One night in Chicago

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I'm back in the Windy City after 5 years, but unfortunately this time I only have one dinner slot.  I figured I needed to get together with some local experts to figure out where to go, so I pinged two ladies from halfway around the world, and they agreed to show me around.

Blondie suggested Smyth right off the bat, and I know it's one of her favorites so I had absolutely no problem with that.  Thanks to her relationship with the restaurant, they were able to accommodate us even when my travel itinerary changed.

After changing out of my monkey suit, I headed west and met the ladies at The Loyalist - the more casual eatery downstairs - for a drink.  I was a little flustered when I arrived and didn't really have a chance to figure out what I wanted, so someone very kindly plopped down a glass of bubbly.

Eventually we went upstairs to take our seats.  We had originally asked for a short, classic menu because we were to be joined by my friend who doesn't like long, tasting menus.  But since my friend wasn't joining us, I figured we could be a little more adventurous...

I didn't know what to order in terms of wine, so I guess I kinda got myself the wine pairing without specifically asking for it...

Charles Heidsieck Rosé Réserve

Horseradish root - pickled and compressed salsify, cooked in whey, wrapped in kombu (昆布) and horseradish.  The kick from horseradish wasn't too bad.

Maine uni glazed in egg yolk - a classic dish here, apparently.  The texture of Main sea urchin was more firm and solid.  Egg yolk sauce and egg white garum, along with habanero (?) oil.  The flavors here were interesting, with fruit fragrance which reminded me of citrus notes, along with good acidity.

US excursion 2014: two sandwiches and the Twin Towers

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I had an early morning flight this morning, so I was always gonna take my breakfast at O’Hare. After going through TSA’s security screening – where they make everyone feel like a terrorist or criminal – I scanned the plans for Terminal 3 and figured the best place to grab a bite would be Tortas Frontera by Rick Bayless. Having rejected numerous friends’ suggestions that I check out Rick Bayless’ restaurants serving Mexican fare while in town, I guess in the end I just have to have a little Mexican.

The thought that griddled sandwiches may be a little big for breakfast did cross my mind, but I still went for one. As it turned out the egg and chorizo torta was pretty tasty, and I even found myself pouring enough of the green chili sauce in the middle to get a little kick. Not bad.

After I arrived at the Mondrian Soho, I dropped my big suitcase with the bell boys and schlepped over to Katz’ Deli for the first of only three meals during my very short stay in town.

US excursion 2014: the greasy pig

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I was panicking a little. We were done with our conference and this was our last night in Chicago, but I hadn’t figured out where to take the boss for dinner. As usual he’s left it up to me to figure out where to eat, and this presents a challenge while we’re in a city that I had never been to beore.

I knew it had to be somewhere along the Magnificent Mile, as the boss had hardly left our hotel since his arrival, and he should at least walk along the Mile. Should we play tourists and go to Michael Jordan’s Steakhouse, since steak is the thing to do here? I asked for his opinion, and was told that he would like to “try something new”.

We showed up at the door to the Purple Pig, which had been mentioned on foodie discussion boards and seemed to have been rated highly in Zagat. Even the boss noticed that this was on the Rubberman’s Bib Gourmand list. They don’t take reservations, and there was already a long list of people waiting. We agreed to leave our name and come back in half an hour. Meanwhile, we could at least walk along the Mile.

We were seated inside the restaurant upon our return. I’m pretty sure the boss isn’t used to how tightly packed the tables were, nor was he accustomed to the level of music and noise. It took some effort for us to carry on a conversation…

The task of ordering, not surprisingly, fell on my shoulders. The only request from the boss was that I should keep the calorie count down. At the end of the evening, though, we both realized that I completely failed in this regard…

Roasted bone marrow with herbs – this was one of the first things to jump out from the menu. Maybe I just naturally have a radar for this dish. I was hesitant at first, because this clearly wasn’t gonna be “low-calorie”. But as the boss noted that both tables to the sides of us had ordered this, he decided that he would try something he’s never had before.

US excursion 2014: stuffed in Chicago

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After my slightly disappointing first nibble of a Chicago-style deep dish pizza, I felt I owed it to myself to have a second sampling, and it just so happens that Giordano's is a block away from my hotel.  Unfortunately, the boss decided to ditch me for dinner, so I called them up to pre-order my pizza, waited for a half hour and walked over.

The special stuffed pizza - this was the small size that officially feeds two, but can easily feed three.  This was definitely pretty impressive.  The crust rises far above the top, and yes, it does make this look more like a pie, or a quiche.

US excursion 2014: Salty molecular Chinese in Chicago

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Tonight was always gonna be the highlight of this trip.  As soon as I found out that the conference was gonna be in Chicago, Alinea became the must-do dinner.  And as soon as the restaurant opened up their June bookings on April 15th (OK, I lied... I was drunk on the evening of April 15th, so I didn't book until the 16th) I visited the website and got myself tickets for tonight.

The main worry about tonight, though, was whether Mo' Unni and I would be fighting jet lag during dinner.  I would arrive only 1 day earlier, and Mo' Unni would be arriving only hours before.  Would either or both of us be falling asleep at the table?

We arrived at our appointed seating time of 5:30 p.m., which would be the second time I'm having dinner this early at one of the world's top restaurants this year (the other being dinner at Sukiyabashi Jiro).  I'm at least grateful that I didn't overindulge at lunch, so I had plenty of stomach space.

Anyway, after we walked through the front door and down the dark corridor, we entered the actual foyer and were led to the entrance to the kitchen.  I paused for a couple of minutes, taking a picture while observing the action within.  No Grant.  Not unless he shaved both his head and his facial hair.  Oh well...

After confirming that neither of us had dietary restrictions - and I would have bet money that Mo' Unni had to have at least a few things on her list - we sat back and waited to be hit with 16 courses over the next 4 hours.  And since Mo' Unni wasn't in any shape to do any serious drinking, I decided to try out the restaurant's wine pairing - which would consist of 10 different wines.

US excursion 2014: waiting for the Do(u)g

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Day 2 in Chicago, and I'm skipping breakfast.  I rolled out of bed, cleaned myself up, and hopped into a taxi to my first destination this morning: Hot Doug's.

Hot Doug's is one of Chicago's most famous food destinations.  Doug Sohn is famous for his gourmet hot dogs, and famously defied Chicago's ban on foie gras by continuing to sell his foie gras dogs.  Of course, the ban has since been repealed, to the delight of diners like myself.  Anyway, Doug announced last month that he was closing the place in October, so of course it means that I'd have to hit this place during this trip.  And today would be the only time I could fit it in.

I got off my cab around 9:50 a.m., about 40 minutes before the place opens at 10:30 a.m.  As I walked towards the back of the line that had already formed outside, I counted at least 60 people in front of me.  Fook mi... I guess I'm in for a long wait.

US excursion 2014: Chicago views and deep dish

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I arrived in the Windy City today after my first long-haul flight while sitting in cattle class in a few years - in a US airline, no less.  A short flight delay meant I went through Friday after hours traffic trying to get into the city, but I didn't have much difficulty checking into the JW Marriott in the financial district.

I dropped my luggage in my room, picked up my camera gear, and walked two blocks to Willis Tower.  I had booked a fast pass online while transiting through Narita Airport, paying double the normal ticket price to make sure I wasn't stuck in line for a long time.  Well, as it turned out, there was no line on a Friday evening... so I got up to the 103rd floor Skydeck in no time.

The view was definitely spectacular.  I started by looking south, following the Chicago river down, with Lake Michigan on my left.  It was 7:30 p.m. but there was still plenty of light.