Chicago Foodies

Two Brothers Brewery

Continuing my excursions to noteworthy Chicago-area breweries, I trekked to Two Brothers Brewery to take a peek at the #2 craft brewer in IL (the champion being Goose Island). Though they were founded just 13 years ago, family-run Two Brothers has grown tremendously and now distributes in 8 states, and arguably even has an international presence. (Apparently there's a guy who brings 10 pallets of their beer back to Sweden once a year.)

You can get an up close look at the brewing facilities by taking a tour of the premises. Tour guide Gabe was a fount of knowledge about beer-making, and super witty to boot. Seriously, this was hands-down the funniest brewery tour of all time.

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Crystal Cun on January 23, 2010 in $$, Beer, Pub Food, The Burbs | Permalink | Comments (2)

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In the mood for some quality craft beers? Itching to get out of the city for the day? In search of hoppy times, I recently took a trip to Flossmoor Brewery for a summer diversion.

Flossmoor Brewery is set in idyllic downtown Flossmoor, an easy 45-minute Metra ride from the loop. If you go over the weekend, the weekend Metra pass will set you back a mere $5. Once you arrive in Flossmoor, the brewpub is immediately adjacent to the station, marked by its distinctive train station decor. Behind the main restaurant is the Old Caboose Ice Cream Shoppe, a charming ice cream parlor built in an authentic caboose car, perfect for your (inner) child.

We started off with the meal with an appetizer of fried green beans, battered in Zephyr Golden Ale tempura. The coating was crisp and well-seasoned, and the bright burst of green bean flavor inside made me feel like this was semi-healthy. If only all vegetables could taste this good.

Schlitz has been back in the city for a while. It's back in the burbs starting this week. Granted it's $5.99 a sixer  so they're banking on a slightly more affluent crowd than their previous advertising suggests. Now if only they'd bring back the pull tab.

Walking into work today I had a horrifying encounter – at least two dozen donuts stuffed with creams and jellies and glistening with chocolate, strawberry and vanilla icing. I then learned that there was a special reason that these donuts appeared today to completely destroy my diet. These were not actually donuts. They were Paczki – Polish donuts eaten on Fat Tuesday.

What else could I think of on a beautifully cool 73 degree summer day. As a kid I remember going to Dairy Queen for the Peanut Buster Parfait. I remember them having a top that you could remove and then snap on to the bottom and it would become the base of the parfait container. Pretty genteel for a 3rd grader. It's been a loooong time since then and since then I've become lactose intolerant and moved pretty far from any DQ so when I heard that my non-lactose intolerant roommate had never had a Peanut Buster Parfait I said well you have to have one. We threw the dog in the car and drove about a mile north to Howard to find out that the DQ was closed. Thus the quest had begun.

I'm not so much into hot dogs, per se (that's what happens when, as a student, you are forced to listen to lectures on how hot dogs are made), but I'm always up for a good burger.  The difference is all in my head, I know, but so be it.

Regardless, fRedhots and Fries is my current favorite.

Another great Tapas place - this time in the northern suburbs, close to a movie theater, and there was NO WAIT on a Saturday night. That alone is reason to go back (I hear their Park Ridge location has 2+ hour waits on the weekends).  But the food was also excellent. 

Goat cheese in tomato sauce (and I normally don't even like goat cheese), beef tenderloin, tomato salad in a vinagarette, and all the usuals were tops. The croquets were nothing special, but the refreshing Sangria made it all go down smoothly.

It was a warm summer night when my party of six headed into Northbrook, destined for some big, hot, heavy bowls of pasta.  Though the weather and the fare at Tonelli's seemed a mismatch, we were generally happy with our decision.

In need of food we picked Olive Mountain over Mount Everest having never been to either. A quickly served appetizer of falafel suggested we made a good choice. Olive Mountain is a few blocks from the Evanston theatres and it is a great way to have a reasonable and what could be a rather quick meal (if need be) before a show. What's best about Olive Mountain is that the food is really good.

Picking a restaurant for a party of 7 when not everyone knows each other (but they all know the guest of honor) is not easy. Tapas usually works, offering something for the vegetarians, the heavy carnivores, and the picky eaters.  A 30th birthday dinner for a friend-of-a-friend at Naperville's Meson Sabika was my best domestic tapas experience yet.

Cooking food is second only to eating food, in my book, and when you find a place that allows you to do both well AND be social at the same time, you just can't beat it...

I conned my husband and  two friends into taking a couples cooking class with me at Northshore Cookery up in Highland Park. It's a Chopping Block-kind-of-place in the 'burbs, where every class is hands-on. On this particular night, our instructor helped us make an entire meal on grill pans: we smoked a brisket and grilled chicken skewers (and made yummy BBQ sauces for each - chipotle for the meat, cherry for the poultry).

Froggy's in Highwood has been on my short list of North Shore restaurants for a while. On Green Bay Rd. just north of Highland Park, is a mini-restaurant row and Froggy's is right next to Gabriel's. I was expecting good French food at a reasonable price. In addition to that we had very little hassle for a Saturday night. It was, after all, the suburbs.

They offer a $32-$37 price fix with choice of entree, cold appetizer, hot appetizer and dessert. We were in a group of 8 and all of us but one went that route. They brought out a salad for that lone diner during one of the appetizer courses so there would be a plate in front of everyone. That's dining.

I have pestered my wife to go to Renga-Tei by imitating Jodie Foster in Nell and saying it fast... Renga-Taaaay... after our suprise bank-busting trip to Katsu she was worried that we'd have to break into triple digits for dinner again. Fortuantely not.

Renga-Tei is on Touhy just past Wholly Frijoles. Considering the delay for a table at Wholly a 5 minute walk west will land you a spot that not only has a firm grasp on sushi but cooked Japanese options as well.

There is something about Mexican food that puts me in a good mood.  Maybe it's all the wild and bright colors usually painted on the walls, or the up tempo music piped through the dining room, or the spicy flavors that remind me of how much fun I always have in Mexico.  Whatever it is, I usually crave Mexican food daily for these reasons however, I've found most of the local Taquerias fall short of imagination and taste. 

Frontera Grill has been a long time favorite and in my opinion Rick Bayless does everything right, but I can not afford that luxury as often as I would like until now....I've fallen in love with Wholly Frijoles - a Mexican Grill that to me rivals Frontera - at last! 

After adopting Oysy (OH-EEE-SHE) downtown as a great lunch place I decided to take some relatives out to the one in Northbrook feeling the white tuna in yuzu would be much appreciated.

I would never have tried this place without prior knowledge as it's in a mall and actually shares space with its partner restaurant Pacific Rim Asian... Yikes. 

Brookhaven Marketplace in Darien is not a large store, nor is it impressive in it's decor, but if you are looking for an unusual food, or just like experimenting in the kitchen, this place is worth the visit.

To your right, when you first enter is the produce section. It has at least six varieties of old familiars like oranges and onions, and  a healthy selection of greens. Peppers of every sort, color and degree of hotness, and eggplant including Indian, and Japanese varieties.  There are all kinds of roots, and the largest selection of dried beans and legumes I have ever seen.

Flossmoor Brewery

In the mood for some quality craft beers? Itching to get out of the city for the day? In search of hoppy times, I recently took a trip to Flossmoor Brewery for a summer diversion.

Flossmoor Brewery is set in idyllic downtown Flossmoor, an easy 45-minute Metra ride from the loop. If you go over the weekend, the weekend Metra pass will set you back a mere $5. Once you arrive in Flossmoor, the brewpub is immediately adjacent to the station, marked by its distinctive train station decor. Behind the main restaurant is the Old Caboose Ice Cream Shoppe, a charming ice cream parlor built in an authentic caboose car, perfect for your (inner) child.

We started off with the meal with an appetizer of fried green beans, battered in Zephyr Golden Ale tempura. The coating was crisp and well-seasoned, and the bright burst of green bean flavor inside made me feel like this was semi-healthy. If only all vegetables could taste this good.

Schlitz is Back in the 'Burbs...

Schlitz has been back in the city for a while. It's back in the burbs starting this week. Granted it's $5.99 a sixer  so they're banking on a slightly more affluent crowd than their previous advertising suggests. Now if only they'd bring back the pull tab.

Baumann’s Bakery – Paczki Day

Walking into work today I had a horrifying encounter – at least two dozen donuts stuffed with creams and jellies and glistening with chocolate, strawberry and vanilla icing. I then learned that there was a special reason that these donuts appeared today to completely destroy my diet. These were not actually donuts. They were Paczki – Polish donuts eaten on Fat Tuesday.

Dairy Queen: Peanut Buster Parfait

What else could I think of on a beautifully cool 73 degree summer day. As a kid I remember going to Dairy Queen for the Peanut Buster Parfait. I remember them having a top that you could remove and then snap on to the bottom and it would become the base of the parfait container. Pretty genteel for a 3rd grader. It's been a loooong time since then and since then I've become lactose intolerant and moved pretty far from any DQ so when I heard that my non-lactose intolerant roommate had never had a Peanut Buster Parfait I said well you have to have one. We threw the dog in the car and drove about a mile north to Howard to find out that the DQ was closed. Thus the quest had begun.

fRedhots and Fries

I'm not so much into hot dogs, per se (that's what happens when, as a student, you are forced to listen to lectures on how hot dogs are made), but I'm always up for a good burger.  The difference is all in my head, I know, but so be it.

Regardless, fRedhots and Fries is my current favorite.

La Tasca - Arlington Heights

Another great Tapas place - this time in the northern suburbs, close to a movie theater, and there was NO WAIT on a Saturday night. That alone is reason to go back (I hear their Park Ridge location has 2+ hour waits on the weekends).  But the food was also excellent. 

Goat cheese in tomato sauce (and I normally don't even like goat cheese), beef tenderloin, tomato salad in a vinagarette, and all the usuals were tops. The croquets were nothing special, but the refreshing Sangria made it all go down smoothly.

Tonelli's

It was a warm summer night when my party of six headed into Northbrook, destined for some big, hot, heavy bowls of pasta.  Though the weather and the fare at Tonelli's seemed a mismatch, we were generally happy with our decision.

Olive Mountain Restaurant

In need of food we picked Olive Mountain over Mount Everest having never been to either. A quickly served appetizer of falafel suggested we made a good choice. Olive Mountain is a few blocks from the Evanston theatres and it is a great way to have a reasonable and what could be a rather quick meal (if need be) before a show. What's best about Olive Mountain is that the food is really good.

Meson Sabika

Picking a restaurant for a party of 7 when not everyone knows each other (but they all know the guest of honor) is not easy. Tapas usually works, offering something for the vegetarians, the heavy carnivores, and the picky eaters.  A 30th birthday dinner for a friend-of-a-friend at Naperville's Meson Sabika was my best domestic tapas experience yet.

Northshore Cookery

Cooking food is second only to eating food, in my book, and when you find a place that allows you to do both well AND be social at the same time, you just can't beat it...

I conned my husband and  two friends into taking a couples cooking class with me at Northshore Cookery up in Highland Park. It's a Chopping Block-kind-of-place in the 'burbs, where every class is hands-on. On this particular night, our instructor helped us make an entire meal on grill pans: we smoked a brisket and grilled chicken skewers (and made yummy BBQ sauces for each - chipotle for the meat, cherry for the poultry).

Froggy's

Froggy's in Highwood has been on my short list of North Shore restaurants for a while. On Green Bay Rd. just north of Highland Park, is a mini-restaurant row and Froggy's is right next to Gabriel's. I was expecting good French food at a reasonable price. In addition to that we had very little hassle for a Saturday night. It was, after all, the suburbs.

They offer a $32-$37 price fix with choice of entree, cold appetizer, hot appetizer and dessert. We were in a group of 8 and all of us but one went that route. They brought out a salad for that lone diner during one of the appetizer courses so there would be a plate in front of everyone. That's dining.

Renga Tei

I have pestered my wife to go to Renga-Tei by imitating Jodie Foster in Nell and saying it fast... Renga-Taaaay... after our suprise bank-busting trip to Katsu she was worried that we'd have to break into triple digits for dinner again. Fortuantely not.

Renga-Tei is on Touhy just past Wholly Frijoles. Considering the delay for a table at Wholly a 5 minute walk west will land you a spot that not only has a firm grasp on sushi but cooked Japanese options as well.

Wholly Frijoles

There is something about Mexican food that puts me in a good mood.  Maybe it's all the wild and bright colors usually painted on the walls, or the up tempo music piped through the dining room, or the spicy flavors that remind me of how much fun I always have in Mexico.  Whatever it is, I usually crave Mexican food daily for these reasons however, I've found most of the local Taquerias fall short of imagination and taste. 

Frontera Grill has been a long time favorite and in my opinion Rick Bayless does everything right, but I can not afford that luxury as often as I would like until now....I've fallen in love with Wholly Frijoles - a Mexican Grill that to me rivals Frontera - at last! 

OYSY 2: Suburban Oysy

After adopting Oysy (OH-EEE-SHE) downtown as a great lunch place I decided to take some relatives out to the one in Northbrook feeling the white tuna in yuzu would be much appreciated.

I would never have tried this place without prior knowledge as it's in a mall and actually shares space with its partner restaurant Pacific Rim Asian... Yikes. 

Brookhaven Marketplace

Brookhaven Marketplace in Darien is not a large store, nor is it impressive in it's decor, but if you are looking for an unusual food, or just like experimenting in the kitchen, this place is worth the visit.

To your right, when you first enter is the produce section. It has at least six varieties of old familiars like oranges and onions, and  a healthy selection of greens. Peppers of every sort, color and degree of hotness, and eggplant including Indian, and Japanese varieties.  There are all kinds of roots, and the largest selection of dried beans and legumes I have ever seen.