Resident Foodies say: We tried these excellent Belgian Fries with three dipping sauces at the French Market in the Ogilvie train station. Served in a wire basket resembling an ice cream cone of fries, these fries are thick, but not too thick, and prepared for each order. They take a while to prepare, but they are well worth the wait.
Vegan portobello sausage burger
Resident Foodies say: If you like vegan food, you will absolutely love the vegan fare at Native Foods in Chicago. It tastes so good, you can’t even tell it is vegan food.
Our favorite dish is the vegan portobello, sausage burger. You can select the side, and tonight we chose the irresistible sweet potato fries with chipotle dipping sauce. Chef Tanya describes the dish on the menu: “Juicy grilled portobellos, our homemade Native Sausage Seitan, caramelized onions, pomodoro, sweet roasted garlic, creamy pumpkin seed pesto and mayo.” The portobello is the star of the sandwich. And the sweet potato fries are sweet and savory, a delectable combination.
This weekend, Native Foods will have a special item–drunken tofu banh mi sandwiches! Can’t wait.
heritage polenta with tomato sauce and Dante
Arugula with Dante
Resident Foodies say: We tried out the new restaurant Balena (meaning whale), the next in the line of Boka group restaurants. The restaurant has a rustic, but chic decor, with open beams and modern lighting in a spacious room that combines a bar and dining area with a very open feeling.
Chef Chris Pandel has put together an impressive menu of homemade Italian pastas and pizza, which are meant to be shared. We tried the black squid ink pasta (Tagliolini Nero), with crab and sea urchin. Gotta love black pasta, especially when homemade! The crab and sea urchin were delicious, too. The dish was a winner, although didn’t need the basil.
Perhaps even more yummy was the Heritage Polenta with butter, Dante cheese, and tomato sauce. Putting tomato sauce on polenta is a match made in heaven–providing a tasty comfort food that is downright irresistible. The arugula salad to start the meal was also pretty amazing. Our only other quibble is that the basket of “Peter’s bread” (Walnut Bread, Ramp Crostini, Roast Garlic Semolina, Lemon Pepper Challah) that is homemade and heavily touted by the server was not complimentary. What other Italian restaurant charges $5.00 for bread?
Bottom line: Balena is even better than the hype. We loved it.
Resident Foodies say: We hit up Chef Tony Mantuano‘s new Bar Toma, a hop, skip, and a jump away from his renowned Spiaggia restaurant on the Magnificent Mile in Chicago. Bar Toma is known for its small Italian fare, plus wood oven pizzas.
Yesterday, we ordered the Smoke and Cure pizza–Vermont artisan pepperoni, mozzarella, and smoked garlic. The crust is thick at the edge, but thin inside. The wood burning oven gives the crust a great texture and nice char. We really enjoyed it and would definitely come back again.
The atmosphere at Bar Toma is warm and inviting–and the layout is pretty spacious for a bar in this area. We had no trouble getting seats at the bar on Thursday night, and, although we had reservations for a table, there did not appear to be a long wait.
Resident Foodies say: Every so often we encounter a dish that is so other worldly, that it leaves an indelible taste in our mouths that will last our lifetime. The Baked Alaska dessert at Bistronomic in Chicago is one such dish. Made with vanilla bean ice cream, caramelized almonds, topped with a delightful coating of toasted meringue, perfectly cooked, the Baked Alaska is so goo-ily delicious it is almost obscene. The dessert is served in a generous portion that can easily be shared by several people–or, if one desires, be devoured by oneself. It’s one of the best desserts we’ve had in a long while.