Showing posts with label Chicago. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Chicago. Show all posts

Thursday, May 24, 2012

Chicago!


Anyone who knows me/is friends with me on FB/reads my blog knows I was just in Chicago and we ate the heck out of Chicago.  Sorry for telling the world, but this trip was AMAZING and spent with 2 of my favorite people in the world.  I have so many stories to share, so I decided to break it up into 5 different blogs.  You probably will want to take breaks between them. 



Enjoy!

Chicago: Flavor Tripping


As a fan of Bravo's Top Chef, I was introduced to the art of gastronomy through two of the chefs on Top Chef Texas, Chris Jones and Richie Farina.  They had quirky personalities and very interesting creations on the show, but I knew one thing if I was ever in Chicago, I had to eat at their restaurant! First only aware of Moto, I tried to get reservations, but there were none available.  Open table provided a link to other suggestions, which brought us to iNG Restaurant owned by Homaro Cantu and Chris Jones, head chef, Nate Park.  After finding out iNG was Moto's sister restaurant and reviewing the menu and prices I knew iNG was the place I wanted to eat.  It was a more affordable meal, they use gastronomy, and they were wild and inventive with their dishes to create a flavor tripping experience.  I could not have been more excited for this meal.


We started our dining adventure out with cocktails and beer tasting.  I sipped on each, and passed them around so everyone could taste.  They were all very good beer.  The Mad Hatter reminded me of Andrew's home brewed: Mystery Double IPA.  The last two were my favorite, the Brother Thelonious and Dragon's Milk , both very rich dark beers, with spicy flavors.  One of the waiters told me to wait to drink all of the Dragon's milk until after the first dish, because with the Miracle Berry, it tasted like spiked chocolate milk.  It really did!  Andrew was very jealous!

After our drinks we started our Flavor Tripping menu of plates and drinks.




Dish 1: Strawberry Rhubarb. My favorite!  This was a salmon arugula salad with strawberry rhubarb, orange, and ginger.  The dressing came divided into the mustard spread already on the plate, and a the strawberry vinaigrette was in a chemistry pipet.  The drink pairing was a Lambic Vodka, Green Chartreuse, cherry, lime, and sour ale.  We were asked to taste everything separately, and then once ready to "Trip," we bit into the chip with Miracle Berry powder.  Once it started to kick in, all of the bitter flavors turned savory and the sour flavors turned sweet.  The drink was very bitter and sour before the berry, but became very a enjoyable fruity cocktail after.


Dish 2: The Thaw.  This was a pork belly, kombu, maitake soup.  This was very interesting, the broth of the soup was a strange combination of sweet and sour, not sure if it was the miracle berry influencing the flavors, but it kept me coming back for more, until my entire bowl was empty.  This was paired with a Brouwerij Van Steenberge, Atomuim, Pale Ale from Belgium.



Dish 3: Baozi Gyro.  This was 3 lamb gyros, one with hummus, one with tzatziki, and one with tabbouleh.  This dish had the least influence of gastronomy or flavor tripping, but it sure was tasty.  My favorite was the tzatziki, I just like anything with tzatziki. Paired with Abbaye de Leffe a Brown Ale from Belgium.



Dish 4: April Showers.  This was a deconstructed pot pie.  The meat was capon, a rooster who has been castrated to improve it's flesh for food (Gruesome, glad I just looked that up now), resembling a soap bar with iNG printed on it.  It was very tender and flavorful.  The "soap" sat in a bed of miniature veggies and was covered in foam the flavor of buttery crust, very weird, but cool.  The server added some "shampoo" of spinach and mushroom sauce and "conditioner" of garlic sauce.  Finally, a "sponge" of bread, was added to create the crunchiness of the crust the foam did not create. Paired with J. Hofstatter, Lagrein, Alto Adige from Italy 2010.


Dish 5: May Flowers.  This was a beautifully potted plant of dessert!  Yes it was the first of 2 desserts, which made me very happy.  In the pot was layered hazelnuts, then lime curd, then some vanilla cream, and topped with crumbled tea cookies.  When you first taste this dish it resembles the flavors of Key Lime pie.  Then half way through, you take a "shot" of the miracle berry, bite the lemon for some sweet lemonade, then go back to enjoying your potted dessert.  Now that the miracle berry was activated, the dessert tasted like an orange creamsicle. Delicious.  But the best part was that the chef told us one of the purposes of using gastronomy with cooking is to find ways to remove sugar and bad elements of food without removing flavor to make it healthier.  That is exactly what I wanted to hear as I was about to enjoy dessert #2!


 Dish 6: Easter Egg Hunt.  This was a Chocolate Forest Cake in cake form and drink form.  On the plate was a solid egg of chocolate forest cake, coated in chocolate, and then accompanied by some crunchy hay.  Also on the plate was a cracked egg filled with little pieces of chocolate and a cherry sauce drizzled.  They tried to also get the same flavors into our drink pairing.  They used whiskey, Kirsh, and chocolate to create a drink that also brought out all of the Chocolate Forest Cake taste. And to end it with a bang, we were lucky to receive an extra special drink tasting of.. umm I wish I knew what it was but it was a delicious liqueur. 


As we ended dinner, the host of the night, offered us a tour of the kitchens at iNG & Moto (2 doors down), meet the chefs, and see their new garden.  This was one of my top 5 dinners of all time, not only was the food amazing, the experience was just as amazing and I am so happy I was able to experience this with 2 of my best friends!

iNG Kitchen Pool Table

iNG Kitchen with the Chefs and the birthday girl
Behind the Lab Table
Chris Jones
Dining in the Lab
Secret Garden
 I can't wait to come back again to try Moto, and their new top secret restaurant... 





Chicago: Sharing Time

Small dishes for the entire table to share are becoming the new social way to eat and drink!  Spain has been doing this for much longer than the states and I am glad we finally opened up to the idea because tapas are so much fun!

Thursday night at Cafe Ba Ba Reeba, Bailey and I enjoyed 2 pitchers of sangria and tapas while we waited for Christi to get back from school.  We started with the Pintxos Platter of 6 bite sized tapas to share.  This was the perfect sample platter.  Then we ordered the bacon wrapped dates, goat cheese baked in tomato sauce, and scallops on spaghetti squash.  Finally ended the night, with a free dessert, Thanks Yelp!, of dessert pintxos.  These were awesome, small bites of sweet treats, including profiteroles, strawberry rhubarb sorbet, crema catalana, fruit pound cake, marcona almond tart, and a spanish brownie! This place is definitely one of my Chicago Favorites!!!


Chicago is famous for their happy hours. All the professionals downtown finish work and are excited for a drink to start the weekend.  Friday afternoon, after a long day at "work" shopping, we retired to Hub 51 for some drinks.  One of Christi's friends joined us and the 4 of us finished 2 pitches of cocktails.  Cheers to Vacation and Chicago.  One disappointment was the Happy Hour deals, in Santa Barbara HH means great deals on drinks and appetizers, this was not the case in Chicago.   



The Purple Pig, a very popular restaurant in Chicago right off the Magnificent Mile known for their Mediterranean small plates.  Our two favorite dishes here were the chicken skewers with tzatziki, I told you I love it, and the meatball sliders.  As a huge fan of bone marrow I insisted we ordered the bone marrow smear here too.  Unfortunately, it was not at the level of deliciousness Andrew and I experienced at Julienne.  This one was a bit more clumpy and not as savory.  I can't say I wanted to order another.  We also ordered a potato salad and fried pigs ear, which were both okay, but was very oily, oh yes, we are at a Mediterranean restaurant.  Aside from the food being hit or miss, the service was horrible!  I hate to say this but the worst service we received all weekend, I don't think it was all the servers, but ours was rude and gave us no attention.  I really wanted to write much better things about this place.


On Monday afternoon as Bailey and I sadly waited for our departure time, we stopped at Tortas Frontera by Rick Bayless for some margaritas and food.  We ordered the fully dressed guacamole and it was pretty damn good, guac with bacon, toasted pepitas, sun-dried tomatoes, spicy roasted peppers, and queso cotija-fresco! Yes, FULLY DRESSED!  I also ordered their Taqueria salad with Chipotle chicken for the 4 hour plane ride home.  Good decision compared to airplane food. 


Chicago: Brunch

So brunch is big in Chicago and even bigger when the weather is warm.  Well guess what? It was beautiful and warm most of the time we were in the city and we definitely took advantage of brunch!


Friday, we took the Red Line into Chicago and ended up at Yolk.  Yolk is know for their famous red velvet french toast, with cream cheese swirled into the bread itself... Yikes! YUM!!!! We ordered this as our Brunch Appetizer to share for the table.  Great decision Christi! Then we had our savory dish as our meal, I had their Chipotle Chorizo Eggs Benedict.  I wasn't so hot on this one, the chipotle sauce was missing, the eggs were uneven, and the chorizo was dry.  And, most embarrassing moment, the waiter asked if I liked it and I was honest, he told the manager, and she came over and asked me why I didn't like it, I told her.  They took care of me, but I rather none of that happened and I just paid for it. I was about 50 Shades of Red! (Yes, I am reading 50 Shades of Gray.)

On Saturday we took the Red Line to Andersonville where we ate at the Bongo Room. It was a pretty long walk from the train station but we built up an appetite.  It was a very modern/cute place on the main street in Andersonville.  As we walked back to our table, I had a chance to look at what everyone else ordered.  I noticed the Croissant sandwiches were a popular choice.  So obviously that is what I ordered, but I gave it my own twist, "Vegetarian Croissant Sandwich with Bacon please?" Vegetarians must be embarrassed by me, but I wanted all the veggies and bacon too, is that such a crime? No, because it was my favorite Brunch of the Weekend! It was a grilled croissant with melted muenster cheese, spinach, tomato slices, sauteed mushrooms, cucumber, alfalfa sprouts & scallions topped with a over medium egg, and basil mayo, and don't forget the bacon served with house potatoes! I think I need this every Saturday morning, I have to find a place in Santa Barbara which has something similar.

My friend Christi has a sweet tooth in the morning, she ordered the the pretzel pancakes with white chocolate caramel topping from the Bongo Room! They were soooo good, but honestly, devouring the it all by yourself could definitely cause a sugar high.  

On Sunday, we took a nice little walk a few blocks from Christi's house in Lincoln Park to Bourgeois Pig Cafe.  We enjoyed a nice latte and breakfast bowl in the sun on their patio.

BTW: Did you notice my use of public transportation?  I became a pro, and I can totally be a city girl... Andrew, let's move to CHICAGO!

Chicago: Late Night

Who doesn't love champagne toasts and late night treats?

Friday night we headed out to Paris Club, for some celebratory champagne, umm yes for my birthday back in January! Thanks Christi.



When we were on our way home from the Paris Club, the taxi dropped us off right in front of La Bamba with Burrito as Big as Your Head, is advertised in neon letters.  We all though this was very intriguing, even more intriguing when you are inebriated! Yes, I ate a burrito as big as my head, but did I finish it, I don't remember, I hope not!


Saturday night we were once again looking for some after dinner excitement.  Bailey and I headed over to Barrelhouse Flat, which is right down the road from Christi's for some beer and popcorn.  I ordered a 5am Saint, which was a very good choice, pretty proud of myself because I didn't recognize most of the beers on the menu.  The waiter at iNG told us they have amazing popcorn and it wouldn't be right if we didn't try it.  And we actually requested a sampler of all 3 flavors! BBQ Duck (I think), Spinach & Mushroom, and Sea Salt & Olive Oil.  My favorite was the Sea Salt & Olive Oil, don't hate me but I would prefer movie theater popcorn! While we were hanging out at the bar all of our iNG & Moto friends came to celebrate one of the cooks birthdays, and we were invited to the VIP lounge (aka: upstairs).


Night Night


Chicago: Classics

 
Not only is Chicago known for adventurous foodie cuisine, it is also known for it's classics! The Chicago dog and deep dish pizza. At the end of the weekend full of food, we realized we had not have a chance to try out the Chicago classics.

Monday, I spent some time with a co-worker who met me in the city and we went to go visit a few sites for work.  I initially offered to take him out to lunch, but he insisted because he was Chicagoian, he take me out.  I knew that called for some Chicago classics.


At one of our sites, there were some outside tables and yellow umbrellas, he knew right away, they would have Chicago Dogs, and he was right on target.  He thought this might be too simple for me, but little did he know after a weekend of bone marrow, pigs ear, and gastronomy, I was down for something simple.  The Chicago Dog had all of the best toppings, ketchup, mustard, tomatoes, onions, and relish.  These ones were missing the 2 jalapenos he was used to, but it was still just what I wanted.  I couldn't leave Chicago without trying one.


After he dropped me off, I took the "L" back to Christi's to pick up Bailey and my luggage.  While riding I came up with the perfect plan.  Pick up Lou Malnati's Pizzeria, on the way to the airport because it was right on the corner of Christi's street.  Unfortunately, they were closed!



But, because I am the best girlfriend in the world (most of the time), I sent 2 Lou Malnati deep dish pizzas to Andrew to enjoy over the weekend and pretend he was in Chicago too.  When I came home he only ate one of the pizzas, and saved the second to share with me (how sweet!).



Not sure how this compares to the ones at the restaurant, but it was different, good, but different.  I guess I am a NY pizza person.  Sorry, Lou! This pizza, was like a pie, a true pizza pie! The crust was very similar to pie crust and all the fillings were in layers within the pie.  First the cheese, then the sausage, then the sauce, and topped with a little bit of parmigiana cheese.


My trip to Chicago wouldn't have been complete without trying Chicago style pizza, but I know where I am going next, New York! New York Pizza anyone?

Sunday, May 13, 2012

I'm on my way back...

And I can't wait to tell you all about it!

Here is a preview of my weekend! 

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