Chicago Foodies

M Burger. Good, Fast or Cheap. Pick 2... right?

Well it's not exactly fast. So fast food that's not fast is what? The line outside of M Burger is long. It's not likely going to get short anytime soon. You'd think that's because foodies make a point to head over for burgers made in a kitchen that used to house TRU's pastry kitchen but it's more likely that it's across the street from the hospital. Nearly the entire lunch line was badged hospital staff. Considering nothing is over $5 it's a welcome addition to the local workforce.

Truth told the line for takeaway took 20 minutes. The walk back to the office 2 minutes. When I opened my bag and saw that they forgot a burger I was really disappointed. I've never had it happen to me at a McDonald's... so that's not good.

With a twinge of frustration I decided to just deal, I mean who goes back for a burger? Granted I ended up paying ten bucks for a burger and fries, albeit unintentionally, but they're swamped. I'll bug them later and see what happens.

I did get the M burger... they left out a regular burger. The M is awesome. It's really what I like about fast food burgers. The meat is not livery. It's well done (as any thin fast food patty should be). There may be a bit of salt on the burger but I think it's the sauce. Until I get that damn plain one, I won't really know. The fries were a bit salty but not as salty as the 5 Guys fries.

Lunch in the Loop: Taza

In my never-ending quest to find interesting, reasonably priced food in the Loop, I stopped by Taza, an unassuming storefront offering Middle Eastern and Mediterranean classics. (Alas, being on Franklin, Taza is technically just outside of the Loop, so my search continues on.) Pictured here is the "gourmet" falafel sandwich, which comes decked out with savory hunks of falafel, a smear of creamy hummus, a scoop of Jerusalem salad and hot sauce for a little extra zip. The falafel was hot and crisp, with a soft, pillowy interior. This was topped with crunchy chunks of cucumber and tomato in tahini and lemon dressing. Everything was brought together in a warm, hefty pita pocket. Did I mention this will only set you back $5? Light, delicious, and affordable.

 At 1 pm, there was no lunch crowd and plenty of open tables for seating, which is a major plus in my book. I'll definitely be back to try their gyros and schwarma. 

Taza
176 N. Franklin
(312) 201-9885

Restaurant Week: Blackbird

So I found out too late that Blackbird was serving dinner in addition to lunch specials for restaurant week. But, no matter, I was in for the typical Blackbird treat.

I hit about 4 places every restaurant week. I find the choices made to be very indicative of the caliber of restaurant. You can tell when certain menus seem chintzy. It sometimes is a type of ingredient or a very common dish. Broad examples would be pasta-heavy options or maybe lots of chicken. It could maybe be dishes with very few ingredients or big hunks of grilled something ie. burgers, etc.

Blackbird offered roasted chicken, grilled trout or a sweet potato agnolotti and in doing so could suggest some prix fixe adjustment. But it just goes to show how perceptions are unreliable. It may have been one of the best lunches out that I've had (the last one also being at Blackbird).

Terzo Piano – The Restaurant at the Art Institute of Chicago

Take the elevator to the Terzo Piano. It is hard to tell if the Art Institute's Terzo Piano restaurant was really designed with art-lovers in mind. On the one hand, it is ideally placed, being on the third floor (the ‘terzo piano’, see?) of the Art Institute’s modern wing. However, on the other, going there for lunch can really interfere with a culture-filled day out. Once you have had a look over the menu and ordered a pre-dinner drink, you start to realize that this is not somewhere you'd want to rush your lunch.

We started to get some strange looks as we tried to see "what everyone else is having". We settled on the butternut ravioli (very rich, the kind of dish you can get away with eating only in winter. I’m talking waistline, ladies), and my friend ordered the Uno, Due, Tre burgers, a plate of three small burgers, beef, lamb and shrimp.

I suspect the waiter was overjoyed when we finally ordered, because we had already spent far too long looking at everything on the menu. We changed our mind multiple times, as we saw more and more interesting dishes emerging from the kitchen. But, to be honest, I’d go here every week if only for the desserts and the wine (the financier with lavender ice cream is definitely worth trying).

And for those of you who lean towards French wines, you'll know it’s rare to find a bottle of Château d’Esclans this side of the Atlantic, and certainly this side of Lake Michigan. Speaking of which, after lunch, stop and take a look out at the view from the restaurant terrace. On a clear, blue-sky wintry day it makes you happy to be in Chicago.

La Madia – Being Thin... Pizza

Thin crust gourmet pizza does have a place in Chicago. In fact, La Madia knows how to make such a thin creation flavorful, even for the stuffed pizza-lover at heart. Creativity in pizza offerings is to be applauded at La Madia. My favorites include the taleggio and 3-hour roasted grapes, the triple pepperoni with truffle oil, and the buffalo mozzarella with torn basil. The Taleggio and roasted grape pizza sounds like an odd combination, admittedly, but as a foodie sometimes the more unique the concept, the more intriguing.  It’s worth ordering just to fulfill that intrigue. Likely, you will order it again because the soft creamy taleggio cheese mixed with the sweet grapes on a firm crust is unexpected, and quite enjoyable.

Ramen at Ginza, the Perfect Food for the Cold, Rain and Snow...

Ramen deserves a dissertation. Most people are only familiar with the msg-laden shrinkwrapped brick sold to poor college students and eaten with a bizarre sense of pride. I won't go into detail at this moment (but I sure will soon) but that point of comparison is exactly like dismissing Italian pasta because you have only tried Ravioli-O's.

This time of year a huge bowl of ramen, with sheets of nori and wakame (both wonderful seaweeds... don't flinch like that) half an egg, fishcake... yes the Japanese stole gefilte and made it better, beads of glistening fat. It's awesome.

Ginza, so far, is above and beyond anything else I've had in Chicago... Won't somebody let me know where else to go!

(Yeah Ginza again... where the curry rice is also good. And again for Udon)

Ginza (in the Tokyo Hotel)
19 E. Ohio St.

I Dream of Falafel... and Chicken Sharwerma

I Dream of Falafel on Franklin near Jackson St. is a foodie’s lunchtime dream come true. Mediterranean quick-service competitors Roti and Benjyehuda are nearby, but patronize those locations for excellent salads and crispy fries, respectively. I Dream of Falafel will transform your lunch hour if you are craving smooth hummus, firm falafel, or flavorful shawerma.  

The I Dream of Falafel menu is a simple three-step process to chicken shawerma, beef shawerma, and falafel heaven. My favorite way to enjoy their culinary delights is with a bed of hummus topped with chicken shawerma and falafel, finished with tahini, lettuce, tomato, and cucumbers.

The 'Right' Wine vs. A 'Great' Wine at Tru

Last week, courtesy of Mirassou, I had an interesting experience pairing $12 (approximate) wines from Mirassou with a 6-course tasting menu at Tru. It was an opportunity for wine to transform into something more through simple guilt-by-association with the wonderful food and while I'm not sure if that happened, what it showed was how paired wine actually adds to a meal.

 Mirassou offers your standard varietals: Cab, Merlot, Pinot, Chardonnay, SauvBlanc, Pinot Grigio, Riesling
They were each paired with our dishes: scallops, venison, crab, short ribs, halibut, skate & duck, and a nectarine and sour cream dessert.

How could you match them up? Mind you I already had this meal with the pairing but in all honesty I can't recall what went with what so before I look it up let's guess. The point of this is that different wines can be paired for different reasons and there really is no 'right' way to do things.

Riesling has to be with the fruit forward dessert. I'm cheating here because I remember this pairing clearly... Consider it a 1-varietal handicap. So now you have 3 whites and 4 fish courses... so which goes with skate and duck? It's very 'French' so I'd guess the sauv blanc... the scallops were served with quinoa and broccoli so I think pinot grigio with it's slight citrus... leaving the halibut and a leek emulsion and chardonnay reduction with, what else, the chardonnay. But what about the crab? It was in a clear tomato broth... that's more of a pinot grigio given the tomato acid? But we're out of whites... that means a red needs to be somewhere in here. And with the acidity of the tomato broth I'm putting it here. I'm guessing the Pinot Noir. It's lighter than the merlot or the cab. But let's assign reds and see which is left.

Frontera Grill – Profeta de Tierra Ajena

Por Ernesto Adduci

Es notable lo del Chef Rick Bayless: un Americano muy americano, que supera a los mexicanos preparando su propia comida. Considerando la extension y variedad de la comida mexicana, esto es un verdadero logro. Cierto, ganar Top Chef Masters lo ha encumbrado a la fama a nivel nacional, sus libros venden y la gente mira sus programas de tv, pero nada de esto se compara al triunfo de cada una de sus creaciones culinarias.

Hace tiempo queria ir a Frontera Grill, el restaurant que se transformo en su marca bandera, pero no fue hasta hoy que logramos encontrar una mesa en el bar. Probamos tres “Platillos Pequeños”: las empanadas de puerco, los sopes rancheros y del menu de Topolobampo, las mollejas de ternera en mole verde. Pedimos las flautas de pato, pero se habian terminado. El tener una mesa en el bar resulto beneficioso, pues pudimos probar platos de ambos menus, incluidas las deliciosas mollejas de Topolo, el restaurant formal de Bayless.

The BEST 'Happy Hour' in Chicago… Fleming's

Fleming's has been serving their "5 for $6 'Til 7" special this summer and, frankly, it's the best deal in the city. They're offering a selection of 5 Cocktails, 5 Wines and 5 Appetizers for $6 initially, until 7pm but it now is running all night.  If there is a downside to tasty and affordable beef carpaccio, seared tuna, lump crab cakes and top shelf cocktails it's that the dining area is not a rooftop deck. That said, the rooftops seem to be aloof and un-apologetically trendy to a fault.

So I find myself more often than expected enjoying an after work snack of seared tuna with a lovely wasabi/mustard sauce and a nice glass of Mondavi's Solaire Chardonnay. Followed by a Dimond Rita (glorified margarita with Herradura) or a Grey Goose Appletini hold the apple and the jumbo lump crab cakes – all together you're looking at $24. Not bad at all.