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Chicago Restaurant Week

Chicago Restaurant Week 2015: Brunch at Knife & Tine

This is part of a series of posts about Chicago Restaurant Week 2015, held January 30–February 12. Check out recaps from 2014 and 2013, or browse all Restaurant Week coverage.

Knife & Tine Brunch

Breakfast sandwich, Knife & Tine
Breakfast sandwich with coffee-cured bacon, fried egg, cheddar, and house mayonnaise with fingerling potatoes

Best Bite: I’m happy to report that my first-ever Restaurant Week brunch was a major success. Knife & Tine’s menu price included an entree, two sides, and a drink, so our group of six ordered strategically in an effort to taste as many different things as possible. I was floored by the sheer variety of rich, creative dishes that eventually hit our table: cheesy grits, smoky pork sausage patties, buttery fingerling potatoes, nutty pumpkin bread, fluffy biscuits with cardamom-scented cara cara orange jam – and those were just the sides! My breakfast sandwich combined many of the best flavors on the table, especially the mingling of fried egg with bacon cured in brown sugar, coffee, and cinnamon.

Salted butterscotch croissant-style donut, Knife & Tine
Salted butterscotch croissant-style donut

Other notes: They weren’t technically on the Restaurant Week menu, but the salted butterscotch croissant-style donuts were fantastic (and helped me understand the cronut craze a little bit better). I also loved the cinnamon biscuit beignets, a plateful of sugary, bite-size rounds with a vanilla bean dipping sauce. As a bonus, our group was fortunate enough to sit at the chef’s table, enclosed by silver-toned wallpaper and a crystal chandelier overhead.

The details: Knife & Tine, 1417 W. Fullerton Ave., Chicago.

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Best Bites Chicago

This week’s Best Bite: favorites from a 20-course tasting at Elizabeth Restaurant

Chocolate and Caramel with mushroom brownie, meringue, and raspberry
Chocolate and Caramel dessert

Why it’s this week’s Best Bite: For my birthday this year, I chose a 20-course tasting at Elizabeth Restaurant as my celebratory meal of choice. Elizabeth uses the same booking system as Next and Alinea, so instead of just making a reservation, I bought tickets that covered food, tax, and gratuity for a specific date and time – and thankfully, three of my closest friends were willing to chip in and come along for the tasting menu experience. The inconspicuous storefront was tucked away next to a tire shop in Lincoln Square, but inside was a white-hued haven with rustic wooden tables, cozy antique chairs, and woodland knick-knacks. It was just the right setting for what Chef Iliana Regan calls “New Gatherer cuisine.”

The interior of Elizabeth
The interior décor at Elizabeth
Centerpiece with edible "twigs" that we ate during a truffled potato and quail egg course
Centerpiece with edible “twigs” that we ate as breadsticks during a truffled potato and quail egg course

In each course, the simplicity of seasonal ingredients was elevated by exquisite, imaginative presentation. Many courses brought bits of adventure, from sipping a palate cleanser out of a test tube and sampling soil from a terrarium to licking bear meat and its accompaniments off of a rock. Here, I’ve narrowed it down to the dishes that were most memorable for both flavor and creativity. Early on, I was intrigued by several different preparations of zucchini and beans alongside a wonderfully simple beef tartare, bringing the meat and vegetables together seamlessly. Another unanimous favorite was the creamy corn soup, served with a sturdy wheat biscuit and three spreads: thick honey, sweet tomato jam, and smoky pancetta butter. As I rotated between spreads and bites of soup, the flavors at once recalled my Central Illinois roots and transported the corn to a more elegant place. Later, smoked salmon and cucumber were matched with yogurt and dill to create a sort of deconstructed tzatziki, which was again familiar but also sophisticated. I also adored all the textures and richness in the “stew” with venison three ways – loin, sausage, and tiny cubes of heart – and a mushroom sauce underneath.

Zucchini: Tartare and Sea Beans
Zucchini: Tartare and Sea Beans
Corn With Biscuits, with soup, whole wheat biscuit, and spreads of honey, tomato jam, and pancetta butter
Corn: With Biscuits
Smoked Fish and Cucumber
Smoked Fish and Cucumber
Hunter and Gatherer Stew with venison loin, sausage, and heart, and mushroom sauces
Hunter and Gatherer Stew

On the sweeter side, the “cheese” course composed primarily of mascarpone, cantaloupe, and Queen Anne’s Lace was possibly the most revelatory. The delicate, harmonious flavors came in solid, sorbet, and gelée forms, with little dots of dill pickle sauce that added a surprising sour note. I also loved the dessert that followed (shown in the top photo), its petite meringue mushrooms a nod to the actual mushrooms used in the earthy brownies, which were then balanced in flavor and color by a few forms of raspberry. The whole meal was a fantastic way to say farewell to summer.

Mascarpone and Queen Anne's Lace, with canteloupe, sorbet, and gelee
Mascarpone and Queen Anne’s Lace
Menu presented at the end with a cookie to take home
Menu presented at the end with a cookie to take home

The details: Elizabeth Restaurant, 4835 N. Western Ave., Chicago.

Categories
Restaurant Week

Recap: Restaurant Week 2013

After 10 days of indulgent dining, Chicago Restaurant Week 2013 came to an end on Sunday. While I’m a little forlorn that the week is over, I’m also very grateful for seven excellent meals, and the chance to share them with you here.

My Instagram photo recaps of each meal are shown in the gallery; follow the links below to read more:

Part 1: Blackbird and Carriage House
Part 2: Vermilion and Cafe Spiaggia
Part 3: Cafe Ba-Ba-Reeba, Sunda, and Frontier
View all coverage.

If you participated in Restaurant Week, I’d love to hear about your experience in the comments!

Categories
Chicago Restaurant Week

Restaurant Week 2013: Blackbird and Carriage House

This is part of a series of posts about Chicago Restaurant Week, held February 1–10, 2013.

Lunch at Blackbird

Smoked Arctic char appetizer, Blackbird
Smoked Arctic char appetizer, Blackbird

Best Bite: While no dish was less than excellent, I was most wowed by the starter, a superbly delicate piece of smoked Arctic char. I loved the crunch from cauliflower and pear, and just enough meatiness from the tiny dollop of ‘nduja, a type of spreadable salami. It set the tone for the other unique flavor combinations to follow. See full menu.

Other notes: Gorgeous plating, quiet space, surprising main course accompaniments (onion noodles and buttermilk sauce to go with grilled sturgeon), and decadent dessert (an elegant Nutella-banana mash-up) with coffee service.

Chocolate hazelnut bread pudding dessert, Blackbird
Chocolate hazelnut bread pudding dessert, Blackbird

The details: Blackbird, 619 W Randolph St., Chicago.

Dinner at Carriage House

Crispy braised pork shoulder
Crispy braised pork shoulder entree, Carriage House

Best Bite: The entree best showed off the restaurant’s upscale take on low-country cuisine. The melt-in-your-mouth pork shoulder came with a host of balanced companions: smoked plums, pickled peppers, and celery hearts, atop grits and pork jus. With prevalent vinegar to cut through the richness, it was a pleasantly refined Southern dish. See full menu.

Other notes: Outstanding side of skillet cornbread, divine coffee-fudge dipping sauce for the beignets at dessert, tasty (and strong) rum punch, colorful ceramic dishware, and a table in the cozy porch area, with plaid flannel blankets over the chairs and plenty of candles.

Skillet cornbread, Carriage House
Skillet cornbread, Carriage House

The details: Carriage House, 1700 W Division St., Chicago.