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ronnie_suburban

eGullet Society staff emeritus
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Everything posted by ronnie_suburban

  1. Thanks, JiLS, for the heading-tweaks and the additional info. Again, this is a great resource and I appreciate you taking the time to compile it -- and share it with us. =R=
  2. The list which follows was compiled by a friend of mine about 6 months ago. The information therein was submitted by several people. While it's not up-to-the-minute current, I think it's still a valuable resource and my friend has graciously allowed me to post it here: Thanks to JiLS for permission to reprint this list. =R=
  3. I started a thread about this here: Beard House-like entity in Chicago?, Could it happen? =R=
  4. A couple of thought-provoking posts here prompted me to start this thread. Why isn't there a platform in Chicago, similar to the Beard House in NY, where great chefs and their work are showcased? Could such a thing exist? I've read some horror stories about what chefs are required to do when they "win" the honor of cooking at the Beard House so, I'm not necessarily advocating that any prospective local entity model itself after the Beard House. Still, this seems like a natural for Chicago -- especially at the moment. Is there not enough interest here? Is the local restaurant industry too competitive or too small for such a collaborative stage to exist? What exactly are the barriers to getting such a thing launched? The Beard House does showcase chefs from around the world. Does that aspect make smaller, regionally-focused stages irrelevant? Or would it merely require some folks with deep pockets and strong interest to make this happen? =R=
  5. Addendum - February 16, 2006 A couple of great pieces by Phil Vettel, along with Monica Eng, appeared in the February 16 edition of the Chicago Tribune: From A boy named sous . . . From A boy named sous - Three chefs you should know . . . =R=
  6. This is probably best discussed here. =R=
  7. Welcome, jrichman, to the eGS. While they are not all extremely current, check out some of these threads in which Indianapolis dining options are discussed: Indianapolis threads My vote, of course, would be for Shapiro's but there are plenty of other, worthy spots. =R=
  8. Oh, Chris, that looks fantastic. Great job! I look forward to hearing how it tastes. Can you describe any adjustments you might make next time around? =R=
  9. . . . and to think, I actually cooked last night. What the heck was I thinking? =R=
  10. Chicago Magazine's Dish reports this week that a new Jewish deli, Eleven Street Diner, is slated to open in the south loop in mid March. It's being opened by Brad Rubin, who's put in time at some notable places along the way. Addditionally, Mr. Rubin ". . . has been conducting extensive research for his dream restaurant in both New York and L.A. for the past two years." I've often lamented the sad state of Deli in Chicago and have even joked that Shapiro's Deli in Indianapolis is the best deli in Chicago. Although this is nowhere near my home, I'm still hopeful that Eleven Street Diner will change the tone in town. Other than Manny's, which isn't really a deli anyway, what great delis do we really have around here? Will this be our first or is there something about the market here which prevents it from happening? =R=
  11. Thanks, joiei. From the link you provided, it appears that this year's round was the 3rd annual. =R=
  12. LOL! Come one, come all! Seriously though, I feel lucky to have learned about Zier's. I think that it's becoming harder and harder to find odd cuts because of how much meat processing is being done before the meat makes it to butcher shops these days. I can understand a shop not stocking pork bellies but I've encountered some "Prime" shops on the north shore where even whole briskets were "special order" only and marrow bones were actually not available To me, that's just not right . . . and those experiences were a big part of why I made it a point of finding a new butcher. Right now Zier's is #1 in my book with Reagan Meats a very close second. =R=
  13. Are there any more leftovers. Looking pretty damn tasty. Must stop by Zier's. Then swing by your place and have you cook it. So have you gone through every recipe in Charcuterie? ← Ambitious plans, my friend, but leave yourself a nice chunk of time. That roast pictured above took about 7 hours and even then, we kinda' cranked it at the end because we were all getting too hungry to wait much longer. I've only made about 7 recipes (and variations thereof) from Charcuterie but I do anticipate working my way through most of the book. That said, I'm still not sure what's up next . . . =R=
  14. Western Springs is on the other side of the Chicagoland universe for me (which is the only reason I haven't been to Vie), but I did taste a very nice Duck with Cherries amuse prepared by chef Virant at the Recipe for Relief event last October. I have a friend who lives very near Vie and has eaten there a number of times. I know he likes it there (why else would he return?) but I can't provide any more details than that. But, here's a link to a thread about Vie: Vie Restaurant - Western Springs, IL, An undiscussed gem =R=
  15. Thank you for the very nice write-up, mwd. It sounds like the food at Sycamore is delicious, comforting, consistent and reasonably-priced. Can you describe the cassoulet? Is it fairly traditional? =R=
  16. I'm not sure when the awards were started but there were also results in 2005. Edit to add: click here for the list of last year's winners which seems to indicate that it may have been the inaugural year. =R=
  17. I wanted to come back here and 'do a little dance' about how truly great Zier's is. First of all, the aforementioned rib roast we bought at Zier's for Christmas Eve dinner was generally regarded as the best ever by my family. The aging method Dave uses produces subtley tangy and richly flavorful beef. Dave was also kind enough to "roll" it for us. He separated most of roast from the rack and then tied it back on. After cooking, I merely had to remove the butcher's twine, separate a small line of the eye from the bones which took almost no time. When dealing with a nearly 20-pound roast, this type of help is invaluable. Here are a few pics of the Xmas roast . . . The chuck roast I purchased at Zier's produced one hell of a batch of Beef Burgundy for Christmas dinner. The rib-eye and strip steaks, cut to order, are consistently wonderful. Dave recently cut and trimmed a top sirloin roast for me -- right off the primal cut -- which was also fantastic. But beyond the fantastic beef, nearly all of the house-made products available at Zier's are phenomenal. I've tried a bunch of them and frankly, there have been no duds. Here's a brief roster: Bacon -- slab or sliced Cured and smoked in-house, this bacon stacks up with the best of them. Sweet and salty -- but not overly so. We had some for breakfast and I made a BLT with the rest of it. Excellent stuff. Breakfast Sausage -- fresh links, brown & serve patties --We made the fresh links for Christmas morning breakfast and they were as good as any I've ever had. The brown & serve patties are also excellent and take just a few minutes to prepare. They come 5-7 per pack (~ 1-pound) and the packages are nicely cryovacked -- like almost all the house-made products at Zier's. Breakfast Sausage -- smoked links --Outstanding, smokey and very porky tasting. These remind me of smoky links when they used to be good. These possess a depth of flavor which can only be produced by someone who cares and takes the time to do things properly. Just excellent and a real treat. Italian Sausage -- hot, mild, links, bulk Exploding with flavor, very delicious and made with a seasoning combination which makes perfect sense to my palate. Smoked Salmon -- hot-smoked filet Tender, smokey, flakey and absolutely delicious. As good as any hot-smoked salmon Andouille Sausage -- links Again, a very well-rendered sausage. These have a great spiciness and are in the same league as several of the brands I've purchased from Cajun Grocer.com Smoked Chicken Breast -- whole breast, skinless Dave rubs these briefly, rinses them, lets them dry and then smokes them. They're terrific eaten plain, sliced and stuffed into a sandwich or used as a pizza topping (we made BBQ chicken pizza with caramelized red onion). This stuff is the poultry version of crack and I don't even like white meat! Home-made Hotdogs -- cryovacked 6 packs Even in this town, these dogs rate. Certainly not Vienna (or, thankfully, anything like them) but absolutely delicious and very unique. Don't get me wrong, I love Vienna but Zier's dogs are simply wonderful in their own way. Ok, now on top of everything I've already described, Zier's has become the power plant behind my experimentation in Charcuterie. Dave has, without even a bit of hesitation, hooked me up with an endless supply of pork bellies, pre-cut pork butt, extra pork fat, and all sorts of other special requests. Last week, while I waited, he boned out a whole mess of chicken thighs for me in what seemed like an instant. They -- combined with some pork fat -- (which he also provided) became Chicken-Roasted Poblano Sausage. He's also given me tons of advice about curing, smoking and sausage making. Anyway, I'm just feeling a whole lot of butcher love today. For me, the past few months have been filled with exceptionally great food and the acquisition of all sorts of new cooking knowledge. In many ways, I have to give credit to Zier's. I could not have done or learned nearly as much without Dave's help. It is the kind of shop which every beef-loving foodie dreams about. =R=
  18. Damn! What a glorious experience that must have been. Thanks, Jason, for the great glimpse. =R=
  19. Welcome, Simon, to the eGS! I hope you have a great time at Alinea and please, come back here and let us know how it went. =R=
  20. Better late than never, here is a list of the 2006 winners, who received their awards back on February 4: ~~~~~~~~~~ Celebrity chef: Roland Liccioni, Le Francais, Wheeling Celebrity pastry chef: Mindy Segal, Hot Chocolate Rising chef: Paul Virant, Vie, Western Springs Rising pastry chef: Tara Lane, Blackbird Best neighborhood restaurant: Lula Cafe, Amalea Tshilds and Jason Hammel Best fine dining: Avenues, Graham Elliot Bowles Best sommelier: Scott Tyree, Tru Best catering company: Calihan Catering ~~~~~~~~~~ That's an impressive roster, populated by some seriously talented folks. Congrats to all the award recipients. =R=
  21. February 15, 2006... From today's Chicago Tribune - Good Eating section: A taste of black history, delivered to your door...in the final installment of her 3-part series on Black History Month, Nancie McDermott focuses on mail order sources for African-American foods. A different shade of Bordeaux...Bill Daley takes a look (and a taste) of Bordeaux's occasionally over-looked white wines. Tasting notes are included. It's all about Asia at Onu...Abby Polonsky visits Onu Asian Market in Lakeview. Winter melon...Bill Daley with a useful guide. ===== From today's Chicago Sun Times - Food section: What a slice...Maureen Jenkins surveys the current cheese scene in town, which is developing quickly these days. Tastings around town...Celeste Busk previews upcoming events at Goose Island (Wrigleyville), Carlucci (Lincolnshire), University Club, Scylla and Motel Bar. And the winners are . . .In addition to rounding up a few of the week's industry offerings and events, Denise I O'Neal also reports the results of the 2006 Jean Banchet Awards for Culinary Excellence, which were presented back on February 4. ===== From today's Daily Herald - Food section: Go ahead and kick the can, of tomato soup, that is...food editor Deborah Pankey provides a quick work-around for canned soup. Food and wine classes...a comprehensive listing of upcoming area food events, tastings and classes; broken out by day. ===== In this week's installment of Chicago Magazine's Dish, Penny Pollack and Jeff Ruby (along with Deborah Wilk, once again) deliver some promising news about Bradley Rubin's Eleven City Diner, a traditional Jewish deli slated to open in the south loop in March. ===== =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. <><><><><>
  22. It's actually a black hole. ← Actually, it looks purple to me (in the pics) but it was fairly dark at our table. See my description above for a possible, partial explanation . . . the "crust" on the foie was very pronounced. =R=
  23. Well, you'd better add Butter to the list, too =R=
  24. The images are great, as usual. Just look at that silky potato foam atop the Shepherd's pie and the delectable Short Rib ravioli. The pics are reminding me of just how enjoyable the meal was. Thanks for posting them. =R=
  25. Interesting, woodburner. I appreciate the input. I'm going to take it into consideration on my next run. =R=
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