Recipe File: Liquid Zen
Liquid Zen at Silver Cloud
Liquid Zen at Silver Cloud
“We’re bringing back the true art of cocktail-making,” says the Potter’s John Williamson.
The age-old factory assembly line combines with notions of modern love in Jaclyn Pryor’s newest project.
1. GQ has named its top 20 cocktails in America, and two are from Chicago: The Violet Hour‘s Juliet & Romeo and Nacional 27′s Strawberry-Rhubarb-Basil-Balsamic Mojito. Agree? Disagree? Post your thoughts in the comments section below.
2. Zocalo and Partida Tequila team up for a tequila tasting tonight…
Mana Mia!
One of our top FODs checked out MANA foodbar (1742 W. Division St.; 773-342-1742), Jill Barron and Susan Thompson’s (Sushi Wabi and De Cero) new vege-focused boîte in Wicker Park. Herein the report, verbatim: “Just had lunch at Mana. Very organic. Reminds me a little of the Momofuku Noodle Bar in NYC. Very small, like the portions. Blue cheese tart with caramelized onion was YUM!, but one bite full for $7. The spanakopita was more generous for $8—firm and very…
Frat boys across the nation, rejoice! The rest of us (spoiler alert): Meh. Behold, Mamma Mia! Pizza Beer. Any resemblance to ABBA or Meryl Streep is purely coincidental.
Thanks to devout garage brewers Tom and Athena Seefurth of suburban Campton Township, we now know the answer to that age-old 3 a.m. question: What would happen if we mated pizza and beer? Hint: Some pairings make better friends than lovers. The beer, now brewed by Sprecher in Wisconsin, earns points for originality (yes, that is basil, garlic, oregano, and tomato you smell…
Forget the recession. In a trio of downtown hotels, three glittering, ambitious restaurants—Mercat a la Planxa, Sixteen, and Lockwood—appear to have done just that.
This Week’s Nightlife Buzz
1. Crimson Lounge celebrates its one-year anniversary—a lifetime in bar years—tonight, Thursday the 17th, with an event called Grand Opening 2.0 (we don’t quite get it either). Entertainment includes New York’s DJ Kiss and Belmont Burlesque. The party runs from 10 p.m. to 2 a.m.; RSVP to crimson1year@zapwater.com.
2. It’s always someone’s anniversary somewhere: Also tonight…
No one’s been able to come up with an adequate name for them—bastraunts? restobars?—but these restaurant-lounge hybrids have reached a critical mass. Their tantalizing promise of good cocktails, beers, and food is impossible to ignore. But are they any good? We ate and drank at ten spots that have opened in the past year to find out.
Quick Hit
Perennial (1800 N. Lincoln Ave.; 312-981-7070), the newest spot from Kevin Boehm and Rob Katz (Boka, Landmark), looks sharp. Natural organic touches dominate: birch trees, wood-grained tables, aqua-striped upholstered banquettes. The canvas flaps stretched across the ceiling seem a sly reference to Boka’s décor. But that was the beginning and end of any connection to the team’s other enjoyable restaurants. Wings and beer sounded like fun but the weird combo of…