Sweet or Savory Waffles?

Sunday morning I ran in my first post Nelson race - the Chicago 10k. The fall like temperatures and the magnificent view of the lake made for an excellent inaugural race and has me itching to sign up for a half. We'll see about that, but on to waffles.

The finish line in Grant Park spit us out in the south loop so we ventured to Waffles for some post race calorie consumption. Waffles' website, while painful to listen to and navigate, boasts Time Out Chicago's Best New Breakfast of 2012. The scene is modern, simple and easy, welcoming kids of all ages. We chose to sit outside and ponder over which direction to take our waffle experience.

I have a hard time going all in for the sweet version of breakfast. I don't know what it is, but there is something about it just feeling like dessert and I feel cheated of an entire proper meal. This is one of the major benefits of dining with a 15 month old because I can order the sweet option "for him" and steal bites off of his plate while he is easily distracted by the closest "gah" - that's Nelson speak for dog. Yet, the menu looked so amazing here that I was willing to take a chance and I asked the waiter one simple question - sweet or savory?

Cheddar & Short Rib

With no hesitation, he said savory and pushed me towards the Cheddar and Short Rib, comprised of a 4 year cheddar waffle topped with coffee braised short rib and scallion. This was high risk for me, but he said it with such conviction, how could I go wrong? The flavor did not disappoint. The short rib was cooked to perfection and the waffle wasn't bad either, but it seemed like there was something missing. No grits or poached egg, just meat and waffle??? It lacked a mediator. Thankfully Brian shared one of his poached eggs from his Waffle Benedict - a liege waffle with slow roasted pork shoulder, poached egg and aleppo Hollandaise which was a real departure for the king of sweets. He was more than content with his choice. Thankfully Nelson's plain waffle with whip cream and old-fashioned syrup met my need to have it all. Whatever your breakfast fetish entails, you can find it at Waffles.

Pint O' Bacon

Pint O' Bacon

Yes, you heard me right, a pint of bacon. On a lovely Saturday in July during the Cubs/Cards series we couldn't seem to locate tickets for six together, so we decided to enjoy the day hanging out around Wrigley instead of inside of it. We began our day at Murphy's Bleachers with bloodies and beers, the only downside being we had to go indoors to see some ball.

So we ventured out to Casey Moran's for their well known patio framed by numerous TV screens. Our more than patient server Malory did a great job of keeping us satiated and initially recommended the pint of bacon, exclaiming it was the best $4 ever spent. We unquestionably took her up on her recommendation.

Bacon seems to be trendy this day and age. I recently saw a bacon cupcake - yuck. I myself have always been an advocate of bacon, excluding that short stint in 4th grade when I learned that improperly cooked pork could lead to trichina worms. That may have led to my preference for really crispy bacon.

Nonetheless, even with my strong affinity for bacon, I can think of a few better ways to spend four bucks. But, I will give them extra credit for originality. Let me just say this, when you go to Casey Moran's (an upscale Irish bar as it is called), you're not going for the bacon. You are going to either celebrate a W, or if the Cubs fans have not been as fortunate, you are going to kick back and have a good time. It's simply inspiring to watch the middle of the bar space turn into a dance floor so quickly in the middle of the day. This makes for great people watching and is one of those experiences that can make you feel really young and yet really old all at the same time. It's a fun destination win or lose, but fortunately, on this day the Cubs brought us a W! Too bad four out of six of us were Cards fans!

Crushing Cocktails at Blackbird

The Prima Vera

Life has been more than a little hectic, so we were in serious need of a date night. We decided to try Avec where we had an amazingly scrumptious meal. While waiting for our table, we went next door to their sister restaurant Blackbird for a drink.

The atmosphere at Blackbird on a Saturday night reflects sophistication and an all around feeling that the people working there have a high propensity for creating a unique experience. I made a mental note to add this to my dinner list, but for this visit, we bellied up to the bar. The cocktail menu needs a bit of translation for a novice. I  naturally went for the Prima Vera because it contained egg whites and I love a good frothy cocktail! The Prima Vera is made up of North Shore #6, Bittermans Citron Sauvage, cucumber, basil, and of course egg white. Typically I'm not a huge fan of gin, but this drink was the perfect combination and the gin melts away.

The Lonely Heart

Brian chose the The Lonely Heart, made up of Buffalo Trace, muddled fruit, black pepper syrup, lime, and house-made sweet tea soda. Typically made with strawberry, renowned mixologist Lynn House put a twist on it this evening using muddled plums. Just watching Lynn do her thing and shake that shaker with her own special beat was something to see, and the extra care could be tasted in every sip.

While the vibe at Blackbird is definitely a bit more on the serious side, it's a perfect entre to the communal style, down to earth, anything goes environment at Avec. And, you can easily stroll next door, cocktail in hand, because they are all one big happy family. More on next door in a later post, but suffice it to say, I'll be making a dinner reservation at Blackbird in the very near future.

Donuts make me happy - and then sick

First, let me say that it has been quite some time since my last post. Have no fear, I've still been eating, but have not been diligent in blogging about it. I'll try to do better. Now, on to the food.

This week I was on my way to Moe's Cantina to meet a friend for drinks and dinner when I happened upon the Doughnut Vault. I made a mental note to myself to try it, and this morning we did just that. For those of you that do not know my husband, he could eat dessert for breakfast, lunch and dinner so it didn't take much to persuade him. We headed to the vault after working up an appetite at Erie Park, our recently renovated neighborhood park that just reopened in time for Taste of River North, which is taking place as we speak. We'll be heading there post nap for some bacon wrapped dates from English. But, back to the donuts.

Let me just say, I had no idea the cult following of this place. We arrived shortly after 9 am to a line wrapping around the building that consisted of at least 75 people. What? Really??? OK, these donuts must be good. We made friends with people in line and quickly gathered the scoop. On Saturdays, they open at 9:30 and close when the donuts are gone, which doesn't take very long with the line snaking around the building. The line continued to grow long after our arrival, but we were up to give our order close to 10 am.

The menu is basic and written on the wall outside. The storefront is literally just big enough to hold 2 to 3 people, so plan your order outside. The excitement builds as you get closer and you can't help but tap your feet to their blaring tunes, which for us entailed Outkast's Sorry Miss Jackson. It was finally our turn and we decided to go with 2 old fashioned buttermilk, a chocolate glaze, a vanilla glaze and a jelly filled. We were a little overzealous in our selection. The vanilla glaze without a doubt took home the trophy, while the old fashioned took 2nd place.

They were good, would have been better warm, but we still managed to clean the box, which then made us nauseous. My final consensus is that while we had a great experience, and the donuts were good, I'm not sure I completely understand the hoopla. Would I do it again? Hmm, maybe, but I think I'll reserve my calorie expenditure for more savory fare.  Brian, on the other hand, gives it both thumbs up. If you decide to try it, bring your cash and get there early.  Oh, and try to eat just one so your tummy doesn't go into complete sugar shock!

The Sandwich that Changed My Life

I’m a person that can appreciate good, clean design. That’s the first thing that drew my eye towards Hannah’s Bretzel with their bright red awnings off of LaSalle. I was on my way back from a small victory so I needed to celebrate, and with the slogan "the Über sandwich makers" how could I resist?

You may ask about the victory in which I'm referring to so I'll quickly share that I passed my Illinois driving test without even studying, acing the vision test and walking away with my new license while shedding a tearful goodbye to my last bit of legal Texas identity which recorded a weight my Illinois ID will probably never see.

I walked in alone and overheard the group in line behind me chattering about their sandwich of choice. One recommended the Italian Parma + Goat Cheese which reaffirmed my sandwich choice when she said she had never even tried anything else. The formula includes baby arugula, rosemary infused asparagus and white truffle oil on an organic bretzel baguette. I don't quite know how to describe the bretzel and give it justice, but just know it has a history of its own. I was initially sold with the truffle oil because I can pretty much drink that stuff and at 463 calories for a fairly decent sized sandwich it seemed like a no-brainer.

And not only does your sandwich taste good, it's also good for you and the environment. My particular sandwich was 47.1% organic, whatever that means. But, I can appreciate a restaurant that wants to serve "fast" food in a healthy manner. You have your choice of healthy sides, fresh soups, salads and good for you desserts with an array of every kind of chocolate bar you can imagine from all over the world.

I sat watching the city life pass me by as I savored every single bite of that sandwich. It was amazing: fresh, full of flavor and the perfect prize for my successful feat. I look forward to making my way down the menu.

It's ok to take your baby to a bar... if you order a burger

As we near March, an exciting and stressful time of year for my husband (a severe college basketball fan), Saturday had left us in a bit of a lurch as we had intentions of lunching somewhere new. Then, Brian realized he couldn't get the Arizona game on television so he left for the nearest watering hole while Nelson and I went to explore the streets - a house divided.

Currently, we are renting in River North so we can easily get to the heart of the loop in an easy 15 minute walk. I headed to Hannah's Bretzel for a quick sandwich, which deserves a post of its very own so I'll get back to you on that soon. Post lunch I was in close proximity to the Bull and Bear where Brian was watching his Cats pull one over on the Bruins. We met up and began to stroll. We headed down Hubbard towards Michigan to attempt a visit to The Purple Pig. Don't know much about this joint, but I passed it on a run and it looked interesting. I fear due to its proximity to Michigan, it may be a bit touristy. It was packed, so we continued on winding our way through the side streets headed northwest.

Did I mention we had a stroller and a 10 month old? Our quest to find an appropriate venue to have a cocktail and not ruin someone's urban vacation was becoming quite a challenge. We walked through a few doors and quickly u-turned. Just as we were about to throw in the towel, we thought we'd give Clark Street Ale House a try, because I've been admiring its neon-lit sign and its simply stated directness "Stop and Drink". Unfortunately, it couldn't be camouflaged as anything other than a bar. So, we went a few doors down to 25 Degrees where they advertise the slogan - not just another spot to grab an ordinary burger. We stuck our head in and it fit the bill. At 4:00 the restaurant/bar, more of a bar was not too crowded, had ample TV real estate to watch my alma mater the Missouri Tigers vs. the Kansas Jayhawks in their last conference game, and they even had a high-chair. This was meant to be. We sat in a circle booth, checked out the cocktail menu and placed our orders.

One of these things is not like the other.

Brian and I have been very much into whiskey this winter, probably a tad too much. I quickly made dibs on the Kentucky Brunch which includes egg whites, apricot marmalade, and R-1 Rye. It did not disappoint. It was a pure cup of frothy, refreshing goodness. The Tigers were up 15 before the half. Nelson was enjoying the modern vintage decor, and our server was polite, willing to please and ready to take our food order.  That is until we told him, "oh no thanks, we're just here for cocktails".

It didn't take long to change our mind as we watched burger after burger pass us by. Brian always says, "a bun makes the burger". This burger was indeed good. We got the #3 with mezzo secco jack, hatch green chili, chipotle and avocado - a little bit of Texas on a burger. We shared fries and the chopped salad, an interesting combination of avocado, grapes, tomatoes, beets, pine nuts, white beans, parmesan reggiano and buttermilk vinaigrette. I'm not sure who came up with that colorful combination, but it was a nice surprise that even Nelson could appreciate.

Well the game went into overtime, ended on a sour note and the bar was filling up fast. We considered ourselves lucky that Nelson had more than cooperated in our afternoon adventure so we decided to get out on a good note. A perfect unplanned, surprisingly pleasant afternoon, except for that Tiger loss. In bed by 8 o'clock feeling accomplished we had found our burger joint just a skip, hop and a jump away from our new place.

The Inspirational Pancakes

So, here it is, the meal that inspired the blog. Well, not the only meal, but the crux. This was the one that put me over the edge, that had us brainstorming and googling available blog names on our stroll home. And, the winner is the lemon pancakes with fresh blueberries, crème anglaise & lemon sauce, a.k.a. dessert for breakfast. My apologies for not having a photo, but have no fear, we will return and post, although I can tell you the photo will not do them justice. You'll have to try them yourself.

We had our eye on the Kingsbury Street Cafe for a while, as it is directly across from our neighborhood Whole Foods and has a nice visual appeal from the street. Less than a mile from our home and conveniently located to our new church, we decided to take advantage of the lovely sunny morning and walk to brunch. Ta dah! We have our new Sunday morning tradition!

Meringues, the size of your face

Upon entry, it was crowded, but the hostess eagerly approached us, took our names and kindly guided us to where we could park the stroller, a plus when you have a small child. Next my eyes immediately noticed the beautifully designed space and were then drawn to the marble enclosed glass case of pastries, which encompassed meringues like I have never seen before, meringues the size of your face!

We waited and watched as the stylish Chicagoers (is that what you call them?) came and went. One plus of winter is all the cool coats. Must take note to find something a little more stylish than my black puffy Patagonia. Soon, we arrived at our maple wood lined table, placed our orders and watched as the plated items came and went from the open kitchen. Our server was very pleasant and even offered Nelson a plate. I assume he doesn't have children and hope he wasn't offended by us putting Nelson's food directly on the table or the fact that I told him he could get him a plate, but he would simply throw it across the restaurant. Brian ordered a bloody mary that had a kick with a cayenne lined rim. I settled for a mimosa and we decided to share the lemon pancakes and the kingsbury cafe breakfast which includes 2 farm fresh eggs cooked over medium to perfection, roasted tomato (could have done without it), herb potatoes, cheddar scone (to die for) and the house made turkey breakfast patties. The pancakes and the cheddar scone were enough to put us over the edge and everything else was cooked to perfection. All in all, this meal led to a memorable Sunday morning with the family after a hectic start when the church nursery was full! Next stop was Whole Foods for groceries to make our own memorable meal while we watch the Oscars.

Kingsbury Street Cafe is definitely a good find. Open for just six months, the owners have years of experience in baking and making pastries which have been rumored to be the food in waiting at the old Harpo green rooms. If it's good enough for Oprah, it's good enough for me. Next time I think I'll try the quiche.