ronnie_suburban

OK...does that mean you did not enjoy it enough to think it was worthy of a post? I would encourage all eG members to post their true thoughts on their dinning experiences. ← I couldn't agree more and would very much like to hear about Butter now that they are without chef Poli. =R=

No ducking foie gras law by Michelle S. Keller: =R=

We can (and usually do) do better than that. Then again, we never hear about it when the biggest restaurant news of the week in some other city is that an outpost of a Chicago restaurant will be opening there. ← LOL, true. And just in case there's any confusion, I didn't mean to shoot the messenger (Dish or ue). It is a big story. I just wish there was a bigger, more local story that we could taste much sooner. =R=

I'll just say that it bums me out when the biggest Chicago restaurant news of the week is that an outpost of an already-existing restaurant will be opening here. When I saw that this was the lead piece in this week's Dish, I knew it was a slow week, to say the least. Still, when the opening eventually rolls around, I suppose it'll be interesting to see how this plays here. As for Tourondel, I imagine that even if he gets the gig, he won't be on premises very often. =R=

February 14, 2007... From today's Chicago Tribune - Good Eating section: Forgotten Thailand...in this special to the Tribune, Robyn Eckhardt of Eating Asia (eatingasia.typepad.com) reveals some secrets of Thailand's northern region of Lanna. Attention all cooks!...Test Kitchen Director Donna Pierce solicits recipes from readers for the Good Eating section's new feature: "What's Your Dish?" Pig out!...with the Chinese New Year -- 4705, The Year of the Pig -- just around the corner (February 18), Bill Daley takes a look at a "quartet of new Chinese cookbooks to mark the new year." Hail to the chef...in this special to the Tribune, Chris McNamara visits with former White House chef Walter Scheib, who shares stories of his days cooking for Presidents Clinton and Bush. Chef Scheib will be in town this Friday to promote his first book, White House Chef: Eleven Years, Two Presidents, One Kitchen. Monkey business with a sweet bottom line...Susan Taylor visits the Banana Bakery in west suburban Westchester. Galangal...Joe Gray files this useful guide. ===== From today's Chicago Sun Times - Food section: Super markets...Leah A. Zeldes goes back to her Niles past and provides a detailed overview of the town's "plethora of ethnic grocers." And in this companion piece, Ms. Zeldes provides a 'super' useful list: Food stores of Niles. A really Fat Tuesday...Denise I. O'Neal reports on what Heaven on Seven will be doing to celebrate Mardi Gras this year. Not ready yet?...Sandy Thorn Clark provides a list of last-minute Valentine's Day gift ideas. ===== From today's Daily Herald - Food section: These recipes can really heat things up for cooking couples...food editor Deborah Pankey files a brief review of InterCourses: An Aphrodisiac Cookbook, by Martha Hopkins and Randall Lockridge. Married couple share their love of food, cooking...in this week's Chef du Jour installment, the ubiquitous Leah A. Zeldes profiles chefs Mary and Christopher Spagnola of Emilio's Sunflower Bistro in LaGrange. Food and wine classes...a comprehensive listing of upcoming area food events, tastings and classes; broken out by day. ===== From the February 9 edition of the Chicago Reader's Restaurants section: Nicholas Day reviews the much anticipated Aigre Doux Restaurant & Bakery. Also provided is a list of 18 romantic spots that are recommended for Valentine's Day. ===== In this week's edition of Chicago Magazine's Dish, Penny Pollack and Jeff Ruby report that NY's notable Brasserie Ruhlmann will spawn a Chicago outpost -- with the help of the Japonais team -- in the old Montgomery Ward building, probably sometime late this summer. ===== =R= <><><><><> Media Digest Notes... Updates from some Chicago media outlets, which do not 'go to press' on Wednesday mornings, will be edited into each week's post as they become available. Please do not reply on this thread. For discussion of any stories which are linked here, please feel free to start a new thread or contact the forum host or digester who will be happy to do it for you. <><><><><>

Congrats, Chef, on the new addition to the family BTW, for any of you folks with access to the Chicago Tribune Magazine, the cover of today's edition features a fantastic picture of ChefGEB and the caption below it reads "I'm calling you out, Bobby Flay." I'm very much looking forward to seeing tonight's big battle. =R=

Yeah, it's always best to check the label of what you're buying. I've been sourcing my pistachios industrially (because I also use them for other things), and in that venue, the 2 primary categories seem to be 'roasted and salted' or 'raw.' =R=

Congrats to Chef Grant Achatz, Sommelier Craig Sindelar and the entire Alinea team for winning 2007 Jean Banchet awards in their respective categories (Celebrity Chef, Sommelier, Fine Dining). The well-deserved accoloades continue to roll-in. =R=

Normally, I would not provide feedback on someone else's suggestion but on my one visit to Slim's for brunch this past summer, I thought it was remarkably pretentious; so much so that the experience still stands out for me. It's certainly a unique place and the food was distinctive, although not all of it for the right reasons. I'm sorry to be so negative. =R=

My local Whole Foods Market carries them both salted and unsalted. I opted for unsalted. ← Generally speaking, salted are usually roasted as well. Unsalted are usually raw. In the pates I've made (pictured somewhere upthread), I've always used raw pistachios. =R=

February 7, 2007... From today's Chicago Tribune - Good Eating section: Dark Attraction...Bill Daley profiles the shrinking but still strong Chicago chocolate scene. And in this related piece, Mr. Daley reports on a few products which are sure to ". . . boost your choco-IQ": Chocolate for the taking--and the making. Daikon...Bill Daley files this useful guide. Secrets of seduction...proving that he's truly a man of many hats, Bill Daley reports on the most popular wine choices for Valentine's Day. Chocolate from cover to cover...Renee Enna reviews The Essence of Chocolate: Recipes for Baking and Cooking with Fine Chocolate, by John Scharffenberger and Robert Steinberg. ===== From today's Chicago Sun Times - Food section: A week of love...with Valentine's Day right around the corner, Sandy Thorn Clark explores the link between certain foods and romance. Mighty man...Denise I. O'Neal reports that Shaquille O'Neal has hit the retail market with a new beverage designed to help curb obesity in children. ===== From today's Daily Herald - Food section: Eat cake like a king while helping hurricane victims...food editor Deborah Pankey reports on how you can stuff your face with King Cake and aid victims of hurricanes Katrina and Rita at the same time. 'You have to love the food and the people'...in this week's installment of Chef du Jour, Melissa Allen profiles Giacomo "Jack" Zito, chef/owner of Giacomo's Ristorante Italiano in Des Plaines. ===== From the February 2 edition of the Chicago Reader's Restaurants section: Dinner With the Fish Guy...David Hammond visits with The Fish Guy, aka Bill Dugan, and profiles his restaurant: Wellfleet at the Fish Guy Market. Also provided is a list of 25 restaurants around town where seafood can be had. ===== In this week's installment of Chicago Magazine's Dish, Penny Pollack and Jeff Ruby give props to our own moosnsqrl for her stellar food limerick. ===== =R= <><><><><> Media Digest Notes... Updates from some Chicago media outlets, which do not 'go to press' on Wednesday mornings, will be edited into each week's post as they become available. Please do not reply on this thread. For discussion of any stories which are linked here, please feel free to start a new thread or contact the forum host or digester who will be happy to do it for you. <><><><><>

Just a quick heads up that chef Bowles will be competing against Bobby Flay on this Sunday's episode of Iron Chef on Food Network. Chef Bowles will also be featured on the Today Show (NBC/WMAQ) this coming Wednesday at 8:48 am CT. He'll be cooking with flowers for Valentine's Day. It's all-out Bowles media blitz this week! Congrats, Chef =R=

If you have time, you should hit Jungle Jim's International Market. It's not exactly a restaurant but it's definitely a food-lover's destination. shengcai's post above about Skyline Chili was definitely true for me -- I didn't really like it very much. It was too sweet for my taste and tasted like Greek spaghetti sauce. A transplanted friend of ours who lives in Cincinnati said the same was true for him . . . for a short time. He tried it once and didn't like it. He tried it a second time and still didn't like it. A week later found himself craving it now he eats it about once a week. =R=

Nice job, Kent! Your pics reminded me of a batch of cold-smoked salmon that I made a few weeks ago for a party. This was made from a really fatty and well-marbled, 4.5-pound side of Wild Tasmanian King Salmon. I cured it (slightly modifying the recipe in the book) for about 60 hours and then cold-smoked it over a mixture of apple and maple wood for about 4 hours. The result was very nice. The fish was so thick that even after a 60-hour cure, it was not overly salty and when it came to room temperature, the fattiness and the mild, sweet smoke showed up even more deliciously than I could have wished for . . . I have to say that I've (again) been spoiled by what I've been able to make using this book. I've been keeping home-made cold-smoked salmon around the house for the past few months. I went back and tasted my favorite commercial brand -- the one I used to buy and eat on a regular basis -- and by comparison, it had virtually no flavor. I don't think I can ever go back. =R=

Andy Dehnart of realityblurred.com offers an insightful take on TC2 at msnbc.com: 'Top Chef' fails the taste test =R=

Mike Sula's piece in The Reader a few weeks back definitely intrigued me: The Oyster Whisperer =R=

I heard that possibility was dead but I'm not certain of my source's reliability. It's a good guess. =R=

No worries. Here's a link to the same content, posted on-line: Robuchon is Coming Any guesses about the eventual location? =R=

With the city now safe from illegal foie gras , alderman Joe Moore will apparently now turn his attention -- and political sway -- to bringing additional alcohol sales to the 49th ward. Moore, via his web site, is soliciting input from the community on lifting a moratorium on package liquor sales in a specific area of Rogers Park for a period of 1 year. Lifting the moratorium would allow Eric Aubriot and his Flangelato, LLC, to open a gourmet food and wine shop at 1506 W. Jarvis. Of course, if the moratorium is lifted, other individuals and businesses on Jarvis, between Greenview and Ashland could also apply for package liquor licenses during the 1-year period. In typical politician-speak, Moore doesn't really come out and say he's in favor of the 1-year suspension of moratorium but from the way his site touts Aubriot's credentials, it's pretty clear which direction he'd like this to go: Believe me, I have no problem with a gourmet food and wine shop opening in Rogers Park but something about this really stinks. I'm guessing the moratorium was originally enacted to protect the quality of life of the people in the affected and adjoining neighborhoods. But regardless of the potential collateral damage this could cause to the area, Moore appears ready to look the other way to get this shop opened. Hell, as long as the ducks are safe, who cares about the people, right? =R= Thanks to Chicago Magazine's Dish for bringing this story to our attention.

From the Dara Moskowitz piece: Then There Were None by Dara Moskowitz =R=

From the piece linked above by Brad: A bleak month for restaurants by Rick Nelson =R=

There are a few thoughts about Alma on this thread: [MN] Fhima's or Restaurant Alma, any suggestions? =R=

I'm going to answer my own (above) post on a couple of counts . . . Breakfast, which I tried last Saturday, was pretty good. The eggs benedict were very nice, although I prefer the rendition they serve at Prairie Grass Cafe. I also enjoyed the Pancakes 'Foster,' which consisted of some perfectly fluffy pancakes topped with a Bananas Foster-type topping. The topping was tasty but a bit too rummy for my taste. The super crispy Calabrian potatoes (served with the egg dishes), which I've had at dinner on a few occasions, were just way too herbacious for my breakfast palate. Unfortunately, the salami and eggs with caramelized onions were nothing special. The few chunks of tasty of salami were not well-integrated into the slightly overcooked scrambled eggs and the caramelized onions were actually served on the side, in a ramekin, which was an unhappy surprise. Taking a step back, I also learned that, unfortunately, none of the cured meats served at OdT are made in-house. I swear I remember reading somewhere, before it opened, that OdT planned to serve house-made salume but I must be mistaken about that. Overall, while the food is definitely tasty at OdT, the level of risk seems to have dropped sharply in the weeks since my first visit. My above post about Chicken Parmigiana may reveal something about the (new) direction that OdT is heading. When the place first opened, that dish wasn't even offered. Now, it seems to be one of 3 Chicken entrees which are permanently on the menu. It's certainly tasty but I just cannot count Chicken Parmigiana as serious fare. The potato and octopus salad is gone as is the rigatoni with caramelized cauliflower. Even the Steak for 2 (Steak Florentine) seems to have gone bye-bye. This past weekend, a skirt steak appeared on the menu. I love skirt steak . . . but this is not the place for it. I hate to say it but this is a pretty far cry from what I expected from the team that was fomerly Tru. In fact, even the food at Brasserie T (the team's fantastic former restaurant in Northfield), outshines the food currently on the menu at OdT. I'm not sure exactly what's going on but OdT appears to be aiming much lower than it originally was. Is it the hotel guests, the local audience or other factors which are catalyzing these changes? I wish I knew. There are still a lot of strong points about OdT. The food, in spite of the multiple changes I describe above, remains tasty for the most part (although I'd avoid the perfunctory lasagna). Their awesome wine program is a draw in and of itself. Gale Gand's desserts are also an attraction of their own. The space is lovely and the service is fantastic. But, I have to say that this food is food which could be had just about anywhere. The distinctive elements of the menu and some of the best preparations seem to be evaporating. I assume that these changes represent a struggle between the kitchen team's desires and the reality of who their audience is. I hope that, at least in some ways, OdT can revert back to its previous, dinstinctive form. I understand that a hotel restaurant must cater to the desires of its guests. I understand that a north-suburban restaurant must cater to the relatively conservative tastes of north-suburban residents. But the wholesale changes which are being implemented at OdT are, for fans of serious food, a bit worrisome. =R=

I love the Big Baby and Rene G's stellar missive (at LTH) about them but, as Louisa said, they're pretty much a southwest-side thing. And yes y t, there are other places to eat in Chicago besides Alinea =R=

January 31, 2007... From today's Chicago Tribune - Good Eating section: The layered look...Robin Mather Jenkins provides this tutorial on soups, which emphasizes the importance of layering flavors in building a successful final product. How to feed a ravenous Bear (fan)...Renee Enna visits with the pros and solicits some solid advice on assembling a great Super Bowl menu. Prices you can Bear...Bill Daley scouts some lower priced wines ($6 and under) which will pair well with most Super Bowl fare. Tasting notes are included. Stocking up...in this week's Prep School installment, James P. DeWan walks us through the steps required to make great stock. Policing the organic label...in this special to the Tribune, Laura Hodes explores the often-obscured details of foreign-grown organic produce. Rogue Ales Chocolate Stout...Jerald O'Kennard files the Beer of the Month installment. ===== From today's Chicago Sun Times - Food section: Throw a Soup-er Bowl party...Sandy Thorn Clark suggests serving a buffet of Bears-themed chilis on Super Bowl Sunday. From the January 30 edition: Fresh or frozen, all Indian...Janet Rausa Fuller reports that the Patel Brothers Grocery on Devon Avenue is ". . . getting a major face-lift, American supermarket-style." McDonald's takes wraps off snack options...Business Reporter Cheryl V. Jackson reports on McDonalds' plans to roll-out an expansion of its chicken snack wrap line. From the January 29 edition: Wicker Park to get first organic pizzeria...Janet Rausa Fuller previews Crust, an organic pizzeria slated to open in February in Wicker Park. ===== From today's Daily Herald - Food section: Label overload - sorting through what's on the shelves...food editor Deborah Pankey previews an upcoming, proprietary food-labeling designation. He's up to the challenge of hosting other chefs...Leah A. Zeldes interviews and profiles Noah Bekofsky, executive chef of Aria in the Fairmont Chicago hotel, who will help stage the "10th annual Fairmont Hotels & Resorts Grand Chefs Gala, Journey to Shangri-La on Friday." Food and wine classes...a comprehensive listing of upcoming area food events, tastings and classes; broken out by day. ===== From the January 26 edition of the Chicago Reader's Restaurants section: This week's focus is on 'recent' openings. Mike Sula reviews Smoque, Kathie Bergquist reviews Chalkboard and Kate Schmidt reviews Quince. Also provided is a list of about a dozen and half other new spots. ===== In this week's installment of Chicago Magazine's Dish, Penny Pollack and Jeff Ruby confirm the rumors we've all been hearing for months: Robuchon is coming to Chicago. There's no word yet on the location. ===== =R= <><><><><> Media Digest Notes... Updates from some Chicago media outlets, which do not 'go to press' on Wednesday mornings, will be edited into each week's post as they become available. Please do not reply on this thread. For discussion of any stories which are linked here, please feel free to start a new thread or contact the forum host or digester who will be happy to do it for you. <><><><><>