Meson Sabika

After a short hiatus for the Christmas holiday and lots of homemade food and goodies we have started venturing out again. We went to dinner at Meson Sabika located at 1025 Aurora Ave in Naperville.  Meson Sabika is a Spanish restaurant specializing in tapas - small plates of food which together form a full meal.  Natalie has been to this restaurant many times during her life including a celebratory dinner after her high school graduation. This was Nick's second visit to the restaurant.



Garlic Potato Salad

We went to dinner with Natalie's parents and two friends to celebrate Natalie's parent's wedding anniversary.  With six of us eating we ordered a number of tapas (the restaurant's rule of thumb is to order about 3-4 tapas per person and we fell within that ratio). We attempted to eat all of the tapas in a family style fashion.  It was a little cumbersome attempting this when we didn't know exactly how the portion sizes would work out.  For some of tapas we have enjoyed on previous visits we knew to order 2 portions for everybody to get a sufficient taste.  Our recommendation is if you are with a larger group consult your waiter for exact portion sizes to see if the dish is easy to split several ways.

Meson Sabika splits its tapas menu into cold and hot varieties. Amongst all of us we ordered 7 different cold tapas and 9 hot tapas.  We will list all of what was ordered below and then comment on our favorites.

Cold:


Beef Tenderloin with blue cheese, dates & mushrooms

Samon Curado - smoked salmon with toast points

Patatas con Alioli - garlic potato salad

Tostada con Piquillo - toast points with peppers stuffed with shrimp, scallops and salmon

Pisto Manchego - Sauteed vegetables with asparagus

Rollito de Buey - beef tenderloin wrapped around blue cheese, dates and mushroom

Gambas Marinadas - shrimp with a trio of sauces

Tostada con Centollo - toast points with avocado and king crab meat

Hot:
Quisquilla al Horno (daily special) - baked prawns with tomato sauce over pasta
Costillas de Cordero (daily special) - grilled lamb chops with asparagus and mashed potatoes
Empanada de Buey - beef empanada


Scallops and couscous

Pipirrana de Buey - skirt steak with blue cheese sauce

Gambas al Ajillo - Grilled tiger shrimp with garlic lemon butter

Cazuela de Pollo - chicken casserole with peppers, asparagus and a pimento cream sauce

Vieras al Albarino - grilled sea scallops served over couscous

Crepe Rellena - crepe of goat cheese, spinach, pine nuts and apples

Datiles con Tocino - roasted dates wrapped in bacon



Grilled shrimp in garlic lemon butter

Our favorite cold tapas were the beef tenderloin and the garlic potato salad.  We both enjoyed the beef tenderloin because it had well balanced flavors of both blue cheese and dates - sweet and tangy at the same time.  Natalie's perennial favorite is the garlic potato salad.  It makes regular potato salad seem bland because of the punch/zing of garlic flavor. Do not order this dish if you don't like garlic. We ate small samples of the other cold tapas and enjoyed them all.



Grilled lamb chops

Our favorite hot tapas were the tiger shrimp in the garlic lemon butter and the grilled lamb chop special.  The shrimp melted in our mouths and the garlic lemon butter enhanced the shrimp without overpowering it. The lamb chops were cooked perfectly, tender but not chewy.  They were accompanied by great mashed potatoes. Other honorable mentions were the bacon wrapped dates and the smoky flavor of the grilled scallops.

Somehow we all had enough room to each order a dessert. We (Nick and Natalie) ordered a chocolate, caramel and hazelnut tart and a sauteed banana with caramel and ice cream. In Nick's opinion the tart had a little too much bitter sweet chocolate and not enough caramel.  He preferred the banana because it had a great caramel sauce. Natalie's opinion was the reverse and she preferred the chocolate tart. The dessert menu is much more extensive now than in the past - there are now 11 desserts to choose from.

After our meal our group talked for a few minutes with the restaurant manager.  We asked him what are the most ordered tapas.  He responded that the top three ordered are the garlic potato salad, the bacon wrapped dates and oven baked goat cheese with garlic bread (Queso de Cabra).  We ordered 2 of these on this visit and have ordered the goat cheese in the past.  Then the manager mentioned his favorites are the scallop dish (that we ordered), a grilled lamb medallion dish (Cordero al Pastor), and the Crema de Chocolate (Creme Brulee) dessert - which Natalie's mom ordered and loved.

Also we should mention that besides tapas you can get soups, salads or paellas.  On the many visits Natalie's family has made to this restaurant they have only ordered the paella once - not because it is poor quality, but rather it takes a long time to cook and it is much more filling than any of the tapas.  We prefer to eat more of the small plate tapas to get a variety of flavors.

Final thoughts on Meson Sabika:
Food: always great, incorporates our favorite part of most meals - the appetizer.  With tapas, you get to try a lot more of the menu, without getting too full
Service - good service in terms on continuous filling of water glasses and bringing clean plates to the table. At one point in eating the hot tapas there were too many dishes that came out of the kitchen at the same time. If you are able to space out the ordering more that will be helpful when the food arrives

Chocolate Tart

Sauteed banana with caramel

Ambiance - fun atmosphere, we were there on a Friday night when live Spanish guitar music was playing in the background and later a flamenco dancer entertained the dinner guests.  Meson Sabika is located in a historic home so since some of the rooms are on the smaller side, there is not much space between tables.  This is a popular restaurant so reservations are recommended.

Cemitas Puebla

The main reason we went to Cemitas Puebla now is because we had a Living Social coupon (kind of like Groupon) that we wanted to use. We had been there over 2 years ago and had enjoyed it immensely - also it has been featured on all sorts of Chicago food shows and on the Food Network Diners, Drive Ins and Dives show.


Cheese Chalupas

Cemitas Puebla is located at 3619 W North Avenue in Chicago.  They are the only Mexican restaurant in Chicago serving cemitas, in fact they may be the only place outside of Mexico.  A cemita is a Mexican sandwich, originating from Puebla, Mexico.  It is different from a torta due to the type of sesame seed bread/roll it is served on.  At Cemitas Puebla you can get a cemita with various types of meats, avocado, chipotle peppers and Oaxacan cheese.

Our Living Social coupon included 2 cemitas sandwiches and an order of cheese chalupas. We picked the carne asada and the arabe (roasted pork) cemitas.  They were both great.  On the table there are 3 different types of salsa you can put on your food depending on how hot you want it.  The chalupas were corn tortillas with salsa verde and cheese on them.  If they hadn't been included in our deal we may have either ordered another cemita or a taco.

Roasted Pork Cemita

Final thoughts on Cemitas Puebla:
Food - great tasting food that is unique, it takes us 1/2 hour to get there (more if there is traffic) so we wish it were closer so we wouldn't be waiting 2 years between visits
Service - very quick, when you walk in the owner asks if you have been there before, if not he goes through the menu with you and explains what a cemita is and what they cooked for Guy Fieri when he was filming for Diners, Drive ins and Dives.  It is very nice, especially if you don't know what the restaurant is about

Atmosphere - order at a counter and then your food is brought to you, there is street parking in front or on the side streets.  Now on our second visit here we noticed that they have updated the flooring and the furniture so it looks a little classier inside.



Cane Asada Cemita

Grahamwich

Grahamwich is a sandwich shop opened by chef Graham Elliot located at 615 N State Street in Chicago.  Graham Elliot also owns a high end restaurant just a few blocks away and is known from his appearances on Top Chef Masters and Masterchef.  (side note: we almost went to eat at the higher end restaurant back over a year ago. But we would have been going there right after a Cub's game so we decided to go somewhere more casual instead.  Well that night President Obama dined at Graham Elliot so it would have been a zoo.)

We ordered 2 different sandwiches - the Italian grinder and the grilled cheese.  The grinder had salami, mortadella, capacollo and provolone cheese. It was a fresher higher end ingredient sandwich than just a Subway club. The grilled cheese had Wisconsin cheddar and cheese curds along with a tomato marmalade.  The cheese was oozing and very satisfying. The tomato marmalade made it a little more unique. We also ordered a side of popcorn - it was an amazing combo of popcorn, Parmesan cheese, chopped chives, sea salt and truffle oil.  Too bad movie popcorn can't be like this.

We would have liked to try to ice cream also but as we were there close to closing time, the employees were already cleaning the ice cream machine.  The 2 flavors offered were vanilla ice cream with nutella, caramelized bananas and marshmallow fluff and cinnamon ice cream with roasted apples, salted caramel and pie crust. They  both sounded amazing but maybe we can re-create something at home with those flavors.

Final thoughts on Grahamwich:
Food-a nice sandwich shop if you are in the area for lunch or an early dinner; not like the typical Subway or Potbelly
Service-very good but we were there at a slow time right before they closed
Atmosphere-cute, hip location, seating is just one big communal table

Calumet Fisheries

To continue our theme of south side of Chicago food, we ate lunch at Calumet Fisheries. It is located at 3259 E 95th Street in Chicago, about 1 mile away from Lake Michigan.  Natalie had been here once before about 1 1/2 years ago.  But we had heard about this place from the Anthony Bourdain Travel Channel show "No Reservations" and from the fact that they won a 2010 James Beard award for America's Classic food.  Now you might expect a certain atmosphere from an award winning restaurant but this place breaks all the rules.  It is located in a shack on the side of the road right where 95th street meets the Calumet River bridge. There is only street parking and there is no place to eat inside the establishment, so everyone eats in their car. However we did discover a park located about 1 mile away right on Lake Michigan that would be a good picnic stop.

If you don't like seafood don't go here, but if you do like seafood it is a must!  You can get the seafood prepared 2 ways - smoked or fried.  The smokehouse is located right behind the building so it is very aromatic. The fried items can come as a meal with french fries and coleslaw.  We decided to get fried shrimp, smoked shrimp and smoked salmon with pepper and garlic.  The fried shrimp were high quality shrimp and were fried to order.  They came with a choice of hot or mild sauce - we chose mild just to be safe.  The smoked shrimp were enormous is size and before eating the shell had to be removed.  This whole process kind of freaked Nick out, but he found it to be more than worth the effort as the taste.  It was shockingly delicious and well deserving of the James Beard Award.  Later at home we ate the smoked salmon flaked over a salad as the owner recommended us to do.  The suggestion was great and it was an excellent salad.  Too bad we don't live closer or else we would be getting salmon all the time. Of the three items we tasted it is hard to say what is our favorite.

Another fun fact - a scene from the Blues Brothers original movie was filmed right at their location.  To quote their website "For three days in the summer of 1979, Calumet Fisheries hosted the movie crew from The Blues Brothers. Remember Jake and Ellwood jumping a bridge in the Bluesmobile? That was the 95th Street bridge, where Calumet Fisheries is located."

Final thoughts about Calumet Fisheries:
Food - superb, deserving of their James Beard Award
Service - kind of weird because it was counter service, but the employees/owner are talkative and will give you lots of good advice. Note: this is a cash only establishment, so bring lots of it because seafood can get pricey.
Atmosphere - very unique, not a traditional location but fun to experience

Dat Donut

Nick loves donuts and Natalie is indifferent.  But we heard multiple times about Dat Donut from the show Chicago's Best. There are 2 locations, both on the south side of Chicago and we went to the 8249 S Cottage Grove location. Dat Donut has been called one of the 10 best doughnut places in the country, but we found it to be just an average tasting doughnut shop. The novelty there is that they sell a doughnut called the "Big Dat" and it is so large that its size equals about 5 regular donuts.  So we had to order a Big Dat and then we also ordered an apple fritter, a cinnamon roll and a jelly filled doughnut - this way we could have breakfast for days.   We felt that for the distance we had to travel to get to Dat Donut, we would rather drive to find a Krispy Kreme to have a hot and fresh glazed doughnut.

Final thoughts on Dat Donut:
Food - your average doughnut shop, the doughnuts did taste better at home after being warmed up in the microwave
Service - there is walk up service and just a few chairs for eating there, it is a cash only business
Atmosphere - it is located on the south side of Chicago so whatever that means to you.  We went during the day to make sure we would be safe, but we didn't feel threatened in any way. We were definitely the minority race but it wasn't an issue.  There is a good sized parking lot so you don't have to park on the street.  It is open almost 24 hours a day.

Antico Posto

During an evening of shopping near the Oak Brook mall, we decided to eat at Antico Posto, an Italian restaurant located in the middle of the shops -unlike most of the restaurants at the mall which are located on the outer ring of the mall. (side note: Natalie had been there before but it has been since the summer of 2002.)  Since it was a Monday evening, we didn't think we really needed reservations but we were mistaken. We were told we would have a 20-30 minute wait and that was about right. The unfortunate thing that we (and others) noticed was that there were several empty tables throughout the restaurant, including 2 right next to where all of us were waiting. Most likely some of them were for reserved parties, but the way the hostess kept walking away from her station and talking to other employees sure made it seem like she didn't know what was going on.
Part of the reason we wanted to eat dinner on a Monday night was because we heard about a Monday night special - 10 of their entrees were available for $10 each. (In the fine print we saw that this promotion will be ending at the end of 2011 so good thing we got this in now). For entrees we ordered off this $10 list - Natalie got Lasagnetti (lasagna type noodles) with Italian sausage and goat cheese and Nick got Fettuccine with smoked chicken. For an appetizer we got prosciutto with figs and pear jam. Before any of the food came, the wait staff brought bread, olive oil and some antipasti vegetables (olives, peppers, carrots, etc.)

The appetizer was our favorite.  It was thinly sliced prosciutto and the pairing with the figs and jam was outstanding.  The pasta dishes were good but not great.  The smoked chicken was the most interesting part of the fettuccine dish. The lasagnetti needed a better balance between the amount of the noodles and the meat sauce - it could have used more sauce for the size of the noodles.

Final thoughts on Antico Posto:
Food - the appetizer was great, the entrees so-so; for better Italian food at the Oak Brook mall go to Maggiano's

Service - not sure how the seating was really going, we were minutes away from just going somewhere else, and then it was a little slow to get our food
Atmosphere - very busy, lots of bigger parties - probably due to the holidays and shopping at the mall, lively bar atmosphere as it is also a wine bar

Ann Sather

At the beginning of a Saturday morning full of activities in Chicago, we went to breakfast at Ann Sather, specifically the location at 909 W Belmont.  Ann Sather is a famous Swedish restaurant/bakery in Chicago known especially for cinnamon rolls. Natalie had partaken of the cinnamon rolls in the past but more recently Nick had learned about them from an episode of the Best Thing I Ever Ate on the food network (specifically the episode entitled "Wake up call".)

For breakfast we ordered 2 things - Swedish pancakes with lingonberries and a ham, egg and cheese breakfast wrap. All egg dishes come with 2 sides and the breakfast wrap qualified as an egg dish so lucky us we got to have the cinnamon rolls included.

The Swedish pancakes were tasty and unlike a buttermilk pancake they were light and thin.  The lingonberries were tart and a good accompaniment to the flavorful pancakes.  We were super surprised at the size of the breakfast wrap - it was more of a burrito than what we have experienced at other breakfast establishments. Nick felt like he was eating 4 eggs, although it was probably only 2. It was so tasty and filling that he didn't need to eat until dinner that day. The cinnamon rolls were, of course amazing. They weren't dense, but light and airy and the sweetness was just perfect.

 To top it off the prices are very reasonable, especially for the dishes that include the sides.  Also if you just want cinnamon rolls you can carry out boxes of them to go.  At the Belmont location there is a parking lot in park so you don't have to try and find street parking.

Final thoughts about Ann Sather:
Food -large portions, perfectly flavored, worth the drive from the suburbs
Service - attentive, food came out quickly
Atmosphere - Swedish decore and sayings, the tables were a bit too close together - the wait staff couldn't always get between the chairs/tables

Epic Burger

As we were both in downtown Chicago for work we decided to meet for lunch at Epic Burger.  We had heard of this place from friends. We went to the Adams Street location, but there are currently 3 locations in Chicago and 1 in Skokie.

It was nice to be able to customize the burger we exactly wanted.  Here are the various choices you need to make:
Type of burger - beef, turkey, chicken or portabella mushroom
Type of bun - white or wheat
Choice of toppings - lettuce, tomato, pickle, Epic sauce, onions (grilled or raw)
Type of cheese for an extra cost - cheddar, blue or horseradish Havarti
Choice of fried egg or bacon on top for an extra cost

Nick chose a beef burger, white bun, lettuce, tomato, pickle, epic sauce, grilled onions and cheddar cheese. Natalie chose the same except for raw onions and blue cheese.

You also can choose to get a combo meal served with fries and your choice of a drink - fountain, bottle, shake or smoothie. We upgraded to a peanut butter shake for Nick and a Milk n Honey smoothie for Natalie.

The burgers were really good.  Both of us enjoyed the burgers more than a Five Guys burger, but not quite as good as Ray's Hell Burger in Washington D.C. The shake and smoothie were amazing. It's hard to say that a frozen beverage is better than what the restaurant is named after, but you almost can say that here. We would love to frequent Epic Burger, but since we don't work downtown normally it is hard for us to get to the locations.  On their website it looks like they will be adding 2 more Chicago locations, so maybe sometime down the road they can add more suburban locations.  The cost was a little more than you may expect to pay for a burger combo meal, but we did have the upgraded drinks and this price may be typical of downtown Chicago lunches and we just aren't used to those prices.

Final thoughts on Epic Burger:
Food - great food, glad we thought to stop by while we were in the area
Service - for the lunch rush it didn't take too long to get the food
Atmosphere - casual, busy, filled with young urban professionals

A progressive dinner

To try and fit in as many traditional Chicago food items into Nick's parent's visit as possible, we went to 2 restaurants for dinner on their last night in town.  Neither of these are considered gourmet, but are tasty none the less.

For our first stop, we went to Superdawg located at 6363 N Milwaukee Ave in Chicago.  It is located at the far northwest edge of Chicago, almost to the suburbs. It is throwback to a different era as it is a drive in where you can order your food from your parked care and it is delivered to you.  The only time we have experienced this kind of service is from A&W Rootbeer locations many years ago. We all ordered Superdawgs, which are Chicago Style hot dogs that come served in a box cushioned on a bed of french fries.  Make sure to call them Superdawgs instead of hot dogs when you order them or else they may get angry.  Also do not ask for ketchup on the dog itself.  Ketchup will come with your meal for the fries but not for a traditional Chicago style hot dog.

We had been to Superdawg a few years ago and don't remember being "super" impressed with it at the time. However this second visit was a much more positive experience.  The hot dog was much more plump and juicy.  Also we were able to get a parking spot to take advantage of the drive in nature of the restaurant.  The first time we went to Superdawg it was a summer evening and it was so crowded that we had to park across the street at a forest preserve and walk up.

Superdawg has been mentioned on numerous TV shows - from PBS, to the Food Network to the Travel Channel.  Now having a second experience, we would go back again.  However it is difficult to get there from where we live so maybe only when visitors are in town again.

Final thoughts on Superdawg:
Food - better than average Chicago style hot dog
Service - fun to experience a drive in setting
Atmosphere - super casual, cash only, don't be afraid to eat in your car, look for the hot dog characters on top of the building








As if hot dogs weren't enough for an evening, the second half of our meal was having Italian beef sandwiches at Buona Beef.  There are several locations of Buona Beef throughout Chicago and the suburbs so found one on the way home from Superdawg.  Although Buona Beef may not be as we recognized nationally as Al's or Portillo's, it has a good quality Italian Beef Sandwich. We ordered our sandwiches with sweet peppers and mozzarella cheese.  Nick's dad thought they were on par with Portillo's and less salty than Als'.  He still likes that Al's dips all of their beef sandwiches in a jus. Nick found that their meat was juicier than Portillo's, but he prefers Portillo's for some of the other things they offer on their menu (i.e chocolate cake shake).

Final thoughts on Buona Beef:
Food - good Italian Beef sandwiches, cannot speak much to the rest of the menu
Service - counter service where you order and they bring your food out to your table
Atmosphere - casual fast food

Erie Cafe



View of city from the restaurant

With Nick's parents still in town, we went to another restaurant that they heard about, Erie Cafe - an Italian Steakhouse located at 536 W Erie Street in Chicago .  We are not exactly sure how they heard about this restaurant, but we heard about it from an episode of Check Please.

We loved the location right by the Chicago river and we found free parking just steps away from the building.  We wished we could have gone there in the summer time to enjoy their outdoor dining overlooking the river.

It seems like a lot of regulars frequent this restaurant as the wait staff greeted and hugged many people as they came in. For a weekend evening we were seated quickly, but this may have been because we went there the day after Thanksgiving.

All entrees come with a salad and cottage fries.  Amongst the 4 of us we ordered 2 lasagnas, prime rib and veal Marsala for dinner. The prime rib was massive, about 26 ounces - enough for several meals.  We didn't taste it but Nick's parents said it was very tasty. The lasagna was good and filling but nothing out of the ordinary. In our opinion, the veal was the best presented and tastiest of the evening.  It was smothered in mushrooms which Nick enjoyed.

For dessert we ordered key lime pie and chocolate lava cake, both of which were very good  - so make sure to save room for dessert.  The lava cake was probably the second best lava cake Nick has ever had; second only to the chocolate lava souffle at Roy's.  It had warm gooey cake and a thick molten center which was very decadent. The key lime pie was better than average - there was a perfect balance of tartness of the lime and sweetness.

Final thoughts on Erie Cafe:
Food - better than average, good range of prices on the Italian dishes if you don't want to eat the more expensive steak dishes
Service - super attentive, the water glasses kept getting refilled when they were still more than half full
Atmosphere - great location, we tried to dress more business casual but we could have gotten away with a little more casual

Gino's East

Nick's parents were in town and wanted to try a true Chicago tradition. So we went to Gino's East for deep dish pizza. We've been to the original locations downtown, but in order to save some time we went to the location near O'Hare airport. The location was fairly quiet compared to downtown, but that might have been because we went there on the night before Thanksgiving.

We chose to have a family style salad and a deep dish supreme pizza with a sausage patty layer.  For the non-Chicagoans, the sausage patty is layer of sausage spread over the entire crust so that you get sausage in every bite, instead of crumbled sausage.

Final thoughts on Gino's East:
Food - tasty, always want more and very filling
Service - attentive service as it was a slow night at the restaurant; they kept the drinks full and kept us informed on how long the deep dish pizza would take to make (about 40 minutes)

Atmosphere - casual, although sad we couldn't draw on the walls like in downtown Chicago