Home >  Plan a trip >  Shopping & Eating >  Dining & grazing >  Indulging at the holidays

Other stories in "Dining & grazing"

• Time to eat
  During Restaurant Weeks, you can be a glutton with a good conscience.
• A feast of festivals
  At small-town shindigs, get your fill of strawberries and sauerkraut, kolacky and sweet corn.
• Into the belly of Chicago
  A food tour points us toward pizza, candies, spice and everything nice.
• Chow-down in Chicago
  In a city of neighborhoods, cooks from many countries stir the pot.
• Now they're cooking
  For weekenders, rubbing elbows with a real chef is better than TV.
• Table-hopping in bluff country
  On a culinary adventure to Decorah, we tighten our belts, then let them out.
• Toasting Oktoberfest
  Festive tributes to Bavarian tradition put the oompah into fall.
• A spin around Lake Pepin
  An excursion on a favorite route turns up some real treats.
• Cheese country
  In verdant hills around Monroe, the Swiss stay true to flavors of forebears.
• Grazing in Wisconsin
  Where Badger state began, Old World flavors remain.
• Capitals of treats
  When you’re on a road trip to temptation, here’s what to eat.
• Seeking the best soft-serve
  Their ranks are thinning, but old-time ice-cream stands still brighten road trips.
• Happy meals
  Nowadays, travelers can find great cuisine in unlikely places.
• Dining up north: Longville to Walker
  A bicycle trail connects towns and lakes en route to Minnesota's newest fine-dining destination.
• Dining up north: Pequot to Crosslake
  Deep in Paul Bunyan country, we find the best lakeside supper clubs, roadhouses and bistros.
• Dining up north: the Best Bets
  In Minnesota lakes country, vacation is too short for a bad meal. Here's where to get a great one between Brainerd and Walker.
• Dining up north: Brainerd to Nisswa
  We give you an insiders' guide to restaurants in Minnesota lake country, from nachos to filet mignon.
• Sweet spots
  A search for great Valentine's treats leads to some unlikely places.
• Eating in the Amana Colonies
  In eastern Iowa, a historic village has a long tradition of feeding people well.
• Nourishing tourism
  In small towns, an interesting restaurant can make all the difference.
• The dish on Dorset
  Tiny 'Restaurant Capital of the World' is just a burp on the road.
• Dining on the North Shore
  Finally, the cuisine matches the scenery.
• Boffo B&B breakfasts
  At a Wisconsin cook-off, we find out which is best.
• Feasting in Dubuque
  Guests on a progressive dinner and mansion tour get a good look at what frontier fortunes could buy.
• Great places for a picnic
  Here are some of the best spots in Minnesota, all with a view of water.

Indulging at the holidays

At old-fashioned feasts, eat like a king or tycoon.

If you're in the mood to loosen belts as well as wallets, the holidays are the time to do it.

At madrigal dinners, channel portly Henry VIII in a Tudor castle settling. During Dickens dinners, wallow in 19th century England — the England of "A Christmas Carol,'' not "Oliver Twist.''

Which is to say, there's no gruel course.

During the holidays, dinners at mansions built by early entrepreneurs — Capt. Frederick Pabst in Milwaukee, Chester Congdon in Duluth — are as sumptuous as the decor. But the frontier folk feasted, too; at Old World Wisconsin, guests will dine on delicacies favored by Irish immigrants.

Here are some of the best holiday feasts in 2011; reserve early.

And for tours of decorated mansions, see Homes for the holidays.

Dec. 9-11 and 15-18,  "Fezziwig's Feast" in St. Paul. Diners are entertained by members of the Actors Theater of Minnesota on three stages of Wigington Hall Pavilion on Harriet Island, with live music.

Dec. 2-4 and 9-10, Madrigal Dinners in Bemidji, Minn. Singers at Bemidji State University create the atmosphere of a Renaissance feast in an English castle, with performances by the king's players, the royal court, beggars, minstrels and troubadours during a five-course dinner.

For more, see Bemidji's behemoths.

Dec. 3-4 and 10-11, Austrian Holiday Dinner at Old World Wisconsin in southeast Wisconsin. A traditional celebration of dinner, music and dancing at this 576-acre complex of 10 ethnic pioneer farmsteads, which celebrates a different ethnic group at each year's holiday celebrations. Reserve early.

For more, see In search of Christmas past.

Dec. 10-11 and 17-18, Holiday Brunches at Glensheen Mansion in Duluth. Tours of Chester Congdon's mansion on Lake Superior, decorated for the holidays, are followed by brunch and a wassail toast.

For more, see Duluth's grand mansion.

Dec. 9-11, 16-18 and 20-22, Dickens Dinners at the Pabst Mansion in Milwaukee. It's a traditional English feast, with Charles Dickens reading from "A Christmas Carol.'' Reserve by calling Bartolotta's at 414-727-6980; for Pabst Mansion details, 414-931-0808.

People who visit Old World Wisconsin or the Pabst Mansion get admission to the other site free.

For more, see Milwaukee at Christmas.

Last updated on November 6, 2011