Tuesday, August 31, 2010
Monday, June 21, 2010
Chicago (Italian) - Aldino's
Aldino’s
626 S. Racine Ave., Chicago, IL; 312-226-9300
Date of Review: June, 2010
http://aldinoschicago.com/
Aldino’s is a nice addition to the already impressive group of excellent Italian restaurants across the entire city that Chicago is home to. They have moved into an area that is highly competitive and are trying to find their own niche. From the looks of it, they have some good ideas of how to get there with an establishment that offers a variety of food and drink related entertainment options.
Aldino’s is located on Racine right off of Harrison a stone’s throw away from Taylor Street. If you didn’t know, Taylor Street is Chicago’s “Little Italy” and is home to many of Chicago’s big name Italian restaurants including Francesca’s, Rosebud and Tuscany not to mention many other traditional restaurants with loyal clientele like Gennaro’s and RoSal’s. Aldino’s offers something different and seems to be successfully inserting itself into this competitive mix. The location on a busy section of Racine with a decent amount of traffic is well thought out as it is a block away from the Racine Blue Line stop and is far enough from Taylor not to be classified as one of the spots on Taylor. They are focusing on using local and sustainable ingredients from all regions of Italy in a style they refer to as Italian comfort food. The waiters, cooks and bartenders are impressive and are all very knowledgeable on the products, dishes, beers and wines that are served. This is a restaurant that prides itself on quality ingredients which includes those that are for sale in the small market that is adjoined to the bar which serves Panini’s and pizzas for lunch and sells organic vegetables, cheeses, olive oils and meats. The market can be reserved for parties and is also used for special events like wine tasting. The bar that is situated between the market and main dining room is worth mentioning because it is much more than what you would expect from a restaurant bar. It is has a long counter with plenty of bar space, a few tables and nice large windows looking out onto Racine Avenue. In addition, there are TV’s to watch sporting events making it a venue itself to enjoy a drink at, a casual meal or an after dinner drink. The main dining room is large and airy with high ceilings, dark wood and well spaced out tables.
The menu has many items that someone that hails from Italy or who has travelled there would enjoy. The dishes aren’t overdone with too many ingredients but offer simplicity and quality. They have a variety of over 15 different appetizers including things you’d expect like bruschetta, prosciutto and veal meatballs to some more adventurous dishes like grilled pheasant sausage with house made giardiniera (which is outstanding) and braised pork terrina. Every appetizer I’ve tried has been excellent including the generous portion of olives for $4, pheasant sausage, roasted beets and grilled octopus.
They have an average size menu of 7 pastas and main dishes with some specials and a few side dishes. I have sampled enough dishes here that I can say with confidence that I don’t think you are really going to go wrong with anything. On one visit, we had the squid ink pasta with braised calamari which was done very well. The pasta was cooked al dente and the taste was perfect with just enough, but not too much squid taste. The bucatini ‘all amatriciana features bucatini pasta with a traditional pasta sauce based on dried pork cheek or guanciale, chili pepper and tomatoes. This subtle sauce is one that creeps up on you until you are finished with the dish and using a piece of bread to make sure the dish is clean with no hint of left over sauce. This place speaks of doing homestyle Italian food and I found out what they meant on my first visit when I ordered one of their specials, porchetta. Porchetta is a traditional home style dish consisting of a boneless pork roast that is layered with a meat stuffing that includes fat and skin and herbs that is then rolled, spitted, and roasted, traditionally over wood. The pork products are local and outstanding as every bit of my slice of porchetta was outstanding with fatty pork belly, tender roast meat and crispy skin. It was served with potatoes that had a bit of spice and a whole lot of wood grilled flavor.
I have been to a wine tasting event on one occasion and the people presenting the products were every bit as knowledgeable about the olive oils, balsamic vinegars and wines they poured as the servers were on the food. The wine tasting event was done in collaboration with Gentile’s wine shop and was great value as we tasted 8 wines and sampled 4 to 5 different types of appetizers for $20. The event was held in the market section of the restaurant and was a great place to socialize and sample menu items in addition to some of the excellent wines featured on their menu.
Aldino’s prices are fair with most appetizers in the 7 to 9 dollar range, pastas from 15-17 and mains around 20. The portions are good size without being obnoxiously large. On our last visit, the bill for our party of 3 came to $150 with tax and tip for 2 appetizers, 3 entrees and 9 drinks between our party of 3.
626 S. Racine Ave., Chicago, IL; 312-226-9300
Date of Review: June, 2010
http://aldinoschicago.com/
Aldino’s is a nice addition to the already impressive group of excellent Italian restaurants across the entire city that Chicago is home to. They have moved into an area that is highly competitive and are trying to find their own niche. From the looks of it, they have some good ideas of how to get there with an establishment that offers a variety of food and drink related entertainment options.
Aldino’s is located on Racine right off of Harrison a stone’s throw away from Taylor Street. If you didn’t know, Taylor Street is Chicago’s “Little Italy” and is home to many of Chicago’s big name Italian restaurants including Francesca’s, Rosebud and Tuscany not to mention many other traditional restaurants with loyal clientele like Gennaro’s and RoSal’s. Aldino’s offers something different and seems to be successfully inserting itself into this competitive mix. The location on a busy section of Racine with a decent amount of traffic is well thought out as it is a block away from the Racine Blue Line stop and is far enough from Taylor not to be classified as one of the spots on Taylor. They are focusing on using local and sustainable ingredients from all regions of Italy in a style they refer to as Italian comfort food. The waiters, cooks and bartenders are impressive and are all very knowledgeable on the products, dishes, beers and wines that are served. This is a restaurant that prides itself on quality ingredients which includes those that are for sale in the small market that is adjoined to the bar which serves Panini’s and pizzas for lunch and sells organic vegetables, cheeses, olive oils and meats. The market can be reserved for parties and is also used for special events like wine tasting. The bar that is situated between the market and main dining room is worth mentioning because it is much more than what you would expect from a restaurant bar. It is has a long counter with plenty of bar space, a few tables and nice large windows looking out onto Racine Avenue. In addition, there are TV’s to watch sporting events making it a venue itself to enjoy a drink at, a casual meal or an after dinner drink. The main dining room is large and airy with high ceilings, dark wood and well spaced out tables.
The menu has many items that someone that hails from Italy or who has travelled there would enjoy. The dishes aren’t overdone with too many ingredients but offer simplicity and quality. They have a variety of over 15 different appetizers including things you’d expect like bruschetta, prosciutto and veal meatballs to some more adventurous dishes like grilled pheasant sausage with house made giardiniera (which is outstanding) and braised pork terrina. Every appetizer I’ve tried has been excellent including the generous portion of olives for $4, pheasant sausage, roasted beets and grilled octopus.
They have an average size menu of 7 pastas and main dishes with some specials and a few side dishes. I have sampled enough dishes here that I can say with confidence that I don’t think you are really going to go wrong with anything. On one visit, we had the squid ink pasta with braised calamari which was done very well. The pasta was cooked al dente and the taste was perfect with just enough, but not too much squid taste. The bucatini ‘all amatriciana features bucatini pasta with a traditional pasta sauce based on dried pork cheek or guanciale, chili pepper and tomatoes. This subtle sauce is one that creeps up on you until you are finished with the dish and using a piece of bread to make sure the dish is clean with no hint of left over sauce. This place speaks of doing homestyle Italian food and I found out what they meant on my first visit when I ordered one of their specials, porchetta. Porchetta is a traditional home style dish consisting of a boneless pork roast that is layered with a meat stuffing that includes fat and skin and herbs that is then rolled, spitted, and roasted, traditionally over wood. The pork products are local and outstanding as every bit of my slice of porchetta was outstanding with fatty pork belly, tender roast meat and crispy skin. It was served with potatoes that had a bit of spice and a whole lot of wood grilled flavor.
I have been to a wine tasting event on one occasion and the people presenting the products were every bit as knowledgeable about the olive oils, balsamic vinegars and wines they poured as the servers were on the food. The wine tasting event was done in collaboration with Gentile’s wine shop and was great value as we tasted 8 wines and sampled 4 to 5 different types of appetizers for $20. The event was held in the market section of the restaurant and was a great place to socialize and sample menu items in addition to some of the excellent wines featured on their menu.
Aldino’s prices are fair with most appetizers in the 7 to 9 dollar range, pastas from 15-17 and mains around 20. The portions are good size without being obnoxiously large. On our last visit, the bill for our party of 3 came to $150 with tax and tip for 2 appetizers, 3 entrees and 9 drinks between our party of 3.
Tuesday, May 25, 2010
Chicago (American) - Mado
Mado
1647 North Milwaukee Ave., Chicago, IL; 773-342-2340
Date of Review: May, 2010
http://madorestaurantchicago.com/
If you like local produce, organic vegetables and grass fed meat, you will appreciate Mado and what it is trying and succeeding in doing very successfully. If you don’t value those aspects of a meal, you might still want to swing by to try a very good BYOB restaurant in the trendy Wicker Park neighborhood. Mado is a small restaurant near the busy North, Milwaukee and Damen intersection that is located just far enough from the chaos of this junction to allow for a quiet dining experience. The restaurant has a clean design that is minimalistic and works well. While they have traditional menus, the ever changing menus are also displayed tastefully on the chalkboards hanging on the walls.
The service is efficient and the servers are extremely knowledgeable of the ingredients and the menu which is important given the importance of the ingredients and where they come from at a restaurant like Mado that hangs it hat on meat and produce that comes from Midwestern farmers.
For appetizers, the roasted carrots with goat cheese, pistachios and cumin honey are out of this world with a nice sweet flavor that is a perfect contrast to the flavors and textures of the almonds and cheese they are served with. On another occasion we had the roasted beets which were served the same way and were also excellent. I find myself to favor vegetables at restaurants like Mado that use organic and local produce as they seem to be able to do wonderfully creative things with the freshest carrots, lettuces, brussel sprouts, beets, etc. It is nice to see restaurants treat vegetables as something special as opposed to something additional. We have also had the very good spicy green salad which is served with smoked trout, farm egg, sourdough croutons and mustard vinaigrette.
This is our second visit to Mado and the 2nd time we ordered the wood grilled hangar steak. Its grass fed beef and it is that good. The steak is served sliced surrounding a bed of polenta. The creamy gorgonzola polenta is gluttonously rich but almost a bit too much for me as I would prefer an accompaniment on the lighter side. On both of our visits to Mado, we were only able to finish half the portion of polenta. The steak was served medium rare and cooked perfectly with a tad bit of crispiness on the outside and was absolutely luscious within. We savored every bite. We also tried the ever changing pasta special on our last visit which is offered as either an appetizer or an entrée. The penne pasta wasn’t homemade but was cooked al dente and was served in a tasty pork bolognese that was solid and which we both enjoyed.
We were too full for dessert on this evening but on our last visit to Mado, we had a fabulous vanilla bean rice pudding with golden raisins and almonds that was rich, creamy and out of this world.
Mado’s prices are about what you would expect given the caliber of the food but if you are consuming alcohol, the BYOB policy turns it into a value for a gourmet meal. Our total bill came to $90 with tax and tip for 2 entrees and 2 appetizers. Mado prides itself on quality ingredients and succeeds on every level. They are also doing some cool and unique things such as hosting pig butchering demos where the Chef butchers a pig, explains how each part of the pig is used, and provides each attendee with a sampling of fresh pork to bring home.
1647 North Milwaukee Ave., Chicago, IL; 773-342-2340
Date of Review: May, 2010
http://madorestaurantchicago.com/
If you like local produce, organic vegetables and grass fed meat, you will appreciate Mado and what it is trying and succeeding in doing very successfully. If you don’t value those aspects of a meal, you might still want to swing by to try a very good BYOB restaurant in the trendy Wicker Park neighborhood. Mado is a small restaurant near the busy North, Milwaukee and Damen intersection that is located just far enough from the chaos of this junction to allow for a quiet dining experience. The restaurant has a clean design that is minimalistic and works well. While they have traditional menus, the ever changing menus are also displayed tastefully on the chalkboards hanging on the walls.
The service is efficient and the servers are extremely knowledgeable of the ingredients and the menu which is important given the importance of the ingredients and where they come from at a restaurant like Mado that hangs it hat on meat and produce that comes from Midwestern farmers.
For appetizers, the roasted carrots with goat cheese, pistachios and cumin honey are out of this world with a nice sweet flavor that is a perfect contrast to the flavors and textures of the almonds and cheese they are served with. On another occasion we had the roasted beets which were served the same way and were also excellent. I find myself to favor vegetables at restaurants like Mado that use organic and local produce as they seem to be able to do wonderfully creative things with the freshest carrots, lettuces, brussel sprouts, beets, etc. It is nice to see restaurants treat vegetables as something special as opposed to something additional. We have also had the very good spicy green salad which is served with smoked trout, farm egg, sourdough croutons and mustard vinaigrette.
This is our second visit to Mado and the 2nd time we ordered the wood grilled hangar steak. Its grass fed beef and it is that good. The steak is served sliced surrounding a bed of polenta. The creamy gorgonzola polenta is gluttonously rich but almost a bit too much for me as I would prefer an accompaniment on the lighter side. On both of our visits to Mado, we were only able to finish half the portion of polenta. The steak was served medium rare and cooked perfectly with a tad bit of crispiness on the outside and was absolutely luscious within. We savored every bite. We also tried the ever changing pasta special on our last visit which is offered as either an appetizer or an entrée. The penne pasta wasn’t homemade but was cooked al dente and was served in a tasty pork bolognese that was solid and which we both enjoyed.
We were too full for dessert on this evening but on our last visit to Mado, we had a fabulous vanilla bean rice pudding with golden raisins and almonds that was rich, creamy and out of this world.
Mado’s prices are about what you would expect given the caliber of the food but if you are consuming alcohol, the BYOB policy turns it into a value for a gourmet meal. Our total bill came to $90 with tax and tip for 2 entrees and 2 appetizers. Mado prides itself on quality ingredients and succeeds on every level. They are also doing some cool and unique things such as hosting pig butchering demos where the Chef butchers a pig, explains how each part of the pig is used, and provides each attendee with a sampling of fresh pork to bring home.
Monday, May 24, 2010
Chicago (Turkish) - Café Orchid
Café Orchid
1746 W. Addison St, Chicago, IL; 773-327-3808
Date of Review: May, 2010
http://cafeorchid.com/
On the heels of a couple of wonderful dining experiences at one of Chicago’s Turkish dining options, Turquoise, and based on a recommendation from a friend, my wife and I decided to give Café Orchid a shot. We are awfully glad we did. On a beautiful Saturday in May after getting a jog in by the lake, we were famished and debating where to go for lunch. As my mind continued to mull over a few options while I drove up Clark street towards Irving Park, I made a turn onto Lincoln Avenue and remembered Café Orchid.
Café Orchid is a cute little restaurant in a small, somewhat dilapidated strip mall near the busy intersection of Lincoln, Addison and Ravenswood. The busy intersection makes it somewhat difficult to pull into the restaurant but there is plenty of street parking around. By the looks of the restaurant from the outside, you would not have any idea that this is any more than a quick carry out spot, but it is cute and romantic inside almost offering an oasis from the busy intersection just outside. The heated and attractively decorated patio doubles the size of the restaurant and is extremely pleasant with small vases containing orchids on each table.
Café Orchid is a BYOB mom and pop spot and you can tell right away that everything here is prepared freshly. As we sat outside waiting for our appetizers to arrive, I could hear the chef at work in the kitchen chopping away preparing made to order dishes. For me, that makes everything taste just a little bit better. For starters, we had hummus and ezme which were both served with Turkish bread. The hummus was ordinary but decent; however the ezme was out of this world. Ezme is chopped spicy roasted red bell peppers and green peppers with tomatoes, garlic walnuts and parsley. It was full of wonderful flavor and we couldn’t get enough of it as we wiped the plate clean. Truth be told, there were a number of tasty appetizers which made it very hard to choose two. I can’t wait to sample some of the others on my next visit, although the ezme will be tough to pass on.
For our lunch entrees, we both went for lamb. Ivy went for the lamb cubes marinated with vegetable oil, lemon juice, paprika, oregano, black pepper and onion. It was served with bulgur and was outstanding. We were both extremely satisfied with the flavor of not just the lamb but the bulgur. I went for the kofte sandwich which is served wrapped in thin Lebanese bread, or lavash, and served with fresh tomatoes and lettuce on top. Kofte is ground lamb and beef with spices. I guess you could say that it is the Turkish version of a meatball and it is very flavorful. Both entrees were served with a crisp salad, of crunchy green peppers, lettuce, tomato and onion dressed with olive oil and lemon.
Everything was high quality with excellent ingredients, tasty and very reasonable as our total bill was $35 with tax and tip. I cannot wait to go back for dinner as I have a hunch that Café Orchid will become a go to place for me and my wife.
1746 W. Addison St, Chicago, IL; 773-327-3808
Date of Review: May, 2010
http://cafeorchid.com/
On the heels of a couple of wonderful dining experiences at one of Chicago’s Turkish dining options, Turquoise, and based on a recommendation from a friend, my wife and I decided to give Café Orchid a shot. We are awfully glad we did. On a beautiful Saturday in May after getting a jog in by the lake, we were famished and debating where to go for lunch. As my mind continued to mull over a few options while I drove up Clark street towards Irving Park, I made a turn onto Lincoln Avenue and remembered Café Orchid.
Café Orchid is a cute little restaurant in a small, somewhat dilapidated strip mall near the busy intersection of Lincoln, Addison and Ravenswood. The busy intersection makes it somewhat difficult to pull into the restaurant but there is plenty of street parking around. By the looks of the restaurant from the outside, you would not have any idea that this is any more than a quick carry out spot, but it is cute and romantic inside almost offering an oasis from the busy intersection just outside. The heated and attractively decorated patio doubles the size of the restaurant and is extremely pleasant with small vases containing orchids on each table.
Café Orchid is a BYOB mom and pop spot and you can tell right away that everything here is prepared freshly. As we sat outside waiting for our appetizers to arrive, I could hear the chef at work in the kitchen chopping away preparing made to order dishes. For me, that makes everything taste just a little bit better. For starters, we had hummus and ezme which were both served with Turkish bread. The hummus was ordinary but decent; however the ezme was out of this world. Ezme is chopped spicy roasted red bell peppers and green peppers with tomatoes, garlic walnuts and parsley. It was full of wonderful flavor and we couldn’t get enough of it as we wiped the plate clean. Truth be told, there were a number of tasty appetizers which made it very hard to choose two. I can’t wait to sample some of the others on my next visit, although the ezme will be tough to pass on.
For our lunch entrees, we both went for lamb. Ivy went for the lamb cubes marinated with vegetable oil, lemon juice, paprika, oregano, black pepper and onion. It was served with bulgur and was outstanding. We were both extremely satisfied with the flavor of not just the lamb but the bulgur. I went for the kofte sandwich which is served wrapped in thin Lebanese bread, or lavash, and served with fresh tomatoes and lettuce on top. Kofte is ground lamb and beef with spices. I guess you could say that it is the Turkish version of a meatball and it is very flavorful. Both entrees were served with a crisp salad, of crunchy green peppers, lettuce, tomato and onion dressed with olive oil and lemon.
Everything was high quality with excellent ingredients, tasty and very reasonable as our total bill was $35 with tax and tip. I cannot wait to go back for dinner as I have a hunch that Café Orchid will become a go to place for me and my wife.
Friday, April 09, 2010
Chicago (Turkish) - Turquoise Restaurant
Turquoise Restaurant
2147 W Roscoe St, Chicago, IL 60618; 773-549-3523
Date of Review: January, 2009; Updated April, 2010
http://www.turquoisedining.com/
Turquoise is a cute little Roscoe Village neighborhood restaurant that specializes in Turkish and Mediterranean cuisine. The atmosphere is warm and quaint with a small bar in the front, seating for 40-50 and dim lighting throughout that gives the restaurant a romantic feel. Turquoise may be a small restaurant, but it is a popular one as we saw many walk-ins as we waited for our guests to arrive. I suggest making a reservation on a Friday or Saturday.
The servers are friendly, efficient and thoughtful. On one visit when we were catching up with some friends that we hadn’t see in awhile, we weren’t pushed to order as the server read her guests and realized that we were catching up and just weren’t ready to get to the menu. The service was excellent and she did a good job of realizing (without even asking) that we wanted to space out our meal and order entrees when the appetizers arrived.
For appetizers, the Turkish spreads (mujver and sogurme) are excellent. The mujver features 3 zucchini pancakes with scallions, feta cheese, mint, fresh dill and a creamy yogurt garlic sauce. With all of these ingredients in one dish, we expected a tasty dish and got one. The sogurme featured smoked eggplant, creamy yogurt, garlic, brown butter, and walnuts toasted in crushed red pepper. The smokiness of the dish was notable and the dish was flavorful, although a bit heavy for my taste. I also highly recommend the diver sea scallops on the appetizer menu which include 3 gigantic scallops served on top of creamy guacamole with small scoops of tasty salsa. For $9.95, I challenge anyone to find better value for scallops of this quality in Chicago.
The menu has a nice variety of dishes from home made pastas to meaty kebabs to a variety of interesting seafood and vegetarian dishes. Everything I have seen come out of the kitchen looks excellent and I am particularly interested in trying the lamb shank and short rib on top of a bed of polenta which looked fantastic. For the dishes I have tried, the imam bayildi is a filling and tasty vegetarian option that includes pan roasted baby eggplant stuffed with red pepper, onion, tomatoes, garlic, pine nuts and is served with rice pilaf. The pide is a thin flat bread with your choice of ground beef, diced lamb or cheese and eggs. I chose the lamb and found the dish to be a cross between a Turkish version of pizza and stuffed naan bread. It was a tasty, filling entrée that would probably also do well as an appetizer for the table. They have many different versions of kebabs including the beyti kebab which features hand chopped lamb, garlic, shallots, and parsley wrapped in home-made flat bread. The best one I’ve tried to date is the onion kebap which includes an innovative array of flavors including hand chopped lamb, caramelized shallot, garlic, rosemary, raisins, cherry tomatoes, and bok choy braised in a tasty pomegranate sauce. Every element of the dish was excellent and the sauce was bread sopping good. Speaking of bread, the complimentary Turkish bread offered is fantastic. On our last visit, we tried the pricey (at $31.95) but well worth it seafood stew which featured a generous portion of fresh shrimp, calamari, scallops, mussels, salmon, tuna and a small lobster tail with vegetables and garlic. The seafood was solid although the tomato based sauce wasn’t as exciting as I had hoped.
The kazandibi is a solid dessert which is a cross between crème brulee and flan. At first I found the taste to be average, but after the 3rd bite I really started to enjoy the caramelized butter and sugar flavor in the dish.
On one visit, our total bill came to $200 for 2 appetizers, 4 entrees, 2 bottle of wine and 1 dessert. This included tax and tip. Most entrees on the menu range from $12.95 to $20 and they have an extensive and reasonably priced wine list. With solid food, a nice atmosphere and great value for the quality and quantity offered, Turquoise is a winner worth many visits.
2147 W Roscoe St, Chicago, IL 60618; 773-549-3523
Date of Review: January, 2009; Updated April, 2010
http://www.turquoisedining.com/
Turquoise is a cute little Roscoe Village neighborhood restaurant that specializes in Turkish and Mediterranean cuisine. The atmosphere is warm and quaint with a small bar in the front, seating for 40-50 and dim lighting throughout that gives the restaurant a romantic feel. Turquoise may be a small restaurant, but it is a popular one as we saw many walk-ins as we waited for our guests to arrive. I suggest making a reservation on a Friday or Saturday.
The servers are friendly, efficient and thoughtful. On one visit when we were catching up with some friends that we hadn’t see in awhile, we weren’t pushed to order as the server read her guests and realized that we were catching up and just weren’t ready to get to the menu. The service was excellent and she did a good job of realizing (without even asking) that we wanted to space out our meal and order entrees when the appetizers arrived.
For appetizers, the Turkish spreads (mujver and sogurme) are excellent. The mujver features 3 zucchini pancakes with scallions, feta cheese, mint, fresh dill and a creamy yogurt garlic sauce. With all of these ingredients in one dish, we expected a tasty dish and got one. The sogurme featured smoked eggplant, creamy yogurt, garlic, brown butter, and walnuts toasted in crushed red pepper. The smokiness of the dish was notable and the dish was flavorful, although a bit heavy for my taste. I also highly recommend the diver sea scallops on the appetizer menu which include 3 gigantic scallops served on top of creamy guacamole with small scoops of tasty salsa. For $9.95, I challenge anyone to find better value for scallops of this quality in Chicago.
The menu has a nice variety of dishes from home made pastas to meaty kebabs to a variety of interesting seafood and vegetarian dishes. Everything I have seen come out of the kitchen looks excellent and I am particularly interested in trying the lamb shank and short rib on top of a bed of polenta which looked fantastic. For the dishes I have tried, the imam bayildi is a filling and tasty vegetarian option that includes pan roasted baby eggplant stuffed with red pepper, onion, tomatoes, garlic, pine nuts and is served with rice pilaf. The pide is a thin flat bread with your choice of ground beef, diced lamb or cheese and eggs. I chose the lamb and found the dish to be a cross between a Turkish version of pizza and stuffed naan bread. It was a tasty, filling entrée that would probably also do well as an appetizer for the table. They have many different versions of kebabs including the beyti kebab which features hand chopped lamb, garlic, shallots, and parsley wrapped in home-made flat bread. The best one I’ve tried to date is the onion kebap which includes an innovative array of flavors including hand chopped lamb, caramelized shallot, garlic, rosemary, raisins, cherry tomatoes, and bok choy braised in a tasty pomegranate sauce. Every element of the dish was excellent and the sauce was bread sopping good. Speaking of bread, the complimentary Turkish bread offered is fantastic. On our last visit, we tried the pricey (at $31.95) but well worth it seafood stew which featured a generous portion of fresh shrimp, calamari, scallops, mussels, salmon, tuna and a small lobster tail with vegetables and garlic. The seafood was solid although the tomato based sauce wasn’t as exciting as I had hoped.
The kazandibi is a solid dessert which is a cross between crème brulee and flan. At first I found the taste to be average, but after the 3rd bite I really started to enjoy the caramelized butter and sugar flavor in the dish.
On one visit, our total bill came to $200 for 2 appetizers, 4 entrees, 2 bottle of wine and 1 dessert. This included tax and tip. Most entrees on the menu range from $12.95 to $20 and they have an extensive and reasonably priced wine list. With solid food, a nice atmosphere and great value for the quality and quantity offered, Turquoise is a winner worth many visits.
Friday, March 26, 2010
Chicago (Wine Bar and Cafe) - Rootstock
Rootstock
954 North California Avenue, Chicago, Illinois; Phone 773-292-1616
Date of Review: March, 2010
http://rootstockbar.com/
Rootstock is a wine bar and restaurant that opened in Humboldt Park a little over a year ago. It was opened by some friends who used to work together at Webster’s Wine Bar and a chef that used to work at Cafe Spiaggia. They wanted to create an environment that was casual, relaxing and focused on small producers of wine and beer and a food menu that puts emphasis on sustainable farming. The owners have succeeded in fulfilling their objectives and more importantly have created a relaxing environment that entices one to stick around for a bit while enjoying another drink or bite to eat.
Rootstock is located on a quiet stretch of California Avenue near the intersection of Augusta by the California Clipper. Street parking is easy to find in this area which has a mix of restaurants and shops and residential condo buildings. If you look for a door in the front like I did, look again. The restaurant/bar is accessed via an alley that leads into the restaurant through a side door. The interior has dim lighting and a mix and match of plates, chairs and tables that add to the aura, charm and laid back atmosphere of the place. There is seating for 50 or so at tables, the bar and a counter. They play jazz at just the perfect decibel level that allows you to appreciate the music while still allowing you to chat with your guests.
As for the wine and beer menu, they have an impressive selection of bottled beers with detailed descriptions, including the alcohol content. They focus on small producers so don’t expect much to look familiar although you should be impressed with whatever you choose. The wine menu is expansive and equally impressive. The food menu is a small, diverse offering of reasonably priced bar plates, salads, flatbreads (or crusts), larger plates and meat and cheese platters. To begin, the charcuterie and cheese board (3 meats and 3 cheeses) is the most impressive selection of this type I’ve had in Chicago. It is pricy at $21 but well worth it as the portions and quality of the meats, cheeses and condiments are all top notch. We also ordered the “crust” topped with bourbon glazed mushrooms, vivace cheese and herb salad. It was crispy and equally good as you can’t beat a flatbread that is finished with fresh herbs. We finished our meal with the burger and frites with house made ketchup. My only complaint about the solid (but not quite stellar) burger is the bacon-scallion aioli layered on the bun. While tasty, it was a bit too rich for my tastes and I think another flavor selection would go better with the high quality meat. The frites were very good.
My wife and I walked out of Rootstock with a hefty bill of $135 (that includes tax and tip). We each had 4 drinks and shared 4 separate dishes so our large bill was related to our consumption rather than the costs of our selections. We also walked out knowing we had discovered a new gem a mile from our house that we will visit often. Lastly, we left genuinely feeling like the owners we talked too cared about our experience at Rootstock and appreciated the time we spent at their establishment. Here’s a toast to them.
954 North California Avenue, Chicago, Illinois; Phone 773-292-1616
Date of Review: March, 2010
http://rootstockbar.com/
Rootstock is a wine bar and restaurant that opened in Humboldt Park a little over a year ago. It was opened by some friends who used to work together at Webster’s Wine Bar and a chef that used to work at Cafe Spiaggia. They wanted to create an environment that was casual, relaxing and focused on small producers of wine and beer and a food menu that puts emphasis on sustainable farming. The owners have succeeded in fulfilling their objectives and more importantly have created a relaxing environment that entices one to stick around for a bit while enjoying another drink or bite to eat.
Rootstock is located on a quiet stretch of California Avenue near the intersection of Augusta by the California Clipper. Street parking is easy to find in this area which has a mix of restaurants and shops and residential condo buildings. If you look for a door in the front like I did, look again. The restaurant/bar is accessed via an alley that leads into the restaurant through a side door. The interior has dim lighting and a mix and match of plates, chairs and tables that add to the aura, charm and laid back atmosphere of the place. There is seating for 50 or so at tables, the bar and a counter. They play jazz at just the perfect decibel level that allows you to appreciate the music while still allowing you to chat with your guests.
As for the wine and beer menu, they have an impressive selection of bottled beers with detailed descriptions, including the alcohol content. They focus on small producers so don’t expect much to look familiar although you should be impressed with whatever you choose. The wine menu is expansive and equally impressive. The food menu is a small, diverse offering of reasonably priced bar plates, salads, flatbreads (or crusts), larger plates and meat and cheese platters. To begin, the charcuterie and cheese board (3 meats and 3 cheeses) is the most impressive selection of this type I’ve had in Chicago. It is pricy at $21 but well worth it as the portions and quality of the meats, cheeses and condiments are all top notch. We also ordered the “crust” topped with bourbon glazed mushrooms, vivace cheese and herb salad. It was crispy and equally good as you can’t beat a flatbread that is finished with fresh herbs. We finished our meal with the burger and frites with house made ketchup. My only complaint about the solid (but not quite stellar) burger is the bacon-scallion aioli layered on the bun. While tasty, it was a bit too rich for my tastes and I think another flavor selection would go better with the high quality meat. The frites were very good.
My wife and I walked out of Rootstock with a hefty bill of $135 (that includes tax and tip). We each had 4 drinks and shared 4 separate dishes so our large bill was related to our consumption rather than the costs of our selections. We also walked out knowing we had discovered a new gem a mile from our house that we will visit often. Lastly, we left genuinely feeling like the owners we talked too cared about our experience at Rootstock and appreciated the time we spent at their establishment. Here’s a toast to them.
Friday, March 12, 2010
River Grove (Italian) - Da Luciano
Da Luciano
8343 W. Grand Avenue, River Grove, Illinois; Phone 708-453-1000
Date of Review: March, 2010
http://www.dalucianos.com/index.cfm
Da Luciano is a no frills Italian “joint” with good food that smells and feels old school from the minute you walk into the restaurant. It actually reminds me of the restaurant in the movie the Godfather, Part 1 where Michael Corleone executed the crooked cop McCluskey. If you don’t remember the exact verbiage, I’ll help you.
Michael Corleone wanted “a public place -- a bar, a restaurant -- some place where there's people so I feel safe.” The venue ended up being Louis' Restaurant in the Bronx. When asked if anybody knew the restaurant, Tessio said ‘Yeah, sure, I do. It's perfect for us. A small family place, good food. Everyone minds his business. It's perfect. Pete: they got an old-fashion' toilet -- you know, the box, and - and - and - ah the chain-thing. We might be able to tape the gun behind it.”
While there are no guns in the toilet (at least I didn’t notice any), Da Luciano is small street side restaurant that you would imagine local Italian families frequent regularly. Put another way, it is the type of place where people feel comfortable dining in shorts in the summer or in a jumpsuit for one particular patron on the evening of our visit. The restaurant is small and basic with nothing fancy about it. There is seating for less than 30 in the main room that also houses a small bar and the kitchen in the back. The adjoining room was either under construction or was being reorganized for a private event as there was seating for an additional 60-90 but it was completely empty during our visit.
I first heard about this restaurant when I saw it on Check Please about a year ago. It is known for its generous portions of home style cooking and is also known for its gluten free kitchen. People that have an allergy to gluten have pretty much eliminated pasta from their diet. Places like Da Luciano allow them to once again enjoy home cooked pasta.
My family celebrated a few birthdays here on a nice March evening. We started with an order of lightly breaded fried calamari ($7) that was served with cocktail sauce. The calamari was high quality and anything but rubbery. We also had asparagus parmigian ($7) which consisted of large spears of fresh asparagus with an olive oil and parmigian crust which was outstanding. We used the warm crusty bread to make sure none of the sauce from the asparagus dish went to waste.
All entrees are served with a salad or soup. A couple of us ordered the straciatella which I found to be a bit too salty for me. The salad was a standard house salad which was good with decent Italian dressing that was better with a bit of the creamy garlic dressing mixed in. My brother in law and I decided to split the 2 homemade pasta entrees. The homemade pastas were rotolo (a pasta roll stuffed with ricotta and spinach) and manicotti filled with ricotta. The pasta was soft and chewy and the sauces were excellent. The vodka sauce we chose on the rotolo, while a bit rich for me, was outstanding. We had spicy and fresh arrabiatta sauce on the manicotti that was more of spicy tomato mixture than a puree. Other entrees we had were the shrimp, broccoli and linguini in olive oil and garlic sauce, chicken cacciatore and zuppe di pesce. Of these dishes, the rich and flavorful marinara sauce on the chicken cacciatore stood out the most. While I wasn’t blown away by any particular dish, I enjoyed everything I ate and found the large portiodn and reasonable prices (10$- 12$) be an excellent value.
We were too full for dessert as we exited the restaurant with leftovers. Overall, Da Luciano is a go to Italian spot with generous a range of reasonably priced high and quality standard Italian dishes.
8343 W. Grand Avenue, River Grove, Illinois; Phone 708-453-1000
Date of Review: March, 2010
http://www.dalucianos.com/index.cfm
Da Luciano is a no frills Italian “joint” with good food that smells and feels old school from the minute you walk into the restaurant. It actually reminds me of the restaurant in the movie the Godfather, Part 1 where Michael Corleone executed the crooked cop McCluskey. If you don’t remember the exact verbiage, I’ll help you.
Michael Corleone wanted “a public place -- a bar, a restaurant -- some place where there's people so I feel safe.” The venue ended up being Louis' Restaurant in the Bronx. When asked if anybody knew the restaurant, Tessio said ‘Yeah, sure, I do. It's perfect for us. A small family place, good food. Everyone minds his business. It's perfect. Pete: they got an old-fashion' toilet -- you know, the box, and - and - and - ah the chain-thing. We might be able to tape the gun behind it.”
While there are no guns in the toilet (at least I didn’t notice any), Da Luciano is small street side restaurant that you would imagine local Italian families frequent regularly. Put another way, it is the type of place where people feel comfortable dining in shorts in the summer or in a jumpsuit for one particular patron on the evening of our visit. The restaurant is small and basic with nothing fancy about it. There is seating for less than 30 in the main room that also houses a small bar and the kitchen in the back. The adjoining room was either under construction or was being reorganized for a private event as there was seating for an additional 60-90 but it was completely empty during our visit.
I first heard about this restaurant when I saw it on Check Please about a year ago. It is known for its generous portions of home style cooking and is also known for its gluten free kitchen. People that have an allergy to gluten have pretty much eliminated pasta from their diet. Places like Da Luciano allow them to once again enjoy home cooked pasta.
My family celebrated a few birthdays here on a nice March evening. We started with an order of lightly breaded fried calamari ($7) that was served with cocktail sauce. The calamari was high quality and anything but rubbery. We also had asparagus parmigian ($7) which consisted of large spears of fresh asparagus with an olive oil and parmigian crust which was outstanding. We used the warm crusty bread to make sure none of the sauce from the asparagus dish went to waste.
All entrees are served with a salad or soup. A couple of us ordered the straciatella which I found to be a bit too salty for me. The salad was a standard house salad which was good with decent Italian dressing that was better with a bit of the creamy garlic dressing mixed in. My brother in law and I decided to split the 2 homemade pasta entrees. The homemade pastas were rotolo (a pasta roll stuffed with ricotta and spinach) and manicotti filled with ricotta. The pasta was soft and chewy and the sauces were excellent. The vodka sauce we chose on the rotolo, while a bit rich for me, was outstanding. We had spicy and fresh arrabiatta sauce on the manicotti that was more of spicy tomato mixture than a puree. Other entrees we had were the shrimp, broccoli and linguini in olive oil and garlic sauce, chicken cacciatore and zuppe di pesce. Of these dishes, the rich and flavorful marinara sauce on the chicken cacciatore stood out the most. While I wasn’t blown away by any particular dish, I enjoyed everything I ate and found the large portiodn and reasonable prices (10$- 12$) be an excellent value.
We were too full for dessert as we exited the restaurant with leftovers. Overall, Da Luciano is a go to Italian spot with generous a range of reasonably priced high and quality standard Italian dishes.
Friday, February 05, 2010
Chicago (American) - Revolution Brewing Company
Revolution Brewing Company
2323 N. Milwaukee Ave., Chicago, IL; Phone (773) 227-BREW [2739]
Date of Review: February, 2010
http://revbrew.com/
Revolution Brewing Company is the latest new addition to Logan Square and it is a mighty impressive addition at first glance. I came on the first full day they opened and they did not fail to impress. They didn’t spare any expense on this long awaited brew pub. The décor with the wood walls, impressive and large circular bar, neatly designed iron fist beer pulls and open environment with a large seating area are all impressive. I was part of the eager crowd waiting their first Revolution Brewing Company experience. There was a significant wait for a table but I was able to snag a seat at the bar.
The beer menu includes 4 beers made in house with another 3 scheduled for release. I sampled all four and was impressed with each. I am more of a lager / pilsner / ale guy and particularly enjoyed the Cross of Gold ale which had a nice flavor with a perfect amount of hop finish. The Eugene porter was rich and robust and the Iron Fist pale ale was also impressive. They also feature 6-8 other brews trying to focus as much as possible on local Chicago breweries like Half Acre, Metropolitan Brewing Company and Goose Island.
The food appears to be every bit as good as the décor and the beer. The owners of another favorite of mine, Handlebar, are involved in this venture so I have been excited to sample the fare at Revolution Brewing Company. The menu is quite different from Handlebar, which is predominantly vegetarian, innovate and tasty. Nearly every item on the menu at Revolution is original in some way from the bacon fat popcorn, sweet potato cake and home-made sausage and ham appetizers to the ten different pizza varieties (including a duck confit option), excellent burgers and small list (5) of entrees. Based on my first experience, I expect Revolution Brewing Company to challenge Hopleaf for best food served in a bar like setting. On my first visit (and I cannot wait to come back), I only sampled 2 menu items and I was impressed by both. I did glance at many of the other patrons plates and everything I saw (including Fish and Chips and Smoked Pulled Pork) made me hungry. The Applewood Smoked Wings ($9) served with Blue cheese potato salad & dipping sauce are outstanding. They had a nice degree of spice and you could really taste the smoked flavor in the wings. For an entrée, I went for the burger as they have 4 different innovative versions featuring toppings like pulled pork, roasted beets, organic eggs and beer onions. I had the Farm Burger ($12) which featured baby spinach, roasted beet, horseradish cream and organic egg on a house made bun. This large burger was extremely tasty in every facet from the excellent taste of the meat to the sweet thick slices of beet and tasty bun. The only thing that it could have made it better would have been a bit more horseradish cream which I had trouble tasting given all the other flavors in each bite. This burger stacks up against Chicago’s best. The hand cut fries (you can also get garlic cream cheese mashed potato or blue cheese potato salad) were tasty and crispy. Regarding the kitchen, it has an eye catching pizza oven and is open air and viewable to the entire restaurant.
All of the burgers and sandwiches are between 10 and 13 dollars which is decent value given the size and quality while entrees run from $14 to $27 for the 16 ounce Angus Rib Eye Steak. Beers are in the 5$ to 6$ range. The prices are about what you would expect for a place of Revolution Brewing Company’s caliber.
2323 N. Milwaukee Ave., Chicago, IL; Phone (773) 227-BREW [2739]
Date of Review: February, 2010
http://revbrew.com/
Revolution Brewing Company is the latest new addition to Logan Square and it is a mighty impressive addition at first glance. I came on the first full day they opened and they did not fail to impress. They didn’t spare any expense on this long awaited brew pub. The décor with the wood walls, impressive and large circular bar, neatly designed iron fist beer pulls and open environment with a large seating area are all impressive. I was part of the eager crowd waiting their first Revolution Brewing Company experience. There was a significant wait for a table but I was able to snag a seat at the bar.
The beer menu includes 4 beers made in house with another 3 scheduled for release. I sampled all four and was impressed with each. I am more of a lager / pilsner / ale guy and particularly enjoyed the Cross of Gold ale which had a nice flavor with a perfect amount of hop finish. The Eugene porter was rich and robust and the Iron Fist pale ale was also impressive. They also feature 6-8 other brews trying to focus as much as possible on local Chicago breweries like Half Acre, Metropolitan Brewing Company and Goose Island.
The food appears to be every bit as good as the décor and the beer. The owners of another favorite of mine, Handlebar, are involved in this venture so I have been excited to sample the fare at Revolution Brewing Company. The menu is quite different from Handlebar, which is predominantly vegetarian, innovate and tasty. Nearly every item on the menu at Revolution is original in some way from the bacon fat popcorn, sweet potato cake and home-made sausage and ham appetizers to the ten different pizza varieties (including a duck confit option), excellent burgers and small list (5) of entrees. Based on my first experience, I expect Revolution Brewing Company to challenge Hopleaf for best food served in a bar like setting. On my first visit (and I cannot wait to come back), I only sampled 2 menu items and I was impressed by both. I did glance at many of the other patrons plates and everything I saw (including Fish and Chips and Smoked Pulled Pork) made me hungry. The Applewood Smoked Wings ($9) served with Blue cheese potato salad & dipping sauce are outstanding. They had a nice degree of spice and you could really taste the smoked flavor in the wings. For an entrée, I went for the burger as they have 4 different innovative versions featuring toppings like pulled pork, roasted beets, organic eggs and beer onions. I had the Farm Burger ($12) which featured baby spinach, roasted beet, horseradish cream and organic egg on a house made bun. This large burger was extremely tasty in every facet from the excellent taste of the meat to the sweet thick slices of beet and tasty bun. The only thing that it could have made it better would have been a bit more horseradish cream which I had trouble tasting given all the other flavors in each bite. This burger stacks up against Chicago’s best. The hand cut fries (you can also get garlic cream cheese mashed potato or blue cheese potato salad) were tasty and crispy. Regarding the kitchen, it has an eye catching pizza oven and is open air and viewable to the entire restaurant.
All of the burgers and sandwiches are between 10 and 13 dollars which is decent value given the size and quality while entrees run from $14 to $27 for the 16 ounce Angus Rib Eye Steak. Beers are in the 5$ to 6$ range. The prices are about what you would expect for a place of Revolution Brewing Company’s caliber.
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