Food News: Subscrybe App Premires in Logan Square

One of the things Brandy loves best about her brunch adventures across Chicago is being able to discover new neighborhoods and all of their hidden gems.  "I just adore the personalities of each section of this city, from refined Old Town to vibrant Lake View to chic River North and friendly Albany Park.  It seems every few blocks is it's own delightful little ecosystem!"

One neighborhood Brandy is particularly fond of, but doesn't get the chance to visit often is Logan Square, home to some of her favorite brunch spots like Bang Bang Pie Shop, Longman and Eagle, Boiler Room, and Township to name a few.  But recently, Brandy came upon an app called Subscrybe, a weekly or monthly "neighborhood pass" that brings users a slue of offers in their chosen neighborhood, helping them to discover new favorites while driving traffic to deserving local businesses.  Just recently launched in late June in the Apple App Store, Subscrybe currently offers a weekly pass for Logan Square for $19.95 or a monthly pass for $59.95.  Included with these passes is redeemable items around the neighborhood such as gourmet coffee drinks, glasses of wine, full sized dinner entrees, and of course, delectable brunch dishes.

Deciding to give the Subscrybe a go, Brandy headed down to Logan Square during this past holiday weekend to see where a day of culinary adventures would take her.  She started off at one of her all time favorite brunch spots, Jam, where of the five options available to her through Subscrybe, she went with the Pork Belly Eggs Benedict.  As per usual, Jam's presentation was flawless, and the rich meaty hunks of pork belly mixed with delicate poached eggs and the tender house made biscuits was simply perfect.  After finishing her meal, it was as easy as handing her phone to the waitress, who plugged a code into the Subscrybe App, which took the dish off her bill.  "Remarkable!" Brandy exclaimed, "Let's see what else this do-hicky can do!"

Taking a little walk in the sunshine, Brandy headed down to Brew Brew Coffee Lounge, where a whole host of delicious drinks were available to be redeemed through Subscrybe once per day (most of the other deals were redeemable once per week).  There she picked out a refreshing Berry Frappe, which was at once both decadent and fresh tasting.  Enjoying the mellow atmosphere of the independent coffee house, Brandy happily nursed her cool beverage for a little while, and headed out once more.

Her last stop of the day was to Yusho, a Japanese fusion restaurant with some pretty interesting sounding options.  The one that caught Brandy's eye was the Chicken and Beer Ramen, which centered around an impressive Chicken Scotch Egg and a broth made from the aforementioned fermented beverage.  Brandy was simply head over heals in love with this bowl of ramen, which she happily slurped up until she simply could not slurp any more.  Luckily, all she had to do to have another bowl of this ambrosia was come back the following week and redeem another offer from the Subscrybe App.

Brandy was quite delighted with her new little toy.  "I think I shall have to some more exploring with this Subscrybe-whatchama-callit.  One day of basking in the delights Logan Square has to offer is simply not enough.  Good job this figurative Key to the Neighborhood is good for the rest of the month!"  To be continued...

Has Brandy peeked your interest in the Subscrybe App?  Use the code BUNNYBRANDY to get $15 off your first pass (which brings the monthly pass down to $45 and the weekly pass down to just $5!)

The writers of this blog were granted access to this app at a discounted rate to facilitate the writing of this post.

Jam or Egg Whites are the New Black

The Slow and Savory Review

Ah yes, autumn.  The extraordinary season when the world fills with jewel toned colors and the wind takes on a special kind of crispness.  This is, perhaps, Brandy's favorite time of year, if not for the changing of the leaves, but for the changing of the menus.  "The arbitrary addition of pumpkin to anything and everything is one of the greatest joys of the year for me," she often says.  Fall also seems to be a time for things like pork roasts, nutty mushrooms, rich risottos, and tea.  Blessed tea.  During the months of October and November, Brandy is usually to be found wiling away the mornings sipping on a good cuppa, whether its from a porcelain cup in her breakfast nook or from a tartan thermos on a park bench.

The desire for a little tea drove Brandy into the chic looking Jam in Logan Square one brisk morning.  One look at the clean white interior with pops of lime green was enough to heighten her senses and her expectations.  The friendly hostess took her straight to a table by the large front window, so that she could gaze out upon the beautiful color changing trees outside.  After a little bit of a wait (the hostess came to apologize before her temper even had a chance to flare, indeed, Brandy had barely noticed any lack of attention) Brandy ordered a pot of Gun Powder Green Tea, which came straight away, smartly served without cream or sugar, as green tea should be, but Brandy wouldn't have minded a bit of honey.

Soon Brandy was presented with an amuse bouche, a small blueberry muffin topped with caramel frosting.  This delighted Brandy, as she had never been presented with an amuse bouche at brunch before.  A bread basket, certainly, a scone on occasion, but never such a regal presentation!

To start, Brandy put in for a half order of Malted Custard French Toast.  The toast itself was quite well done, with an extremely creamy center, but what really made the dish were its toppings.  Served with macerated cherries and a lime whipped cream, then topped with cracked pink peppercorns, this was truly the most unique French toast Brandy had ever had.  The cherries were delightfully tart, which blended nicely with the key lime like cream, and the peppercorns added an unexpected burst of floral herbiness and spice.

For her entree, Brandy had eyed up something called Guisado Verde, but was informed that the dish had already sold out for the day, so instead she ordered a plate simply entitled Egg Whites and a side of bacon.  The dish was so beautifully plated that Brandy almost gasped when it was set before her.  A pave of root vegetables proved to be very tasty indeed with alternating slices of creamy and crisp tubers and the sweet and sour red cabbage on which it sat was pleasantly tantalizing.  The egg whites however, the title role in the dish, were rather disappointing.  Though their texture was perfect, their flavor was totally absent, save for a few unevenly seasoned bites (the plate had been sprinkled with what appeared to be smoked sea salt).  Brandy felt that she really could have done without them altogether and would have been happy with just the veggies.  The side of bacon was quite greasy and more of a ham steak than a traditional slice of bacon, but Brandy quite enjoyed its intense meaty flavor.

To finish off her last cup of tea with, Brandy ordered a Blueberry Almond Turnover.  The pastry took quite a while to arrive, but this was explained as soon as it was set down in front of her.  "Fresh from the over," the kindly hostess said, and Brandy could tell it was true from the enticingly warm aroma.  The pastry wasn't quite as flaky as Brandy had expected, though it was rather doughy and moist.  The toasted almonds on top lent a nice crunch, while the fresh blueberries in the middle was wonderfully bright without being too sweet.

All in all, Brandy certainly wouldn't have minded ordering a little more tea to sit and sip upon, but didn't wish to take up a table and deprive someone else of tasting such extraordinary food in such a peaceful environment.  Though a tad on the pricey side considering the portion size, Brandy thought the quality of the meal to be a good match for what was paid (the bill came to exactly $30 before tax and tip).  And so, Brandy bundled up once more and headed out to find a park bench upon which to sit and continue sipping on her tea until the cocktail hour called.

The Short and Sweet Review