link. You can read the entire action plan at the link below. Minneapolis Climate Action Plan: http://www.minneapolismn.gov/sustainability/climate-action-goals/climate-action-plan
JUN: NENA Garage Sale - ( , , website)The association organizes it and anyone can join and set up a booth for free. It usually takes place on a weekend in the middle of June and it’s great for people who want to clean out the closet and for those looking for good deals.
SEP: The Monarch Festival - ( 2401 E Minnehaha Parkway, 612-370-4923, website)The Monarch Festival is a particular favorite of the community. It is a celebration of the monarch butterfly and its Mexican heritage. Children are encouraged to dress up as butterflies; there is Latin food, a parade, art activities, and the University of Minnesota even brings in real butterflies for the event. This usually takes place at the beginning of September.
NOV: Nokomis Fall Urban Craft and Art Fair - ( 2401 E Minnehaha Pkwy, 612-370-4932, website)Nokomis Fall Urban Craft and Art Fair takes place in the middle of November. The fair represents the work of 48 different indie artists and crafters. Admission is free but there are many items that are showcased and even for sale such as jewelry, art, ceramics, sweets, woodwork, soaps, textile glass, paper goods, candles and more. This gives artists a chance to showcase their work and it involves the whole community. Combined with this event is the Lake Nokomis Craft Crawl. This crawl takes participants to three different locations, Faith Evangelical Lutheran Church, Minnehaha United Methodist Church, and Nokomis Square Coop to make, buy and sell crafts. These are the main ways that NENA contributes to the artistic bent of the community. Live music also takes place in several restaurants and at special events.
NOV: Tree Lighting Ceremony - ( 5025 S 34th Ave, 612-724-4474, website)At the end of November each year is the Tree Lighting Ceremony at Oxendale’s Market. The community Christmas tree is lit up at this time and then there is free root beer, an opportunity to get your picture with Santa and free books for children. This is a fun event for the community to welcome in the Christmas season.
DEC: Night Before New Year’s Eve - ( 2401 E Minnehaha Parkway, 612-370-4923, website)the Night Before New Year’s Eve has been a popular event in NENA for 16 years now. On December 30th there is a big party that is both free and kid friendly to celebrate the coming New Year. There is always music, games, food, hayrides, a photo booth, marshmallow roasting and even a countdown. This is great for parents that want to celebrate the New Year with their small children and still go out on New Year’s Eve.
Keewaydin Park and Recreation Center - ( 3030 E 53rd St, 612-370-4956, website)Keewaydin Park is much smaller and connected to Keewaydin Elementary school. It has a picnic area and playground, sports fields and a small pool.
Morris Park and Recreation Center - ( 5531 39th Ave S, 612-370-4934, website)Morris Park is a typical park with a picnic area and playground, sport fields and a pool, but what makes it unique is the skate park. It is one of the few parks in Minneapolis that has a skate park.
Nokomis Fall Urban Craft and Art Fair - ( 2401 E Minnehaha Pkwy, 612-370-4932, website)Nokomis Fall Urban Craft and Art Fair takes place in the middle of November. The fair represents the work of 48 different indie artists and crafters. Admission is free but there are many items that are showcased and even for sale such as jewelry, art, ceramics, sweets, woodwork, soaps, textile glass, paper goods, candles and more. This gives artists a chance to showcase their work and it involves the whole community. Combined with this event is the Lake Nokomis Craft Crawl. This crawl takes participants to three different locations, Faith Evangelical Lutheran Church, Minnehaha United Methodist Church, and Nokomis Square Coop to make, buy and sell crafts. These are the main ways that NENA contributes to the artistic bent of the community. Live music also takes place in several restaurants and at special events.
Town Hall Lanes - ( 5019 S 34th Ave, 612-767-3354, website)The biggest draw for nightlife in the Nokomis East Neighborhood Association is Town Hall Lanes. It is a pub with a bowling alley and one of the largest beer menus around. People love to meet up here with friends late at night, grab something to eat, get a drink and bowl for a couple hours. It is a relaxing but fun environment.
Bossen Field Park - ( 5701 S 28th Ave, 612-230-6400, website)Bossen Field Park was mostly created to suit the Bossen Fields. There are a number of fields at the location along with a basketball court and sports facility. There is also a playground and a pool. These are just a handful of parks that make Minneapolis the best park system in the country.
Keewaydin Park and Recreation Center - ( 3030 E 53rd St, 612-370-4956, website)Keewaydin Park is much smaller and connected to Keewaydin Elementary school. It has a picnic area and playground, sports fields and a small pool.
Lake Nokomis Park - ( 2401 E Minnehaha Parkway, 612-370-4923, website)is one of the most well known parks in south Minneapolis. The park is right on the shores of Lake Nokomis and has so many different things to offer. There are sport fields and courts, walking, biking paths and skiing paths, a pool, a boat dock, a playground, art, fountains, a fishing pier, a grill and picnic area, an ice rink, and a horseshoe pit. But the community really enjoys the beach. It is one of the larger beaches on the Minneapolis lakes.
Morris Park and Recreation Center - ( 5531 39th Ave S, 612-370-4934, website)Morris Park is a typical park with a picnic area and playground, sport fields and a pool, but what makes it unique is the skate park. It is one of the few parks in Minneapolis that has a skate park.
Nokomis Naturescape Garden - ( 5000 E Lake Nokomis Pkwy, 612-724-5652, website)Nokomis Naturescape Garden (5000 E Lake Nokomis Pkwy, 612-724-5652) is on the shores of Lake Nokomis and home to many monarch butterflies. These are beautiful gardens that are maintained by volunteers.
The Longfellow Gardens - ( 3933 E Minnehaha Pkwy, 612-230-6400, website)The Longfellow Gardens are also located within the neighborhood association. It is a landscape garden along a creek dedicated to the writer and poet, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, who wrote a poem about Minnehaha Falls. There is also a replica of his home near the gardens.
The Nokomis East Gateway Gardens - ( 4224 E 50th St, 612-724-5652, website)The Nokomis East Gateway Gardens were developed after the blue line of the light rail came through the area and left some land unused. This land was turned into beautiful wildlife gardens.
Nokomis Shoe Shop - ( 4950 S 34th Ave, 612-724-1406, website)Nokomis Shoe Shop, which has been around for 80 years. It is a family owned store that started off doing shoe repair. It has since grown and in 2003 it opened a second location in Crystal, MN. The shop is big on customer service and sells a wide range of work and outdoor shoes as well as socks and some clothing.
Orange Rhino - ( 4913 S 28th Ave, 612-868-4914, website)Orange Rhino is a clothing store that sells only organic items. It is owned by a husband and a wife that screen print their designs on hoodies, onesies and tees. All the materials are organic, fair trade and made in the USA. The shop originated in the neighborhood but has been spreading very quickly not only in the USA but all over the world.
Oxendale’s Market - ( 5025 S 34th Ave, 612-724-4474, website)Oxendale’s Market is the community grocery store in NENA. This store is dedicated to keeping everything local. This means that the produce is local, and the employees live and shop locally as well. Their goal is to strengthen their community through groceries and good service. Each of these shops is local and are vital to keeping the neighborhood feeling more like a community, even within the city of Minneapolis.
Berry Sweet Kitchen - ( 5406 S 34th Ave, 612-345-7376, website)If you’re looking for a genuinely homemade meal you need to stop at the Berry Sweet Kitchen. This restaurant uses all natural and fresh ingredients to create some of the tastiest and most beautiful masterpieces when it comes to food!
Boss’ Pizza & Chicken - ( 5501 S 34th Ave, 612-727-2677, website)Boss’ Pizza & Chicken is a newer spot that has only been open in Minneapolis since 2014. It is quickly becoming a favorite because of it’s quality food, delivery services, and the fact that it is open until 3am! This gives you a taste of the many other restaurants in the area.
Sandcastle - ( 4955 W Lake Nokomis Pkwy, 612-722-5550, website)The Sandcastle is a particular favorite because it rests on the shore of Lake Nokomis. The American style food is served over the counter, which is perfect for a day at the beach.
Sassy Spoon - ( 5011 S 34th Ave, 612-886-1793, website)Sassy Spoon is a restaurant that caters to the gluten free public. The entire menu is gluten free so those with food allergies involving gluten can eat anything and everything!
Town Hall Lanes - ( 5019 S 34th Ave, 612-767-3354, website)
The biggest draw for nightlife in the Nokomis East Neighborhood Association is Town Hall Lanes. It is a pub with a bowling alley and one of the largest beer menus around. People love to meet up here with friends late at night, grab something to eat, get a drink and bowl for a couple hours. It is a relaxing but fun environment.
In 2013, Minneapolis adopted their Climate Action Plan, which put into place a comprehensive set of emission reduction strategies. These strategies cover 3 areas: Buildings and energy, Transportation and land use, Waste and recycling. For buildings and energy, the goal is to reduce energy usage by 17%, and generate 10% of electricity from local, renewable sources. On the residential building side of things, Minneapolis is proposing a "home energy audit" as part of the Truth In Housing program (TIH or TISH, Truth In Sale of Housing). This would require sellers to have an energy score when listing their house for sale. They are proposing that the TISH inspectors be trained to perform this component of the inspection process. The end result of this energy score would be a single number, for example 37 on a scale of 1 to 100. 100 would mean that the house would have virtually no energy costs. Another part of this program is to make incentives for sellers to improve their homes energy-wise so that they can get a higher sale price due to energy efficiencies. If they don't, the buyers will at least have some knowledge about the energy efficiency of the house, making it an incentive to them to improve the house energy-wise. Also on the residential side of things, Minneapolis is proposing a "time of rent" energy disclosure for renters. Renters currently have no way of knowing how much their utility bills will be before renting a unit. The disclosure would be mandated so that renters could compare units on energy efficiency. This would give incentives to the landlord (owners) to improve their buildings to make them more attractive to the rental market. On the commercial side of things, some of them already have to do an energy score of sorts and disclose to purchasers. Minneapolis would like to extend that to all commercial buildings. They also have an Energy Reduction Challenge called the "Kilowatt Crackdown" to encourage commercial buildings to reduce usage. For renewable energy, Minneapolis is trying to create policies that promote renewable energy, develop a "solar-ready" certification, and encourage "net-zero" buildings. Making a building "solar-ready" adds virtually no cost at the time of construction, and would potentially have some value to purchasers. This would involve adding some structural supports and electrical conduit so that solar could be installed without adding structural support to the roof trusses, and/or digging in walls to add conduit. Both of these items can be added at a very low cost when in the construction phase. What is a net-zero building? Basically net-zero means the building (or house) would generate all the energy it needs to power the building itself. This generally means that the building is super insulated so that it requires less energy to heat and cool the building, as well as solar panels to generate the energy it needs. Oftentimes this type of building uses geo-thermal heat pumps to heat and cool the building, running off solar energy. You can read more about "Net-Zero" buildings at this link. You can read the entire action plan at the link below. Minneapolis Climate Action Plan: http://www.minneapolismn.gov/sustainability/climate-action-goals/climate-action-plan
JUN: NENA Garage Sale - ( , , website)The association organizes it and anyone can join and set up a booth for free. It usually takes place on a weekend in the middle of June and it’s great for people who want to clean out the closet and for those looking for good deals.
SEP: The Monarch Festival - ( 2401 E Minnehaha Parkway, 612-370-4923, website)The Monarch Festival is a particular favorite of the community. It is a celebration of the monarch butterfly and its Mexican heritage. Children are encouraged to dress up as butterflies; there is Latin food, a parade, art activities, and the University of Minnesota even brings in real butterflies for the event. This usually takes place at the beginning of September.
NOV: Nokomis Fall Urban Craft and Art Fair - ( 2401 E Minnehaha Pkwy, 612-370-4932, website)Nokomis Fall Urban Craft and Art Fair takes place in the middle of November. The fair represents the work of 48 different indie artists and crafters. Admission is free but there are many items that are showcased and even for sale such as jewelry, art, ceramics, sweets, woodwork, soaps, textile glass, paper goods, candles and more. This gives artists a chance to showcase their work and it involves the whole community. Combined with this event is the Lake Nokomis Craft Crawl. This crawl takes participants to three different locations, Faith Evangelical Lutheran Church, Minnehaha United Methodist Church, and Nokomis Square Coop to make, buy and sell crafts. These are the main ways that NENA contributes to the artistic bent of the community. Live music also takes place in several restaurants and at special events.
NOV: Tree Lighting Ceremony - ( 5025 S 34th Ave, 612-724-4474, website)At the end of November each year is the Tree Lighting Ceremony at Oxendale’s Market. The community Christmas tree is lit up at this time and then there is free root beer, an opportunity to get your picture with Santa and free books for children. This is a fun event for the community to welcome in the Christmas season.
DEC: Night Before New Year’s Eve - ( 2401 E Minnehaha Parkway, 612-370-4923, website)the Night Before New Year’s Eve has been a popular event in NENA for 16 years now. On December 30th there is a big party that is both free and kid friendly to celebrate the coming New Year. There is always music, games, food, hayrides, a photo booth, marshmallow roasting and even a countdown. This is great for parents that want to celebrate the New Year with their small children and still go out on New Year’s Eve.
Keewaydin Park and Recreation Center - ( 3030 E 53rd St, 612-370-4956, website)Keewaydin Park is much smaller and connected to Keewaydin Elementary school. It has a picnic area and playground, sports fields and a small pool.
Morris Park and Recreation Center - ( 5531 39th Ave S, 612-370-4934, website)Morris Park is a typical park with a picnic area and playground, sport fields and a pool, but what makes it unique is the skate park. It is one of the few parks in Minneapolis that has a skate park.
Nokomis Fall Urban Craft and Art Fair - ( 2401 E Minnehaha Pkwy, 612-370-4932, website)Nokomis Fall Urban Craft and Art Fair takes place in the middle of November. The fair represents the work of 48 different indie artists and crafters. Admission is free but there are many items that are showcased and even for sale such as jewelry, art, ceramics, sweets, woodwork, soaps, textile glass, paper goods, candles and more. This gives artists a chance to showcase their work and it involves the whole community. Combined with this event is the Lake Nokomis Craft Crawl. This crawl takes participants to three different locations, Faith Evangelical Lutheran Church, Minnehaha United Methodist Church, and Nokomis Square Coop to make, buy and sell crafts. These are the main ways that NENA contributes to the artistic bent of the community. Live music also takes place in several restaurants and at special events.
Town Hall Lanes - ( 5019 S 34th Ave, 612-767-3354, website)The biggest draw for nightlife in the Nokomis East Neighborhood Association is Town Hall Lanes. It is a pub with a bowling alley and one of the largest beer menus around. People love to meet up here with friends late at night, grab something to eat, get a drink and bowl for a couple hours. It is a relaxing but fun environment.
