Chicago Restaurant Week at Epic 2013

February starts off with a BANG! Chicago Restaurant Week is like New York Fashion Week for all the foodies in the city. We researched where to go and thought Epic Restaurant would be a good place to start. Let me tell you one thing, the place is GORGEOUS! The city lights shine inside amazingly and the aura of the place just makes you feel baller. As for the food, there were hits and misses. 

Crab and Shrimp Louie with Avocado and Tomato

The Crab and Shrimp Louie was a great start as it freshened our palates. It was an excellent starter and didn't overload us at all. Both of the seafood meats were full of flavors and juices that complemented the tomatoes and avocados. 

Lamb Carpaccio. Pickled Huckleberries. Manchego Cheese. Pecans

The lamb was beautiful. Perfect texture and full of flavor. Both the huckleberries and cheese blended well with the lamb and the pecans gave it a bit of a crunch factor. 

Baby Spinach. Grilled Apples. Goat Cheese. Almonds. Tarragon Vinaigrette

I could have eaten just the grilled apples and goat cheese with each other and would have been satisfied. That being said the spinach gave it a fresher taste and a softer texture to go with the apples and goat cheese. 

Lobster Bisque. Calvados Cream. Chervil

The Lobster Bisque had a lot of flavor to it. It seemed like it was missing a crunch but the flavor was definitely delicious. 

Braised Short Ribs. Scallion-Potato Puree. Baby Carrots

Despite being the entree, this was my least favorite dish. That being said, I actually really enjoyed the baby carrots a lot. They were full of flavor, had a perfect soft texture, and made me smiled. The reason I didn't like the short ribs was that it was overcooked. It tasted like a frozen TV dinner except it took longer to get out. I was indifferent about the potato puree. 

Grilled Salmon. Crispy Risotto Cake. Spicy Tomato-Mint Sauce

This entree was also overcooked. Tasted a little dry and didn't have much punch to it. In theory it looks like it had a lot of potential, but the execution just did not hit it. 

Milk Chocolate-Banana Cake. Rum Anglaise. Mango Sorbet

Nothing smashing about it, but not bad. The mango sorbet was mediocre here. Emma and I actually had Mango Sorbet bought at Dominick's and it was smoother and we finished a pint in one night. Maybe my expectations were too high after tasting some delicious mango-filled Filipino dishes. It didn't blend that well with the chocolate to compensate it either. 

 

Overall, it was an okay experience but could have been better. It seemed like the veggies and fruits were prepared better than the meats. The service was great and our waiter was very personable and friendly. Despite having an awesome scenery, the food just doesn't match up to the setting.

As always,

"The Couple that Grubs Together,

Stays Together"
-Grub Couple-

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A taste of French

Wayne had gotten a $50 certificate for the Paris Club. I've been pretty stressed out lately from school. Wayne wanted to treat me out to dinner. 

 

The food was pretty good. Wayne got three little dishes while I got the Pacific Salmon entree. I've never had foie gras mousse before. It was pretty funny because Wayne didn't know what was in it, he just liked the dish. I kept telling him that it tasted like liver.  So we Googled it and found out that it is duck or goose liver. It was really good and flavorful. I just found it kind of weird that there was a weird jelly substance on top...(Sorry about the bad quality of photos, my camera was being weird!)

But one thing I found interesting about foie gras was that the technique of gavage dates back to the ancient Egyptians in which they began to keep birds and fattened them through forced feeding. I also never knew how controversial gavage-based foie gras production is in Europe. 

Foie gras mousse 

Lobster Costini- Truffled scrambled egg

Lamb meatballs with a Harissa tomato sauce

Wayne really liked the lobster costini and the lamb meatballs. I liked the lamb meatballs because the tomato sauce complimented them really well.  But I wasn't too impressed by the salmon.

Pacific king salmon with ratatouille, pistou

When my plate first came out the salmon was not cooked all the way. So I had to ask the waitress if they could take the plate back to cook it a little more even though I really hate sending food back.  I think part of me is disturbed after seeing the movie Waiting...  If you've seen the movie, then you're probably aware of why I never like sending food back to cooks. But despite my fear of sending food back to the cooks, I know it's worth it to send back to the kitchen if the fish is totally raw. So, when they came back with my plate, the fish was cooked perfectly through and tasted pretty good. As for the ratatouille, I didn't really like it that much. Personally think my mom's is better. I like that she makes it as more of a stew and I feel like the vegetables taste better together when she makes it. 

Raspberry Chocolate Almond tart

As for dessert we got the raspberry chocolate almond tart. I just love dark chocolate and the crust was amazing. Overall, it was a pretty good meal but what made it amazing was the fact that Wayne wanted to take me out to dinner. 

He's such a sweetheart. These past couple of weeks haven't been easy for me because of all the stress and anxiety I've been having lately. But even though sometimes it seems sometimes that the walls are closing in on me, it helps knowing that I have an amazing support system. It's great knowing that my family, friends and most of all, Wayne are there to help me get through the rough patches in life. I'm so lucky he's in my life for he makes my life sweeter. :)

As always, 

"The Couple that Grubs Together Stays Together"

-Grub Couple-

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