The Eaten Path

 
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(Corned Beef Hash and Eggs from Tweet)

Fantastic to see so many brunch entries on their list!  Here are a few.  :)


The best entrées we ate in 2009

By Julia Kramer, Heather Shouse and David Tamarkin. Photographs by Jeff Catt, Erica Gannett, Kate Gross, Brendan Lekan, Andrew Nawrocki, Jill Paider, Nicole Radja, Martha Williams.



BRISKET AND GRAVY | Southport Grocery & Café
Chopped house-smoked brisket, swimming in gravy, buried beneath two buttery, crumbling biscuits, crowned by two runny fried eggs. It’s gluttonous and insane, but the gravy gives off just enough red-pepper-flake heat to keep it all in check.

BUCATINI | Cibo Matto
Todd Stein has a way with pasta, and his bucatini is the best of them: tender, toothsome and just robust enough to hold its own against the sauce of creamy duck-egg yolk, meaty bacon and lots of cracked black pepper.

CORNED BEEF HASH | Tweet
We won’t lie—there’s a ton of stuff on Tweet’s brunch menu, and much of it isn’t worth the (at least) 30-minute wait for a table. But the housemade corned beef makes up for all that. Because not only is this greaseless, hearty version of a country classic delicious, it’s also insanely filling—so you won’t have to worry about food again for the rest of the day.

CURED-TROUT QUICHE | Jam
If Schwa served breakfast, it might look something like this: silky cured trout baked into even silkier custard in a buttery shell, paired with a salad of crunchy bagel chips, salty fried capers and pickled pearl onions.

LOX AND CREAM CHEESE ON A BAGEL | New York Bagel & Bialy
The best bagel in Chicago is not in Chicago: It’s in Lincolnwood, at a nondescript strip mall just off I-94. We’d borrow—nay, possibly steal—a car just to get one.

ORANGE BRIOCHE FRENCH TOAST | Milk & Honey
If you want to know what French toast is supposed to taste like, look no further than these oversize slices of brioche, mildly flavored with orange zest, crisp on the outside and custardlike on the inside.

WAFFLE | Lou Mitchell’s
We’re not saying this crisp and tangy malted waffle is the only reason Lou Mitchell’s has remained popular for 86 years. Just, you know, the main reason.


Read more: http://chicago.timeout.com/articles/restaurants-bars/81170/the-best-entrees-we-ate-in-2009#ixzz0Z9OSoVLo
 
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Kim Conte, Chicago Magazine: April 2009
From: www.chicagomag.com/Chicago-Magazine/April-2009/Odyssey-Seeing-Red/
Photography: Anna Knott

Seeing Red: Chicago’s most extreme Bloody Marys stretch the definition to extremes.

What are the essential elements of a great Bloody Mary? A blistering tomato base, a formidable garnish, a healthy dose of vodka, and the ability to cure a mind-numbingly painful hangover are a start. Chicago’s most extreme Bloody Marys stretch the definition to extremes.


BEST
...ARIA
MERRY BLOODY MARY
$13
Fairmont Chicago, 200 N. Columbus Dr.; 312-444-9494

JUICE - Absolut vodka and organic heirloom tomatoes blended with fresh garlic, thyme, horseradish, shallots, wasabi, black pepper, cider vinegar, and freshly squeezed lemon and lime

GARNISH - Pickled green bean and asparagus spear, green olive, and goat cheese–stuffed hot red pepper

VERDICT - Fiercely spiced and mixed fresh daily, this is, hands down, Chicago’s best.



BIN WINE CAFE
BLOODY MARY FLIGHT
Weekend brunch only; $12.80 for four 3 oz. pours
1559 N. Milwaukee Ave.; 773-486-2233

JUICE - Standard tomato-based mix

GARNISH - The generic Bucktown Mary is straight-forward Tabasco and horseradish; Asian Mary has pickled ginger/ wasabi; Italian Mary sports shaved Parmesan, fresh basil, and aged balsamico; Consuela Mary is all about chipotle.

VERDICT - Skip the flight and go for a full-size extra-spicy Consuela Mary.

 
THE BRISTOL
BLOODY MARY BREAKFAST
Weekend brunch only; $17
2152 N. Damen Ave.; 773-862-5555

JUICE
- Prairie organic vodka blended with hand-crushed tomatoes and a host of other ingredients including dill, mustard powder, and homemade sriracha

GARNISH - You’ll need two hands to wield the mighty skewer of salumi, cheese, country pâté, pickled okra, preserved kumquat, pickled carrots, and olives. Served with a 7 oz. Miller High Life chaser

VERDICT - Impressive. This charcuterie on a stick is a gotta-see-it-to-believe-it gimmick that actually works. But more spice, please, unless it’s supposed to taste like a dirty vodka martini.

 
BISTRO CAMPAGNE
BLOODY MARY
Sunday brunch only; $8
4518 N. Lincoln Ave.; 773-271-6100

JUICE - Almost everything’s organic: Rain vodka, fresh horseradish, Worcestershire sauce, caper juice, and Gordal olive tapenade.

GARNISH - Why bother with a cocktail onion, lime, and green olive when there’s a dehydrated serrano ham chip to be devoured?

VERDICT - Not even the bar manager knows how to make this top-notch concoction—only chef de cuisine Daniel Jacobs knows. If we had a secret this good, we wouldn’t share either.

 
UNCOMMON GROUND
UNCOMMON BLOODY MARY
$8; $5 on Sundays
3800 N. Clark St., 773-929-3680; 1401 W. Devon Ave., 773-465-9801

JUICE - Rain vodka infused in-house with poblano pepper, garlic, sweet onion, and roasted bell pepper blended with tomatoes and stout ale

GARNISH - Skewer changes depending on the season—we got slices of cucumber and green bell pepper.

VERDICT - There’s a reason this Bloody has a loyal following. It’s not spicy; it’s smoky, like grilled veggies hot off the barbecue in the summer.

 
MAYA DEL SOL
BLOODY MARIA
Sunday brunch only; $10
144 S. Oak Park Ave., Oak Park; 708-358-9800

JUICE - Negra Modelo beer and Cazadores Reposado tequila mixed with homemade ancho chile sangrita

GARNISH - A skewer to rival The Bristol’s—if not in quality, at least in size—this one has shrimp, ham, cheese, olives, and a whole pickle spear. Insanely spicy, even without the chile flake-salt rim.

VERDICT - Tequila for breakfast? We could get used to this.