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Restaurant Week

Chicago Restaurant Week 2020: Dinner at Galit

This is part of a series of posts about Chicago Restaurant Week 2020, held January 24–February 9. View all of this year’s meal recaps, or browse previous Restaurant Week coverage from 2013–2018.

Mezze of carrots with cuminy-orange glaze, Bulgarian feta, hazelnut duqqa; kale tabouli with pepitas, delicata squash, apples, garlicky-lemony (with nutritional yeast), Galit
Mezze of carrots with cuminy-orange glaze, Bulgarian feta, hazelnut duqqa; kale tabouli with pepitas, delicata squash, apples, garlicky-lemony (with nutritional yeast)

Best Bite: Galit has drawn crowds and received national attention for its modern take on Middle Eastern food, so I was thrilled to snag an elusive Saturday reservation, especially during Restaurant Week. Our dinner was all about texture, perhaps best demonstrated in the kale tabouli. Snappy apples and pepitas mingled with dressed kale and soft roasted squash, all showered with nutritional yeast (an ingredient that’s on the rise as part of the shift toward plant-based diets).

Salatim of labneh with hyssop, sumac, and sesame; cipollini onions a la Grecque with coriander and Bulgarian feta; ezme with Turkish tomatoes and peppers, walnuts, chives, and hot garlic; pumpkin terahi with urfa bieber, cumin, garlic, nigella, and cilantro; pickles (Yemeite, Bulgarian, Israeli); masabacha hummus with chickpeas, herby tehina, and aleppo; plus pita and crudités, Galit
Salatim of labneh with hyssop, sumac, and sesame; cipollini onions a la Grecque with coriander and Bulgarian feta; ezme with Turkish tomatoes and peppers, walnuts, chives, and hot garlic; pumpkin terahi with urfa bieber, cumin, garlic, nigella, and cilantro; pickles (Yemeite, Bulgarian, Israeli); masabacha hummus with chickpeas, herby tehina, and aleppo; plus pita and crudités

Other notes: I loved mixing and matching all the spreads, dips, and salads, collectively referred to as salatim in Israeli cuisine. If I had to pick a favorite, it would be the sweet-and-smoky ezme with tomatoes and walnuts. Even the seemingly familiar dishes deserved every superlative: the hummus was outrageously smooth and luscious, crowned with olive oil and herb-tahini sauce, and the warm pita’s blistered outside and fluffy inside made it the perfect vehicle for dipping.

Altogether, the four colorful courses were a substantial amount of food for our party of three (even including seamless accommodation of my friend’s dietary restriction), so I’d consider it an especially good value for Restaurant Week.

The details: Galit, 2429 N. Lincoln Ave., Chicago.

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