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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Happy New Year!

  

It's New Years Eve and what better way to celebrate the end of the year than going out to grab some grub! Wayne and I wanted to celebrate with a bit more flair so we decided to go to Sprout in Lincoln Park. I've always wanted to try this place, along with The Girl and The Goat, Grace and Alenia. :) So I was pretty excited.

Now, you would think that Sprout would be geared towards more vegetarian chic dishes but nope! They're more contemporary French/American cuisine. Plus the Executive Chef is Dale Levitski from season 3 of Top Chef.  Chef Levitski also opened up a restaurant called Frog n Snail (which I also would like to try) that focuses on more European classics. However, Sprout does cater to vegetarians by having a vegetarian New Years Eve dinner offered along with their five course meal special. 

 

When you first walk into Sprout, the first thing you may notice is how small the restaurant is. Despite that minor detail though, the atmosphere has a classy yet comfy feel to it. We had a 7:15pm Reservation so the restaurant was a little slow at first. But it began to pick up halfway through our meal. 

 

We were first given a pumpkin squash appetizier to start off with. It had nuts and a gingerbread topping. I thought it was really neat was that it came with a cute itty bitty spoon and that it was served in an actual egg shell. 

After the little pumpkin egg we were then given the Lobster. It had butternut, armagnac, cream and crab. I have to say that this was my favorite dish out to the meal. The smooth butternut squash base added a nice touch to the lobster. It was as if the squash flavor softened the lobster so the seafood taste was subtle instead of overpowering. While the slices of chips added a nice crunch to the soup without taking away from the flavor.  I felt that every element of the dish complimented each other, creating a nice symphony of flavors on the palate.

The gnocchi dish was Wayne's favorite. It had black truffle, cauliflower mash, kale and Ossau-Iraty. Fun fact, ossau-iraty is a creamy, rich yet smooth French cheese made from sheep's milk. Apparently the cheese is produced traditionally. As the sheep get to graze in mountain pastures. I also liked how the served the gnocchi with three pieces. I'm not a huge fan of gnocchi because it can be too filling, but the smaller portion was just right. As the dish gave enough to make your mouth savor it, but not too much where it was overwhelming.

Yup. Sipping my drink like a lady :)

 Haha. He's such a cutie.

The Quail was another one of Wayne's favorites. If you haven't seen our previous posts, Wayne really likes foie gras. So the fact the quail had foie gras made his day. The quail was delicious it was moist but still had a bit of gamy texture with it. I've never actually ate quail before. I've had quail eggs but never quail. I think quail is like duck in its gamy texture. Despite that fact though, the texture complimented the dish quite nicely with the corn grits.

The venison was a very tasty dish. It had Glögg, chestnut, cauliflower and goat cheese. I'm not a huge fan of venison but what was great about this dish was that the Glögg (a nice mulled Swedish Wine) added a nice hint of sweet-fruitiness to the meat without taking away from the texture of flavor of the venison. There was also a goat cheese stuffed prune which was really delicious too.

Last but not least for dessert we got three different types of cream puffs of milk chocolate, caramel and vanilla.  There was lingonberry berry jam, and decorative candied sugar web over the cream puffs. To top off our dessert, we also ordered a cappuccino. The coffee was really rich yet smooth. The cream puffs were pretty good, however, I felt like they were kind of rushed. The outside of the puff was kind of crispy instead of fluffy and the decorative sugar webbing was very pretty but difficult to eat.

 But to end on a sweet note, we were given free homemade cookies after our meal! It was very nice and they were very yummy!

Thank you to everyone who follows us!

We wish everyone a Happy New Year! See ya 2012!

May 2013 bring more wonderful opportunities and memories along the way!!!!!!!

 

As always,

"The Couple that Grubs Together,

Stays Together"
-Grub Couple-

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Emma's Birthday Dinner

My 23rd birthday is tomorrow, November 4th. So, today, Wayne and I went out to celebrate my birthday at Graham Elliot.  The chef, Graham Elliot, appeared on Top Chef Masters in 2009 and was also on Master Chef as a judge. So we had some pretty high expectations.

The atmosphere of the restaurant was very trendy and chic with sophisticated lighting.
To start off we ordered wines. I decided to get the 2011 chateau pradeaux rose just because it was pink. lols I thought it was really good, it was a little dry but had a very smooth finish.
We decided to do the prix fixe for dinner. Wayne got the butternut, lamb and chai. And I decided to go with the pear, sturgeon and chocolate.

 

Our waiter came out with a complimentary tasting from the chef. We weren't too impressed by it. I think it had shishito in it and some type of foam. The tasting dish provided the taste bud pallet with a mixture of textures and flavors. It just wasn't something I'd reach for to taste if it wasn't given to me though.

 

For our first course, my pear dish was amazing. All of the elements of the dish complimented each other. The prominent flavor of the roquefort, the sweet and juiciness of the pear and the surprising mostarda. The dish consisted of: pear, roquefort, peppercress, and mostarda.

Roquefort is one of the world's best known blue-cheeses. The flavor was pretty mild and ends with a little bit of salty after taste. I also know that peppercress comes from the mustard family. But I had no idea with mostarda was. After looking it up on Google, I found out it was an Italian condiment made from candied fruit. Weird! But it was pretty tasty with the dish. It is kind of like a ball of jelly.

 

Wayne's butternut dish was a butternut-like soup with noisette, chestnut and sage. I thought his dish would be more like a butternut squash soup, but instead it was just a broth. Noisette is when unsalted butter is melted over low heat and it begins to brown as a liquid in the process. The chestnut was like shavings and added a bit of a crunch compared to the liquid. It was pretty good. I expected Wayne's dish to have a little more butternut flavor. Instead it was just a hearty brown broth with textured chestnut shavings. Again, I wasn't too impressed by it. But Wayne thought it was pretty good.


For our main course I had the sturgeon with rutabaga, apple coleslaw, and Gruyere. Now I gotta say, the best dish for the night was my sturgeon. The sturgeon was perfectly cooked. It was a little fishy but because it was cooked to the T, it was savory and smooth for a fish dish. The rutabaga was kind of breaded and provided a little bit of contrast to the texture of the fish. It was almost like a crab cake in presentation and texture.

Wayne got the lamb with an eggplant, pistachio and yogurt. I thought the eggplant puree was pretty good under the lamb. Wayne and I both thought the lamb was pretty good in texture, it just was a tad bit salty. I think the eggplant was mixed with like chickpeas or something with pistachios. The puree added another texture to the lamb's meaty flavor. However, I felt like the dish needed one more thing crunchy or sweet to add another dimension to the dish. But it was still pretty decent.

Then for dessert we got the carrot with maple, ginger and raisin and the chocolate cake with gianduja and mexican. They both were pretty good. I thought my chocolate dish would be a little more chocolatey. The cake was kind of bitter instead of sweet. Which I can understand, because it's dark chocolate and gianduja is pretty bitter. I just thought they should have added an element to counter the bitterness with a sweeter chocolate or puree or something.

 

We ended the night by getting another drink at Union Sushi Bar & Grill. If you ever get a chance to go there, you should! It's like sushi/robata grilled tapas.  Also it sounds silly, but I thought they would at least say happy birthday to me. Wayne had specifically put on OpenTable that we were out celebrating. Oh well.

So note to self: if having expectations for a fancy restaurant either forgo the expectations and just eat and be happy OR  just go to my favorite fancy place and all of my expectations will be met.

 

 All decked out in my orange dress & my black rabbit fur coat from South Korea.

Honestly guys, MK Restaurant was the best ever.  Seriously though I've never had a better experience. It seemed like everyone (to the waiters to the busboys were on their A game.) When I had gone there with an ex, almost everyone at MK said happy birthday to me. And when Wayne and I had gone to celebrate our 1 year, they came out with a desert plate saying happy anniversary. I mean when we're shelling out the big bucks, I expect a great experience/accommodations for our money. Because honestly, it's the little details that matter the most. I'm honestly surprised that MK doesn't have higher ratings on yelp.

In short, our experience at Graham Elliot was nice for a birthday celebration. It just didn't hit m expectations for a really fancy restaurant.

BUT I wouldn't trade it for anything in the world though because I got to spend it with the most amazing guy ever. And honestly, that's all that matters to me. :) Thank you Wayne for taking me out for my birthday. I love you. <3

As always,
"The Couple that Grubs Together, Stays Together"

-Grub Couple-

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Fancy Pants: Boka

 

Today, Wayne and I went to Boka for dinner. I came for a weekend to visit him in Chicago.

It's been a little tough since we've been in a long distance relationship ever since I graduated college in June. But it was really nice to get out and do something a little special.

 

When we got to Boka, the ambiance was the first thing I noticed. It was sophisticated yet cozy and we were able to snag a secluded booth in the back corner. So it was nice being able to have an intimate conversation while also observing the busy restaurant. 

To start we ordered the raw tasting and the braised pork belly appetizer.

I thought it was pretty cool how the waiters arrived at the same time with wooden bento boxes and synchronized the way they placed them on our table. So the attentiveness of the waiters made it feel like we were getting special treatment for dinning there. Which is always a plus for a fancy restaurant. I believe that having a superb waiting staff that is on their A game, is what differentiates most restaurants.

I cannot remember what was in our raw tasting but each portion was flavorful and tasty! As for the braised pork belly there were bay scallops, hearts of palm, BBQ eel, sea beans, black rice sauce and a crispy pig ear.

 

The Raw Tasting

 

Braised Pork Belly

Then for our entrees, I got the Sockeye salmon with yellow gazpacho, cantaloupe, roasted cherry tomatoes, chorizo, and focaccia croutons. Wayne ordered the Alaskan halibut with steamed mussels, sepia, grilled fennel, whole wheat gnudi, tomato sauce and saffron. I thought it was really cool that the chef catered our plates to sharing portions. So I got to taste Wayne's halibut and also have a portion of my salmon. 

  

Our Entrees

I thought the salmon was okay. I honestly was expecting the salmon to be more flavorful and flaky. Yet I do believe the cantaloupe and yellow gazpacho added a unique flare to the dish. But the Alaskan halibut was wonderful. The fish was cooked perfectly and the dish had different elements that catered to the fish itself. Also, I think the Chef might have thought we were food critics or maybe just foodies, because he also sent out a pheasant dish with egg noodles and foie gras. This dish was really good too. Wayne said it reminded him of a Filipino dish called Adobo. 

Adobo is a either pork or chicken that is marinated in a vinegar, garlic, soy sauce. I learned (from Wikipedia) that Filipino mountaineers and travelers usually packed it because it keeps well without refrigeration.

 

Pheasant dish

As for dessert, man it was simply phenomenal. We ordered the Aerated White Chocolate Raspberry Cake, granita and white chocolate ganache and the Rooibus Yogurt Sherbert, with almond crisp, basil and fresh plums. I thought it was really cool how they shaved the plums to look almost like flowers and the almond crisp was very good. The yogurt was a bit interesting because it was shaped in a log. As for the white chocolate raspberry cake it was amazing. The white chocolate ganache was what made the dish. It was right amount of white chocolate and had a mousse texture that almost melted in your mouth. 

 

Aerated White Chocolate Raspberry Cake

 

Rooibus Yogurt Sherbert

Plus at the end we got a sample of mini desserts after we paid. In short, it was a wonderful experience to eat a Boka. We look forward to seeing what they'll have next on their menu in the future. 

As always, 

"The Couple that Grubs Together Stays Together"

-Grub Couple-

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One Year Anniversary Dinner

Wayne is going to take me to MK Restaurant for our one year anniversary dinner.  It's my favorite restaurant in Chicago. One reason is because the food is amazing. The last time I had went there I had gotten the salmon and it was perfect. The salmon flaked off almost immediately. I remember I had also gotten concord grape sorbet and dark chocolate creme brulee for dessert and it was absolutely delicious. I also remember the concord grape sorbet was very fruity yet tart and the creme brulee was absolutely smooth and flavorful. The second reason why I love this place is because the atmosphere is great. The last time I had gone, it was for my birthday. Many of the staff members wished me a happy birthday which made the experience more memorable and enjoyable. Plus the service was impeccable and everyone was friendly. So,  I'm really excited to go and experience MK with Wayne.<3

To be continued... :)

**Update**

I'm going to let Wayne write on our experience at MK since it was his first time going there.

Wayne here. Going to talk about our experience at MK and OMG was it terrific! We told them in the reservation that we were celebrating our 1 year anniversary and it seemed like everyone from hostess to waiter to the manager knew of our special occasion. First there was the custom menu below greeting us. I love little things like this because it shows the staff cares about our experience. What I love about the menus are that they are seasonal including the drinks. They tasted sweet with blends of citrus fruits.

 

The menu when we arrived said happy anniversary!

Me looking pretty spiffy drinking my MK's 10 Year Anniversary cocktail

-hangar one buddha's hand citron, st. germain, grapefruit and mint-

 

Emma's cucumber martini

-effen cucumber vodka, coconut water, and lemon-

Emma looking pretty in her blue dress

Our first dish was this awesome tasting watermelon dish. Again they know how to take what's in season and do something special with it. All watermelons should taste as well seasoned as this. Now the scallops were perfectly cooked and the puree complemented it like Pippen did with Jordan. The fries rock. That's all I have to say about that. 

 

Watermelon, pistachio and feta cheese

 Scallops

Amazing gourmet fries

For the entrees, we had the duck and halibut. Both were wonderfully cooked as the texture for both made me think miracles happen. With the duck came some cous cous that made a good side with the duck, vegetables, and sauce. The halibut did not taste like fish, but instead like eating a juicy cloud. Both duck and halibut are often overcooked, so eating them nice and tender makes them worthy entree items. For dessert, we shared each other's beautifully blended pieces.

Duck 

-Grilled la belle farms duck breast, ramps Italian cous cous, green garlic puree

 

Halibut 

-Asparagus and other yummy ingredients that I can't remember-

 

They wrote happy anniversary on our dessert plates :)

 You Put The Lime In The Coconut

Coconut panna cotta, young coconut gelee starfruit, lime, cashew passion fruit sorbet-

Two Bananas Walk Into a Bar

Banana souffle cake, marshmallow macadamia nut, dark chocolate malted banana ice cream-

Cheers! To One Year!

In conclusion, MK did a fantastic job taking multiple flavors and feelings to create something even better. What wonderful imagination this place is and having an impeccable and unpretentious staff is icing on the cake. And what made this dinner so special was the fact that we were able to share two great places we enjoy (Publican and MK) while creating new memories together. :)

As always, 

"The Couple that Grubs Together Stays Together"

-Grub Couple-

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