Gapers Block published from April 22, 2003 to Jan. 1, 2016. The site will remain up in archive form. Please visit Third Coast Review, a new site by several GB alumni.
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When we heard about the Soup and Bread project going on at the Hideout, we all jumped to the task to contribute our time and cooking skills to feed some folks and to get donations to the Greater Chicago Food Depository (so that in turn, more folks could eat).
— Robyn Nisi / Comments (1)
A couple of weeks ago I went to a food writers panel, and one of the questions posed to the panel was, "What's your favorite restaurant?" As the writers came up with their answers, I thought how I would answer the question. All of my choices were based on the establishment's cocktail menu.
Well, then. Although I do love a good meal, I apparently love a good cocktail more, so I've decided to regularly post cocktail recipes that you can either order when you're out, or try making at home. This week: The Satin Manhattan.
— Jill Jaracz
The first rule of going to lunch during restaurant week: don't show up early, at least if you have the first reservation of the day. I showed up a few minutes early at Naha to find my dining companion already hiding from the rain under the small awning; by the time they opened the doors, ten or eleven patrons were alternately crowding under the awning and glaring desperately at the indifferent staff inside the restaurant.
Once we managed to get inside and were seated next to the floor-to-ceiling windows looking out on Clark Street, things took a turn for the better.
I chose the late winter squash soup from the $22, three-course Restaurant Week Menu; the texture was perfectly smooth, with sweet spaghetti squash that melted in my mouth and a nice accent of crunchy green pumpkin seeds. My companion James, a former line chef, was just as satisfied with his house-cured arctic char.
— Leah Williams / Comments (2)
James Ward, former food critic for WLS-TV and the Sun-Times, passed away today after a long illness. From his Channel 7 bio:
Ward was restaurant critic and food columnist for the Chicago Sun-Times, from 1978-1984. Prior to this, he was restaurant critic for the Chicago Daily News.
From 1969 to 1974, Ward served as editorial director for R.R. Donnelley & Sons in Chicago where he was responsible for producing travel and food magazines.
He began his career as a restaurant critic as editor and assistant publisher of Restaurants and Institutions, a food service industry trade magazine from 1960-1969.
Ward, a Chicago native, graduated from Loyola University, and holds a Master's degree in political history from the University of Chicago. He and his wife reside on the city's north side.
Ward was memorable for his often flamboyant delivery and purple prose, employed here in this review of Lindy's Chili (from early 2000s, judging from the website at the end) -- and his trademark red-rimmed glasses.
— Andrew Huff / Comments (2)
The Daily Herald reports that chefs, critics and other food-lovers are being sought for a Food Network series where contestants would race around Chicago competing in a challenge of sorts. Those interested are to apply in pairs, and should be between 25 to 45 years old.
— Chris Brunn / Comments (2)
A hearty thanks to those of you who visited us at the Hideout last night for Soup and Bread. You were there to enjoy a bowl of the good stuff and more importantly, donate money to the Greater Chicago Food Depository, which is having a tough week as they recall over 500 pounds of donated food containing peanuts due to the nationwide salmonella outbreak. That's a bowl of boo-hoo if I ever saw it, so make sure you head to the Depository's Sunday Soup-Off event to help them out in this trying time. You'll also get another bowl of the good stuff.
— Robyn Nisi
Grub Hacker, a new food website run by a member of the competition barbecue team The Porkcrastinators, takes meat home-cookery to a new level. Check out his posts on spit-roasted fireplace beef, making a budget sous vide machine at home, and building a sausage fermentation box (pictured).
Photo is from Grub Hacker. Full disclosure, the author is a friend of mine.
— Gemma Petrie
Drive-Thru's Andie Thomalla will be teaming up with Time Out Chicago's Scott Smith and other TOC staffers, Helen Rosner of MenuPages Chicago, Michael Nagrant of Hungry Mag, Laura Stolpman from Chicagoist, Ron and Chef Phillip Foss from Lockwood, for tonight's "Top Chef" season five finale over at the Time Out blog. The liveblogging action begins at around 8:30pm.
— Robyn Nisi
We spent all night slaving away for your taste buds! Come to The Hideout (1354 W. Wabansia tonight for a bowl of tasty soup cooked by the Drive-Thru staff (along with soups from Columbia film prof Dan Rybicky and dietitian Bettina Tahsin, and fresh-baked bread from Hugh Amano) as part of the bar's weekly Soup and Bread event, which is a fundraiser for the Greater Chicago Food Depository. Donations encouraged. Event begins at 5pm.
And if you want to continue the soupiness, Custom House is holding a Soup Off cooking contest this Sunday (500 S. Dearborn). For $15, guests will sample and judge soups made by a bevy of local chefs such as Shawn McClain (of Spring) and Carrie Nahabedian (of Naha). A judge's panel will decide the winner with the audience's help. Event runs 1pm-4pm and is also a benefit for the Food Depository.
— Robyn Nisi / Comments (2)
The owner rang me up for my usual as I approached the counter. I've come to Petra Cafe often for lunch in the Loop, and I almost always get a falafel sandwich. I remember the owner almost always, if not always, smiling. This familiarity and friendliness makes me glad to return. I'm a sucker for that. I wouldn't be, though, if their food weren't so good.
The falafel is well seasoned, and fried just enough to brown its outside. Petra's hot sauce is a bit thick and well balanced. This time, for the first time, I also ordered the spinach soup, which they offer Wednesdays and Fridays. Although the broth is translucent, the soup is so thick with spinach that every spoonful seems nearly all green. Wheat was there, too - the same type used in tabouleh. There's definitely a nice salty taste that goes well with what looks like bits of celery that have been cooked until they nearly melted into the stock. It's epic. 331 S. Franklin, (312) 913-9660.
— Chris Brunn
When I wrote about a series of wacky, high-end tofu from Japan, one of you asked me for tofu recipes. I hesitate to call them recipes because they're so simple, only involving some chopping, sprinkling, and a nominal amount of heating, but here they are, my favorite recipes for good tofu, along with some basic handling tips. Caution: Unless the tofu is very good in itself (i.e., ton of sweet, earthy soy flavor as well as a pleasing mouth feel) , these recipes probably won't dazzle you. Get the absolute best tofu you can for these. H Mart in Niles has very good fresh tofu (I love their silken tofu) made on site; Mitsuwa has those weird ones I wrote about. Your local Asian market may have fresh tofu, made in independent factories nearby.
First, the tofu primers. Tofu is extremely perishable. Unless it's in a light-proof, airtight container, use it within a day or two of purchase. (And if it is in a light-proof, airtight containers like those House tofu that survive outside of the fridge for months, it probably doesn't taste that great anyway.)
— Yu Kizawa / Comments (1)
On Thursday night, as many Chicagoans were nestled on their sofas in front of NBC's must-see TV, an adventurous group of chefs (professional and amateur) and an equally adventurous group of mac-n-cheese lovers gathered at Goose Island in Lakeview for a macaroni-n-cheese sMACkdown. The event was to culminate in not only the city's MACDaddy, the champion cheese and macaroni chef, but also with some cheddar (as in dollars) for the Organic School Project, an organization committed to bringing healthy food to Chicago public schools.
Among the chefs who had submitted dishes were Stephanie Izard, last year's Top Chef winner; Guiseppi Tentori, from Boka; Goose Island's chef, Andrew Hroza; and an eight-year-old boy who had prepared a dish topped with crushed potato chips. Awaiting these chefs were three pasta-embellished trophies, and for the MACDaddy, the glory of having his or her recipe added to the OSP food served at Alcott Elementary School.
— Lori Barrett / Comments (1)
Intelligentsia Coffee's Jesse Crouse took second place in the 2009 Great Lakes Regional Barista Competition at Coffee Fest this weekend and former Chicagoan Kevin Emmons of Caffe D'Arte in Portland Oregon took first place in the Millrock Latte Art Championship. Congratulations to all the competitors.
— Christian Scheuer
While watching the Oscars last night, I saw an ad for Diet Coke featuring Top Chef judge Tom Colicchio:
While I'm certain that Chef Tom wasn't in the drawing room when this ad was crafted, one local restaurant sprang to mind when I saw the wire contraption that was an object of scorn and ridicule, a place that gets a lot of press and fanfare and whose chef has a lot of name recognition in the industry (and who also is a huge Diet Coke fan himself).
Your call.
source
In related news, Inspiration Cafe was featured in an ad (directed by actress Helen Hunt) for TrueNorth snack products that also aired last night.
— Robyn Nisi / Comments (1)
Winter is usually not considered a salad season, but when the radiator's cranking out too much heat and there's too little moisture in the air, a bowl of salad is a welcome thing. And when tender greens and ripe tomatoes are off vacationing in Florida, good old cabbage is always around for us chilly Chicagoans.
This salad takes two winter produce: cabbage and yuzu. Yuzu is a Japanese citrus fruit that I've been obsessed with for the past few years. (I hated their unique aroma when I was a child--children have no taste!) It being a citrus fruit, yuzu's season is winter. Cabbage is around all year, but they survive well into the cold season. Winter cabbage is on the tough side, perhaps more adapted to soups and stews, so in this recipe, the cabbage is blanched. Blanching gives it a slightly different texture to the cabbage from, say, salted-and-squeezed variety, and it's also a good way to incorporate a large amount of veggies into your diet.
— Yu Kizawa
I love when I can combine two of my favorite ingredients to make something delicious. I was playing around with My Recipe Box on the Food Network Web site a couple of weeks ago and came across a recipe for Lemon Ricotta Cookies. The combo of the two intrigued me - lemon cookies are my favorite and I love cheese. The recipe was surprisingly easy and the cookies turned out great (despite my tendency to over-bake the dough). Not too sweet and almost cake-like, I'll definitely be making these again.
— Kaitlin Olson
You choke when you make it. It's like pulling hard off a cigarette when you've never smoked before. You're dry roasting the skins and the seeds of dried chilies in a hot fry pan, and they're perfuming the air with a near invisible smoke that just makes you choke. As much as you might try to hold back, the chilies hit you so hard at the back of the throat. It burns, and you cough hard over and over, until it subsides just long enough for you to have a sip of beer. And then it starts up again and you're laughing because somehow it feels good, and you know it's going to make a mean meal.
My pal Bill had been in the kitchen with me. You "use a lot of chili and roast them until you can't breath," he recapped, as we ate the thick, heavy mole, breaking a few sweats. Our feet were even hot - but my apartment is very warm from some overanxious radiators. "This is some bold flavor," he told me.
We started out wondering what to make with the broccoli and cauliflower Bill had brought over. He wanted something spicy, and I had plenty of dried chilies hanging out in my cupboards, just waiting for an opportunity like this. I cracked open six or seven of the chilies, separating the seeds from the dried, hard skins. We toasted the seeds in a large, dry stainless pan on medium heat until they nearly blackened, tossing them about nearly constantly, and choking with every shake of the pan. Then I sent the seeds into a blender to wait, and the skins went into the same, now empty pan and began to smoke to make you cough some more. I tossed them about until their vapors had subsided. Then those, too, went into the blender to cool. I toasted a handful of black sesame seeds for a moment in that pan, and then a handful of raw sunflower seeds until they looked golden, before putting them in the blender, too. I waited until everything was cool before blending to avoid the explosion of hot liquid that I've been trying to avoid repeating from some previous cooking session. (I'd thought I could hold the lid on, but you should never underestimate the power of even a small amount of scalding liquid when it's being tossed about by a very fast and powerful sharp metal blade). I added a tablespoon or so of unsweetened cocoa powder (thanks Bill!), a pinch of ground cinnamon, a few good glugs of olive oil, many shakes of salt, and just enough water to make it barely possible to blend it into a thick paste. The mole, our version of mole, was done.
— Chris Brunn / Comments (1)
The Arab-Israeli Cookbook premiers March 5 at the Storefront Theater. The play mixes stories and recipes bases on actual interviews in order to demonstrate a common culture and common experiences between Arabs and Israelis living in the conflict. Chicago DCA Theater's Storefront Theater, 66 E. Randolph Street, March 5 through April 5.
— Chris Brunn
I love beignets. This may not seem strange on the face of things. Beignets are delicious. They are tiny bits (scraps, lumps, balls... pick a shape, it'll work) of fried dough, most traditionally sweet and dusted with a heavy mantle of powdered sugar -- though occasionally, exotically savory and flavored with meat or fish. A French-inflected fried pastry particularly popular in New Orleans, the beignet is as much an American doughnut as a Krispy Kreme or Dunkin variety. Or the paczki.
— Andie Cavedo
Today is the Thursday before Lent begins, which means that you need to use up all the sweet ingredients in your house before Sunday arrives and suddenly you can't have any of the good stuff until Easter. Fat Thursday is often celebrated with the eating of paczki, a raised donut filled with fruit, custard, icing or other sinful goody. If you're looking to jump onto the paczki wagon, here are some choice places:
Delightful Pastries (5927 W Lawrence, 773-545-7215) makes paczki year-round in many flavors (Rose Petal, Plum Butter, Custard, Blueberry Jelly) but only makes the Boozy Custard flavor during Lent. Yes, it's boozy. They are also holding a paczki-filling party this Sunday afternoon--admission is $30 but you get to take home some delicious pastry! Contact them--RSVP required, space is limited.
Bridgeport Bakery (2907 S Archer, 773-523-1121). Read Chicagoist's review from 2006. They sell something called a "bacon bun," so I imagine you'll be there soon.
Dinkel's, (3329 N. Lincoln, 77-281-7300) and Nielsen's (2053 Ridge, Homewood, 708-957-8899) make a fresh strawberry paczki.
Oak Mill Bakery (5635 West Belmont, 773-237-5799).
Also, if you aren't up for the sclep, Dominick's has them as well.
— Robyn Nisi
What isn't available from Amazon? Among the many, many things to be had with the click of a mouse is discounted food. The site offers discounts daily on grocery items (anything you could want, from coffee and coconut water to toaster pastries and toilet paper) and it also has a Subscribe & Save program, which allows you to set up standard grocery orders for delivery every one, two, three or six months. Shipping is free for Subscribe & Save orders, and free for other grocery purchases over $25 as well. The web site Dealhack also lists Amazon offers, and even breaks down the amount you save.
— Lori Barrett
I love onions. I enjoy sautéing them and I definitely enjoy eating them. They were the base for the red sauce for my bow tie pasta dinner Tuesday night, and they came onto my stove again last night for an aromatic olive oil sauté of mushrooms, seitan and kale. Seitan and shiitake mushrooms add a nice chew, kale a complex texture, and the rosemary and white wine a nice fragrance.
Here's how to duplicate what you see developing in the photo. Sauté the leaves of a few stalks of fresh rosemary, roughly chopped. Meanwhile, boil water for pasta. When the rosemary is just starting to become a bit crispy, throw in one diced onion, salt, and sauté until tender and translucent on medium heat. Deglaze with a few brief pours of any leftover white wine you might have (or red wine, water or stock) to loosen up any browned bits stuck to the bottom of the pan - especially useful if you're cooking with stainless steel. Then toss in half a package of chorizo style seitan. The wine flavor infuses into everything as it evaporates. When the pan goes dry again, stir in a few handfuls of rough chopped shiitake mushrooms and a few more splashes of wine. When the pasta water is hot, drop in dried pasta. When the mushrooms are tender, add a bit of ripped up kale, stems removed. If the pan is dry and bits are sticking, add some more wine. Keep the heat on just until the greens have wilted. Mix the sauté into your pasta when the pasta is done, per package instructions.
— Chris Brunn
Now that the economy's wicked long arm has resulted in fewer and smaller cookies in each box of Girl Scout Cookies that will be sold this year, perhaps we should forgo the shiny order form sitting in the office breakroom and make our own Girl Scout cookies. But the girls in green won't let you go that easily should you take the challenge.
If you dig the coconut, caramel and chocolate shortbread cookie known as a Samoa, the complicated home recipe does make throwing down $4 for a box seem reasonable (a second recipe was also a head-scratcher involving candy thermometers). The Thin Mints recipe also seems to require some patience, and the Do-Si-Dos only kind of resemble their mass-made brethren. I could rearrange the furniture of every unit in my apartment building in the same time it takes to make Tagalongs.
On that thought, a few bucks doesn't seem that bad for a few cookies if it means I don't have to spend 3 hours in the kitchen. Especially when you throw a few of them on some ice cream. Selling out never tasted so good.
— Robyn Nisi
Vodka sauces must love tomatoes and cream. The three go well together for a simple pasta dish, but they also inspire me to drop the vodka and just make a creamy red sauce for my linguini or bow ties. Actually, I drop the cream, too, and add something else to lighten and pinken the color of the red sauce, something that will round out the tomato flavor. Tahini can work, but its bitterness must often be balanced with the likes of lemon or vinegar. Hummus is the real magician. It may sound odd, but it mellows out a red sauce quite well without being at all heavy, plus it's vegan, which is, of course, why I'm posting about it.
My roomie sautéed onions and garlic in olive oil to kick off the sauce for our dinner before we added seitan chorizo and a large can of tomatoes. Our tomatoes were unsalted, and since tomatoes love salt, we salted until the sauce tasted full like any pasta sauce should. The sauce simmered to thicken up, and I mixed in a few spoonfuls of spicy hummus as my roomie added her dried hot chili powder to liven it up. Just a few minutes before the pasta was done - following package instructions - some broccoli florets went in, finely chopped to speed the cooking, and then spinach leaves when only about a minute was left on the clock.
— Chris Brunn / Comments (2)
I had a recent urge to create some stuffed and deep-fried olives. And I knew one of the people eating them was vegan so I decided to stuff some of them with some Soyrizo instead of andouille sausage. But I wasn't sure how to get the great breading on the olives without first dipping them in egg. When deep-frying it is generally best to dip the item lightly in flour, then dip them in a beaten egg, and then dip them in breadcrumbs or other similar item for crisping. You dip them in flour so the egg will stick better and you dip them in egg so the crumbs will stick better. It's a real "she ate a spider to catch the fly" kind of thing.
I began my experiment by making sure my crumbs were vegan, thankfully they were. (A couple of handfuls of potato chips that are crushed super-extra fine make a great coating if you can't find vegan breadcrumbs.) But then I wanted something that had the consistency of egg, with some stickiness, but not a lot of flavor that would conflict with either the fake sausage or the olive. As I stood looking in my refrigerator, I spied my carton of unflavored soymilk when I decided to try heating it gently in a small pan and whisking in some cornstarch. I put a teaspoon of cornstarch in a small bowl, add a couple tablespoons of cold soy milk and whisked it gently until all of the lumps were removed. This is called a slurry. I then added a cup of soymilk to a saucepan over medium-low heat. I watched the milk and just when it seemed like it was close to starting to boil, I slowly poured in the slurry while whisking. I didn't want the soymilk to boil (because I was worried about it separating) so I kept stirring and stirring and after about 8-10 minutes the sauce started to have the viscosity and thickness of a couple of whipped eggs. I let the mixture cool so I could dip my hands in it and I proceeded to flour, dip, and coat some more olives. And it worked great.
In fact, it worked so much better than the egg. As it cooled it got slightly thicker and the the thickness really ended up glueing the crumbs to the fairly slick surface of the olives. It worked so well, that I think I'll have to make another batch. This time I'll take pictures before I get excited and eat them all.
— Cinnamon Cooper
The team behind Northside Bar & Grill, Streetside, Danny's and the Logan Bar & Grill opened Simone's Bar in Pilsen this past weekend. We stopped in Monday night to try the food and check out the completely rehabbed building. The space is enormous, with booth seating, a long horseshoe bar, and a gallery space in back that will be joining the Pilsen 2nd Fridays art walks. The interior is inspired by recycled objects and architectural remnants -- and there are some nice touches like the bar-top made from an old bowling alley lane -- but overall the space seemed a bit cluttered and overly-calculated.
I look forward to trying the black bean & banana empanadas and the potato, Parmesan & rosemary pizza in the future, but we were hungry for a heartier meal. I ordered the vegan burger, which is made in house with quinoa and black beans. The patty was bland, and was just barely saved by spicy mustard and the blue cheese I had ordered on top. My companion enjoyed his regular burger. The fries, a mix of sweet potato and baking potato, were excellent. The dessert list includes the delicious tres leches cake from Kristoffer's and local Black Dog gelato -- a nice touch.
The one thing that will likely bring me back (besides the fact that it is within stumbling distance of my house) is the beer menu -- Rotating Bells, Dark Horse and Three Floyds handles, $2.50 PBR tall boys, Two Brothers Cane & Ebel, New Holland Dragon's Milk, and Dogfish Head 90 Minute bottles.
A review of Simone's seems to beg a comparison to the Skylark, so here it is: The prices are about the same and the service is good at both establishments. If you are looking for a low-key bar, a great burger or a fresh, seasonal salad in Pilsen, I'd still direct you to the Skylark. But, if you are looking for a good beer menu, Simone's might have a bit more to offer.
— Gemma Petrie
I love cinnamon. No really. I try to find interesting things to do with it. I'm totally biased, I know. But I love it. So when reading recently about different infused vodkas I got to thinking about the best way to infuse vodka with cinnamon. Using powder seemed like it would create an awful texture in the final drink, but I worried that the sticks wouldn't release enough flavor.
I had no reason to worry. Vodka, as I learned, is incredibly easy to infuse. All I did was take this inexpensive bottle of vodka, throw in a handful of cinnamon sticks (of course I got really good ones from The Spice House) and I let it sit on a counter for a couple of weeks. I think it only needed a week, but I wanted to make sure I had enough time to redo it if necessary. But I didn't need to.
Once it was infused I set about trying cool ways to use it. It tastes fantastic with Coke (which makes me think homemade vanilla or cherry vodka may be in my future as well), superb with spicy ginger beer, great with ginger ale and a dash of grenadine or bitters. It also matched well with chocolate liqueur (and a splash of milk), Irish cream, hot cocoa (or coffee if you're into it), and might even be tasty drizzled over a bowl of vanilla ice cream. I feel like so much more could have been done with it if I'd really gotten creative with the mixing of spirits. I think I'll be doing it again and experimenting further.
— Cinnamon Cooper / Comments (8)
For a sad reminder that small businesses need our support, Pilsen's locally owned neighborhood grocery storefront Soy Organic will soon close, citing "hardship times." They plan to remain open at 1700 W. 19th Street through the end of this month with sales of 30% to 50% off, from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., and then move to operate from a warehouse. (312) 850-9801. El: Pink to 18th Street. Bus: 9-Ashland, 18-18th Street, 21-Cermak, 60-Blue Island.
— Chris Brunn
Baking hint: if a recipe calls for the juice of a real lemon, don't do what I did and reach for a *bottle* of ReaLemon. I've been laboring over a recipe for Lemon Ricotta Cookies and came to a panic moment when I ran out of lemons for a glaze to cover to cakelike cookies, and turned to a large bottle of the fake stuff. The cookies now taste like they were made in a tavern alongside a vodka gimlet, with a deeply chemical, alcohol/lemon twang to them. Nice work, kid.
— Robyn Nisi / Comments (1)
Despite the people camped outside known Obama faves Topolobampo and Spiaggia last night hoping to catch a glimpse of Michelle and her husband, the First Couple decided to eat at Table 52.
— Robyn Nisi
Well, if Intelligentsia's changes have you feeling a little burned, maybe it's time to trek up to Julius Meinl and try their Pikant drink. The Pikant, which can be either a mocha or a hot chocolate, is made with cinnamon and cayenne pepper. I had the Schokolade version, and the cayenne pepper really made this drink taste pretty awesome. Not only did it spice up my taste buds, but it also warmed me inside. Given that we're back to cold winter weather, this makes for a perfect foil to the chill.
At $4.30 for the Pikant Schokolade and $4.45 for the Pikant Mocha, this drink is pricier than your average cup of coffee, but it's in line with Meinl's other specialty coffee drinks.
— Jill Jaracz
You might have noticed the temporary closure of Intelligentsia Coffee's Randolph Street (er, "Millennium") store for Valentine's Day weekend. Chicago's homegrown gourmet coffeebar chain is renovating in advance of rolling out the same controversial change made at the Broadway store in Lakeview last year: eliminating all regular drip coffee in favor of pricey, single-cup Clover drinks. That means, just in time for the New Depression and an unprecedented era of belt-tightening for most Chicagoans, a sub-$3 cup of coffee is now a thing of the past at Intelligentsia. Huh?
— Mike Doyle / Comments (20)
Have you ever surprised yourself by discovering a good lunch spot that's been hiding for years just a few blocks from you? Or perhaps you've become excited upon finding a good coffee shop that serves a tasty lunch, only to find they were planning to close up shop in a few days. There's a certain uneasy pleasure and sadness that accompanies such finds, feelings that are quite fresh in my head right now.
To enter my first find, Goodwin's, a lunch spot on Franklin in the Loop, you descend a flight of stairs from a relatively opaque street-level storefront. They made me a good Sloppy Veggie Wrap that held quite a bit of black beans, pico de gallo, guacamole, salsa, and - when I ordered it without sour cream and cheese to make it vegan - a nice rich mole that I asked for instead. It comes with chips, salsa and guac that I hear varies in spiciness from trip to trip. I'll be returning again.
Then there's the place that I would love to go back to but has closed. Bean Addiction Cafe was, until a few weeks ago, a coffee shop that made toasty spinach tortilla wraps that you could eat from a comfy lounge chair while watching a small in-wall waterfall. They filled it marinated mushrooms, zucchini yellow squash, red peppers, tomato and lettuce. The wrap was moistened with the soft flavors of red pepper puree and the hummus I'd asked them to substitute for cheese. Whenever I see cheese on what I'd like to order, and I notice hummus anywhere else on the menu, such a request is often a no brainer - for a little insight into my vegan brain.
Goodwin's is at 175 N. Franklin, (312) 634-1134.
Bean Addiction Cafe is no longer, but used to be in the lobby of The Presidential Towers at 555 W. Madison.
— Chris Brunn / Comments (1)
The Local Beet, a website "dedicated to a
practical approach to eating locally-produced, sustainable and organic foods," made itself official today after a few months of soft launch. The site is an invaluable resource for local locavores -- and for those just trying to eat healthier.
"I'm really passionate about this project, and it's evolving all the time," says Local Beet Editor Michael Morowitz, a cofounder of LTHForum and fomer blogger at EatChicago. "I also really think we represent a fast-growing part of Chicago that cares more about where their food comes from. Non-foodies that I know are starting to use the fact that they avoid big supermarkets as a badge of honor."
The Local Beet already has an excellent roster of writers, and plans for 2009 include the launch of a section dedicated to food policy issues, "Our goal is to connect people who care about the source of their food directly with the people who are working for change in our local and national food policy," says Morowitz.
— Andrew Huff
The James Beard Foundation has announced the semi-finalists for its namesake awards, and Chicago is well represented. Here are the local nominees:
Outstanding Restaurateur: Rich Melman of Lettuce Entertain You
Outstanding Chef: Jean Joho of Everest, Paul Kahan of Blackbird
Outstanding Restaurant: Everest and Blackbird
Best New Restaurant: L2O
Outstanding Pastry Chef: Jimmy MacMillan of Avenues, Mindy Segal of Hot Chocolate
Outstanding Wine Service: Avenues and Bin 36
Outstanding Wine & Spirits Professional: Anthony Terlato of Terlato Wine Group
Outstanding Service: Spiaggia, Courtright's Restaurant in Willow Springs
Best Chef, Great Lakes: Suzy Crofton of Crofton on Wells, Christophe David of NoMI, Curtis Duffy of Avenues, Kendal Duque of Sepia, Koren Grieveson of Avec, Michael Maddox of Le Titi De Paris, Martial Noguier of Cafe Des Architectes, Arun Sampanthavivat of Arun's, Bruce Sherman of North Pond, Giuseppe Tentori of Boka, and Paul Virant of Vie
No local chefs made the cut for Rising Star Chef of the Year, but otherwise a rep in every possible category. The finalists will be announced on March 23, and the awards ceremony takes place May 4 in NYC. See the full list of semi-finalists here [PDF].
— Andrew Huff
I've been using Twitter for quite some time now. About a year ago, I was still trying to figure out WHY anyone would use it (can't someone just call or text me if they want to know what I'm doing?), but then I began using it professionally and it all sort of clicked. I use Twitter to stay updated on my favorite blogs, news feeds and people.
— Kaitlin Olson / Comments (5)
Zagat has released their Chicago Dining Deals guide, targeting restaurant-goers who may want to spend a little less dining out. The new guide features 337 eateries reviewed by 5,300 individuals, many with dinner selections for $30 or less, and lunch options at $20. Rating and reviews are also online at Zagat.com, or Zagat.mobi from your mobile phone.
— Chris Brunn / Comments (1)
The dosa is a South Indian crêpe made from a fermented batter of ground rice and lentils. It's often brilliantly crispy on the edges, tender further in, and may be stuffed with soft potato pieces, onion and spices. It may also be served plain or accompanied by another stuffing. Tonight, however, was a night of limited leftovers. With a partial tub of dosa batter from Patel Brothers on Devon in my refrigerator, but nothing else prepared from anywhere near the same subcontinent, I deviated from what usually fills a dosa. I reheated tofu scramble from an old favorite recipe of mine, adding some vegan chorizo at the end. Two of my favorite brands are Upton's Naturals and Melissa's Soyrizo. The soft center of the dosas went quite well with the gentle and rich flavor of the tofu scram.
— Chris Brunn / Comments (4)
I don't know about you, but I've been craving some crazy amounts of comfort food. Its the time of year where I just get a little whiny and sluggish. And making dishes that are creamy and starchy have been making me feel better.
— Cinnamon Cooper / Comments (3)
Bleeding Heart Bakery received clearance to reopen today after a health department re-inspection found that all problems had been fixed. The bakery is offering a special cookie to celebrate: the "Kitchen Sink Cookie" -- oatmeal with flax, dried fruits and chocolate -- just $2.50.
— Andrew Huff
Michael Nagrant, Chicago food writer and the editor of Hungry Mag, has an article in today's Sun-Times about how fantastic cast-iron skillets are. I also have much love for cast-iron skillets and Michael called me to get verification of something I'd written in that post.
Michael's love letter, written shortly before Valentine's Day even, to cast iron skillets is a great read. But the gist of the story is that cast-iron skillets are awesome and a great value for your money and indestructible. Literally, indestructible. Those fancy-pants pans? Not so much. If you purchase new, you're likely to buy a piece of Lodge cookware and you're just as likely to find it at the hardware store as you are at a cookware store on Michigan Avenue.
And apparently cast-iron isn't just for making food, you can make music with it, too. Dance music. He kindly sent on this tidbit of information that didn't fit in the Sun-Times article:
"Not everyone uses their cast iron for cooking, at least not exclusively. Local professional chef and percussionist [and Drive-Thru contributor] Alan Lake makes music with his. In 1986 while working as a sous chef at the East Bank Club, lake got a call from Pat Leonard, a boyhood friend who'd scored a gig as a music producer. Leonard told Lake to pack up his equipment and move out to LA to be part of his recording band. Part of Lake's "equipment" was a set of cast iron pans. Lake says, "Back then you couldn't just buy samples, so we had to make our own. I hung my skillets from s-hooks, rolled rubber bands around chopsticks to make drumsticks and played them like steel drums. Though they're not tuned, they (the pans) have different pitches by virtue of their size." These weren't just any samples though. Lake says, "You can hear those samples all over (Madonna's) La Isla Bonita and Papa Don't Preach and (Ferry's) Bette Noir album."
— Cinnamon Cooper / Comments (1)
The other day, when I was on a CTA bus home from work, I was faced with a daunting challenge. As it was approaching my usual meal time, I was getting pretty hungry, pretty fast. At a stop halfway home, a well-clad middle-aged lady got on and took the seat next to mine. Beside a black handbag, she had a Jewel-Osco plastic bag, which she put on her lap. As the bus lurched forward with the green light, she promptly fumbled in the bag and took out (gasp!) a big bunch of celery. I looked on from the corner of my eye, curious to see what she'll proceed to do. With a determined hand, she yanked off a stalk, put the rest back in the bag, snapped the stalk in half and started to crunch her way through the celery. An enticing aroma of fresh celery wafted to my nostrils. I love celery. Now I was getting really hungry.
— Yu Kizawa / Comments (3)
Well, maybe not save, but the local distributor of the distinctive New Orleans whiskey (and its namesake, the first official American cocktail, if sources are to be trusted), is helping drum up support for New Orleans revitalization projects by pushing all proceeds from Sazerac sales to the the rebuilding of the Museum of American Cocktail (bien sur) and the Second Harvest Food Bank of the city in need. What better way to celebrate Mardi Gras and the coming Lenten season than a little debauchery that does real good?
Participating Sazerac speakeasies include the Violet Hour, Nacional 27, The Drawing Room, Sepia and The Whistler, and the drink itself is usually a combination of Cognac, whiskey, absinthe, and/or bitters -- each bar is likely to have its own twist on New Orleans' official drink, judging by their pedigrees. The party starts Fat Tuesday, February 24, and ignores the post-Mardi Gras spirit to keep pouring through March 31.
— Andie Cavedo / Comments (1)
This is not a picture of a cupcake from Sugar Bliss, the recently opened Loop designer cupcake joint in the shadow of the Wabash 'L'. I tried to photograph one of their cakes, but when I set the top-heavy thing down, it promptly rolled over, its sickly sweet frosting gluing it with curious strength to the unfortunate top of my Ikea knock-off tulip table.
The above, instead, is a picture of a cupcake from More Cupcakes, the upscale Gold Coast bakery currently suing a former staffer for allegedly ignoring a non-compete agreement and going to work for Sugar Bliss. I have two words for More: Don't worry.
— Mike Doyle / Comments (8)
Michelle Garcia of Bleeding Heart Bakery distributed a news release today explaining the circumstances surrounding its closure yesterday due to health code violations. The full text of the release follows after the jump.
Despite the shock and dismay that often arises with such closures, the reasons behind them are often more procedural than anything that truly endangers customers' health. In Bleeding Heart's case, some temporary and easily fixed plumbing issues and a late trash pickup were involved, compounded with some missing paperwork regarding employee certification, led to a mandatory closure. If it were just one of the three problems, the bakery may have simply gotten a slap on the wrists and an order to have it fixed for another inspection in a couple days, rather than a week off.
Obviously, if the inspection reported rodent droppings, things would be different. But if you look at the details on this case, it was much ado about not very much.
— Andrew Huff / Comments (8)
On Tuesday, March 3, Crain's Chicago Business and "Check, Please!" will host a party at Texas de Brazil to videotape people from all over Chicago talking about their favorite spots to meet for a business breakfast, lunch or dinner. Crain's will post a selection of these segments to its web site, ChicagoBusiness.com.
The party isn't a free-for-all, though. You must register here, and the deciders will let you know if you're in.
— Mandy Burrell Booth
The S-T reports that like the hustlers they are, Wal-Mart is renewing their interest in opening several stores on the south side in "food desert" neighborhoods (e.g. Chatham, Pullman) that have little or no access to full-service grocery stores. A Wal-Mart spokesperson said there's "a new sense of urgency from aldermen due to the worsening economy and job losses." Bringing labor superstar Wal-Mart in to bolster the economy of underserved neighborhoods makes about as much sense as paying city aldermen almost $100k per year in salary. Carry on.
— Robyn Nisi / Comments (3)
UPDATE: Sorry, folks. This was not intended to be a public event. We'll post about future public events when they occur.
If you've been considering growing your own food but are mostly interested in heirloom varieties, then The Seed Archive may be able to help you find seeds that fit your needs. It is located at 2446 South Sawyer Avenue and keeps a storehouse of viable seeds which they will loan you as long as you plant them, nurture them, and then return twice that number of seeds to them at harvest time so they can share them with others.
If you've been interested in trying to start a garden, but don't know how to sow, or germinate, or fertilize then they've got an event on Sunday February 15th that will help teach you more about what you need to know.
From 3pm to 5pm is the Swap'n'Store where you can bring seeds that you've gathered from your own plants and swap them with other's seeds, or donate them for future pick-up. 5pm to 7pm is a workshop that covers the basics about starting seeds, sowing, cross-pollinating, seed-collection, and seed storage. They'll also have some tasty veggie posole to share, but you're asked to bring your own beverage.
— Cinnamon Cooper / Comments (3)
Still haven't made Valentine's Day reservations yet? Here are a few more options. (Phone first; prices do not include tax or gratuity.)
Now stop dilly-dallying, before all the good tables are taken!
May Street Market's Valentine's Day menu runs Thursday, Feb. 12, through Saturday, Feb. 14. The West Town spot will feature a three-course, prix-fixe menu, plus an amuse bouche canapé. The cost per person is $60, or $85 with wine pairings.
Morton's The Steakhouse will feature a special Wildflower Champagne Cocktail, an imported - and edible - wild hibiscus flower topped with Piper-Heidsieck Brut Champagne, all yours for $16.
Uncommon Ground is also mixing it up with Valentine's Day cocktails, including Sky Rockets in Flight, with sparking wine, St. Germaine, Mata Hari absinthe, and a sugar cube; and the Latin Lover, a "Tall, Dark & Spicy Haute Cocoa spiked with Kahlua, topped with whipped cream and cinnamon hearts." (Sexy.) A three-course dinner is $35 per person, or $55 per person with wine pairings.
Bruce Sherman has put together a special tasting menu for Valentine's Day guests at North Pond, featring dishes with tantalizing ingredients such as black truffles, lobster and passion fruit. Cost is $100 per guest, or $150 with wine pairings.
Sepia has big and little eaters covered with the five-course "Eros" menu for $70, and the three-course "Cupid" menu for $55.
At Logan Square gem Lula, they'll be whipping up a special menu featuring soup, salad, pasta, and steak, plus artisanal cheeses and pastries, for $70 per person.
In addition to a full menu, Volo in Roscoe Village will also offer a $35 three-course, prix fixe dinner, with custom wine pairing for $30 extra.
— Mandy Burrell Booth
Vosges Chocolate recently introduced a new line of organic, single-origin chocolate bars. Each bar comes in at a steep $8.50 (a buck over a regular Vosges chocolate bar), but this is chocolate worth splurging on.
The five new flavors are: Dominica Noir, Dominica Lait, Peanut Butter Bonbon, Enchanted Mushroom, and Habana.
While I usually prefer dark chocolates, I was very impressed with the Dominica Lait. The chocolate was smooth and rich with a nutty, raisin-y flavor. This chocolate would make an excellent addition to a cheese and fruit course.
I was really excited to try the Enchanted Mushroom, a bar of dark chocolate with reishi mushrooms and walnuts. It was nice, but rather uneventful. The mushroom flavor was barely noticeable and the result was simply a high-quality chocolate bar with walnuts. --Not necessarily a bad thing, but not what I was hoping for.
The Habana bar was my favorite of the bunch. The milk chocolate was perfectly suited to the crunchy, salty plantains. If you are looking for a unique Valentine's Day treat, this would be an excellent choice.
Vosges boutiques are located downtown and in Lincoln Park.
(Image from VosgesChocolate.com)
— Gemma Petrie
Chicagoist has been exploring the city's latest culinary superstar, Laurent Gras's L2O. There's plenty of foodporn to be had, both behind the scenes and on the plate (Gras and his team produce plenty of foodporn of their own on their blog). You also get a look at the restaurant's decor. The series culminates on Monday with an interview with Gras himself. If you were intrigued by L2O's appearance on the Chicago episode of "No Reservations," this will only whet your appetite further for an increasingly hard to get reservation.
— Andrew Huff
The Culinary Historians of Chicago will be talking about the culinary history of Australia tomorrow with chefs Naomi Levine of Tipsy Cake Bakery, author/chef Jon-Antony of Table 52, and author Cynthia Clampitt from 10am to noon at Kendall College, 900 N. North Branch St. Admission is $5, $3 for students and members and no charge for CHC members. RSVP required.
— Robyn Nisi
A strange breed of tofu has been all the rage in Japan for the past few years.
— Robyn Nisi / Comments (3)
My pal Bill and I made this pasta the other night and the leftovers were perfect for a quick supper when I came home later that week. I added another tomato, sautéing it in some olive oil before adding in the leftover pasta. For a little punch, I mixed in a sundried tomato and Kalamata olive tapenade leftover from another night, Candle Cafe's recipe. This would be a perfect recipe to reheat in a hot pan before going out with your friends for the evening.
— Chris Brunn
For all the brahs out there looking for a sizzling gift for their lady friends, Isabella Fine Lingerie in Lincoln Park is hosting its first Beers, Brats and Bras shopping event on Sunday from 11am to 5pm. The shop's web site notes that many a fine woman in town has purchased a bra from Isabella already, so they just might have a dossier on your lady's sizes and styles. If not, the store has some expert fitters on hand who can narrow down anyone's size or style, particularly if a guy happens to have a photo (shot from the waist up) of his intended lingerie recipient. Guys too busy on Sunday can still shop for bras with brew in hand during Isabella's extended hours, next Thrusday and Friday from 5 to 8pm.
Isabella Fine Lingerie is at 840 W Armitage Avenue (773-281-2352).
— Lori Barrett
Pairing cheese with wine is pretty common, but did you know that beer also makes a wonderful accompaniment to cheese? Marion Street Cheese Market (100 S. Marion, Oak Park) aims to take the mystery out of pairing the two with a class on Monday February 16 at 7 PM.
At the event, Dave Phillips, a board member of the Chicago Beer Society and former Chief Editor of Dairy Foods magazine, will match six cheeses and beers and discuss the finer points of each. You'll learn about both beer and cheese and also how to best match them. The beer list will include offerings from Jolly Pumpkin, Sierra Nevada and Lost Abbey, and the cheese menu will feature selections from Jasper Hill Farm and Cowgirl Creamery.
Although Marion Street Cheese Market is in Oak Park, it's stumbling distance from the Harlem Stop on the Green Line, which means you've got a designated driver. Tickets cost $30. For more information and registration, call 708-725-7200.
— Jill Jaracz
While perusing the aisles at Trader Joe's last night (one of my favorite past times) I encountered something magical. I don't usually have a sweet tooth which, I suppose, is why sea salt brownies appealed to me. The bite size brownies are moist and fudgy (as a brownie should be!) and the sea salt on the top adds such a unique and delicious flavor. Please, do me a favor and try them out. You owe it to yourself.
— Kaitlin Olson / Comments (4)
Last night I read a few pages of the book Coraline with my daughter, who along with her brother, is counting the days to Friday, when the film will open. It was a part of the story where the Other Mother sits on the sofa, eating a bag of black beetles and talking to Coraline about manners, or really, the fact that Coraline won't show the scary woman any love. The Other Mother locks Coraline behind a mirror, and the chapter ends with this creepy description of the Other Mother: "A fragment of beetle was sticking to her lower lip, and there was no expression in her black button eyes."
If you happen to be an Other person, with button eyes and a hankering for beetles, today is a lucky day. In the Tribune's Good Eating section, there's a recipe* on the bottom of page 3 for the Other Mother's Extra Crispy Chocolate Beetles, complete with tips for finding the tastiest beetles (check for shiny and developed thoraxes, as beetles still in larval stage will be chewy and bland).
Most of us don't, however, have hankerings for beetles, even dipped in dark chocolate. On the blog Margo's Musings there's a post about a Coraline junket (prompted by Neil Gaiman's talk of a press junket), a puddinglike dessert that Margo topped with dried apple buttons. Just to prove how un-Other I am, I might try to whip up some junket for my family. Assuming I can get hold of some rennet, that is.
*(it's actually an ad, which I can't find online)
— Lori Barrett / Comments (1)
I think Smoove B. Love would agree that your special ladyfriend will swoon if you take her to any of these swanky spots for the Big Day. (Hint: It's next Saturday.) Reservations are recommended, and in some cases required, so phone first.
At Blackbird, $115 buys diners a special tasting menu featuring flounder with hazelnut, Swiss chard and blood orange molasses, short rib with passion fruit and carob, and more - including sparkling wine.
Feast is serving a three-course Valentine's menu that includes your choice of an appetizer or shared appetizer; a main course; dessert; and a glass of sparkling rosé, all for $45 per person, plus tax and gratuity.
Marigold is seducing diners on Feb. 13 and 14 with its signature Kama Sutra Tasting Menu, priced at $50 per couple or $70 per couple with a bottle of wine, plus tax and gratuity. All couples will leave with a complimentary copy of Marigold's sexy Kama Sutra book.
Province will offer a three-course Valentine's Day menu with your choice of appetizer and entrée, and a dessert for two with warm pineapple shortcake, chocolate flan, chocolate and rum shots. Cost is $45 per person.
For those who need lots of options, HB Home Bistro is offering both a special à la carte menu on Valentine's Day, and a $75-per-couple, four-course prix fixe for two, featuring a shellfish feast entrée.
You can pick and choose from The Gage's Valentine's Day à la carte menu, but if you decide to go nuts and order all five courses, you may as well splurge on the special wine package, which costs $35 for 3 oz. pours to complement all five courses.
If chocolate and champagne are your thing, make an advanced reservation at either Kinzie Chophouse or Mambo Grill, both of which are offering a complimentary champagne toast and box of chocolates to couples who mention the promotion when they make their reservations. Kinzie's Valentine's Day menu features a salad, pasta, entrée and dessert, for $99.95 without wine, $119.95 with wine pairings. Mambo will shake things up with live music.
Get in the mood at Dine, where jazz guitarist Lee Barrie will serenade guests from 6:30 until 10 p.m. on Valentine's Day. Dine is also offering a special menu that night.
— Mandy Burrell Booth
Sometimes assembling dinner is just as fun as making it from scratch. Manwich sloppy joe sauce can be, perhaps unexpectedly, made into vegan sloppy joes by using a product such as Morningstar's crumbles instead of ground beef. That was just what a friend had in mind when he had me over for such a dinner, complete with tater tots, hamburger buns warmed on his griddle, and a beer. We finished with a dessert of Trader Joe's Joe Joe's sandwich cookies in a bowl with some rich and creamy chocolate pudding that another friend had brought. That's an easy vegan dinner in a few minutes, leaving plenty of time to sit and chat.
— Chris Brunn
Walking past Piccolo in the middle of winter makes me long for summer days and gelato. I was recently reminded that this charming establishment has plenty to offer patrons in the colder months as well. The menu boasts panini, Italian subs, soups & salads, and bruschetta -- all made to order with fresh ingredients. (The black forest ham panino with Gruyere and tomato is pictured above with an artichoke heart salad.)
They deliver to the surrounding area and you can place your orders online. (The cafe has a much better design than their website.) The menu lists several vegetarian options and they are also accommodating to vegans. Read Chris Brunn's post on the topic here.
Piccolo
859 N. Damen
773/772-3355
— Gemma Petrie / Comments (1)
We'll be liveblogging the Chicago episode of "No Reservations" on the Travel Channel tonight at 9pm. Watch along with us and keep refreshing this post!
To get ready for the show, check out Anthony Bourdain's itinerary and his blog entry about the episode.
OK, the live blog is now closed, but feel free to share your thoughts in the comments below!
Oh yeah! The contest! We have a copy of "No Reservations" Collection 3 to give away. Enter to win by emailing contests @ gapersblock.com with the answer to this question: What was the one dish that Tony didn't like on tonight's episode? We'll take entries till noon, then pick a winner at random from the correct entries. UPDATE: Congratulations Krissy! The answer is the Mighty Dog, a tamale and hot dog together on a bun, smothered with chili.
— Andrew Huff / Comments (6)
Chef and author Anthony Bourdain came to town this past summer to get his fill of some decent food for his Travel Channel show "No Reservations."
The episode premieres tonight at 9pm CST, so to celebrate the occasion, we'll be liveblogging during the show. Also, we'll be giving away a lovely "No Reservations"-related PRIZE during the episode, so stop by for a chance to win!
— Robyn Nisi
LTH Forum alerted its faithful readers that if you plan to visit the Dining Room at Kendall College between January 8 and May 31, tell your student server that you're "a guest of the Dean." You'll get an extra course in return. This offer is valid Tuesday-Friday.
— Robyn Nisi
In 2009, food blogging, social media and Yelp were gaining popularity, and America's revered gastronomic magazine Gourmet shuttered after 68 years in business. Former Cook's Illustrated editor-in-chief Chris Kimball followed with an editorial, stating that "The shuttering of Gourmet reminds...
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