A Bee-Inspired Day in SLP — Trip Ideas

Pollinators—including honey bees and wild bees—move pollen between flowers, fertilizing plants and enabling them to produce seeds and fruit. Minnesota is home to over 450 wild bee species, among them solitary bees and 18 bumblebee species. Recognizing how essential these pollinators are, the City Council passed a resolution declaring St. Louis Park a bee-friendly city. To celebrate that distinction, we’ve put together a playful, family-friendly itinerary for a bee-themed day around our city.

Single-Day Itinerary

Morning

Begin with Breakfast at Honey & Rye Bakehouse

Kick things off at Honey & Rye Bakehouse, a woman-owned bakery known for freshly made breads, pastries, pies and cakes. Its name comes from the honey and rye used in its yeast starter. Adults can choose from coffee and tea selections, including the specialty Miel, a latte prepared with honey and cinnamon. Children may prefer the cookies, scones, coffee cake and monkey bread. On Fridays, look for the honey challah bread, which is dairy free. Locally made Ames Farm honey is also available by the jar.

Connect with Nature at Westwood Hills Nature Center

Continue to the new Interpretive Center at Westwood Hills Nature Center, a net zero energy facility. Its interactive exhibits include a colorful presentation about pollinators, and visitors can learn about bee-friendly plants before watching the bees at the apiary. The Nature Center is also home to live animals such as a flying squirrel, a red-tailed hawk and a barred owl.

More than 3 miles of trails pass through marsh, woods and restored prairie. Children can run across the floating boardwalk over Westwood Lake, while lucky visitors may see deer, turtles, foxes, minks or owls.

Afternoon

Pick Up a Picnic from yum! Kitchen & Bakery

After your morning at Westwood Hills, get a lunch to go from yum! Kitchen & Bakery. This neighborhood restaurant prepares everything from scratch with only the freshest ingredients. One option is the chicken club: chicken breast with lettuce, tomato, avocado, Nueske bacon (a MN favorite) and pommeray honey aioli on toasted whole grain bread. The menu also includes salads, homemade soups, pizzas and fresh-squeezed lemonade.

For dessert, choose a piece of the signature patticake, made with chocolate cake and buttercream frosting, or select from the assortment of cupcakes, cookies, muffins and other baked goods.

Picnic at Historic Lilac Park

Lilac Park offers an ideal place for your picnic. This 2.7-acre historic park sits near Highway 100’s famed Lilac Way, a 12.5 mile stretch of freeway built during the Great Depression and lined with over 8,000 lilac plants.

The park contains one of only two remaining beehive-shaped fireplaces in the entire U.S. The fireplace and the nearby picnic tables were constructed from limestone quarried along the Minnesota River. Local stonemasons built them in 1939, cutting every stone by hand. Their beehive nickname comes from their resemblance to skeps, straw baskets placed open-end down that were used to house bees for more than 2,000 years.

Families once paused at these roadside parks to roast hot dogs in the fireplaces. Although the fireplace is no longer functional, the beehive remains the park’s centerpiece.

Find Bee-Themed Bakeware at Nordic Ware Factory Store

For a quick shopping excursion, visit the nearby Nordic Ware Factory Store. H. David Dalquist, the owner of Nordic Ware, invented the bundt pan here in 1950. The store now carries bundt and bundtlette pans in many shapes and sizes, along with bakeware, cookware, kitchenware, grilling gadgets and accessories.

Turn the visit into a bakeware scavenger hunt by looking for the beehive-shaped cake and cakelet pans, honeycomb pull-apart pan, honey bee pancake pan and honey bee cookie stamps. Honeybee dish towels are another item to watch for.

Sample Chocolate at Droolin’ Moose

Make another delicious stop at Droolin’ Moose, a distinctly Minnesota gourmet chocolate shop in the Miracle Mile Shopping Center. Its selection includes over 50 varieties made with milk and dark chocolate, caramel, nuts (cashews, pecans, almonds), fruits (cherries, blueberries) and even gummy candies.

The Tangles are worth trying: honey cinnamon grahams coated in milk chocolate.

See the Pollinator Habitat at Wolfe Park

For another chance to observe bees, visit Wolfe Park. It is one of eight designated pollinator habitats, where no pesticides are sprayed and dandelions and white clover are encouraged. Paved trails wind through the park and around Wolfe Lake.

The 3.3 acre lake contains bluegill, black crappie, largemouth bass, northern pike and yellow perch. Anglers can use the fishing pier and four shore fishing stations. Young children can enjoy the large playground, with swings, slides and climbing features. A ride on Nectar the Bee, a two-person spring rider that rocks gently back and forth, is another family favorite.

Discover Bee Way at The Shops at West End

Travel north on Hwy 100 to The Shops at West End to see the aluminum sculptures entitled Bee Way. Foster Willey designed the piece in 2009, drawing inspiration from the beehive fireplace in Lilac Park.

The installation features two concrete columns embossed with honeycomb patterns and bee-themed ceramic tiles. Aluminum sculptures sit on top, symbolizing bees in flight as they move with the wind. Hexagons throughout the plaza evoke the honeycombs of a bee’s nest, while a butterfly bench offers a whimsical place to rest.

Evening

Dine Among West End’s Restaurant Colony

St. Louis Park’s West End is celebrated for its variety of restaurants, many of which offer inviting patio dining and provide a fitting close to the day.

At The Local – West End, an authentic Irish pub full of character, begin with Gaelic whiskey bites: house-made breaded chicken morsels finished with a secret honey whiskey glaze. Another choice is the heirloom tomato & burrata salad, served with a drizzle of golden honey. Entrées include pan-seared Norwegian salmon with a whiskey-honey glaze and a grilled chicken sandwich topped with honey-whiskey sauce.

Raku Sushi Lounge serves globally inspired Japanese plates, inventive sushi rolls and cocktails in an upscale setting. Consider the crispy duck salad with honey glazed walnuts, rock shrimp tempura or sashimi by the piece.

Yard House offers over 100 menu items made from scratch, along with an equal number of beers on tap. Options for the table include Wisconsin fried cheese curds and Nashville hot chicken, both served with honey hot sauce.

The Hum of the Hive

We hope your travels through St. Louis Park are enjoyable as our friendly bees guide you around town. To set the mood, we’ve assembled a totally eclectic Spotify playlist featuring songs connected to bees and honey, ranging from Blake Shelton’s Honey Bee to the Bee Gee’s and The Honeydrippers.

Have an un-bee-lievable day!