[Photograph: Josh Conley]

I remember visiting Revolution Brewing shortly after it opened just over three years ago and marveling at how far micro-cum-craft breweries had come. It's fitting that "evolution" is part of the name, because this place is quite a few steps removed from the industrial park/cement garage/questionable legality days of brewery visits.

Revolution is absolutely beautiful inside. It's a big space, but the exposed brick, fireplace, and reclaimed wood give it a very warm, comfortable feel. And then there's the swanky light fixtures. The unique central bar, with its four giant logo fists holding it up, is an elegant centerpiece. If just one person lived there, this place would be featured on MTV Cribs (they still make that, right?). Dear Mr. Josh Deth, I hereby formally request to be said resident. Hopefully, that includes meals as well.

Somewhere between potato pancakes and samosas, the sweet potato cakes ($6) come out firing with lots of ginger, garlic, and curry spices coming through. The red pepper cream is a nice, semi-fiery little counterpart. Next time I would order them well done to add a bit more crunch, but the flavors are big and bold.

The smelt and fried lemon ($8) is good, but a little uneven. The cornmeal batter is a little thick for the fish, but it has a nice, subtle sweetness to it. Though we were told the fried lemon was a garnish, I risked it anyway, for science's sake. And... it tastes like a fried lemon. Cute, but it does nothing to address the lack of acidity elephant in the bar room. The fish is also a tad under-salted, but it gets a huge boost from the excellent sriracha-lemon aioli.

The roasted bone marrow ($14) is a plate of intimidating beauty. I've heard it referred to as meat butter, which isn't too far off. Rich and fatty, the warm, semi-gelatinous goo spreads easily over the provided bread vessels. This also looks a little less Neanderthal-y than sucking it directly out of the halved bones. The pile comes handsomely adorned with frisee, excellent pickled cherries, and radishes in a light maple vinaigrette.

If tofu had a hot date tonight, it would wear the pecan crust and full accoutrements of the pecan-crusted tofu ($16) entrée. Cut into triangles, crusted and fried, the tofu has flavor feet to stand on. Then the baby carrots, rainbow chard, peas, and carrot chips all get a crack at the palette. But it's the oyster mushrooms—rich, savory, and earthy—that really anchor the dish. The truffle mustard aioli, made with Veganaise, however, attempts to bring some sweetness in that is unwelcome and best left on the side.

Of course I'd be remiss not to talk about the beer. In just over three years, Revolution has arguably established itself as the brewery to which all others in town are compared. Head brewer Jim Cibak did stints at 3 Floyds, Goose Island, and Firestone Walker, and they make upwards of fifty brews a year. There is always something new to try, or just stick to the old faithfuls, like the Anti-Hero IPA. And if you're still longing for the cement garage vibe, last year they opened up a separate bottling facility/tap room, complete with cool lighting fixtures.

Revolution Brewing

2323 North Milwaukee Avenue, Chicago, IL 60647 (map)
773-227-2739
revbrew.com

Josh Conley is single-handedly trying to re-introduce the verb beget into the everyday lexicon. He traveled to Easter Island one Christmas out of sheer irony. He excises a hefty syntax, and shamelessly promotes the color orange. His wife begat him two small children that he regularly belittles HERE.

[Photograph: Nick Kindelsperger]

I didn't stop by Owen & Engine with steak on my mind. After all, this immaculate Logan Square establishment specializes in elevated English-style pub grub, not steakhouse fare. Plus, isn't it always better to order steak from a place that does nothing but cook hunks of meat over high heat, instead of one with only a single steak on the menu? But something about the Dry Aged Ribeye Steak ($25 for 10 ounce filet) called out to me, and when food talks, I usually listen.

I'm so glad I did, because I can't remember the last time I enjoyed a steak as completely as this one. Sure, it was buttery, tender, and had a great crust, but it also had a blue cheese funkiness from the aging process, which lingered in the background but never overwhelmed each bite. Interestingly, instead of dry-aging the meat on the premises, Owen & Engine buys ribeye that is all ready to go (something I've been seeing more and more). Whatever the process is, it's working.

Taking a cue from a traditional English prime rib dinner, the steak is served with a light and airy Yorkshire pudding and bright green and crisp florets of broccoli. Certainly not flashy, but both components were done exceptionally well. Finally, there's a subtle Bourbon barrel aged Worcestershire sauce that thankfully gets out of the way, letting the steak do all the heavy lifting.

Owen & Engine‎

2700 North Western Avenue, Chicago, IL 60647 (map)
773-235-2930
owenengine.com‎

[Photographs: Dennis Lee]

It seems like the food world has an enormous hunka-hunka burnin' love for Rick Bayless. I haven't experienced much of his food aside from a single trip to Xoco forever ago, and I did happen to eat at Frontera Fresco at Old Orchard Mall (of all places) in Skokie. I swear I wasn't mall walking. And, oh yeah, I went to another Frontera Fresco at Macy's. So, three brief trips. Even though I've had plenty of tastes, I'm still on the fence on whether or not I like his style.

For those of you who work in the Loop, Rick (I'll pretend we're on a first name basis now) has another little stand in the food court in the Chase Tower. Tortas Frontera focuses mainly on the art of the Mexican sandwich, the delicious torta. I'm used to the version served at a lot of Mexican restaurants here in Chicago—the messy, wear-on-your-face version with meat, lettuce, tomato, mayo, and avocado. But Rick's versions are different, both elevated and rustic at the same time.

Tortas Frontera only has one entree salad on the menu, and you can add on a protein if you like. The taqueria salad with smoky shrimp ($7.95 salad + $1.50 shrimp) is the sleeper hit. The salad is dressed with a refreshing avocado-lime dressing, and every bite of the salad works together as a whole package. There's a lot of components, too: Romaine, arugula, avocado, caramelized onions, roasted poblanos, radishes, crunchy tortilla strips, and cotija cheese.

Salads usually don't wow me, but in this case, I'm suitably impressed at how the busy flavors give each other massive amounts of flavor high-fives. I wasn't expecting much from the shrimp, but they have a slightly smoky flavor without an overly strong shellfish aftertaste, like you get from cheap shrimp.

There are torta specials as well, like the pork belly torta ($10.50). It's strongly smoky Nueske's bacon with black beans, roasted zucchini, arugula, chipotle sauce, and cotija cheese. Ever since Baconfest, I swore I'd punch the next piece of bacon I saw in the crotch, but it turns out I'll make an exception for this sandwich. If you've ever had Nueske's bacon, you'll know it is super smoky and sometimes overwhelming, but it's used sparingly enough so you won't get angry at it. The arugula adds a bitter green flavor, and the zucchini, though not too flavorful, adds a soft, almost meaty texture to each bite.

Every time I've been to one of Rick's restaurants, I've had the cochinita pibil ($8.95), which is a Yucatán-style pulled pork sandwich, but for some reason, this sandwich didn't turn out well, and I've even had this exact version before. The pork itself is tender and flavorful with a distinctly acidic flavor, but the excessive pickled onions on top permeate everything. The end result? A very sour sandwich. Those are two words you don't often see next to each other (like my Twitter handle).

The bread in all the sandwiches is thick, chewy, and satisfying, sort of like a ciabatta with a deeper flavor and a crisper crust, and it really makes these tortas stand out among the crowd of other tortas we've had as the Serious Eats Chicago crew.

Now, the fully-dressed guacamole ($5.25) is totally my style. It's your typical guacamole with a sprinkling of sundried tomatoes, bacon pieces, pepitas, cotija cheese, and spicy roasted peppers. Like the salad, it sounds like a noisy bunch, and it is. But the combination brings a ton of flavor to the mild guacamole, especially the concentrated hits of the sundried tomato. The pepitas also bring a satisfying nutty crunch which is a lot of fun.

The various aguas frescas ($2.50) are just as flavorful as the rest of the food. Starting from the left, there's the raspberry and prickly pear, lime, and mango agua fresca. They're all rocking a strong, very sweet lime flavor, and despite the color of the raspberry prickly pear mix or the mango, you don't get as much of those flavors as you do the bright tart lime juice.

Even after some really good items and a sandwich that sort of fell flat, I'm still perched on that fence on how much I enjoy his food. It's just personal preference. Another thing I'm not sure about? Whether or not you can call Rick's facial hair a full beard. Or if it's a separate mustache and beard. The world will never know.

Tortas Frontera

10 S Dearborn St, Chicago, IL 60603 (map)
312-732-6505
fronterafiesta.com/restaurants/tortas-frontera.html/

About the author: After a failed attempt at starting a chain of theme restaurants called "Smellen Keller," Dennis Lee traveled the world to discover his true passion. Sadly, midwifery didn't pan out. Now he works in a cubicle, and screws around as much as possible. Follow his shenanigans on Twitter.

[Photograph: Amber Gibson]

At Balena, the menu is meant for sharing. It can be nearly impossible to decide what to order when everything looks so delicious, so the more people you're dining with, the better. Between the starters, pizzas, and pastas, there are also plenty of vegetarian options.

A standard tomato, basil, and garlic bruschetta is not something I would normally order at a restaurant. But when I saw the spring pea bruschetta ($14) on the menu, I was intrigued. Instead of a thin crostini, this has a thick sourdough bread base. The bread is made in-house and grilled to order, so the charred bread brings out the sweetness in the pea purée.

Chef Chris Pandel poaches peas in a boullion with shallots, thyme, and olive oil until they are tender, and then purées them, seasoning them lightly with salt. A fluffy, housemade ricotta spread goes on the bread first, then the thick purée, and, finally, a handful of spring pea shoots top it all off, along with a touch of lemon juice and olive oil. This is one incredibly refreshing summer starter, and great finger food to munch on while you ponder what pizzas and pastas to order.

The potato gnocchi ($17) with fava leaf pesto, pine nut, and pecorino romano is another vegetarian ode to spring. These miniature dumplings are incredibly fluffy inside, and it's easy to devour the whole bowl in a few bites. Fava leaf adds a subtle twist to traditional pesto, while the pint nuts and pecorino keep the flavors familiar. Any meat in this dish would be superfluous. Keeping it vegetarian places the focus squarely on the gnocchi and the pesto, as it should be.

No matter how many carbs you consume, you must try dessert. A grapefruit sorbet ($9) with meringue, cinnamon, and Aperol granita is a light and refreshing way to finish your meal. I love how the tart grapefruit flavors link back to the grapefruit juice and bitters used in several of the amaro cocktails. I highly recommend the Pina no9 ($11) with Amaro Sibilla, Herradura Resposado tequila, Cointreau, grapefruit and sage—if you like grapefruit in the least.

But if I were you, I would also try the dessert bruschetta ($9) with housemade nutella and Taggiasca olives. It's a bit of a misnomer, since the "nutella," is way better than the supermarket variety and more like a whipped chocolate mousse strewn with olive pieces. Thick grilled bread is served warm and drizzled with olive oil. You could use a knife to politely spread the buttery chocolate spread on your bread, or you could do as I do and just dunk the bread straight in. Since taking over for Amanda Rockman, this is one of Pastry Chef Rachel Brickel's first additions to the menu. With her ability to capture simple, rustic flavors and also compose more elaborate sundaes, I have no doubt that she'll fill the big shoes left by Rockman.

Balena

1633 North Halsted Street, Chicago, IL 60614(map)
312-867-3888
balenachicago.com‎