ronnie_suburban

So, you mean "last" as in final? The drinks at Miramar aren't much cheaper than that, but they are still cheaper. $10 is really pushing it--yes, especially in Glenview. =R=

Fear not, IMO they will survive despite customers like this because of their combined Four Seasons training. I know (as an FSH alum) that the customer experience is fore front, whether it is a plain piece of chicken with everything on the side to upstanding restaurant patrons, like yourself. This is never an easy job, but I would be willing to bet the farm that this is a group of people who are probably more prepared than most to handle very fussy clientele and create positive experiences for them, as well. ← I assume and hope that you're right. We're talking about highly successful industry veterans with literally decades of experience under their belts. Plus we're talking about folks who have repeatedly received accolades from both their peers and the dining public over the years. Still, I was horrified on their behalf last night. I wish them all the luck in the world. Tough crowd. =R=

I wonder if they have to go. I want more high end restaurants with to go options. ← My guess is yes, based on the quality of the packing materials used to convey our leftovers. =R=

Shepherd's Pie was $14.75 for a rather large portion (we brought some of it home) and the cocktail was my usual, Stoli on the rocks, wedge of lime. I also, later, had a glass of Firesteed (Oregon, 2002) Pinot Noir, which was delicious. =R=

In my haste to 'report back,' I neglected to mention a few things in my initial post. First of all, we also ordered a side of Broccoli Puree and it was fabulous. I should have asked what was in it. It tasted intensely of broccoli, but it had the texture of mashed potatoes. Perhaps it was made with some stock or dairy and may have been whipped. I'll eventually find out. I called the restaurant today to see about ordering lunch. Unfortunately, they will not be open for lunch until mid-November (the 19th, IIRC). I was delighted to see items like homemade sausages and pate on the menu at a casual north shore spot. Frankly, you just don't see enough of this up here in the northern burbs, where the preferred cut of beef is the filet mignon and "on the side" has become a way of life for most folks. I was also pleased to see the large range of wine choices and their reasonable price points. Many respectable bottles were offered in the $20-$30 range. There were also glasses available for as low as $5 per. I spied one bottle on the list which was nearly $15 cheaper than it sells for at Miramar. Nice. I have to say that the wait staff at PGC has saintly patience. Next to us was a table of what was, quite possibly, the fussiest group of diners imaginable. It probably took them close to 15 minutes to get their drink orders worked out. If I learned that they were plants, sent by Ashton Kutcher himself, it wouldn't have surprised me one bit. First, they wanted to try one of the wines by the glass...."we like a dry red, but full-bodied." The taste was rejected. Next, they ordered margaritas. The server was a total pro, asking them every conceivable question: "blended or on the rocks?", "with or without salt?", etc. Shortly thereafter the waiter came back with the margaritas but they were not to the table's liking. They sent them back for some sort of reworking. Upon redelivery, they were found to be acceptable but "we're not really in the mood for margaritas anymore." At that point I lost track of what was happening but did notice that there were now 2 servers assigned to that 3-top instead of one. Reinforcements had, appropriately, been sent in. The next thing I heard--attempts to tune out the catastrophy had failed--was one of the servers saying "so you don't want the bacon with that?" At this point I could barely contain myself. I know that there are people like this all over the world, but they seem to be concentrated in restaurants in the northern suburbs of Chicago. Here we were in a 3-day-old restaurant, with a large and tantalizing menu and the "special order brigade" was doing everything possible to put their stamp on it. If all these folks want is a broiled chicken breast and a side of steamed broccoli, wtf do they bother going out? What is the purpose of going to a restaurant and asking them to cook you the same meal you can make at home or get somewhere else? It was all I could do keep myself from getting up and stabbing these people repeatedly with a steak knife. I realized that my family needed me, so I resisted. But in all seriousness, these are the types of things that restaurants must deal with on a constant basis--even more so on the 'north shore.' Staying in the restaurant business is tough by any measure and these are the sorts of things that complicate it further. There are simply times when the customer is not right, but smart business people--especially those in the service sector--accomodate them nonetheless. It's quite possible that these diners (or others like them) could leave PGC completely unsatisfied and without ever having tried anything that was actually on the menu. Because they couldn't get their dinner, their way, they blast the place without ever letting it do what it set out to do. Luckily, our meal had ended and we left before we had to overhear anymore of this disgraceful behavior. I hope that PGC grows their business to the level where they can tell people like this to "stick it" but they are total pro's and would probably never do such a thing. Regardless, I'm sure the staff all had a bunch of good, long, private laughs about these folks throughout the evening. But, seeing that these people are out there, made me nervous on the restaurant's behalf. These are simply unpleasable guests. If there are enough of them out there, your restaurant fails even if you do your absolute best to accomodate them. Surely, these industry veterans knew this type of stuff was coming, right? I sure as hell hope so. =R=

There was a mention about Heritage products in the September 15 issue of the Chicago Sun-Times. You can also contact Slow Food Chicago here =R=

Just came back from an excellent dinner at PGC. The room is very nice; not too different from it's previous incarnations but much more "mission" with the white tablecloths gone, dark wood tabletops exposed and light-colored leather now lining the banquettes. The weirdest element of the decor was the "wall" of flat panel television monitors (3 facing each direction, lined up side by side) which separated the bar area from the main dining room. Appearing on the monitors were pastoral, moving images of the prairie. I have to say that I was somewhat astounded by how smoothly everything flowed, considering that the this was only their third night in operation. Of course, we arrived very early--such is the price of dining out on a school night with a 2nd grader. Still, service was excellent; not only doing the expected but the unexpected. We got some good help with the wine list and there were numerous touches that kept us feeling like our presence was sincerely appreciated. We started with some drinks and appetizers. I had a cocktail, wife had a glass of Echelon Chardonnay. Here's what we had to eat: Appetizers Crab Cake with corn relish and roasted sweet pepper sauce --excellent. The corn relish was a nice accompanyment and the red pepper sauce was terrific. Solid dish. Crispy Roll of Medium-rare Ahi Tuna wrapped in Basil with Soy dipping Sauce --liked it but didn't love it. I just couldn't really taste the tuna very well in this form. Dish was immaculately prepared, sauce was good, but it just missed for me. Homemade Pate' in a Crock with Apples and Port Wine Reduction --outstanding. The pate' was excellent and the apples and reduction made for perfect pairings. Entrees Un-traditional Shepherd's Pie with Butternut Squash, Parsnip and Potato Gratin over braised beef and Swiss Chard --I know this term is over-used but this dish was sublime. Absolutely amazing. It was delicious, comforting, simple and innovative. Wow! Homemade Italian Sausage with Polenta, Sweet Peppers Basil, Arugula and Parmesan --another winner. The sausage was supremely delicious with just the right amount of fennel. Polenta and peppers were also perfect. A huge portion, even for me. Kid's Mac & Cheese Really good version of the old standby. Of course we all had to taste it and give it our stamp of approval. Desserts Mom's Homemade Apple Pie (a la mode) --liked it but didn't love it. Very flaky crust but it tasted almost undercooked. We mentioned this to our server who explained that it was cooked as intended. I appreciated the textural uniqueness of this item but still felt like it just missed the mark. Baked Pear in Almond Cake --awesome, ethereal, delectible. I am generally not a big dessert fan and this really wow'ed me. I was loving every bite of it. Wife and I ended up splitting it and leaving half the apple pie. All in all it was a great meal. I really can't wait to go back and try a few more items. The menu is large and inviting and filled with tempting dishes. Tonight we simply did not have the appetites or the numbers to go "exploring." I hope to change that in the very near future. =R= Prairie Grass Cafe 601 Skokie Boulevard Northbrook, IL 60062 (847) 205-4433

Yes...an absolutely horrendous, remote location. =R=

Yes! Aubriot is a great guess =R=

Well, according Chicago Magazine's Dish the Le Francais saga continues to unfold... First of all, if this comes down to a signed contract, the place may never re-open. As you may recall, it was an "unsigned" contract which precipitated the departure of the Brothers L in the first place. That said, would anyone care to guess on who the next chef will be? =R=

Awesome, George. Thanks for the report. It sounds very promising. How full was the place? Is the word out there already? Seems like a lot of people (even some I wouldn't quite describe as food fans) know about PGC. We're thinking about hitting it tonight or tomorrow. And btw, I'd love a copy of the menu. =R=

A very nice piece...congrats, Jason =R=

October 20, 2004... From today's Chicago Tribune - Good Eating section: It's a Chicago thing...having already explored wine pairings with pizza and hot dogs, Bill Daley turns his attention to pairing wines with the 3rd member of the holy trinity of Chicago foods, Italian Beef Sandwiches. under pressure...Michele Taylor and Kathy Mas report on the new breed of pressure cookers and how they're being used these days by working parents. Cafe Laguardia West...Renee Enna files a Cheap Eats review of this west side, Cuban eatery. Culinary culture...Chris McNamara reports on special group of young food fans and their recently-completed "Tomato Fest." Barbeque olympics draws circuit riders...Heather Shouse files this report from the recently-completed 25th annual American Royal Barbecue World Championships in Kansas City, MO. ===== From today's Chicago Sun Times - Food section: Unfortunately, at the time of this posting, the Sun-Times has last week's (October 13) Food Section posted at their web site. ===== From today's Daily Herald - Food section: Cooking classes...a comprehensive listing of upcoming cooking classes, tastings and culinary events around town, broken out by day. ===== And last but certainly not least, in this week's installment of Chicago Magazine's Dish...Penny Pollack and Jeff Ruby continue to report on "the never-ending story" at Le Francais. Apparently the Brothers Lachowicz's resignations have now been officially accpepted and the new chef has been chosen but not announced. The new Chef's identity will remain a secret until the contract is signed. Hmmm...why does this contract detail sound so familiar? Stay tuned. =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. For discussion of any stories which are linked here, please feel free to start a new thread or contact the forum host who will be happy to do it for you.

I appreciate your enthusiasm and perseverance. There is an email link that appears at the bottom (right corner) of the intro page at the Alinea site. From what I can tell, it appears to be functional. Now....back to the food! =R=

LOL! At his signing at Blackbird Restaurant here in Chicago last week, Tony observed a few attendees removing the covers from their books in an effort to "preserve" them. He made a point of busting them on it right then and there, telling them that they were defeating the entire purpose of the butcher paper covers--and the concept of the book itself. The book is beautiful in many ways. The page stock is quite heavy, and the pictures are fantastic in spite of the fact that no food stylist was used. There are countless other touches which further the individuate the book from others in its category. I have yet to cook from the book myself but I tasted several dishes last week which were made from the book's recipes and I'm very excited about giving a few of them a whirl. =R=

LOL...again with the resume questions?! Please check Alinea's web site for employment information. Thanks =R=

Most excellent. I'll look forward to seeing them. =R=

Agreed. I'm certain she was being completely sincere. Carry on! =R=

If you look very closely, it appears that the crisp bread disc is not lying completely flat on the plate in the final version shown. I love the stems too. I often make slaw or soup with them. =R=

I think I can answer this part of the question. The crisp breads are inverted, with the broccoli stems on their undersides, facing the plate. =R=

Thanks, Chef, for the update. It's much appreciated. =R=

chefg, Can you give us an update on the Dried Creme Brulee? Has your crew been able to "push the ball forward," so to speak? =R=

I can tell you that it was absolutely delicious chefg, What was the inspiration for your version of PB&J? =R=

It’s the first day of cooking in Alinea's Food Lab and the mood is relaxed. We’re in a residential kitchen but there’s nothing ordinary about it. Chef Grant, along with sous chefs John Peters and Curtis Duffy are setting up. The sight of the 3 steady pros, each in their chef’s whites, working away, does not match this domestic space. Nor does the intimidating display of industrial tools lined up on the counters. While the traditional elements are here in this suburban kitchen: oven, cooktop, sink, so too are the tools of modern restaurant cookery: pacojet, cryovac machine, paint stripping heat gun…wait, a paint stripping heat gun? In the physical realm, the Food Lab is a tangible space where the conventional and the unconventional are melded together in the quest for new culinary territory. With Alinea’s construction under way, the team must be resourceful. This meant that renting a space large enough to house both the office and the kitchen aspects of the food lab was out of the question. The decision was made to take over a large office space for the research and administrative aspects of Alinea and transform a residential kitchen into the Lab. Achatz and the team would work three days per week at the office researching all aspects of gastronomy and brainstorming new dishes, while managing the project as a whole. The remaining time would be spent in the kitchen executing the ideas formulated at the office. “At first I thought separating the two would be problematic,” says Grant “but in the end we are finding it very productive. It allows us to really focus on the tasks at hand, and also immerse ourselves in the environment conducive to each discipline.” The menus for opening night—containing as many as 50 never-before-served dishes--must be conceived, designed, tested and perfected. The Alinea team does not want to fly without a net on opening night. On a more abstract level, the Food Lab is simply the series of processes that continually loop in the minds of Chef Grant and his team. While there is no single conduit by which prospective menus--and the dishes which comprise them--arrive at Alinea, virtually all of them start in Chef Grant's imagination and eventually take form after brainstorming sessions between the Chef and his team. Menus are charted, based on the seasonality of their respective components, and the details of each dish are then laid out on paper, computer or both and brought to the kitchen for development. In this regard, the Food Lab provides something very special to the Chef and his team. “We consider the food lab a luxury,” says Grant. Once Alinea is open and the restaurant’s daily operations are consuming up to 16 hours of each day, time for such creative planning (aka play) will be scarce. Building a library of concepts, ideas and plans for future menus now will be extraordinarily valuable in the future. Otherwise, such planning sessions will have to take place in the 17th and 18th hours of future workdays, as they did when the Chef and his team were at Trio. Today, several projects are planned and the Chefs dig into their preparations as soon as their equipment setup is complete… Poached Broccoli Stem with wild Coho roe, crispy bread, grapefruit Stem cooked sous vide (butter, salt, granulated cane juice) Machine-sliced thin bread Dairyless grapefruit “pudding” Dried Crème Brulee Caramel orb shell made with bubble maker and heat gun Powdered interior made with dried butterfat, egg yolks, powdered sugar & vanilla PB&J Peeled grapes on the stem Peanut butter coating Wrap in brioche Broil Micro-grated, roasted peanuts Instant Tropical Pudding Freeze Dried Powders of coconut, pineapple, banana Young coconut water spiked with rum Muscovado Sugar Cilantro Candied Chili Jamaican Peppercorn Vanilla Bean The steps required to comprise each dish are, as one might imagine, intricate and numerous. For the Poached Broccoli Stem, Chef Grant begins by separating the broccoli stems from the florets. The stems are stripped of their fibrous exteriors and pared down until they are uniform in size. Grant comments on the use of the second hand part of the vegetable: “This dish started with the roe. Every year we receive the most amazing Brook Trout Roe from Steve Stallard, my friend and owner of Blis. Typically, we serve the eggs with an element of sweetness. I find it goes very well with the ultra fresh salinity of the week-old roe. This time around we wanted to take a savory approach so I began looking into complimenting flavors in the vegetal category. About the same time, our group had a discussion about secondary parts of vegetables and the stem of broccoli came up. I had a past experience with the stem and found it to be very reminiscent of cabbage. Knowing that cabbage and caviar are essentially a classic pairing, I felt confident that we could work the dish out. Now I'm struggling to decide if this is a broccoli dish or in fact a roe dish, I think they really battle for the top position and that helps makes the dish very complex." Chef Grant processing the broccoli The stems are placed in a polyethylene bag, along with butter, salt and granulated cane juice. The bag is sealed with a cryovac machine The sealed stems are placed in a 170 degree F water to cook, sous vide, until extremely tender; about three hours Broccoli stems after cooking The crisp bread element is fabricated via the use of an industrial deli slicer. Chef Grant then brushes the sectioned pieces of poached broccoli stem with eggwash, affixes them to the thin planks of brioche and places them in a fry pan with butter. Grant's mise...not your ordinary cutting board Poached Broccoli Stem and Crisp Bread cooking Ready for plating A bright green broccoli puree is made with a vita-prep blender. Here, Chef Grant "mohawks" it onto china given to him by Thomas Keller Smoked Coho roe has arrived via Fed-Ex, courtesy of Steve Stallard Chef Grant devises a plating scheme for the Poached Broccoli Stem while Curtis looks on Chef Grant ponders one potential plating of the dish. He called this incarnation 'predictable' and started over. Another plating idea. This version is garnished with broccoli petals and ultra-thin slices of connected grapefruit pulp cells. The yellow petals are stand-ins for what will ultimately be broccoli blossoms Grant is still displeased at the dish's appearance. "The dish tastes as I envisioned it....texturally complex, with the crispness of the bread, the soft elements of the floret puree and stem, and the pop of the eggs. The buttery richness from the bread gives the stem the flavor of the melted cabbage I loved at the [French] Laundry. And the hot and cold contrasts from the roe and broccoli …I like it…..I just don’t like the way it looks.” Another attempt and the group agrees, it is better but not “the one.” The use of the thinly sliced cross sections of peeled grapefruit energizes the group. In the next rendition, they make small packets with the ultra thinly-sliced grapefruit containing the roe... A third plating configuration for Poached Broccoli Stems; this one featuring the packets of roe wrapped in ultra thin sheets of grapefruit pulp cells At this point the team decides to move on and come back to it next week. After some conversation they decide that in the final dish, broccoli will appear in at least 5 forms: poached stems, floret puree, some raw form of the stem, the tiny individual sprouts of broccoli florets, and the blooms. Grant feels that Poached Broccoli Stem could be ready for service, although he still envisions some changes for the dish that will make it even more emblematic of his personal style. “Our dishes continue to evolve after they hit the menu. It is important for us to get to know them better before we can clearly see their weaknesses.” The thought for the dried crème brulee originated over a year ago when a regular customer jokingly asked for a crème brulee for dessert. “He said it as joke, I took it as a challenge,” says Grant. "Of course, we never intended to give him a regular crème brulee.” The team tried various techniques to create the powder-filled caramel bubble while at Trio to no avail. An acceptable filling for the Dried Crème Brulee has been developed by the Chef and his team but several different methods, attempted today, to create the orb from caramelized sugar have been less than 100% successful. Caramel blob awaiting formation. Chef Curtis kept this pliable by leaving it in a low oven throughout the day Chef Grant’s initial idea to use a metal bubble ring and heat gun (normally used for stripping paint) to form the bubbles does not work as hoped. Attempts to fashion them by hand also come up short. Says Grant, “At Trio we tried a hair-dryer. When Martin told me about these heat guns which get up to 900 degrees F, I thought we had it for sure. If it was easy everyone would do it I guess.” Eventually, Alinea partner Nick Kokonas garners the task’s best result by positioning a small, warm blob of sugar onto the end of a drinking straw and blowing into the other end. The results are promising. Curtis suggests using a sugar pump to inflate the orbs. That adjustment will be attempted on another day. “We intentionally position whimsical bite in the amuse slot, it tends to break the ice and make people laugh. It is a deliberate attempt to craft the experience by positioning the courses in a very pre-meditated order. A great deal of thought goes into the order of the courses, a misalignment may really take away from the meal as a whole.” For PB&J, the grapes are peeled while still on the vine and then dipped into unsweetened peanut butter. They are allowed to set–up, and then they are wrapped with a thin sheet of bread and lightly toasted. When the peeled grapes warm, they become so soft they mimic jelly. The composition is strangely unfamiliar in appearance but instantly reminiscent on the palate. PB&J is, according to Grant, virtually ready for service. There are a couple of aesthetic elements, which need minor tweaks but the Chef feels very good about today’s prototype. Chef John peels grapes while still on their stems Peeled grapes on their stems with peanut butter coating Chef Grant studies the completed PB&J in the Crucial Detail designed piece PB&J Often, creative impulses come by way of Alinea’s special purveyors. “Terra Spice’s support over the past couple of years has been unprecedented, and it has accelerated with the start of the food lab,” says Grant. “It is great to have relationships with people that think like we do, it can make the creative process so much easier. Often Phil, our contact at Terra, would come into the kitchen at Trio and encourage us to try and stump him on obscure ingredients. We always lost, but not from lack of trying. He even brought in two live chufa plants into the kitchen one day.” The relationship has developed and Terra team has really made an effort to not only search out products that the chefs ask for but also keep an eye out for new ingredients and innovations. In August, Phil brought by some samples of products that he thought the Alinea team might be interested in trying. Phil of Terra Spice showing the team some samples Coconut powder and other samples Grant recalls “the most surprising item to me was the dried coconut powder. When I put a spoonful in my mouth I could not believe the intense flavor and instant creamy texture, it was awesome.” That was the inspiration for what is now Instant Tropical Pudding. The guest is presented with a glass filled with dried ingredients. A member of the service team pours a measured amount of coconut water into the glass and instructs the guest to stir the pudding until a creamy consistency is formed. The rum-spiked coconut water being added to the powders At the end of the day, the Chefs assess their overall effort as having gone “fairly well.” It’s a mixed bag of results. Clearly, the fact that things have not gone perfectly on Day 1 has not dampened anyone’s spirits. The team has purposely attempted dishes of varying degrees of difficultly in order to maximize their productivity. Says Grant, “Making a bubble of caramel filled with powder…I have devoted the better part of fifteen years to this craft, I have trained with the best chefs alive. I have a good grasp of known technique. The lab's purpose is to create technique based on our vision. Sometimes we will succeed, and sometimes we will fail, but trying is what make us who we are." The team's measured evaluations of their day’s work reflect that philosophy. According to Chef Grant, “The purpose of the lab is to create the un-creatable. I know the level at which we can cook. I know the level of technique we already possess. What I am interested in is what we don't know...making a daydream reality.” With little more than 100 days on the calendar between now and Alinea’s opening, the Chef and his team will have their work cut out for them. =R= A special thanks to eGullet member yellow truffle, who contributed greatly to this piece

Alpana Singh is the host and is there primarily to facilitate moderate and punctuate the conversation. The basic concept is that 3 regular folks from the Chicago area each choose a restaurant to review and appear on the show only once. Each of the 3 participants gooes to all 3 restaurants reviewed in a given episode--the one they chose and the 2 chosen by the other participants. Discussion of the restaurants is done in 3 separate segments, with each show getting its own. At some point, after the diners have gone to the restaurant, WTTW sends in crews to tape at the venues. Edited montages are then rolled in during the segments while the discussion takes place. In other words, you get to see a lot of the food, environs, etc. while the discussion is going on. Between segments, there are usually some food trivia questions--and new this season--a wine tips segment called "Singh About Wine" which is written and hosted by Alpana herself. Here is a link to the show's official web site... Check, Please! A great show...maybe the fastest half hour on tv. =R=