Saturday, December 31, 2011

Chicago Eats - Top 11 of 2011

TOP 11 OF 2011


11. Braised Pork Belly | LURE Izakaya Pub




10. Braised Pork Chilaquiles | The Bristol



9. Foie Gras Fries | BIG & little's




8. Kimchi Fries | bopNgrill


7. Pork Belly Snack | Slurping Turtle







6. Sausage Pizza | Jimmy's Pizza Cafe



5. Steak Tartare w/Quail Egg | Maude's Liquor Bar


4. Wood Oven Roasted Pig Face | Girl and the Goat


3. Oyster Po'boy w/Kimchi | GT Fish & Oyster


2. Amish Chicken w/Confit Leg | Ruxbin



1. Black and White Truffled Oreo | Next Restaurant

Special thanks (again) to Kathy @ Sweet Kat's Creations for some pics used above!







Friday, December 30, 2011

Chicago Eats - 2011 Favorites

The end of yet another year...2011 was a good one, and a great food year to boot. So without more words, my favorite restaurants and dishes of 2011:
Note: restaurant titles with relevant blog posts are linked

Next Restaurant Childhood Menu
"Catch of the Day"
Black & White Truffle Oreo

Girl and the Goat (Part I & Part II)
Wood Oven Roasted Pig Face
Green Beans
Loup de Mer
Roasted Cauliflower
Goat Belly Confit w/Crab and Lobster

GT Fish & Oyster
Oyster po'boy w/kimchi

Lobster Roll

Mercat a la Planxa
Spanish Octopus

Bacon Wrapped Dates

Jimmy's Pizza Cafe - Fantastic NY-style pizza (dedicated post to come soon)
White Pizza

Beignets

20" Sausage Pizza


bopNgrill
Soft-Shell Crab Sandwich

Kimchi Fries

Kimchi Burger (right)


Casa Mono (NYC)
Foie Gras w/Cinco Cebollas

Pork Belly w/Uni (seriously!)

Belly Shack
Belly Dog w/Togarashi Fries (some of the best fries ever)


Slurping Turtle
Duck Fat Fried Chicken | Pork Belly Snack


The Bristol (brunch)
Braised Pork Chilaquiles
House-Made Cinnamon Roll

Neptune Oyster (Boston)
AMAZING Lobster Roll

BIG & little's
Foie Gras Fries

Del Seoul
Kalbi, Pork, Sambal Fish Tacos


Ruxbin
Mushroom Toast
Bucatini & Clams

Amish Chicken (apologies for the poor picture)


Maude's Liquor Bar
Steak Tartare w/Quail Egg - BEST steak tartare in the city


LURE Izakaya Pub
Braised Pork Belly

Ditka's
Kick Ass Paddle Steak (bone-in ribeye)

CraftSteak (Las Vegas)
Porterhouse w/Bone Marrow


Hot Doug's
Duck Fat Fries (Friday & Saturday Only)


Dancen
Fire Chicken

So Gong Dong Tofu House
Haemool Soondoobu (seafood spicy tofu stew)


Waffle's
Chicken and Waffles

Wednesday, December 28, 2011

Chicago Eats - LURE Izakaya Pub




Lure is a breath of fresh air when it comes to Chinatown restaurants. I have been extremely happy both of my times eating at this Japanese pub. It's a bit hard to find, but it's located pretty far east inside the new Chinatown square, located  pretty close to Wentworth Ave.



Braised Pork Belly: SO. GOOD. My favorite thing here. So tender, juicy, and delicious. I'll get this everytime I go. HIGHLY recommended.




Duck Breast: probably the least impressive dish I had here. Nothing was wrong with it, but overall it wasn't very standout. 



Soft-shell Crab: these guys were fairly small and fairly average tasting. I wasn't impressed, nor was I upset by them.



Chicken Karaage: little pieces of juicy fried chicken, japanese style. They're not greasy or salty. Recommended.




Seafood Rice: a slight bit of heat and a modest amount of sodium. I think you get a good amount of rice for the price ($7) and a healthy amount of seafood. 


Spaceship Gyoza: this dish looks really cool, but it's fairly average gyoza when it comes down to it. Gyoza is gyoza, I suppose.



Omurice: omelette with the seafood rice thrown inside (sans the seafood). I liked this, but feel like there's better value on the menu.

Overall, Lure isn't going to be the cheapest place in Chinatown, but it's one of the best. A lot of the dishes run $5-7, but they're generally larger than most "small plates" or "tapas-style" dishes. I'll definitely come back here frequently as they're not only open late (2am generally), but the food has been fantastic both times I've gone here.