Avec in Chicago

James Beard Foundation Award winner Paul Kahan has many restaurants in Chicago and they are all respected for creative, fresh, delicious dishes. We went to Avec, whose Chef is Koren Grieveson, and had an exceptional dinner.

The space is all wood and modern. The back wall is green glass and it's either bar seating or along the right wall banquette seating. As many restaurants in Chicago, they do not take reservations so be prepared to wait a bit.

Charred monterey sardines with meyer lemon, red endive, nichols fingerlings, dandelion greens and smashed peas. Beautiful combination of flavors and textures. The sardines tasted like the ocean, without the fishiness.

Marinated white anchovies on charred flatbread with cucumber, cilantro and mustard oil. Zesty and vibrant this is a dish I would love to recreate at home.

Wood-fired squid with san marzano tomatoes, guanciale, fideo and fennel aiol. This was my favorite dish of the night (yes, even more than the pork shoulder). The squid was ultra fresh and flavorful and married with those rich tomatoes and all those wonderful Italian flavors, it was fantastically delicious. It smelled so good the people next to us asked what we were eating and ordered it too!

Wood-oven roasted pork shoulder with watercress, wild rice and green tomato chow chow. Mmmmm...pork shoulder. Super moist and tender. Once again, tons of flavor. Fresh, real ingredients treated with respect are truly the most important thing a restaurant should focus on.

615 W Randolph
Chicago, IL 60661
312.377.2002

kitchen
sun-thu 3:30p-12:00a
fri, sat 3:30p-1:00a
bar
sun-thu 3:30p-1:00a
fri, sat 3:30p-2:00a

The Purple Pig - Cheese, Swine, & Wine

Here piggy piggy...

The fact is that this Chicago restaurant has become quite the tourist destination, BUT you should go anyhow. They have amazing piggy dishes, an impressive wine list, and a great atmosphere.

First of all, get a load of that bowl. Definitely going on the Christmas wish list! Inside said dish are fried pig ears, pickled cherry peppers, fried kale, and a fried egg on top. Deeelish!

 Mortadella smear on toast with arugula and crumbled pistachios with a balsamic glaze.

And for some real piggy pig, the pork jowl served on toast with asparagus, oyster mushrooms, and a duck egg sunny side up! Holy rich dish! Wow.

500 North Michigan Avenue
Chicago, IL 60611
312-464-1-PIG (744)
Sunday - Thursday 11:30 a.m to Midnight (Kitchen open 'til midnight)
Friday & Saturday 11:30 a.m. to 2:00 a.m. (Kitchen open 'til 1 a.m.)

Sable in Chicago

Under falling rain drops, we hurried into Sable located in a Kimpton Hotel in Chicago. I was surprised (and delighted) to find my friends inside, who were 'supposed' to be out of town. They had begged the kitchen to stay open late and we were able to order lots of delicious eats. It seems like every restaurant we went to in Chicago has now adopted the concept of dining around shared plates - no more 3 course meals, it's all family style...

Wisconsin Fried Cheese Curds with spicy ketchup glaze. Does this really need a description? YUM.

Sweet corn creme brulee. It's as delicious as it sounds. Your mind gets very confused thinking creme brulee and then the little bits of corn and salt blend with the custard in your mouth and it is a beautiful thing indeed. Fantastic idea!

Sable has an extensive cocktail menu and mixologists behind the bar concocting inventive libations. This one is War of the Roses - Pimm’s, Bombay Sapphire, Chase Elderflower, mint, fresh lime. Oh so delightful and served in those fun cocktail glasses from yesteryear.

Seen above are mini wild mushroom veggie burgers with red onion jam and goat cheese and in the black pot, veal meatballs with gorgonzola-walnut cream sauce. I never knew a veggie burger could be so amazing. The amount of mushroom flavor packed in there was fantastic and with the tangy goat cheese and sweet onion jam - wow. And oh those little veal meatballs...sigh. I wish they could appear in front of me right now...

Duck confit with blue cheese, roasted garlic, bourbon cherries, arugula. Very creative flavor combinations which all paired beautifully with the rich duck.

I do believe this cocktail was called Lord of Dreams - Banks Rum, yellow Chartreuse, Luxardo Maraschino, fresh lemon.

This is a very gooey dark chocolate souffle cake which seemed to need a bit more time in the oven, but who cares as chocolate is awesome.

One of my friend's favorite beers - fresh and hoppy goodness.

The Chef at Sable is Chef Heather Terhune and was a contestant on Bravo's Top Chef Texas show. But no matter that she was on a TV show because her food is delicious and you should get over there and eat it.

505 North State Street, Chicago, IL
Tel. 312-755-9704

Animal Style in Los Angeles

Clearly, heading down to Los Angeles proves to have become something to love! As part of my birthday celebration, Jeff and I went to Animal in West Hollywood. It has been on my list for a while now, after having heard so many amazing things about it. Animal was awesome!

Hamachi tostada, herbs, fish sauce vinaigrette, peanut. Beautiful combination of fresh flavors. The fried shallots were a nice touch!

Foie gras terrine, blackberry jam, black pepper gastrique. To think July 1st brings the end of foie gras in California. A new law will fall into place outlawing foie gras, much to my dismay. This terrine was divine, melt in your mouth goodness. The blackberry jam was sweet and tangy and the pepper gastrique a perfect amount of spice for the perfect bite, seen below.

Duck breast, charred cabbage, liptauer, mustard. Most ducky duck I have enjoyed in California. The charred cabbage was wonderful in its smokiness and perfect bite.

Balsamic pork ribs, watercress, favas, beets, panzanella. Rich, fall off the bone goodness. Balsamic on pork ribs is a fantastic idea. The vibrant salad of greens complemented the giant flavors of the ribs perfectly.

Berries, vanilla custard, lavender crumble, opal basil. A lovely, light dessert to complete a very satisfying meal.

Can't wait to eat there again!

435 N. Fairfax Ave. Los Angeles, CA 90036
Reservations: (323) 782 9225

Blue Owl

Local's know Blue Owl as the late night eats spot which appears at Thai restaurant Zen Yai and it is delicious. They have now expanded their horizons and opened a location of their own on Canon Perdido. Don't worry, they are still doing their late night menu at Zen Yai. Blue Owl is only doing a soft opening this week and will hopefully be fully functioning in a week or two. They have wonderful things planned for the menu which will include breakfast and lunch items. Today I enjoyed a roast beef Banh Mi sandwich full of wonderful flavors of fresh cilantro, daikon root, garlic mayonnaise, and more all on a crusty, flavorful baguette. I can't wait to eat there for breakfast!

Blue Owl - 5 West Canon Perdido

Brother's Restaurant in Santa Barbara Wine Country

On a gorgeous 73 degree day, my friends and I ventured over into the valley and Santa Barbara Wine Country for a day of local libations, new discoveries, and good times with friends. The Brother's Restaurant, Sides Hardware & Shoes, was our destination for lunch as it recently opened in a new location where Patrick's Side Street Cafe was in Los Olivos. We arrived right as lunch service began at 11:30am and were lucky enough to have been seated at a table in the shaded front patio. The interior was beautiful with wood touches everywhere and neat lighting fixtures, but the day was too amazing to not sit outside. Everything is quite casual yet nice silverware and cloth napkins add a touch of elegance. The menu was exciting (as seen above) and left us all having a hard time deciding what to eat. I love their logo!

The beef carpaccio. Lovely in its simple presentation. Lovely bread toasts with olive oil, arugula lightly dressed in olive oil and lemon with paremsan bits, and whole grain mustard.

The hammered pig. Fried pork tenderloin with red cabbage, apple, and mustard seed slaw. The pork was somehow still moist and full of flavor. All a great combination with their slaw etc.

 The seasonal soup. Pea soup extraordinaire! Compact pea flavors with a minty creamy dollop.

The white cheddar and caramelized onion tart. Rich cheesy goodness. The side salad, which accompanied many of the dishes, had fresh vegetables mixed in and a light vinaigrette...a bit too light according to the group, lacking in flavor. We drank the Brander Sauvignon Blanc with our lunch. A perfect match for the food and the weather!

Next visit, I will be ordering their grilled cheese - herbed goat cheese, cheddar, and parmesan on brioche.

Sides Hardware & Shoes - 2375 Alamo Pintado Avenue, Los Olivos
Tuesday - Sunday 7:00am to 2:30pm, 5:00pm to 9:00pm
805-688-4820

Divine Culinary Moments in Los Angeles

Cube Cafe, with their super fresh ingredients and wonderful combinations of flavors, creates an incredibly satisfying dining experience.As well as appetizers, pastas, main dishes, and sides, one can order cut meats and cheeses. Above is a gorgeous pile of Bresaola. Extremely tasty and sliced to order.

Mimmo’s burrata - charred market radicchio, aged balsamic, spiced walnuts, house rosemary focaccia. The burrata was rich and creamy and with the radicchio and walnuts, oh what a perfect bite!

Leek and braised bacon raviolo - ricotta, egg yolk, brown butter, parmesan. Wow. This dish was so very satisfying. The boldness of the filling flavors and the somehow light butter sauce was wonderful with the egg yolk and fresh pasta. We cleaned the whole plate till it was white again.

English pea tortellini - prosciutto brodo, pea tendrils. Fresh, fresh, freshness. We were amazed at how much fresh pea flavor was packed into each tortellini. The pea tendrils still had bite to them. The broth, well, I couldn't get enough of it. It felt like it could cure anything. 

With our meal we enjoyed a Frascati, which I was quite surprised to see on the menu and at only $30!

Niman ranch pork t-bone - braised black lentils, sauteed spinach, roasted garlic & thyme
vinaigrette. Perfectly cooked pork. I am going to use the word fresh again here as this seems to be the real key word here. Everything tastes like it was just picked, never frozen and it is all treated with respect in the kitchen.

Black magic cake - cream cheese, chocolate sauce. Indulge yourself and dive into this chocolate lover's must. It's all about dark chocolate with a touch of sweetness.

615 N. La Brea Avenue, Tel. 323-939-1148 x1
Tuesday-Saturday: 11am-11:30pm, Sunday-Monday: Closed