The Fat Kids Brunch Club

As law school was winding down and the weather was looking up, a few of us decided that Wednesday afternoons were not for spending in school. Instead, we would travel up to the South Loop and hit up some brunch. We dubbed ourselves the Fat Kids Brunch Club, since there was really no reason for us to gorge ourselves the way we usually did at said events. Though the FKBC only met a couple of times, they were two quite enjoyable experiences.

The first meeting of the FKBC occurred at the Bongo Room (as would all subsequent FKBC meetings were Sara to have her way). We each ordered our own meal and split an order of pancakes in what would become a theme of these meals together. I'm typically not one for ordering pancakes, since they're so easily and cheaply made at home, but it's a bit more justifiable when you're sharing with friends.



Though the Bongo Room is a brunch spot, and a local favorite at that, I had sampled a few of their breakfast offerings at their Wicker Park location prior to this visit. Not feeling quite in the breakfast mood myself, I went for the Smoked Chicken Asian Salad, which featured smoked chicken breast, honey roasted peanuts, snap peas, yellow and red bell pepper, shredded carrots and rice noodles above mixed greens, all finished with a sesame vinaigrette. The salad was pretty well balanced, if a little standard, though the smoking of the chicken was done with the skin still on, so it achieved a nice moist quality. The noodles were a bit thick for how delicate the rest of the salad was, and had been advertised in the menu as glass noodles. I think the original menu offering would have been better suited to the salad, since it would not have overwhelmed the other ingredients as much. Overall, though, it was a pretty good salad, and a quite large one at that.



The pancake order was a pumpkin pancake topped with a maple glaze (at least I think it was maple, though I could be totally wrong). The pancakes themselves were great (not to mention partially devoured before my camera could get to them) – fluffy and sky-high, with the perfect balance of pumpkin pie spices that I love so. The glaze, though, was incredibly overwhelming, leading me to burrow underneath the top layer with my fork in hopes of retrieving some dry pancake. The rest of theFKBC members, though, seemed to really enjoy the glaze, so I will leave it at that.

The atmosphere at the South Loop Bongo Room location is a bit different from that of the Wicker Park location, mostly owing to the South Loop location’s larger square footage. There are large windows and a great deal of sunlight pouring through them, making the small amount of artificial light from the bulbs nearly unnecessary.

The second meeting of the Fat Kids Brunch Club occurred, after some persuasion of
Sara by myself, Simone and Mel, at Orange, which also has couple of locations further up North. The space is kind of bizarre, as it is in the bottom floor of an office building with no bathrooms of its own, forcing its patrons through a complex maze of hallways and foyers when nature beckons. It was a bit dingy, sparsely decorated, but not unpleasant since it was spacious and full of light.



This time, I went for the Pan Seared Oatmeal, mostly because it was too intriguing to pass up. Essentially this dish is steel cut oatmeal, which has been cooked with apple cider, cream and spices, forced into a dense block and pan-seared served drizzled with apple cider reduction and mixed dried fruits (in my case it was apricots, golden and regular raisins and apples – I’m not sure if they switch this up). It was an interesting concept, and I think it was executed as well as could be. It was astonishingly dense, and a half of the serving filled me up beyond belief. There was something going on there that was throwing me off a bit though, and I cannot seem to put my finger on it, though I have a strong suspicion that it was the texture. I had expected something more supple, with a bit more creaminess and wetness to it, and I really had expected it to come to my plate in a round, and not a square. In the end, I’m glad I tried it, but I’m not sure I would order it again, nor am I sure that the way I imagined it would have been a success.



The pancake order for the table was a special, peaches and cream, a downright classic. The pancakes were your standard, run of the mill, buttermilk pancakes, but they had great flavor and texture. They were topped with some peach slices and a cream-like sauce with a texture reminiscent of yogurt. I thought it was pretty decent, but there could have been a lot more, especially with two large pancakes – there was just not nearly enough to sufficiently cover the pancake, especially if you’re not eating them as a stack.

Orange apparently offers orange-flavored coffee, the idea of which I find repulsive. Needless to say, I went with the ordinary coffee. The water though, is served with cucumbers in it, which happens to be something I quite enjoy. Both experiences were very enjoyable, though I’m sure they were heightened by a significant degree by my company. I have not dined at the other Orange locations, so I cannot say which of the two I prefer, though friends of mine really enjoy the outpost on Clark Street. As far as the Bongo Room goes, I prefer the original Wicker Park location, hands down, the atmosphere is superior and the window seats make for great people watching.

Bongo Room
1152 S. Wabash Ave. (between E. 11th St. and E. Roosevelt Ave.)
Chicago, IL 60605
(312) 291-0100

Other Location:
1470 N. Milwaukee Ave. (between N. Honore and W. Evergreen St.)
Chicago, IL 60622
(773) 489-0690

Orange
75 West Harrison St. (between S. Federal and S. Clark St.)
Chicago, IL 60605
(312) 447-1000

Other Location:
2011 W. Roscoe St. (between N. Seely St. and N. Damen Ave.
Chicago, IL 60618
(773) 248-0999

3231 N. Clark St. (between W. School St. and W. Belmont Ave.)
Chicago, IL 60657
(773) 549-4400

Half Shell

Finals are back - with a vengeance (ah, the joys of the quarter system) - and I'm in the midst of them, so I can’t stick around for long today, but I wanted to tell you about a nice little meal I had a couple of weeks ago at Half Shell.



It’s nothing too special and it’s far from gourmet, but if you have a hankering for seafood in Chicago - and I’m not talking Branzino or house-cured gravlax here, I’m talking roll-up-your-sleeves-and-get-to-crackin’ seafood – this is a pretty good bet. The atmosphere is kitschy and fun – it’s a basement bar with all the adornments you’d expect of a basement bar. It’s dimly lit, the tables are small and pretty close together; the service is pleasant, if a bit on the gruff side, and it all fits so nicely together. There just aren’t a ton of places in this city you can go to on a whim and shell out $26 for a giant plate of crab legs – atop a giant pile of fries (which I didn’t even attempt to eat) – along with some toasted white bread and herb butter.



We started with a dozen Blue Point oysters. They were huge, and while not incredibly flavorful, they were certainly passable considering Chicago's in the middle of the country, not to mention a pretty good deal for around $13 for the dozen.



Half Shell is no-frills, which probably is what allows them to keep the prices as low as they are. Yet the crab we had was great. There was plenty to eat inside these shells – and I left stuffed to the gills. The herb butter was fantastic (as herb butter usually is). I didn’t see anyone order anything but crab legs while we were there – but I can’t really imagine why anyone would.

Half Shell
676 W. Diversey Pkwy (b/w Clark & Orchard)
(773) 549-1773

La Pasadita

I was never a big fan of Mexican food. I just didn’t have very much exposure to good, authentic Mexican food growing up I guess. New York is notorious for its dearth of great, authentic Mexican cuisine, and I think it should go without saying that Montreal doesn’t have the most thriving Mexican dining scene - fancy, casual, whatever.

Chicago really changed my mind. The Mexican population in Chicago is the largest in the nation after Los Angeles, so it should come as no surprise that the Mexican food here would be better than I could find at home.

My newfound love for the cuisine can really be traced back to one establishment. Until I tried La Pasadita, my mind had not yet been blown by Mexican food. The fact that I now crave Mexican food, whereas prior to my time in Chicago it was hard to even convince me to have Mexican, is a true testament to the food at La Pasadita.

I started Law School on a no-red-meat kick that lasted all the way through this past November. I know – you’re probably asking yourself – the girl moves to Chicago of all places – the arguable red meat capital of the world – and swears off the stuff. I have no real reason for my choice in doing so other than that I just kind of lost my taste for it for a while there. I would see a big fat steak on a plate and have no desire to tear into it.

Because of this voluntary restriction, I would order the chicken taco at every Mexican place I patronized. This could probably explain why it took me so long to catch the Mexican wave. Other chicken tacos came to me as nothing more than a pile of low-grade dark meat sadly served beneath a spattering of cilantro and onions. Though I’m admittedly not a dark meat lover, I feel safe saying that the quality of the meat is just not that great – dark meat or not.



However, La Pasadita’s chicken is an incredible victory. I don’t think I am speaking in hyperbole when I say that the chicken served at this inconspicuous joint in the Bucktown neighborhood is among the very best chicken served in the city of Chicago.

Breast meat usually gets a bad rap, often deservedly so, as unless served on the bone, beneath a thicket of skin and roasted perfectly, the meat has little chance of remaining juicy. The meat here though, it’s another story altogether. I’m not sure what it is that they do to it, but I am – without fail – always presented a touchdown of a taco – filled to the brim with incredibly flavorful, but in no way overly salty, unbelievably moist cubes of chicken breast. Perhaps it is just that it is cooked on the same grill as all of their meat that endows it with this flavor, but whatever it is, I can only hope that they continue to do it exactly as they have been.



The carne asada is another winner. On my last visit I found my carne asada taco a bit too greasy, and I have heard some complaints that the meat is over-salted on occasion, but for the most part, this is good stuff - tender and unabashedly flavorful.



That giant mound of meat you see above is the Parrilladas Especial, a pile of chicken, carne asada, sausage, short ribs, green peppers and onions. Rice, refried beans and a stack of warm tortillas accompanied the monstrous cast-iron contraption, kept warm by a heating element below. Meant to feed three to four, the leftovers made for some delicious nachos at 3 a.m. At $20 for the regular and $25 for the Especial, the Parilladas are, by far, the most expensive item on the menu, but it can feed the table.

There are three Pasaditas located on the block just south of Division, one on the east side of Ashland and two on the west. While investigating this online, I found the following interesting tidbit – the larger restaurant-style Pasadita was created to cater to the yuppie crowd with Tex-Mex cuisine. I’ve had Tex-Mex though, which was much of the reason for my aforementioned lack of affinity for the cuisine, and this is so much better than that stuff. That said, the menu does include a few items added specifically for the non-Mexican customers that came in droves once the area became gentrified (the website notes the vegetarian burrito in particular).

Tacos run from $1.55-$2.00, and a super taco (lettuce, tomato, guacamole, sour cream, onions, cilantro, cheese) goes for $3.00. I take mine with just onions and cilantro, and, of course, a good douse of green sauce. To me, that’s as good as it gets. Simple, no-frills, delicious.

I usually stick to the tacos, though friends rave of the burritos. A recent 1 a.m. visit confirmed my suspicion that burritos are just too much for me. I enjoy the simplicity of the tacos, as the flavor of the meat is given the opportunity to pop and mingle with the onions and cilantro, without being overwhelmed by guacamole and cheese. One thing is for sure, though, burritos here are not light on the meat, as is the case in many other establishments that opt for the cost-saving rice-stuffing route.

Once a little-known, barebones establishment, the secret has long been out - and for good reason. Gourmet this ain’t, but it sure is great.

La Pasadita
1132 N. Ashland (just south of Division)
Chicago, IL 60622
773-278-2130

Other locations:

1140 N. Ashland

1141 N. Ashland

Bonsoiree

There’s something really exciting to me about eating at an out-of-the-way restaurant. It makes me feel like I’m in on a delicious secret. I feel as if others dining with me are sharing this sentiment, and I love the sense of community that exists among diners in such a restaurant. Though none of us know each other, we all silently acknowledge that we’re in this secret club together. After eating at a little-known place that I really enjoy, I always face the ultimate dilemma – do I tell rave reviews to everyone I know about it, or do I keep the information to myself to ensure that little community stays that little community? Since starting this blog, I now feel as if I have an affirmative duty to share these little secrets with you. This one, though, is one for which I cannot take full credit. If any of you should try Bonsoiree, please direct all thanks to my friend Allison.

Bonsoiree is in an unassuming spot in Logan Square, a rare storefront on a street of old factories. The casual space stands in spectacular juxtaposition to the culinary art that pours out from its kitchen. All the better though, since there is less hoopla to interfere with the food. Since it is BYOB we entered with three bottles of wine, an Alsatian Pinot Noir, a Pinot Gris from Oregon and a third of which I characteristically neglected to take a picture. It was red, of that much I am sure. Allison and I were the first ones there from our party, and our waiter made conversation with us while we waited. He was fully interested in everything we had to say, and was not just killing time in between serving people. He could tell that we were a couple of ladies that really enjoy our food, and seeing our three bottles of wine, he suggested we try a tasting menu that the chef would tailor to pair with our wines. Characteristically, again, we accepted.




We began with an amuse bouche, an olive tapenade on crackers. It tasted precisely how you would imagine it would. Nothing too special here, but what do you expect from olive tapenade?



Next we were given Prince Edward Island mussels with sweet Thai red curry, crispy rice noodles and a doughy thing. These were nothing short of delicious. My gripe with Thai curry usually is that the coconut milk makes it far too creamy. This, however, was a great consistency. The coconut milk did not overwhelm the taste of the mussels, but served to mute the spiciness of the sauce to an ideal level. The doughy thing was good, but unnecessary. I would have been more than satisfied with just the mussels, but the sauce was so good I used the doughy thing to sop up the curry.



We proceeded on with braised rabbit with oven-dried tomato, gnocchi, chives and the essence of butter. I’m still trying to figure out what the ‘essence of butter’ is, but whatever it is, it’s fantastic. The rabbit cooked nicely, but though it had great flavor, it lacked a bit of depth. The tomato was probably the most delicious thing on the plate though. The oven drying brought out all the flavors of the tomato and allowed the acidity to cry out unapologetically. It made everything else on the plate taste better. The acidity complemented the subtle flavors of the rabbit. The gnocchi appeared to have been pan-fried, which gave them a really good crunch.



Onward, to my favorite dish of the night – a perfectly seared diver scallop with autumn plum medley and organic mâche (from Michigan, as were so many of the things with which we were presented, as was made known to us by our server). The scallop was cooked to perfection, with a visually appealing brown sear and near raw-ness towards the bottom. The autumn plum medley tasted a lot like haroseth, a chunky apple and cinnamon sauce served at the Passover Seder to represent the mortar that the Jews used to build the pyramids. This dish was the epitome of minimalism, when the ingredients are of such high quality, why mess with them? I cut the single scallop into many, many too-small bites just to prolong my experience with it.




We were next presented with sautéed skate with fall mushrooms, corn cake, red pepper –lime coulis and micro greens (from Michigan, in case you were wondering). This skate managed to achieve everything that it possibly could have. There are so many things that can go wrong when cooking skate, but the chef executed this perfectly. The flaked at the touch of the fork, yet had a delicate crunchiness that made it incredibly exciting. The corn cake was not bursting with flavor, but the texture was perfect, and actually had me craving corn muffins a week later. I have not had a corn muffin in maybe nine years, yet this had me yearning for that crunchy, mealy bite. The coulis lent a lovely aesthetic note, but its brightness was not just visual. The sweetness paired nicely with the earthiness of the mushrooms and also served to nicely lighten up the fish. It perked everything on the plate up, without overwhelming any of it. The texture was silken, a great contrast to the crunchiness of the fish and the corn cake.



Then came the lamb. Two chops were plated beside a tortilla-cheese cake with micro greens and what I believe was a port-like sauce, though I would be lying through my teeth if I were to tell you I remember. The lamb was a just-there medium rare. My problem with lamb is that it has the tendency to taste a bit gamey. This was anything but. The simple spices on the chops were just enough to flavor the meat while still allowing the flavor of the lamb itself to come through. The tortilla cake didn’t wow me, but it didn’t need to. The sauce was light, which was necessary five courses in.



On the heels of the lamb was the cheese plate served with dried black mission figs, nuts and chive crackers. We were given two plates for the four of us, which allowed for a more than generous serving for each of us. I don’t quite recall what precisely each of the cheeses was, but I know that at twelve and three were cows milk cheeses, hard at twelve, triple crème at three. Both were great. The rest of the table didn’t like the soft cow’s milk cheese as much as I did, but I’m a sucker for triple crème cheeses. A six was a hard goat’s milk cheese and at nine a triple crème goat cheese. The triple crème goat was my favorite of the bunch, while the rest of the group stuck to their guns and devoured the hard goat. Well, we devoured all of it, but that was the first to go.



I was filled to the brim, but dessert had not yet found its way out onto the table. In the center is a winter vegetable cake crusted in pistachios with yuzu meringue. The deep red surrounding it was a beet frosting. It was accompanied by two pieces of banana bread pudding and what I think were amoretti cookies. Our side of the table was given this plate, which the other side was given an apple pastry thing. I was happy to be where I was. The cake was akin to a carrot cake, but the pistachios really brought it to another level. While the other side of the table thought it was a bit salty, I was gobbling it up. I think it might be a sort of endowment effect, since they liked what they had been given and we liked what we had, but I’m not about to go into individual preference shortcuts right now. What matters is that I don’t usually like cake. While I like the spiciness that usually comes with carrot cake, the cream cheese frosting usually deters me. However, I do like salt, and the spiciness of the cake itself and the saltiness of the pistachios with the muted sweetness of the meringue, it was all there.

Our server kept stopping by throughout the meal to inquire as to how we liked everything. When we left he asked us which dishes we liked the best and whether we had any critiques. He was conversational and inquisitive, but without being abrasive and obnoxious. He was interested in hearing out truthful thoughts, and I feel as if I had let him down with the sparseness of my impressions on my way out the door, especially since we were, by over an hour, the last people there. What could I do though? It was three bottles of wine later than when we got there.

I know it is a usual complaint after a tasting menu that one is still hungry, but I was so far from having that problem. Actually, any chance that problem would arise was obliterated upon consumption of the skate. I don’t know how my male dining companions felt, but Allison and I could barely move. Such delicious, delicious discomfort.

Bonsoiree Café and Delicacies
2728 W Armitage (between Fairfield and Washtenaw Aves)
(773) 486-7511
www.bon-soiree.com

Bistrot Zinc

I have been to France only once in my life, when I was 14 years old. I wasn't really old enough to appreciate it for what it is and to really immerse myself in the French experience. The open space of Bistrot Zinc allows me to feel as if I was there again every once in a while. The space is just so, well, French, at least what I remember French to be. The owner said that the bar is his pride and joy, that his design was inspired by the bars of traditional Parisian bistros, and it's beautiful. Wood molding around the length of the bar and a brushed steel top make it seem quite authentic. There are long, sprawling banquettes that run down about one-half the length of the restaurant - straight down the middle. Large mirrors adorn the walls and the front windows open up onto the street. My favorite part, though, are the floors. The red, black and white tile is unimpressive on its own. But as a part of the whole it completes the scene. It brings a quaintness to the space and allows what has the potential to seem too fancy to be entirely unstuffy. The clientele is a bit on the older side; that could be either a cause or an effect of the low noise level of the restaurant. I have never struggled to maintain a conversation, and you are far enough from the table next to you to speak at a normal level and not fear unintentional eavesdropping. The waiters are all dressed in white shirts and black ties with white aprons tied around their waists, and are all very accomodating and pleasant. The menu is typical French bistro fare, featuring staples like Salad Niçoise, Soupe à L’Oignon and Steak Frites. There is also a seasonal menu that changes monthly, but still keeps the typical French theme a running constant throughout the entire menu. I've been here a few times before and have never been disappointed with my food. I've never really left thrilled and blown away, but Bistrot Zinc executes the standard French fare quite reliably, with Chicago-sized portions, which are not so French, of course.

Moules Mariniéres
Mussels steamed with white wine, shallots, cream and parsley:



The portion size of this dish has decreased dramatically since the last time I ordered it, which was probably a good eight months ago and was also the last time I had eaten here. The sauce in this dish is very good, if standard. It is perfect for soaking up and devouring with bread, which I did happily. The mussels themselves are incredibly plump, as you can probably see from the photo above, far larger than any other mussel I have found in any Chicago restaurant. I do wonder, though, why the protion size is now less than half of what it was before.

Sautéed Skate with Brown Butter, Capers, and Lemon:



This dish was a bit too greasy for my liking. I know, I know, a brown butter sauce is going to be greasy, but it permeated the fish a bit too much and made parts of the portion a bit soggy. From the color of the fish I expected a bit of a bite, a slight crunch, but I was wrong. It was cooked well though, it was not at all overcooked and the fish flaked into sections with the slightest touch of my fork. The capers lent a nice flavor to the butter, and thereby to the fish. The plate was completed with a giant mound of mashed potatoes, which were quite bland. This characteristic was at the same time disappointing and relieving, since I then had the ability to season them myself. Why, however, there were croutons thrown atop this mound I don't quite understand. It seemed like a last-ditch effort to complete the dish and give the potatoes a bit more of a presence on the plate, to ensure that they didn't just blend into the white china on which they were served. Grinding some pepper into the potatoes would have lent the same effect, though, and the pepper's role in the dish would have been a bit more apparent. The croutons just didn't do anything for the dish, their texture wasn't necessary and their presence lent no flavor to the dish, as the croutons themselves were not at all seasoned.

And it was another pleasant dining experience. Not the best food I have ever eaten, but I left sated and happy. Part of that happiness has to be attributed to dining with my boyfriend, Andrew, but it was also due to the fact that Bistrot Zinc delivered exactly what I had expected of it, good but not great food and good service, and that was all I had asked of it. I don’t go into Bistrot Zinc expecting to be wowed and awed by culinary creations, but I know what I expect and I get just that, reliably.

Bistrot Zinc
1131 N. State St. (at E. Elm St)
(312) 337-1131
www.bistrotzinc.com

Lula Cafe

Last week I participated in what seemed like an improvisational offbeat tour of Chicago with a friend from high school (and McGill) and a couple of others. We were all over the city, which is great for me because I tend to get trapped in the same routine. My school schedule keeps my life pretty much centered around a few neighborhoods - the one in which I go to school, the one in which I study, the one in which I live. My friend Josh comes in every once in a while and takes me out of my comfort zone and I get to see the city in a whole different way. Josh is a pretty transient person, so he has more of an inate tendency to explore than I probably do. Last time he was in we went to a beer festival at Three Floyds Brewery in Munster, Indiana. Who knew? This time there were plans of a corn maze, which were thrown to the wayside one the downpour arrived. We still managed to make some pretty good stops, which took us all around Wicker Park, Andersonville, Uptown, the Clybourn Corridor, Lincoln Park, the list goes on. The feature of the night though, was our meal at Lula Cafe in Logan Square.

Logan Square has recently turned into a haven for young professionals. Hipsters have flocked en masse and the area has become quite gentrified in recent years. Lula Cafe has been around for a while, and like the area in which it's found, has become a destination for the hipster set and yuppies who think themselves edgy. The space itself is really comfortable, no tables are too close together and the bar is in a separate room, leaving diners with minimal disturbances. The restaurant has gained exposure and crowds flock consistently; we entered at about 8:15 on a Wednesday and were greeted by a hostess telling us there was a 40-minute wait for a table. Josh spoke quite highly of the place, so we happily sat down at the bar and waited.

There are two sides to the menu. On the left lays a seasonal menu that changes (I believe, don't quote me on this though) weekly. On the right is their cafe menu, the kitchen staples served year-round. An unexpexted mix of salads, sandwiches, soups and other small bites comprise the cafe menu. Among its entrees are a couple of pasta dishes, a Moroccan tagine and a roast chicken, which is by far the most expensive item on the cafe menu at $14. The food is incredibly affordable and you certainly get a lot for your money. With two drinks and an appetizer for the table, our dinner for four, including tip, came in at around $25 per person. And was it ever worth it.

"Fettuccine Alfredo " with Pumpkin Egg Cream, Wild Mushrooms, Braised Duck, Pecorino, Pan di Zucchero, and Brown Sugar Bread Crumbs:



By the way, that is the pork confit that was supposed to be served with my fish at the edge of the plate above. I ordered it on the side and came on a separate plate with the radicchio. I didn't order this dish, but I had a couple of bites off of my friend's plate. The flavors were really good, the brown sugar bread crumb lent a really sweet note to the pasta, which is something I can't say I've experienced too many times before. At the same time, it was this sweet note that gave me the impression that a full plate would have been far too much. The two bites I had were more than enough for me, I got to taste something I hadn't and that was that. The sauce was definitely not as heavy as actual alfredo sauce, which was a good thing, but I couldn't really discern the taste of pumpkin too well under the sweetness of the bread crumbs and the saltiness of the cheese.

Rabbit Ravioli with Sunchoke, Escarole, Rabbit Broth, and Citrus:



I don't typically eat rabbit, but I was peer pressured into it by the three boys with whom I was dining - I guess I didn't really put up much of a fight now that I think about it. The ravioli were pretty good, the meat was moist and the pasta had a nice bite to it. I couldn't really figure out what the rabbit was seasoned with, but it had a nice subdued spice to it. The greens were good and the broth was really light.

Pan Seared Rushing Waters Rainbow Trout with Pork Confit, Radicchio, Delicata Squash, Watercress, and White Anchovy:



This was a huge piece of fish, so everyone at the table got a good taste. All of my dining companions agreed that this was the best dish on the table. It was ordered off of the (purportedly, this was my first time here) ever-changing seasonal menu, as were the Ravioli and the Fettuccine. I ordered the pork confit on the side, not knowing that the radicchio would come on the side with it, but the dish was still great. The fish was perfectly cooked, the skin crispy. The citrusy-dressed watercress complemented the saltiness of the fish quite nicely. The squash was fork tender and delicious. I don't recall much of an anchovy taste at all and I wish I had, since anchovies are one of my favorite things of late. The sauce from the radicchio and pork plate might have elevated some of the flavors a bit, but the dish was delicious even in its absence.

Shiitake Quesadilla with Queso Fresco, Spinach and Chevre:



This was the only item on the table ordered from the regular menu. The shiitake mushrooms gave the quesadillas the impression of meatiness and had a great, substantial presence between the tortilla. My friend declared them the best quesadilla he's ever had. The moisture of the mushrooms did not escape, preserving the crunchiness of the quesadilla. The cheese was perfectly melted and stretched out just enough with eat bite, and the chevre provided the perfect salty edge. The dipping sauce, which was paired with sour cream, tasted pretty heavily of paprika, but was really interesting because of it.

I would love to come back to Lula Cafe and sample more items from their cafe menu. However, I don't realistically see this happening. Seasonal menus always suck me in, I feel as if I MUST order off of the seasonal menu lest I never get the chance to taste what has been offered to me again, or at least for another year. I can see the future of my dining experiences at Lula Cafe: I enter knowing what I want, since it is the item I wanted to try last time but was wooed away from by the hot ticket at the moment. I tell myself that I will not let that happen again, and I will be strong, and I will try that dish. But I know that dish will always be there, and again I will be tempted away to the seasonal delights. Come to think about it, that isn't really such a bad thing after all.

Lula Cafe
2537 N. Kedzie Boulevard (just south of Logan Square)
Chicago
(773) 489-9554
http://www.lulacafe.com/
eat@lulacafe.com

Spring (in Fall)

Since I was a very bad food blogger and neglected to take my camera with me to my lovely birthday dinner at the cozy La Petite Folie by school in Hyde Park on Friday, this is my very first restaurant post (!). A partner from the Firm I worked at this past summer was in town giving a lecture at the Law School. As a result, those of us that had worked there last summer were treated to a very nice meal at Spring on North Ave just west of Milwaukee. A few others from the class the partner had taught joined us, so we were seated in the front room of the restaurant and ordered off of the restaurant's private party menu. The restaurant itself has a very warm feel - the space used to house a Turkish bathhouse, and there is water and steam damage on the walls paying homage to this past. The restaurant is slightly subterranean, which is only an issue from this front room, since from there, if you are easily distracted (as I tend to be), you have to deal with the glares of passers-by as they look down from the street and into your plate. The Blue Line El stops about half a block away, but I heard it rumbling by only once during my two and a half hour meal. The service was friendly and accommodating. One in our party had a severe fish allergy, and the kitchen adapted several of the dishes accordingly. When I called with a couple of questions about the menu, they were answered happily.

Spring's website describes their cuisine as "New American with a strong Asian influence." The menu changes seasonally. Chef Shawn McClain was the named the 2006 James Beard Award Best Chef Midwest, so I went in expecting great things. For the most part, I was not disappointed.

The meal started with a rather good, if uninventive, amuse bouche: a tuna spring roll with a spicy chili sauce:



I could taste each individual component, and they all tasted fresh. The chili sauce did not overwhelm the freshness of the flavors, since its spiciness hit at the very end of the bite.

Next was a Lemongrass-Coconut Soup with Cellophane Noodles, Thai Chili and Kaffir Lime:



I enjoyed this very much, despite the fact that I tend to shy away from creamy soups. I really enjoy Thai coconut curries, and this reminded me very much of one of those, since coconut milk has a very strong taste and texture and tends to dominate any dish in which it is a major ingredient. The cellophane noodles were impossible to catch with my spoon (and my fork), and chopsticks would have been greatly appreciated. I found their absence rather odd; since the restaurant has prominent Asian influences throughout their food, I thought that the option of chopsticks would have at least been presented to me. There was a spicy undercurrent in the soup from the Thai chili, but it was softened by the coconut. I didn't really pick up much of a citrus taste though; some increased acidity might have been a nice way to balance out the creaminess from the soup. Overall though, I did enjoy it, though the portion was far too large - if I had finished that bowl, I would not have stood a chance against the cod.

Oh, the Cod. It was Black Cod with Parmesan-Potato Gnocchi, Maine Lobster Curry and Corainder Pesto:



The cod was seared to perfection. The pieces slid off without effort and the fish was incredibly moist. The cod yearned for chopsticks, each piece falling off the whole in a perfectly portioned bite, and it felt a little cruel to stick my fork into it. It was incredibly delicate - much more deserving of a gentle, painless journey into my mouth. The gnocchi was very good, not heavy in the least.

The meal ended with an Autumn Raspberry Sorbet with Chilled Jasmine Tea, Black Mission Figs and Citrus Almond Biscotti



This was my least favorite dish of the evening. The jasmine tea was poured on top of the sorbet, figs and biscotti tableside, and I think the taste of the jasmine was what threw me off a bit. It was good, don't get me wrong, but it wasn't great. The jasmine tea made the biscotti pretty soggy, and I made the mistake of saving them for last. The crumbled pieces of biscotti held their texture nicely though, and I enjoyed the crunch paired with the sorbet.

The other dessert option was a Chocolate Mousse Cake with Olive Oil Ice Milk. I'm not a huge chocolate person, but I was quite intrigued by the olive oil ice milk. I have heard people rave about the olive oil gelato at Otto in New York, and I figured this had to be pretty close. I loved it. The nuttiness of the olive oil came right through and the temperature of the ice milk allowed it to echo nicely once it was gone.

After dessert I ordered Green Tea, which had a potent jasmine fragrance and was quite delicious. I think it was jasmine at least- it reminded me greatly of what was poured over my sorbet. I didn't account for how heavily caffeinated the tea was, and I paid for that the rest of the night.

I don't know if my experience would have changed had I been the one footing the bill, and not the Firm. I might have been a bit more critical if I knew what each item cost. Since it was a private party menu though, the prices were not disclosed. What I do know however, is that I would gladly return to Spring for an opportunity to peruse the entire menu. I might opt for the salad with spicy popcorn to start, or lose dessert completely for a second appetizer. Either way, I'll be back.