Monthly Archives: March 2016

Miami – 2/20/16 – Blackbrick Chinese & Alinea Miami

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Blackbrick Chinese
I loved this place so much on my first visit and couldn’t wait to come back.  For once I did not have to do any of the ordering which was completely amazing as it is always my role.  Because of that I have no idea really what any of these dishes are.  Perhaps I knew a month ago but now I haven’t a clue (well except for the beans which I insisted upon and which I could eat every single day).




  

Alinea Miami at the Faena Hotel
Perhaps it has taken me so long to complete this post because I haven’t been able to sort out what to even write.  I was prepared to be completely disappointed by this dinner as when Alinea popped up at EMP in NYC I was completely thrown by having Alinea food in a different space.  Until then I had not realized how much the physical space was a part of the experience.  Also looking at some pictures from the pop up a month prior in Madrid many of the dishes were ones I had already had. But I do often say that its best to have low expectations so that you can only be pleasantly surprised.  Then of course there is the Faena hotel which is completely over-the-top in every way.  And I must digress for a second to note that the service is truly fantastic.  Before beginning dinner I visited the hotel ladies room which had a multitude of stalls and every garbage can was empty and all toilet paper folded into perfect points.  Alinea standards and suddenly it somehow all made sense.  I love how the dining room light fixture reflects in the majority of my photos as it perfectly sums up the experience and in a way was good preparation for Alinea 2.0.  I was completely surprised by how local parts of this menu felt as I simply didn’t think there was time to reinvent too much.  Of particular note, of the many versions of this menu’s beef dish that I have had, this was far and away my favorite.  I truly hope this wasn’t my last BTE or hot potato/cold potato, but if so they went out in style. Very much looking forward to the next chapter.

Hot Dog – welcome to Chicago

Osetra – plantain, papaya, rum
 ​Guiso De Maiz – chorizo, tomato, pumpkin seed

Snapper – bouillabaisse, miro june 2, 1973

Moqueca – tiger’s milk, coconut, citrus vapor
 Crab – cucumber, vanilla, green curry
Pig Ear – tamarind, watermelon, szechuan
Siam Sunray – lemongrass, chili, soda
 ​
 ​ ​Hot Potato – cold potato, black truffle, butter
 ​Duck – ginger, yogurt, gold
Rose – on roses
 ​Beef – chimichurri, lettuce cores, red onion

Black Truffle – explosion, parmesan, cabbage
 Bacon – butterscotch, apple, thyme
 Balloon – helium, green apple
   Chocolate – banana, fernet branca, dulce de leche (Photo truly not representative of how this looked when plated but we got to talking and parts started to melt before I was able to take a picture)

Miami – 2/19/16 – Michaels Genuine, Broken Shaker and Alter

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Michaels Genuine Food & Drink

I don’t think I have ever visited Miami and not dined at Michael’s Genuine.  I’m not quite sure how it became my go-to place but I suppose that years ago it completely stood out as one of the best places in the city.  Every time I come back its just crazy to see how much the Design District has changed.  Consistently solid and I always love their off the street outdoor dining.


falafel – tahini sauce & pickled red onions
 ​golden tilefish ceviche – tangerine, crispy hominy, cucumber, red onion, avocado, cilantro
 ​yellowfin tuna tartare – green tomato, shallots, smoked olive oil, mete lemon aioli, potato chips
 ​roasted broccoli salad – shaved vegetables, quinoa, preserved meyer lemon, tahini dressing
 ​caramelized onion pizza – cave aged gruyere, mozzarella, tomato sauce, thyme, chili flakes

Broken Shaker
Perhaps its just because I prefer to be drinking and dining outdoors, but I love the original Broken Shaker much more than its Chicago version even though they did manage to achieve a similar vibe in completely different settings.  However when I tried to order off menu, I ended up with the drink I was debating just minus one ingredient.  It was one of those times that an actual conversation with the bartender would have been useful as I really just wanted something ‘like’ one of the drinks on the menu.
  

Alter
First a congratulations to Chef Kilgore on being one of this year’s Food & Wine Best New Chefs, an honor which has prompted me to finally finish this post.  Overall this was a really great dinner and I think Alter has an immense amount of promise.  It was too bad that we visited just before the outdoor bar opened as this is a very small space and there was nowhere to wait but on the sidewalk when earlier reservations ran late.  This visit was also slightly after the James Beard semi-finalist nominations came out so perhaps it was busier than usual.  But after being seated very late we waited quite a while for a server to appear at all.  It was very dark so unfortunately these are not the best photographs.  The soft egg was absolutely fantastic and I think on a return visit I would absolutely order two.  I’m missing a description of the strawberry dessert but loved it (and the first course as well).  I’m looking forward to seeing how this place evolves over the next year.


shaved cobia – vetrano olive snow, rice masago, green mustard oil, garlic dashi
 soft egg – sea scallop espuma, chive, truffle pearls, gruyere, caviar
 udon noodle – porcini sabayon, rabbit confit, blistered scallion, shiitake

grouper cheeks – black rice, shoyu hollandaise, sea lettuces

glazed short rib – grits, red onion caramel, wild garlic oil, smoked peanuts
 strawberry ??
 ​meringue

NYC – 2/15/16 – Luskus (w/ Kitchen Table)

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A terrible snowy night to trek to Brooklyn and on the walk from the subway I was wondering what the heck I was thinking.  But I absolutely loved my visit to the Kitchen Table at Bubbledogs last year and was quite excited for this collaboration dinner.  Plus it has been far too long since I have been to Luskus.  I could have eaten a complete meal of the chicken skin and was thrilled to have it again.  It was an utter surprise that my favorite dish of the night was the one I thought I would hate – balsamic, truffle, artichoke.  All individual components that I love, but cold the thought was immediately terrible.  It somehow took me back many many years to when I first had the olive oil gelato at Otto.  I would love to do this entire dinner over again.
 beetroot, salsify, dulse
 razor clam, blood orange, fennel

beef tartare, purple daikon, laver
 chicken skin, rosemary mascarpone, bacon

sea scallop, ginger

Ryan and the Gosling – Evid Twin/Crooked Stave

shrimp, walnut, tarragon
 Sasuga – Oxbow

roasted sunchoke, rye, dulse
 sea bass, onion, nettle
 squab, damson, hay, rye
 lamb breast, salted plum, rutabaga
 balsamic, truffle, artichoke

 carrot, bay leaf, licorice

Chicago – 2/12/16 – Au Cheval, Cold Storage, CAA, Aviary, and Next Alps

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Au Cheval
Where else to start a whirlwind one day tour of some of my favorite places in Chicago than at Au Cheval?   I know I have had burger blinders on for years and have largely ignored the rest of the menu venturing only as far as the raw vegetable salad.  A huge thank you to our server who told us that the beef cheek marmalade could be ordered as a side dish.  How I have lived without this I don’t know.  Next time I may thrown caution to the wind and add it to my burger.

pickles
beef cheek marmalade and toast
 ​cheeseburger with egg and bacon


Cold Storage
Some travel days call for a double lunch, and not only a double lunch but going big with the large seafood tower.  After visiting Swift & Sons a few weeks prior I was looking forward to checking out its more casual inner restaurant.  Fantastic hospitality.  How we ate this all I don’t know.


 ​

Chicago Athletic Association 
For years before the Chicago Athletic Association opened as a hotel, I looked at the amazing facade from across Michigan Avenue on many of the Chicago Architecture Foundation’s walking tours.  I just love everything they have done to maintain the original details and character and can’t help but walk through whenever I pass it.  Unfortunately the cocktails in the grand lobby were far from fantastic, but ambience almost made up for it.

Sidecar and Negroni 

Aviary
As anybody who reads this blog likely knows, Aviary is my favorite place in Chicago.  Not only have I met many people here who have become incredible friends, but I am always blown away by something new on the menu.  I am always nervous bringing somebody new here, afraid that they won’t like it as much as I do or I have talked it up too much.  But when the person gets it and is as excited about the experience as I always am, these are the best visits of all.  Many, many pictures missing somehow.

Loaded to the Gunwalls

Next Alps
This was an absolutely frigid day which made the Next Alps menu the perfect dinner.  A very fun menu separated into six sections – the French farmhouse, the German beer hall, the warming yurt, the top of the Swiss mountain, intro to Italy and Austrian sweets.  While there wasn’t necessarily one stand out dish for me as there has been on previous menus, anytime you can have raclette is special and this is definitely a menu that I would happily repeat.


   stone soup
 ​gratin of Beaufort and trumpet crozets

game pie
 tourton of salsify and apple

 gateau de St. Genix avec du beurre de chevre
 pork belly schnitzel with cherry and black walnut
 ​pretzel, sausages and pickles


 Raclette with potatoes, fermented mustard greens, chestnuts, and black truffles

 Augustiner Brau Edelstoff lager
 chocolate with black truffle and milk crisp
 preserved summer berries with cognac and honey
 smoked arctic char with cauliflower and juniper

 
goulash of beef and Barolo with sour cornbread

 bitter green salad with pomegranate and fennel ice

Salzburger nockerl
 pie spiced ice cream
 apple strudel with clove and cinnamon

And as if this wasn’t enough in one day, missing from the photos are cocktails at Grace as well as post dinner in the Office.

NYC – 2/10/16 – Mission Chinese Food

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I had been putting off a visit to the new Mission Chinese probably because its seems such a trek to the outer edge of the LES.  While the design is certainly exceedingly better than version 1.0, it is sad as Rosette, the previous restaurant in this space, was beautiful.  It took me a bit to get past it, but when I finally did I realized how much I missed the food. I order a green papaya salad everywhere that has one and this one of the best.  I have though had enough of the trend of a restaurant bringing out more dishes at once than will fit on the table.  I realize this is easier for the kitchen than having to actually course out and appropriately time the meal and I conceptually don’t mind.  But I don’t want to speed eat so that a plate can be removed to make room for my water glass.  Nor do I appreciate a server looking at me as if I am supposed to somehow magically make the table twice as big and rearrange all of the plates for them.  I don’t know what the solution is but its getting to be intolerable.

Tingling negroni – gin, pinecone liqueur, tingling oil, aperol, cynar
 Green papaya salad – smoked chicken, green tomatoes, pickled tea leaves, peanuts

Green tea noodles – ginger, scallion, hoisin, matcha

Broccoli beef brisket – baby chinese broccoli, house made oyster sauce, seeds
 Hokkaido scallop sashimi – kombu bured, grapefruit, nori

NYC – 2/6/16 – Lucky Bee

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Lucky Bee has to be one of the most cramped restaurants in NYC and after trying to navigate to the bathroom I gained an entirely new appreciation for the servers.  Another fun option on the LES but after using Reserve to book and making my friends sign up so that we could split the bill through the app, it was disappointing that we couldn’t pay this way.

 Steamed pork and sesame dumplings, chinese black vinegar, black bean, fried garlic
 Tuna tartare, roast chili & shallot, lime, popped wild rice
 Green papaya salad, tamarind & lime, toasted peanuts, snake beans
 Smashed cucumbers, dill pickle, fried peanuts, sweet rice vinegar, coconut milk
 Spiced massaman curry of lamb shoulder, kipfler potato, pineapple vinegar

NYC – 2/2/16 – Oiji

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This may be the year of beef tartare in NYC.  Oiji’s version definitely gives Wildair’s a run for its money.  Perhaps the most beautiful beef tartare I’ve had and I could have eaten two easily.  But as completely different I will refrain from picking a favorite.  While a heavily instagramed dish this year (and how I don’t know as the it was so dark), the “Chil-jeol-pan” unfortunately seemed a bit flavorless.  Perhaps a victim of the success of the tartare and extremely flavorful kimchi and mackerel.

Mother Flower – Hibiscus Hwayo 41, Cocchi Americano, Genepy, Chartreuse  Kimchi
 Beef Tartare with Ramp Aioli
 “Chil-jeol-pan” Seven Flavors
 Pine Leaves Smoked Mackerel with Citrus Soy

Chicago – 1/31/16 – North Pond

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For as many fantastic views and great dining rooms that there are in Chicago, North Pond perhaps has the most perfect setting.  Unfortunately I seem to only make it here in bad weather, but even so its beautiful.  This really has to be the best brunch in the city.

Arctic Char, Beets – chilled smoked char, red, gold, chioggia beets, ruby grapefruit, fennel, horseradish creme, filberts Beef, Sprouts – charred flatiron steak, parsnip brûlée, roasted brussels sprouts, bordelaise gel, grain mustard, slaw
 Squash, Cranberry – pumpkin spiced kabocha tartelette, cinnamon creme, cranberry puree, sage sherbet, candied orange
  

Chicago – 1/30/16 – mfk and Swift & Sons

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Mfk
I will wait for my next trip to definitively say it but this may be my new favorite in Chicago.  Exactly the type of food I could eat every day.  So bright and crisp that even with sausage I did not feel guilty at all afterwards.  And its always a good sign when its nearly impossible to make a decision about what to order because I wanted everything.

ceviche, poblano guacamole, squid ink tostada
 squid, chinese pork sausage, cashew vinaigrette
 poached shrimp, green papaya, cucumber, sugar snap peas

Swift & Sons
After looking at this building for years while waiting for a cab after leaving Aviary and then watching it defrost, I couldn’t wait to see what this building had been transformed into.  An absolutely gorgeous (and quite huge) dining room.  For as much as I love a great steak, I seem to rarely go to steakhouses as I am typically disappointed.  My aged ny strip was fantastic, as were all of the vegetables as well as the shellfish platter (with the much appreciated heavy side of horseradish).

cold shellfish platter
 broccolini, sauce gribiche
 roasted mushrooms, porcini aioli, crouton
 roasted carrots
 dry aged bone in strip
 boston cream pie – vanilla bean cream, bittersweet chocolate, yellow sponge cake
 black bottom pudding – black cocoa crumble, baked dark chocolate mousse, milk chocolate pudding, white chocolate sorbet

NYC – 1/29/16 – Nico Osteria

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A trip to Chicago never seems to feel complete without a visit to Nico.  When it opened this quickly became one of my favorites and there is rarely a weekend I am in town and don’t end up here.  Just consistently fantastic.



Kanpachi & snapper crudo
 Brussels Sprouts Bruschetta – stracciatella cheese, lemon honey, trufflebert hazelnuts
 Seared Tuna salad – avocado, pistachio, orange, basil, poppyseed vinaigrette

NYC -1/21/16 – Vaucluse

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If only I did not have to work I could easily slip into a ladies who lunch upper east side lifestyle and Vaucluse is a perfect spot.  The poireaux vinaigrette completely lived up to my very high expectations after reading several rave reviews of this dish.  I’m not sure that I could order anything else from the hors d’oeuvres section of the menu when I return.  The Vaucluse version of the white label burger is actually a perfect French take on the original white label burger.  But I must admit that I love the original white label burger much more so it looks like a lunch visit to Ai Fiori is in the cards very soon.  Apologies but bacon marmalade beats tomato jam every time. 🙂

 Poireaux Vinaigrette – grilled leeks, toasted almonds, mustard seed vinaigrette
 White Label Burger – aged beef blend, fontine cheese, tomato jam, dijonnaise, frites