Chicago Currents
Restaurants full of made-for-these-times ideas and brio keep blowing into the Windy City. Barbara Revsine table-hops what's new, cool, and hot.
Barbara Revsin
Posted: December 31, 1969
Election night was unseasonably balmy, and the overflow crowd gathered in Grant Park to celebrate Chicagoan Barack Obama's victory reveled in the warmth. The celebratory mood was short-lived, however. Like the temperatures, the economy plummeted, and restaurants, including a bumper crop of newcomers, tweaked their game plans.
Economical Sunday night suppers showed up in some swank spots, and lounge menus, complete with burgers both mini and massive, offered a viable market-savvy alternative to the traditional seated dinner. Also making news were the strong predilection for pork and the growing interest in artisanal beers and communal tables.
Despite a lengthy gestation, über chef Paul Kahan and company's (Blackbird, Avec) much anticipated, pub-style newbie, The Publican (pork-centric) in West Loop, couldn't be more timely. Oysters, beer, and pork hog the spotlight, with the latter turning up in dishes as diverse as country-style ribs and house-made boudin blanc. Presiding chef Brian Huston's spicy pork rinds are a runaway best seller, and so are the house-made pickles and the imported and domestic ham served with goat's milk butter and peasant bread.
Seating includes a trendsetting mix of communal tables, booths separated by waist-high partitions, and cocktail-height tables designed for predinner nibbling and stand-up schmoozing. While globally sourced microbeers headline the beverage list, wine lovers won't feel slighted. And with dishes like steak tartare made with Wagyu beef and wood-roasted black sea bass on the menu, neither will diners hungry for something other than pork.
Communal tables are de rigueur at UrbanBelly (Asian noodles and dumplings), chef Bill Kim's hot spot in the developing Avondale neighborhood on the city's north side. Expect minimal table service, BYOB with no charge for corkage, swoon-worthy cuisine, and a dearth of hot beverages and desserts—a sure sign that lingering isn't part of the game plan. The duck-filled dumplings seasoned with cloves, star anise, Vietnamese cinnamon, and black cardamom and the chicken and mushroom dumplings made with a flavorful mix of shiitake, oyster, and white button mushrooms are both musts, as are the ramen noodles in pho broth, seasonal kimchi, and "phat" basmati rice perfumed with lemongrass, garlic, and ginger.
In a city crowded with Italian restaurants, Piccolo Sogno ("Little Dream"), in River West proves there's always room for one more, as long as it's first-rate. Chef/partner Tony Priolo (Coco Pazzo Cafe, Coco Pazzo) garners raves for his slow-roasted duck with fennel sausage, salt-encrusted fish cooked in the wood-fired oven, and pappardelle paired with a wild boar ragù. By-the-glass wine selections are more adventurous than usual, and the restaurant's outdoor garden is one of the city's prettiest.
Bucktown is home to Duchamp (eclectic) and The Bristol (diverse), with a sleek urban-chic decor, menus that embrace dishes of varied lineage, and a communal seating option where interaction is neither mandated nor verboten. Executive chef/partner Michael Taus (Zealous) makes the juicy, Havarti-topped burger served at Duchamp with three different cuts of beef, enhances the roasted tomato gazpacho with rock shrimp, and pairs garlic fries with skate wing for an upscale twist on fish-and-chips. The restaurant is named for the avant-garde French artist Marcel Duchamp, but the bouillabaisse, complete with a coconut/curry broth, leans more toward Bangkok than Marseille, while a side of house-made giardiniera adds an Italian touch to the croque-monsieur composed of French ham and Gruyère cheese. Heading the must-have list at The Bristol is a house-made pull-apart monkey bread that pairs as nicely with mussels steamed in hard cider broth as it does with braised goat ragù with pappardelle pasta. Chef/partner Chris Pandel fuels the prevailing passion for pork with a charcuterie platter and house-made boudin blanc served with braised cabbage.
The ensemble responsible for Boka and the Landmark Grill & Lounge has opened Perennial (modern American), a market-driven restaurant in an architecturally interesting space, complete with a stand of white birch trees in the dining room and an up close view of Lincoln Park. Executive chef Ryan Poli covers a lot of culinary ground, moving seamlessly from a dish of black kingfish in a mussel/coconut broth to pork belly with mustard spaetzle and sweet corn risotto with white truffle oil. Not to be missed are the indulgent mac and cheese and raspberry custard with cream cheese foam and graham cracker ice cream.
Ajasteak (East meets West) in the locally owned Dana Hotel & Spa in River North is a worthy addition to Chicago's long tradition of excellent hotel restaurants. The dinner menu pairs maki rolls, sushi, sake flights, and Asian teas with lamb chops, strip steaks, cocktails, and wine, a sophisticated lineup that marries well with the dining room's vaulted ceilings and dramatic multistory windows. Pizza topped with prime New York strip steak and a trio of Kobe sliders are featured at lunch, along with a globally compiled salad of lobster, Thai basil, enoki mushrooms, and truffle vinaigrette.
After a several year hiatus, Trader Vic's (Polynesian) reopened in a primo location at Rush and State on the Gold Coast. Ancestral standbys like crab Rangoon, egg rolls, and spare ribs get plaudits, as do trendier options like sea bass brushed with miso/orange glaze and chai tea-smoked duck breast. Ditto for the Mai Tais and the dining room crowded with kitschy tiki statues, bamboo furniture, and Polynesian foliage.
Mexican food has continued to make news. Peripatetic chef Geno Bahena resurfaced at Real Tenochtitlan (regional Mexican) in Logan Square, where the colorful decor is as spirited as the cuisine. Moles are Bahena's signature dish, and he always has three or four on the menu, one of them a special that changes daily. At Mexique (French-influenced Mexican) in West Town, chef/owner Carlos Gaytan (Bistro 110, Bistrot Margot) marries French technique with Mexican ingredients, and the resulting dishes, from the grilled salmon with chipotle coulis to the flank steak with jalapeño/mushroom ragoût, are decidedly très bueno.
Zed451 (boffo Brazilian) in River North offers a stylish twist on the mix of buffet and table service typical of a Brazilian-style steakhouse. Meals begin and end with a trip to the bountiful Harvest Table, an attractive circular buffet built around a central firepit. Four communal tables radiate from the firepit, but most of the restaurant's seating is more conventional. Main courses are served tableside, and the array often includes salmon seasoned with citrus, Parmesan crusted pork loin, buttermilk marinated bottom sirloin, and slow-roasted short ribs.
Contemporary New Asian cuisine is the focus at Sunda (timely Asian) in River North, the newest venture from the owners of Rockit Bar & Grill. Not to be missed are chef Rodelio Aglibot's crispy mochiko chicken in a sweet rice flour crust, crab cake-crusted ahi tuna, and black cod marinated in a mix of miso and red curry paste. Plan on sampling the sushi, maki rolls, and sashimi, but be sure to leave room for the eight treasures rice pudding and doughnuts with Asian-style dipping sauces.
From the regenerated, environmentally friendly woods used for the floors and tabletops to the dishes available in multiple portion sizes and the moderate prices attached to those that aren't, Province (American/Latino) in the Market District is right on target. Chef/owner Randy Zwieban was formerly top toque at the Latin-influenced Nacional 27, and many of the dishes served at Province, including the braised lamb with chorizo sausage and the slow-cooked Tasmanian salmon with a red wine mojo, have a similar orientation. His LEED-certified green kitchen will be featured in next month's Kitchen Spy.
Out in the 'burbs, SugarToad (regional American) in the sleek, environmentally savvy Hotel Arista in Naperville is chef Jimmy Sneed's first foray into the Midwest. Named for a tasty blowfish that turns up in crab pots in Chesapeake Bay, the restaurant puts considerable emphasis on fish and seafood, although carnivores won't feel slighted. Expect grilled bigeye tuna with braised fennel and signature crab cakes, along with flatiron steak with anchovy butter, rotisserie cooked lamb with mustard jus, and seared duck breast with dried cherry sauce.
This year, as in years past, there are more openings and planned openings than space allows to report. Noteworthy additions in center-of-the-city neighborhoods include Eivissa (tapas/pinxtos) in Old Town; Tocco (pizza plus) in Wicker Park; Branch 27 (American bistro) in West Town; and Eve (contemporary American), Steve's Deli (matzo balls plus), and Hub 51 (Gen-X eclectic) in River North. Also new this year are Mana Food Bar (vegetarian) in Wicker Park, 35th Street Café (breakfast/brunch/lunch), and four restaurants specializing in Indian cuisine: Veerasway and Jaipur in the Market District and Chicago Curry House and Chutney Joe's in South Loop.
Chicago, both in terms of food and politics, has lodged at the top of the news this year.
