A visit to Chicago

A few weeks ago I went to Chicago for the very first time. Neither my sister, nor I had been there before, so we decided to meet up there. We stayed there for only one night, but we had a great time. Despite the short stay, we got a good sampling of the Chicago food.

One of the places I really wanted to try in this Midwest city was a Mexican restaurant called Frontera Grill, haha. But it's no ordinary Mexican. The owner is Rick Bayless, who has been called the Julia Child of Mexican food. He lived in Mexico for a long time, and prepares authentic Mexican dishes. Unfortunately, his restaurant is quite popular, which meant that there was a long wait even late in the afternoon, between lunch and dinner hours. Fortunately for us, there is a cafe attached to the restaurant (Xoco) which serves more street food-like versions of the dishes at Frontera Grill. So, my sister and I ate there. I ordered the suckling pig torta, and Pumpkin got the seafood caldo. My sandwich was great. I loved the grilled bread. Its crunch made it sturdy enough to hold the pile of meat that was in the middle. The pickled onion was a great addition because it cut through the richness of the meat. The sandwich came with a spicy salsa that was REALLY spicy. At first I scoffed at the warning by the server, but this is seriously the spiciest thing I've had. One drop was enough to set my mouth on fire for half a sandwich. I wish they would tone down the heat a little. Pumpkin's caldo was also hot, but in terms of temperature :P Compared to my sandwich, it was very light :) Yet, the broth was very flavorful and refreshing.

We also got the Mexican hot chocolate because I was curious what the original thing tastes like. And OMG, it was AMAZING! It tasted as rich as if you were drinking molten chocolate, but it was a lot more liquid to be simply that. However they prepare it, I can see why the Aztec rules loved it so much.








Of course, our other meal in Chicago had to be deep dish pizza. We went to a place called Giordano's that a friend of mine had recommended. We ordered the original deep dish pizza as it was our first time trying it. Pumpkin was a little worried whether the small pizza would be enough for the two of us, but as soon as we saw the pizza, we realized that there's no reason to worry. The pizza is GIANT! It's as thick as a cake. It has a crust on the bottom, then layers of cheese, peperoni and bell peppers, and another layer of cheese that acts as a top crust. Pumpkin and I ate a piece each, and we are stuffed. Rather than not being enough for one meal, we got three meals out of it over the next few days. I did like the deep dish pizza, but I prefer the thin crust ones. Sorry, Chicago...

IP restaurant week: part 5 + 6

Yup, it's that time of year again: Inman Park restaurant week!!!! You have no idea how excited I get about it. As before, I went to TWO restaurants :)

First up: Pure Taqueria. The main reason I wanted to go there was the ceviche appetizer. I was so nervous they might run out of ingredients to make it, we went there on Monday night - the first day of restaurant week - at 6 pm. Well, it paid off because I did get the ceviche :) Like all the Pure ceviches, it had an innovative presentation with both a tortilla and a plantain chip. The ceviche was a little salty, but very refreshing.

For the entree, I ordered the trout with corn cakes and guacamole. It had too many things I love to pass over: corn and guacamole. The salty theme continued on the trout, but the cakes and guacamole were perfect. The trout was crusted in chile, so there was a little bit of heat to the dish, but it wasn't overwhelming.

Finally, I had the pineapple flan for dessert. It was soo soo good! Sooo smooth, you couldn't even feel it. At the same time your tastebuds detected a rich flavor of pineapple with a hint of nutmeg. The nutmeg was really a great addition. The topping of caramelized pineapple also went great with the dish. Somehow, the rich syrup cut through the flavor of the rich custard to make for a great combination that did not feel cloying at all. This flan was one of those desserts where you say "no, I'm too full, I can't eat any more," but then you have one bite and the rest is gone before you even realize it.

For the second installment of restaurant week, we went to Rathbun's. Note, this is different from Kevin Rathbun Steak. It had been a long time since I'd gone there, but I quickly remembered why I love the place. I love the atmosphere of a remodeled industrial space (read: cold concrete) and Southern hospitality meet to form a sophisticated, but warm place. And the modern American menu is always exciting and unique. I started with the pork and fennel crepinette (sausage) with mashed potatoes and arugula salad. The sausage was probably the best, moistest sausage I have ever had. It was delicious. However, I could not taste the fennel in it at all, which is surprising because fennel has a pretty strong flavor.

The choice of an entree was very difficult, but I settled on the tri tip steak with potatoes. Expecting a square meal? Thing again. The steak was perfectly tender and seasoned. It was topped with a chimichurri-like sauce that also went very well with the herbed potatoes. I guess I liked the steak so much, I forgot to take a picture of it...

For dessert, I continued the custard theme and got the sour cream creme brulee. I was convinced it would taste just like any other creme brulee, but I was happy to be mistaken. I could actually detect the sour cream in the custard - it gave an interesting tartness to the creme brulee that was very unexpected, but wonderful. The cookie on the side was just blah, though. I could have gotten a better chewy cookie at many other places. In the background of the picture you can also see my co-worker's chocolate cupcake with coffee oreo gelato. I loved the rich cupcake, and he was also very happy with the gelato.

Yet again, I wasn't disappointed with Inman Park restaurant week. Now I can't wait for the fall to do all of this again!

Mexican in San Francisco

Wow, I've been on a roll recently with Latin American/Mexican food recently. After having some great meals in Atlanta, I came to San Francisco - one of the best places for Mexican.  Aside from quick meals I had my first few days here, my first real dinner was at Maya, a really nice place in SOMA. It had an upscale, yet non-pretentious interior and atmosphere. It was a great spot for both a date or a fun night with friends. Indeed, the table next to me and my roommate (Princess Jasmine) was taken by a small party who all wore the same shirt and carried a blow-up doll! I kept trying to read what their shirts said, but I didn't have any luck.

Princess Jasmine and I started the dinner by sharing Chiles Toreados guacamole and chips. It was served in a cute bowl that even featured a hummingbird that seemed like it wanted to eat the guacamole! The guacamole was supposed to have toasted pepita seeds. Well, it did have them, but I thought they would be incorporated into the dish a little better than simply sprinkling them on top... In addition, the guacamole was way too salty, even saltier than the chips. The chips, on the other hand, were perfect. They were very fresh and only lightly seasoned. I ended up eating most chips by themselves, without dipping them in the guacamole.

For her entree, Princess Jasmine got the beer-marinated filet mignon tacos (not pictured). I didn't try them, but she said they were amazing. I was craving some fresh seafood, so I ordered the salmon and camaron (shrimp) ceviche combo. The salmon ceviche included mango and cucumbers in a habanero broth. I think in ate a slight piece of habanero on my very first bite because my mouth started burning with the heat right away. I was afraid that the whole dish would be as spicy, but it thankfully it wasn't. I really liked it, especially the mango/cucumber combination. The shrimp ceviche contained jicama, an interesting root vegetable that's pretty popular in California. It has a fibrous texture, but very light taste. Overall, it reminds me of a sweeter (but not sweet) version of a Granny Smith apple. It's great both fresh and pickled. I loved it in the ceviche as well. I loved both types of ceviche I tried, but to me the salmon one was slightly better.

To make the night even better, we paired the dinner with some great drinks. Princess Jasmine had a pomegranate mojito, while I had the lime margarita. The margarita was quite strong, not sweet at all, and with a nice refreshing taste. It was a perfect addition to the fresh seafood dinner.

My experience in Maya proved once again that not all Mexican food is heavy, and that you can enjoy it guilt-free. I wish there were more places like Maya in Atlanta...

Mexican in Atlanta

Atlanta has a significant Latin American population and a correspondingly large number of Latin American restaurants. However, so many of these spots cater to Americans who like “Mexican” food, and offer Americanized versions of traditional dishes. Well, I have to admit, I do get cravings for cheese-laden nachos and quesadillas, especially after a few drinks :P But for the last few years, I’ve been trying to find places that serve authentic cuisine.

After not even eating any Latin American food for a long time, I have been on something like a rampage recently. First, Little Richie introduced me to Cuban food by taking me to Havana restaurant at the intersection of Buford Hwy and Clairmont Rd. Of course, I had to have the Cuban sandwich (not pictured). I got yucca fries on the side, thinking that they were sweet potato fries… Stupid me… After trying them, I figured out that yucca is a root vegetable. I ended up really liking the fries. They are a lot more fibrous and “stringy” than regular potato fries, but I like that. It gives them a more interesting texture, rather than the soft mush of regular fries. (Although, soft mush inside a crispy shell is great :)

I continued my exposure to Cuban food at Las Palmeras. This time I ordered lemon pork with steamed yucca and fried plantains (not pictured). The pork was lean and very moist. I ordered the dish because I was hoping for an intense lemon flavor, but instead I got only a hint of lemon. Well, that didn’t take much away from the taste. As to the yucca, I wanted to see how it tastes when steamed when compared to fried. The texture didn’t appeal to me much; it was very mushy. It reminded me a little of poached pears, which I am not a fan of. In addition, I thought it tasted rather bland. I think I’ll stick to fried yucca from now on.

Finally, Cashew, Little Richie and I recently had dinner at Zocalo. I had passed this place countless times, always assuming that it’s one of those Americanized Mexican spots. The only reason I decided to go there was the generous review and description that it received by Scoutmob. The atmosphere is typical of a margarita bar, but the food was different. While reading the menu, I was surprised to see many unfamiliar words signifying traditional Mexican dishes. There were many things we wanted to try, but Cashew and I ended up sharing the molcajete carmelitas. Honestly, the major attractive factor of the dish was the lava rock bowl and the cactus it supposedly contained… Well, the dish delivered on both counts. It did come in a warm lava rock bowl, and it had a huge cactus leaf in it. The other ingredients included chicken, tomato, onions, corn tortillas, and chorizo and refried beans on the side. I loved the flavor of the tortillas. I could have eaten them by themselves. The molcajete mixture was much lighter than anything else Mexican I have tasted. It also had a pretty subtle taste that was just a notch above bland. I wonder if that’s what authentic Mexican tastes like. It wasn’t bad, though, and I think I can get used to it if I have more of it.

That seems like a good start for my search for good Latin American food. I know that there are a ton of Mexican places on Buford Hwy, and I’m sure that many of them will have traditional food. I just have to try all of them to find the good ones ;)