Publican

Inside Publican - communal dining tables

We went with some friends to a restaurant called Publican.  It is located at 837 W Fulton Market in Chicago's West Loop. We've heard about this restaurant from many sources - word of mouth from friends, from Check Please, the Food Network show The Best Thing I Ever Ate, and from the Travel Channel Show No Reservations.

Pork rinds

Pickle plate

We didn't realize this before going, but the waiter mentioned that they liked to serve the items family style so that everyone could try all the dishes.  We tried to do this on most of the dishes but not all.  There are no defined appetizers or entrees, but the menu does have smaller size items and larger size items. As some of the smaller dishes we had pork rinds (mentioned on the Best Thing I Ever Ate program), a pickle plate, albacore tuna fritters, Serrano ham, and raclette.  The pork rinds were the best pork rinds we have ever eaten - they were served warm and nicely seasoned with a spicy vinegar.  We didn't get to taste too much of the pickle plate or raclette, but our dinner companions thoroughly enjoyed them.  The tuna fritters themselves were average, but they came with a remoulade sauce which elevated the dish. The Serrano ham was sourced from Salamanca Spain and was the best item we ate that night. Like prosciutto, Serrano ham is served raw in thin slices. We only ordered a half order of the ham and it was a generous portion, enough for 4 of us to share.

Serrano ham

Raclette

Tuna fritters

For larger dishes we ordered 2 orders of suckling pig, country ribs and potee. The suckling pig came with collard greens and persimmons. The pig itself was rather salty, but the greens and the persimmons rounded out the dish and cut the salt.  We all agreed that there could have been more persimmons. The country ribs were served with broccoli and chestnuts.  The term ribs is a bit misleading because it seemed more like a pork chop. Whatever the term, it was rubbed with a chili spice and grilled.  It tasted good - but by that point we had eaten an awful lot of pork products (which this restaurant is known for).  We did not get to try the potee - which included pork tenderloin, sausage and pork confit.  However, our guests gave it rave reviews!

Potee - tenderloin, sausage & confit

Suckling pig with collard greens & persimmons

Country ribs with broccoli & chestnuts

Final thoughts on Publican:
Food - excellent, there are some more ambitious pork dishes and there is also an extensive oyster menu that we did not try
Service - the wait staff was very attentive in refilling water and bringing out fresh plates for the family style service. The waiter was knowledgeable and willing to give recommendations but did not seem overly friendly, almost confusing at times.
Atmosphere - in keeping with the Renaissance definition of a publican as a tavernkeeper, this restaurant has a very loud and pub type casual feel to it.  Most of the tables are set up as communal dining - meaning the person sitting next to you may not be part of your dinner party.  We were fortunate to sit at one of the few booths to have a little more private experience. However the booths are little odd as well because there are doors you have to open to step into them.

Booths with "doors"