Above:Bluefin tuna sashimi, sweet ebi nigiri, mixed sashimi At this sparely furnished restaurant on an unremarkable stretch of Irving Park Road, chef Simon Liew (Kai Zan) offers both a repudiation of overelaborate, overwrought sushi creations and a brilliant reboot of them. On the one hand, Liew is a purist. The star of the show here … Read more
Above:Meatball pizza Chicago probably didn’t need another pizzeria, but we’re happy to wedge in one that’s as impressive as Bebu. Its pies emerge from the gas-fired oven chewy and char-speckled, airy yet sturdy enough to support toppings such as crumbles of housemade fennel-flecked sausage or drizzles of honey. They make for great takeout fare, but … Read more
Welcome to the best party in Wicker Park. On a comparatively sleepy stretch of North Avenue, this homage to the Mississippi Delta is so packed it’s practically shaking, filled with men in ironic mustaches and women in ironic wire-rimmed glasses, all of them nodding along to hip-hop and sipping fruity vodka punches from shareable cut-glass … Read more
Above left:Lamb loin BLVD presents itself as a fantasy from a bygone time and place—1950s Hollywood, specifically—but where a lesser restaurant might have veered kitschy, this one smartly went in a more opulent direction. The space is exultant in velvet upholstery and crystal chandeliers and is anchored by an impressive staircase and a brass-trimmed bar. … Read more
Above:Beet agnolotti A kid from the northwest suburbs has quietly evolved into one of Chicago’s pasta savants. At his pleasant little brick-walled restaurant, Joe Frillman spins humble dough into endlessly fulfilling plates (a skill he honed as chef de cuisine at Balena). For the red beet agnolotti, he poaches and purées beets, blends them with … Read more
Above:Steak burrito and enchiladas After a short-lived stint at the equally short-lived Andersonville spot Cantina 1910, Diana Dávila decided her next project would be entirely her own. From its moniker, which means “my namesake” in Spanish, to its confident, deeply personal takes on Mexican cooking, Mi Tocaya is pure Dávila. Sometimes this intimate approach leads … Read more
Above, top left:The Potato ‘Nator The father-son duo of Agostino and Tony Fiasche first gained acclaim with Nduja Artisans, a suburban salumeria whose exquisite dry-cured meat has graced the menus of many of Chicago’s top restaurants. So it makes sense that the rustic West Town deli they opened last year is the finest sandwich shop … Read more
Above, from left:Marisa Paolillo; samosas Marisa Paolillo, the chef-partner at Mango Pickle, burns through ideas so quickly that a seasonal menu doesn’t seem adequate. While you’re proclaiming your love for her fork-tender pork shoulder vindaloo with tapioca pappadams or her chicken tikka wings flavored with Kashmiri chilies, Paolillo is already plotting her next project. (She’s … Read more
Above right: Gin and tonics Restaurant rule No. 577: If you’re going to serve Egyptian cashew dukkah on the same menu as a Kashmiri rogan josh, you damn well better know what you’re doing. And Proxi’s chef-partner, Andrew Zimmerman (who earned a Michelin star around the corner at Sepia), does. His wildly ambitious small-plate menu … Read more
Above:Hanger steak A few months after opening Marisol on the renovated ground floor of the Museum of Contemporary Art, chef-partner Jason Hammel opined, “I see the connection between the museum as a place for living, breathing artists and Marisol as a place for living, breathing food and seasonal cooking.” That may sound like a bit … Read more
