Chicago Foodies

The Unique Dinner Series at Moto with 16 Courses of Black: Recap

The Chicago Foodies Unique Dinner Series launched January 28th with "16 Courses of Black" at Moto. The Unusual Dinner Series was created to give chefs an opportunity to do something a bit "different". In this case I asked Chef Homaru Cantu who is known for doing things differently, "What hasn't worked?" His answer focused on an all black dish that was off-putting for many reasons. From unseen and unexpected  textures to an unappetizing appearance while being eaten, it seemed to be "too different". The next question was "How do you feel about 16 Courses of black?"

I didn't know what to expect when putting the Unique Diner Series together but that was part of the idea and Saturday night, after 7 hours at Moto, in the company of Moto's staff and Chef's Cantu, Jones and Farina I came away amazed.

From his introduction asking the diners to be kind, Chef Cantu demonstrated what the Unique Dinner Series is all about. The audience of 24 came willing to taste something new, experience something unusual. While a dish or two might make it to the main Moto menu, the majority of them were simply inspired by the concept of black. They were one-shot dishes more fun than refined... interesting, surprising, and risky.

As you can imagine after 16 courses, including one we were explicitly not allowed to photograph, I can only do a disservice by trying to re-compile each dish's ingredients, and preparation. Simply enough, I'll let the pictures do the majority of the work and try to add what I can with specifics, pairings, etc.

Walking downstairs into the lab for the first time you would see a large prep-table and around it smaller tables and chairs for patrons. In the corners are several machines, including a freeze drier and a couple of gas tanks. Throughout the evening the staff was plating and prepping dishes and able and willing to answer questions.

Publican Quality Meats to Open Next Week, Minus the Meat at First

If you've dined at The Publican, you can begin to imagine what Paul Kahan and crew could do with a butcher shop. The much-awaited store, located just across from The Publican on Fulton Market, will open February 6, but won't begin selling prime cuts of meat, housemade sausage and charcuterie until mid-February. Though it's a priarily butcher shop, Publican Quality Meats has been relatively silent on what types of meat they'll be serving: Yes, it will be prime, but they haven't announced which farmers they'll source from, or whether they'll be using whole or quarter animals like Rob and Allie Leavitt do at The Butcher & Larder. (**See Editor's Update below.)

In the meantime, the shelves will be stocked with bread and groceries like eggs, olive oil, and milk. The bread will be made on premise by baker Ehsan Ganji, who has owned a company called Ahwahnee Bread since last year. As for what you'll find once the meat counter opens, Publican Quality Meats has released a teaser video of some butchery, but it's really only worth watching for the soundtrack:

Publican Quality Meats teaser #1 by Biz 3 Media from Biz3 Media on Vimeo.

 **Editor's Update: Paul Kahan tells Chicago Foodies that Publican Quality Meats plans to break down whole pigs, quarter steers and whole lambs, both grass- and grain-fed, including off-cuts of meat.

--Kate Bernot

Next Restaurant – Tour of Thailand, Not Bangkok 2060

I'm not sure where I had it in my head that the next concept from Next Restaurant was Bangkok 2060.  When I asked the waitstaff about what makes this restaurant "futuristic" they said that it's more of a tour of Thailand, not futuristic. I'll confess that I was disappointed. A big part of what really worked with Paris 1906 was the believability of that history in the food. The flavors were big and French but also conveyed authenticity and laborious techniques which are simply not done anywhere else anymore. It made it more than the Next Restaurant's "take" on French food. A restaurant set in the future, in Bangkok, when the Bangkok Post states that "the planet may be unrecognizable by 2050" –what a concept! How do you cook with no abundance of fresh water? Half of Bangkok will theoretically be underwater by then... not to mention placesettings! In any case it wasn't to be.

What is at Next now is a broader-stroke interpretation of Thai cuisine and while I'm sure I can get into a fight about just how good our Thai restaurants are in Chicago, all this said, I wasn't looking for an authentic dish.

Next Restaurant's Official Bangkok 2060 Menu

Fresh off their website... sound good?

Moto's Future Food Premiere: We Sea Food Differently

Hold on to your cornstarch-fluffed, flash-frozen hats; Moto is unveiling their TV debut with the series Future Food. The show premieres on Planet Food at 9 pm on Tuesday, March 30. On Monday, Chicago Foodies was invited to attend the premiere preview party, and it was a blast (literally).

If you are unfamiliar with Moto, they are one part magician, one part mad scientist and two parts chef extraordinaire. Place in a Pyrex beaker, heat over a Bunsen burner until the solution is denatured, and serve over a warm bed of wonder. Helmed by Executive Chef Homaro Cantu and Pastry Chef Ben Roche, Moto is one of the restaurants most often associated with the molecular gastronomy movement, and unlike those other stodgy codgers, they embrace and play up their images as scientists and experimentalists. Forget fancy china, and pick up a test tube and beaker instead. On the lower level of the restaurant, there is a full-fledged research laboratory, where no whim is too fanciful to be carried out in real life. Krispy Kreme in an espresso cup? You've got it. Mushrooms without the squishy texture? Even the most die-hard mushroom haters are won over. This is a step inside Willy Wonka's factory, where the boundaries of cooking are constantly redrawn, and shot to pieces with lasers. To protect his technological innovations, Cantu has filed for dozens of patents, including ones for a "food replicator" ink-jet printer that produces edible prints and self-heating utensils with a carbon-dioxide-based charge.

But hold on, why is Future Food being aired on Planet Green of all places? Moto's use of additives and radical alterations seems like the antithesis of the slow food movement classically associated with sustainability, which emphasizes the use of raw ingredients in their natural state. What does all this high-tech wizardry have to do with environmentalism?

Carnivale: Pan Latin Food in a Theatrical Setting

Though we've never been, for Valentine’s Day my wife and I went to Carnivale as it's had received good reviews.  When we walked in right away we felt the place was over the top, yet awe-inspiring with generous use of primary colors, high ceilings, Cuban music, and lots of energy. Coming in there was someone handing out free samples of Spanish olives.  Carnivale is mostly pan-Latin but does throw in Spanish dishes like manchengo and zamarano cheese as well as the ever-tasty jamon Iberico.  The other thing we noticed was the people patronizing the establishment,  were very eclectic and perhaps not a typical West Loop club crowd.