Grub Street Chicago

How The Food System May Be The Answer To The Food System

Michael Gebert — Tue, 21 May 2013 16:23:22 GMT

]]> A couple of years ago we made a film with Mark Mendez, then chef of Carnivale, about the problems of trying to buy directly from farmers when you're an operation the size of, well, Carnivale. Mendez may have left Carnivale for his own Vera, but the problem of hooking farmers and restaurants up at a cost that diners will reasonably pay hasn't gone away, and it was Mendez who first mentioned to us a new company aiming to bring a larger scale of distribution to the farm to table movement. Now Mike Sula has the full story behind the company, Local Foods Grocer, founded by Dave Rand (formerly of the Green City Market and Q7 Ranch) and Andrew Lutsey, a finance guy with a farm and ice cream background in his family. Interestingly in a field which is often viewed in terms of Small Us vs. Big Them, that's not at all how they see the farmer-and-restaurant-focused distribution network they're trying to create:

"You can't always look at your competitors as competitors," says Lutsey. "Sometimes you're gonna be partners, because the long-term viability of this business is built on everyone becoming more efficient. And there's only one way to do that, and it is not for us all to be buying our own trucks and hiring our own laborers."

It's a fascinating look at the practical reality of changing the food system from within, and highly recommended. [Reader]

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Filed Under: farm to table, andrew lutsey, chicago reader, dave rand, local foods grocer, mark mendez, mike sula

Preview Endgrain's Comfort Food, Menus, and Unholy Good Biscuits

Michael Gebert — Tue, 21 May 2013 15:20:32 GMT

]]> While we're shooting photos at Endgrain, 1851 W. Addison, the door rings at least four times with someone wanting to know if they're open yet. "On a nice day, we might get 20," co-chef-owner Enoch Simpson says. You might suggest they simply put a sign on the door, but meeting your neighbors is something you want to do in cozy, insular Roscoe Village... especially when you're still waiting for your liquor license. That's the last of many hurdles, though, and Endgrain, a restaurant that started at the beginning of another restaurant when Simpson knocked out some doughnuts for Nightwood's first brunch, should be open by the beginning of June if not sooner. For now we've got a preview of some dishes, and the menus (still subject to change, but close), and we spoke with Enoch and his brother Caleb about how they got here. Check it all out below.

]]> It all started at Nightwood. Enoch, who had been with that restaurant since its opening, came up with a couple of doughnuts when they started serving brunch not long after, and the doughnuts became instant hits in what would soon prove to be a doughnut-crazy town. After a year he moved on to Girl & the Goat but kept making doughnuts for the occasional staff snack, and then decided to start making "Enoch's Doughnuts" for markets and food gatherings. By that time doughnuts were a Thing, and people kept asking when he was going to open his doughnut shop.

That was the plan at first, "until I thought about using my other skills and realized how incredibly boring it would be to make doughnuts all day," Enoch says. At the same time he was trying to lure his brother Caleb to Chicago from Columbia, Missouri. Caleb didn't have foodservice experience, but he had something else that would be handy in opening your own restaurant: construction experience.

So Enoch taught Caleb to make doughnuts, and Caleb taught construction to Enoch by building out the former Terragusto space at Addison near the Brown Line stop. Enoch points to the bar, made of ends of salvaged lumber, and says "I stupidly thought you could just cut these and they'd all fit together. We had to trim every single one to get it this tight." (A piece of crafty art work on one wall shows what the end grain pieces looked like before they were fitted and sanded to a smooth bar surface.) The decor includes many farm to table, reclaimed stuff touches; light fixtures aremade from old tree waterers, and the plan is to use cattle ear tags as coat checks. (The Simpson brothers didn't exactly grow up on a farm, but they've spent time on them, including in Central America, and the aesthetic of beatup old farm stuff is all over the restaurant.)

Endgrain will open at 7 a.m. with doughnuts and coffee... just in time to take onto the CTA. The doughnuts will last till they run out, which Enoch hopes will be around 2:00 p.m.— but no one knows yet. A brunch menu from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. and a dinner menu from 5:00 to 10:30 p.m. will run concurrently with an all day menu from 10:00 a.m. to 10:30 p.m. Even if doughnuts are gone when you get there, though, don't despair— to make full use of the prep area in the basement, Enoch decided to learn how to make biscuits, and the ones we tried with two of the sandwiches are crazy good.

Check out a few of the dishes and the menus below.

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Filed Under: slideshow, endgrain, enoch simpson

New Davanti Enoteca Coming to River North (And Meet The Chef)

Michael Gebert — Tue, 21 May 2013 14:00:46 GMT

Aaron Arnett at Davanti Enoteca.]]> Scott Harris announced the location of the city's second Davanti Enoteca yesterday: River North, inside the Marriott Courtyard at State and Hubbard. Although the second Italian chain from the Mia Francesca owner started on Taylor Street, until now its expansion has been focused in the suburbs and in San Diego and Scottsdale. But this second location— which will be paired with another Glazed and Infused doughnut location— will put him head to head with another Italian food neighborhood, just steps from Piccolo Sogno Due, RPM Italian and Siena Tavern, among others. As it happens, we were at Davanti when the news appeared in Crain's, shooting an upcoming episode of the Reader's Key Ingredient... with the chef who will be boots on the ground for the new location, Aaron Arnett. Though Davanti's recipes are developed by, among others, corporate chef Jaysen Euler, Arnett's background demonstrates what sets Davanti apart from similar Italian concepts (including its Francesca siblings).

]]> Arnett most recently spent seven months at The Gage, but before that he worked for three years at The Purple Pig (in which Harris is a partner), and that restaurant's whole-animal-cooking, rustic-and-offal approach to cooking permeates Davanti's menu as well in a way that it doesn't other Italian concepts. Watch for Arnett espousing this approach in his Key Ingredient episode in about two weeks at the Reader.

Harris told Crain's he anticipates late July to early August as an opening, and if it's successful in the Marriott location, that could lead to substantial expansion with the hotel chain. The new location's menu will be largely the same as on Taylor Street, but will expand the cocktail menu— and add breakfast seven days a week for the hotel, naturally.

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Filed Under: aaron arnett, davanti enoteca, glazed and infused, scott harris

Billy Goat: The Movie

Michael Gebert — Mon, 20 May 2013 20:25:06 GMT

]]> The original Billy Goat Tavern has the kind of steeped-in-Chicago look and feel that set designers can only dream of trying to create, so it's a bit of a surprise that nobody's gotten it on film before that we can think of— though maybe being the subject of a famous Saturday Night Live sketch discouraged filmmakers from interrupting the flow of their drama. Anyway, an indie film called "Like Father, Like Daughte may provide the famous burger joint and reporter hangout with its big screen debut— if the movie gets picked up by a distributor. Writer-director Allie Loukas may have had the in other filmmakers didn't— her dad and Billy Goat owner Sam Sianis are old friends going back to when they first came over from Greece in the 1970s. [DNA Info]

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Filed Under: old school, billy goat tavern

Taylor Street's Urban Union Closes

Michael Gebert — Mon, 20 May 2013 18:10:47 GMT

Chan and Shrader in happier times.]]> Eater reports that Urban Union, the Taylor Street Mediterranean/wine-focused restaurant founded by chef Michael Shrader and restaurateur Jason Chan, has closed as of Saturday night. At the time of its opening in early 2012, Urban Union displayed "Founded 1997" on its menu to indicate the length of time that Shrader and Chan had been friends, but the partnership, at least, ended three months later, with Chan exiting the restaurant and Shrader, former chef of Epic, taking it over. Now Urban Union, like Chan's earlier Butter, has proven to be a relatively quick rise and fall story. Chan, who has been battling cancer, plans to open Juno with former Arami chef B.K. Park in the next few weeks; there is no word from Shrader's camp. [Eater]

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Filed Under: closings, jason chan, michael shrader, urban union

The Guy Behind The Alinea and Next Videos

Michael Gebert — Mon, 20 May 2013 16:23:28 GMT

Seijun Suzuki by way of Jim Jarmusch in the Next Kyoto video.]]> There are many positions people have moved to from pastry chef, but what's weird is that we can now name at least two who used it to jump into making movies. We wrote about James MacMillan a while back and it turns out that Christian Seel, the resident moviemaker at Alinea/The Aviary/Next, also got his start with the company doing pastry, which led to photographing things in-house, which led to making the movies which have been such a big part of Next's mystique in particular. Paul Leddy, who does the video series "Behind the Stick" for Chicagoist, talks to Seel to find out more about how video became such a part of the restaurants' brands; we especially liked this description of how things work in Achatz-Land:

I have enormous creative control and that is due to the generosity of my employers. One thing I really like about this company is that, in my experience, if you take ownership of something, you will be given it. What I came to realize was that the people that are successful took it upon themselves.

If you're a young chef dreaming of working at Alinea some day (or owning the next one), it's hard to improve on that as advice about how to make it happen. [Chicagoist]

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Filed Under: interviews, alinea, christian seel, next, paul leddy

The Genius and the Goofy: Glimpsing the Future at the National Restaurant Show

David Hammond — Mon, 20 May 2013 15:20:02 GMT

]]> The National Restaurant Association Show, one of the largest trade events in the food industry, kicked off in Chicago on Saturday and runs through Tuesday. Attracting almost 2,000 suppliers and tens of thousands of buyers, it's a magnet for every kitchen tinkerer and weird food scientist out there. Some of what they proudly display is just good for laughs; some of it is just crazy enough to be adopted by some genius chef and made the hallmark of his or her cuisine. And some of it does such unnatural things to food that it will be immediately embraced by the fast food industry and turn up soon at a drive-through near you. So although some of the products in the following slides may strike one as preposterous and doomed, just remember, they also laughed at Ron Popeil and his Pocket Fisherman, and he's retired in Beverly Hills. Here's the best— and strangest— of what we saw at the food revolution, 2013 edition.

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Filed Under: slideshow, national restaurant association show

O Avocado! Mercadito's Ode To Avocado Cooking Demo/Dinner Tonight & Tuesday

Michael Gebert — Mon, 20 May 2013 14:00:51 GMT

]]> Hey, do you like avocados? No, we mean, really like avocados. Because as avocados come into prime time, Mercadito chef Patricio Sandoval is hosting two nights of "Ode to the Avocado" special dinners, in which he'll demo different ways to work with avocado besides slice it up and plop it down. He'll braise it, he'll smoke it (though it's hard to get it in the rolling papers, we're sure), who knows what all he'll do with it— and then you'll enjoy it in a four course meal plus dessert. It's $55 per guest; see the menu below.

]]> Mercadito Cooking Demo
“Ode to the Avocado”
$55 per guest
(taxes & gratuity are not included)

AGUACATE 3 WAYS
salt, epazote, blackened tortilla
pico de gallo, serrano chile, lemon juice
grilled ramps, pickled pineapple, charred jalapeño

AGUACATE Y CANGREJO
smoked avocado, jumbo lump crab meat, red onion,
charred jalapeño emulsion, mint, crispy green avocado

AGUACATE Y CARNITAS
braised avocado, pork shoulder, pickled onions, cilantro,
tomatillo-avocado salsa, crispy red onion, key lime

AGUACATE & CAMARONES
lime-marinated avocado, adobo grilled shrimp,
frisée-corn salsa, garlic mojo, chicharron

AGUACATE Y HORCHATA
house made avocado-rice water ice cream, pickled fruits

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Filed Under: events, mercadito, patricio sandoval

Doggy Day in the Garden at Baker & Nosh Saturday

Michael Gebert — Fri, 17 May 2013 20:27:16 GMT

]]> Uptown's cool little bakery Baker & Nosh has a nice patio garden out back. You have a dog. Saturday is for you: bring your dog, get coffee and a pastry, sit out back with your pup, and the dogs can socialize while folks from a couple of local pet stores like Urban Pooch will be there, as well as a pet photographer. It's from 9 a.m. to noon and it's an experiment; if it goes well, look for more Doggy Days.

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Filed Under: events, baker & nosh

Andrew Brochu Talks to Crain's About The Aviary Plans

Michael Gebert — Fri, 17 May 2013 18:19:03 GMT

We need a new picture with a different logo.]]> Ari Bendersky at Crain's is the first one to talk to Andrew Brochu about his jump to The Aviary and what the future holds. The impetus for bringing in a chef of Brochu's level to devote himself entirely to food on The Aviary's side of the Next/Aviary complex seems to have been to keep guests around longer, rather than having them stop in for a drink and then move on to another restaurant in the area. Nevertheless, The Aviary remains a lounge, not a full-fledged restaurant— "No matter what, you won't be able to come in and get an entrée. It's still going to be dainty, with finesse and on the smaller scale, just not bites. It's maybe going to be some sort of progression or something where there's a little more thought behind it than just one bites," Brochu tells Crain's. He also admits that even though he's known Grant Achatz for years (Brochu worked at Alinea for three years), he came out of the meeting about the possibility of working for him at The Aviary "shaking a little." Well, he's excited and so are others, we're sure, about the possibility of The Aviary going in a new direction that could prove to be as innovative in how an evening of dining works as its Next-door neighbor has been. [Crain's]

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Filed Under: chefs, andrew brochu, crain's, the aviary

Slideshow: Star Chefs Serving Kid Food Raise Over $1 Million for Academy for Global Citizenship

Michael Gebert — Fri, 17 May 2013 16:20:57 GMT

]]> Okay, the theme was childhood favorites reinterpreted by chefs, so the students from the Academy for Global Citizenship who were there passing out the lemonade probably didn't try the oyster sliders, say. (The nutella paninis, that's more their speed.) But the stellar lineup of chefs assembled by Tony Mantuano for the first Chefs' Playground benefiting the innovative South Side charter school did all right by the kids, raising over a million dollars to benefit their globally-focused, sustainability-driven school. Our man Huge Galdones was there and brought us back a bunch of celebrity chef (and other) images, as well as the tasty things they made last night; see his slideshow below.

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Filed Under: slideshow, academy for global citizenship, chefs' playground, tony mantuano

Can't Stop the Malört: Letherbee Vernal Gin Debuts Monday at Scofflaw (UPDATED)

Michael Gebert — Fri, 17 May 2013 15:20:53 GMT

]]> UPDATE: We misunderstood the details of this event; there are actually two separate bottlings being showcased tonight; the new Vernal Gin and Letherbee's version of Malört. Chicago's cult liqueur just won't stop; the famously bitter dare drink of dive bars has turned into the favored kitschy ingredient of chefs, mixologists and now, distillers. (If you want the background on what we're talking about, check out this Serious Eats piece from earlier in the week.) Chicago-based Letherbee Gin has concocted a Malört-infused spirit called Letherbee Vernal Gin, and they'll be debuting it Monday at the Scofflaw, who will serve it in two special ways— in a Vernal Negroni (where it goes with Campari and Dolin Rouge) and as something to poach shrimp in, along with asparagus tips, asparagus-lime posset, and shaved pecan with micro greens. The launch event is from 6 to 9 p.m. [312DiningDiva]

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Filed Under: mixology, letherbee distillers, malort, scofflaw

Sula Finds Vu Sua Loopy; Pang Seeks The Ultimate Umami Burger

Michael Gebert — Fri, 17 May 2013 14:00:06 GMT

]]> Macku Chan has worked at many of Chicago's top sushi restaurants, and Mike Sula says Vu Sua, in the old Erwin's space, seems to be a treasury of what didn't work at all of them, especially still-extant Macku: "A number of Vu Sua's dishes are duplicated or echoed from Macku, but even the ones that aren't inspired by it manage to contribute to an overall sense of discord. A selection of spring rolls—set upright in a pool of goopy, thick, black-bean-and-soy-based sauce—consists of gluey cylinders stuffed with rice noodles, cucumber, carrots, and bean sprouts, coated in panko, and topped with various bites: an endive canoe of spicy diced octopus, or nuggets of lobster and foie gras. These inharmonious architectures crumble at any attempt to eat them. Go figure how these separate elements are supposed to complement each other—on one visit a despondent chunk of lobster leaped from its aerie and bounced from the table to the floor." [Reader]

]]> Otherwise it's a week to drive home the depleted numbers of Chicago reviewers. Kevin Pang looks at two burgers aiming to stand out for their use of umami (inspired by a California chain called, well, Umami Burger). The far north side's BopNGrill comes out ahead with an Umami Burger that "is essentially a Beef Wellington minus the bacon... Messy but manageable." But he also likes the Ultimate Umami Burger at Bakersfield in Westmont, "an unmessy burger with clean flavors, impressive juiciness." [Tribune]

At Serious Eats, Joe Roy checks out some satisfying bar food at The Point, which is one endpoint of Milwaukee Ave., and finds especial praise for the Shrimp Po'Boy: "The Shrimp Po' Boy ($14.00) arrives to the table triumphantly, its glistening top bun perched gently on the soldier line of crispy, curled shrimp. The undersides of the Italian baguette are toasty, while its squishy exterior ensures that all its housed ingredients stay put. The shrimp themselves are crunchy and plentiful, and while the briny sweetness of the squeaky bread and butter pickles threatens to overwhelm, it never does." [SE: Chicago]

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Filed Under: bopngrill, the point, vu sua

"To Be Fresh It Has To Be Growing There": Chef Will Johnson of Filini Bar & Restaurant

Michael Gebert — Thu, 16 May 2013 20:30:01 GMT

]]> It's in maybe the hottest new building in Chicago (the Aqua Tower), it's a hotel restaurant (in the Raddison Blu), and the atmosphere looks like the dining room on an Italian spaceport. So you could be forgiven if the words "farm to table" don't immediately come to mind for Filini Bar & Restaurant. But new chef Will Johnson— who came in as #2 under opening chef Christian Fantoni, and took over when he left late last year— is an earnest and thoughtful guy who's working to make the restaurant truly reflect his philosophy of Italian food. Which is, simply, that "Everybody talking rustic Italian, should be talking local. Because that's what Italian food is to Italians— it's fresh and simple. And to be fresh it has to be growing right there." We spoke with him and have a short slideshow of some of his new dishes, shot for the restaurant by our man Huge Galdones, below.

]]> A lot of hotel restaurants talk the talk on local and seasonal but don't really walk the walk. But you seem serious about it. What's your plan here?

I just want to elevate the menu to how I think we should cook and put my stamp on it. It can be a little hard in a big hotel because everything has to go up the chain of command. But there's also advantages because there's a lot of resources we can bring to it. There's an advantage in working six months out on what winter dishes will be, because there's time to really work it through.

I started with the produce purveyors first— we source from many local farms. In-season, 75-80% of our produce is coming from farms in the area via our purveyors. We don't have the direct relationships with farmers quite so much yet, but with farmers market season starting we're working on that. We're looking to do a farmer's dinner. You know, most of our food doesn't have that much done to it. Most of it only consists of a few ingredients. So you want the best ingredients you can get. A lot of these things are literally in your background— why would you bring in asparagus from California when great asparagus is 60 miles away?

We've started making the same changes with meat. We have a venison supplier we work with year round. We work with Compart Family Farms for duroc pigs, and Amish chickens from Indiana. For fish, we use Rushing Waters trout from Wisconsin, and we get the Loch Duart salmon, which isn't local but is very sustainable, it's the best salmon for the environment.

A lot of that comes from my background working in Boston, because seafood is a big thing there.

Did you grow up there?

I grew up in Brooklyn, where farm to table dining wasn't exactly a priority. I got my start with CCAP, which is a culinary arts program in underserved public schools. I did an event with Michael White, then when I graduated I sat outside his restaurant Fiamma in Boston and waited to ask for him a job. He looked at me with a blank stare, who the hell are you, kid? But he gave me a chance and I worked for him for three years at Fiamma, Alto and Vento. I met Christian through him. I went to Johnson & Wales for a while, but I didn't complete there— it seemed more valuable to go back to work.

I worked in New York, Boston and Nantucket— Nantucket is amazing, the fishing boats just pull up to your back door and you pick what you want. I ran in a restaurant in Providence, and I worked for Michael Levinson at Area 4 in Cambridge. Then Christian invited me to come work here.

Did you want to specialize in Italian food?

What most people think of as Italian food, red sauce and all that— that kind of Italian food is bullshit. Everybody talking rustic Italian, should be talking local. Because that's what Italian food is to Italians— it's fresh and simple. And to be fresh it has to be growing right there. It's all seasonal— you don't do citrus in the winter or stuff like that.

Being on the same longitude, we have pretty similar growing seasons. We're almost in the same climate. So it works really well to make the same kind of food, it's pretty astounding how similar everything is. What we do isn't that different from what they do, they just have a little old grandmother doing it. You just try to take really nice fresh ingredients that yield the best product and hope whoever is eating it, likes it.

Did you know that the Duroc pigs that we use came from Columbus? It's the same breed he brought over. That's how close we are.

So, east coast guy, how do you like Chicago?

I love it, it's a great city, it's gorgeous. Initially I lived on the South Side, I just moved up north. I love the lake. I grew up with the ocean always right there, and I know it's not an ocean, but it feels comfortable having it there. I'm an avid fisherman, so I love that part of being here. And of course, it's a great restaurant town, a great cocktail town— a little behind the cocktail scenes in New York or Boston, but it's catching up quick.

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Filed Under: slideshow, filini bar & restaurant, will johnson

Your Complete Guide To Chicago Craft Beer Week Guides

Michael Gebert — Thu, 16 May 2013 18:26:20 GMT

]]> Everyone seems to have done a Chicago Craft Beer Week guide except us, which is okay, because there's so much going on that it's worth seeing what each one thinks is the coolest thing to check out in the next week of beerological drinkonomy. At the Reader, Julia Thiel urges you check out the high-alcohol beers of Founders at Northdown Taproom tonight at 5, The Art of Beer, an art show with beer on Saturday at the Co-Prosperity Sphere, and South of 80 at The Green Lady, which highlights beer from St. Louis (no, not THAT one) and other parts beyond Chicago on Tuesday. Chicagoist narrows their list to 10, including a chance to meet one of those St. Louis brewers at Fischman Liquors on Saturday, a sour beer congress at The Beer Temple, and a One Trick Pony beer release with a 20s theme at the new Rock Island Public House in Blue island.

]]> Kate Bernot at Redeye says to see Michigan's Greenbush and Chicago's Local Option as they take over the taps at Farmhouse on Monday, and finds the bargain event— $2 pints at Easy Bar, featuring Revolution, Bell, Founder's and others. Josh Noel at The Trib sends you to the Solemn Oath event at Bangers & Lace on Saturday, and an evening Tuesday dedicated to brewers who learned the business while working for the Rock Bottom chain. It's at Haymarket... whose brewer learned the business while working for the Rock Bottom chain. And the Time Out Chicago blog directs you to beer and food pairings like the Allagash Beer Brunch at Scofflaw.

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Filed Under: beer, chicago craft beer week