Cantina 1 is a new restaurant on the top level of the Mall of America. I had a rare urge to spend a day milling about, people-watching and window shopping this past weekend, and headed out to the Bloomington behemoth with my boyfriend. After several hours of pounding the carpeted hallways and dodging the ubiquitous families, we were more than ready for a snack and a cocktail. We settled in at a table in the bar, bypassing the wait for a table in the dining room. We got a couple of good margaritas for a reasonable $6 each, and indulged in the free chips and salsa while perusing the menu for a light option to share. We settled on the platter of 3 chicken tacos, which turned out to be quite delicious, and the perfect amount of food for 2 peckish shoppers between meals. As we were settling up, the manager came over and made sure we had enjoyed our meal there and told us of a few upcoming and weekly events at the restaurant--including salsa night and karaoke. We told him how pleased we were to stumble across this oasis in the consumer desert.

We've found our new favorite stop for mid-shopping refreshments at MOA!