Prairie Grass Cafe or Buddha of Suburbia

The Slow and Savory Review

As much as Brandy loves Chicago, sometimes she does feel the urge to get out of the city.  "The eternal convenience of urban living sometimes starts to make one feel claustrophobic," Brandy explained one day to her friend Starr, otherwise known as Chicago Foodie Girl, "I do occasionally long for the space and the quiet of the suburbs or the country, especially in the winter when cabin fever starts to take hold."  Agreeing, Starr suggested they perhaps head out on a little foodie road trip to clear their heads.

Starr's suggestion was immediately agreeable to Brandy; Prairie Grass Cafe in Northbook, a spot she had stopped into last year.  Having already flirted with the food of their executive chef, Sarah Stenger last month when she visited the indoor Evanston farmer's market, Brandy was rather excited to see her style of comfort food with high quality ingredients and simplified French techniques in its home setting.

Being used to city restaurants where space is at a premium, walking into the spacious Prairie Grass Cafe was a bit of a shock for Brandy.  At the front of the restaurant was a long bar, done in natural stones, which transitioned into the dining area.  The light was plentiful and warm with soft watercolor paintings on the walls, rich wood tables and chairs that matched the highly polished floors, and stunningly large light fixtures that gave everything a golden glow.

Brandy and Starr began with a pair of cocktails, of course; a Raspberry Mojito for Starr and a Nordic Nectar for Brandy.  Both drinks were crisp and fruity (Brandy's being a pineapple infused vodka) without being overly complicated.

To start off with, the ladies split an order of the special of the day, Banana Bread Stuffed French Toast.  The toast came served with a perfectly bisected banana that had a thin layer of caramelized sugar on it.  Brandy just loved the tiny crisp of the sugar on the banana, which was a special treat with the dense, soft banana bread.  The filing seemed to be a cream cheese, and though it was a little overwhelmed by the richness of the toast, it was still a welcome addition to the decadence.

Starr went for the Chiliquiles as her main course, which came served with guacamole and sour cream.  Though the guacamole had a wonderfully creamy consistency and the two eggs on top were prepared perfectly over easy, the shear amount of tortilla chips in the dish made the thing less traditional chiliquiles and more breakfast style nachos.  "As good as this is now, I would add a bit of pork or chicken, just some sort of meat to round it out a bit," Starr commented, and Brandy quite agreed.


Brandy decided on the Portobello Mushroom Benedict, a twist on the traditional dish using panko breaded mushroom caps in the place of English muffins.  Brandy simply adored the crunch of the mushrooms when combined with the perfectly poached eggs and some tender sauteed spinach.  The potatoes on the side were also done nicely, with a perfect crisp exterior and just a little hint of spice.  "It's been a long while since I saw a truly innovative Benedict," Brandy mused, "Being in my line of work, I sometimes get quite bored with endless attempts to re-invent the wheel, but every once in a while, you come across something like this and remember why re-invention is a wonderful thing."

Not ready to head back to the hustle and bustle of the city quite yet, Brandy and Starr picked a duo of chocolaty desserts; a slice of French Silk Pie and a Chocolate Muk Muk Cake.  Already well acquainted with Chef Stegner's pie making prowess from seeing her wares at the farmer's market, Brandy was excited to try her take on the classic chocolate pie topped with whipped cream, and she was hardly disappointed.  The crust was buttery and tender, the filling rich and creamy like the center of a truffle, and little curls of bittersweet chocolate were the literal icing on the cake.  The Muk Muk cake was essentially a lava cake with a rich, melty chocolate center that sent Starr and Brandy's eye rolling into the backs of their respective heads.

The relaxed and delicious brunch at Prairie Grass Cafe was just the thing Brandy needed to get her mind cleared and her stomach filled.  The prices seemed fair for the quality of the food and the friendly service combined with the warm atmosphere made Brandy feel she could take her time enjoying her meal, a feeling that sometimes gets lost in busier city restaurants, where table turn over is more prized than customer experience.  "Us city dwellers can get a little jaded when it comes to the suburbs, I think," Brandy mused, "But knowing there is good food to be found even outside of the city does make me want to give these places a bit more credit.  I think some more exploration is on the docket for 2016!"

The writers of this blog were invited to dine by the restaurant free of charge in exchange for an honest review.

The Short and Sweet Review

Farmer's Market Brunch with Prairie Grass Cafe and Three Sisters Garden

It was an unusually warm day for December in Chicago, so Brandy decided to take advantage of the sun and get some holiday shopping squared away.  Being that all her friends were "foodies," she decided the best thing she could do would be to find somewhere selling locally produced goodies, so she zeroed in on the Evanston Winter Farmer's Market, which is being held two weekends a month at Immanuel Lutheran Church, whose congregation regularly supports local and national initiatives to fight hunger.

The atmosphere inside the Farmer's Market was immediately welcoming.  A few tables were scattered outside the church, boasting some winter berry sprigs and other assorted produce and flowers.  The small upstairs space was bursting with booths of fresh produce, hand made goods, and even a table for cheese tastings.  Everyone seemed to be in a happy frame of mind, smiling and greeting friends and strangers alike, helping those unfamiliar with the layout of the market, and sharing recipes ideas with the farmers at the booths. At the center of it all was the kitchen where chefs Sarah Stegner from Prairie Grass Cafe and Tracey Vowell from Three Sisters Garden were whipping up something special.


Their menu mainly consisted of dishes created using products from local growers like Nicholas Farm, Genesis Growers, Catalpa Grove, and Chef Vowell's own Three Sisters Garden.  Everything was freshly prepared and all natural, giving the community a wonderfully filing and healthier option for their breakfast.  Though tempted to try everything on the menu, Brandy settled for just two dishes; one sweet and one savory.

First off, Brandy tried the Creamy Three Sisters Garden Cheese Grits with Scrambled Genesis Growers Eggs with local vegetables.  The veggies were lovely and crisp while the eggs were the perfect density; not too fluffy, but not rubbery either.  The grits were very creamy, still with a little bit of texture to them, and they had a true corn flavor with a subtle nutty cheesiness.  As opposed to a lot of the heavier brunch items Brandy indulges in on a regular basis, this dish left her feeling light, yet satisfied.  "This is exactly what I needed for a day of running around.  A good dose of protein, starch, and vegetation that isn't going to weigh me down," Brandy commented.

On the sweet side, Brandy went for the Oatcake with maple syrup and candied pecans.  As it was brought to the table and Brandy caught a whiff of the warm Burton's Maple Syrup (her favorite maple syrup of all time) and instantly felt a smile forming on her lips.  "Such a simple combination of the familiar scents of maple and cinnamon, but it feels like a warm hug on a cold winter's day," Brandy sighed with delight.  The oatcakes were truly something unique with a very light crisp on their exterior and a creamy, almost custard like interior.  The crunch from the pecans (grown by Vowell and candied by Stegner) was just the proverbial icing on the cake.  "If there was ever a better match for a few strips of bacon, I haven't tasted it," Brandy proclaimed.

The chefs were also featuring some of their hand made goods for sale, such as Pecan and Pumpkin pies, spiced popcorn, butterscotch cookies, salad dressings, pecan milk, and herbed goat cheese, which truly showed off the products from Three Sisters Garden and some of the other local growers.  This is where Brandy went hog wild, so to speak, snapping up everything she could handle so that she could stuff the stockings of all of her friends with delicious, local, mindful treats.  "Nothing's better for stuffing a stocking with than a bag of warm nuts," she said to herself, then giggled like a school girl at her own immature witticism.

The last Farmer's Market at Immanuel Lutheran Church before the holidays is on December 19th, so make sure to mark your calendars and get out there to get your own stockings stuffed with goodies from Chefs Stegner and Vowell!

The writers of this blog were invited to try some of the products mentioned at no charge in order to facilitate the writing of this post.