I have a post up over at Gapers Block about Dark Lord Day 2008. You can read about Dark Lord Day 2007 in my post from last year. We opened up our first bottle last night and it was delicious. While similar to the batch from 2007, this year it wasn't as thick and had a bit of sourness to it.
When Nick took me to the May Street Market for my birthday last week, we picked up a flier for a Champagne tasting. This past Monday I met my friends Paul and Margaret at the tasting to celebrate my birthday, Paul's birthday and Margaret's return to Chicago after living in Russia for a few years.
Ruinart, established in 1729, is the oldest operating Champagne house. We had the opportunity to sample the Ruinart Blanc de Blancs and the Ruinart Rosé. They were both delicious, refreshing and had beautiful coloring. Both of these varieties run about $60 a bottle.
I was glad to have a reason to return to the May Street Market so quickly and we were all pleased with the appetizers that they served during the tasting.
May Street Market Mussels.
May Street Market Maytag Blue Cheesecake.
We each drank three glasses of Champagne and enough appetizers to whet our appetites.
We decided to head east to Avec to continue the evening. We ordered the Roasted Corn Bruschetta with fresh dill, shaved fennel and corn vinaigrette.
Chorizo-Stuffed Madjool Dates with smoked bacon and piquillo pepper-tomato sauce.
A cheese flight of Mistura Biera (raw cow, ewe's milk) from Portugal, Caciocavallo (cow's milk) from Italy and Cabrales (cow, sheep and goat's milk) from Spain.
...and we shared a delicious bottle of wine. It was a more extravagant Monday night than I am used to, but it was nice to celebrate with Paul and Margaret -- two of the best food and beverage companions I know.
I turned 26 last Friday. Nick met me after work and we walked from my new job in the Ukrainian Village to the May Street Market in the west loop.
Neither of us had been to the May Street Market before and I was really pleased with his choice. The host explained to us that their menu changes frequently because they buy their ingredients from local and sustainable resources (he mentioned the Green City Market by name).
Sadly, my photographs of the meal turned out pretty lousy, but I hope you will trust me when I tell you that each one looked stunning. We ordered a 2003 Dona Paula Shiraz-Malbec to go with the following:
On the top left is the "Maytag blue cheesecake with roasted candied beets, arugula, spiced pecans, and elderflower sorbet." Nick ordered the "roasted venison medallions in a pistachio crust with carrot purée, chive spaetzle, and lingonberry sauce." I ordered the pumpkin risotto with quinoa and dried cherries. It was fabulous with a very fitting presentation. For dessert we shared "chocolate-banana bread pudding, caramel ice cream, chocolate sauce, and caramelized banana." Everything was delicious and I highly recommend a visit.
Nick also bought us tickets to Bruce Springsteen! The show is in late October and I am very excited to see him for the first time.
We finished up the night at the Logan Square Small Bar where we enjoyed a variety of beers and our friend Parker's company. (Well, we actually finished the night on the porch with a bit of the Basil Hayden's that Nick bought.)
On Saturday afternoon Nick and I met my parents, my brother and my grandmother at my Uncle Jack and my Uncle Dave’s house in Old Town. We spent the beautiful, sunny day celebrating three birthdays: mine, Jack’s and my grandmother Arlene’s.
Dave is one of the best cooks I know. He made us a delicious lunch of vegetarian Portobello lasagna, meat lasagna (sauces from scratch of course), Caesar salad, and garlic bread. My mom brought a pretty fruit and yogurt salad as well.
For my birthday my parents gave me a hefty sum to aid in my new computer purchase, which is very exciting! They also gave me a pair of beautiful earrings from one of my favorite jewelers, Studio 2015 in my hometown of Woodstock. Also, my brother bought me gemmapetrie.com! That was sweet and thoughtful. I will do something interesting with it soon.
Jack led us on a walking tour of Old Town where we were charmed by quaint old store fronts and left aghast by $40 million dollar concrete homes. When we returned for dessert we saw the stunning carrot cake that Jack and Dave ordered from Bittersweet. It was giant and delicious.
Nick and I returned home where I found these beautiful flowers from Eileen. Note the kale, so beautiful. This may have been the prettiest bouquet I have ever seen. It was perfect for a late summer/early fall birthday.
We had a quick dinner at Small Bar before my friends arrived. It was great to see so many people that I love all in one place, many of whom I do not see very often. Harold arrived with a kitchen torch and butane for me. We will plan some exciting gastronomic adventure soon to show it off.
All in all this was one of my most memorable birthdays yet. Outstanding food, family, friends, good beverages and long walks in Chicago - I don't need much else.
In early July Nick and I took an Amtrak train from Chicago to Holland, Michigan. We were met at the station by a very sweet young woman who was the keeper of the Dutch Colonial Inn where we had two nights reserved. We had decided on Holland thanks to the New Holland Brewery. Nick and I are fans of many of their offerings, though most notably their Dragon's Milk. The bed and breakfast is only about a mile from the brewery and we walked straight there after checking in to our room.
There were a large number of IPAs on the chalkboard that we had never heard of, so we decided to start with a sampler tray:
Klomp Hatter IPA: This one reminded us a bit of Gumballhead, with the hops kicking in at the end. It was pretty good.
Urele Heavy: A Scotch ale with a light front, a sweet end and a malty roundness throughout.
Nitro Hatter IPA: This tasted bland and thin to us.
Belgian Hatter IPA: Smelled a bit like cough syrup and had a sharp astringent finish.
Imperial Hatter IPA: Very sweet with a muted hoppy-ness. Full and luscious at the end.
Black Hatter IPA: This may have been the favorite of the bunch. Very dark in color and had a full earthy taste of toasted barely. Not terribly complex, but strange and tasty.
Czarist stout: A very chocolaty stout with a frothy mouth-feel that finished pretty thin.
Existential: A sweet and hoppy barleywine. Very good.
Their food was decent. I ordered the annoyingly named "Treehugger" for eight bucks ("Vegetarians delight in this display of roughage! Served on a toasted focaccia bun, we pile hummus, cucumber, red onion, Roma tomato, sprouts, chipotle ranch dressing and dill havarti cheese.") We learned, to our surprise, that the New Holland Brewpub does not own a deep fryer, so no fries...
After we ate we decided to move out back to their patio and ordered some tried and true full sized beers: the Dragon's Milk and Existential. We had planned our trip around the brewery hours, and were well aware that the website claims the brewpub is open until 2 am on Saturdays. However, again to our surprise, the kids who run the place (seriously, they all looked about 17) closed up shop around 12:30 even though the place was packed. This resulted in a mass exodus of very intoxicated patrons wandering out towards their cars and calling it a night. Yikes. We walked home with a 22 to share in the garden.
Overall we weren't sure what to think of the New Holland Brewery and Brewpub. Perhaps we just had bad luck, but no one seemed to know much about beer or really be old enough to drink it. Their food was mediocre and they seem to be in need of a new manager if closing up shop an hour and a half early when the place is packed makes sense to them. We were somewhat underwhelmed with the new beers we tried, but we do love the Dragon's Milk and Existential. All in all I am quite glad we made the trip to the brewery, but I think in the future we will stick to those beers that the New Holland Brewing Company has deemed worthy of distribution.
Oh, and one more thing, Holland doesn't allow beer or wine sales on Sundays --only liquor... This was an unfortunate surprise to us when we went back for one last try on Sunday afternoon. Plan accordingly if you visit. They neglected to mention this on their website we visited, but they now have a small button asking for help in repealing Sunday prohibition.
We really weren't heartbroken to use our time in other ways. Holland is a charming little town and thanks to the Dutch Colonial Inn, we were able to fully enjoy it. The Inn had two bikes that they allowed us to take all over town. We biked the seven miles to the shores of Lake Michigan where the "Big Red Lighthouse" sits. The views were breathtaking and the weather was perfect.
We then biked over to Windmill Island on the other side of town. We paid the small admission fee and went straight to "De Zwaan," a 240 year old working Dutch windmill. Our tour was run by a sweet and knowledgeable young woman dressed in traditional Dutch attire. We were able to climb all around the windmill and learned quite a bit about the tradition behind various decorations and how the milling process works. Flour is still milled at De Zwaan and visitors can buy the flour in the gift shop.
We then spent about an hour laying around on the lawn and framing shots of Nick fighting the windmill. Other attractions at Windmill Island include: a working antique carousel, homemade fudge, a working antique Amsterdam street organ, a miniature village and old-time klompen dancing performances.
We returned to the bed and breakfast to lay around and plan for dinner. Our options were very limited on a Sunday night in Holland, Michigan. We were going to order a pizza and call it a weekend, but our lovely inn keeper once again came to the rescue. She scoffed when I asked for delivery recommendations and basically made us take her car back out towards the lighthouse to have a civilized dinner. She recommended the Piper Restaurant on the water. They had a lovely balcony overlooking the docks and the cool evening felt wonderful.
We were both still in the mood for pizza, especially now that we had found a place with a wood oven. Nick ordered the Meaty Medley: Italian sausage, smoked ham and pepperoni with a five-cheese blend and tomato sauce.
I designed my own with asparagus and goat cheese. It was all very tasty.
Holland, Michigan is a beautiful town. We experienced some great food, interesting beer, gorgeous scenery and unbelievable hospitality. This was an easy trip from the city and one I would highly recommend.
Nick is returning to the University of Illinois next week. I just bought my ten-ride Amtrak ticket and intend to see him frequently, however it will still be an adjustment.
I wanted to plan something nice before the semester started, so I arranged to take the day off from work and made some reservations.
We had been meaning to dine at Salpicón and this seemed like a fine occasion to do so. We began with Salpicón Margaritas, made with Herradura Silver, Gran Torres and fresh lime juice. As an appetizer we ordered the special, Flores de Calabaza, pictured above. Three zucchini blossoms were stuffed with goat cheese and epazote, dipped in a light batter, sautéed and served with a roasted poblano cream sauce.
For his main course Nick ordered the Tinga Poblana -- grilled Brookfield Farms pork tenderloin in a spicy roasted tomato-chipotle sauce with chorizo and potatoes, served with a cool avocado-tomatillo sauce.
I ordered the Chiles Doña Queta -- a poblano chile stuffed with huitlacoche (earthy corn mushrooms), fresh corn and zucchini, served in a roasted poblano cream sauce and an ancho chile filled with potatoes, Chihuahua and cotija cheese with a sweet-spiced roasted tomato sauce.
Huitlacoche were new to me. This fungus grows on corn and has a very different texture than most mushrooms. The exterior is almost like a cooked pearl onion, while the interior is soft and mealy. Considered a delicacy in Mexico, these mushrooms are apparently considered a disease (and called "corn smut") in the rest of the corn producing world.
Everything we ordered was delicious. I think we were both mildly underwhelmed with the margaritas, but perhaps only because they are always touted as the best around. The most outstanding part our meal was the same for each dish -- the sauces. All were distinct, complex and complimented the dishes well. Their website has a small section of recipes that I am interested in trying.
(Photo courtesy of the Lookingglass Theatre website)
After dinner we walked to the Lookingglass Theatre for the play Alice. Nick has been mentioning his interest in this play for sometime. He and I both enjoy theater quite a bit, but oddly had never been to a play together before. The Lookingglass Theatre is housed in the old water tower pumping station and is a really neat space. I thought it was a great production with an incredible cast. I believe that Lauren Hirte, the actor who played Alice, may be one of the strongest women I have ever seen. Not only did she perform incredible acrobatics during the production, but also carried full grown men in several scenes. She was a pleasure to watch, as were the other four actors in the production.
It was a fun date and I would recommend one or both of these events to everyone. A 5 p.m. dinner reservation allowed us plenty of time to leisurely walk the mile to the theater with time to spare before the 7 p.m. production. We are meeting a group of Nick's friends at Small Bar this weekend for a more typical goodbye event, but I am glad we were able to find time to do something new together.
I am listening to the keynote breakfast talk: What Humans Do with Artificial Intelligence on day two of the BlogHer Conference here in Chicago.
Last night I met nearly 40 food bloggers from around the world at Lao Sze Chuan for dinner. It was quite an experience to meet the authors of some of my favorite food sites in person. I will post more on Waupaca, the food blogger dinner and BlogHer soon.
(Above: Chinese Eggplant in Garlic Sauce and Garlic Spinach)
I will be in Waupaca, Wisconsin with my family for the next week. You can read about this lovely place in some older posts. I intend to consume my fill of cheese curds, Ting pop and New Glarus beer.
I will be returning this weekend for the BlogHer Conference here in Chicago. I only have the time and money to attend the second day, but I am quite excited to meet so many other bloggers, especially food bloggers that I have been reading for quite some time. I will be sure to post about the conference while I am there. You can still sign-up if you are interested in attending.
Last weekend Nick, Jerry and I made it over to the opening day of the the Logan Square Farmer's Market. I was really excited for farm fresh eggs but alas, it will apparently be a few more weeks before they available. However, we did buy some incredible unfiltered honey from the apiary I have been curious about. The Chicago Honey Co-Op not only produces fantastic products, they are also a great organization. Located in the neighborhood of North Lawndale, they provide community based training for non-profit social service organizations. The Co-Op aims to "help residents who are locked out of the traditional labor market due to criminal records or other barriers to employment." For more information, please visit the Chicago Honey Co-Op website.
I missed the first day at Federal Plaza on Tuesday, but I did manage to wander over to the opening of the Daley Plaza Farmer's Market today. These markets are a welcome change from the otherwise uninspiring loop lunch options. Today I enjoyed the live music and came away with a basil plant and a mint plant ($2.50 each) and baguette for dinner tonight ($1.50). Other items of note: Fresh mozzarella, honey from a northern Illinois apiary, asparagus that was harvested yesterday evening and crates of assorted potatoes. I will be sure to have more cash on me when I visit next week.
You can find a comprehensive list of Chicago farmer's markets here (the sidebar has the markets divided into downtown, weekly and other). I am anxiously awaiting the Logan Square market opening on June 3rd.
Additionally, for those not in Chicago the USDA has a listing of farmer's markets by state or you can search by zip code at Local Harvest.
Wandering through the Daley Plaza offerings today made me miss my old garden in Hyde Park so much! If only my new neighborhood had such a thing. . .
Saturday morning Nick and I rose bright and early and took the red line to Garfield where Ben and Paul met us. Coffee and delicious Medici baked goods in hand, we drove to the Three Floyds brewery in Munster, Indiana. We arrived around 10:30 to find the parking lot full of some of the best beer nerds around enjoying some truly gorgeous weather. Picnic tables were brimming with the best bottles from personal collections and we were offered small tasting glasses and friendly conversation. Around noon the door to the brew house opened and a polite stampede pushed the crowd into a haphazard line. This line set itself apart from most by virtue of pulling us past more tables of now fairly abandoned (and perhaps a bit warm) bottles of incredible beers. The line moved slowly, but the conversation with excited strangers was quite entertaining. Occasionally a patron would emerge from the brew house with an arm full of 22 ounce bottles and a huge grin.
Once inside the brew house we bought pints of GumballHead to get us through the last leg. There was a 6-bottle limit per person on Dark Lord, but there were other offerings available for sale as well. We took off fairly quickly after purchasing our beer (the line took about 2 hours) and we were astonished to still see the line circling through the parking lot and down the street. We estimated that there must have been about 2,000 people that came out for the event.
That evening Nick and I opened one of the bottles. Neither of us had tasted the Dark Lord before and we were in for a treat. This Russian Imperial Stout pours out thick and opaque, like motor oil. It is extremely dark and has flavors that keep rolling for several seconds after the most flavorful beers I have tried. The head was gorgeous, small, creamy and dark espresso colored and it smelled like honey and sweet malt. The beginning tasted like cherries, plums and chocolate. The middle was big and sweet like jam, raisins and rum, and the end was long and tasted of espresso and chocolate (Note: they use Intelligensia coffee in the brewing process).
I have never tasted a beer so complex. This is truly a treat. There is no alcohol content on the bottle, but judging by how chatty Nick and I were after splitting one, I think it is safe to assume it is up there.
Oh my. I wish I had $90 to blow on six bottles. I only ended up with three and I owe Paul money for one of those. Hopefully you were there to get your own. They only brew these beauties once a year. There was rumor that the Small Bar on Division was going to get a keg, and since I noticed the bartender was there I imagine this is true. If you have a friend that lets you try some of her stash, know she loves you. This is special stuff.
(*I didn't have my camera on me when we opened the first bottle. I will be sure to post a follow-up picture of the beer in a glass when we open the next one.)
Last night I visited my friend Ellen. She lives a matter of blocks from me, yet somehow it was the first time I had managed to take her up on an invitation. I concocted a new cocktail for the occasion. A few years ago Hospitality Club provided my roommates and I the opportunity to host a guest named Guillermo from Columbia. He arrived bearing this incredibly sweet liquor. As I recall, Molly and I made quick work of it.
I don't have much of a sweet tooth, so the idea of mixing the Limoncello with other ingredients appealed to me. I decided upon the following:
Lemon and Rosemary Spritzer
Serves 4.
2 lemons
2 C Limoncello
2 C seltzer water
8 rosemary sprigs
ice
In a tall glass put two rosemary sprigs and fill with ice cubes. Almost fill the glass with equal parts Limoncello and seltzer water. Squeeze half a lemon into the glass. Stir and serve.
The rosemary was nice, but next time I am going to try basil. This was my original intention, but the grocery store was out. For the basil variation, I would suggest muddling the leaves a bit before adding the liquid. This will help the flavor permeate. Whichever herb you choose, this is a perfect summer drink. Sadly, it still feels like February in Chicago.
For dinner, Ellen made a gorgeous frittata. She lined a cast-iron skillet with slices of potato and piled cherry tomatoes, onions, garlic, feta and asparagus on top. After pouring the egg over these ingredients she baked the frittata. Oddly, I had never considered baking a frittata and instead have always made them on the stove. Her method is clearly superior. The frittata was perfectly cooked through and came out tall and airy. The potato "crust" was particularly ingenious.
In other news, this weekend was more culinary-centric than most. On Friday, Harold and I went to the IACP Cookbook Expo. I met Heidi Swanson of 101 Cookbooks in person and purchased her gorgeous new cookbook. I have been hungrily reading through it and highly recommend it. Congratulations Heidi!
That evening, Nick and I went to see John Vanderslice. The show was quite good. We were particularly impressed with the opening act, St. Vincent.
The next morning we roused ourselves earlier than most weekends and headed to the Union League Club of Chicago to hear Hervé This speak. The event was thought provoking, yet the question and answer session was a bit lacking when it devolved into some pretty egotistical Chicago chefs debating when their skill was craft vs. art. We took the stairs on the way out and enjoyed perusing the ULCC art collection (the second largest private collection in the U.S.).
That evening we stayed in, ordered a pizza, and finished the second season of Twin Peaks which I finally own a copy of. It was Nick's first time through and he seemed fairly upset about the last episode.
For the past few months we have been fairly obsessed with the Bloomingdale Trail, and finally went up for a walk (from Milwaukee to Elston). I really hope the city decides to support the proposal to turn these old rail lines into a park. It would be a truly unique addition to the city.
That evening we decided to make gnocchi from scratch. I had tried my hand at it years ago in high school. After a fair bit of hard work, the gnocchi completely dissolved into the boiling water. My research informed me that I had been too timid with the flour.
It turned out quite well this time and Nick made an excellent garlic and cream sauce. The recipe I used made a huge quantity. We fed three with half of it. I froze the rest and am hoping it will keep well for future use.
I just reserved two free tickets for Nick and I to see Hervé This speak this Saturday, April 14th at the Union League Club of Chicago. Email or call to reserve yours if you would like to attend. I doubt seats will be open for long.
Thanks to Movable Feast for the heads up and for the following information!
RSVP ASAP to Michael Garbin at garbimi@ulcc.org or 312-435-4822. Please note that business casual attire or chef's coat are requested. (No jeans please.)
WHEN
Saturday, April 14, 2007
9:30 a.m. to 10:00 a.m.: Continental Breakfast
10:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m.: Molecular Gastronomy Seminar
12:00 p.m. to 1:00 p.m.: Book signing (Hervé's book, Molecular Gastronomy: Exploring the Science of Flavor, will be available for sale)
WHERE
Union League Club of Chicago
65 W. Jackson Blvd.
5th Floor Crystal Room
Chicago, IL 60604
312-427-7800
I really wish I could afford this:
Charlie Trotter's: A 20th Anniversary Celebration in his Studio Kitchen
Join us for this rare opportunity to spend the afternoon with Charlie Trotter. Take in his stream of consciousness on a variety of subjects. Pick his brain for insights on topics ranging from foodstuffs to management. Chef Trotter will prepare a five-course food and wine tasting menu to delight your palate. He will demonstrate recipes from his newest cookbook, Spa Cuisine. Check out the intimate setting in his famed studio kitchen. Charlie Trotter's is considered among the top restaurants in the world and has won every major culinary award and recognition. Enjoy one of the most provocative dining experiences and help celebrate Charlie Trotter's 20th Anniversary!
Location: Charlie Trotter's, 816 W Armitage Avenue.
Instructor: Charlie Trotter
Course Fee: $150
Date: Sat, April 14
Time: 2-3:30 pm
If any of my lovely readers attend, I would love to hear about the experience.
I blew all the money I had saved taking Nick to Charlie Trotter's for his birthday dinner. It was far and away the most exciting meal I have ever had. I will post in more detail about it soon.
Last weekend Nick and I met our friends Ben and Ruchama at the Garfield Conservatory for their annual Chocolate Fest. We did not succeed in sampling any of the chocolate due to the huge crowds, but we were able to warm up in the dewy, climate-controlled gardens for a bit. The conservatory is a gorgeous and easily accessible resource for Chicagoans -- the Green Line will take you nearly to the entrance. Few places can compare in their ability to genuinely rid your body of the pervasive chill that accompanies the winter months here. I've had fun at the Chocolate Fest in the past, but arriving when the doors open in the morning seems like the only way to successfully consume any chocolate.
We traveled to Ben and Ruchama's house in Hyde Park and proceeded to make a fabulous dinner.
Ben and Ruchama made a beet, orange and watercress salad that was based on a similar salad that Ruchama recently ordered at the Hop Leaf. I love watercress, but rarely buy it. I thought this salad was superb.
They also made a tasty appetizer of grilled artichoke heart bottoms with snow peas and asparagus dressed in parsley infused olive oil. The artichoke was soaked in lemon juice before being grilled, which gave it a light flavor that complimented the dressing well.
Earlier that morning Nick and I had ventured to Oak Park to visit Penzeys spice store. They have a few locations scattered across the United States -- but you can also sign up for their mail-order catalog on their website. (The catalog is peppered with recipes to try.) If you have the luxury of living in close proximity to a Penzeys, I guarantee that once you visit you will never buy spices anywhere else -- or at the very least, not from a grocery store. Their top-quality spices range from familiar standards to exotic flavors and they are always inexpensively priced. We went in search of annato seeds for our soup and came away with a bit more than that.
In the most recent issue of Gourmet magazine, Nick and I were both quite taken with their recipe for Andean potato stew and decided to try our hand at it. We began by heating the annato seeds in oil to make the achiote. The seeds are strained out, leaving a bright red, flavored oil. We added potato, onion, water, cumin, salt, and pepper and let this simple soup simmer for about an hour before adding whole milk and queso fresco. We served the soup over avocado slices and enjoyed it with a bottle of New Glarus Raspberry Tart lambic that I had picked up in Wisconsin the weekend before.
The texture of the rich avocado provided a great contrast to the hearty potato stew. I thought the stew was a success and the leftovers made a nice lunch the next week. I might add more achiote if I were to make this soup again so that the flavor is more pronounced.
We sat and talked over wine and cheese long after dinner was over and left sleepy and sated. It was a lovely night.
The second half of our evening at the 7th annual Feast of the Senses.
The Catherine Edelman Gallery hosted Butter and their Liquid Guacamole and Chips. This offering was easily the most exciting of the night. This was a lovely example of a dramatic deconstruction of a common dish that worked perfectly. The focus was on flavor, temperature, and texture rather than simply presentation. The top layer, the "chips", consisted of warm milk and cream infused with tortilla chips and then strained creating a liquid corn chip. The bottom layer was a cool, creamy, and lightly salted guacamole. The texture of both layers was silky and the temperature difference aided in the delightfully confusing sensation of tasting a familiar dish, while tactilely experiencing something completely different.
In zg Gallery we sampled meads from Wild Blossom Meadery. Harold and I have at various times frequented the lovely Bev-Art store, a superb home-brew store on the south-side of Chicago, which sells these meads. If you have any interest in home-brewing yourself I highly suggest the attentive and expert service provided by this supply store.
The Andrew Bae Gallery hosted the ever delicious and generous Goose Island Brewery. Young women gave away full bottle samples of six of their most popular beers. It was perhaps a shame not to find some more exciting offerings than the standards.
Fox & Obel offered Dry Rubbed BBQ Shrimp on Quinoa Salad. The Shrimp was perhaps salty to a fault though the salad was quite good boasting well balanced flavors and perfectly cooked quinoa.
Across the street at the Martha Schneider Gallery we sampled a truly delicious and delicate Chilled English Pea "Veloute" with Vanilla, Pistachio, and Shallots from Courtrights Restaurant. The fresh flavors bursting from the chilled peas and the palate warming vanilla and pistachio made for a fantastic soup. If I ever find myself out in Willow Springs, I know where to dine. In this gallery we also sampled Evolution wine from Sokol Blosser, which was nice but unremarkable.
Vie served Caveny Farms Turkey and Sweet Cherries in the Marx-Saunders Gallery. This house-cured smoked turkey served with sun-dried sweet cherries, wood-grilled chicories, and herbs was quite good. My father spoke with the owner of Caveny Farms for a bit and he was a very sweet man. I would love to recommend that you order your Thanksgiving turkey from his business, you will not be disappointed.
In this gallery we also sampled Kobrand Spain wines. Each of us fell in love with Abadia Retuerta Seleccion Especial. This wine from Sardon de Duero was certainly one of the best I have had the opportunity to taste. I highly recommend it.
Sadly, this brought us to the end of our night. As we found last year there are far too many enticing offerings at the Feast of the Senses to get through in the few hours of the event.
We all had an amazing time and I would like to offer my many thanks to Portia Belloc-Lowndes for inviting me once again. Check out the fantastic book she co-authored, The Slow Food Guide to Chicago.
The Chicago Art Dealers Association: Feast of the Senses. Food, wine, art & music.
On June 22nd I met Nick, Harold, and my father in river north to attend the seventh annual Feast of the Senses. John and I attended this event last year and had a lovely time. The proceeds from this event were used to benefit three not-for-profit organizations: New Orleans Gumbo, Farm Aid Hurricane Relief, and Purple Asparagus.
After checking in we went directly to the Belloc Lowndes Fine Art Gallery in pursuit of Alinea. Chef Grant Achatz was serving Chewy Balsamic Tomato, Mozzarella, Basil. I have yet to dine at Alinea due to the prohibitively high cost for my currently empty pockets. The opportunity to sample this small offering was highly appreciated. As you can see in these two photographs the item was served on long movable skewers resting on the bar. The patron was then invited to taste the sample hands-free.
The texture was superb while the flavor was a bit heavy on the balsamic. You can see the cube of chewy balsamic in the first picture on the bottom of the stack. Overall this dish was quite delicious, but perhaps the novelty of the presentation won out over taste.
Also in this gallery we sampled Eli's Cheesecake shooters which were good but uninspired. The Abita brewery had samples of several of their beers. We sampled the Restoration Ale and Purple Haze. The first was nice and balanced while the second was too fruity and thin, definitely a novelty beer.
We then made our way to the Stephen Kelly Gallery to find ristorante we which was serving one of my favorite dishes from the last Feast of the Senses: Chilled Roasted Garlic Soup with Olive Oil Croutons and Spicy Greens.
The unfailingly nice Mark DiDomenico presided over the table and subsequently invited me to a fantastic Champagne tasting at his hotel a few weeks later. The velvety-smooth texture of the soup is punctuated with the resoundingly clear flavor of the garlic and the cool temperature is both suprising and pleasant. I highly recommend dining at ristorante we to sample this incredible soup.
Also in this gallery we sampled ciders from the Fox Valley Winery. An unpasteurized and unfiltered Christian Drouin Poiré Pear Cider from Normandy, France at 4.0% ABV and an unpasteurized and unfiltered Lauriston Cidre Bouché Brut de Normandie, an apple cider also from Normandy. Both of these were excellent though Harold and I preferred the pear due to the lower final sugar content.
At the Judy Saslow Gallery Collins Caviar served Bloody Mary Gazpacho Shooters with Caviar, Pepper, Lime Sour Cream Float & Fresh Celery. These were good, but it was difficult to taste the caviar.
Heaven on Seven served jambalaya which was delicious though the rice it was served on was quite overcooked.
PRP Wine International served a variety of wines. Harold was not thrilled with any of them, though I enjoyed their Oligitum Reserva, Cab Blend 2000 from Navarra, Spain.
To read about the second half of our evening head to this post.
Food, Art, & Wine! Tomorrow night!
Last year I attended the Feast of the Senses and wrote a two part post on the event. You can find the archived articles here and here.
John and I met wonderful people, visited beautiful galleries, spoke with talented chefs, sampled superb foods, and drank our fill of wine and beer. Judging by the list of restaurants participating this year, I fully expect the event to be better than ever.
If any of you dear readers end up attending, please do say hello to me.
More information can be found at Chicago Cooks.
Thursday, June 22nd, 6pm-8:30pm
Galleries of River North
Tickets sales/Program Pick-up at Allens American Cafe
217 W. Huron at 5:00pm.
The event begins at 6:00pm.
Ticket Price $50 before and
$60 at the door.
I was recently informed about these delicious events:
Caveny Wine Dinners with Caveny Farms and Candid Wines.
"a celebration of sustainable food and wine featuring two of Chicago's best chefs - Paul Virant of Vie and Michael Lachowitz of Michael.
Vie - March 30th, 2006 - 7pm Western Springs, IL. Call 708/246-2082 to reserve.
Michael - April 6th, 2006 - 7pm Winnetka, IL. Call 847/441-3100 to reserve.
$125 per person, tax and gratuity included."
You can also reserve at this website.
These events are quite outside of my price range, but perhaps some of you employed Chicagoans have a refined hunger and the billfold to back it this month. Let me know how it is if you go!
For more information and menus please view the file below.
Last weekend we went down to the South Side Irish Parade. Beginning at 101st and Western, this is the parade to be at in Chicago. I can't say I have necessarily watched the parade in years, but the general mayhem of Beverly and the surrounding area is always a great way to spend a Sunday.
John has been a member of a south side home-brewing club for a few years now. Each year we are invited to a small gathering of home-brewers to celebrate the day. The members bring various home-brewed beers, wines, meads, and spirits to be consumed whilst eating an array of delicious food.
In addition, during the festivities the club brews gallons upon gallons of a beer for the party the following year, generally some kind of complex stout aged in bourbon barrels. (You can see a bit of their set up for brewing on the right side of the photo above.)
Here malt is being incorporated into the process.
My parents made it out to meet us after an arduous hike up Western from my cousin Jason's house and enjoyed a drink or two with some of us later in the evening. One of the last things we tasted was a lovely almond champagne with a perfect mellow sweetness. Amazing.
I hope you all had a lovely St. Patrick's Day. Cheers!
This past weekend my friends John, Jen, Ligaya, Ben, and I participated in the first Chiditarod, Chicago's very own urban Iditarod. Teams of five sign up to wildly steer their souped up shopping carts around Chicago, stop in at check-points, and race to the finish line.
Our team, Snakes on a Plane, came in 8th out of 22 teams--amazing!. Ligaya and Jen did most of the work to convert our green Hyde Park Co-op shopping cart into HPK-Air, the most terrifying plane on the planet (with snakes!).
The Chiditarod is a food drive and all together the teams collected nearly 1,000 lbs. of non-perishable food to donate to Vital Bridges. Nice work everyone!
Here is our lovely team post finish line (obviously): Ben, Ligaya, Jen, Gemma, and John (and our friend Paul on the right).
Some of the carts and costumes were truly spectacular. I am already thinking about what to plan for next year. This was my favorite cart. The cowboy costumed runners even tied her up at all the stops. Awesome.
Finish line party at the Hideout.
The race began at the Pontiac Cafe with intermediate stops at Club Lucky and Phyllis' Musical Inn.
There are other urban iditarods that take place in New York City, San Francisco, and Portland.
My second favorite, team Double Dare. You can see 'Marc Summers' there to the left. Brilliant.
Way to go team Snakes on a Plane!
(And thanks to Colie and Paul for coming to cheer us on and take pictures.)
The second half of our evening at Feast of the Senses:
The Marx-Saunders Gallery (230 W. Superior St.) hosted Wave restaurant of the W Hotel Chicago-Lakeshore.
We spoke with Executive Chef Kristine Subido who was unfailingly welcoming and clearly proud of her work.
And the fennel encrusted salmon with citrus and arak glaze we were served made it clear that she deserves to be.
The detail in site set-up for this table was far and away the most thought out and beautiful. The Cuvaison Winery of Paterno Wines International was available for tasting.
We walked to the adjacent Schneider Gallery (230 W. Superior St.) to find ristorante We of the W Hotel Chicago-City Center. I believe Executive Chef Charlie Brown was busy preparing the items, though John and I were able to speak at length to Mark DiDomenico, who much like Chef Subido was impressively warm and charismatic.
ristorante We served a chilled poached garlic soup with grilled asparagus and olive oil croutons and topped with greens. This was easily the most delicious dish we tasted that evening.
The velvety-smooth texture of the soup was punctuated with the resoundingly clear flavors of garlic and asparagus creating a near perfect sensation. DiDomenico informed us that at the restaurant the soup is served warm, however the chilled version had been a huge hit that night. I hope that John and I can make it over to ristorante We sometime during the next few weeks.
(Event-goers taking a break near the el stop.)
We moved on to the Judy Saslow Gallery (300 W. Superior St.) and took a pass on the Izze sparkling juices. Though quite good, we needed to save room for new things. The Spice House had a table set up with, according to the pamphlet, "Ginger nibs and cacao nibs, in the form of baked nibbles."
Regardless of what you might call them, we ate some amazing cookies here. The gingersnaps were so soft and the ginger so pronounced, giving them a warm and filling flavor. The chocolate brownies tasted of high-quality chocolate rather than cocoa powder and flour as some might, thanks to the "nibs". Quite good.
Also hosted in this gallery was Dave DeWitt, author of the Spicy Food Lover's Bible. The book was available and DeWitt was offering to sign copies. At the table he had samples of wasabi. The first (on the left) was a bright green wasabi made with commercially available wasabi powder.
This wasabi was one we are all likely familiar with, it has a sharp and prolonged spiciness which is readily available at any sushi establishment (and sometimes may even be horseradish with food coloring!). The next dish was made with freshly grated wasabi. It was dark green in color and had a very mellow and smooth taste. It was less spicy but at the same time tasted more complex. It was exceptional and quite eye-opening to see the difference between the two types of wasabi.
(Your author at work. Thanks to John for keeping me on task.)
We descended a staircase to the Catherine Edelman Gallery (300 W. Superior St.) to find the West Town Tavern closing up their stand. Determined to use our last half hour wisely we crossed the gallery to find the Barboursville Vineyard of Virginia. Of the Barboursville wines we were able to sample, the best was their Octagon 2002. The real treat of this table was the Monti Erei extra virgin olive oils. Infused with flavors such as garlic, mint, arugula, and pepperoncino these oils provided a delectable and unique array of flavors. Behind the garlic soup at ristorante We, these olive oils were the best tastes to be had. They can be purchased at Sam's Wine here in Chicago.
Walking through the lower entry way we came upon the zg gallery (300 W. Superior St.) and Lula Cafe. Chef Jason Hammel and Chef Amalea Tschilds served a very refreshing seasonal dessert of sweet biscuit shortcake with honey, lavender crème fraiche and local berries. The dish had a lovely presentation as well.
I have had the pleasure of eating several meals at Lula Cafe and would highly recommend it to anyone.
Also in this gallery we found Paringa White Blend wine. These was one of my favorite wines of the night. If memory serves this was a blend of Chardonnay, Semillon, and Sauvignon Blanc. It was crisp, light, and refreshing and would be a fantastic summer white for a hot evening.
Lastly, we made our way briskly to the Carl Hammer Gallery (740 N. Wells St.) to sample the chilled ahi of Chef Paul Kahan and friends from Avec. (Their website appears to be down currently.)
This too was an excellent summer dish boasting a festive array of colors, a very nice way to end the evening.
The three men were sweet and their humor provided a nice segue-way into the night as we left with full bellies and heads cushioned by wine.
I would like to thank Portia Belloc Lowndes for inviting John and I, it was a lovely opportunity. Check out the book she co-authored, The Slow Food Guide to Chicago.
The Chicago Art Dealers Association: Feast of the Senses. Food, art & wine.
Thursday, July 14th John and I met in river north to attend the sixth annual Feast of the Senses. This was our first. The proceeds from this event were used to benefit three not-for-profit organizations: Purple Asparagus, Common Threads, and Slow Food.
We checked in, received our wine glasses and neck holders, and proceeded to our first stop. The Maya Polsky gallery (215 W. Superior St.) hosted Andersson's Chocolates and Patisserie. We missed the gazpacho and salad that was set up later in the night, though their chocolates were quite nice. They had an exceptionally smooth texture, though left something to be desired with flavor that might set it apart from other gourmet chocolates. Sadly, there was no attendant while we were there so we were unable to learn more.
The gallery also hosted the Illinois River Winery. Using grapes grow at the Starved Rock Vineyards, these wines were nice, especially their dryer whites. They offered about six wines to sample and Gregg Kane, the vintner, was quite helpful in offering us the best wines for our individual tastes and a pleasure to speak with due to his enthusiasm.
Crossing the street we entered the Ann Nathan Gallery (212 W. Superior St.) which hosted Vie of Western Springs, IL. Chef Paul Virant served crostini of grilled and marinated eggplant, and eggplant caviar with domestic asiago.
This dish was excellent. The soft, cool eggplant went well with the crisp crostini and the sharp, salty cut of the asiago. Chef Paul Virant and another attendant were exceptionally nice and warmly encouraged John and I to make it out to their restaurant soon. We both hope to.
Also hosted in this gallery was the M. Chapoutier Winery of the Rhone Valley. Touted as 'Eco-Friendly,' these vineyards rely on flora and insects rather than chemical fertilizers and pesticides. In addition they employ horse-drawn plows, hand tools, naturally occuring yeasts, and lunar cycle timing for composting. The wine can be found through Paterno Wines International.
Next we entered the Habatat Gallery (222 W. Superior St.) to find Thyme which served a nice and refreshing cold ratatouille salad. Goose Island Brewery had their 312 Urban Wheat, India Pale Ale, and Demolition Ale available for sampling. John and I are frequent Goose Island customers and were familiar with all three beers. We shared a bit of their IPA and some of their Demolition ale. They make a solid IPA with a nice amount of hoppiness. It isn't overpowering like a west coast IPA, which is actually something I miss. The Demolition is a serious beer that I highly recommend if you can find in your area.
Next door in Perimeter Gallery (210 W. Superior St.) we found 610 Magnolia of St. Louis, Missouri. Chef Edward Lee was serving a chilled asparagus and Col. Newsome's Kentucky ham in tomato water gelee, sumac (ground spice berry) and dill. The soup was quite light, yet offered an impressive array of flavors. I would venture to say that this was the most complex dish of the evening and it worked nicely. Chef Edward Lee was sweet and helpful. The space also hosted the Sokol Blosser Winery from Dundee Hills, Oregon, also associated with Paterno Wines International. They too rely on natural methods rather than chemical to care for their vineyards. John and I are quite familiar with their white, but were far more impressed with their red which we had never tasted before.
We next entered the Andrew Bae Gallery (300 W. Superior St.) to find the circus that was the Whole Foods Market smorgasbord. Taking up two giant tables, Whole Foods offered Thai chicken satay, teriyaki shrimp satay and spicy tofu satay, Southwest eggrolls, and vegetable potstickers. The spicy tofu satay was excellent, with a fabulous texture and well matched sauces. In the same gallery Merchant du Vin offered a selection of their beers including the delicious Lindemans Framboise Lambic and assorted Samuel Smiths. Lastly, the Glunz Family of Winery & Cellars offered some tasty sangria with plenty of fruit. On the way out we were given a Whole Foods shopping bag containing a box of 365 brand organic truffles.
Read about the second half of our night here.
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