Since the last time I wrote about holiday pop-ups, a few more have sprung up in the east metro.

I visited three spots in the past week, and none of them take reservations, but I was seated right away at each, so go get your jingle on!

Blitzen’s Holiday Bar at Omni Viking Lakes Hotel

The Naughty and Spice and Mistletoe Martini at Blitzen’s Holiday Bar at Omni Viking Lakes Hotel. (Jess Fleming / Pioneer Press)

This hotel lobby bar hosts by far the fanciest of the pop-ups I’ve been to this year, and the prices match the ambiance. Seriously, the cheapest drink here, the Naughty and Spice, clocks in at $18.

Still, it’s worth the extra scratch if only because the drinks — there are eight alcoholic sips in total — are next-level good. That Naughty and Spice, a sort of holiday-spiced old-fashioned, features Old Forester 86 bourbon, Lustau Palo Cortado sherry, bitters and a dash of pumpkin cocktail syrup. My husband couldn’t stop raving about it, and he hates all things pumpkin spice. The pumpkin here just adds a little depth and sweetness to a very solid, complex drink.

If there’s a savory drink on your menu, I’m going to order it, and the Mistletoe Martini ($20) did not disappoint. Fords gin, nutty sherry, floral Cocchi Americano fortified wine and some saline kept me sipping and thinking about all the fun flavors, and the red and green olives made a lovely snack.

If you’re more into the sweet stuff, you can order a Dubai-style hot chocolate, spiked or not.

There’s no food beyond a cookie platter or a nutty, dried-fruit-filled snack mix, which we enjoyed.

Did I mention there’s an enormous drive-through light display on the grounds? It’s nearly $40 a car, but it’s pretty spectacular, from what I could see. And a stop at Blitzen’s afterward seems like just the thing to bring about some holiday cheer.

Omni Viking Lakes Hotel: 2611 Nordic Way, Eagan; 651-689-9800; omnihotels.com/hotels/viking-lakes-minnesota

Magic of Lights: Runs through Jan. 3 at Omni Viking Lakes. Tickets and more information at magicoflights.com/locations/viking-lake-mn/

Eagles Club Jingle Bar at St. Paul Eagles Club 33

The Eagles Club Jingle Bar at St. Paul Eagles Club 33 on St. Paul’s East Side. (Jess Fleming / Pioneer Press)
The Gin Jingle at the Eagles Club Jingle Bar at St. Paul Eagles Club 33. (Jess Fleming / Pioneer Press)

The all-volunteer staff at this dive bar/club on St. Paul’s East Side have decked the halls with mostly vintage and secondhand decor.

They’ve also concocted a holiday drink menu with fun names like Peppermint Snowstorm, Gin Jingle, and a green drink called You’re a Mean One.

The club is known for its $10 steak or $5 burger on Wednesdays (they don’t serve food any other day) and karaoke on Fridays. There’s also bar trivia on Thursday, Dec. 18, and photos with Santa from noon to 3 p.m. on Saturday, Dec. 20.

Perhaps best of all, especially during this season of gift buying, the drinks are criminally cheap at $6 apiece.

It’s open every day from 6 p.m. until 10 p.m., except Sunday, when the hours are noon to 6 p.m.

St. Paul Eagles Club 33: 287 Maria Ave., St. Paul; 651-340-9406; eagles33.com

Miracle on 7th Street Christmas Lounge at Shamrock’s Irish Nook

This is perhaps the most under-the-radar holiday pop-up in the cities.

The Snowstorm Margarita and Campfire Mule at Miracle on 7th Street Christmas Lounge at Shamrock’s Irish Nook. (Jess Fleming / Pioneer Press)

Shamrock’s has decorated its patio bar (don’t worry, it’s indoors — the garage door that opens to the patio is closed in the winter) and added a holiday cocktail menu.

We enjoyed the Snowstorm Margarita, a creamy concoction made tropical with some coconut rum and coconut milk, and the Irish whiskey-spiked Campfire Mule, which is adorably garnished with marshmallows that are toasted behind the bar.

Pair those cocktails with any one of the bar’s fabulous burgers and fries, and you have a winning combination for these cold winter nights. They’ve got a free shuttle to most games and arena concerts, too, so it’s a great place to have a pre-event nosh and sip.

Shamrock’s Irish Nook: 995 W. Seventh St., St. Paul; 651-228-9925; crshamrocks.com

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Today is Thursday, Dec. 11, the 345th day of 2025. There are 20 days left in the year.

Today in history:

On Dec. 11, 1978, nearly $6 million in cash and jewelry were stolen from the Lufthansa cargo terminal at New York’s John F. Kennedy Airport; the ‘Lufthansa Heist,’ the largest cash robbery in history at the time, was immortalized in the film “Goodfellas.”

Also on this date:

In 1816, Indiana was admitted to the Union as the 19th U.S. state.

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In 1936, Britain’s King Edward VIII abdicated the throne so he could marry American divorcee Wallis Warfield Simpson; his brother, Prince Albert, became King George VI.

In 1946, the United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF) was established.

In 1972, Apollo 17 commander Gene Cernan guided lander Challenger to a touchdown on the moon, where he and Harrison “Jack” Schmitt would become the last two Apollo astronauts to walk on the lunar surface. They returned to Earth three days later with astronaut Ronald Evans, who remained aloft in the command module.

In 1980, President Jimmy Carter signed legislation creating a $1.6 billion environmental “Superfund” to pay for cleaning up hazardous chemical spills and toxic waste dumps.

In 1997, more than 150 countries agreed at a global warming conference in Kyoto, Japan, to control the Earth’s greenhouse gases.

In 1998, majority Republicans on the House Judiciary Committee pushed through three articles of impeachment against President Bill Clinton, over Democratic objections.

In 2008, former Nasdaq chairman Bernie Madoff was arrested, accused of running a multibillion-dollar Ponzi scheme that wiped out the life savings of thousands of people and wrecked charities. (Madoff died in April 2021 while serving a 150-year federal prison sentence.)

In 2020, the Supreme Court rejected a lawsuit backed by President Donald Trump to overturn Joe Biden’s election victory, ending an attempt to get legal issues that were rejected by state and federal judges before the nation’s highest court.

Today’s Birthdays:

Actor Rita Moreno is 94.
Former U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry is 82.
Singer Brenda Lee is 81.
Singer Jermaine Jackson is 71.
Rock musician Nikki Sixx (Motley Crue) is 67.
Actor-comedian Mo’Nique is 58.
Hockey Hall of Famer Daniel Alfredsson is 53.
Rapper-actor Yasiin Bey (formerly Mos Def) is 52.
Author Colleen Hoover is 46.
Actor Rider Strong is 46.
Actor Alexa Demie is 35.
Actor Hailee Steinfeld is 29.

Minnesota rebounded from a disappointing double-overtime loss to No. 7 Maryland on Sunday by hammering an overmatched nonconference opponent on Wednesday, an 82-44 victory over Alabama A&M at Williams Arena.

Minnesota guard Mara Braun (10) shoots during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game against Alabama A&M Wednesday, Dec. 10, 2025, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)

Redshirt junior Mara Braun scored eight points to surpass 1,000 career points.

Tori McKinney had a game-high 13 points to go with four assists and a pair of steals, and Brylee Glenn added 11 points and a game-high eight rebounds for Minnesota.

Makena Christian came off the bench to score 12 points on 4-for-6 shooting from 3-point range for Minnesota (7-3 overall, 0-1 Big Ten), which had 27 assists on 34 made baskets. The Gophers used a 16-0 run in the second quarter to build a 47-23 halftime lead, and a 7-0 run to go up 64-32 with a minute left in the third.

Minnesota outrebounded the Bulldogs, 33-30, and turned the ball over just five times while forcing 16 turnovers, 11 of them steals. Rakiyah Beal was the only Alabama A&M player in double figures, scoring 12 points for the Bulldogs (3-7 overall, 0-0 SWAC).

The Gophers are host to Wyoming on Sunday at Williams Arena. Tipoff is set for 5 p.m.

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Head coach Niko Medved had a sneaking suspicion the Gophers men’s basketball team was going to get Purdue’s best after the former top-ranked Boilermakers suffered an uncharacteristic home loss to Iowa State on Saturday.

“I thought Iowa State played terrific, and if Purdue was being honest, they missed a lot of plays that they normally make,” Medved told the Pioneer Press on Tuesday. “I’m fairly confident we will see and ‘A’ effort from Purdue on Wednesday.”

That top letter grade came to the forefront in the second half as No. 6 Purdue used a 21-0 win to cruise to a 85-57 win over Minnesota at Mackey Arena in West Lafayette, Ind.

The Gophers (5-5, 1-1 Big Ten) had a strong close to the first half — a 17-5 run to trail 35-32 at the break — and it teased the potential for consecutive upsets after knocking off No. 22 Indiana at Williams Arena last Wednesday.

“They went on that run and we just could not find a way to stem the tide,” Medved said on the KFAN postgame show. “I thought they just kind of broke our spirit, which you don’t want to see happen and unfortunately, Purdue, we’re not the only team and the last team they are going to do that to.”

The Boilermakers (9-1, 2-0 Big Ten) showed why they were picked to win the Big Ten and were ranked No. 1 until the 81-58 loss to now-No. 4 Iowa State last weekend.

“Purdue was preseason No. 1 in the country and playing like the No. 1 team in the country for a reason: They’ve got an elite culture, an elite coach, veteran players who have played together and know what it’s like. (They) got a great system,” Medved said. “They’ve got all the pieces to play at the highest level.”

The Boilermakers emphasis in the second half was getting the ball in the paint and exploiting their size advantage. In the game, they had 40-24 advantage in points in the paint and doubled Minnesota up on the glass, 46-23.

“They wore us down,” Medved said. “We are pretty small and thin down there and you’re in foul trouble. So when you are trying to engage those guys down there, it makes it pretty difficult. You don’t really have anyone to go to necessarily off the bench. Maybe we could have double teamed a little bit in the post in the second half, but they really stretch you out with their spacing. This is the No. 1 offense in the country for a reason.”

The Gophers continue to be shorthanded without two starters — point guard Chansey Willis Jr. (foot) and center Robert Vaihola (knee) — and two backups BJ Omot (leg) and Chance Stephens (illness).

Similar to the Indiana game, Minnesota continued to deal with extensive foul trouble. Jaylen Crocker-Johnson, Isaac Asuma, and Grayson Grove each had four fouls with eight minutes left in the game. Langston Reynolds also dealt with foul trouble in the first half.

Crocker-Johnson paced Minnesota with 11 points, including three treys, in the first half. He finished with 17.

Point guard Braden Smith, a Big Ten player of the year candidate, led the way for the Boilermakers with 15 points and 12 assists.

Purdue’s quality was on display in the first half, too, and the Gophers were down 27-15 with six minutes to go. But Minnesota started to hit shots and ended the half with a big run to make it a one-possession game at the break.

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