🏎️ It's Friday. That emoji is us racing toward the weekend.

• Mostly sunny with a high around 80, per NWS.

🎂 Happy birthday to our members celebrating today through Sunday: Patrick Keane, Lynn St. Martin, Stacy Stidger, Brian Scholin, Andrew P. and Howard Groff!

Today's newsletter is 1,080 words, a 4-minute read.

Lattes and matchas are going bananas — including at a bunch of Twin Cities coffee shops.

The big picture: Already the most-eaten fresh fruit in America, bananas are ripe for the beverage market beyond smoothies.

By the numbers: Banana syrup is the fastest-growing beverage flavor ingredient over the past year at restaurants, per Circana market data.

• Top chains introduced 100 banana items from July 2025 through July 2026 — already more than in any previous full year, according to Datassential. Most were non-alcoholic.

Search interest is surging, too. "Banana coffee" and "banana matcha" hit all-time highs in search in 2026, per Google Trends.

• TikTok has plenty of videos for the banana-curious, including a tutorial for making banana iced coffee at home — by Eva Longoria.

Zoom in: We surveyed the local scene this summer and found banana-flavored beverages on the menu at a handful of cafes:

• Quixotic's "Banana Cloud" has been one of the St. Paul spot's "better-performing" summer seasonal drinks, owner Jake Nelson tells Axios. It remains on the menu through the weekend.
• Hope Breakfast Bar offers a "Banana Muffin Chai" at its 10 locations.
• And Dogwood again put the "Beach Please," a coconut cold brew with banana foam, on the summer menu at its three cafes.

What we're hearing: Silver Fern plans to bring its Banana Foster Latte back this fall.

• Owner Ben Parsell tells Axios that it was so popular that he kept it on the menu for six months — four times the typical six-week run for seasonal specials.

It was one of the Northeast Minneapolis cafe's top sellers during that period.

Zoom out: Beyond coffee, bananas also have appeal in new cocktails, "water," soda and even beer.

• Case in point: Soul & Flour in North Loop has a banana pudding daiquiri on its menu and the "Ope" at Star Bistro in downtown Minneapolis is made with bourbon, crème de banane, lemon juice and ginger syrup.

The bottom line: You aren't alone if this flavor combo aPEELs to you!

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Don't look now, but the vibes around the Minnesota Twins are suddenly … sorta good?

State of play: The Twins are riding high after a sweep of the NL East-leading Atlanta Braves earlier this week bumped them into playoff position.

• "We believe in ourselves … One big win and we can take that and run with it," DH Josh Bell recently told The Athletic.

Driving the news: The Twins were trade deadline buyers, trading for four pitchers to shore up their bullpen and rotation.

• But it's Bell who's come alive since the deadline, hitting .357 with 4 homers and 14 RBIs.
• A brief reset in Triple-A also did wonders for Royce Lewis. Since Aug. 3, he's hitting .333.

Reality check: This is still a mediocre team locked in a playoff dogfight: The Twins are tied for the AL’s final wild card spot after Texas’ win last night.

• FanGraphs projects the Twins' odds of making the postseason at just under 40%.

What's next: The Twins open a three-game set in San Diego tonight.

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🥖 Paris Baguette plans to open six more locations across the Twin Cities. (Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal)

• The chain — which is South Korean, not French — has deals for cafes in Edina, Eden Prairie, Blaine, Burnsville, Eagan and St. Paul.

🎉 Good news for those of you who drive to the State Fair: Highway 280 reopens today! (KSTP)

• Our thought bubble: Avoid the traffic — and parking fees — by taking the bus!

🩺 The number of full-time anesthesiologists at the Minneapolis VA Medical Center has dropped from 11 to one, prompting some procedures to be canceled or delayed. (Star Tribune)

⚖️ Derek Chauvin is again asking a court to overturn his murder conviction in the 2020 slaying of George Floyd. (WCCO)

🏥 A lawsuit targeting the Mayo Clinic's use of AI highlights the tensions hospitals must navigate as they balance new technology with patient privacy concerns. (MPR News)

The Blue Line is back in service after a two-month pause for major system upgrades.

Why it matters: MetroTransit says trains should run faster, with shorter waits, KSTP reports.

Between the stops: Ridership on the line, which runs from Mall of America to Target Field, dropped sharply after buses temporarily replaced the trains starting in late June, the Star Tribune reports.

What's next: More work, including renovations of the Franklin Avenue and Lake Street/Midtown stations, is scheduled for next year.

Last week, we asked you to share your plans for making the most of the final stretch of summer. You deliever!

🚲 Mary L. wants to visit the Driftless area and ride Lanesboro's Root River bike trail.

🎸 Joanne K. hopes to take in some tunes at Wabasha's "Meet Me Under the Bridge" concert series and bike the Cannon River Trail.

☀️ Kate S. hopes for good weather, so she can enjoy walks around her nursing home complex with her son.

🚤 🤿 ⚾️ 🎡Plus: Over on Instagram, followers shared plans to get on a boat, take a sunrise swim, spend and afternoon at the Weber Natural Pool, day trip to Duluth, go to a Saints game and, obviously attend the State Fair.

🍁 The other side: Marc F. wrote us with a piping hot take that those of you on #TeamFall may agree with:

• "Given how miserable the weather has been this summer, I say 'good riddance,'" he wrote. "Bring on fall as soon as possible, and if it were to arrive in late August I wouldn't complain."

His bottom line: "I prefer a dark, cold, snowy winter to a hot, humid, summer full of smoke and polluted air."

💁‍♀️Torey is ahead of the trend (for once!): She's been ordering the "Beach Please" at Dogwood since 2022!

👍 Kyle really liked Silver Fern's bananas foster latté — heavy on the "bananas" (fruity, light), light on the "foster" (doesn't taste like rum).

️ ☕️ Audrey is craving Fika Coffee's maple latte. If only it wasn't four hours away...

🥱 Nick, who is still on sabbatical, usually sticks with boring black coffee.

Today's newsletter was edited by Larry Graham.