Last Minute Chicago Holiday Dining Recommendations

I was invited to dine at the restaurants mentioned free of charge in exchange for an honest review.

As much as I love staying inside the week between Christmas and New Year's, usually snuggled under my down comforter with my dog noisily snoring beside me and a cup of some boozed up hot beverage clasped between my hands, eventually I start to get a little cabin fever. And with this year being unseasonably warm (seriously, Chicago, what the hell? I could go back home to Arizona for 50 degrees in December!), I'm feeling the itch to get out for a few more meals before 2018 ends. So enjoy this quick roundup of some of my recent favorites for brunch, dinner, and everything in between!

Dinner at Le Sud

This French/Mediterranean inspired addition to Roscoe Village has gotten great buzz ever since it opened earlier this year. Me? I like a bit of non pretentious French cuisine, so I was very interested to check it out. The inside is the perfect kind of cozy without being overly cramped and the perfect kind of vintage without feeling artificial. This isn't the kind of place you're going to find Americanized French staples, like onion soup or coq au vin. Instead, you will find things like house made charcuterie, a decadent fois gras tart (that is so perfectly balanced between sweet and savory that it could easily be an appetizer or a dessert), a perfectly simple steak frites, and a very inventive vegetarian seared pumpkin entree with leeks and fregola. Everything here is incredibly thoughtful and uncomplicated, while demonstrating an immense amount of skill and care. Go any night you can, or check out their special service for New Year's Eve.

Dinner at Bobby's Lincoln Park

Bobby's recently opened their first location in the city in hopes of replicating their beloved Deerfield location's success. The menu boasts a lot of meat and seafood focused plates as well as handmade pasta dishes, but the vibe is surprisingly casual. The space is open and airy, a rarity in crowded Lincoln Park, and the service is exceptionally friendly and personable. It's may sound ridiculous, but I was impressed right from the start with the bread service, which came with a simple roasted garlic butter that I would have happily bought a bottle of if they had been selling it. The Shrimp Bobby was an excellent take on a scampi, the Steak Tartar was gloriously delicate (I also mixed that delicious garlic butter into it and by God, it was amazing), and the scallops with cauliflower puree and orange zest were a delight. If you want a little taste of everything Bobby's has, order The Mark Miller, which is a platter of sausage, roasted chicken, tender skirt steak, peppers, and onions. For a lighter (by comparison) plate, the Linguini Nduja is also wonderful, with a rich egg yolk sauce, crisped panchetta, sweet onions, and a little kick of heat.

Brunch The Kitchen

Having dined at The Kitchen a few times, I knew to expect only the best. Of course I wasn't disappointed, and despite some minor Instagram drama (don't ask...), I found myself more impressed than ever before with the inventiveness coming out of The Kitchen's kitchen. Highlights for me included a collection of awesome non-alcoholic cocktails (something I'd love to see more of at other restaurants), a succulent southern style Shrimp and Grits with andouille sausage, an earthy Mushroom Toast with red kale and scrambled eggs, an impossibly creamy yogurt panna cotta with blueberries and housemade granola, and poached eggs with green shakshuka, chickpeas, and toast points. They will actually be serving brunch on Boxing Day (December 26th) from 10:00-3:00 and all day New Year's Day, so if any of this sounds good to you, get on that. Also, they will be featuring an exclusive holiday donut flavor (pst... it's chocolate spice with cranberries and candied ginger!) in addition to their already stellar line up of freshly made pastries.

Tea at Vanille

Taking family to a relaxed tea service is just the kind of tradition I'd like to add to my already packed list of holiday traditions. After all, who can resist tiny sandwiches and delicate tea cups? Vanille Patisserie recently launched a beautiful tea service at their Lakeview and Hyde Park locations, offered at 12, 2, and 4 Mondays through Thursdays. The service consists of as much Benjamin's Tea as you can drink (my personal favorites include the Forest Berry and the Roasted Almond) accompanied by mini sandwiches, scones with a variety of spreads, freshly baked madeleines, Vanille's signature macarons, mini cupcakes, and other delightfully tiny treats. At just $28 a person, I think this might be one of the best tea service deals in town. Pinkie's up!

Brunch at Parley @ Joy District

I think we all know that I have very mixed feelings about brunch buffets, but if you're looking for a spot to drink away your holiday stress with a group of fun loving friends, this might be the place for you. Especially if you have a sweet tooth! The dessert table at Parlay is a little overwhelming with it's donut wall, platters of cereal treats, and legions of layered pudding cups. Fresh pizzas and chaffing dishes with various savory dishes help to balance out the glucose, but I'm tempted to tell you to skip them all together and just go in on the sweets. Calories don't count in December, after all. $50 gets you access to all the food as well as bottomless mimosas in a variety of flavors, but if you STILL haven't uped your insulin levels enough, there's the brunch cocktail menu that features giggle inducing large format cocktails, like the Scumdilyuptious served in a gumball machine with rubber ducky floats, or the Mega Mimosa and the Mega Mule; giant sized versions of the classic cocktails that are perfect for using as selfie props.

Chant or Ziggy Stardust meets Bloody Mary

The Slow and Savory Review

And now, a quick story to preface Brandy's adventure this week:
It was a balmy summer day in London in 1967 when Brandy ventured into a local record shop to purchase a vinyl copy (as indeed all music was vinyl in those days) of Mozart's Greatest Hits when she quite literally ran into a well dressed young man with shaggy blond hair. 

"Pardon me, Madam," the young gentleman said as he side-stepped Brandy in order to browse through a collection of Anthony Newley soundtracks.  Brandy noticed a few flecks of glitter on the man's otherwise perfectly shined shoes. 

"You've got stardust on your loafers there, fella" Brandy pointed out to him, not sure if this was the new thing for the young and hip to do, or if the gentleman had simply trodden in an arts and crafts project. 

The young man smiled at her with all the charm he could muster and said cryptically, "I've been experimenting with a new look."

Brandy pulled a packet of cigarettes from her coat pocket (no one thought twice about smoking indoors in those days) and the young man eyed it hungrily. "Could I bum one of those?" he asked sheepishly. 

Brandy studied him for a minute, but didn't wish to seem up hip around the young.  "A ciggy for you, stardust," she said, handing him the thinnest one in the pack.  He nodded his head in thanks and went back to exploring the stacks of record albums.

A few years later when Brandy was once again in that same record shop (this time in search of The Best of Puccini), she noticed an album in the window entitled "The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust" by some young man with shaggy blond hair named David Bowie.

Now knowing the face of David Bowie rather well, Brandy was surprised to see it show up on a flier for a brunch at Chant in Hyde Park, an event she as well as friends Biscuit and Birdie Brown had been invited to by new head chef Chris Hora.  Previously known mainly for Asian fusion dishes (as indeed the slightly industrial decor still strongly referred to this Asian influence), Chef Hora has decided to take Chant into a more eclectic space, with emphasis on "farm to table" sustainable, organic dining.  So what did The Thin White Duke himself have to do with all of this?  "It's his birthday," Brandy informed the table, "And he's a bit eclectic too, I suppose."

The table started off with a round of drinks.  Biscuit and Birdie settled themselves with a pair of Bloody Mary's (Chef Hora pointed out that he makes his own tomato juice for the cocktails, as well as infusing the vodka with cilantro), with Birdie getting his extra spicy, and Biscuit choosing the very non-vegetarian "Bloody Bull," a traditional Bloody Mary with an infusion of liquid beef gelatin.  Both were very flavorful and fresh, but the Bloody Bull was definitely the more interesting of the two, with the beef flavor permeating the drink and creating a more unctuous mouth feel.  "It's like a steak dinner in a glass," Biscuit said cheerily, while Birdie eyed her glass with envy.  Brandy chose the more traditional mimosa.  While it was lovely, bright, and well balanced, Brandy couldn't help wishing for some more interesting twist on this brunch favorite to go along with the "Bull Ride," as Biscuit called it.

For starters, the table split an order of Five Spice Sweet Potato Pancakes, which came served with a vanilla whipped cream.  The pancakes had the perfect kind of texture, with a nice crispness on the outside and a creamy inside.  The spices insured that the cakes weren't too sweet, but didn't overpower the delicate cream on the side.  Brandy wondered at this being the only sweet option available for brunch, until she found out about the dessert menu.  More on that later.

Upon hearing about the special of the day, which was roasted asparagus topped by an over easy egg and hollandaise sauce, Brandy insisted on trying it.  The hollandaise was lovely and buttery, which went very well with the crisp vegetation.  The table had to fall to scraping the plate with their forks to collect all of the delicious sauce, as there was nothing to sop it up with.

For his entree, Birdie chose a twist on a benedict, with red peppers, spinach, bacon, and topped with more of the same lovely hollandaise, which this time had been mixed with a bit of sriracha.  The dish wasn't quite as spicy as Birdie would have expected, but he said he did enjoy the touch of vinegar the sriracha lent to the sauce.  The peppers blended nicely with the other flavors, not over powering them as peppers can sometimes do, and the bacon stayed perfectly crispy.  Chef Hora explained to Birdie that this was because the bacon had been cut from the cheek of the pig, and had only been salted and air dried.  "I was air dried once in the war.  Hung out in the elements on a clothes line for nigh on three weeks before I managed to wriggle myself free.  I felt pretty crispy too," said Birdie.  Silence descended on the table.

Biscuit chose the Angry Shrimp Omelet ("Are angry shrimp like those angry birds I've heard people talking about?" she asked the cheerful waitress) with a side of house potatoes.  The shrimp's anger seemed to come from a flavorful spice rub, which while packing plenty of punch, didn't kill the taste buds.  The veggies inside the omelet had a nice tangy bite to them, but according to Biscuit, they were nothing compared to the potatoes.  Sliced into rounds, the potatoes were pleasantly soft with an unidentifiable Asian flavor to them that Biscuit really enjoyed.

Brandy opted for the Lettuce Cups, a sort of nontraditional choice for brunch.  "I guess I'm just a Rebel Rebel!  Hu?"  Brandy said, but upon realizing her table mates didn't know David Bowie's back catalogue as well as she did, she quickly dove into her second mimosa.  Though a little messy, the cups, which were filled with ground turkey, bean thread noodles, and assorted veggies, were quite flavorful and refreshing.  Brandy thought to herself that she wouldn't mind snacking on these on a hot summer morning, but with how warm this winter has been it wouldn't have made much of a difference.

Just when they thought they were stuffed, Chef Hora (who Brandy noted was a bit of a "rocker" himself) insisted they try one of his desserts.  After much hemming and hawing over the delectable sounding choices, Birdie declared the winner to be the Chocolate Fondant Cake, which came with a berry anglaise and a sesame twill.  The cake was unbelievably creamy and light, tasting almost like a mousse rather than a cake. The anglaise, made with white raspberries and blueberries among other things, provided a wonderful tartness, and the sesame twill was a delightful bit of crunch in an otherwise soft and supple dessert.

All in all, a wonderful way to spend a birthday, even if it was for someone who was only present in the music being played.  Most plates ranged around $10, which for decent sized portions and genuine quality from a knowledgeable chef, isn't a bad deal at all.  And just in case you were wondering if Brandy ever spoke to Mr. Bowie again, let's just say this: in cockney rhyming slang, "China" means "old friend," which perhaps is why Brandy has always favored the song "China Girl."

The Short and Sweet Review

* The writers of this blog were provided with a free meal from this restaurant in exchange for a review.  The opinions of the writers' were not effected by this transaction.

Medici or The Writing on the Walls

The Slow and Savory Review:

There's not many people who can appreciate a rainy day quite like Bunny and Brandy can.  Gloomy days tend to make Our Ladies rather home sick for Old Blighty, you see.  "It's days like this," Brandy sighs whenever the clouds roll in, "That make one want to make a cup of tea, light some candles, put on a bit of Mozart, and read a Sherlock Holmes story."  But Bunny decided that for once, this rain-induced longing for all things English was not going to get to them, so she suggested they head to Medici on 57th in Hyde Park for a nice homey brunch.

Medici's stone front is at once imposing and heart warming, presenting visitors with a cheerful relief of a gargoyle scarfing down a pastry while being watched by a pope.  Once inside, Our Ladies were given the choice of sitting up stairs or down, and despite Brandy whining about her bad knees, Bunny chose the upstairs so that they may have the benefit of a view from above.  The upstairs was a warm spot, both visually and literally.  The walls which weren't exposed brick were covered in both graffiti and hand painted murals, and the hard wood floors were pleasantly squeaky.  Our Ladies were told to sit themselves wherever they liked, so they chose a nice table by a window so that they could gaze out upon the rain.  The unfortunate side effect of the seats they chose was that Brandy got squished in between the wall and the table, but otherwise they felt right at home.

First order of business was to obtain some warm beverages.  Brandy chose the Mexicana, a Mexican spiced hot chocolate, while Bunny chose the Chocolachino, a more adult version of traditional hot chocolate.  The Mexicana tasted of warm cinnamon mostly and was a wonderful compliment to a rainy morning, while the Chocolachino was rich and delicious with just the right amount of coffee flavor to make it sophisticated.

Following that, Our Ladies chose some items from the bakery to start off with.  Brandy picked the apple croissant, which was warm, flaky, and fresh tasting with the apples inside still having a nice texture to them.  Bunny chose the cinnamon roll, which turned out to be a bit more of sticky bun.  The inside was dotted with raisins and all together the confection had just the right amount of sweetness.

When it came time for the main courses, Bunny picked a rather interesting entry from the lunch options, a Strogenoff Burger, which came complete with mushrooms, onions, and a dollop of sour cream.  While this combination sounded good on paper, the over all effect of the dish was not as impressive.  The burger, while enormous, didn't offer much meaty flavor, and was completely enveloped by the density of the bun.  The burger itself was not as warm as it could have been and a little over cooked,  The shoe string fries on the side were lovely and crunchy with excellent flavor.

Brandy picked the New York Strip breakfast, which came complete with two eggs, potatoes, and toast.  The steak was very over done (Brandy had asked for medium and got a steak with no pink left in it at all) but had a good char on the outside.  The eggs were perfectly done with runny yolks aplenty.  The potatoes were also very well done; crunchy and flavorful without being greasy.

Hot drink, pastry, and main dish as well as tax and tip came out to just about $20 a person.  Along with cheerful and prompt service, Medici provided Our Ladies with the invaluable feeling of being happy to be where they were.  All feeling of home sickness having left them, Our Ladies journeyed out into the rain arm in arm, full stomached, and rather content, an emotion the English have yet to fully master.

The Short and Sweet Review: