This Japanese 'inspired' Korean BBQ restaurant is fairly unique; you have traditional Korean BBQ, some other Korean style dishes (like bokkum bap, Korean style fried rice), and some dishes that lean more Japanese (such as the Oxtail Ramen). However, it's not the Japanese/Korean style that is the true differentiator, it's the quality. Chicago Kalbi isn't your ordinary all you can eat KBBQ; it's higher quality beef with the requisite higher prices. But don't be turned off by this; order the Japanese style kalbi and marvel at the beautiful marbling on the meat. You won't be disappointed.


Japanese style Kalbi

Look at that marbling! An order of Korean style kalbi is around $23, and the Japanese style kalbi (no bones) is around $18. However, the meat portions themselves are smaller than you maybe accustomed to at other KBBQ joints. However, this was so tender and pure (it tasted like it had a light sesame oil and ponzu marinade) that it's worth every bit. That's two order worth, by the way. 

Chicken Kara-age

I also tried the Kara-age and it's one of my favorites in the city, although I think I might prefer Lure's more. Tender, juicy, and at around $5, not a bad deal. 

Ssamgyupsal - steamed pork

The steamed pork, which is pretty much Korean bossom. Freshly made, a good amount of brined shrimp, and a spicy soy sauce for dipping. Another good appetizer choice.


The banchan is decisively Korean, and the ggakdoogi (spicy pickled radish) is really good, and almost rivals Han Bat's. Even though we went late (around 11pm, they close at midnight every night), the rice was fresh and service was excellent. Despite the higher prices, Chicago Kalbi is definitely worth a visit!

Chicago Eats - Restaurant Veneno de Nayarit (Mariscos el Veneno)

Restaurant Veneno de Nayarit

Formerly known as Mariscos el Veneno, Veneno de Nayarit is a Mexican Seafood place (1024 N. Ashland Ave). You won't find the normal types of dishes you might be accustomed to from Mexican restaurants such as carne asada, chicken tacos, or enchiladas; this place is the real deal serving up only seafood. And that's fantastic, we need more places like that in the city. I had been waiting a while to try this place out, and I'm glad I did. It's yet another one of my faaavorite places to go and earns a spot of places I'm not only willing to try again, but a restaurant I can't wait to try again.


Ceviche Tostada

I don't really know what was going on with this, seemed like some sort of crab ceviche. It was pretty good, and given to us when we sat down with our water service. I threw a bunch of the salsa down on this and started crying. More on that below...


Habanero Salsa 

This was probably one of the hottest salsas I had in a while. Seriously. The server told us to be careful when she set this down on our table, but I didn't really heed her warning. I threw a spoonful on my tostada and started eating; it had a great flavor but then the heat announced itself in extraordinary fashion. Eyes were tearing, nose was runny, face got red...yea, it was GOOD. One of my friends wasn't paying attention to any of this going on and literally ate a spoonful in one bite on her tostada...she looked like she was going to pass out. Luckily she never did, but it did take her a good 15 minutes to return to normal. So yea, definitely be careful with this stuff if you go.


Oysters 

These were fairly normal oysters; nothing too special, but not bad either. They were a bit warmer than I expected too, but they didn't kill me since I'm still alive today.


Chapuzon del Mar - Octopus, Shrimp, and Oyster

This dish, as you could probably imagine, had the strongest "seafood" taste of everything we had this night. Still, it was great, and given how easy it was to eat (no shells to remove), it went pretty quick at our table.


Crab Legs Nayarit Style

I really loved these crab legs, although they were pretty difficult to work with since the shell wasn't cracking in the cleanest fashion possible. Good flavor, and a good amount of meat in dem legs.


Prawns Nayarit Style

These prawns were my favorite of the night. Although the underlying sauce was the same, the coating of the prawns (I noted some garlic and some sort of cheese?) really made this the standout of the night. Definitely worth getting when you go.

Verdict: Must Try!

Chicago Eats - Spacca Napoli

Pizza is everywhere these days. GOOD pizza is hard to find. Put Spacca Napoli up in Ravenswood on the short list of good Chicago pizza joints. That's not to say that it's perfect; this neopolitan-style pizza has some shortcomings too. But at the end of the day, it's still tasty and worth going to.

Insalata di Mare - Seafood Salad

At $10, this was a pretty good deal. Nothing too special about the bread itself, but the seafood (poached calamari, cuttlefish, and shrimp) was pretty fresh and wasn't ruined by dumping a bunch of batter all over everything and frying the whole lot. I think they can afford to put in a couple more olives, though.

 Funghi e Salsiccia - Mushroom, Sausage, Basil, and Fresh Mozzarella

Our server recommended that we get both a red and a white pizza to give both a try. Done. We opted to go for the mushroom and sausage pizza, and it did not disappoint, especially the housemade sausage. So good, not overseasoned with a salt-mine's worth of sodium, and it wasn't greasy. We were told that the crust is the star at Spacca Napoli (more on that later), but I don't think that's a free pass for a bland red sauce. Maybe it's subdued on purpose to let the fresh ingredients shine through more, maybe they don't think it's bland. But it could stand to be more seasoned. I had two problems with the crust; one, it was too salty, both by itself (when eating the crust) and in combination with the toppings. Two, the high moisture content of the fresh mozzarella soaks through the paper thin crust at the center and makes the pizza pretty soggy. For some reason, it still works, albeit it is a little unsettling. This was supposed to have basil on it and I'm sure you can see the pathetic attempt at it...but it was disappointing that they only included what amounted to one basil leaf. More basil = more balance. Oh well.

Bianca con Bufala e Rucola - Buffalo Mozzarella, Basil, Arugula

Pizza numero dos (wrong language?) was a white pizza made with buffalo mozzarella and topped with fresh and crispy arugula. Olive oil played the red sauce's normal role here. Buffalo mozz is a lot creamier than regular mozzarella, but retains the same high moisture content, so the same issues with the crust that I mentioned about are the same here. The extra creaminess of the cheese is definitely noticeable for a obviously heavier pizza here. Still, great flavor, and I love all of that arugula on top. But again, where's the basil? The generous heap of other greens helped with the balance issue cited above, but still...more basil please!

Spumoni Ice Cream

Pistachio, rum, strawberry and chocolate ice cream with some candied fruits. Very good! I was extremely happy with the spumoni, but I can't really say that it's any better than what you could get at the store or ice cream shops.

 Nutella Focaccia

THIS WAS INCREDIBLE. They use the same dough that they use for the pizza and bake it til it bubble up. They cut the bubble down the middle and slather on the Nutella goodness, and it was amazing. I loved this dessert, and the salty dough went so well with the sweet and creamy Nutella. This is genius. This is a must have.


And just for fun, Spacca Napoli's custom built oven:

Chicago Eats - Fish Bar

My search for the best lobster roll in the city continued on to Fish Bar. But I've been meaning to check out this Lakeview spot for quite a while, given that it's owned by the same fine folks next door at DMK Burger. The entrance is just off of Wellington west of Sheffield, btw; I was a bit confused because it didn't really look like a working door. Anyways, pictures of food and my thoughts on them below.

Fried Lemon, Onion, and Jalapeno

Who knew fried lemon would be so good? I'm a fan of fried onions and fried jalapeno, but I've never tried a fried lemon. Fish Bar slices lemons super-thin, throws them through some batter, and fries 'em up, rind and all. And it's delicious. The fried onions were cut way too thin for my liking, though. Same for the jalapenos, although not as big of an issue since they have a pretty strong flavor. But they should really cut up those onions a bit thicker.

Eastern Belly Clams

Hey, clams! I didn't think that these were anything too special. They tasted like any other fried clams I've ever had. Not much else left to say on that front...

Lobster Roll

Here it is, the item on the menu I was looking forward to the most. I'll just give a list of pros and cons:

Pros:

1. Perfect roll. Buttered and toasted, light and fluffy but substantial enough to properly handle the morsels of lobster within. I think I liked this bun as much or even slightly more than the bun at NE Seafood Company.
2. Decent amount of lobster meat.
3. Decent overall size.

Cons:

1. Lobster was cut up in chunks that were too small. 
2. Some pieces of lobster seemed to be slightly overcooked.
3. What's with all of the random green stuff? Take that out and put in more lobster!
4. They used a creamy mayo like sauce for the lobster, and it wasn't bad, I just don't think it added much to the overall dish. 
5. I thought it was a bit overpriced at $21 that day which was market price. Compare this to the $17 lobster roll at NE Seafood which had more lobster that was cooked better...and well you get the idea.

So this is definitely NOT my favorite lobster roll in the city. Moving on...

Scallops Special

The scallops were cooked perfectly on this dish and they were beautifully translucent on the inside. A good amount of seasoning too. Overall, a win and something to order if you see it on their specials. I was happy.

So, I'm glad that I was able to hit up Fish Bar, but I don't think I'll be back. DMK Burger next door is the better of the two sister restaurants (although I understand they're different menu items). It's worth trying out, but if you're having a hankering for a great lobster roll...you're better off at NE Seafood Company just up the street a bit.

Chicago Eats - New England Seafood Company

Remember my Boston trip? I had proclaimed that I had found my favorite lobster roll of all time. This is still true after trying out New England Seafood Company, but I think I've found a lobster roll that comes close to the glory that is Neptune Oyster's.

The owners here are from Massachusetts, and they wanted to create something that was exactly like back home from the decor to the food. I think they did a great job. They're located up in Lakeview on Lincoln just north of Belmont, so if you're in the neighborhood, definitely give them a try. Just a fair warning, they do close early...

The front of the establishment

Deliciousness awaits...

The best lobster roll in the city. Some of the best parts of the lobster on a perfectly toasted bun, drizzled with butter. The way a lobster roll should be. Oh, and if you ask, they'll gently warm up the lobster meat as it's normally served cold.

Housemade potato chips. These came with the lobster roll. They were also amazing. I liked these a lot more than the fries (below).

Fish and Chips. Made from haddock. I think they also have an unlimited fish and chips special as well, but this was plenty to go along with a meaty lobster roll.

In case I wasn't clear, GO EAT at NE SEAFOOD COMPANY ASAP.

Chicago Eats - Moto Restaurant

Molecular gastronomy is neat! And it's lots of fun to experience. I recently went to moto for the 15 course menu, and I was completely entranced by the entire menu, and enjoyed the experience immensely. This was definitely in my top 3 restaurant experiences ever, and it blew away the 8 course Grand Menu I had earlier this month at Charlie Trotter's.

Disclaimer: I forgot most of the names of the items on each dish. I couldn't even remember what our server said right after he told us about each course.

Course 1: Spring Roll

What a beautiful plate; the menu was printed on an edible spring roll wrapper, and the idea was to take the tofu (on the right) and everything on the plate and throw it into the wrapper and make your own spring roll. I didn't get the memo because I wasn't paying attention at first, but I was quick to rectify. Getting to play with your food is always awesome!

Course 2: Dim Sum

Dumpling, inside out sushi, geoduck

Chilled green tea

This one was a bit of a letdown for all besides the delicious geoduck. They did use liquid nitrogen to chill the green tea and the steam made it look like the dim sum would be hot, but it was actually cold. Nice little trick.

Course 3: Crudites

There's a lot on this that I don't remember. The crispy thing to the right was an overboiled pasta noodle that was quickly fried and flavored with ranch powder, the green liquid was broccoli, there was a bit of deviled egg and some various other things that I couldn't remember. I liked this dish, but the puffed noodle tasted a bit stale.

Course 4: Reconstructed Corn

One of my favorite courses of the night! To the right was the reconstructed corn; basically, kernels of corn were pulled off and cooked and then placed around the "cob" of butter flavored ice cream. It wasn't really a creamy type of ice cream, but something that was quickly freeze-dried but it was amazing. The the left was the "popcorn" shrimp with some uni, cheesecake, and a chip. I didn't really understand the left side of the menu, but it was decent. It was far outshadowed by the reconstructed corn, though.

Course 5: Gazpacho and Grape

Dehydrated grapes (look like raisins) alongside carbonated grapes with smoked duck in the middle surrounded by a great creamy gazpacho sauce of moto's own variety. The carbonated grapes were a surprise and SO. MUCH. FUN. to eat! Apparently you can carbonate your own grapes using a whipped cream dispenser and CO2 cartridges or even blowing up a balloon with some grapes inside and putting them in the fridge for a few days. An experiment that I'd like to try soon. The smoked duck was smokey and flavorful, and made me want more.

Course 6: Zen Garden

We were supposed to be able to play with this, but things were sorta sticky. There's some cocoa covered cheese in there and there was some sort of fruit jam below that you can't really see. Fairly benign in terms of flavor, but definitely a creative and playful dish.

Course 7: Kentucky Fried Pasta

Similar to Next's Chicken Noodle Soup, this dish used a similar concept and Cantu used chicken to form the noodle (wrapped around the fork) with a biscuit and fried chicken skin crisp. The noodle was great and tasted like a normal noodle flavored with chicken stock; I'm amazed that it was actually made from chicken! The fork has thyme thrown into the center to impart some of its flavor and aroma to the dish as you eat off of  it. Clever.

Course 8: Forest Foraging

The wood log was glued to the plate so I wasn't tricked into eating it. Lots of different types of mushrooms, and that's a quail egg on top of a "nest" of mushrooms. Awesome dish from a visual perspective, and I really liked all of the morsels of deliciousness that were scattered about. This was also very reminiscent of the Childhood menu at Next.

Course 9: Cassoulet

Supposedly a play on the French cassoulet. There were layers of various flavors in the thing that looks like a bush (carrot, potato?, duck?). The butter/toast in the center was great with the first bite, but a bit too rich and heavy for me.

Course 10:  Tongue and Cheek

The last savory course: from the top left, clockwise: wagyu ribeye beef, beef cheek on top of a crisped onion (think funyun), and beef tongue. The tongue and cheek were amazing and it literally melted in your mouth, the wagyu ribeye was a bit disappointing. In fact, I don't think I've ever been very happy with any wagyu beef in the past, but I digress.

Course 11: Coffee Service

The first dessert course of the night; a layer of espresso, some coconut sugar cubes, and some sort of a custard underneath the espresso layer. Wasn't really my favorite dessert.

Course 12: Egg Drop Soup

A quick before shot

That's not actually an egg yolk; it was mango suspended in a yolk like form that actually broke like a normal egg yolk would when pierced. This amazed and delighted me. It was eggsactly what I hoped it would be.

Course 13: Marshmallow and Apple

Apple infused marshmallows with some wafers and sorbet. I liked the big fish bowls, and the marshmallow was pretty good and tasted like apples.

Course 14: Chocolate and Truffle

Good truffled ice cream, chocolate cake was a bit dry. At this point I'm falling asleep.

Course 15: Acme Bomb

The fire woke me up. Remember those chocolate covered cherries with the syrup in the middle? This was like that, but no cherry in the middle and some sort of syrup. It was great. Reminded me of something Wile E. Coyote would try to use on the Roadrunner.


Overall, this was a highly entertaining and satisfying meal. We were concerned at first that we would leave hungry, but after 5 dessert courses, I was pretty full by the time we left. From an innovation standpoint, this earns top marks from me, only bested by the wizards over at Next. I thought the 15 course menu was worth every dollar spent, and it really did blow away my experience at Charlie Trotter's...which makes me wonder about the true reasons why Trotter's is shuttering its doors after 25 years...

Chicago Eats - Opart Thai House

These days I feel like Thai food is like your typical Chinese take-out; greasy, fattening, and largely uninspiring food that you regret eating once you're done. Don't get me wrong, I like Thai food, but I think that most places miss the mark. After eating at Opart Thai, I can gladly say that there are still some places that serve up good Thai food without making me regret it.

The food here was so good that I went with the same friend two days in a row; the first was at the location in Lincoln Square, and the second was at the location in the South Loop. The South Loop location looks cooler IMO; it has this pretty ornate door frame that really makes me feel like it's better at least. But the food is consistent across both locations. This is my new go-to Thai place in the city, check it out!

Sampler Platter  - egg roll, fried shumai, fried shrimp, spring rolls, crab rangoon

Gaeng Pa - Sauteed red curry, green beans, bamboo shoots, Thai eggplant with shrimp

Basil Chicken - best I've ever had

Gaeng Musaman - yellow curry, potatoes, chicken, peanuts

Kuay Tiew Kee Mao - flat noodles with basil, hot peppers, cabbage, Chinese broccoli, bean sprouts with shrimp