Chicago Restaurant Week: The Results

I may be late to the posting party, but I am never late to dinner. Especially during Restaurant Week, as tables are quickly snatched up by hungry on-lookers. The cold kept the competition at bay this year though, along with the extension to two weeks, resulting in more reservation opportunities and repeat visits.

My kitchens of choice this year were the blossoming Perennial Virant, the classic Cafe Spiaggia and the brand spankin’ new Summer House Santa Monica. While this fierce winter has put me back into hibernation along with the groundhogs, some of these dishes deserve a repeat taste once the spring thaw begins and I can finally ditch the five layers of clothing.

Perennial Virant

First course: Crispy Carnaroli Rice

Second course: Rushing Waters Rainbow Trout

Dessert: Frozen Key Lime Pie

This dinner won best overall experience for my personal Restaurant Week 2014. Our waitress was kick ass, smart and even knew the hot places nearby to grab a drink after dinner. Oh, and the food was phenomenal, too. It turns out the restaurant’s specialty is pickling, which means the vegetables we all enjoy from Green City Market during the summer are still thriving in the dead of winter. When I hear “pickle” though I think vinegar. But it turns out this preserving technique is so much more. The summer beans were still hints of warmer, happier times and the sunchoke puree and chips were the perfect accompaniment to the trout that fell apart at the slightest touch of my fork. To top it all off, the frozen key lime pie was tart with sweet blueberries taking away some of the bite. A repeat visit is required, along with a trip up to the J. Parker for a skyline view and tasty cocktails.

Cafe Spiaggia

First course: Rucola

Second course: Cappellacci

Dessert: Bomboloni

A Restaurant Week and all-year Chicago favorite, Spiaggia is a staple resident of Michigan Avenue. Although the restaurant was still empty when we walked in for a weekday six o’clock reservation, it quickly filled up with hungry groups and warm service. While sipping wine and eating fresh bread, we couldn’t help laugh at the poor commuters sprinting down the street to get out of the cold that much faster. My salad and Italian-style doughnuts were exactly what I expected, prepared with fresh ingredients and balancing flavors. But the cappellacci with butternut squash was out of this world. I have never wanted a dish to become bottomless so badly since discovering peanut butter ice cream. It was sweet, it was savory and it was delicate. I pray this is not a seasonal dish so I can add this to my “last supper” list.

Summer House Santa Monica

First course: Shaved Vegetable Salad

Second course: Grilled Atlantic Salmon

Dessert: Roasted Pineapple Crostata

Sadly, my last Restaurant Week visit was the most disappointing. I have high hopes for the future of Chef Mahin and his team, but they were not ready for the foodie force that emerges during this annual event. Service was slow, with our server confirming orders multiple times throughout the meal, often times incorrect. What was most disheartening was when my salmon arrived with a raw center. For the first time in my life I had to send a dish back to the kitchen, which pained me as much as it did the server and I’m sure the kitchen. Our server even  commented that the kitchen was still working on their timing…I’ll say. I will say the portions here are supremely generous, which would make a steak-and-potatoes diner like my father ecstatic. I’ll give it a few months before I return when hopefully the food is worthy of Mahin’s name and I can soak in the sunshine from the glass ceiling.

Until Restaurant Week 2015!

Chicago Restaurant Week: Preview

It is that most marvelous time of year again: Chicago Restaurant Week.

While you usually have to fight tooth and nail to snatch a table during this annual event, the extension to two weeks has made the task a little easier. You may still be out of luck for a prime time Saturday spot, but if you are willing to sacrifice a weekday evening for a culinary field trip, you have plenty of options from January 24 – February 6.

The wonderful thing about Restaurant Week is not just the $33-$44 pre-fixe menus filled with some of the chef’s greatest goodies; it’s also the perfect excuse to be out and about in the dead of winter. I would love to stay holed up during this oh-so-miserable cold snap, but if you dangle GT Fish & Oyster’s lobster roll in front of me, I’ll cave into my parka and snow boots.

Most of the favorites are still on the list, like Graham Elliot Bistro, Trattoria No. 10 and The Bristol. Some of the newbies in town are taking advantage of the publicity that comes with Restaurant Week to showcase their new establishments, like Travelle at The Langham, Chicago and Summer House Santa Monica in Lincoln Park by Jeff Mahin, of Do-Rite Donuts fame.

If you are intimidated by fine dining, this is a perfect opportunity to sample menus and expand your palate without diminishing your wallet. The great thing about Chicago is that you cannot make a bad decision during Restaurant Week. So close your eyes, throw a pin at OpenTable and see where fate leads you. I for one am already decked out with three reservations and a hot date with the gym tonight.

Tuck in, Chicago.

Cheers, Charlie

Once upon a time, I didn’t care about food. Peanut butter & jelly and Hot Pockets were the center of my diet and I was only concerned about the current plot line of Glee.

Then I entered Charlie Trotter’s kitchen.

I’ve shared this story on several occasions, but its effect on my life remains the same. When the chef credited with changing the Chicago culinary scene forever invited me into his kitchen after an interview for The Daily Meal, he changed me. Without knowing it, Charlie Trotter introduced me to a luxurious, passion-filled world in which food was more than just fuel. It is a story, a memory, an art form. Without that one meal, this blog would not exist and my world would still be void of the glow provided by a beautiful plate setting or an excited sommelier discussing a wine pairing.

Thank you for touching my life, Mr. Trotter, and the hundreds of chefs you’ve influenced along the way.

Glasses from heaven to earth will raise to you tonight, Charlie.

Cheers.

 

Related articles

• Famed Chicago Chef Charlie Trotter Dead At 54 (businessinsider.com)
• Chicago reacts to death of Charlie Trotter (voices.suntimes.com)

NEXT: Vegan

Burnt Avocado and Frozen Baked Potato

Baby Artichoke

Fermented Apples and Lichen

Salsifies with Oyster and Dandelion

Olive Oil Jam and Bitter Chocolate

Kombu Atoll

Red Onion

Curry Roasted Cauliflower

Once upon a time, there was a little girl who hated vegetables. Salads were drenched in a bottle of ranch dressing, green beans were pushed to the side and tomatoes were grown by Satan himself. Then, one particularly healthy day, that little girl fell in love with the enemy she had been fighting for so long. They eloped, leaving her Prince Pork behind, and they lived heart happily ever after. Their honeymoon: the corner of Morgan and West Fulton Market.

After two years and seven menus, Grant Achatz’s team at NEXT has finally created the concept I have been dreaming of all my foodie life: Vegan. An endless parade of meatless dishes may not be the Average Joe’s cup of tea, but for a vegetarian, this was heaven. When we entered the cozy dining room, a tree and tiny lily pond donned our table, setting the scene for the nature-inspired night ahead of us. I don’t want to spoil the entire experience for those hoping to visit in the next month or two, so I’ll only highlight some of my favorite moments from this unforgettable meal.

The tension was building as we sat with empty place settings, when a very large rock was presented to us, covered in what looked like moss. We were instructed to take the large crackers nestled inside of our table’s tree and use those to scrape off the beautifully masquerading burnt avocado. If guacamole were to put on its smoking jacket and classily sip on a glass of Scotch, that is what this tasted like.

In what had to be the tiniest surprise of the night I found the biggest taste phenomenon I have yet to shut up about. No larger than a grape, the frozen baked potato was a morsel that only Willy Wonka could have thought up. At first there is only the immense sensation of creamy sour cream filling your palate. But then, on the turn of a dime, it suddenly switches its attention to the salt sensors with an exact replica of potato skin. I could have eaten about 10 more of those bad boys, and I’d like to believe it would have been a million calories less than a fully loaded baked potato. But even vegan dishes come with a price.

Since this was my first personally funded bona fide grown-up meal, I wanted to be as legitimate as possible. Therefore, the beverage pairings were a must have. However, they probably did me over in the end, as my stomach was thoroughly confused over the amount of food and wine I was trying to force it to deal with. However, the most unusual pairing of the night was for the fermented apples and lichen dish. Instead of a glass of wine, we were served red apple cider vinegar out of a charred oak stump to highlight the featured fruit and remind me that not all of the best beverages need alcohol. It also reminded me how much I love the fall.

My NEXT experience was everything I hoped it would be and more. Let’s just hope my stomach can keep up with me next time. I can’t wait to see what Chef Achatz dreams up next. In the mean time, I will continue to sleep with my take-home menu nestled under my pillow.

Sable Kitchen & Bar

South Indian Vegetable Curry

Flatbread with Sweet Potatoes, Grapes and Bleu Cheese

Deviled Eggs

I take pride in the amount of foodie ground I have covered on a small budget in Chicago. I am also not one for doing the same thing more than once, especially when my time and money is so valuable. Take for example movie-watching in my household growing up: my sister watched Billy Madison non-stop, every day for approximately four months. Myself, on the other hand, watched it once and got on with my life, never looking back on the wonderful cinema that Adam Sandler provided in his prime for fear of ruining the joy I felt when he (spoiler alert) passes high school and gets the girl.

However, my fear of repetition disappears whenever I walk north on State Street, towards the glowing sign of Hotel Palomar. There, in the midst of River North, is my favorite restaurant in all of Chicago: Sable Kitchen & Bar. Some go for the cocktails; others stay for the bacon jam. I arrive, stomach and liver at the ready, for a delicious evening, many, many times over.

I have yet to have a bad meal from Chef Heather Terhune’s revolving seasonal menu. It’s always best to take a hungry friend because the small plates are perfect for sharing (and lets you try twice as much). I swear by the Wisconsin Fried Cheese Curds with spicy ketchup as a perfect appetizer. They may be more expensive than the Culver’s equivalent, but they are worth every oozing bite. My other requirement for a dinner order is one of the savory flatbreads. The crust is evenly toasted to an impeccable crisp and the toppings, no matter which flatbread you choose, taste farmer’s market fresh.

Do not, I repeat, do not leave this establishment without trying one of their many cocktails from award-winning mixologist Mike Ryan. The waiters are very helpful when it comes to narrowing down your preferences to make sure the lucky drink of your choice knocks your socks off. If you find yourself in River North and need a dining partner, you know where to find me. I’m the one at the corner of Illinois and State, salivating by the window.

Break-Up Binge

It’s 9 p.m. on a Sunday night, and you innocently glance at your phone. Instead of the usual Mad Men commentary, your best friend has just texted you that her and her boyfriend of two years have broken up. Without skipping a beat, you throw on your coat and run her way.

But you must first make a pit stop at the local 7-Eleven. See, while the other gender prefers to drown their sorrows in a barrel of (insert liquor of their choice), women often find comfort in their favorite thing to cling to (after a man, of course): food. The typical go-to is the ice cream magicians, Ben & Jerry. Personally, I fall for the Clusterfluff every time: peanut butter ice cream, caramel clusters, swirled together with MORE peanut butter and marshmallow. My savory friends prefer to hit Papa John’s on speed dial and order pizza and extra breadsticks. Maybe even two orders of extra breadsticks. The great thing is, no one can argue with you, because you are heartbroken, and that means you get to call the shots for about 24-72 hours, depending on how patient your friends are.

In college, every time there was a relationship crisis, a three-pound tub of cookie dough magically appeared in our sorority lounge. It was always chocolate chip, and it always came with about 10 plastic spoons. While we may regret the thousands of calories that were consumed over the years, I like to think we laughed them all off while sharing stories of crazy ex-boyfriends as the tub was passed around the circle. Thank God for those nights. While they started in misery, no day is bad that ends with best friends and massive amounts of sugar.

Food is our religion: Mike Thelin at TedxPortland

Mike Thelin discusses America’s “lack” of food culture.

Food for Thought:
Why does food matter?
Why is it important to you?
What food religion are you a part of?
When did it become more than just nourishment?
Did your family grow up valuing the convenience of food or the quality of food?

Hawker Stands Part Two

I couldn’t travel half way across the globe without documenting every single thing I ate. Duh. So here is a collection of my hawker eats:

Nasi Lemak and Freshly Squeezed Orange Juice

Red Bean Milkshake

Laksa (left) and Mee Siam (right)

Ice Kachang

Peanut Butter Pancake

Lor Mee with Shark Fritters

Carrot Cake

Popiah

Chwee Khueh

Fish Bee Hoon And Sugar Cane Juice

Sweet Potato Balls

Red Bean Beignet

Prata

Little India Smorgasborg

Nasi Lemak