The Southern

Happy New Year!! After the festivities nothing cures a hangover like bloody Mary's! So we headed over to The Southern on North avenue for some brunch and 3$ mimosa's and bloody's on New Years Day. Yum! This place used to be chaise lounge and I've been eying it for sometime now. I can't wait for warmer weather bc the outdoor space looks so cozy.

The interior is somewhat like a lumberjack interior designer decorated it. Stylish and rugged. Make sure you wear flannel, have a pixie hair-cut if you are a girl and facial hair if you're a guy. Oh yea, hipster glasses too. Just kidding, our group had none of those but I counted at least one hipster per table. Nothing wrong with that.

They are known for their family style chickens (order ahead of time for a fest for 22$ a person) and brunch. For the app we had the mac n cheese with gouda cheese and sausage. A couple of us ordered the fried chicken with biscuits and it was tasty! We could have done with more gravy but chicken was delish, and hit the spot on a cold hangover day like that. I ordered the Southern Ma'am, open face pork sandwich with a fried egg on top. Mmm! Finally for dessert we had this pudding cake. Not our favorite, between the spice and thickness of the bread it tasted a bit like stuffing? 

All in all I would come back and try some other options. The flavor combination's are nothing new yet a step up from your typical bar grub. The bloody Mary's could use some work, but for 3bucks you can't really be picky. 

Oh yea, I loved the booths in the corner I left like I was in a lodge. :) 

2011

Chambord and Champagne pre-nye 

2011, sounds odd.
This year flew by and brought about a lot of change for me, as I'm sure it did for you. After looking back on 2010 (the highs and lows) we all seem to set goals and deadlines for what we want out of 2011. This year I have no New Year's resolutions. I only vow to enjoy myself for what is going to be (tentative) my last year in Chicago. The 5th and final year. I'm moving toward the Pacific Ocean, in due time, and I want to enjoy it here as much as possible. That means no limitations of chocolate, pho, a good pale ale, pulling out my camera at the dinner table, or anything else that makes me smile.

Happy New Year.

Takashi

 

Takashi was my favorite meal of 2010. The boyfriend and I decided to do a Christmas dinner instead of traditional presents so we found Takashi on the Michalin list and decided to try it. This place is so inconspicuous you would never notice it is a restaurant and not a residence. The outside is so cute! The inside is even better, decorated minimally and beautifully. We were seated in the upstairs loft-style space. I felt like I was in someone's chic attic.

We opted for the 6-course tasting menu with wine pairings. Our wonderful waiter gave us approval and I am so glad we picked not only the tasting menu, but the winepairings! 

First up was the amuse bouche- oyster with ginger dressing on top of mushrooms. Paired with an Avinyo Brut Champagne. The Champagne was perfect with the crisp seafoody taste of the oyster. I got more of the ginger sauce then my date but the consensus was all smiles. The perfect amuse bouche !

Then came the maguro tataki seared big eye tuna with brussel sprouts and pickled salsfiy. It was paired with a Riesling. Another fresh and light flavor combination. The crisp of crackers on the tuna was a nice contrast.

For #2 was the shrimp, squid, scallop and octopus ceviche. I love ceviche , and in my eyes you can do no wrong with it. Indeed this was amazing! Takashi is not selfish with the portions either, the large peices of fish really made it feel like a meal in itself. This was eaten with the Riesling as well. 

#3 was sauteed Maine scallops and gnocchi. the root-Parmesan foam on top was a perfect addition and the scallops were cooked to perfection! Paired with a reserve Chablis. This was our favorite wine! 

#4 was the soy-ginger pork belly served with a pickled daikon salad and steamed buns. This was almost a loosely translated deconstruction of the open face sandwich. The pork was nicely cooked with a sweet finish. Paired with a pinot noir. 

#5 was the grilled bob white quail with pancetta. I've never had quail and loved the flavor. Darker meat but certainly delicious. I loved the  port wine reduction . This was paired with another amazing red wine. 

And finally for #6 was the chocolate macadamia nut cake with a bittersweet ganache and vanilla ice cream! Paired with a port a perfect sweet touch to the end of an amazing meal.

On our way out we spotted Takashi himself. He actually was standing at the hostess booth greeting people coming in! How authentic was that! I loved that and we were able to tell him how much we loved his food, even better. I would love to come back to this place or even check out his noodle only shop at the Macy's on state street. I heard his ramen is bomb. Who! 

Michelin Guide Chicago

Ok so I'm only a month late on the release of the Michelin 2011 guide on restaurants, but lets take a closer look at Chicago's finest, if not tastiest. A brief tutorial on the Michelin guide: The guide was first published in 1900 in France. It begun as a small guide distributed freely to traveling motorists, pointing out local places to eat.The guide now boosts over 40,000 restaurants who are rated by anonymous visitors. Their website uses the slogan, "The Michelin Guide. Famously anonymous". They don't disclose any info on how they tasted and came up with their list.  All we know is that they revisit places they like and rank them anonymously. Hm. No vain bloggers?

So the guide splits their picks based on "starred restaurants", and "bib gourmand restaurants". What the flip is a Bib Gourmand rating? Well, let me tell you. It means the restaurant is a good value, usually about 40$ or less for 2 courses. Me likey. BTW, Bib is short for Bibendum, a French character created in 1898 by the Michelin brothers. Over the years Bib, the Michelin Man, became the group's mascot. And his head (below) can be seen all over the guide.

The starred restaurants are more upscale and are rated based on 1,2,3 stars. Alinea and L2O are the only 3 star restaurants in Chicago! (I vowed to try Alinea this year, whether or not I have to take out a small loan). If you make the bib list, in essence  you are not allowed to be on the master list in later years.
What do you think of the bib list? I'm not sure I'm buying the Thai Village, or Paramount Room as true icon's of this fab. city full of deal's. Oh mon Dieu!

And finally, the full list of starred winners:

***
Alinea
L2O
**
Avenues
Charlie Trotters
Ria
*
Blackbird
Boka
Bonsoiree
Crofton on Wells
Everest
Graham Elliot
Longman & Eagle
NAHA
NoMI
Schwa
Seasons
Sepia
Sixteen
Spaiggia
Takashi
Topolobampo
Tru
Vie

- Who knew the Michelin Man wasn't just selling tires!!