Hi Folks,
Thank you for following my food blog. In attempts to diversify my writing, I am moving away from reviewing only restaurants in the city. Out in Chicago will feature reviews of various happenings around the city. Of course I'll continue to review restaurants in addition to other events. Thanks again and happy eating!
Saturday, August 20, 2011
Thursday, August 18, 2011
Stanley's Kitchen and Tap (Lincoln Park)
Stanley's Kitchen and Tap
1970 N. Lincoln Ave.
Chicago, IL 60614
(312)642-0008
www.stanleyskitchenandtap.com
Hello Stanleys. Located at the intersection of Lincoln Ave and Armitage, this place is sure to fill your watering hole and pub grub desires. Try the Drive-In burger, a heart stopping mess of your standard burger fare along with "Stan's Special Sauce."
I was lucky enough to unlock the frat bar badge on four square with a check-in at this joint. While it's a great family place during the lunch and early dinner hours, it has the potential to become absolutely fratastic after 7pm. Located within walking distance of the Lincoln Park Zoo, this place is a great alternative to RJ Grunts, which can often times be busy during the lunch hour rush.
Look for their daily specials. Meltdown Thursdays include a special grilled cheese menu which is sure to please.
Stanley's features a full bar and a good variety of seasonal brews on tap. Go for the Bell's Oberon -- it's light and refreshing. The perfect summer beer.
1970 N. Lincoln Ave.
Chicago, IL 60614
(312)642-0008
www.stanleyskitchenandtap.com
Hello Stanleys. Located at the intersection of Lincoln Ave and Armitage, this place is sure to fill your watering hole and pub grub desires. Try the Drive-In burger, a heart stopping mess of your standard burger fare along with "Stan's Special Sauce."
I was lucky enough to unlock the frat bar badge on four square with a check-in at this joint. While it's a great family place during the lunch and early dinner hours, it has the potential to become absolutely fratastic after 7pm. Located within walking distance of the Lincoln Park Zoo, this place is a great alternative to RJ Grunts, which can often times be busy during the lunch hour rush.
Look for their daily specials. Meltdown Thursdays include a special grilled cheese menu which is sure to please.
Stanley's features a full bar and a good variety of seasonal brews on tap. Go for the Bell's Oberon -- it's light and refreshing. The perfect summer beer.
Sunday, August 7, 2011
Northalsted Market Days (Boystown)
Get ready, get set, and go! The weekend of August 13 -14 brings Northalsted Market Days which is claimed to be the largest 2-day festival in the Midwest. Set in the heart of the Boystown neighborhood, attendees are sure to have their share of spectacular people watching, access to vendors (anything from knick-knacks to information booklets from local non-profits), and live music. This years musical acts include Gloria Gaynor and the always entertaining 16 Candles, a local cover band.
Northalsted Market Days can be crowded. Expect large gatherings especially at the music stages. If you want a shot at a decent spot, make sure to get there early. It can get hot, it can get sticky. For more information, visit their official website.
If you need to take a break from the 6 city block party (on Halsted St. between Addison and Belmont), there are plenty of dining estabilishments that are sure to please. There's the well established Chicago Diner, known for their vegetarian and vegan fare. The Center on Halsted, located on the corner of Halsted and Waveland serves as the neighborhood's main LGBTQ resource center.
Northalsted Market Days can be crowded. Expect large gatherings especially at the music stages. If you want a shot at a decent spot, make sure to get there early. It can get hot, it can get sticky. For more information, visit their official website.
If you need to take a break from the 6 city block party (on Halsted St. between Addison and Belmont), there are plenty of dining estabilishments that are sure to please. There's the well established Chicago Diner, known for their vegetarian and vegan fare. The Center on Halsted, located on the corner of Halsted and Waveland serves as the neighborhood's main LGBTQ resource center.
Saturday, July 16, 2011
Big Jones - Part II (Andersonville)
The June 2010 issue of Bon Appetite magazine named Big Jones one of the top ten places in the United States to eat fried chicken. I know I've reviewed this place before, but how could I resist another trip after reading this!
First of all, I recommend making reservations if you plan to go on a Tuesday night. Try to book earlier in the evening as the hostess informed me while making my reservation that the fried chicken "often sells out."
4 cuts of the chicken are battered, fried and served: breast, thigh, wing, and leg. My dining partner has "skin and bone issues" but Big Jones was able to deliver half a chicken that had her overcoming that problem. Served with greens and mashed potatoes, this dish has the essence of soul food with an upscale twist. The greens were well cooked and seasoned and had a kick of spice, which was nice.
Big Jones did a nice job creating a standard soul food experience, but nothing can beat the real thing. Although I would recommend Tuesday nights at Big Jones, if you want fancy your palette with some superb soul food, head to the South Side.
First of all, I recommend making reservations if you plan to go on a Tuesday night. Try to book earlier in the evening as the hostess informed me while making my reservation that the fried chicken "often sells out."
4 cuts of the chicken are battered, fried and served: breast, thigh, wing, and leg. My dining partner has "skin and bone issues" but Big Jones was able to deliver half a chicken that had her overcoming that problem. Served with greens and mashed potatoes, this dish has the essence of soul food with an upscale twist. The greens were well cooked and seasoned and had a kick of spice, which was nice.
Big Jones did a nice job creating a standard soul food experience, but nothing can beat the real thing. Although I would recommend Tuesday nights at Big Jones, if you want fancy your palette with some superb soul food, head to the South Side.
Saturday, July 2, 2011
Klopa Grill (Lincoln Square)
Klopa Grill4835 N. Western Ave
Chicago, IL 60625
(774) 745-5672
www.klopagrill.com
Don't be fooled by their fancy schmancy website. You won't get head bopping music or elegance. What you do get is downhome Serbian cuisine. It seems like one fella runs the place, quickly running from one end of the place to the other. He takes your order, cooks it up, and serves it to you, all with a sense of Eastern European hospitality.
If you've never had Serbian cuisine before, allow yourself to be adventurous. I asked the nice fella what I should order and he brought me out a traditional sausage and onion plate. This critic was delightfully surprised.
Chicago, IL 60625
(774) 745-5672
www.klopagrill.com
Don't be fooled by their fancy schmancy website. You won't get head bopping music or elegance. What you do get is downhome Serbian cuisine. It seems like one fella runs the place, quickly running from one end of the place to the other. He takes your order, cooks it up, and serves it to you, all with a sense of Eastern European hospitality.
If you've never had Serbian cuisine before, allow yourself to be adventurous. I asked the nice fella what I should order and he brought me out a traditional sausage and onion plate. This critic was delightfully surprised.
Friday, July 16, 2010
Girl and the Goat (West Loop)
Girl and the Goat
809 W Randolph St.
Chicago, IL 60607
(312)492-6262
Hello Stephanie Izard, winner of Top Chef: Chicago. It's about time. After the snag of wanting to call her West Loop joint The Drunken Goat, Girl and the Goat has finally opened. The menu rotates, so what is reviewed here may or may not be available on any given night.
Enter the scene: dark wood stained tables and decor in a warehouse feeling which perfectly matches the surrounding environment of the west loop. Izard did a very nice job integrating the physical space and creating a warm, yet clean atmosphere. A wood burning stove viewable from the house works away as Izard watches over her minions carrying out her orders of the night.
The word "goat" isn't just in the name...goat is served. Not just our traditional thought of goat cheese, but the actual animal. Goat is starting to show up on more menus of Chicago restaurants these days. The menu is divided up into vegetable, fish, and meat dishes all meant to order and be shared. Think tapas, but a bit larger portions. (My dining partner and I split 3 full dishes, 1 "appetizer" and a loaf of bread and that was plenty!)Izard features many handcrafted Midwestern beers (anyone who features Metropolitan Brewery beers on draft is respected in my book)
I started the evening with Corny Goat, a crispy loaf of bread served with corn relish and goat cheese butter. The bread was hearty, none of the 99 cent crap one buys in a grocery store. The corn relish provided some tang to balance out the creamy richness of the goat cheese butter.
Step two involved the veal sausage served with sungold tomatoes. I was a bit apprehensive to take on this dish only because it's a bit early in the growing season for good sungolds, but to my surprise, the tomatoes were perfect! The veal sausage had really good flavour and was seasoned nicely, but the sausage itself was a bit dry.
And then came the Ham Frites. Wow. Served with a pepper aioli and swiss cheese dip, these cut fries were sprinked in flake salt and ham. Amazing.
Two words: GREEN BEANS. By far the best dish I experienced of the night. If anyone can perfectly cook a green bean, it's the line staff at Girl and the Goat. My wonderful host, Lindsay described this dish as "If you want to see Stephanie and what she is all about, this is the dish." Served with a mouth puckering fish sauce vinegarette and topped with crushed cashews, if you go to Girl and the Goat, this is the must have!
Unfortunately, I was not a fan of the goat pizza. If picked off the pizza, the actual goat meat was fantastic, but there was just something wrong with the dish as a whole. The clumps of ricotta cheese sprinkled atop were washed out by the bold sweet flavours of the sauce. I found it to be too sweet and clashed with the savory aspects of the dish.
Being a newborn on the Chicago restaurant scene, Girl and the Goat has done well. They seemed to have avoided some of the glitches new restaurants often have. The only one operational criticism I have is that they needed to slow down. I felt things were brought out way too fast. It's a personal preference, so if you don't mind having the house bring out one dish at a time, one after another, their system will probably work well for you.
Girl and the Goat has lived up to the chatter. Book now cause you're gonna be waiting for a while, but it will be well worth it.
809 W Randolph St.
Chicago, IL 60607
(312)492-6262
Hello Stephanie Izard, winner of Top Chef: Chicago. It's about time. After the snag of wanting to call her West Loop joint The Drunken Goat, Girl and the Goat has finally opened. The menu rotates, so what is reviewed here may or may not be available on any given night.
Enter the scene: dark wood stained tables and decor in a warehouse feeling which perfectly matches the surrounding environment of the west loop. Izard did a very nice job integrating the physical space and creating a warm, yet clean atmosphere. A wood burning stove viewable from the house works away as Izard watches over her minions carrying out her orders of the night.
The word "goat" isn't just in the name...goat is served. Not just our traditional thought of goat cheese, but the actual animal. Goat is starting to show up on more menus of Chicago restaurants these days. The menu is divided up into vegetable, fish, and meat dishes all meant to order and be shared. Think tapas, but a bit larger portions. (My dining partner and I split 3 full dishes, 1 "appetizer" and a loaf of bread and that was plenty!)Izard features many handcrafted Midwestern beers (anyone who features Metropolitan Brewery beers on draft is respected in my book)
I started the evening with Corny Goat, a crispy loaf of bread served with corn relish and goat cheese butter. The bread was hearty, none of the 99 cent crap one buys in a grocery store. The corn relish provided some tang to balance out the creamy richness of the goat cheese butter.
Step two involved the veal sausage served with sungold tomatoes. I was a bit apprehensive to take on this dish only because it's a bit early in the growing season for good sungolds, but to my surprise, the tomatoes were perfect! The veal sausage had really good flavour and was seasoned nicely, but the sausage itself was a bit dry.
And then came the Ham Frites. Wow. Served with a pepper aioli and swiss cheese dip, these cut fries were sprinked in flake salt and ham. Amazing.
Two words: GREEN BEANS. By far the best dish I experienced of the night. If anyone can perfectly cook a green bean, it's the line staff at Girl and the Goat. My wonderful host, Lindsay described this dish as "If you want to see Stephanie and what she is all about, this is the dish." Served with a mouth puckering fish sauce vinegarette and topped with crushed cashews, if you go to Girl and the Goat, this is the must have!
Unfortunately, I was not a fan of the goat pizza. If picked off the pizza, the actual goat meat was fantastic, but there was just something wrong with the dish as a whole. The clumps of ricotta cheese sprinkled atop were washed out by the bold sweet flavours of the sauce. I found it to be too sweet and clashed with the savory aspects of the dish.
Being a newborn on the Chicago restaurant scene, Girl and the Goat has done well. They seemed to have avoided some of the glitches new restaurants often have. The only one operational criticism I have is that they needed to slow down. I felt things were brought out way too fast. It's a personal preference, so if you don't mind having the house bring out one dish at a time, one after another, their system will probably work well for you.
Girl and the Goat has lived up to the chatter. Book now cause you're gonna be waiting for a while, but it will be well worth it.
Friday, June 25, 2010
Taste of Chicago 2010
Taste of Chicago
web
June 25th through July 4th brings the annual Taste of Chicago. Though sardines are not served, you certainly will feel this way as you play a bit of Frogger while pushing your way past sweaty bodies to the next food stand.
Last year's highlight brought the highlight of the disappointing frozen popcorn ball offered by Garrett's.
web
June 25th through July 4th brings the annual Taste of Chicago. Though sardines are not served, you certainly will feel this way as you play a bit of Frogger while pushing your way past sweaty bodies to the next food stand.
Last year's highlight brought the highlight of the disappointing frozen popcorn ball offered by Garrett's.
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