Accommodation, Locations and Travel

Frontier Hall location

Conference participants will be lodging at Frontier Hall, University of Minnesota, Twin Cities East Bank Campus.

Address: 701 Fulton St SE, Minneapolis, MN 55455

You can enter through the front door, where the front desk will buzz you in and answer any questions you may have. Moving carts will also be available for your convenience. Check-in will begin at 1:00 pm on the day of your arrival. The day of your departure, you will need to check out by 12:00 pm. In your rooms, you will find a linen set which includes: sheets, blankets, pillow, and towels. You can exchange any of these items at the 24-hour information desk.

Contact:
Conference & Event Services, University of Minnesota,
210 Delaware Street SE, Minneapolis, MN 55455
phone: 612.625.9090
email: uces@umn.edu
Business Hours: M-F, 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

Tate Hall location 

The conference workshops will take place in room 301-20 Tate Hall.

Nicholson Hall

The conference oral sessions will take place in Room 275 Nicholson Hall.

Coffman Memorial Union and Campus Club 

The poster session and Tuesday evening social event will be held on the fourth floor of the University student union.

Getting To/From the Airport

There are several relatively easy options for getting to the city from the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport.

Public Transportation: The Metro Transit light rail connects the IRM to downtown Minneapolis and St. Paul (Green line) and to the airport from downtown Minneapolis (Blue line) ($2.50). From the airport you will have to make a transfer in downtown Minneapolis to get to the IRM, so make sure to keep your ticket. If you are arriving late in Minneapolis, you may want to look at the train schedule ahead of time to see how frequent they will be running when you arrive. 

Taxis: ~$30-$40 

Shared-Ride Shuttle Vans: ~$17 for one person ($9 for additional person). See Ground Transportation link at left.

Getting to Tate and Nicholson Halls

It is around a 10 minute walk from Frontier Hall to Tate Hall/Nicholson Hall/Coffman Memorial Union.

Parking

It may be possible to reserve parking on campus at Frontier Hall (speak to Frontier Hall in advance of arriving). In the summer time, campus parking is not too bad and there are ramps on campus near to Nicholson and Tate Halls. The two closest ramps are Church Street and Washington Avenue.

For information on parking at the University of Minnesota, please visit the U of M Parking & Transportation page. 

Maps

The University provides a variety of maps for visitors to navigate campus.

Food & Coffee

There are a lot of options around the campus. And the choices present a nice range of prices and cuisines. 

Washington Avenue

The IRM stand-by continues to be Bona, a Vietnamese restaurant on Washington Avenue. The menu is somewhat schizophrenic, consisting of two distinct cuisines: standard Americanized Chinese food, and traditional Vietnamese dishes. Most of us prefer the latter. Try the Vietnamese salads (with rice noodles) or the Pho. The place is always packed, but the service is quick and the prices cannot be beat. e.g., a small Pho is around six dollars. Virtually next door is Test Kitchen serving a variety of "americana sandwiches", sides and shakes, while on the other side on the corner is Stub and Herbs bar and grill. A few doors down is Hong Kong Noodle. Order one of the specials written on the chalkboard next to the entrance for a traditional Chinese dish. On the other side of Washington Ave. are some other options including the Mexican style fast-food Chipotle, the self explanatory Noodles and Company, and Nashville Coop for fried chicken. Down Oak St are the Kimchi Tofu House , a very small and good Korean restaurant, so make you sure you go off peak hours, across the street is the Lao Suz Chun a Chinese restaurant. Closer to campus on Washington are Afro Deli, serving dishes, sandwiches and wraps from many parts of Africa, and Sally's Saloon that serves bar food. A few other options can be found if you follow Washington Avenue across the river. In particular, Town Hall Brewery serves beer brewed on the spot and food worthy of the brew. Town Hall has a nice patio and a couple of pool tables, so it is a nice place to go after a day in the lab.

Dinkytown 

Dinkytown also has several nice places to eat. Some Highlights. Wally's is an excellent Middle Eastern restaurant on 15th Ave SE for lunch and dinner (has vegetarian options) - try the Musahab wrap. Tacos Locos is a new Taqueria on 15th Ave SE that has excellent Mexican style plates. For a traditional American breakfast do not miss Al's Breakfast, a Dinkytown landmark. The building is actually a converted alley, so the seating is limited to a bar that runs most of the length of the restaurant. And since it is usually full, waiting customers line up behind seated diners. The line moves fast, so even if it runs out the door, you will not have to wait long. If a party of two is waiting and two non-contiguous places open up, a cook or waitperson will ask everyone to move over a place or two. The pancakes and eggs Benedict cannot be beat. Bordertown Coffee is an cozy coffee shop just off University Ave SE on 16th Ave SE, six or seven minutes walk for the IRM, serving some paninis and soups and a good place for coffee. East of Dinkytown, a walk or short light-rail trip away is Surly Brewing Co. for sampling some of the best local brews and dinner with indoor and outdoor seating.

On Campus

There are a couple of dining options on campus. Closest in proximity to the lab are the vending machines on the first flooe. IRM staff members have been known to lunch out of the vending machines, choosing cheeseburgers, sandwich wedges, etc. Next in proximity is Cafe Bistro inside Northrop auditorium, serving sandwiches, pastries and coffee. Across the mall from the Department's main entrance, on the lower level of the Walter Library is the Wise Owl Cafe, serving Starbucks coffee, pastries and sandwiches. Several other fast-food options, including a Chick Fil'A, Panda Express, Jamba Juice, Einstein Bros. Bagels and Starbucks, are located in the Coffman Memorial Union. There is another Starbucks in Lind Hall on Church Street near to the IRM.

More

For some information about what to do in Minneapolis, please visit our Getting Here and Around webpage.