Chicago Foodies

Superbowl and Food... what are you eating?

I think the question is what not to eat on Sunday. Certain sporting events have a signature menu item like a Mint Juleps or even a signature meal - Breakfast at Wimbledon... but the Superbowl oddly enough does not have a consistent food theme. Thanksgiving football has the turducken thanks to John Madden but not the Superbowl. If pressed I would say the potato chip is at the top of the heap, surrounded by other salty snacks on the shoulders of various hunks of meat and 2 liter bottles of soda... empty beer bottles strewn around the mound.

Raw Milk: The Pasteurization Debate

Salon.com has a great article about pasturized milk. It details the medicinal success stories from asthma to arthritis but contrasts it with bacterial risks due to the absence of the pasturization process.

Many people come to raw milk as a last resort; one man I spoke to for this article had terrible asthma, one woman had debilitating arthritis, and another had osteoporosis (which pasteurized milk hadn't improved) -- and all saw complete reversals of their diseases after a few months of drinking it. Their stories were persuasive, but in an age where E. coli is turning up at Taco Bell and even in organic spinach, I wondered: Is it really safe to drink unpasteurized milk?

For the Love of Chocolate

On Saturday night, February 10th, The French Pastry School at City Colleges of Chicago presents the second annual For the Love of Chocolate benefit. The event will be held at Chicago’s historic South Shore Cultural Center to help inner city high school students with the Careers through Culinary Arts Program (C-CAP),

"a national nonprofit which prepares at-risk public high school students for college and careers in the hospitality industry. Managing the largest independent culinary scholarship program in the United States, C-CAP has awarded 1,850 scholarships, valued at over $17.8 million, changing the way many underserved high school students see their future and making a difference between a job and a career for more than 100,000 students. All the proceeds raised from the event will enable C-CAP to continue offering scholarships and programs."

A worthy cause and a worthy excuse to blow those resolutions. Tickets are $125 at the door or $95 in advance. You can purchase tickets on the web here. Or through the fortheloveofchocolate.org website.

Trader Joe's Sushi

Yeah. I know. It's a grocery store. I've had grocery store sushi before and it's not that good. I've also tried to swallow a hard boiled egg without chewing. That's really a bad idea. It basically get's caught in your throat where your muscles that aren't supposed to be used for food mash it into a paste that can barely go down. If you're wondering why I'm describing this egg-situation I can only refer you to the headline... yes. It's that bad.

Think Cafe

So, it's not much to look at from the outside, but the food inside of Think Cafe is spectacular.  The Web site says this place used to be a kitschy cafe, but it's definitely swank these days...blond wood, white linens, etc.  Most of the patrons used the BYOB menu as an excuse to pull out the neoprene wine cooler bags they received for Christmas, but one guy pulled up with a 12 of Miller Lite, so really, all kinds are welcome.

Sabri Nehari - Reopened

That was quick. A bare 2 months after a fire and Sabri is back in business across the street. The dishes are just as good and the restaurant, while smaller, is comfortable. The nehari was better than I remember and tastes of dal, sabri chicken, frontier chicken, lamb kebobs and the wonderful chicken makhani all reminded me why I keep talking about this place.
2502 W. Devon
773-743-6200

First Review 10/17/05
Second Review 7/11/06 
Third Review 10/31/06

The Ketel One Club at the United Center

The Ketel One Club is the season ticket holder dining room where if you shelled out lots of money for your tickets you're obviously in a position to drop too much money on food before a hockey game.

There's a concept issue here for me and I think the season ticket holder as a customer is the only way to rationalize why anyone going to a Blackhawks game (in my case) would opt out of the hotdog and beer dinner option with an appetizer of nachos and another beer for dessert. But it takes all kinds. So what do you do? Give them a TGI Fridays menu at a Ruth's Cris price.

Alinea

It was a surprise. I'm not even sure how we got short notice seats at Gourmet Magazine's #1 restaurant in the country. All I knew was that a jacket and a pair of pants were in the back seat (no tie required) and I was getting a ride somewhere for a belated B-Day dinner. Boy was I surprised.

I have been looking forward to Alinea since they've opened. Considering all the posts here you'll know that I have yet to go to the heavy hitters in Chicago: Trotter's, Tru, Moto, Everest, etc. I've just been to Arun's but have yet to write that up. Recent outings to other schmancy spots include Morimoto's and Babbo in a random last minute "Food Network" tour of NYC. I was excited about Alinea.

Rick's Cafe Casablanca

Rick's is a small restaurant next door to a wonderful Wrigleyville pizza place, Pizza Rustica. Walking in we met another couple and made a comment that we should get a quick appetizer and go next door for their wonderful potato/rosemary pizza. Maybe next time...

New Years Eve 2007 @ Alinea

Morris and I were fortunate enough to watch the ball drop this year while being treated to a multi-course food and wine symphony conducted by Chef Grant. We even got a few special treats not on the menu.

Of course the service was impeccable and the attention to detail exceeded all expectations.

However – for me – the highlight of the evening was a new / experimental dish being “test fired”… on us.