Bavette's Bar and Boeuf

Brendan Sodikoff is no stranger to Chicago's dining scene. How is it that each of his restaurants have an almost similar concept (cue words: rustic, vintage, sexy) with familiar menus and yet each of them are equally successful and yet popular? One would have thought that Chicagoans might tire of the same "old" concept by Brendan Sodikoff but no, no. We say bring it on. First it was Gilt Bar, then Maude's Liquor Bar, and then Au Cheval. Now comes Bavette's Bar and Boeuf. Not quite a restaurant, Doughnut Vault which is also his brainchild, became the talk of town on doughnuts. I've lost count the number of times we've been to his restaurants and from our observation, there is just something about the way Brendan Sodikoff runs his restaurants that make it onto the list of favorites among Chicagoans. He has a great eye for selecting who helms the kitchen with a forward vision of the menu, and the employees are well trained. He also promotes his staff from within (at least, this was what we noticed at Bavette's where experienced employees from Gilt Bar were promoted and brought into Bavette's).

 




Oh I am so, so in love with Bavette's. You enter by the inconspicuous door into a tiny space where the host or hostess greets you. Then he or she opens another door inside and you will find yourself in the classic and sexy Bavette's which exudes the aura of a speakeasy in 1930s New York City except that it is in Chicago and tucked behind an inconspicuous door recognizable only by the equally inconspicuous sign that says Bavette's on the door. Just gotta love the dress code for bartenders and male servers-- long sleeved collared shirts with the sleeves folded up to the elbows, tie, and a vest. Classic and sharp, and the folded sleeves add casualness to it.

Cocktails range from the classic to contemporary concoctions. I've found my favorite drink which is the Old Overholt whiskey cocktail and have never moved on to another drink since.

Best lobster and lamb chops I've ever had, says my dad during one of T and my visits to Bavette's when we brought my parents along who were visiting. Isn't there always a sense of accomplishment when you rave about a place and the people you raved to share your sentiments too, especially your parents? Ahhh. The seafood tower (comes in two options differentiated by portion size) is a perfect way to start off the night as an appetizer. Seafood on ice is usually not heavy and hence will not fill you up which makes it an even better choice for starters if you are in a group. The tower comes with various types of oysters, lobster, salmon ceviche, shrimps, and crab legs.

The lamb chops make the night memorable. Prepared and served medium rare with just enough au jus, the meat is succulent and tender. We learnt that Colorado lamb chops are used and instead of entirely removing the fat like what other restaurants usually do, Bavette's keeps a thin layer fat over the meat to help flavor the meat more during the cooking process. The lamb chops come with two piece; each piece is from the left and right rack.

Side dishes are always overlooked but oh my, the baked sweet potato really is something. Once it's brought to the table, who can resist the urge of heaping the very soft sweet potato with melted butter and brown sugar onto their plate? We haven't seen any restaurants offering roasted tomatoes as a side dish; we've however seen a lot of grilled tomatoes in British pubs as part of the English breakfast which we love so much. Credits go to Bavette's again for expanding beyond the more predictable side items (although they do the "predictable" side items so darn well!). The coleslaw is refreshing and light, with just enough dressing.

Other noteworthy dishes that we have tried and are not pictured:

Berkshire pork chop: Berkshire is what wagyu is to beef; the marbling of the pork chops helps to render the fat which increases the flavor of the meat.

Salt cod brandade: We liked very much the fact that we could actually taste actual cod meat in the brandade instead of being all mushed up. Great starter item.

Beef tongue: Prepared like a pot roast, it comes with slivers of carrots and rhubard in a deep flavored sauce.

Smoked whitefish caesar salad: I don't incorporate salads into my diet as much as I should (T is the opposite here) but this I will want to eat everytime.



 

I want to say to people Go, go, go. Or maybe I shouldn't... it has only been a couple of months since their opening and it's already proving quite difficult to make reservations. So the more people know about it, the more difficult it would be for us to snag a table for prime time seating. Oh, but that would be selfish.




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Bavette's
218 West Kinzie Street
Chicago, IL 60654

Accolades

2011 TimeOut Chicago Magazine Best Restaurateur Nominee, Brendan Sodikoff

Next: Sicily

Time travel. World travel. Next makes it possible. Grant Achatz and Dave Beran and team make it possible. Again.

First, it was Paris 1906.

Next (no pun intended) was Tour of Thailand.

After that came the whimsical Childhood which we unfortunately missed.

Then, it was tribute time to the legendary El Bulli that closed its doors in Spain in 2011.

With the world's recognized chef who helms this restaurant that functions with a changing menu every few months and with a drastically different cuisine and theme each time, where will they bring us to this time?

*****

Sicily

Take away the fancy china and sparkly silverware of a fine dining restaurant. Next is not trying to portray that this time round. It is time to get down homey and transporting guests to the likes of a home in Sicily where good food comes from the hearts of the people. Colorful hand painted and down-to-earth plates and platters greeted us throughout the meal.

#1:
Arancine, fried risotto balls
Caponata, eggplant and vegetable salad
Panelle, chickpea fritter
Carciofi Alle Brace, roasted and charred whole artichokes

Risotto turned into fried balls? I am an instant convert and a fan. The arancine sets an excellent tone to the start of our Sicily journey. In fact, the biting into the arancine remaines one of the most memorable moments for me. The ball is deep fried to crispy perfection on the outside. Taking a bite into it, the risotto inside remains warm and soft without being overly gelatinous. In the risotto is lamb tongue.

T is a big, big fan of the caponata. The team at Next clearly did something right when they can make an eggplant lover love this vegetable even more.

For those who have not had panelle, be warned that this popular Sicilian street food is addictive.

The best part of eating the carciofi alle brace is digging into the heart and then making your way to the outer layers which are more charred. Whether you use your fork to scrape or teeth to pull out the edible parts, it is equally a delicious experience though using your teeth enhances the experience of being just like at home.

Arancine (fried risotto balls)

Caponata, eggplant and vegetable salad

Panelle, chickpea fritter

Carciofi Alle Brace (roasted and charred whole artichokes)

#2: Bucatini con Bottarga, Bucatini with tuna roe

Bucatini has always been one of our favorite types of pasta noodles although it sure does take a wee bit more effort to consume just based on the fact that these noodles are both hollow and slippery which means it could be a tad bit of a challenge trying to twirl the noodle with our fork. But here, we will gladly take our time and savor the noodle string-by-string. The bucatini con bottarga is served with delicate pieces of tuna roe.

Bucatini con Bottarga, bucatini pasta with tuna roe

#3. Gemelli con le Sarde, sardine with curly pasta noodle

The star here is the delicately grilled sardine sitting atop the noodle. Every bite of the fish feels precious. The edible wildflowers here obviously do not scream tradition but are instead a good reflection of how Next interprets this dish as its own yet without compromising the taste of authenticity.

Gemelli con le Sarde, sardine with curly pasta noodle

#4. Pesce Spada con di Ceci, grilled swordfish

The grilled swordfish steak is intense not by taste but by texture. The texture of the fish is incredibly dense which makes a great solid meal in itself but after having several courses prior to this, the dense texture of the swordfish makes it hard for us to finish the very generous piece. The execution and presentation is ingenius-- a big fat bunch of seasoned basil leaves, charred on the outside, is draped over the swordfish to finish seasoning the dish. A plate of chickpeas was served along side.

Pesce Spada con di Ceci, grilled swordfish

Chickpeas

#5. Spalla di Maiale Brasato, braised pork shoulder

When it comes to food, I am the type of person who saves the best for the last. Although the order of each course served is obviously beyond my control, but it is definitely on my side. The final savory dish of the night, the braised pork shoulder, remains the highlight of the night and very possibly the best dish of the night. The feeling of not being able to finish the dense swordfish from the earlier course especially after several courses from earlier on? Did not apply here. Nope, not for this braised pork shoulder. The meat is so tender, it falls off the bone easily. Who needs a knife when a fork alone does the job alone in pulling the meat apart? The spicy tomato sauce brought it up to the next (no pun intended) level. Grilled zucchini and edible flowers accompany the pork on the side.

Spalla di Maiale Brasato, braised pork shoulder

Grilled zucchini, edible flowers

#6. Granita di Arance Rosse, blood orange sorbet

With all the indulgent courses from earlier, this palate cleanser cued the mood for dessert time.

Granita di Arance Rosse, blood orange sorbet

#7. Cassata, traditional Sicilian Easter cake

This traditional Sicilian Easter cake is brought as a whole to the table and then introduced, before being brought back into the kitchen. Slices are brought out and served to each person. In true Sicilian homestyle, the marzipan covering the cake includes a bright green color and then embellished with candied orange rind and nuts.

Cassata, traditional Sicilian Easter cake

#8. 
Cannoli, tube pastry filled with cream
Ravioli Fritti, fried ravioli
Cubbaita di Giugiulena, sesame seed brittle

How to end such a great night? As always, it seems simple enough for Next. Crisp, delicate, and buttery mini pastries.

Cannoli, Ravioli Fritti, Cubbaita di Giugiulena

Where in the world will Next bring us to in a couple of months with the upcoming change of menu.....? Stay tuned.

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Next

953 West Fulton Market

Chicago, IL 60607

Accolades

2012 James Beard Award Best New Restaurant

2012 James Beard Nominee Best Rising Star Chef, Dave Beran

2011 Time Magazine 100 Most Influential People, Grant Achatz

2011 TimeOut Magazine 5 Stars for Next

2011 3 Michelin Stars Chef, Grant Achatz

2008 James Beard Award for Outstanding Chef, Grant Achatz

2007 James Beard Award for Best Chef in the Great Lakes, Grant Achatz

2003 James Beard Award for Rising Star Chef, Grant Achatz

2002 Food & Wine Magazine Best New Chef, Grant Achatz 

Mindy's Hot Chocolate

There's the saying, third time's a charm. For Mindy Segal, the pastry chef and pride of Chicago, it takes doubling a 3-time event before the charm finally happens. For each of the past 6 years, Mindy had been nominated for the prestigious James Beard Award for Outstanding Pastry Chef. While it is a great honor to be a 6-time nominee in itself for the coveted title, I think her fans (and Mindy herself) were probably beginning to wonder when will she finally be the recipient of the award. Year 2012 must be her lucky year. Chicago foodies celebrate her win for the award and may it never be the last. Her restaurant, named Hot Chocolate, is as befitting of a place where people come for dinner but they really should stay for dessert.

 


T does not like desserts. What? It is true. He is the type of guy who scrapes off all the frosting from his cupcake, tosses the frosting into the trash, and then eats his naked cupcake. He might as well have just eaten a muffin instead.

This place made him fall in love with dessert. I knew we were off to a fantastic start of dessert when despite finishing his entire medium rare steak for dinner, he commented that he had plenty of room left in his stomach for the dessert we were already planning to order. We had seen the dessert menu at the same time we were thinking about our entrees, and I highly recommend you do that so that you will have an idea of how much food your stomach can take in. Remember, the entree portions at Hot Chocolate are huge and the items trend towards the heavy side. Even if you are starving and can eat a horse before placing your orders, look at the tables around you and you will believe me when I say the entree portions, really, are huge. So please, please, be conservative when you order your appetizers and entrees so that you will have room for dessert. After all, isn't that the reason you came to Hot Chocolate for?

Rhubarb cocktail

Usually at dinner, T would tell me that he has no room for dessert and would just eat a bite or two of our shared dessert just to please me. But not that night, no. We each got our own dessert. Among the other items on the dessert menu, Hot Chocolate features a seasonally-changing dessert. When we were there, the kitchen was having a rhubarb special which came with 6 mini dessert courses at $20 per person. Each dessert course was a tasting portion of rhubarb cocktail, rhubarb galette, red velvet cupcake with rhubarb cream cheese, risotto with rhubarb jam, rhubarb+lemon curd, and rhubarb+vanilla sorbet. The very unique dessert creations were truly the ultimate way to taste every iteration possible for rhubarb. T finished his dessert before me, so that was pretty telling.

Risotto with rhubarb jam, rhubarb vanilla sorbet

R to L, clockwise: red velvet cupcake with rhubarb cream cheese, rhubarb+lemon curd, rhubarb galette, risotto with rhubarb jam

As one would expect from the name Hot Chocolate, this place does serve hot chocolate and in several ways too. The list includes half & half which comes with half dark chocolate and half espresso, and black & tan which has a base layer of hot fudge and covered with steamed hot chocolate. All hot chocolate drink orders come with piece of house-made marshmallow. There is a $1 split charge for hot chocolate drinks and it is recommended that you do it especially if you are there for other food and dessert. Pictured below is one person's portion of hot chocolate after splitting it into two for sharing. The hot chocolate is rich and velvety, and it will fill you up.

Hot chocolate with house-made marshmallow

Hot Chocolate gained its fame from its dessert. Heck, even the owner of this restaurant is a pastry chef and not the other way around where usually the executive chef that takes charge of the main menu takes the stage. With that in mind, we were not sure how the entrees would fare but they were definitely very, very good. I ordered the whole grilled branzino fish and to my delight, it was served whole with the head and tail. Saying that I loved it could very well even be an understatement. The skin was charred until crispy and the fish inside was moist and flavorful. I polished the bones clean. While many people prefer to eat their fish in fillet form, I give Hot Chocolate credit for being brave in offering the fish in whole form. After all, seeing fish served whole was a large part of T and my growing up in Asia where it is common practice at restaurants and at home. The whole grilled branzino at Hot Chocolate was served in the most purist and clean way with fresh cilantro, dill, shaved fennel, and capers on top. It was just like the way Jamie Oliver would do it.

Whole grilled branzino fish

When a non-steak restaurant can prepare their steak that exceeds expectations, you know the kitchen takes things seriously. As requested, his steak was prepared to a perfect level of medium rare just as requested. It was neither overcooked nor undercooked, but the meat inside was a perfect reddish pink with the jus threatening to ooze out each time he sliced with the knife a bite-size piece. Even at popular steakhouses, we have had to send our overcooked steaks back to the kitchen.

Medium rare steak with bearnaise sauce and grilled asparagus

After being closed for a few months due to remodeling, this place has reopened and the revamped Hot Chocolate is now a rustic place and perhaps a little grunge. It is no longer the romantic and dimly lit place it once was, but we are loving every bit of this new concept.

Sweet potato wedge with skin, duck confit, and bleu cheese

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Mindy's Hot Chocolate
1747 N Damen Ave
Chicago, IL 60647

Accolades
2006 James Beard Award Nominee for Outstanding Pastry Chef
2007 James Beard Award Nominee for Outstanding Pastry Chef
2008 James Beard Award Nominee for Outstanding Pastry Chef
2009 James Beard Award Nominee for Outstanding Pastry Chef
2010 James Beard Award Nominee for Outstanding Pastry Chef
2011 James Beard Award Nominee for Outstanding Pastry Chef
2012 James Beard Award for Outstanding Pastry Chef

The Publican

Paul Kahan has always done it right. With the ever success of Avec and Blackbird, The Publican is another successor. Step inside this restaurant and you will find yourself in a place that feels like a European beer hall. The noise is loud in there. People are happy. They're very happy with the beer and food. Communal tables are set up in the center space. Space is tight at the communal table but people never seem to have a problem with that. Everyone is there to have a good time.

We've spent many dinner nights there and come about 10pm when we are ready to leave with a full belly, it is not unusual to see people still trickling into the restaurant and getting seated. Reservations are hard to come by if made at the last minute and even on weeknights the bustle never dies down.

The Publican focuses on pork, oysters, and beer. The beer list is very extensive that at first glance it could look intimidating especially with the excellent myriad of beers made up of local and international microbrews that a lot of people have probably not heard of. But, ask your server anything about beer and he/she will have answers for you. Tell your server what type of beer you like e.g. wheat beer vs. hoppy beer, and they will have recommendations. Or, say that you like Blue Moon, and asked what beers are similar to that. They will have answers for you. Every server at The Publican has achieved the first level of beer certification in the Cicerone program. The Publican really does know how to stay on top of their game.

Their food menu is printed daily as evidenced by the printed date on the bottom of the menu. Some of the core food items remain almost unchanged but many of the other items are on the menu on a seasonal basis. Returning to The Publican again and again still brings surprise to us each time with the revolving food items that are introduced only for a short period of time to the menu.

The radishes with unsalted butter and sea salt are really quite addictive. Eaten raw and fresh, it is quite a good (and healthy!) way to snack on with beer and acts as a great starter to the meal.

We like beets but since they don't make it to our kitchen at home often enough, beets at restaurants are always a treat for us. The chunks of beets is served with a generous blob of mozzarella cheese, topped with pea sprouts, and then dressed pure and simple with olive oil and balsamic vinegar.

The little gem salad is always such a great conversation starter because of what the item comes with: crispy pig ears. Before this scares anyone off, it really doesn't taste anything scary. Served in form of crispy thin strips, the texture could pass off as crispy bacon without the saltiness that sometimes consume bacon meat in general. One would never have guessed that those crispy strips are pig ears added to the huge and crunchy romaine lettuce and fennel strips dressed with buttermilk vinaigrette.

The aged ham is always a must-have for us. We generally like to do a taste of three hams since each variety has its own characteristics. The serrano ham from Spain is rich and is the most among intense among the three; la queria americano from Iowa is smooth and mild; the benton country ham from Tennessee is sweet and perhaps the lightest among the three.

The halibut crudo goes beyond expectations with its very smooth texture and thick slices. Light enough to be eaten before a heavier entree, it is complemented with delicate chunks of plum, cucumber, cilantro, and lime.


 

The caramelized pork belly is always a pleaser and arguably one of the best we have had. A bite of the pork belly melts in the mouth each time. A combination of sweet and savory, it is heavenly.

We admire restaurants that take risks and introduce food items that could go either way on the likability scale of someone's palette. An increasing number of restaurants today, e.g. Girl and The Goat and The Purple Pig, are embracing offal in the their food preparation. The Publican is no exception and manages to transform them into excellent dishes. Offal has long been served as part of a meal in many parts of the world and many American restaurants today are not afraid to embrace it. Any thing can taste good if prepared well, and the fried veal brains dish is no exception. Initially we were not sure what to expect of it but as soon as we saw it on the menu and being the foodie who will try anything, T said "We're ordering it". To say that the dish came out well would not be doing it justice. It exceeded expectations and was beyond good; it was excellent. The bite size pieces are first coated with very well seasoned batter and then deep fried. The resulting pieces are perfectly crispy on the outside and very smooth on the inside. It almost feels like fried tofu. The fried veal brains are complemented with celery and beets.

The grilled squid comes with a hint of Asian influence. The pieces of squid, tentacles included, are tender at every bite. When not prepared well, squid can easily take on a rubbery texture but that is not the case here. The squid is first grilled and then tossed with szechwan ground beef and string beans.

The Publican does offer Sunday brunch as well which makes an absolute treat for a Sunday morning. In fact, we like to make it a tradition of having Sunday brunch at The Publican after we've ran a race in the morning. Hand pulled pork sandwich, fries with an egg, sourdough bread with soft boiled egg, a huge pot of mussels (I generally have one whole pot all to myself), waffles with housemade preserves... they make our Sundays more perfect.

 

 

 

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Publican

837 West Fulton Market

Chicago, IL 60607

Accolades
2011 Michelin Guide Bib Gourmand
2011 James Beard Nominee for Outstanding Chef: Paul Kahan
2009 James Beard Nominee for Outstanding Chef: Paul Kahan
2007 James Beard Nominee for Outstanding Chef: Paul Kahan
2004 James Beard Award for Best Chef in the Midwest: Paul Kahan