Chicago Foodies

Oysy

When I first heard about Oysy (Oh-eee-she) Sushi I though, great, just what we need in downtown Chicago, another sushi restaurant. Seriously, we really desperately need another sushi restaurant downtown. For some odd reason the downtown area is void of all the worldly food options available around the city.

Instead, we suffer through expensive sandwich and burger places, not too mention all the chain restaurants that keep opening up. Eating lunch downtown has pricey but boring for some time. And sure, there are some sushi bars to choose from, like the basement of Benihana for inexpensive yet questionable sushi, or the beautifully remodeled Kamachi, with pretty decent sushi, but not great, if you want to pay $40 for lunch.

Josh's Brisket and Tzimmis

After getting a special call from the father-in-law touting it as the "best brisket I've ever had" I figured it would be appropriate to give it an individual listing and it is the first thing that is officially "Josh's" - huzzah.

The two main ingredients are date stock and star anise. This is a pretty sweet and savory dish. Additional sugar and honey isn't necessary.

The Cheeseburger Bill

Something to note that while congress has chosen to name this the "cheeseburger bill" there is only one suit of its kind in the entire court system - while they are debating limiting citizen's "right" to sue.

From Swiss Info:

Nation's Restaurant News, a trade publication, said restaurateurs nationwide remain hopeful that Congress will pass a federal "cheeseburger bill" limiting such suits. The House of Representatives passed such a bill last year.

In the meantime, the landmark 2002 suit against McDonald's is the only pending U.S. action blaming a restaurant chain for obesity.

"There is nothing else like this case," said Richard Daynard, a Northeastern University law professor who has hosted the "Legal Approaches to Obesity" conference in Boston for the past two years and is planning a third in September. "The plaintiffs' bar is not rushing to bring these cases."

Kizoku

*Kizoku has closed.

I was walking past Kizoku, 358 W. Ontario, with some time to spare and pretty much went in for a flight of salmon. On their menu they offer Scottish smoked salmon, marinated soy salmon and fresh salmon. Figured it would be a simple snack.

The restaurant is large but at 4:30 on a Friday it was me and two others at a large circular sushi bar. The waitstaff was helpful and the sushi chefs were prompt. They offer a diverse selection of rolls and a comprehensive list of fish. The place is typical-fancy for that part of Ontario and, without a crowd, impossible to register any kind of cool factor.

The New Food Pyramid

Iron Chef Passover

O.K. so it looks like my secret ingredient is dates...

I modified my mom's brisket recipe, omitting the beer and chili paste for the sake of Passover and adding instead beaujolais and the date stock from my Sephardic Charoset. In addition to yellow onions, I added whole anise, carrots, prunes, and sweet potato.

It is an 11lb brisket. I needed a fork and a turning thingy and some muscle. Browning it was a beast. It's also the only potential problem of the day. I'm giving it at least 3 hours at 350º. We shall see.

European Chefs Protest Bans

From News.com.au

The culinary experts, members of a 3500-strong Eurotoques network of chefs, voiced fears that regional produce such as rich foie gras goose liver or wild salmon could be wiped out by over-regulation or contamination.

The Speakeasy – Out of Businesss

*The speakeasy is now closed. Not sure why but we'll miss it.

(Below from 4/22/05)

Monday night I didn't want to cook. My cousin was in town and would be driving by. My wife was working late. My place was a mess. They had already eaten but we hadn't. We decided to meet them at the Speakeasy. They do a fabulous 'hot' chocolate creme bruleé so by the time they got there we'd all have dessert together. It was a plan.

I grabbed a bottle of Contadana (definitely not spelled right... ask for the $3.99 Pinot Grigio at Trader Joe's) and away we went. We got the cheese puffs as a quick fix and ordered the tuna and cassoulet.

Zeus' Mighty Gyros

I was dropping some stuff off on Halsted and Jackson and got into a conversation about quick lunches and was immediately pointed to Zeus for a gyro to go. I had $4 on me and figured it may do the trick.

Zeus is a small spot on 806 W. Jackson. It sure enough covered me with a gyro for $3.50. I had just watched Alton Brown's gyros episode of Good Eats and had a taste for it. What your stomach doesn't tell you is that a gyro is a bad choice before going into an afternoon meeting. The thought occurred to me as I was snaking through traffic a tight grip on the pita overstuffed with spicy lamb and onions. I skipped the tzadtziki sauce fortunately and wasn't too worried about shirt stains.

The Fruit Factory: Fresh Alternatives

Is fruit the new "it" food? You've likely tried or at least heard of Orange's daily Frushi selections.  Debuting over a year ago, they're fun bite-sized morsels of fruit, flavored syrup, and rice sure to delight the most wearisome out-of-town guests.  However, The Fruit Factory recently opened in the Loop and coupled with Jamba Juice's success I wonder if fruit is more than just natural candy, it maybe leading a new food trend. 

Everyone knows they should be eating more fruit but is there a market to sustain a delivery & catering business?  Well, The Fruit Factory thinks so - see delivery menu.  All they sell is fruit and fruit based drinks, and they will deliver their natural goods all around the Loop. 

Think of lunch meetings with big fresh fruit plates instead of the standard deep dish Chicago-style.  "Johnson, your forecasts suck and you're fired!  But damn, isn't this the most succulent honeydew you've ever tasted?"

Midwest Mercury

Wisconsin is now suing the government... Does anyone know of a good consistent source that keeps track of mercury levels?

From the Pioneer Press

Mercury settles in waterways and accumulates in fish. In people who eat those fish, the toxic metal can cause neurological and developmental problems, particularly in fetuses and children.

Blue Elephant

Blue Elephant has been on the border between Roger's Park and Edgewater for about a year (1235 W. Devon Ave). As of late Indie Cafe has been getting lots of props. They both blend Thai with other Asian foods.

I'll confess I am a Thai Pastry fan that has never been to Arun's. I will have to go back to confirm this but I found Blue Elephant's panang better than any I've had in a long time and I eat panang often. It was creamy but not too creamy, spicy but not too spicy, sweet but not too sweet... The ingredients were fresh and not overcooked.

Spice World: Asian Spice

I’m sure a studious foodie out there could author an entire treatise on the near-infinite spice combinations in Asian cuisine.  Today, let’s pull our Asian spice example from Thailand.  Picture a mouth-watering platter of chicken satay with spicy peanut sauce. How on earth could any wine handle soy sauce, peanut sauce, spicy red peppers, garlic, and onions? 

Eastern Style Pizza & Pizza Party at Kendall College

Eastern Style Pizza, 2911 W Touhy Ave,  is pretty close to New York style pizza. They have been around since 1969 and have brought "Philadelphia Style Pizza" to Chicago and in addition grinders including the Philly cheese steak and about 30 more varieties.

They consider it "eastern style" and not New York style which I suppose takes the pressure off to some degree. The slices are foldable, go light on sauce and the cheese is pretty close to what I remember from several years in New York. How it does representing Philly I can't say.

If you have a serious "eastern style" pizza jones check it out. It should do the trick. Around the corner and down on California is Tel-Aviv Kosher Pizza. It's not open on Saturdays I couldn't make a direct comparison but I've been there over the years and it too is more towards the folding/low sauce/add some oregano, peppers, salt and black pepper type of thing, sans pepperoni...

If pizza is REALLY your bag Kendall College is hosting a free event Tuesday night:

Spice World: Mex/SW Spice

Do you crave spicy food?  Is one of the joys in your life getting all misty-eyed over a spicy plate of curry? When most of us hear the words ‘spicy food,’ we think of throat-burning, perspiration-inducing spice.  Yet there’s more to spicy cuisine than watering eyes and flaming mouths.  Consider the following spice categories:  Savory spice, Mexican/Southwestern spice, Asian spice, and sweet spice.  How on earth does one select wine for such spices?  It can be tricky.  Read on, and I’ll do my best to help.

Annapurna

Annapurna, a vegetarian quick food spot, 2608 W. Devon, was recommended by a friendly cabbie after I asked him about the demise of Lucky Kabob and Nehari House. I went expecting a possible surrogate for my Pakistani habit. As someone who is challenged by dairy I'm more Pakistani food friendly as it uses more oil and less dairy. With $4 in quarters in my pocket I was set.

Argo Georgian Bakery

Argo Georgian Bakery (2812 W. Devon Ave.) had been on my list of bakeries to visit for months. On a particularly gorgeous day last weekend my friend Harold and I drove up to Devon to try it out. We entered into a small and sparsely decorated shop with tiled floors and a large, earthen domed oven directly ahead of us.

In our usual fashion we indecisively loitered around the counter until eventually deciding on a spinach pie, a honey and walnut pie (tapluna), a hachapuri (mozzarella, farm cheese, and feta cheese pie, pictured), a Georgian round bread (puri), and a long bread (shoti).  We sat down in one of the few sets of small tables along the wall and dug in to our first three offerings.  The spinach pie was simple and hearty, served cool.  I thought it could have used a bit of seasoning or simply some salt, but otherwise it was quite tasty.  The tapluna was a sweet roll of pastry, covered in powdered sugar, and filled with a sweet and nutty filling.  This was also lovely, though perhaps a bit too sweet for my tastes.

Springtime Street Food

Spring is here! How can you tell? The temperature on my car thermometer said 79º. That made me stop for a mango with cayanne, salt and lime juice. The Hispanic street vendors offers cucumber and crunchy puffs with hot sauce too. I would love to find some jicama... I'll keep looking. $2 for a peeled mango cut up and served in a cup. Spring is here!

Pastoral - Behold! The Power of Artisan Cheese

I would point to cheese if I was to take a guess at the mainstay of Pastoral. But then again that just may be the power of cheese.

Beyond the large and thoughtful cheese selection there are other things in the store. That's what I like about it... the olives, the meats, the tapenades, the nuts, the miscellaneous. They've figured out the food combinations that go well together and surprise surprise... they're mostly farm style natural items.

It's a store where many items have a story– from historical significance to mini-bio's of producers. The most random items I have found to be the most impressive.

U.S. Should Ban Caviar Imports

The U.S. Has Refused Ban:
[Last month] The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announced today that it would deny immediate protection to imperiled beluga sturgeon and instead would allow beluga caviar imports to continue

From Voice of America News
In Soviet times, bans were in place to protect overfishing and prevent pollution.  But in the 1990s those bans were lifted and the fish that is the source of the world's finest and most expensive caviar is now reported on the verge of extinction.