Our swing through the midwest not only brought us to Chicago, but to both Madison and Milwaukee, for a night or two each.
I think there's a certain mentality in those latter two cities, similar to what I remember from dining in Florida, during those many years my parents lived there; and that is, the more stuff you can put on a plate, the better. Except, in the midwest, if it's a vegetable.
That said, Rick Bayless's Leña Brava in Chicago was very good. We also ate at what I think is a well-known spot in Chicago, mostly due to the circumstances of our arrival, our location, and the fact that they were lighting the lights and trees along Michigan Avenue, so it was a madhouse around our hotel. That would be The Purple Pig, and sitting at the bar and spotting a full complement of Pappy (at reasonable prices!), how bad could it be? The smoked tongue, house-made mortadella, and other assorted goodies we had were just fine, and it served us well.
But is it Chicago without making a stop at one of these places?
Duks Red Hots serves up a Vienna beef hot dog, fully loaded, with oh-so-many fries, for like $3.65. The hot dog was good, the less said about the fries the better.
In Madison, at Eno Vino, I had what may have been the best roasted tomato soup with a grilled cheese sandwich I could ever remember eating. I mean, everything else was OK, but this? This, had I ever been served it as a child, would've brought me right back to those days. And maybe I was?
The pine nuts added a nice crunch, but in my opinion were superfluous.
Milwaukee's food, at least that which we consumed, was OK. Actually, Sanford was very nice. There's also a fine reboot of their whole public market area, including a newer indoor market that reminded me a bit of our new Essex Market, with tables and chairs upstairs, surrounding and overlooking the whole shebang. Back to Chicago for our final night, we very much enjoyed The Publican. The half platter of charcuterie might've made a whole meal, and they have a great beer list too.
There's head cheese, pork pie, salami, sausage, paté, and a bunch pickled goodies on that half platter. Great bread went along. Recommended.
We stayed in a lovely property our last night in Chicago - The Robey in Wicker Park, and it was good to get away from the madness of S. Michigan Avenue. It also provided a nice, classic view...
of both the El and the bottle of Jeppson's Malort (much better now, I was assured, since it's being made right in town) I had purchased down the block.
