Garuda

-Grubbing in Chicago
Indonesian Food in Uptown

Chicago landed a full-fledged Indonesian restaurant when Garuda opened on Argyle in June. The restaurant is named after a mythological figure in Southeast Asia that's part giant eagle, part human, and represents strength, freedom, protection, and divine power. Indonesian food has always been difficult to find in Chicago compared to other Southeast Asian cuisines. So with its grand opening Garuda adds another dimension to the city's Southeast Asian dining scene and the Argyle corridor. 

Recently Opened in Uptown

Garuda isn’t the first place serving food from Indonesia but it has the broadest selection of Indonesian dishes in Chicago to date. It’s a neighborhood operation but word seems to have spread beyond the neighborhood with some people mentioning they came from other states in online reviews. There's even a picture on the wall of a former president of Indonesia standing in front of the restaurant with staff and no it's not AI. The dining room is minimal in design and there’s limited seating so you may need to share a table when it's busy. Garuda is ran by a local Indonesian family that also owns a sushi spot so it’s a bit of a dream project as far as being able to serve the food they eat at home. The menu isn't massive but it's filled with specific Indonesian dishes, some of which are regional. Chicken sate is one of the more well known Indonesian foods but there’s different levels to it and the version served at Garuda is a saucy style. Chunks of chicken are skewered and covered in a flavorful peanut sauce. These were grilled ahead of ordering so the texture suffered a bit but the flavor was on point. 

Chicken Sate at Garuda

The most interesting section of the menu might be the sambals, which can be added to any order for $2 each. There are six to choose from, and I've tried three so far. Each packed plenty of heat and was deeply satisfying. One of the best ways to sample these is with an order of bakwan sayur, Indonesian vegetable fritters. They're made in the traditional style with shredded vegetables mixed into a light batter and fried until crisp. I particularly liked the sambal ijo, a green chili sauce associated with West Sumatra that's fresh, spicy, and aromatic. Similar to Nam Prik Noom, a Northern Thai chili sauce.

Bakwan Sayur at Garuda

Nasi Rames is a Javanese dish with a central scoop of steamed white rice surrounded by smaller portions of various dishes on the same plate. It makes for a great introduction to Indonesian cuisine. You start by choosing a main, and for me, the choice is easy when beef rendang is an option. Originating with the Minangkabau people of West Sumatra, rendang isn't a curry but a rich, dry-braised beef dish. The meat is simmered in spiced coconut milk until the liquid evaporates and the beef fries in its own rendered fat. You round out the plate with a variety of sides, almost like a Southeast Asian mezze. Pictured below are rendang, stir-fried green beans, peanuts and anchovies, shrimp crackers, a hard-boiled egg, and sambal. Together, they offer a mix of sweet, savory, spicy, and crunchy elements that make nasi rames such a satisfying way to explore Indonesian food.

Nasi Rames with Beef Rendang

Garuda
1046 1/2 W Argyle St
Chicago, IL 60640
(773) 564-9100
Website

Turkish Doner

-Grubbing in Chicago
Turkish Food in Uptown

The end of Argyle street, just before it hits Sheridan road, has turned into a bit of an international eating enclave, much like the rest of Argyle. But unlike the Vietnamese and Thai eateries that dominate the street, this block houses a Nigerian, a Venezuelan, and now a Turkish restaurant too. The generically named ‘Turkish Doner’ recently took the place of the old Don Pablo's Chilean Bakeshop which was said to be moving to the suburbs. Turkish restaurants continue to see a sharp rise in the Chicagoland area but there’s no specific area as to where - they’re opening all across the city and the suburbs.

Recently Opened in Uptown

Turkish Doner has seating for maybe 12 people so it’s a small space that seems to be doing a steady business with takeout based on my visits. As is almost always the case at these Turkish places you can usually find a group of older Turkish guys sitting and chatting at one of the tables. On my first visit I noticed that the Lahmacun was a favorite among these friends and family types as it was always at the tables where Turkish was being spoken. Lahmacun is a flatbread dish originating in the Levant region. An extra thin piece of flatbread is baked and topped with minced lamb or beef among other things and served with an array of toppings including tomato, onion and fresh herbs. Lahmacun is very popular in Türkiye where it’s commonly eaten as a snack on the street (stands there often roll it so it can be eaten on the go). The Lahmacun at Turkish Doner makes for a great snack and or appetizer or you can make a complete meal out of it as they serve it in orders of one and two.

Lahmacun at Turkish Doner

As the name suggests they also do Turkish Doner here. The popular street food featuring meat cooked on a vertical rotisserie is pretty much the national dish of Türkiye with just about every Turkish restaurant on earth offering it. Doner is the original spit roasted meat going back to the days of the Ottoman Empire. The Doner sandwich at Turkish Doner is a meal in and of itself. Spit roasted beef sliced from a quadrilateral spit of spinning meat in the back kitchen is paired with garlicky white sauce, and warm buttery tomato sauce stuffed into a soft house-baked roll with cucumber, tomato, and onion. This sandwich can easily contend with any of the Banh Mi for best sandwich on the block. I really liked the bread they used which was still warm when my sandwich arrived. The hot tomato sauce seemed to be the same sauce used when making İskender kebap which is Doner covered in a decadent buttery tomato sauce. I noticed they also have what they call a “Slavic Shawarma” wrap and I tried to ask the Ukrainian lady that works in front what that was about but she wasn’t too helpful.

Doner Sandwich at Turkish Doner

Unfortunately the Adana Kebap plate that the lady in front recommended was a dud that seemed to be rewarmed based on the texture. That said I know a guy from the food world that lives around here and he enjoyed the Adana Kebap so maybe it was an off day. But I should also point out that the warm red pepper based sauce included with my kebabs was awesome. Either way it’ll be tough not to get that sandwich the next time I find myself around this way. It’ll be interesting to see what goes into the space next door where Milly’s Pizza in the Pan used to be as that recently moved to Noble Square.

Adana Kebap

Turkish Doner
1007 W Argyle St
Chicago, IL 60640
(872) 232-0208

DaNang Kitchen

-Grubbing in Chicago  
Regional Vietnamese on Argyle

Vietnamese remains one of the worlds most underrated cuisines. While it is getting it’s due more and more than ever before it’s still relatively under the radar of many. It’s not hard to find a Vietnamese restaurant as long as you’re not in the middle of nowhere but it’s a little harder to find spots where the menu features more than the usual's like Banh Mi and Pho. If you go over to Argyle street there’s seemingly endless options for both of those but much less options for dishes like Bun Cha or Banh Cuon. Neither of those dishes are un-findable but most of the restaurants don’t serve them among an army of other popular dishes from the booming Southeast Asian nation. But I’m always on the lookout for the spots that are doing a little more than the usual stuff and today's post is one of those places.

Locals Favorite on Argyle 

Danang Kitchen opened a few years ago on Argyle towards the eastern end closer to Sheridan than Broadway. It's arrival was around the time that a handful of new school Southeast Asian restaurants were opening in an area that was for the most part filled with places that had been there for awhile. The type of places where the menus are worn down and Instagram is unheard of. Danang Kitchen is a family run joint like most of the restaurants in the neighborhood but there’s a younger part of the family that has the business on social media and such. They also do special pop-up dinners which in one instance featured one of my favorite Vietnamese dishes - Cha Ca Va Long - a turmeric fish dish with roots in Hanoi. You’ll find regional options on the every day menu too. Mi Quang Noodles are the house specialty and are what first got me to stop in. Mi Quang is a popular dish in Central Vietnam and cities like Danang and also Hoi An, the latter is where I first tried it. The main ingredients are rice noodles, meat, herbs and it’s most commonly served with a small amount of broth infused with turmeric. At Danang Kitchen the Mi Quang comes with wide rice noodles sitting in a puddle of turmeric based broth with pork belly, shrimp and quail eggs served up with a roasted rice cracker and Asian greens. It’s a delicious rendition and my favorite version of the few I’ve come across in Chicagoland.

Mi Quang Noodles at Danang Kitchen 

There’s two Banh Mi options on the menu here and they’re both made with pork. One is labeled as grilled pork (Banh Mi Thit Nuong) and the other is just called "pork". It’s baked until tender and tossed in a sticky and tangy sauce that seeps into in a fresh, extra crisp French roll alongside some cucumber, house pickled carrots with daikon, basil, and mayo. It’s one of the best Banh Mi in the neighborhood and one of the city’s best sandwiches you can find for around $6. But it’s not that big so I suggest getting one as an appetizer or two to make it a complete meal.

Banh Mi at Danang Kitchen 

Pay attention to the daily specials board hanging over the cash register inside (they also update their Instagram at times). Bang Bang Chicken was listed on a recent visit and if not for my friend asking our young waiter what that was I would likely still be unfamiliar with this dish that I had just assumed was similar to Bang Bang Shrimp (a popular dish at corporate type spots). But as I learned from the waiters description Bang Bang Chicken or Xoi Man as it’s called in Vietnam starts with a big pile of sticky rice that’s topped with shredded chicken, Viet jerky, crispy onions, sliced omelet, and a semi funky fish sauce plus cilantro. You mix it all up and dig in and that we did. One of the best things I’ve ate of late. The type of dish that still has me thinking about it now and then weeks after I ate it so I can only hope it’s still on the menu the next time I stop by. But either way I can count on whatever they’re doing to be different than most of the other spots on the block and for that I’m a fan.

Bang Bang Chicken (Xoi Man)

Danang Kitchen 
1019 W Argyle St
Chicago, IL 60640
(773) 654-3564
Website

Ragadan

-Grubbing in Chicago  
Falafel and Burgers in Uptown

The year is 2023 but it’ll be a few months before new restaurants start to establish themselves among the years best openings. So for now I'm still catching up with some of the spots that came along back in 2022. Today we head to Uptown to check out Ragadan, a passion project from a veteran Chicago restaurant chef whose parents immigrated to Oklahoma from Jordan. The menu at Ragadan is a mix of Middle Eastern and American comfort foods - falafel and burgers in particular.  

Newly Opened in Uptown

We’ll start with the falafel because a great one is something the city has lacked (the best area to find deep fried balls of chickpeas is the Southwest suburbs). A couple things that stand out about the falafel at Ragadan are 1) it’s fried to order and 2) it can be ordered as a Ka’ak sandwich where it comes served with hummus, pickle, tomato, tahini and parsley sauce in a fresh sesame seeded roll. It’s a great change of pace from the typical pita used to make falafel sandwiches elsewhere but you can get their excellent Jordanian spiced falafel in a pita too if that’s what you like. They also make a stuffed falafel which more spots are starting to do. Ragadan fills theirs with sumac grilled onions.

Ka'ak Falafel Sandwich 

As good as the sandwich is the burgers also deserve a taste and just like the falafel ka'ak they’re not your standard offerings. Fresh patties of beef are lightly smashed and dressed with traditional toppings infused with a bit of middle eastern flavor. The Dan Burger is a toasted bun with shoor pickles, chopped onion, ketchup, mustard, and zatar mayo. I went with a double and it was a fantastic chef driven burger in that it didn’t sway too far from the classics as far as toppings go. Also of note is a kick ass baklava milkshake loaded with chunks of phyllo dough mixed with chopped nuts and honey. Uptown got a good one. The neighborhood has had some cool spots open up shop of late.

Double Dan Burger at Ragadan

Ragadan
4409 N Broadway
Chicago, IL 60640
(773) 654-1788
Website

Siam Noodle & Rice

 -Grubbing in Chicago  
Iconic Thai Food in Uptown

Chicago has some damn good Thai restaurants. So much so I’d name Thai food as one of the city’s better food strengths. We have some top heavy spots that would be good anywhere, including LA. Today we head over to the one of the city’s oldest Thai restaurants. A place that sat on Sheridan road in Uptown for close to 30 years before moving into new digs a few years back, also in Uptown.

Locals Favorite in Uptown

The new space sits on Broadway and it's the anchor of a small strip mall (free parking). It’s a long and narrow spot with a decent amount of space due to the two dining rooms separated by the entrance. It’s big enough to where they have their own takeout section which is typically busy with people picking up their to-go orders. The menu at Siam Noodle & Rice offers all of the Thai classics and then some. There’s a section for Northern Thai dishes like dry fried beef jerky, bamboo shoot salad or larb with sticky rice. Then you got a handful of chefs specials such as the basil duck and a basil fried rice dish that you won’t find everywhere. In fact it’s the Basil chicken aka Pad Ka Prao that first turned me onto this place. This classic combination of stir fried minced meat mixed with Thai basil sitting atop a big pile of white rice is comfort food for Thai people. Lots of spots around town will serve some sort of basil chicken dish but if the chicken isn’t minced (not ground) it’s not made right. Not only does Siam make it right but they make it spicy in the perfect way (not too hot but definitely not mild). 

Pad Ka Prao (Basil Chicken) at Siam Noodle & Rice 

Pad Khe Mao aka drunken noodles is a good dish to judge a Thai restaurant by. It’s not hard to make but some spots do a better job with the wok than others. Most importantly is the stir frying of the wide rice noodles, when done right they get that smoky flavor aka wok hei. Another part that’s important is the meat itself. Nine times out of ten the beef at these type of spots is not good. It’ll be too chewy or more steamed than stir fried which gives it a not so sexy look. The beef at Siam is one of the biggest exceptions to this. Bite size pieces of extremely flavorful beef is just tender enough to not fall apart but can easily be ripped apart. It’s similar in taste to the beef in a bowl of pho, just sliced a bit thicker. Siam rounds theirs out with egg, collard green, bean sprouts, basil leaves, black bean sauce and chili sauce. It’s one of the better versions in town, if not the best non-crispy version that I’ve found. 

Pad Khe Mao (Drunken Noodles) at Siam Noodle & Rice 

Siam Noodle & Rice is also one of just a few spots I know of where you can score a bowl of dry noodle soup, meaning a bowl of noodles without the broth. It’s common for noodle shops in Bangkok and beyond to serve their bowls of noodle soup without broth, making it a stir fry of sorts. You can order a number of the noodle soups at Siam “dry” for a $1 extra. I enjoy the traditional version with beef and a bunch of their house made hot sauce on top. You should also ask for their ginger sauce to go with it. When your dry noodles arrive they’ll be decorated with a handful of ingredients including ground peanuts, sugar and dry chile flakes. Mix it all up and squeeze the lime on top and you got a dish that brings me right back to Yaowarat. Bangkok’s Chinatown is the largest outside of China. 

Beef Noodle Soup (Dry)

Siam Noodle & Rice
4142 N Broadway
Chicago, IL 60613
(773) 769-6694
Website

Don Pablo's Kitchen & Bakeshop

-Grubbing in Chicago
Chilean Empanadas in Uptown

Over the last decade or so there hasn't been anywhere in Chicagoland to get Chilean food, except maybe a Chilean persons kitchen. You can find all sorts of restaurants serving food from other South American countries but Chilean food had been non-existent in Chicago for some time. That was until just last year when a local news reporter of Chilean descent decided to start selling empanadas out of a ghost kitchen. Mike Sula with the story. They've since gone full brick & mortar in Uptown. 

Recently Opened in Uptown

Because there is no definitive Chilean community in Chicago owner Pablo Soto chose to open in Uptown bc of it's diversity. Empanadas are indeed a universally loved snack. They come in all shapes and sizes and most of the time they're fried but sometimes they're baked. Chilean empanadas are different than most others bc of their both large size and the fact their most traditional version is baked. After the pandemic made Soto and so many others question their priorities he decided it was time to start his own thing and he did so by traveling back to Chile and gathering all the info he could about his homelands signature snack, the empanada. Some secrets were learned and with that his dough was perfected. Mike Sula's article in the Reader mentions the use of white wine in the dough. 

Empanadas at Don Pablo's Kitchen & Bakeshop 

I made sure to give the “Clásica” a try on my first trip in. It’s made with hand-cut sirloin steak, onions, hard boiled egg, black olives and spices. Also pictured up above is the “Pluma Pesto” which is served fried with pulled chicken, creamy pesto, onions, hard boiled egg, black olive and spices inside. The dough on each of these was high quality and I very much enjoyed them both. I thought the classic baked version was better than a busy spot in Miami that I recently tried (there's a handful of Chilean restaurants in South Florida). They also make a popular Chilean dish that they call the “Epic Corn Pie” or Pastel de Choclo which is a comforting casserole that feels at home in the Midwest. It has sweet corn, basil, and layers of hand-cut angus sirloin steak with pulled chicken breast and hard boiled egg and black olives. It'll be interesting to see what else is added to the menu as time goes by.

Epic Corn Pie at Don Pablo's Kitchen & Bakeshop 

Don Pablo's Kitchen & Bakeshop

1007 W Argyle St
Chicago, IL 60640
(773) 293-7040
Website

Talard Thai Market

-Grubbing in Chicago  
A Thai Supermarket in Uptown  

As I've mentioned before 2021 has been a big year for Thai restaurant openings. While the city's Thai restaurant scene is by no means new it keeps getting better. I feel like today's stop is a big part of the recent boom. Talard Thai Market is new but not brand new. It opened on Broadway in Uptown in Nov. of 2019. It was opened by a couple of Bangkok natives that met in Chicago. Mike Sula was on it early and you can check out his story for the Reader HERE. As noted Chicago has had a good number of Thai restaurants for a while now but this is the areas first newly opened Thai market in over a decade.

Locals Favorite in Uptown 

From a market standpoint Talard is the first spot you should check when in need of Thai ingredients of any sort. If it's common in Thai cooking or a product from Thailand they're more likely to have it here than anywhere else around town. Local cookbook author Leela Punyaratabandhu is mentioned in Sula's piece as she's written two of the best Thai cookbooks you can find in English and is also the person behind the blog SheSimmers where she shares with the world some of her favorite Thai recipes. If you're looking to get into Thai cooking her work is the first stuff you should look at as far as research. After that you can head over to Talard bc you're going to want to try and make it all.

Steam Table at Talard Thai Market 

If you're more interested in leaving the Thai food to the Thai cooks around town don't fret bc Talard also boasts a cafeteria type setup in the back of the store. In Thailand this setup is called a khao rad gang and it's similar to a meat and three cafeteria of the American south. If you visit on the weekend they have more than 20 home cooked Thai dishes ranging from morning glory curry to rotating specials like Khao Kha Moo aka stewed pork leg. This is a dish I immensely enjoyed in Chiang Mai at the world famous "Cowboy Hat Lady" stand. I have vivid memories of a meal there which I partook in with a bunch of Chinese businessmen. Though we didn't speak the same language we communicated through our enjoyment of the food we were eating. Those memories were triggered when eating this.

Khao Kha Moo at Talard Thai Market 

On the same visit I got the stewed pork leg they were also making Khanom Tokyo (Thai style Dorayaki) to order. These too brought back memories of our trip to Thailand as there's a famous stand in Bangkok called Mr. Tokio that sells this popular street snack that's enjoyed by all. It's a made to order thin flat pancake that's wrapped around either a sweet or savory filling. A Thai adaptation of Japanese Doriyaki. I enjoyed the sweet custard cream and the savory sliced hot dog equally. The opening of Talard Thai Market has brought easier access to hard to find Thai ingredients and with that it's taken the city's Thai food scene up a notch into the echelon of the likes of LA and Las Vegas. 

Khanom Tokyo at Talard Thai Market 

Talard Thai Market

5353 N Broadway
Chicago, IL 60640
(773) 942-6566
Website

Banh Mi Lotus Seed

-The Sammy's of Chi

The Banh Mi is without a doubt a global sandwich power house. Top 5 as far as I'm concerned. It's become very popular on a global scale and can be found from Wichita to the Czech Republic. Chicago has some good spots for a Banh Mi but we could always use more. Enter Lotus Seed. 

Locals Favorite in Uptown 

First off this spot is not to be confused with any other Vietnamese restaurants that have 'Lotus' and or 'Seed' in their name. It's it's own place and they do a few other things besides banh mi but it doesn't seem like that stuff is much different from any other Vietnamese spots around the neighborhood. But where Bahn Mi Lotus Seed stands out is in it's prep of their Bahn Mi. They use a sandwich press. 

The Lotus Seed Special at Banh Mi Lotus Seed 

Lotus Seed offers a variety of banh mi including a popular grilled pork version. But I always find it hard to pass on a Banh Mi Dac Biet which is typically going to be listed first on the menu as this is the most popular way to enjoy a Banh Mi sandwich. It's like the Italian of subs / hoagies. The Lotus Seed Special is listed first and consists of roasted jambon and steamed pork with pate, cilantro, mayo, and assorted vegetables. The press warms up the fillings just enough to where it's kind of like a hybrid banh mi / grinder. It's unique but not missing anything that makes a banh mi so good to begin with. 

Banh Mi Dac Biet at Banh Mi Lotus Seed 

Banh Mi Lotus Seed

5100 N Broadway
Chicago, IL 60640
(773) 564-9529

In-On-Thai

 -Grubbing in Chicago
Thai Home Cooking in Uptown 

If you're a Chicagoan familiar with LTHforum or the city's mom and pop Thai food scene you've probably heard of In-On-Thai by now. Originally they opened in Lakeview where the building they were renting was sold for condos and they disappeared for almost two years before returning to Uptown on Broadway. As he always does with the city's best mom and pop gems my guy Mike Sula wrote about their return in the Reader last summer. This was of course after covid dining restrictions had gone into place but some people myself included got to dine-in right around the start of 2020 when they made their triumphant return. Today's post is a combo of visits going back to their original location and then also the grand re-opening of their current location which is takeout only for now.

Locals Favorite in Uptown 

In-on-Thai is a true family run spot. It's a husband and wife team with the grandmother / mother-in-law doing most of the cooking. The husband was born in Chicago but grew up in Bangkok where he met his wife Inon (the restaurants namesake) and married into the family business which was a local food court stall selling Central Thai rice and curry dishes. Any first time In-on-Thai customer who also happens to be a curry fan should make sure they try at least one of those. As Sula's story explains most Thai spots in the US make their curries from the canned stuff but not here where the grandmother makes them from scratch. You really cant go wrong with any of them but the stir fried bamboo shoots with chicken comes with a spicy homemade red curry that's tongue tingling delicious. The fact of the matter is it seems that pretty much everything they do here they do very well. A simple description of "Marinated Pork Ribs" doesn't do this appetizer justice. Little chunks of fermented pork ribs have a nice fresh and funky flavor profile and always seem to impress the first time visitors. 

Marinated Pork Ribs at In-On-Thai

Going down the menu there's also the Thai salads section. Nobody does salads better than the Thai's. Ha ha. If you know, you know. Lots of good options on there as well as a couple listed under the chefs specials. From the latter the "special salad" is described as green leaf lettuce, cucumber, hard boiled egg, onion and tomato with peanut dressing. Trust me when I say it's much more exciting than it sounds. The green bean salad is another one of my favorites. It's made with steamed green beans, hard boiled egg, shrimp, and ground pork on top with coconut milk and crispy shallots.

Green Bean Salad at In-On-Thai 

The previously mentioned 'chef's special' section holds another one of my favorites. Again it's description doesnt do it justice but when I first saw baked shrimp with clear noodles served in baked pot on the menu it was a flashback to our trip to Bangkok and the Khlong Lat Mayom Floating Market. We'd had a similar dish there and this one was about as good as I think you're going to get in the States. Not quite the same but good enough to bring back some really wonderful memories. I love this dish for it's ability to do that. No surprise but like everything else the shrimp is cooked well here. 

Baked Shrimp with Clear Noodles at In-On-Thai 

But perhaps the best tip I can give to someone trying In-on-Thai for the first time is to make sure you try one of the fish dishes. There's a few that are really good examples of the uniqueness of this place to Chicago. Stuff you wont find elsewhere in the city. First up is the 'crispy fish with jungle salad'. Perhaps the single dish that brings me back to our travels through Thailand more than any other in town. This is what I get when I start getting an itch to travel back to Thailand. It's absolute explosion of flavors featuring crispy fish fillet with red onion, herbs, homemade lime dressing, sliced apples and dry chili peanut on top. Important to note In-on-Thai is at the top of the charts when it comes to packaging their food to go. If you order this dish you'll get the fish and dressing served separately. 

Crispy Fish with Jungle Salad at In-On-Thai 

Another stunner from the chefs specials is the 'In-on-Thai Spicy Fish' dish. Chunks of fish are stir fried until crispy and then tossed in a homemade curry sauce and topped with crispy basil leaf. I love this dish going back to the original location. It was my favorite thing here when they first opened. 

In-On-Thai Spicy Fish 

These days my current favorite is the 'Spicy Fish with Young Pepper' as it's called on the menu. Described as stir fried fish with young green pepper, herbs and crusted garlic chili sauce this is another dish that takes me straight back to Bangkok. The spice is real and there's definitely some other stuff not listed in the description like Thai eggplants and green beans. It's a medley of flavors that come together in a perfect way that will have you checking google flights to Bangkok shortly after you eat it. I cant stress this enough everything I've had from here has been stellar. Even if you're the less adventurous that must have Pad Thai when ordering Thai food - you need to try it from here. 

Spicy Fish with Young Pepper at In-On-Thai

In-On-Thai

4641 N Broadway

Chicago, Illinois 60640 

(773) 944-0114

Website

Sol's on Sheridan

-Grubbing in Chicago

Korean Up North

I don't think Sol's on Sheridan has gotten the love it deserves. Don't get me wrong it has a legion of fans up north and has got time in Redeye from Michael Nagrant which is what put it on my radar. But still I dont think there's been enough buzz about a place I consider one of the years best openings in the mom/pop category. Sol's is owned by a lady who originally set up shop in Madison, WI. As learned in the article it wasn't until she met her husband in Chicago that the idea of Sol's took steam.

Locals Favorite in Uptown  

Madison's loss is Chicago's gain. On a recent visit this past summer me and a buddy ended up raving about our meal. We wanted to try as much as we could and there's only one way to start at a Korean spot with wings on the menu. We got an order of each (Honey Soy / Sweet Spicy Garlic) and they were great. They don't photograph well with the foil so you're just going to have to trust me when I say they were wonderful. Of note is the breading which is light, airy, and extra crunchy. Typically Korean wings tend to have heavier breading whereas these were lightly battered. Just about perfect.

Korean Wings at Sol's on Sheridan

Next up was a new to me treat I need to eat more often. Korean style Gimbap rolls are basically a meat version of sushi. Instead of raw fish they're rolled with grilled meats like beef bulgogi or spicy pork which is what we ordered. This Korean stye sushi made for a great one bite snack. I guess most places that make gimbap do so ahead of time but here they roll to order. The freshness was key.

Korean Gimbap at Sol's on Sheridan

Gimbap Up-Close

Sol's has Korean BBQ and you dont have to worry about getting dirty if you want to eat some. They do all the cooking for you. We got an order of the LA Galbi and it was on point. I loved the fact I didn't have to do anything except enjoy some really well seasoned beef short ribs. They ripped right off the bone and had perfect resistance as far as taking a bite of meat out of each piece. The $16 pricetag might seem a bit steep but you're getting a few short ribs worth of meat. Another worth returning for.

LA Galbi (short ribs) at Sol's on Sheridan 

Lastly they have these Korean dessert cups that reminded me alot of the Filipino treat called Halo-Halo. It's called Bingsu and according to Wiki it's Korean style shaved ice. We tried the original version and while I dont remember exactly what was in it I do remember it being as good as everything that came before it. Sol's on Sheridan is the type of spot you should seek out the next time you're looking for a low key meal with big time flavors. It's the type of spot where you cant go wrong with any combination of items ordered. Whatever you get will be homemade and taste great.

Bingsu at Sol's on Sheridan

Sol's on Sheridan
4715 N Sheridan Rd
Chicago, IL 60640
(773) 961-7109
Website

Wabi Sabi Rotary

-Grubbing in Chicago

New to the 'Scene'

Conveyor Belt Sushi has made it's way over from Japan and is gaining steam after doing so. The idea is said to be invented by a chef who didn't have room for extra staff at his sushi restaurant. He came up with the idea while watching a conveyor belt of beer at the Asahi Brewery. The first conveyor belt sushi restaurant got it's start in 1958. These days they're found everywhere including Uptown.

Newly Opened in Uptown 

Wabi Sabi is Chicago's first conveyor belt sushi experience. The idea is you sit down along the moving belt and pick out which plates you want as they pass. Sushi is the focal point but other options like shumai and seaweed salad etc are available. This would be my second time eating sushi from the line. I previously dined off a conveyor belt in Cape Town and while nothing about it impressed me I still wanted to check out Wabi Sabi's new machinery one day while driving by.

The Conveyor Belt inside Wabi Sabi

Sushi in Motion 

I took a seat alongside the belt and found it odd that every seat in the house wasn't found along it. I sat and waited out what looked decent enough to try. Prices are based on the colors of the plates and when done your waiter will add up all you ate which you then pay for before leaving.

 Tamago (egg) 

While I'm sure there's good sushi to be found on conveyor belts in Japan the stuff from here seemed second fiddle to the machine itself. What I mean by that is people (including me) probably wouldn't pay this place much attention if not for the fact it has a big machine that feeds them food.

Avocado, Krab etc

Wabi Sabi
4521 N Sheridan Rd
Chicago, IL 60640
(773) 561-9000