Month: April 2021

This is part of a series of posts about Chicago Restaurant Week 2021, held March 19–April 4. To browse past Restaurant Week coverage between 2013 and 2020, click here.

Best Bite: I’m thrilled to finally post about Scratchboard Kitchen, which has quickly emerged as a favorite of mine in the year they’ve been open in downtown Arlington Heights (even amidst all the pandemic pivots). Their Restaurant Week brunch menu was a chance to enjoy both savory and sweet, plus a well-balanced Bloody Mary to start. The chicken biscuit sandwich, with pimento cheese and pickled onions, was cheffy comfort food at its finest.

Other notes: The strikingly pretty citrus toast was also a hit, dusted with fennel pollen and pistachios with a layer of creamy mascarpone underneath. The ever-rotating pastries here are always delicious, and these were no exception: a lovely apricot pop tart and banana-chocolate mini loaf with a layer of toasted coconut. The sun started shining onto our patio table shortly after they arrived, which ended the meal on an even higher note.

The details: Scratchboard Kitchen, 5 W. Campbell St., Arlington Heights.

This is part of a series of posts about Chicago Restaurant Week 2021, held March 19–April 4. To browse past Restaurant Week coverage between 2013 and 2020, click here.

Best Bite: Esteemed Chicago chef Paul Virant opened Gaijin in 2019 as Chicago’s first restaurant dedicated to okonomiyaki, a Japanese savory pancake. I was excited to make my first visit during Restaurant Week, when five Osaka-style versions were available as part of the four-course menu. Our group of three chose shrimp, octopus, and pork to share, each topped with “dancing” bonito flakes and kept perfectly warm on the teppan griddle built into our table. I loved all three: the tempura shrimp and corn with caramelized udon noodles, the sweet-and-salty octopus with crispy rice, and the breakfast-leaning pork with bacon and a fried egg. The flavor combinations and textural contrasts, all anchored by the cabbage-studded pancake base, were ones I’d go back for again and again.

Other notes: The yakisoba in the second course was a delicious tangle of well-cooked vegetables and umami-coated noodles. And I loved the mochi donut, reminiscent of funnel cake but with chewiness from the rice flour, and topped with a coconut and pandan leaf glaze. This also happened to be the best Restaurant Week value I’ve seen in a long time: four generous courses at the lower-tier dinner price.

The details: Gaijin, 950 W. Lake St., Chicago.