Eat Here!

In a town full of good food and good chefs we find ourselves returning again and again to the same places. Some would call us unimaginative, but these people know what the hell they're doing.

Here's a short list of places we recommend you try while your here, if you have the time.

BOKA - The reception is being held here, but we didn't want you to think it was just for that. Our good pal, Giuseppe Tentori, won a Food & Wine magazine Best New Chef 2008 award and it's well deserved. The food, the service, the ambience are all top-notch and we wish there were more restaurants like it. We got engaged here and can often be found eating at the bar while Benjamin creates his cocktail magic in front of us. It's a special spot for us. You'll see.

URBAN BELLY & BELLY SHACK - Our good friends Bill & Yvonne Kim have opened 2 of the most casual, mind-blowingly good spots in town in the last year & a half. URBAN BELLY was the first and is Bill's take on his long-time dream of opening a Korean noodle joint. The #13 Kimchi-Porkbelly stew is his version of a pozole and is one of the single greatest dishes I've ever had. BELLY SHACK is their latest venture and is a mash-up of Yvonne's Puerto Rican heritage with Bill's Korean heritage. The food is extremely hard to describe but somehow when you taste it you immediately get that, whatever it is, it's damn good.

THE PURPLE PIG - Jimmy Bannos has been a restauranteur in Chicago for years now with Heaven On 7, his New Orleans home-away-from-home, but his most recent venture has exploded. On paper it looks like just another of Chicago's many Mediterranean-bistro-type thing, albeit in a weird downtown location, but they've jumped to the forefront in a very short time. When I need sardines, fresh fava beans, grilled octopus or the occasional crispy pig ear salad, this is where I go. The fact that they "stole" my phrase "Cheese, Swine & Wine" doesn't bother me when there's such an obvious dedication to what is one of my favorite cuisines. It doesn't hurt that Jimmy is always an extremely gracious host, either. They also have a patio.

avec & THE PUBLICAN- Two different places, but quite near each other and with the same owners/mgmt.

The chef at avec, Koren Grieveson, just won the James Beard Award for Best Regional Chef 2010. It's loud, it's abrasive at times and it's probably not a great place to bring granny (unless she's a serious foodie) but the food is a hearty, rustic fare with strong Mediterranean influences and a wine list that only hits Spain, Portugal, Languedoc-Rouissillion and Southern Italy. You never know which out-of-town chef you'll see eating at the bar. I once sat next to Albert Adria, Ferran's brother, one fine evening. You don't need a high-powered world-famous chef next to you to know it's good, though. Your mouth will tell you that.


The Publican is based on a Belgian beer hall but I feel like that's just the beer side of it and possibly the interior design. The menu here, again, has strong Mediterranean influences -- but where avec is more Basque countryside, The Publican is more Corsican (heavy on the fish side but still get a nice Boudin blanc). My favorite fish dish of recent memory came from here, fried sand dabs.

[I also have to make special mention of The Publican's brunch. Many of you may know of my strong antipathy towards the institution of brunch. HOWEVER, The Publican is one place I will happily get up on a Sunday morning and go to eat. It's that good. They also have the single best bloody mary I've ever tried - including mine -  the Saharan, which will make no sense once you see what's in it. Just trust me and get one.]

AVENUES - For those of you that feel that you are simply not spending enough money while you're here for the festivities, I strongly urge you splurge at Avenues in The Peninsula Hotel. Sari & I had dinner there not too long ago and were blown away by the experience. It's not Per Se/Alinea-expensive, but we were completely okay with what we did spend. Chef Curtis Duffy is an old colleague of Sari's and should be as famous as any other hot-shot chef in the country. There were many times during our meal where we simply stopped and stupidly grinned at each other. We do that a lot, actually, but this was due to what was on our plates. I felt the need to reassess my entire relationship to food at certain points during the meal. If you don't want the full-blown experience, you can sit at the chef counter, try a few dishes and watch the magic unfold before ye. Time well-spent, I assure you.


HONORABLE MENTIONS:

HOT DOUG'S - Ground zero for encased meat nirvana. Yes, you WILL wait in line for it. You will be happy nonetheless.
GREAT LAKE - Some would have you believe the best pizza in the country is here in Chicago. Yes, you WILL wait in line for it.
SAI CAFE - We eat here all the time. Simple, clean, good food and fantastic service. Grab a seat at the sushi counter and watch the chefs do their thing. Decent sake list, too.