I Like to Eat

Slurping Turtle

noreply@blogger.com (Jeff) — Sun, 15 Jan 2012 19:04:00 +0000

Slurping Turtle is likely the most buzz worthy opening of the new year and with good reason. Chef Takashi's flagship Michelin Starred restaurant in Bucktown was one of my favorite meals last year. We've also seen this playbook from other highly acclaimed chefs - follow up the fine dining restaurant with a lower price option (capitalizing on good press/reputation) - like XOCO, Grahamwich, Big Star, etc. And as expected, the experience and food were worthy of the hype and should put the Turtle as the first hit of 2012. I am also happy to report that I was able to have two dining experiences from which to make a judgement. I hope that is a New Year's resolution I am able to keep because good food should be repeated and verified. Something else I'm starting to favor in 2012 is a no reservation policy. I don't know if that's good or bad for restaurants but I appreciate the equal opportunity of diners to experience a restaurant if they're willing to put in the time. I say this now but maybe I'll regret that soon. We got lucky on a Tuesday night and only had to wait a few minutes to get a table of four. The luck continued when we were seated in the "upstairs" area with one of two tables that over looks the restaurant (only 4 tables up there and really neat "lounge" feel). I really enjoy the feel of the space with a very modern and clean looks with white and glass as dominate themes. There is a large communal table in the middle that stretches the entire length of the space, a good sized bar and tables around the perimeter. I think it is fair to say that Takashi (or whomever he works with) understands how to design a space consistent with the food (both here and at Takashi).

But let's move on to the food. I went for dinner on Tuesday and had lunch on Saturday. The better meal from top to bottom was dinner but I do like the menu for lunch. It's smaller and simpler but just not as exciting as dinner and the value is not quite as good. For $15 I had the bento box that comes with soup, salad, sashimi and a few appetizers. The noodle bowls and rice bowls are also in the $12-14 range. I'm not suggesting we left hungry but a $25 saturday lunch is not small potatoes either. The food was equally well prepared as dinner but nothing stood out and the limited menu removes many of the hits from dinner.

The dinner we had with our good friends the Dermans was very good and very fun. A four person Slurping Turtle dinner is the best way to experience the menu and share many plates. We each ordered a bowl of ramen and supplemented that with a bunch of sides and appetizers.

We needed two orders of the Crispy Curry Croquettes because Ari already knew how amazing they were from a previous visit. You have to like curry flavor but they are fantastic with a crispy outside and a piping hot soft middle. My other favorite was the seared big eye tuna sashimi. It was fresh and delicious with avocado and sweet onion dressing. The hamachi taco tartare was also nice but we only had one each. Erica and I also ordered a starter of spare ribs which was not my favorite and should have gone with my traditional favorite of gyoza.

We tried the traditional shoyu ramen (egg noodle, classic tokyo style soy broth, braised pork shoulder, naruto, bamboo shoots). I'm glad erica enjoyed the entire bowl because I was just into the noodles and the tasty broth. It's the same bowl offered at the Takashi Noodles in macy's that I've had before but it's much better at turtle. Ari and Tali also ordered a side of fried rice that was fantastic and wish I had my own bowl.

We couldn't leave without trying a few small treats and went with sea salt ice cream and a green tea cream puff. Both were nice and light as expected at the end of a Japanese meal. You need to like salt to enjoy the ice cream and the cream puff was just sweet enough to enjoy with fun textures.

Slurping Turtle is a great addition to River North and one of the highlights to start the new restaurant craze of 2012. I'm glad I've gone twice to get a full sense of the food offerings, BUT to me, the sign of a great restaurant is one that I want to return to not only eat my favorite dishes again, but also try new ones I missed (I'm looked at the Tan Tan Men specifically). Another great concept and I look forward to whatever else Takashi has up his sleeve.

Coast Sushi

noreply@blogger.com (Jeff) — Tue, 10 Jan 2012 06:41:00 +0000

For whatever reason it took me a long time to dine at Coast in Bucktown even though it's been around with many high marks. I've waited about a month to write about our meal so I can't recall each maki roll we ordered but it doesn't matter. The food is very good and the atmosphere is lively and fun due in no small part to the BYOB policy. It's classier and trendier than your neighborhood BYO which means it's slightly harder to get into but the food is clearly better. I really think it's one of the better all around BYO sushi places I've been to in a while - especially in the area. It may not "wow" you with everything on the table and you know the servers are desperately trying to turn tables - but a few rolls stood out for excellent flavors. And finally, the value is better than average for good service and a fun experience in a good setting.

We started with my favorite - an order of gomae - and it came in a funny presentation of three small separate pieces instead of a large one. that didn't matter because it was tasty with a nice sesame sauce. We also tried two of the specials: one sashimi and another salmon type roll with something in the middle. I really liked the sashimi with a hot pepper and a little kick. Refreshing and simple.

As the first picture demonstrates,we ordered a lot of food for the four of us. We ate it all fast enough to order a couple extra too. Everything was great and I don't quite remember which rolls were my favorite. We used spicy rolls when possible and enjoyed the liberal use of tempura flakes or crunchy this and that. The menu is plenty large to keep you satisfied and interested for many visits.

There's a good reason Coast remains one of the more popular sushi restaurants in town, especially one that combines high quality and a BYO policy. Maybe I'm late to the game but I'm glad I made it eventually - coast is a solid choice for a fun night (just remember to make reservations and avoid the my previous mistake).

Vera

noreply@blogger.com (Jeff) — Sun, 08 Jan 2012 20:28:00 +0000

I must be in a Spanish food mood because I didn't realize my previous post Iberico. We went to the new Spanish Wine bar Vera located in the red hot West Loop. They don't take reservations and our plan of arriving late friday night worked to perfection. The space is very well done with nice clean looks, and a long bar area by the front door and another cheese bar area as well. I also like the open view kitchen in the back with a large chalkboard overhead displaying the wines of the day. The food was great and the menu has nice balance of simplicity and variety.

Our first two dishes came from the fish side of the menu: kona kampachi and escabeche of trout. But the kampachi was not available and they substituted hamachi instead. It was one of my favorite dishes of the meal - nice, well seasoned thin pieces of raw fish with a kick in the sauce. The trout was not my favorite because it lacked any real flavor but it wasn't bad.

The papas bravas - potatoes with red sauce and white aoili - was so good we had to order two to avoid any fighting. The potatoes were perfectly cooked, crispy and well seasoned and the sauces were a nice compliment - fire and ice style.

Finally, we had two vegetable dishes (cauliflower and brussel sprouts) and Elysian Fields lamb chorizo with (roasted onions and winter greens). The brussel sprouts were not good, very soft/mushy without desirable flavors. On the other hand we enjoyed the cauliflower a lot and thought the lamb chorizo (more like sausage) was tasty - especially the sauce and onions it came with.

By and large we liked the food with a great fish starter, awesome potatoes and nice mains. I also haven't mentioned that the four glasses of wine we ordered were also great. They serve three types of wine on tap and I tried and enjoyed one of the reds. The value of the meal was average with some dishes good value and others questionable. But given we were full at the end and each had two glasses of wine the total bill of $100 is comparable to other meals.

Vera continues to the red hot trend going on in West Loop/Randolph with new places serving good food and drink. I enjoyed the atmosphere and experience and would recommend people to check it out.

Cafe Iberico

noreply@blogger.com (Jeff) — Mon, 02 Jan 2012 23:00:00 +0000

Highly regarded and often visited Cafe Iberico is my (and many others') choice for good tapas food in Chicago. They don't take reservations for parties less than six so wait times can get ugly on popular nights. But a long wait is usually a good sign and that remains true for Iberico. Also true to form for good tapas is a rowdy and sometimes overwhelming noise level from energetic groups. But the best part is that food good is consistently good without a complicated menu and a nice drink list.

We ordered a whole lot of food (and some before I got to the table) so I won't try and recap each dish. The standouts included a calamrai & fries dish, a sausage and rice dish and two different beef plates - one with cheese and one on a skewer with fries. That doesn't leave many choices for the "non-favorites" like spicy potatoes or baked goat cheese but that doesn't mean they weren't good. Also, the red sangria we ordered was tasty and not as sweet as I remembered.

Cafe Iberico remains one of the best (if not the best) tapas option in Chicago. The food is consistent and delicious and accompanied by nice drinks and good service and value. I'm always looking for other ideas outside of Ba-Ba-Reba and Iberico so please share!

The Southern

noreply@blogger.com (Jeff) — Sun, 01 Jan 2012 20:18:00 +0000

**I was in the middle of writing this post last night when I ran out of time to prepare for our NYE party. Oh well. Happy 2012!! More great food to eat this year.**

Happy New Year's Eve! We'll be staying in and hosting a party tonight so no NYE restaurant post this year. Last night we went to The Southern for a quick and easy meal in the neighborhood. I had been once before for drink and enjoyed myself, so I was happy and eager to get a meal experience. It was somewhat quiet but downstairs was pretty lively. The decor and scene is definitely more bar - with high tops and TVs - than restaurant but the menu has enough options for any meal. We also had the pleasure of hosting our friends from Kentucky in order to get their thoughts on the authenticity of the "southern" cooking style.

I was pleasantly surprised with all of the food that we ate. Everyone ordered one dish (the menu isn't really separated by courses) and we had a side of cornbread and mashed potatoes. I really like the mashed potatoes - nice and creamy and buttery, delish. The cornbread was also nice and came with butter or honey.

Erica ordered crab cakes (came with two good sized ones) and I had the Andouille Gumbo (with house made spicy sausage, Gunthorp Farm duck, steamed rice, pickled okra).

I was very impressed with my gumbo. It had the required heat but not too overwhelming that would require breaks. The sausage was tasty and tender and there was the perfect amount of sauce with the rice. I heard similar compliments all around - especially from our KY friends that ordered the Burgoo and the Mushrooms & Dumplings (both things I had never heard of before).

Our short and sweet meal was surprisingly good with every dish well prepared with great and simple flavors. The Southern's tagline is "Kickass Food + Comfort Food". I think they do both well and look forward to returning soon.

Gene & Georgetti

noreply@blogger.com (Jeff) — Thu, 29 Dec 2011 05:27:00 +0000

I had to get back to G&G after my first visit during their 70th anniversary meal a few months back for $15 and six courses. This time Erica and I went for a real steak dinner - sharing a filet and some creamed spinach and pasta. For those unaware, G&G must be one of the oldest steak houses in Chicago with great celebrity photos and old murals on the wall. The layout is goofy - with a tiny first floor, large bar and more seating up the narrow carpeted stairs. But the services remains old school classic and extremely attentive with multiple people taking care of your table and doing so in a choreographed manner. The food is somewhat middle of the road though, and the prices are more high road.

We only needed one filet to satisfy our needs but supplemented our meal with some pasta and meatballs, spinach and the included salads and cottage fries. It was more than enough food for the two of us, particularly the huge dish of angle hair and meatballs. Erica did most of the damage on the filet but the few bites I had did not inspire me to ask for more. Maybe it's a sign of the times (and G&G lives in the old world) but I thought a steak was supposed to be good enough to not need sauce. Without asking our server presented both ketchup (I hope for the potatoes) and A1 steak sauce. However, I appreciated him doing so because the steak needed some A1 to register great flavors.

I've probably had better steaks at my apartment (or my parents house), the overall food is decent. The sides were my favorite and I wish I would have traded in my enormous plate of pasta for another side or two. Even though I ordered angel hair with red sauce, by the time it arrived it looked boring so I asked for a side meatballs. Even the meatballs weren't my favorite so I think I'll stop trying to fit a round peg into a square hole. The salads for starters were good with a nice house dressing and I really like the potato cottage fries.

When it's all said and done my first and second experiences didn't differ that much. There's probably a solid explanation why the average age inside is not my typical scene. They serve old school food with old school decor and great old school service. I wouldn't rush back as I think they're catering to a different crowd but I can understand the strong loyalty and longevity (70 years!) of a classic Chicago icon.

Thai Smile

noreply@blogger.com (Jeff) — Wed, 28 Dec 2011 04:38:00 +0000

It's not quite Christmas dinner for a Jew if it doesn't involve some kind of oriental meal. I was in Palm Springs for the Holiday weekend to soak up some sun and get a quick break from work. After going to the movies we went to my parents' favorite thai spot in the area. It's a smallish restaurant with about 60 seats but nicely decorated. It was the only place with any life in the shopping center at 8pm on December 25th. We had some good food and some ok food. Even my mother said that it's normally a bit tastier but maybe it was the second team in the kitchen or abnormally busy since not many places are open.

Our starters of chicken satay and some kind of deep fried shrimp roll were the best things on the table all night. I loved the peanut sauce with the chicken and the shrimp roll was very tasty.

Our main dishes were a vegetable pad see iew, a vegetable something and an awesome fried scallop dish. Fried scallops sound goofy but whatever they did worked. The sauce was great and the scallops well cooked and then encased in batter.

My noodle dish was exceptionally disappointing. There was no flavor to the sauce and the noodles tasted over cooked. We ended up ordering a pad thai in addition and that was better but a little sweet.

We had a nice meal with some ups and downs. A few dishes were great and some were not but the company was great and that's the most important thing on any holiday night.

French Laundry

noreply@blogger.com (Jeff) — Tue, 20 Dec 2011 06:22:00 +0000

Finally, after two years of getting into the "foodie" world as a blogger, I made my pilgrimage to The French Laundry to help celebrate brother Anthony's big 4-0. We only were in town for two nights, but when one of them is in Yountville, it's bound to be a great trip. Honestly, my expectations were not through the roof even though everything I had ever read about FL would seem to place it one elevator stop short of heaven. But even if I did expect the world they would have delivered. I've recently become much more aware of how significant the company you dine with influences your overall dining experience. Our group would have had a fun and amazing time if we were eating at McDonald's or In-N-Out but the magical setting and cuisine only added to everyone's joy. It was a five hour meal with delicious course after delicious course arriving with perfect service and delicious wine pairings. There's something different and special when each course arrives perfectly cooked with flavors balanced to perfection. The French Laundry is definitely where cooks go to learn how to make the classic food amazing. It's the base foundation that allows every chef to creatively transform the classics into modern fare (see: Achatz, Grant). Finally, FL is also a required experience for any food lover and anyone that enjoys special restaurant experiences. I'm lucky to have had that experience and continue to expand my palate of comparable experiences. Now all I need is to save up for my next trip to Yountville, CA

Our favorite courses were the lamb, all of the mini starters, and an unexpected gnocchi truffle dish. Anthony was overwhelmed with his pasta and shaved white truffle addition and nearly brought to tears. Everyone agrees: the food is truly special. I can honestly say this was the best food experience of my life (so far) and worth every dollar. I look forward to returning or where ever I can have another special meal.

"Oysters and Pearls"

Roasted Sunchoke Soup

Nantucket Bay Scallops

Sauteed Fillet of Gulf Coast Cobia

Sweet Butter-Poached Maine Lobster "Mitts"

Surprise gnocchi course

Overwhelmed with table side white truffle shavings

Devils Gulch Ranch Rabbit Sirloin

Elysian Fields Farm Lamb Rib-eye

"Comte Reserve"

Sour Cherry Sorbet

Bonus Dessert

"Pommes Anna"

Lao Sze Chuan

noreply@blogger.com (Jeff) — Wed, 14 Dec 2011 07:05:00 +0000

I'm a huge fan of Chinatown but my family always goes to the same two places: Emperor's Choice and Phoenix. We love them both that we never had a reason to explore other options - that's why I'm grateful some work friends decided to organize a Sunday evening trip to check out Lao Sze Chuan. As a local foodie I've heard a lot about Tony Hu and his empire but had never experienced it myself. Chinatown is great because it's both authentic yet approachable (and most restaurants have figured this out by having entirely different sections or floors for seating). Lao Sze Chuan does a very nice job of presenting a menu with an overwhelming number of choices with clear labels to steer you on your desired path. Our Sunday night dinner didn't need to go exotic or push the envelope so we ordered familiar dishes and didn't even really flip the pages. Everything we ordered came as expected and tasted great - fully embracing the "Americanized" Chinese food we've come to love growing up on Panda Express :) I'm not disappointed by this because the food was high quality and gave us what we wanted. If we were interested in pigs feet or hot pots we could have ordered those (which is to say if you want adventure, there's plenty to try).

We didn't send back anything left on the plates but if I had to pick a favorite dish it was the classic Mongolian Beef - with a slightly sweeter sauce than usual as opposed to spicy. It's a tried and true dish but when you do it well, it's one of my all time favorites. I also really liked the pork mu shoo and the vegetable fried rice. The most surprising dish was our dry chili chicken, which looked a lot scarier and spicier than reality. It was simply very good fried chicken pieces in an interesting sauce. I would definitely order that again. I didn't love the pot stickers (sad day) and the string beans were nothing compared to Emperor's Choice beans. The lone fish dish - sole in black bean sauce - was solid but middle of the road comparatively.

I'm a fan of LSC even if we had a little trouble with the language barrier ("white rice?") and couldn't quite understand the out of focus panda pictures on the walls. Our service in the beginning was also strangely absent since it was a high volume time of night. But even so, the food was very good and we had a lot of fun with a large table on a Sunday night (and it's hard to ever complain about poor value in Chinatown). It would be for me to choose a new place over my long time family preferences - but it does go to show how many great options there are in Chinatown.

EL Ideas

noreply@blogger.com (Jeff) — Tue, 13 Dec 2011 05:38:00 +0000

It's been a LONG time since Erica and I ventured to the 1400 block of South Western Ave to experience a very unique dining experience. My friend Russ had a table for two but couldn't use it so I got the offer just a day or two before our meal. Normally a table for two would not be that big a deal but when there are only 16 seats four nights a week given out lottery style, I took advantage of Russ's poor fortune. The background is that Chef Phillip Foss (formerly of Lockwood) started one of the city's first food trucks called Meatyball's Mobile. Using the same kitchen/prep area as the truck, he turned an obscure catering facility into a 12ish seat BYO "dinner party" experience featuring his creative take on food and local ingredients. The menu is a prepaid cost of $135, features 12ish courses and all the booze you can bring. The atmosphere is extraordinary and fun since your table is mere feet from the kitchen and the only people in the building besides the guests are the three chefs and front of house maestro. You are encouraged to get up and walk around, converse in the kitchen, help plate food, whatever your interests are. When they say dinner party, they truly mean dinner party.

My overall opinion of our evening was that it was a creative and unique dining experience that was a lot of fun but that the food served did not have the necessary flavors to live up the hype or money involved. Maybe I was unprepared but the dinner felt very long. The meal started promptly at 7pm and we were the first guests to leave at 11pm after 2 bottles of wine and 12 courses. I'm all for a multi-course relaxing meal but this seemed to be 1 hour too long. In addition, I'd probably have a slightly different view if I thought every course was fantastic and couldn't wait for the next one. At the end of most courses I felt myself HOPING for a tastier course next time instead of expecting one. Another complaint is that every course's main ingredient looked amazing on paper, but then the plate came with other side ingredient that over powered and focus and left me wondering what happened the focus. There was too much effort to make each dish special and distracted from great flavors.

Since the menu changes almost daily it doesn't do any good to rehash everything course by course. Feel free to email me if you want more detail. I will say though that the first course was memorably because it was a foie gras "snake" custard that was served without any utensils - you had to lick the plate clean. I also really loved the impromptu "buffalo chicken" course with a tiny piece of meat on a small bone served with a shot of PBR. Delicious. I'd have to dig up my menu to remember what everything else was, but we also won't forget the highlight ending of chocolate salty balls on a skewer. EL is a great place to have a fun and unique dining experience. It's off the beaten path, exclusive and hard to get in, BYO and uses creative ingredients. I can see how a cult following exists/is created. If I had more time and money I'm sure I'd return a lot sooner than I will, but I do think it's worth checking out for those interested in these kinds of meals.

Three Aces

noreply@blogger.com (Chitown Girl) — Sat, 03 Dec 2011 20:43:00 +0000

I was the lucky man to have two awesome ladies join me for a meal and drink at Three Aces this week. Since moving to Wicker Park I've always said I would like to spend more time in Italy since it's much closer than living in Lakeview. I've heard good things about 3 Aces from multiple sources and I can add my praise to the list. I've also heard how much more fun it is in the summer with the large patio open - something to look forward to in a few months (that and the Big Star patio). The vibe is great and the scene is definitely more bar than restaurant with a few tables and loud music and a large bar. The drink list is great and huge with many choices of cocktails and a seriously large beer selection. The menu is organized as "small plate" sharing (I guess that fad is here to stay), but it also works well since most people might come for drinks and get a little food here and there. I enjoyed our food choices but there was some variability in the quality and flavors of what we ordered. It's good enough to enjoy without being too critical and certainly tastes better alongside the drinks.

We started with three dishes: tortellini, grilled romaine, and butternut squash soup. All were nice - the soup had good flavors and solid kick of spice, the grilled romaine was interesting and kind of goofy but hard to mess up and I liked the light dressing and my favorite was the tortellini though the pasta seemed slightly under cooked or too "al dente" for my preference.

The next three plates we tried a pizza, the burger and the gnocchi with rabbit ragu. I must not have read the menu closely because our pizza came with pickled peppers which is the same as hot "banana" peppers as I know them. We were expecting basil pesto, four cheese blend, and pickled peppers, but we felt like it was too light on the pesto and too heavy on the peppers. I did like the wood tree trunk serving plate. The Ace Burger (aged cheddar, trimmings, bacon jam, aioli, fries, garlic and hops pickle) was good but it's huge and a full meal on a bun. It's a solid option for the bar with good fries, though somewhat expensive at $13. Our ricotta gnocchi (with confit rabbit, mushrooms, pecorino, celeriac cream sauce) was nice but quite salty. There was plenty of flavors and well made gnocchi but the sauce was overpowering with salt.

Finally we ended our meal with a few apple glazed doughnuts. They don't stand a chance against the Doughnut Vault but a little sweet at the end of the meal didn't hurt. What I like most about 3 Aces is that they know their identity and embrace it completely. They are a neighborhood rock n roll bar serving good Italian food. Or in their own words, "The Italian countryside meets the american farmhouse..in Keith Richard's basement bar." I wasn't overwhelmed with the food quality but it's a good experience and one that I would return to, and quite frequently if I lived down the street (plus need to check out patio in summer).

Native Foods Cafe

noreply@blogger.com (Jeff) — Fri, 02 Dec 2011 05:27:00 +0000

It's always a pleasure to meet up with good friends Ari and Tali for dinner. We love to try new places, eat good food and catch up on life. Another benefit of going out with the Dermans is that they remind us that there are always "healthier" options on the menu (mostly vegetarian and fish). We decided to go bold and check out Native Foods Cafe - an entirely vegetarian/vegan/organic establishment. The menu is filled with regular looking items like burgers, cheese, gyros and meatballs - but the joke is always on the unsuspecting customer that doesn't realize all of the animal product goodness is replicated with soy and plant based supplements. I love the idea of eating vegan, I really do. You would reduce cholesterol, lower fat and generally eat healthier stuff. But as Erica observed walking out (and speaking from experience as a former vegetarian), there are plenty of options to eat veg. without diving into fake meat replacements (can't get enough pasta, rice, salads, etc). Most of the push back always starts with protein sources - but that is another discussion for another time. Native Foods is a great option for people looking to satisfy the vegan need and eat "normal" food without that animal. I tip my hat to the chef who has the creativity of making a reuben sandwich with corned beef looking substitute and fake cheese. That's taking culinary "art" to a high level, but I think I'll stick to the real deal.

We ordered a lot of food and was able to try many items. My favorite choices were two of the appetizers - "chili cheese" fries and saigon rolls. The fries were just really good and well season. The beans and "chili" didn't hurt either. The saigon roll was very tasty and served with a great spicy peanut sauce. The "chicken" tenders were kind of strange and definitely was too hard not to realize this was fake chicken. I enjoyed the ranch dipping sauce but it certainly lacked creativity unlike the other dishes. My main order was the meat ball sub with pesto marinara. I thought they did a nice job of making it real meat ball sub with a nice sauce and grilled onions. The bread was perfectly good and the texture of the meatballs was pretty close to spot on. Erica went with a rice bowl of sorts that had nice vegetables and "chicken" skewers and a very aggressive sauce - a little too spicy for her but really just too strong with the flavors. Ari and Tali went with a bacon cheeseburger concoction and the previously mentioned reuben sandwich. The texture of the fake cheese kind of throws me off a bit but again, I give credit for the ability and creativity to come up with these dishes and finding ways to pull them off.

Since I know what the "real deal" tastes like it's hard to compare fairly, but for anyone that is vegan and doesn't know the difference, I think there are many fun and interesting options to enjoy. The decor and environment are exactly what you'd expect and the pricing is all very reasonable. Native Foods picked a great location and neighborhood for its third Chicago store and I wouldn't be shocked if more were in the works. Personally, I'd love to be vegan but know that's never going to happen and will try to eat as healthy as possible with minimal animal products. For everyone else I can recommend checking out Native Foods for a wide variety of options and flavors that always change.

Pot Pan

noreply@blogger.com (Jeff) — Thu, 01 Dec 2011 05:49:00 +0000

Erica and I are still looking for a go to Thai place in the hood. There are many options, or at least more than we have had time to try. We will all know when Wicker Park becomes the next Lakeview when there is a sushi/thai/noodle/byo on every corner. Thai Village wasn't our favorite so we picked up from Pot Pan the other night on a recommendation (and it's just down the street). It was our standard and simple order - chicken satay with peanut sauce, pad thai for the pad thai queen and my pad see eew.

I said we are still looking for a go to Thai place because Pot Pan was good but still missing that extra umpf (or MSG or something) than makes you want to go back and stuff more tofu in your face. The peanut sauce for the satay was great but the two noodles dishes were just so so. Erica's pad thai was much worse than my pad see but both dishes needed that extra flavor punch. I like my noodles and vegetables - both well cooked and with great texture. But my favorite part of a good thai noodle dish is the sauce, and neither had very much. The pad thai was seriously bland. We'll continue our journey for our favorite local noodle place and maybe give Pan another look. It's close, cheap and the food's decent but not awesome.

Country House

noreply@blogger.com (Jeff) — Tue, 29 Nov 2011 04:01:00 +0000

We started the Thanksgiving Holiday weekend with a stop to a favorite local bar and burger place walking distance from home. It was packed as expected for "black Wednesday" or whatever they call the busiest bar night of the year. We just wanted to catch the Michigan bball game and eat a good burger. It's an awesome place to hang out and even more so if you can snag the table in front of the fire place. It's definitely similar to scene out of "Cheers" where everyone knows your name (or that of the person next to you) and the peanut shells flow freely to the floor. I suppose even bars in the suburbs can have some fun :) The beer was great and our service was attentive but everyone's burger seemed to be missing a step. Perhaps the excessive crowd overwhelmed the kitchen a bit though one would expect that on Thanksgiving weekend.

We started with a pretty good spinach dip with tasty pita chips. I thought they short changed us on dip but that's because it was so tasty. The burger menu at Country House is simple yet sophisticated. You can go simple and plain, or opt for buffalo, ostrich (my choice), veggie or turkey. I love the idea of ordering a non beef meat for a burger for the health benefits (or less bad). But the ostrich burger was pretty bland a little over cooked. I ordered without cheese but good meat and seasoning should still prevail. Oh well. It's still a fun place and has "Chicago's Favorite Burger" so I bet it was an off night. Looking forward to the next trip for a beer and burger next to the fireplace.

Merlo La Salumeria

noreply@blogger.com (Jeff) — Sun, 27 Nov 2011 21:48:00 +0000

Our family has a mini-tradition of going to a "performance" on the day after Thanksgiving. What better way to spend a few hours after eating too much the day before than to sit and watch entertainment? The show this year was Million Dollar Quartet playing at the Apollo Theater on Lincoln Ave in Lincoln Park. MY vote for a dinner spot nearby was Lou Malnati's Pizza, but that was overturned in favor of Merlo (a two location, small and romantic Italian restaurant). The food top to bottom was quite good, particularly the pasta dishes (though very small portion sizes), but our service was some of the worst I've had in a while. We gave ourselves plenty of time to make the show, and let our server know, but for some reason we still waiting forever to get any food, the right food, something to drink, etc. I'm inclined to return somewhere with good food and poor service because everyone has a bad night, but it's hard to have a good experience no matter how good the food if you never receive it.

Most of us ordered pasta, and my pappardelle with duck ragu bolognese was very tasty. The pasta was fresh cut and fresh made. The sauce was great and flavorful and everything was topped with just enough cheese. Maybe I'm just an overeating America, but the portions were noticeably small. This reduced the overall value since an $17 pasta is not cheap but even less so when the size is small. Erica ordered ravioli, Hal went with Canelloni and both Alyssa and mom had the fish special of sea bass. To start I ordered an extremely healthy and basic zucchini soup, but also shared bites of the burrata starter and some of Dan's Prosciutto.

Everyone agreed the food served was quite good, particularly the pastas with meat sauces. It's a shame when a meal that would normally be above average (probably 2.5 stars or more) ends up losing a star because our service was so poor. AND to add insult to injury all tables of at least 5 have gratuity included so there was no way to show displeasure than to write a blog post and leave unhappy. At least the wine the was good and the show was great so the evening was a success.

Prasino Dinner

noreply@blogger.com (Jeff) — Sun, 20 Nov 2011 17:26:00 +0000

My first trip to Prasino was short and sweet but return was bigger and better to celebrate Jordan's birthday. We ordered plenty and had a great time with good food. Our service was horrible though, with disappearing servers and an unnecessarily long dinner. I guess we're lucky not to have been around when a cab didn't get the memo about no drive through service (Cab Story). As I wrote before, Prasino is a good addition to the neighborhood with a huge space and patio, good drink list and a creative "green" menu (sandwiches, sushi, pasta, flat bread, salad and seafood). I was also impressed with the two desserts we tried, and there were other ones I'd like to try.

My favorite items are still the flat breads and sushi rolls. Both are well made and delicious with nice flavors. I ordered fish tacos as a main dish and was rather unimpressed - I also made the mistake of ordering chips as my side (who orders chips with fish tacos?). Erica ordered an appealing ravioli dish that did not live up to expectations. Birthday boy Jordan ordered the best dish of the table - the pork chop.

There are a lot of interesting menu items I would try on a return trip, and a large menu with something for everyone. However, I'm likely to stick with what I think works best - drinks and small plates of sushi and flat bread (and maybe a burger). Prasino is not going to change your food world but it is a nice option for the local crowd, particularly in summer. If the service issues can be fixed it's a good spot for the trendy "drinks and appetizer" wicker park resident.

Cantina Laredo

noreply@blogger.com (Jeff) — Thu, 17 Nov 2011 05:28:00 +0000

Chicago is the latest city to receive one of the roughly 30 Cantina Laredos already serving. Technically a "chain" Cantina has more class and charm to be mistaken for a TGI or something similar. The restaurant is quite large and multi-leveled. The decor is interesting, stylish and modern. Seating is mostly large leather booths around the perimeter with four-tops in the middle. Everything reminds me of a grown up version of a classic family Mexican restaurant. It reminds me of a more sophisticated Moe's Cantina or a more interesting Zapatista. The food was solid - not knock your socks off but good all around. I really enjoyed my steak fajitas and the table side guacamole was fun. I ate my weight in chips and salsa, but was disappointed that there wasn't a "hot" salsa available for some reason (they ran out?). The margaritas were classic and tasty and completely fit in with the food (i.e. solid good but not earth shattering). We finished the meal with two desserts that were great and served in a warm cream that fills the restaurant with a tasty cotton candy smell.

All in all we had a great time with good food and drink, solid service and great company. The value is decent and the crowd lively. Every aspect is good, but also safe. What makes me stop from recommending Cantina as a great new mexican place in town is that it's neither the best food (think Rick Bayless) nor the most lively/unique (think Mercadito). It's in the middle - and middle is rarely where you want to be as a restaurant. You won't have bad food or a bad time and I'll tell people to go, but I'm likely to be more interested in getting my fajita fix somewhere else.

Tribute

noreply@blogger.com (Jeff) — Thu, 10 Nov 2011 03:47:00 +0000

Tribute is the latest modern american restaurant to open and offer traditional "comfort food." When we went it was a rainy October night so the setting was perfect. The restaurant is located in the Green Seal LEED-certified Essex Inn and the decor definitely resembles the new age recycled "green" look. But I'm an environmentalist at heart so a green restaurant is awesome even if there's some style (e.g. cheap looking) deficiencies. The menu is as expected with many appealing and intriguing options. We started with truffle fries and dry rub ribs though many other options looked good (fried chicken salad, lobster roll, crab cakes, lobster mac n cheese, etc).

For our main course our four top ordered mirror images: Erica and I ordered the Yankee Pot and BBQ Salmon which was replicated by Eric and Rebecca. Usually I would demand a recount and require variety but I'm glad we did not because those two dishes were very good. On a return visit (or recommend to others) I would try the Burger, Pork Chop or Chicken Fried Steak. For a side we ordered asparagus.

Our favorites included the pot roast (super tender and well flavored) and the dry rub ribs (served with lettuce to make a wrap) that fell off the bone and had great seasoning. The BBQ salmon was good, not world shattering but plenty of flavor (even though I could have used more BBQ). The asparagus were way over salted and the fries were solid. Our service was fine and the value reasonable ($80 per couple sharing a bottle of wine). Everything at Tribute seemed safe and reliable - which isn't always a bad thing when describing American "comfort" food in a quasi hotel restaurant. It's solid for visitors and has a great location for park views and breaks.

Next - Childhood

noreply@blogger.com (Jeff) — Tue, 08 Nov 2011 05:43:00 +0000

Taking a few days to think and process the meal at Next was probably a good idea. My general take away from Childhood was negative and disappointing, but I don't want to stress on that because one thing I've noticed about this restaurant is that many people can have significantly different experiences. This is always the case with restaurants but it feels more stark at Next. While my personal experience was less than ideal, a few extra days of processing has dulled the edge. I review the menu and realize each item taken by itself was better than the entire experience. Part of that was service, timing, a few bad flavors and an overall sense of poor value. What I know for certain is that Childhood had a lot more food than Thailand and (lots of) great wine. I just wished I liked the food more.

My big take away is disappointment. Most at our table left unimpressed and very confused. The wines were fantastic, and very generous but our service was surprisingly off, and by a large margin. We waited approximately 25 minutes between the soup and fish N chips. And as I mentioned before, the price/value was what sealed the deal. I know Next is not cheap, and I am very willing to pay for great experiences and great food, but Wednesday night was not one of those occasions.

My favorite course was the autumn scene - it was very interesting and creative as well as delicious. I also enjoyed the mac n cheese for its simplicity and most similar to expected flavors. The lunch box was creative and if we removed the truffle oreo it would be have been a hit (I loved the jerky and funyun, and who doesn't love drinking out of a sippy cup?) Everything else on the menu was either strange or did not taste that good. I felt myself asking, “would I order that dish again?” many times and repeatedly saying no.

My photos are below in course order. following the photos is more thoughts on the childhood menu but more from a concept level. I don't want to influence future meals and still leave some mystery for others to experience. Would I go back to Next? It's a tough question that has a different answer each time. The genius of the model is that I love new concepts and new restaurants and each time they announce a new menu I want to try it will be very hard to keep me away. I know the cost is likely ridiculous but when you're constantly looking for that next great meal, it's hard to not give Grant and his team a chance.

More thoughts on Childhood:

The main reason I felt the menu was disappointing and a major challenge for team Next is that everyone has their own impressions of what “childhood” food should taste like. What makes NEXT or Alinea such amazing experiences is that you have no idea what something is “supposed” to taste like – there is no reference for “deconstructed X on top of Y foam presented on top of a bed powdered Z”. But we all know what a good chicken noodle soup should taste like, or our favorite hamburger, or the best s’more you’ve ever made on a campfire - so the element of surprise or amazement is completely lost on arrival. AND THEN, on top of the disappointment with the familiar, I thought some of the flavors were simply inedible. I could not get past the truffle oreo. I love oreos and that just ruined it. 'Foie'sting? No, please just give me some delicious vanilla – no goose liver needed. Sweet potato s’more? What was wrong with chocolate and graham cracker? I’m all for new experiences and flavors, but only in context and comparison to other amazing flavors (I remember at Alinea there are a few dishes I wouldn’t order again, but the next one would be knock your socks off good).

What I would have preferred would have been the exact same menu but without all the gimmicks. What would a delicious Grant Achatz cheeseburger taste like? What about grilled cheese? Or PB&J sandwich? Or sloppy joes? Or make your own s’more with in house chocolate, marshmallow and cracker? I didn’t need chicken in the form of a noodle, what about really really good soup with a side of oyster crackers?

It’s funny to compare Thailand to Childhood. There was a lot more food with childhood, that’s for sure. The alcohol was much better with Childhood. The creativity was much better and more interesting with Childhood. But what I can’t get past is that the food was much better for Thailand. I would come back and order that beef cheek and rice every day of the week. And that fish dish was awesome, ditto the coconut dessert. But other than the autumn dish on a log and the mac n cheese (though nothing special), I wouldn’t want to order or eat those dishes again. And lastly, I would not choose to spend that amount of money on that meal again. The margin of error is so small with a check that high.

I hope I'm alone in my thoughts - I wish everyone a great meal every time. this was my singular experience that I know will not get a second change (with the childhood menu). As much as I would like to save money, it will be hard to turn down other intriguing menus (but is it sustainable?)

I completely welcome any comments or further discussion.

Marc Burger

noreply@blogger.com (Jeff) — Sat, 05 Nov 2011 20:53:00 +0000

I've written before about my great fondness for the 7th floor at Macy's and the various lunch options. We went today (Friday's are always a good reason to go for something special) and since I've tried Takashi and Frontera, Marc Burger was next on the list. Marc stands for Marcus Samuelsson, and Marc Burger is his farm to table, fresh ingredient burger stand (there's actually two, the other in CA). The menu is simple with eight burger options (basic, pesto burger, turkey burger, bbq, etc), sides, shakes, etc. It's perfect for the space and the lines are never short.

Today we just had a regular cheeseburger with white cheddar. The home made ketchup was pretty good but not quite memorable. The burger was solid but also sort of average. The garlic fries were tasty but since they are somewhat mass produced they didn't seem that fresh. I'd be interested in trying the other burgers, and maybe a shake. It makes me really wish I still lived across the street the DMK Burger Bar. Marc Burger is a good option in the 7th Floor Macy's food court. I still prefer Frontera but Marc is close behind.

Ripasso

noreply@blogger.com (Jeff) — Sat, 05 Nov 2011 03:50:00 +0000

Our service was extremely disappointing. I realize a first weekend opening can have kinks but this seemed a bit over the top. We only saw our server once or twice over the course of the 1.5 hour meal and we ordered within the first 15 minutes. Seemed very under staffed which is surprising considering the owners/operators have done this before.

I wouldn't be as harsh either if the food really made up for it. The meat ball starter was quite good and we enjoyed the simple salad but our pastas and risotto were average. The pasta is well cooked but the rest of the dishes lacked flavor. The risotto was probably best and the other two pasta sauces didn't add enough to the dish.

I hope they can fix it because I'd love to have a rustic Italian pasta place close by - it's exactly something we could use. I'll let the dust settle and get back in a few months, hoping things are figured out more.

State & Lake

noreply@blogger.com (Jeff) — Tue, 01 Nov 2011 04:20:00 +0000

We're always looking for decent sit down lunch spots to take new team members or celebrate a birthday. My suggestion the other week was State & Lake, a place I had not been to in over a year but remember good things. I'm glad we went because the place is still more charming than an ordinary hotel restaurant and serves good food. The menu is what you expect for a business or tourist crowd - starters, salads, burgers and sandwiches (and a full bar). The burger looked great but I was in the mood for something different and chose the Smoked Turkey Panini (with Jalapeno, Bacon, Havarti, Avacado, Creme Fraiche). It's quite large with many layers of turkey. I enjoyed all the toppings, especially the jalapeno and avocado. Jared even gave me a sample of his turkey burger and it tasted great. All sandwiches come with fries or side salad. With most selections in the $12-15 it's certainly not a fast and cheap lunch but as far as sit down options go it's quite reasonable.

With a small and interesting interior the setting is great for a lunch that fits between casual and power lunch. The food is good and the menu interesting with many options. State & Lake has earned a spot as a regular option for casual sit-down lunches.

Quay

noreply@blogger.com (Jeff) — Fri, 28 Oct 2011 05:14:00 +0000

What a crazy but interesting space. The last restaurant I remember in the extremely large and sectioned area was De La Costa. I have no idea if anything has been there since. People have written about the three faces/sections of Quay - the front bar, the middle dining room and the back lounge. I liked the vibe of the bar with lots of TVs, nice bench seating and plenty of high tops. The entire place is well designed with funky and new age style. This is especially true in the rather small dining room. We went on a Monday night so I'm not surprised it wasn't packed, but I an also imagine that it might get a little loud and cramped if all the tables were occupied.

I really like the menu - it's approachable, to the point and affordable. Many of the items focus or feature seafood but there's a good balance of meat and vegetable selections too (lots of bacon usage). The four of us all had different tastes that night so we were able to see and try many things. We started the meal with two flat breads (one mushroom and one tarte flambe), tuna tartare and the surf and turf trio of sliders. The flat breads were nice and the appropriate size for a starter. I actually liked the mushroom and goat cheese more than my flambe (i.e. bacon and fromage blanc). Our trio of sliders were ok but not amazing. the lobster roll wasn't bad and I liked the burger but not a huge fan of the short rib.

Erica and I split the pork chop special and the served it to us on two plates without asking (a nice touch). Ari and Tali ordered the ravioli and grilled ahi tuna. I didn't taste the tuna but I heard good things. My bite of the ravioli was quite good. Our pork chop was very tasty: well cooked, well seasoned and full of flavor. It was served with slightly under-cooked brussel sprouts and an interested mashed vegetable (potato I assume). I'm glad we shared the plate because I would have been tempted to eat the entire serving.

To round out the meal we ordered sides of garlic potato puree and mac and cheese. The potatoes were great and full of garlic (and butter I'm sure). We ordered the mac without the pork (lots of pork on the menu) but it still came with the chipotle seasoning that should have had a stronger warning label for how much heat it carried. I'm a huge fan of spicy mac n cheese but this needed more clarity for the unsuspecting diner (read: Erica). Oh well.

We had a nice meal with pretty good food and good value. Our service was friendly and attentive and our drinks kept coming (though my first cocktail was a bit of a disaster). We all had plenty of food but no one felt over stuffed. There were other items worth exploring so another visit isn't out of the question. The back lounge area looks very cool with great views and seating areas. The location doesn't do it any favors but hopefully people decided to hang out post meal. Quay is a good addition to that part of town that I hope can find enough people to fill all that space.

Capital Grille Fall "Plates" Menu

noreply@blogger.com (Jeff) — Thu, 27 Oct 2011 04:34:00 +0000

I had the fortunate pleasure to be invited to try Capital Grille's $15 three course lunch menu. The last and only time I've been to Capital Grille was to sample their "Generous Pour" event in the summer. It was a great event and a great meal so getting another chance to have a free meal of great steak is one I can't pass up.

The "Plates" menu features 3 courses: Soup/Salad (Porcini Bisque | Clam Chowder | Field Greens), Sandwich (Mini Tenderloin (2) | Lobster Roll | “Knife and Fork” BLT) and a Side (Seasonal Vegetable | Truffle Fries | Roasted Butternut Squash with Cranberry Chutney). It's a lot of food, high quality and for $15 a tremendous deal. Most people think of a steak house lunch as only for high powered suits that can afford hours off and bottles of wine. If that's what you want you can still get that, but for $15 you get the same great food and lightning fast service because the staff at Capital Grille understand the value of your time in the middle of the day.

I chose the Porcini Bisque to start with the mini tenderloins as my sandwich and a side of fries. I'm not a mushroom guy but the bisque was a great way to start the meal and a needed warmth on a fall day. The mini tenderloins were more than just your average slider. The meat is as tender as they come and melts like butter without a knife. My truffle fries were a little disappointing, not very warm and not very crisp, but also the least important part.

The other sandwich we tried was the BLT that came with a side of string beans. They call it the Knife and Fork BLT because it's a real hearty sandwich and not your standard country club BLT.

Here's more detailed information from the press release:

Our new Knife and Fork BLT adds a signature twist to this classic sandwich favorite. A generous portion of crisp bacon is paired with a Grana Padano Cheese Crisp and Heirloom Tomatoes on a bed of lettuce, topped with a unique black pepper and chive aioli,” notes the Executive Chef . “We are also pleased to offer dishes made with seasonal vegetables like mushrooms and butternut squash. Our creamy Porcini Bisque captures the rich flavor of the mushrooms in a smooth, velvety soup. We added our special twist to Roasted Butternut Squash by pairing it with Cranberry Chutney for a balance of flavors that is sure to please.”

The new menu reflects fresh, seasonal twists on American classics, while being mindful of hectic lunchtime schedules. For guests with a limited amount of time, TheCapital Grille ensures guests can enjoy a delicious lunch and be on their way in about 45 minutes, without sacrificing the personalized service that characterizes TheCapital Grille dining experience.

I'm a big fan of the Capital Grille and having he option of a 3-course meal for $15 is just another reason to go and break from the monotonous weekday lunch routine.

For more information on The Capital Grille, please visit www.TheCapitalGrille.com.

*Disclaimer - this meal was provided to the writer at no charge.

Big Star

noreply@blogger.com (Jeff) — Wed, 19 Oct 2011 03:52:00 +0000

I didn't know if I already wrote about Big Star but it doesn't matter. Now that I live in the area it's worth revisiting because now I can appreciate it from a different light - a place to go to whenever possible (especially in good weather). The last time we were there was likely the last great weather weekend in Chicago until next April. It was an impromptu decision but with guests visiting and a glorious sunny Sunday, why not spend an hour eating tacos and drinking margaritas before the work week reality sets in? We did just that, ordered a pitcher, some chips and guac, queso fundido and a few tacos. It's a standard selection and we held back since everyone was just arriving after brunch (!).

As expected everything was great. We held back on the margs only because it was 1pm on a sunday with more productive hours left in the day. The al pastor taco was good and one of my favorites but I really loved the queso. There's a great spice/kick to the dish and is amazing. Melted cheese with peppers on tortillas is hard to beat. The guacamole had a little too much lime for my preference but we ate it so fast my picture is of a mostly consumed plate of chips.

I'm not saying anything new - Big Star is a fun place to hang out, drink good beer or whisky or whatever and snack of tasty mexican treats. It's best in the summer with a huge and boisterous patio, but I doubt there's much of a drop off come winter either. I'm very happy to have Big Star within walking distance.