Chile mentaiko spaghetti at Momotaro momotarochicago.com The Japanese obsession with itameshi, or Italian food, produced a superb fusion dish sometime in the 50s, according to Momotaro executive chef Mark Hellyar, who put it on his menu. In the dish, hot pasta meets a hot sauce of Plugrá butter and Kewpie mayo, light shoyu, chile oil, […]
Category: Food & Drink 2015 Critics’ Picks
Posted inBest of Chicago
Best postconfessional tacos
Outside Saint Francis of Assisi Church On weekends when the weather is right, half a dozen temporary kitchens pop up on the sidewalk next to this University Village Catholic church to crank out an impressive variety of tacos, gorditas, tortas, tostadas, elotes, and huaraches with freshly pressed masa. Business is brisk and turnover high, so […]
Posted inBest of Chicago
Best coffee roaster to include a cassingle with your caffeine boost
Dark Matter Coffee darkmattercoffee.com Chicago has an impressive community of independent coffee roasters and a growing number of hip coffee shops to support them. Dark Matter’s lovingly crafted caffeinated drinks speak for themselves, and the folks at its Ukrainian Village headquarters don’t need to do much besides work with beans to win our approval. But […]
Posted inBest of Chicago
Best new brewery to launch with only one beer
Alarmist Brewing alarmistbrewing.com When Gary Gulley launched Alarmist Brewing this spring—after four years of preparation, uncountable revisions of his business plan, and several rounds of investors’ meetings—he had only one beer, Pantsless Pale Ale. It was a gutsy choice, not least because pale ales and IPAs are by far the most crowded and competitive subcategories […]
Posted inBest of Chicago
Best IPA that doesn’t taste like another goddamn IPA
Moody Tongue’s Sliced Nectarine IPA moodytongue.com I don’t think I’m the only one who’s tired of the unrelenting hoppiness of IPAs. In theory the style is fine, but in practice it’s become so ubiquitous it’s like having sriracha on everything you eat—you don’t taste anything else. Nay. You can’t taste anything else. Which is what […]
Posted inBest of Chicago
Best frozen water
JustIce icecoldjustice.com If you think ice doesn’t make a difference in a cocktail then you haven’t been to any of the 50-some bars that buy rocks from husband-and-wife duo Rosanna Lloyd and Kimpton Hotels’ manager of bar education, Mike Ryan. Available in several varieties—cubes, blocks, globes, and custom shapes—it’s so diamond clear you can read […]
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Best classic cocktails
Ward Eight wardeight.com Bourbon, Fernet, chartreuse, and a splash of cava? Gin, maple syrup, amaro, and sparkling white wine? A slurpee mixed with turtle’s blood and Bulleit rye? Stop, I want to get off! After drinking so many outrageous half-dozen-ingredient concoctions, sometimes I just want someone to serve me a fucking drink. Evanston’s unimpeachable Ward […]
Posted inBest of Chicago
Best local vodka for whiskey drinkers
Barrel-Aged Ceres Vodka from Chicago Distilling Company chicagodistilling.com Bartenders and distillers are barrel aging everything these days, from gin to cocktails—but barrel-aged vodka is still fairly rare. And that alone was enough reason for Two mixologist Graham Crowe and Chicago Distilling Company owner Jay DiPrizio to want to make one. They collaborated in late January […]
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Best cheap fancy lunch
Sikia Restaurant washburneculinary.com/facilities/sikia In an industrial part of Englewood populated largely by empty lots, factory buildings, and fast-food restaurants is the 77-year-old Washburne Culinary Institute—and inside of that is Sikia Restaurant, where Washburne students prepare and serve food in a room full of white tablecloths, tasteful artwork, and soothing music. Sadly, the $7 three-course meal […]
Posted inBest of Chicago
Best place to try whiskey before you buy
Fountainhead Market fountainheadmarket.com Buying a six-pack of beer or a bottle of wine you’ve never tasted is fairly low risk—even if you hate it, you’re only out $10 or so (unless you drink better wine than I do). Buying craft whiskey, which generally starts at around $40 a bottle, is a different story. I’ve had […]
Posted inBest of Chicago
Best $3 lunch
The sandwiches at Xi’an Cuisine xiancuisinechicago.com I read a quotation once to the effect that people who eat sandwiches have given up on life. I don’t agree with this. In fact, I think in many ways we’re experiencing a sandwich renaissance in Chicago, where any bored office worker can hop on the Red Line, get […]
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Best use of food waste
Nance Klehm, the Ground Rules spontaneousvegetation.net/the-ground-rules During the last year and a half, ecological systems designer, landscaper, horticultural consultant, permacultural grower, and forager Nance Klehm has undertaken an ambitious composting and bioremediation project called the Ground Rules. Each week her group collects some 1,000 gallons’ worth of food waste from local businesses like Owen & […]
Posted inBest of Chicago
Best burger no one’s talking about
The THT Burger at Harding Tavern thehardingtavern.com Since it opened last spring, Logan Square’s Harding Tavern has become one of my favorite low-key neighborhood places to grab dinner and a beer. So it’s both a blessing and a curse that the unassuming sports bar from the owners of Cafe con Leche is quietly serving one […]
Posted inBest of Chicago
Best food writer (of “your mama” jokes)
Dennis Lee of thepizzle.net For his generally revolting blog the Pizzle, “Dannis Ree,” as he calls himself, has eaten bull cock, cat food, and diarrhetic escolar. He’s juiced an entire meal of surf and turf, cooked Taco Bell sous vide for 48 hours, and made a party dip designed to maximize flatulence in fellow food […]
Posted inBest of Chicago
Best peanut butter and jelly sandwich
Beurrage beurrage.com When you think of the peanut butter and jelly sandwich, most likely you think of two pieces of white bread hastily slathered with Skippy and Smuckers and slapped together, shoved into a brown paper bag, and smushed in the bottom of a backpack until lunchtime, at which point it’s gobbled down in a […]