Caution, It's Hot!

Okay, I would like to start this post off saying that I'm pretty sure this is the longest dining adventure I have experienced. And because it was my longest dining adventure, with pictures alone, I'm sure this is my longest post of the year.  Now back to the food of the matter.  Geja's Cafe (http://www.gejascafe.com/) is located in the Lincoln Park area and is marketed as a romantic food destination.  But it is also good for groups and sharing, but upon walking into the downstairs venue the romantic vibe is quite obvious with the dim lighting and ballad singing, guitar player.  The first time we arrived on a Tuesday evening, there were only three of us, so I didn't think reservations would be needed to get a table in the middle of the week.  I was wrong.  If you do decide to take this trip, please do make a reservation first or you will be turned away as we were.  While there I decided to make a reservation for the next week, as the smell of the food had us quite hooked and excited to try this place.

So we eagerly reconvened one week later, ready to indulge ourselves in fondue.  This was my first time at a fondue restaurant, and the groupon that I had purchases several months prior that was about to expire is what prompted me to finally try this restaurant.  As a disclaimer, I must note the prices are on the expensive side.  For a full dinner, listed as the premier dinner, one can end up paying just over 30 to just over $50 depending on the choice of meat (or non-meat selection of tofu & fresh vegetables.  The premier dinners start off with a  first course of salad and fruit & bread with a cheese fondue, a  choice of meats for your second course, and finishes with a flaming chocolate fondue accompanied by marshmallows, little pieces of cake, and more fruit.  But you can also order separate fondue pots, without the dinners, which are much cheaper.  

Okay, now to the reason why one can spend hours dining on one meal..you have to cook your own meat.  Yes, this confused me at first, too.  But there is a pot of heating oil (or pots for larger tables) at your table in which you will cook the raw meat and veggies that are served on a platter as part of your second course.  The meats range from cooking times of 1 minute (for the lobster, scallops, broccoli) to 3 minutes (for chicken and potatoes).

Overall, I enjoyed my experience here, but it did begin to lag towards the end.  As in after about 15 minutes of cooking my own food I begin to wish that there was a chef that would just do the cooking for me.  Call me lazy but if I'm going to pay that much for food, I'd rather someone else do the heavy lifting (i.e. cooking).  This would definitely veer on the special occasion side of dining choices.  But I could also see how it could be a good place for a first date, as almost setting yourself on fire and dropping pieces of meat into the boiling oil unable to get it out could be great conversation starters for those who've run out of things to discuss.  All in all it was a pretty good first fondue experience, the closing act was more than enough to keep us coming back.  The flaming marshmallows was definite a favorite of our small group.  In fact, if we come back we might just come for dessert which is a fantastic option for those who wish to have the fondue experience without spending all the money.

Ladies & Gentlemen, the main event..

Our salad of greens, veggies with a light vinaigrette 

Pieces of apple, bread, and grapes for dipping into the cheese. 

Our cheese.  I know there is Gruyere, but I don't know what else, because I'm sure I stopped listening after I heard Gruyere as I do love me some Gruyere. 

Color coated skewers for your dining pleasure.  Very helpful.  As it's easy  to get them confused while cooking.

An apple dipped in cheese. 

Just in case you didn't know what mini pieces of bread looked like dipped in cheese, this is it. 

And we can't forget about the grapes.  

The view of the table.  The cheese pot is in the middle.  The two pots on the side (as we would learn later)  both contain oil that was being heated in preparation for our next course. 

We ordered three of the Prince Geja's combinations so that we could each try all of the different meats.  This tray contains three portions that we would share. 

Up close of the meat: shrimp, scallops, lobster, chicken, and  beef tenderloin.  In an earlier post,  I decided I didn't like scallops, deep frying them in hot oil did not change my opinion. 

The veggies were also invited, the meat couldn't party alone. 

Claye decided to be fancy and use her phone to time how long the meat was in the oil.  I just guessed.  I'm still alive, so I'm going to assume I guessed correctly :)

Sweet fire. Literally.  It's flaming chocolate. 

After the flame died down we were left with a pot of hot, delicious chocolate, ready for dipping. 

The End.

These Pigs Don't Need Blankets

When I first read about Publican (http://thepublicanrestaurant.com/)  over a year ago, the first person that came to mind was my bacon-loving friend, Monica B.  I knew this would be a place that she would enjoy. The Publican refers to itself as a beer-centric restaurant but it is also very pork friendly.  The menu is divided into three parts: fish, meat, and vegetable.  While there is an overwhelming amount of pork on the meat side of the menu you will encounter a few chicken, duck and steak dishes.

We originally made reservations with the intent of taking advantage of the 3-course prix-fixe dinner they were serving the week of their third anniversary.  But after seeing the selections for the prix-fixe menu we opted for sharing multiple plates on the menu so that we could get a broader idea of the food offerings. No one was in the mood for the seafood choices, so we mostly stuck to the meat and vegetable portions of the menu.  The set up is great for group sharing, we ordered everything at once but the server informed us that he would bring food items out as they were ready, instead of waiting until everything was done.

The first dish to arrive was the taste of three hams.  Now that I was well acquainted with prosciutto I was looking forward to trying similarly cured meats.  While I did not especially dislike any of them, I had a preference for the Serrano as it wasn't too salty and went will paired with the buttered bread.  The delivery of the squash left me a bit skeptical, as I'm still not a huge fan of the plant.  But it was a different preparation and of course I had to try it.  I had no idea what "spaghetti squash" would look like, but I think most of my table was surprised at its arrival in a small casserole dish.

The choice of pork belly was an early consensus, and I looked forward to its arrival.  It was one of my favorite dishes of the night.  As Monica would later learn and then inform me, pork belly is made from the same part of the pig as bacon.  So of course pork belly should be a popular dish.  This is the first year I have eaten pork belly and I must admit I have not been disappointed yet.  While it is not something I would eat every week, it makes an excellent special occasion/every once in awhile dish.

I have yet to encounter a french fry I won't eat, so the baked chicken and fries dish was welcome due to its familiarity.   I could have done without the summer sausage that accompanied it.  I was also a fan of the country ribs, I wish there had been more as there were four of us splitting this dish.  The last item to arrive was the fried green tomatoes.  The tomatoes were quartered and coated in a thick buttermilk crust, I was a fan of the crust but I didn't like the large chunk of tomato that it encased.  I think I would have been more of a fan of this dish if the ratio of buttermilk coating to tomato had leaned towards more buttermilk and less tomato.

There are still a few items on the menu that I would like to try.  And the large craft beer selection has me eager to go back to expand my craft beer selections--they have over 80 different selections.  But it's definitely a place you should go and be prepared to share.  Bacon and beer lovers, unite.

Taste of Three Hams: serrano, la quercia americano, & edward's country ham

Spaghetti Squash: quinoa, parmesan, peppers & swiss chard

Farm Chicken: half chicken  with summer sausage & frites

Country Ribs (half order): dragon tongue beans, basil, tomatoes, chili & peanuts

Pork Belly: saffron couscous, raisins, & yogurt

Fried Green Tomatoes: buttermilk biscuits & romesco aioli 

Perfect for Shopping & Sharing

I was driving around the Water Tower area a couple of months ago and I saw a retaurant with a bright blue awning that piqued my curiousity about its food. I was glad for a chance to go inside and try their food when my aunt bought me a discount coupon to Café Med (http://cafemedchicago.com/), located near the Gold Coast area. It is located a couple blocks away from the Water Tower and Michigan Avenue shopping making it a convenient location to stop by if you're out shopping downtown. 

Upon first perusal of the menu there wasn't much in the entrees that caught my eye.  I'm very much a midwesterner in that I'll always default to steak and potatoes when all else fails.  But since there were four of us and the point of trying this new place was to try as much on the menu as possible, we decided to forego ordering individual entrees and order food with the purpose of sharing. 

We decided on two pizzas, an entree of shrimp ravioli, and crab cakes.  While I was waiting for the rest of my party to arrive, I sat at the bar and the lady next to me had an order of prawns that looked and smelled so good I knew I had to add them to our choices.  And that was probably the smartest choice I made all night, while the food overall was pretty good there was nothing that stood out to me beyond the prawns.  They were buttery, hot, and a great overall texture. 



Cast Iron Oven Roasted Prawns


As for everything else, I thought the shrimp ravioli was too milky, it reminded me more of a corn chowder rather than ravioli in consistency and texture of the ingredients.  I have been on a quest for the perfect crab cake, and this one was far from the best I've had thus far.  The seasoning fell a little flat for me.  And while the tomatoes and avocadoes made the presentation more aesthetically pleasing, they did nothing to increase my actual desire for the dish. 

Shrimp Ravioli (w/ spinach, calabrese chiles, & sweet corn cream sauce)

Crab Cakes

 Of the two pizzas, we enjoyed the Pear & Walnut one the most.  It had a nice balance of sweet and salty.  The presentation of the Prociutto pizza was a little disappointing as it appeared as though the argula had just been dumped in the middle of the pizza and there weren't very many pieces of prosciuotto, it was also overwhelmingly bready (yes, I just made up my own word).

Proscuitto & Imported Taleggio Cheese (topped with baby arugula)

Pear & Walnut Pizza (with Pesto & Carmelized Onions)

Though I wasn't completely wowed by anything on the menu, I would definitely go back for another serving of prawns and they do have a Mac & Cheese and a Short Rib Risotto entree I would be interested in trying.

What do you like on your Pizza?

Ideas are like pizza dough, made to be tossed around.
Anna Quindlen

After work I grabbed a quick slice of pizza from Ian's Pizza (http://www.ianspizza.com/) in Wrigleville with a friend.  I recently mentioned to a coworker that I'd heard about a pizza place that serves macaroni and cheese pizza and he knew right away that I was talking about Ian's.  It's a pretty straightforward pizza joint with many different combinations of pizza toppings.  Though the decor looks like your average slice to go pizza place, the choice of toppings make this place far from the norm.  The options for toppings range from pasta covered to marshmallow and chocolate covered pizzas.  Of course, there are the typical choices that could be made for those who'd rather not stray from mainstream pizza.  There are so many types that I'll definitely be back to try more.  And the Wrigleyville location makes it a great place to grab a snack before or after drinking in the many bars that fill the strip.

BBQ Steak & Fries

Papa Bandit (BBQ sauce, potato, bacon, ranch)

Spring Chicken

Macaroni & Cheese

Macaroni and Cheese in a Truck?

When I first heard about the concept of a truck filled with macaroni and cheese that would make lunchtime stops throughout the city, I was very excited.  It’s like an ice cream truck. For adults. Minus the ice cream, of course.  Their debut route was last week and I followed them on twitter to find out where they  would be stopping. But with the unbearable cold temperatures Chicago was facing and lack of stops near my job, I wasn’t able to convince myself to venture out to find this—what I hoped to be magical—mac n’ cheese truck. 

Fortunately, today, they were making a stop a mere few blocks from my job on one of the warmest days Chicago has experienced in quite some time.  I took it as kismet that I was meant to find this truck.  The stop they posted on their twitter was on Dearborn & Monroe. I arrived there around 11:43am, anxiously anticipating the 11:45am arrival of this truck as a crowd started to gather.  It turns out they weren’t able to find a spot to park at this location, but they keep an update on their stops via twitter (@thesouthernmac), so I was able to get information about the new location.  For this reason, I would definitely suggest you follow them on twitter for last minute changes and/or updates.

The guys on the truck were really friendly and when I was sad that they were out of the “Original Gouda” they kindly suggested I try the “Sun Dried Tomato.”  Now, I am generally not a fan of tomatoes, but I figured I had been waiting over a week to try their food and I’m trying to over come my pickiness so why not step outside of my food comfort zone?  After tasting my food, I definitely confirmed I am not a fan of tomatoes and I was really turned off when I discovered it was also mixed with caramelized onions. While the dish itself was pretty decent (if I picked around the tomatoes & onions—no one should have to work that hard for their lunch), I would definitely not order it again.  I’m hoping the next time I find them they have some of the original gouda mac’n cheese, because while I’m growing in my food tastes, I’d rather keep my mac n’cheese choices simple for now.

I’ll also be stopping by their restaurant, The Southern (www.thesouthernchicago.com), in Wicker Park.  Because while I like that the food comes to me, that also means I’m unable to make any special requests (hold the onions please), which is very important for a picky wanna be foodie like myself.

The Menu.  The guy told me he would have written neater if he'd known I'd be taking a picture :)



The packaging



White Cheddar & Sun Dried Tomatoes: Elbow macaroni, carmelized onions, heavy cream, bread