Posted by Krista on January 4, 2012
Winter is upon us here in Chicago. And I’m not happy about that. As I write this, it’s 22 Fahrenheit outside. That’s -5 Celsius for the rest of you. Yes. No fun. So I’m heading to South America. Seriously. But in preparation for my departure, I’ve been eating where and when I can. Here’s the latest…
Vera: First stop, Vera in the West Loop. I like Vera for the sherry alone. Americans don’t drink enough sherry. So I’ve been drinking enough to make up for the rest of you, but you really do need to get on this and widen your drinking horizons. While we were at Vera, we settled in for mixed platters of meats and cheeses. My favorite dish of the evening though had to be the anchovies. I don’t know what it is about me and anchovies lately, but I just can’t get enough. I’ll be back here to sample more of the menu, as we were only there for sherry and snacks. The Verdict: Recommended for the sherry selection and the very nice Spanish menu.
Slurping Turtle: I dropped in here on a Friday afternoon…I think it was their first week of business. Well, that will teach me because I totally suffered the consequences. Service was ridiculously, abysmally slow. (All my American romanticizing about service in America while I was living abroad? I’ve yet to have my expectations MET…forget about having them exceeded. America, what has happened to you???) Service aside, my Yuke Tataki of beef tartar, spicy chili paste, sesame oil, and quail egg was pretty awesome. The pork belly snack was also pretty great. The Verdict: Recommended for interesting Japanese food and communal seating/solo dining.
Jerry’s: I ended up working from home one day for some reason or another and was going a little stir crazy so I needed to get out of the house for lunch. I discovered that there’s barely ANYTHING open on Division in Wicker Park during lunch so I found myself at Jerry’s, which was fine because I wanted a salad anyhow. Jerry’s is very low-key. I liked that. I also liked that they made their own sodas on the premises, so I had something lovely with lime and ginger. Then I ordered a salad, which actually came with a side. (!!!) So I had some creamed spinach. This was all very acceptable, although the service — yet again — was pretty poor. I had no idea where the guy was half the time. Maybe he was in the back making soda. The Verdict: Not a destination, but a good place for lunch.
So…that’s three places I’ve been recently. How about you? Been anywhere good recently?
You might also enjoy...
Posted in American, Chicago, Japanese, River North, Spanish, United States, West Loop, Wicker Park | No Comments
Posted by Krista on November 2, 2011
A big bowl of miso ramen at Noodles by Takashi in the 7th on State food court at Macy’s. I wouldn’t mind a bit more braised pork, and I certainly wouldn’t mind if they were open for dinner. I’m not a huge fan of their fried rice…that’s a lot of money for fried rice…but I’ll shell out the $10 for a big bowl of ramen. Especially at this time of year, when the days are so much shorter and you can feel that winter is approaching. Steadily.
You might also enjoy...
Posted in Chicago, Japanese, Loop, United States | No Comments
Posted by Krista on October 18, 2011
I’m taking a quick break while the builders are in. At Yuzu on Chicago Avenue. And while the miso soup was only tepid and the chicken and green onion skewer was just chicken and green onion, the beef short rib was fantastic and the pork shoulder return-visit worthy.
Not a bad lunch if I do say so myself. And quite a steal at $8 for the set-menu. You should visit Yuzu. And soon.
You might also enjoy...
Posted in Chicago, Japanese, United States, West Town | No Comments
Posted by Krista on August 22, 2011
Right. So this post won’t make me any friends. Because here you have two guys who have done the hard thing…not only have the opened up a restaurant, but they’ve opened up a restaurant in a RECESSION. And it’s not a small restaurant. It’s a big one.
The guys behind Union Sushi & BBQ run a fun and popular blog, detailing the whole process. They’re great on Twitter. You want to love them. You do love them, because you feel like you know them. In fact, everyone does love them! You can see post after post on Twitter of people going to Union Sushi & BBQ over and over again.
But I don’t really know the guys behind Union. I’ve never met them before today. I’m not a professional restaurant critic. And I’ve only eaten three things on the menu, so it’s tough to argue my experience is representative of the menu as a whole. What I’m saying is…no one should really take me seriously, and never *overestimate* the power of this blog.
I order a salad to start because I’m trying to be good these days, really. It has frisee lettuce in it. This is totally my problem but I just can’t get down with frisee. It’s not my thing. It’s also totally my problem because the menu states very clearly…
baby arugula, tomato, frisée, red onion, yuba, tofu crouton, micro-greens + yuzu dressing
Let’s talk about the tofu crouton. I am a lover of all things tofu. But this tasted like it has been prepared ages ago and left to dry. In my opinion, this wasn’t freshly fried (or baked? I couldn’t quite tell) tofu. It seemed old. Stale-ish. The rest of the salad was fine though.
Then the skewers from the BBQ, which reportedly cooks at 600 degrees. Which I had to question because both skewers (beef tongue on the left, alligator on the right) were served lukewarm at best. So maybe they had been cooked at 600 degrees, but then they’d sat and sat and sat, waiting to be expressed to our table. The beef tongue was really very tender and flavorful. Only problem? The little crispy rice balls seemed stale to me. The alligator was less memorable…tastes like chicken, you know? And at $4 for the alligator skewer…the portion seemed small.
The chef brought us out some complimentary Spanish mackerel — normally something I die over. It looked beautiful. But it tasted like smoke and char, and the mackerel itself seemed oddly undercooked. All of this, of course, is in my opinion.
The decor in Union is young and fun. To my eye, it looked inexpensive, but like they were trying. I don’t know.
All that being said, I did like the tilework in the bathroom. This was very nice. Very nice indeed.
The Verdict: My one visit — exactly the reason why I’m not a professional food critic, people — was not too impressive. I want to love it here and I do love what they’re trying to accomplish but…it’s just not for me. There are some that will argue that I should go back and try more things. But there’s nothing really compelling me to do that.
You might also enjoy...
Posted in Chicago, Japanese, Near North, United States | 1 Comment
Posted by Krista on August 20, 2011
Avoidance. I practice avoidance a lot. Which is how I found myself going to see Bridesmaids by myself (I wasn’t the only one), massaging the chairs at Room & Board by myself, and then helping myself to the sushi at Ginza, all by myself. (I wasn’t the only person alone here either.) Clearing the head, I was. And so too a lot of other people.
Something I love more than anything…gomae. Especially when it’s full of obvious sesame, like this was. Japanese dishware too…can’t get enough.
I kept things simple with a platter full of soft and buttery sashimi. The Japanese MBA next to me praised my traditional choice. He had entered shortly after me and engaged in a lengthy conversation with the sushi chef. All I heard over and over again was “omakase” and “omakase.”
“What did you say?” I asked.
“I told them I want real Japanese food. Nothing Americanized,” he said.
“No volcano rolls for you then, huh?”
“No. Definitely not.”
I stared in fascination as he was brought beautiful dish after beautiful mysterious dish, all in lovely porcelain. Ordering tip for next time, then. Shoulda taken photos.
The Verdict: I like the food at Ginza. A lot. But the atmosphere leaves something to be desired. It’s like your eating in someone’s basement…a basement that hasn’t been refinished in 30+ years and has that slightly damp smell. It’s cluttered and worn and not very well-organized. But I still plan on going back. Many times.
You might also enjoy...
Posted in Chicago, Japanese, River North, United States | 1 Comment
Posted by Krista on July 8, 2011
I went to Vancouver for the Travel Bloggers’ Exchange Conference last month. It was okay. I stayed at L’Hermitage, which is the #1 hotel in Vancouver on TripAdvisor. I’m beginning to get the gist of TripAdvisor hotel reviews after a few ho-hum experiences…it’s all about location. I could not fault L’Hermitage for its location. But for its mattress quality? Yikes. And this is a new hotel.
The rooms at L’Hermitage are like studio apartments…all with a small kitchenette. I don’t like to eat breakfast out when I’m traveling — hello $35 at the breakfast buffet — so I really liked this aspect of L’Hermitage. Plus, the hotel was super close to a grocery store and a liquor store. I stocked up and treated myself not only to breakfast but to a little cocktail hour every afternoon. Good times.
Where I ate…
Japadog. Vancouver likes hot dogs. Especially Japanese hot dogs. Being a sucker for all things katsu, in a very small storefront on Robson Street, I went with the Tonkatsu. The Tonkatsu isn’t a real hot dog but rather fried pork with katsu sauce. For me, it was a bit on the sickly sweet side. And you know how I feel about untoasted buns. Lots of people like it here so I’d give it another shot, but my initial experience had me thinking…meh.
Given my disappointing “dinner” on Day 1, I was ready to make up for it Day 2. After consulting with the VERY helpful and VERY awesome concierge at L’Hermitage, we decided on Coast. (Also helped by the wonderful WhyGoCanada on Twitter.) It was a very perfect place for a late lunch, as they have a lovely bar that overlooks all the shellfish. You might recall my shrimp cocktail video from Coast and my delight with the dry ice treatment.
I couldn’t stop eating oysters while I was in Vancouver. I was very happy with the chef’s assortment at Coast. VERY happy.
I would go back to Coast if I were in Vancouver again. I liked the modern vibe, I liked the flirty service, and I liked the seafood…A LOT. (My goal in Vancouver was to stuff myself with as much seafood in a short amount of time as possible.)
At some point — I forget exactly when — I went to Herons Restaurant at The Fairmont and had lunch. It was only okay. The first problem was that the waitress took my order but only told me 5 to 7 minutes later than on weekend afternoons, they don’t offer the special of the day. I found this hard to understand. I changed my order and ended up with what I can only call diet food. Porcini-crusted salmon with organic vegetables. Meh. Nice. Healthy. But meh. I ordered a side of fries, which I really shouldn’t have done.
Herons is a nice place because it has a great view of the cruise ships (note the beautiful natural light), but it definitely had that hotel restaurant vibe. And I wasn’t too keen on my food. (Although I did like their very Canadian wine list.) Maybe I just ordered wrong.
That evening, I headed over to Blue Water Kitchen in Yaletown, another combined recommendation from my concierge at L’Hermitage and WhyGoCanada. I popped in super early and took a seat at the sushi bar in the back. I helped myself to more — surprise — oysters, along with the seafood ceviche. I unfortunately missed one very important word in the grapefruit, cucumber, lime, red onion, cilantro list of ingredients: GRAPEFRUIT.
I hate grapefruit. There are many foods that I don’t like, but I’ll still eat them — like mushrooms. But I really can’t eat grapefruit. At all. The grapefruit just about ruined a perfectly nice ceviche for me. Grapefruit bitterness is very pervasive. Very.
I also had the oddest lemon tart I’ve ever had at Blue Water…does this look like lemon tart to you??
I had to reread the menu. Ingredients? Frozen wild flower honey meringue, burnt orange sauce, caramelized almonds, pistachio and hazelnuts. Again, not paying attention. (Really though…how they can call this a lemon tart, I don’t know.)
Even with all this, I kinda liked Blue Water and would go back. But I would pay attention next time when ordering. Hah!
My last stop in Vacouver — I think — was the very sweet Zero One sushi. Super small, and not at all fancy. It’s exactly what I was in the mood for. HOLE IN THE WALL.
You place your order at the counter and the sushi chef is your waiter. I got one of the day’s specials — just a couple of small rolls — and used the miso soup to relieve myself of my TBEX hangover from the night before. Sushi Zero is not fancy nor is it gourmet. It’s inexpensive and honest, and sometimes that’s all I need.
So definitely some hits and misses in Vancouver, and I obviously had a seafood bias. If that’s not an excuse to go back and eat more, I don’t know what is!
You might also enjoy...
Posted in Canada, Hotels, Japanese, Seafood, Vancouver | 5 Comments
Posted by Krista on March 17, 2011
Takashi
1962 N Damen
Chicago
Date of Last Visit: Thursday, March 3
Victims: Theresa, Steve
Damage: $50 each?
The Background: I’ve known Theresa since kindergarten. Crazy. She’s appeared on this blog before, when she came to London for work in the autumn of 2009 and we had a nice meal at Le Cafe du Marche in Clerkenwell. Fast-forward 18 months later and Theresa is now married and pregnant and I’m living back in Chicago and my new place is right down the street from hers. Crazy how life works.
So we made plans to meet for dinner and Takashi seemed like a good neighborhood option on the basis of both word-of-mouth as well as ueberly excellent reviews online. I was looking forward to it.
The Entrance: Takashi is in a little house on Damen. I liked this about it. It’s cozy and massively unlike the massively massive restaurants you find in River North. We’re given a nice corner table upstairs, which I like because I can survey the room–I’m an observer–and there’s lots of space for my bags. (I’m also a bag lady.)
The Starter: We split an order of the soy-ginger caramel pork belly with pickled daikon salad and steamed buns. I loved this. The pork belly was melt-in-your-mouth tender and I loved making up the little bun sandwich. The dressing on the salad was also ace. Only three buns though and four slices of pork belly…Steve was kind enough to go halfsies with me on the last bit of belly.
My Main: The roasted wasabi crusted New York strip steak was, well, just a steak. And that’s not saying a lot given we’re in Chicago. I wanted some more char on the outside and some more flavor to the meat. Also, I expected some bite from the wasabi but it really didn’t taste like anything all. (Then again, maybe I’ve eaten so much wasabi in my time that I’m immune to it.) The potato cake there on the side was a bit on the dry side…it was crying out for some wasabi or more of the mysterious “aromatic sauce” referred to on the menu. In summary, this was a perfectly acceptable dish for the average diner who doesn’t get out much. For me…meh.
The Verdict: Go for the pork belly. Also, they do a Sunday noodle brunch that I hear is good and which I’d like to check out. But otherwise? Not so sure I’ll be bee-lining it back here anytime soon.
You might also enjoy...
Posted in Bucktown, Chicago, Japanese, Modern European, United States | 2 Comments
Posted by Krista on January 26, 2011
Arami
1829 West Chicago
Chicago
Date of Last Visit: Friday January 21, 2011
The Victims: Santanu, Christina
The Damage: About $60 each
The Background: It’s a good thing that Santanu left London! Because he moved back to Chicago, went to a party, and met Christina. And now they’re married! Sadly though due to one of those, “It’s the economy, stupid,” type things, she spends most of her time in Ohio every month, as a professor of Spanish literature. So Santanu is more often than not alone.
Not this weekend though! They were both in town and despite the frigid temperatures, we made plans for dinner at Arami.
After polishing off some sake at the bar, we treated ourselves to a very lovely bottle of Silk Deluxe. It was almost too easy to drink. Too smooth. Very deceptive. Dangerous.
I felt our hamachi collar was slightly overcooked. It was just too dry. This didn’t stop us from finishing it, but it just wasn’t as nice as I think it could have been.
Our chef’s selection of sashimi was one of the most beautiful things I’ve experienced in a restaurant. Sadly, despite taking about 10 photos of this, I managed to cut the orchid out of the tops of ALL the photos. For $30, I thought this was an EXCELLENT value particularly when compared to what I’ve been trying out in my omakase challenges. I wish I could tell you exactly what was in it, but I can’t for the life of me recall. (Blame the sake.) I can tell you that there was a huge variety of fish.
I wish I could tell you what this was for certain. Seriously…too much sake. I think it might have been Hamachi Maguro Ebi…yellow tail, tuna, scallion, jalapeno, shrimp, spicy mayo. Whatever it was, it was spicy. We like things spicy.
I thought the braised short rib was good, but I’ve never been a big fan of braised meats. It’s a texture thing.
The Hirami Spicy Tako was FUN. Spicy octopus, fluke, ginger apple dressing. We liked the sweetness of the little apple slices contrasting with the heat of this roll. Different.
And then there was our Suki Yaki. I should have taken a before photo, before we had mixed up the egg and stirred everything up. I could see having this for lunch, but having this at the end of our meal was perhaps a poor choice. By this point, I was stuffed to the gills and was not in the mood for soup.
The Verdict: I liked Arami, despite what you might think. I would go back again for the sushi and sashimi. Or for some of the soups, but I wouldn’t go back for all of that together.
You might also enjoy...
Posted in Chicago, Japanese, United States, West Town | 2 Comments
Posted by Krista on January 5, 2011
Seadog Sushi
1500 West Division
Chicago
Date of Last Visit: Wednesday, December 29th, 2010. Monday, January 3, 2011.
The Victim: Me
The Damage: $35 plus tip the first time, $38 plus tip the second time.
The Background: I was catching up on local food news when I saw this very brief mention on Metromix. A new sushi place? By my El stop? And a holiday weekend to boot? Why haven’t I read about this place before? Not on Grub Street. Not on Eater. Not on The Stew. (Makes me wonder if those guys ever leave their cubicles.) Interesting…and worth stopping into on the way home.
And then I went over here to Yelp. And you know, I got a little suspicious. I am always suspicious when people are vague in their reviews, and the first few here aren’t especially specific and they all seem so overly enthusiastically gushing. But no bother. I’m still hungry, and this is new and Japanese.
The Entrance: I am there very early. 5:15 pm maybe? I’m the first person there. I ask to sit at the sushi bar and they tell me I’m the first person to sit at the sushi bar even! They’ve been open since December 15th.
The Funny Part: I tell the chef I’d like omakase. Chef says, “We don’t do that here.” Um, surely they can just throw together a bunch of stuff and call it omakase? I clarify what I’m after…”$35. Your choice, Chef.” Ahhh…. the light dawns. Chef says yes and after my very basic omakase at Bob San (and the main reason why I’m opting for $35 instead of $30), I wonder what Chef will come up with.
Salmon Carpaccio with Jalapeno
I was pleasantly surprised with the start of my meal. Four slices of salmon, drizzled with a little citrus and topped with jalapeno slices and a bit of fried shallots. An unexpected and promising start, for sure.
Sashimi and Nigri at Seadog
A generous plate of sashimi and nigri was up next and I had to wonder…how could one person possibly eat all that ginger? The best on this plate was what Chef called super white tuna, a very milky fish, both in taste and consistency. This turned out to be escolar, and boy is this Wikipedia entry interesting. I thought the sashimi on my plate was sliced a bit on the fat side, but Seadog still gets points for presentation. Note portion size difference between here and Bob San. I’m not saying bigger is better at all–we know nothing about the suppliers the two restaurants use or the quality of the fish–I’m just saying “look.”
White Flounder Tempura
At Bob San, I’d have just enough money left over for some miso soup at this point, but not at Seadog. Chef slipped me a little flounder tempura. This was one of my favorite bites, wrapped in a shiso leaf and topped with spicy mayo. (There seems to be a lot of spicy mayo at Seadog.)
The Tower
But at Seadog, I wasn’t done yet. Chef delivered not one but TWO rolls. The Tower was chock full of asparagus tempura, white fish, smoked salmon, and cream cheese. It was served with a ginger yogurt sauce that was nice, but not my thing. All in all though, this was fun to look at and enjoyable.
Crunchy Spicy Tuna Roll
But really, the Crunchy Spicy Tuna Roll this was my favorite of the bunch. Call me a purist. (I’m only being slightly ironic when I say this.) A little crunch, a little spice. Salmon. Avocado. Nice.
The Service: Service throughout was attentive. Almost too attentive. The staff hovered anxiously nearby as I finished each dish and promptly asked for my verdict before the plate was removed. Talk about feeling put on the spot. “Um….yes. It was good. Very good. Yes.”
Some More Background: Chef O was the executive chef at Coast for many years. His brother is now at the helm there, while O has branched out on his own to Seadog. The restaurant boasts a huge parking lot in the back which is O is VERY happy about. If you don’t live in the neighborhood, you’ll be happy too.
The Verdict: I think I got a little extra special treatment at Seadog my first visit. With the benefit of hindsight, my Bob San experience was just much more traditional than what I got at Seadog. It almost doesn’t seem fair to compare Seadog and Bob San. I mean, there’s no way that all that food came in at $35. But I left full and happy and glad that Seadog is in my ‘hood. In fact, I was so glad that to make up for me thinking I had Monday January 3rd off–only to learn at 5 pm on Sunday that I didn’t have Monday off–I took myself back to Seadog for dinner on Monday and tried a few more rolls. (I’d recommend the Triple S, which is sweet potato, salmon, and a spicy sauce, but I’d skip The Volcano, which just had too much going on for me.)
You might also enjoy...
Posted in Chicago, Japanese, United States, Wicker Park | 4 Comments
Posted by Krista on December 2, 2010
Bob San
1805 West Division Street
Chicago
Date of Last Visit: Saturday, November 21, 2010
The Victim: Me
The Damage: $30.20 + tip.
The Background: I was having one of those days. One of those immensely productive but impossible days where all of a sudden, you look at the clock and it’s 4 pm and you haven’t had lunch yet.
This never happens to me.
But it did the other Saturday. And when faced with these sorts of situations, I choose…I choose sushi.
I chose Bob San because my friends Jen and Kelly raved about it to me recently when I bought my new place here in Chicago and I told them where I lived. Bob San, they told me, is where it’s at.
Lucky for me, Bob San had a spot at the sushi bar available at the ungodly hour of 5:30 pm. Londoners, are you dying? Yes, in America, we eat that early. I bundled myself up and walked over.
I took my seat at the counter and told the sushi chef that I wanted omakase and would spend up to $30. This seemed about right for a late lunch/early dinner in Chicago, right?
First up was the miso soup and it was a very good variation thereof. The miso paste seemed to be of the red variety and hung alluringly throughout the broth. (How poetic is that? I’ll stop now.) I dropped the spoon after clearing the bowl of tofu and drank the rest.
And now, the omakase. With the exception of the silvery Spanish mackerel, this was all pretty standard stuff. I was disappointed. I know chef’s choice means chef’s choice. But I do think the chef’s choice should be more than salmon and and tuna and one little sliver of Spanish mackerel. This is terrible, but to me, it says you do all your shopping at Costco. I can get tuna and salmon anywhere. The Spanish mackerel was nice, but not with that deep creamily oily flavor that I was hoping for.
The noted Chicago food critic Steve Dolinsky gave Bob San’s omakase a miss and now I understand why.
I had mentioned to the chef that I was a huge unagi fan. I know I know…unagi is COOKED. It’s not raw. But there’s something about eel done Japanese style that has always, well, made me happy. This little tidbit was exactly how unagi should be. I have no complaints there. (Doesn’t the unagi look like he’s talking to the roll? Sorry to call him a he. He just seemed like a he.)
And the roll? The House Crunch? It was shrimp tempura, spicy mayo, eel sauce, with crunchy tempura crumbs. (See what I mean about Americans and their rolls?) And it was kind of a mess. I mean, I’m sure some people would like it. People who like to have their mouth full of A LOT of stuff. But it was just a crunchy mess and not anywhere near as light but yet still luscious as Pham’s crunchy tuna roll.
The Verdict: I left Bob San’s with $35 fewer dollars than I entered with. And with no firm intention to return in the near future. I mean, their food is fine. Many people would like it. But I think there are many more Japanese restaurants in Chicago that deserve my attention before a return visit does.
You might also enjoy...
Posted in Chicago, Japanese, Ukrainian Village, United States | 2 Comments
Posted by Krista on November 22, 2010
Shiso
449 West North Avenue
Chicago
Date of Last Visit: Monday, November 8, 2010
The Victims: Many. All from Grubwithus.com, a very fun and Web 2.0 way of going out to dinner with like-minded strangers, singles and couples alike.
The Damage: $25ish? Maybe $30. I forget.
The Background: There are two things I want to talk about today. Firstly, it’s sushi rolls in America. And how when I was in London, I used to beg and plead for interesting rolls. Fun rolls. Rainbow rolls, where the sushi chef topped any roll coming out of the kitchen with the most colorful things he could get his hands on, regardless of how it all tasted together. Dragon rolls, where that same sushi chef would would shape and dress his sushi rolls into animals. Like dragons. Yes, I’m serious.
In London, the sushi chefs were purists. You rarely saw a Philadelphia roll on the menu. (Yes, that a sushi roll with cream cheese and chives.)
Now that I’m back, I have to ask myself: REALLY? I MEAN REALLY?!? WHAT WAS I THINKING? Because if you give a sushi chef in America–the land of options–a blank check, you end up with this:
That, my friends, is the Volcano Roll.
Yes, the volcano roll: hamachi, escolar, avocado, masago, red tobiko, black tobiko, tempura crumb, unagi sauce and spicy mayo.
Thankfully, the Golden Triangle wasn’t as visually disturbing. In fact, it was quite tame in comparison to the Volcano. But note that each piece of the roll has been shaped into a triangle. Sacrilege!!! Ingredients? shrimp tempura,cream cheese, tobiko, avocado, spicy sauce, masago mayo, green onion, tempura crumb outside topped with unagi sauce and wasabi mayo.
Behold, the Crunchy Spicy Tuna: tuna, masago, spicy mayo, chili oil, cucumber and tempura crumbs. These were very spicy and strangely addictive.
And here, the Shiso Signature Roll: smoked salmon, avocado, jalapeño, cilantro, and cream cheese deep fried. wrapped with rice and black tobiko. served with unagi sauce and spicy mayo on the side.
And then there was the Tiger. Deep fried soft shell crab, cilantro, kaiwardi cucumber, avocado, masago mayo, topped with tamago, and green onion. Note the tiger stripes.
I’ve gone backwards, however, in my telling of the meal. Because we also had some calamari to start, which was tough and dry. A seaweed salad, which was actually quite delightful. And some spicy miso soup, which was also quite good.
Throughout it all, the staff was sweet and efficient. Perhaps too efficient. I felt a little rushed, with little space to breathe between bites.
The Other Thing I Wanted to Talk About: Since I’ve been back, everyone’s been very kind and asking about my repatriation and how it’s going and what I’ve noticed about life in America after being gone for so long. The list is long and I won’t bore you with all the details, but I do notice that the uniform for men seems to be khaki trousers and a blue shirt. American football–particularly on Sundays–seems to be much more important than it was when I left. There are way too many commercials on American television, and they’re all SHOUTING at you, desperate to grab your attention. And in the grocery store, there’s hardly any real food. It’s all in boxes and cans.
But what I really wanted to talk about is how life moves on, which was something I was very much aware of as I moved back. My single friends in Chicago are all married. My married friends in Chicago now all have kids. I thought it was timely that as I was pulling together my thoughts on this post, Sasha over at The Happiness Project London wrote this.
Where I am at the moment is why I love a new venture like Grubwithus, a social dining concept. To borrow their own description from their Web site:
Grubwithus connects people in the real, physical world. Every meal presents opportunities to befriend and network with an amazing array of personalities. So the next time you are looking for a place to eat in Chicago, make it social and eat at a Grubwithus meal!
We created Grubwithus Socializing to expand our offline connections and meet new people in Chicago. Being recent transplants to Chicago, we wanted to meet new people, but didn’t want to hang out at the bars and clubs every night. We thought it’d be much more fun to bond at the best restaurants in Chicago over a family-style meal. And so Grubwithus was born.
I’ve dined out twice now with Grubwithus (Korean BBQ post coming up next) and have had a great time on both occasions. While the food at Shiso may have seemed a bit odd at times to a returning expat, it’s rare that I’d go out for sushi with 12 people and be able to try such a variety of dishes. And it’s even rarer still to be able to say to 11 other people, “Hey, let’s go all the way up north to this Korean barbecue place I’ve heard about.” (Or Ethiopian. Ethiopian is up next.) It would take about three months to find a date that worked for everyone. Grubwithus does all the organizing for you. All you have to do is show up. And on both occasions, my meals have been extremely good values. $30ish. Not bad.
The Verdict: Shiso is fun and the staff are sweet. Are they going to win any awards, food-wise? Probably not. But will Grubwithus win any awards? I hope so!
You might also enjoy...
Posted in Chicago, Japanese, Old Town, United States | 3 Comments
Posted by Krista on July 1, 2010
Today during lunch, @leeturnerconn and I dropped into the Orla Kiely sale off Brick Lane where I bought four too many purses. (And was overcharged £130 but that's another matter entirely.)
Shopping makes one hungry.
We stopped into Japanika before the sale, just to check it out. It was overflowing with sushi rolls. It was a contender for a luncheon destination.
45 minutes later, our shopping complete, Japanika was decimated. Completely. All that was left were some Japanika rolls…salmon as far as I could tell. But for £3.90, this was an excellent value.
Japanika is 95% takeaway. It's decently priced and, well, decent. Don't ask them to make you something you saw earlier on the shelves though. Cuz they won't.
I'm moblogging from my couch at the moment. Maybe I'll come back and expand on this post later. Maybe.
You might also enjoy...
Posted in E1, Japanese, London, United Kingdom | 2 Comments
Recent Comments