for the love of food: Chilam Balam (05.05.12)

we didn't have big plans for Cinco de Drinko this year, and actually had no plans at all (for once!)  on Saturday.  after people-watching from an outdoor table at Einstein Bros on Clark Street, we wandered through the Lincoln Park farmer's market, swung by a sneaker store, and took a nap.  we are lucky enough to live within three blocks of two (TWO!) restaurants of former Top Chef contestants, and had been itching to try Chilam Balam, an upscale-ish, tapas-style Mexican place focused on sustainably- and locally-grown ingredients.  Chuy from Top Chef Texas (season 9) was a founding owner (and a Cali boy by birth!).  Their menu changes with the season, and the restaurant is teeny tiny.  seriously, its barely twice the size of our living room.  we'd read that unless you show up right at 5pm, to count on a two-hour wait.  we showed up at five on the button, and were seated right away, noticing that a couple that showed up just six minutes later was quoted a decent wait...

as with many restaurants in Chicago, it's BYOB.  here though, if you bring tequila, they'll mix it up with their virgin limeade to make killer margaritas ... or if you bring a bottle of wine, they'll make proper sangria from their virginal version.  neither of us know squat about tequila (any other alcohol, however, and we're self-appointed professionals...duh), so we grabbed a fifth of the only non-Cuervo option at a little market on the way.  proportionally, it was a good choice...and the tequila itself was pretty decent too (with no wicked hangover!). 

we chose four dishes and a dessert to share, and waddled away stuffed.  first up was artichoke soup with fried artichoke leaves, lime, chives, and serrano.  you read that right: artichoke. soup.  it tasted like a happy place in cream form: a little earthy and like blended up artichoke meat.  the serrano pepper added just a touch of perfectly-timed heat.  even Rob could handle it (!) and said that it 'just faded out' at the right moment.  I've already looked up a recipe and made a couple notes of how to add the extra flavors.  it took every ounce of my limited decency not to lick the bowl. 

our second dish was bay scallop ceviche, with tobasco verde, english peas, red onion, and tobiko, served with plantain chips.  again, the kick was just right. microgreens made us feel fancy and added a little extra freshness, and we both swore there was avocado in the dish somewhere because it was so smooth.  the plantain chips added a little crunch, but were more complex than regular ol' tortilla chips.

a big ol' beef short rib tamale was served next, with pasilla tomatillo sauce, bbq bean salad, and mole sauce.  this place does spice right.  I can't say it enough.  and the bbq bean salad was no ordinary backyard-bbq salad.  this was like barbequed black beans and chick peas.  didja hear that?!?!  chick peas!  in a Mexican dish.  deadly.  the textures were spot on, and the mole added just the right oomph.  I'd order this again, fo sho.

Rob loves loves loves carnitas, so when the server offered up lamb carnitas, braised overnight in what can only be described as unicorn tears and granted wishes.  it was served with homemade corn tortillas and a little pickled veggie salad with thinnnnnly sliced serrano peppers (what's the name of that stuff, anyhow?!).  this is one of those things where, individually, each part was awesome, but the sum of the parts was amazing.

after all that delicious and savory goodness, we wrapped things up with sweet empanadas   with creamy peanut butter filling, served with a seasonal rhubarb compote, and Oaxacan chocolate dipping sauces.  I can think of few things better than silky peanut butter, crunchy cinnamon sugar, and slightly cinnamon-y Mexican chocolate.  Rob didn't love the compote because it fooled him by initially looking like it'd taste like strawberries, but housed his share of the empanadas in a hurry, so he must have liked those!  I tried (key word, there) to savor mine and make 'em last, and spooned out every last bit of the chocolate.

this place was so rad.  I'd say it ranks in the top three restaurants in which we've eaten out here, and the bill didn't hurt as badly as I'd feared.  we'll be back, definitely.  it was a damn good, perfectly mellow weekend.

a friend once told me: "if you don't like Midwest weather, just wait 20 minutes"

got my first real taste of Midwest weather today:

12:28pm

partly cloudy, 80degreesF, 20% chance of precipitation, 60% humidity, winds from the NW at 16mph (shorts + flips + natural hair)

9:03pm

thunder/lightning/HAIL, 64degreesF, 80% chance of precipitation, 84% humidity, winds from the SSW at 8mph

do you see that up there?!?!  that's HAY-UHL.  

so we're still far from settled in Chicago, and California doesn't quite feel like home these days since we don't currently have our own place there.  nonetheless, I was stoked to visit after two months in our new city.

first stop: In-n-Out.  duh.  let's note that I'd eaten a full-sized Potbelly sandwich on the plane just an hour before landing, but we rolled in for burgers within 20 minutes of my flight touched down! that's how you know you're from Cali.  tastes like home.

after picking me up at SFO, Brian was on a mission for raw silk to use for a project for the Scottish Games this year, and had read good things about Britex Fabrics near Union Square, so off we went.  after five floors of pretty, my inner Project-Runway-er was all inspired.

a gorgeous day in San Francisco calls for outdoor time with The Bean! 

our 17-year old kitty has developed a new favorite nuzzly spot: underneath her kitty bed.  pick it up and move it, and she'll dart back into her little cave within seconds.  its the fastest she's probably moved in a decade.

coffee foam, coffee foam, I sure love you, homemade coffee foam

an awesome (and checked-bag worthy) haul of good stuff I'd been hunting for months...and these suckers were all on super sale.  boom.

pretty California poppy

after two solid days of eating all the things, Kel and I dragged ourselves out for a sweaty ass run on Friday.  in case you were curious, Chicago does not have hills and Pleasant Hill has many.  the weather was crazy, with April temps in the 80s.  hell, consistent weather without 40-degree day-to-day swings was a treat, so I soaked up the sun like a lizard.

this is Frederick.  on a trip to Costco to pick up goodies for Grampa's 85th (!) birthday party, I spotted this guy and texted every last detail to our in-house IT guy, who confirmed that it was a good deal for what I wanted.  I've been in the market for a little notebook for a while, and my laptop kicked the bucket riiiiiight before we moved.  Rob's been cool about sharing his, but this 11.5" notebook'll come in handy for flights and cafe visits.

Friday night called for a trip to Berkeley with Kel and her honey for pizza and beer at Jupiter brewhouse.  the place is legit.

  

pretty springy flowers and a birthday boy!  I got to see the facility that he's moving into this weekend, and let me tell you, that man will rule the place.  its just like a college dorm, and he's outnumbered by all the ladies, so I think he'll be a happy camper once he gets settled.

on Sunday, I headed down to the South Bay with Katie and John to meet up with Summer and Chambers for some ziplining up in the Santa Cruz mountains.  the weather was perrrrrrrfect.  

we had dinner that night with Sum's parents at Casa LG, and then swung by WholeFoods on the way home for port-worthy desserts.  

 Summer took Monday off and made epic brown butter iced banana muffins before we hit up our old stomping grounds of tastebud loves:

symphony in C at Barefoot

Strawberry Brazilian and Hot Lips at The Counter (their new cocktail menu rocks) 

hummus, pita chips, falafel and a banana shake from Falafel's Drive In

Strawberry Fields and Red Eye from Psycho Donuts 

we also accidentally stumbled upon the caloric intake associated with various alcohols.  that lil glass up there is about 250 calories.  we measured.  womp womp.

the week FLEW by and I was Chi-town-bound before I knew it, where I was greeted by a delicious homecooked meal. 

to sum up this post: my trip was rad.  I talk about food a lot.  I'm definitely a California girl.  I'm already looking forward to the next visit!

in which I whine

Monday marked my second full month of living in Chicago.

I'm loving this city; there's so much to do and see and eat and drink. but, if I told you it was easy to meet people and make friends here, I'd be lying. I find that I'm surprised by this, somehow. wherever I've lived, I've been surrounded by people I know, and have made a few random friends along the way. when I learned that we were moving here, I figured "oh, I've got blog acquaintances and there'll be a larger population of people our age, it'll be easy to make friends..." so far, not so much.

Rob's the social butterfly, and he's the one with the job. we hang out with his work buddies and their sig others a lot, which is great and they're young and fun and genuine. they're really cool, but I still sorely miss having a backbone crew of my own that I can see in person. of people that really get me. I haven't found anyone here yet that I can wander the aisles of Target with for no reason. or who know silly stories about me. or can read my expression well enough to know when I'm being sassy. don't get me wrong, I'm not shopping for Midwest versions of anyone out here, but I'm finding most relationships to be lacking something. everyone here is so damn nice, I'm still in search of a similarly sarcastic a-hole like me. sometimes, that gets old.

I'm fully aware that the power is in my hands. and that everyone I meet is a potential friend, and that I've gotta put myself out there and all that jazz. so what am I doing about it?! I'm working with two separate organizations as a volunteer, and I'm optimistic that something will come from it. firstly, I'm hoping that a relatively blank canvas will shed some light on learning about myself and what I want in a career. ideally, I'd also love to make some friends along the way. so aside from the warm n' fuzzies I'm getting by helping out, I'm trying my damnedest to introduce myself to people and get lost in those initially awkward 'getting to know you' small talk convos. my comfort boundaries are defintely being pushed upon, and I'm antsy for some results. that's where those two months come back in: am I being impatient? sure. did I think I'd be well on my way to friend-dom by now? yep. do I have any idea how to sit back and wait on things that are completely out of my control? ahhnope.

I know I have to give things time, and that it takes years to really feel like you're part of a community, but that's much easier said than done, amirite?!

hell, you can find anything in the world online...there should be a match-a-friend site or something. maybe it's my calling to create one...

erin go bragh

Kellie came out to Chicago for St. Patrick's Day, which was entirely fitting since we'd spent the holiday (yes...holiday) together in Dublin, Ireland three years ago. her trip was (too) quick, but we laughed like crazy, ate like fools, and I'm so so so glad she visited.

the eating and drinking began on Thursday afternoon with a pre-philanthropic-event-beer at some divey little New Englander bar on Armitage, followed by some tapas and sangria at Cafe Ba Ba Reeba. Rob and I had been for Restaurant Week, and ordered a handful of the same menu items, and branched out with baked goat cheese + tomato sauce and bacon-wrapped dates. first-timer Kel opted for the calamari and a chicken empanada - all with excellent excellent results. fat n' happy.

on Friday, Rob worked and Kel and I took a lonnnnnng run/walk down the waterfront trail and back through Lincoln Park before lunch at our fave pizza joint, Pequods. cabs were scarce all weekend, so by the graces of public transportation, we headed downtown to do a little shopping and found every. other. person. that decided to visit Chicago for the St. Patty's weekend. holy hell. we shopped quickly (read: got the hell outta there as fast as possible) and had a mellow dinner at home before whipping up some soda bread and hitting the hay.

it was dark when I got up on Saturday morning, since we'd already all agreed that it ain't a valid St. Patrick's Day if you don't eat a full Irish breakfast. we packed a few road sodas (read: homemade Irish coffees) and headed to an Irish bar downtown that we love. there wasn't a huge crowd when we arrived, but it definitely got more and more busy with each passing minute. breakfast did not disappoint. nor did the oh-so-cliche-but-come-on-you've-gotta-have-one green beers at 9am.

like everyone else in the city, we headed down to the River to check out the green glory. it's dyed using some chemical concoction that plumbers discovered and about 40 gallons of vegetable oil. would this fly in California?! methinks not. I'd seen a few photos from year's past, so I knew it would be a highly unnatural shade of green...it was even more fluorescent in person!

see that greenish/white line at the base of the buildings in the distance?! those aren't balloons or streamers...those are PEOPLE gathered along the bridges/riverbank. people. everywhere.

we stumbled upon a bagpipe crew warming up (Kellie: "how do you tune one of those things?!")

before: a murky brownish-green

during: tie-dyed

after: antifreeze-green

on the way to the River, we'd passed the Hard Rock Cafe's outdoor beer garden and scoffed at how unauthentic it would be to celebrate anywhere but an Irish pub. on our way back to our beloved Irish pub at 10:30a, we spotted the growing line and decided "hell - let's have a couple beers at the Hard Rock and be on our way". a couple beers turned into ALL THE BEERS, and other friends soon joined us. soaking up the amazing weather won out over the more authentic dark pub experience, and I've got the sunburn to prove it.

babies ... (turns out they were daughters of the owner, Jim)

the day ended gloriously: back to our place by 5pm, a skype check-in on Summer's surprise birthday party, a 2-hour nap, dogs + burgers + fries from FlubADubChubs, and the realization that we were much better off than the 99% of the people still drunkenly roaming the streets.

we all slept in a bit on Sunday and woke up miraculously hangover-free! since the weather was still so beautiful and we had some time, we wandered toward the lakefront again and watched part of a race along the trail. I was bummed that Kel had to leave so early (or at all!), and kept telling her to 'accidentally' miss her flight...no such (Irish) luck.

for the love of food: Taco Joint (02.20.2012)

Rob snagged a Groupon for tacos and margaritas at a place called Taco Joint, and we needed to use it or lose it. for a Monday night, the place was PACKED (other folks musta had the same soon-to-expire-Groupon). after a 20-minute wait, we were seated and ordered.

barbacoa (braised beef brisket garnished with cilantro & onion and roasted red jalapeno salsa): yum, spicy. I liked it, Rob didn't love the spice.

al pastor (marinated grilled chicken breast garnished with Serrano-pineapple pico and tangy tomatillo salsa): tangy is a good description for this one.

cochinita (Yucatan-style pulled pork garnished with pickled red onions and spicy habanero salsa): would definitely order this one again...holy cow.

arabe (grilled Puebla-style Lebanese-influenced taco with marinated pork loin and chipotle salsa, served on a Mexican style pita): yuuuuum.

estilo baja (Victoria Beer-battered tilapia garnished with a creamy-arbol cabbage slaw): pretty classic and tasty.

the margaritas + chips and salsa were pretty legit too. overall, the tacos were probabaly a bit spicy for Rob's liking, so we'd ask 'em to hold back on the sauces a smidge in the future. we haven't found much Mexican food here, so its nice to have a decent go-to.

for the love of food: Sepia (02.19.2012)

as part of Restaurant Week, we decided to check out some fancier spots that'd typically be too spendy for us to even want to consider. I watch Top Chef like its a job, and wanted to see what all the fuss was about over terrines and giant plates topped with a tablespoon of rich food. I'd heard good things about Sepia via various blogs, and snagged an early evening reservation on the first Sunday of RW. the restaurant was built in an old 1890s print shop, and actually features original flooring. its dark and cozy, and a modern-day printing company still uses the upstairs space.

cool tile

cocktails

r & r smash (templeton rye, carpano antica vermouth, cherry heering, brandied cherries, rosemary, lemon, old-fashioned bitters): so so good. I learned that templeton rye is a whiskey, and it was crazy-good with the brandied cherries and lemon. so good.

boston martha (magnolia & oolong tea infused michael collins irish whiskey, yellow enartreuse, honey, lemon, eggwhite, orange bitters): tea and whiskey was yummy. topped with frothy eggwhites, it made me think of a more mellow pisco sour. it was sweeter than the other drink, so it was fun to sip different drinks with different courses.

r&r smash ... boston martha

course one

cavatelli, duck sugo, grana padano: this was really really rich. and the portion teeny tiny. the sauce was light but creamy, and the the little pastas were like mini-gnocchis.

salad of fennel, blood orange, baby arugula, ricotta: when we scooped up a little of each component on the fork, this was yummy as hell. it was fresh and bright and really light.

course two

hot smoked rainbow trout, dill, apple, buttermilk: the smoke made me think of camping, and the apple + dill + buttermilk combination killllllllled it. the portion was generous, and the skin was crispy.

fig-stuffed pork tenderloin, sauerkraut, potatoes: bites with fig in 'em were deadly and juicy. the fig-free bites were less impressive, though I liked bites of pork and sauerkraut and potatoes. Rob was happy that we got more food in the second course, and the housemade bread and butter was awesome.

course three

chocolate port mousse, chocolate cake, meringue, almonds: hellllllo. little bites of marshmallow-y meringue with super-chocolatey cake, a light chocolate mousse, and candied almonds? yeah, I'd eat this again.

rose yogurt bavarian cream, coconut cake, dried fruit: so light and delicate, the coconut cake was almost like a souffle. the cream was delicious, and I could actually taste the rose (read: it tasted like roses smell...does that make sense?!)

overall, the food was tasty. rich. different than our typical fare. the drinks were pretty damn good. service was exceptional (to the point that the frequency of check-ins made Rob a bit uncomfortable). looking around, it seemed as though other young-professionals had the same idea, as no one really looked like they were 100% comfortable in the surroundings. they stored our coats in a heated closet, for God's sake. I don't think Sepia is a place we'll frequent, or really even visit again, but it was fun to try something fancy and new.