
a quick trip report. i spent a few days in Chicago in April. love this city, the food, the people. my companion had never been here before so that influenced my dining choices (i tend not to repeat myself on trips, but did this time). only one meal was a letdown. the food scene seemed as vibrant as ever in my experience. we were blessed with perfect weather.
Random Observation
we used taxis quite a bit as we wanted to cover as much ground as we could in a short period of time. we found they were consistantly 10-40% cheaper than the apps (at least in the tourist areas). we did experience the ‘flat fare’ grift, but only once and it was easy to move on to a taxi that would use the meter.
Quick Eats
Eataly
the audacity of this place is still pretty impressive. it’s essentially a gourmet food factory. i only came here for the cheese but could have easily returned every day and barely scratched the surface of all it has to offer. i didn’t notice any drop off in quality from prior visits.
Blue Bottle @ Tribune Tower
i’ve had only ever been to the location at the Ferry Building (S.F.), but it’s nice to see that the quality hasn’t dropped off after the acquisition (at least at this location).
Stan’s Donuts
solid ‘donut shop’ coffee. friendly service. opens early.
Goddess & The Baker
only had time to try their cold brew (good), but the selection of pastries looked appealing. nice vibe here.
Cara Cara Club
a quick drop in. i was impressed with their menu, some really inventive cocktails and a meticulous Digestivo collection. the clientele and servers where amiable, the music not too loud. surprisingly, the gin & tonic lacked nuance however: Gin & Tonic - ford’s gin, dill aquavit, tomato, msg, tonic. if i were local i would gladly burn through this entire menu (except maybe the cans of Hamm’s they offer).
Brown Bag Seafood Co., just off of Millennium Park
a nice quick option near the park. order at the counter. schlepped it to the park for a lunch picnic. the seared tuna ‘Powerbox’ was overly dominated by brown rice and the clam chowder a bit gloppy (but didn’t use bacon as a crutch). overall tasty and their house made sauces really hit.
Corey’s Bagels on Dearborn
Not much to recommend here. Rolls with holes and aerated cream cheese. Staff had low morale. In addition, the shop must have been 85 degrees inside.
Meals
The Lanzaga, South American
nice neighborhood joint. they take great pride in the coffee/tea program. my cold brew was good, but their black iced tea was so good we wound up buying their blend to bring home. we ordered some breakfast and lunch items.
the cachapa had a beguiling sweetness and the cheese stretched for miles. i want to make this. i am lucky to have an amazing arepa place in my area (it’s all they do), so the Lanzaga version couldnt’ quite compete. still delicious, the mushrooms and fries where seasoned well. served with a really bright chimichurri. loved this place.
Cachapa
Sweet corn pancake with 3 cheeses and eggs your way.
Arepa & Frie Duo
portabella + chimichurri.

Frontera Grill, Bayless
i’ve had some good meals here in the past and wanted to check back in with the flagship. the noise level is still challenging. overall this place comes off as frayed. they were training some servers the night i was there and they were very green. i forgave that, but the veteran server that was supervising them could only be described as apathetic in every regard. the cocktails were fairly forgettable (one didn’t balance the smokey component very well). this coupled with poor execution on two of our three dishes (WAY over salted) made this the most disappointing meal of the trip. the flavours are still there, but buried. we did enjoy the ceviche.
CEVICHE TRIO
Classic Ceviche, Cóctel de camarón, Aguachile De Salmon
TAMALES DE ELOTE, ESQUITES FRITOS
Sweet corn tamales steamed in banana leaves, fried corn esquites
(butter, epazote, (lime), crema & añejo cheese, guajillo, chipotle
CHAMORRO PIBIL
Tender pork shank (slow-cooked with achiote in banana leaves), rich
braising juices, roasted green chiles, black beans, pickled red onions, habanero salsa

The Gage
another place with a distracting level of noise. when returning i would request a spot in the back side room, but on this night we ate at the bar (a lovely space marred by the presence of TVs). a nice old school vibe. they were doing a set menu that tied into the Frida exhibit currently going on at the Art Institute but we didn’t really have the time for all those courses. of the ones we did try, everything was well executed. the pea tartine could have benefited from some acid, but the scallop dish was delicious on all fronts. A well done Basque cheesecake closed things out (seems to be on every menu these days). a good looking cocktail menu. the service went above and beyond.
BURRATA SPRING PEA TARTINE
lemon, pistachio pesto, mint, grilled ciabatta

HUDSON CANYON SCALLOPS
corn grits, grilled apples, roasted cipollini onions, pickled fresno

Basque Cheesecake
Roasted hibiscus rhubarb
Roux, Brunch
this place has counter service where they bring the food out to your table. open seating. a grit specialist: there are about eight varieties on the menu. everything is scratch made, including the sausage.
excellent lamination on the biscuit, but this one was over salted. no complaints with these delicious grits. a nice muted spiciness to the chile sauce on the shrimp & grits. very rich. we inhaled it.
THE “CLASSIC”
2 eggs, sausage, grits, biscuit

SHRIMP AND GRITS
chile worcestershire butter, stone ground heirloom grits

Girl & The Goat
another return visit. was curious to see if the standards are being maintained now that Izard lives in L.A. full time (i think?). the place was jammed (note to self: go earlier or later) for a 6:30 rez. the front worked hard to get us the table we requested (the two seat counter facing the kitchen on the far end – probably the quietest part of the restaurant). it would have been very unpleasant to stand shoulder to shoulder in the bar area where seemingly dozens of people were happy to do so. it was hoppin’.
all the dishes had a crunchy component, which we found integral rather than gimmicky. for a place that has ‘Pig’s Face’ and all manner of goat on the menu, the hamachi crudo could have been an afterthought but was not. it was one of the best bites of the trip. what followed was equally flawless. really bold flavors, such a strong point of view. our cocktails and wine paired very well with the food. service was knowledgable and attentive. the house threw in a gratis peanut butter mouse for dessert. wonderful meal. the only caveat is the noise (bomb) level.
fennel-nomenon
Broker’s Gin . Don Ciccio Finocchietto . lime celery shrub
hamachi crudo
rice pearls . citrus . micro greens
chickpea fritters
goat yogurt . green chutney . sev spice crunch . pickled rhubarb
pan roasted halibut
miso-marcona almond butter . blueberry nuoc cham . spring onion

Oasis Cafe, Halal/Mediteranean
fascinating ‘cheap-eat’ place in the back of a jewelry shop. orders are placed and retrieved at the counter. the dining area has zero atmosphere (made up for by the fact that you are in a working, very cluttered shop). food is served on styrofoam plates (boo) and could have used more fresh herbs and spice. satisfying and great value.
Spinach Pie Combo

Shwarma Plate
Kie Gol Lanee Logan Square, Oaxacan
this is a small family run place. the tables are quite crowded together, so the noise level was the most aggressive of the entire trip. i would have waited to be seated at the small bar if i had to do it over as that area seems slightly less impacted by the noise.
the chips and beans were delicious and difficult not to eat compulsively. i would have been happy to make a meal out of the nopales quesadilla (just made blue corn tortilla) and the chips but wanted to try more food. i was warned that the shrimp i ordered was by far the hottest thing on the menu but that didn’t deter. it was intense indeed, but absolutely delicious (do not order this unless you are a heat seeker). i would gladly come back here to try more dishes, but it would be on a weekday (need to try their chapulines).
NOPALES QUESADILLA with GUAC (in the background) CAMARONES A LA DIABLA.
deviled shrimp with guajillo and chipotle sauce over rice
topped with watercress salad and avocado. blue corn tortillas.

complimentary chips + beans

Rose Mary, Croatian/Mediteranean
we closed out our trip with a visit to Rose Mary. it was bustling but the layout was better equipped to handle the noise. we sat at the kitchen counter. one of the more comfortable and expansive i’ve encountered. we watched them churn out crusty loaves of (excellent) bread all evening. one of the better curated wine lists we saw this trip. we really enjoyed the Croatian wines we ordered, which were new to us.
the house provided an order of stracciatella and their wonderful bread. it was difficult to pace ourselves on this dish. we wound up nibbling on it the entire meal. the octopus was a solid dish, although the octopus itself wasn’t as pristine (in quality) as possible (as much as I like it, i order octopus less and less for reasons discussed many times in this forum). the burek was formidable and rich and we took a bunch of it to go. i would have been happy with about half the risotto, delicious but very rich. for ‘dessert’ we sampled from their amazing Amari menu. the server was gracious enough to put together a little flight. they were all very different from one another; the one we finished with presented like the tastiest rum cake you’ve ever had. i would go back to just to sample more items from that part of the menu but the food was very strong as well. very satisfying meal.
Stracciatella
aglio verde e olio, chile, lepinja

Baby Octopus ‘Peka Style’
garlic, potatoes, peppers

Burek
beef, onion, mozzarella

(my picture didn’t turn out. found this on the restaurant’s IG)
Risotto Crni
squid ink, lobster brodo, confit squid, tarragon
