Where to eat in Saugatuck
My husband and I will be spending a weekend in Saugatuck, MI. Where should we eat?
This site did a food gift thing last year, and I bet there will be another one this month. If you go to a cute shop like Pastoral or Provenance, they carry a lot of Chicago artisan products. I'm also a big fan of the Hot Chocolate mixes (more like finely shaved good quality chocolate) from Hot Chocolate on Damen Avenue and all the River Valley Kitchen products.
Do you want a place where you can make reservations? (Frontera Grill, although amazing, doesn't take them). If you can get into Girl & the Goat, it has the best vegetables in the city in my opinion. You can get a better deal at something in a neighborhood (Logan Square, Wicker Park). Yusho is fantastic (and takes reservations) and Kai Zan is my new favorite little spot (BYOB sushi).
Happy birthday, Serious Eats Chicago!
You can order turkeys from the Dill Pickle co-op. The turkeys are from TJ's Poultry and cost $4.29/lb. http://dillpickle.coop/
Makes me hungry...I love nutella! The Black Dog Gelato nutella flavor is one of my favorite finds of the summer.
I used to live near Red Hook, and I still dream of those pupusas!
Thanks for the advice so far. I'm looking forward to perch! I read some recs on Chow for a place called Everyday People Cafe. Any thoughts on it?
Also, Bar Toma.
Paris Club boasted the first wine on tap in Chicago when they opened. I haven't been back in a while, but I think they still have a selection. I'm pretty sure Vera also has taps. I really like the concept, especially when it means cheaper wine that is quite drinkable. At Lula I always go for the white (or rose) on tap!
All those tacos look great, especially the veggie-filled ones. Looking forward to checking this place out!
I also saw that Jenni from Jenni's Splendid Ice Creams (the best ice cream in the WORLD) will be at Provenance's Lincoln Square location this Saturday with free samples!
The hongos tacos are the best thing on the menu at Mercadito, in my opinion!
You can definitely buy single croissants, as well as macaroons, these days from LaB. Very glad the policy has changed!
This is what I order on the rare occasions I go to Johnny's Grill. The photo makes it look better than I remember, but it is a good combination.
A fitting recipe to appear right after Kenji's vegan post. I could be vegan for a while, living on curries like this one. Yum.
Head to Logan Square where you have some great options (and it's good to have choices since the waits can be long): Jam just opened last weekend and is putting out some of the best breakfast I've had; Longman & Eagle and Lula Cafe are right on the square and also delicious. If all the lines are too long, you can get an amazing croissant or crepe at Cafe Boulangerie to hold you over.
Maude's Liquor Bar! Love the ambiance and the smashes.
I love the flow chart! I've definitely been in that situation, arriving at Hot Doug's to find a ridiculous line in the cold (or a closed sign). It's nice to see the Avondale area get some love...other than Kuma's it's usually off the food map.
@Leo_G: I'm confused by the comment. There are obviously lots of great hot dogs in Chicago, but the point is what's near Hot Doug's.
What about the food at Lollapalooza? It's supposed to be some of the best festival food ever...including some of your picks from above (Grahamwhich & Lou Malnati's) plus places that are not easily accessible but awesome (Bonsoiree, Franks n Dawgs). Check out the offerings: http://www.lollapalooza.com/experience/chow-town/.
I've been to and enjoyed almost every taco on this list! La Lagartija is my personal favorite, though (132 S. Ashland). I'm a huge fan of their rajas taco, as well as the spicy shrimp.
While I overall agree with the 8, definitely not in the order presented. Come on, there's no way that Great Lake isn't the best pizza in Chicago. (I'd say the best in the country, and I wouldn't be the only one).
While I love the cemita, I'm also a big fan of the tacos arabes. Usually a cemita is way too much food for me, so I'll opt for a couple of those tacos...some of the best in the city.
Last weekend my husband and I made a batch of vegetarian burritos and froze them for lunches. We did zucchini, mushroom, black beans, and brown rice, but any combo would work. They reheat well and are filling.
660 Curries by Raghavan Iyer is awesome. I've cooked a dozen or so recipes so far, and every one has been great! There's a range of simple to complex dishes.
My husband and I will be spending a weekend in Saugatuck, MI. Where should we eat?
Besides Bazbeaux, I'm looking for pizza recommendations in the Indianapolis area. I'll be traveling around the state a bit, so any awesome places within an hour or two would work as well. Thanks!
I'm teaching a unit on cooking with fractions to my "life skills math" students. I want to give them some hands-on cooking experiences, but my school only has microwaves. I could bring a blender or food processor from home.
I'm looking for easy, somewhat healthy recipes they could make. I've done Rice Krispie treats and caramel corn before, but I'd like some new ideas.
Thanks!
As a wedding gift, my husband and I received a $50 Lettuce Entertain You gift card (Chicago-chain). We're kind of new to the city and could use some advice on the best use of this card. We'd like the best meal possible without adding any of our own money. We're especially interested in the L20 lounge (not tasting menu), but the prices are not online.) Thanks!
Owner Jeni Britton Bauer chats about what to expect Jeni's Splendid Ice Cream's upcoming location in Chicago. More
I would like to propose a new holiday tradition for you and two to three out of town guests. Instead of walking around in the cold looking at a zoo covered in lights, I suggest a significantly warmer activity in the form of seven different kinds of steamy and delicious hot chocolate at Mindy's Hot Chocolate. More
Written large on Reno's paper menu is "morning, noon, and night," and the restaurant certainly takes those words to heart. Sure, there is coffee and a full bar, but this is a place that puts obvious effort into everything, including its handmade bagels. More
To top my slaw dog, I wanted a coleslaw that was assertive—crunchy, acidic—but not aggressive. Basically, I wanted something more than the standard blended mess you can get at the grocery store, but nothing that would detract from the hot dog underneath. More
The roasted soup base is acidic but thick, with just a little bit of spice hiding out in the back. The shrimp adds a pop of sweetness, while a finally sprinkling of cilantro, avocado, and lime freshens everything up. More
Fat Johnnie's is mostly known as the home of the mother-in-law, a strange South Side original, where a hot dog's right and natural place on a bun is replaced by a cornmeal tamale. In theory, this should not work. And yet, miraculously, somehow the mother-in-law does. More
Ahh the caramel apple. What other treat gives you such sticky, crispy, crunchy satisfaction while simultaneously reminding you of the best of all seasons? I can't think of any, but maybe that's because I'm distracted by the addition of chocolate to this caramel apple. More
I thought Xoco had written the final word on churros, at least in Chicago. But Masa Azul's new dessert shows that two can play this fried game. More
If you've ever enjoyed the perfect sweet-sour balance of a Lemonhead or the addictive crunch of a Red Hot, you'll be happy to know you've been eating locally this whole time (good job, you trendy locavores). We recently tried all of the classic candy available at the Ferrara Pan Outlet to help you decide what to pass out for Halloween. More
A basic blended delicata squash and apple soup was already a great fall meal, but I couldn't help but add in some roasted and chopped beets, which add a pop of color and some much needed sweetness. More
What Big &Little's lacks in technical taco making prowess, it makes up in genuine creativity. No dish or flavor combination is too out there or too bizarre to be transformed into a taco, be it a bánh mì, sweet and sour chicken, or a lamb gyro. And they have lots and lots of options to choose from. More
The commuter noodle shop—so common in Asia's metropolitan centers—is a rare sight in Chicago. But if any place is carrying the load, the Bucktown/Wicker Park location of Penny's Noodle Shop is that place. More
Last week, we rounded up 11 of our favorite vegetarian sandwiches in town as part of our ongoing National Sandwich Month coverage. The list was so mouth-watering, it inspired me to go seek out some more tasty meatless sandwiches. I found a treasure trove of them at Hannah's Bretzel. More
It's doubtful the actual Pilgrims ever ate anything quite like the The Pilgrim ($5.95) from Lincoln Park's Uncle Sammy's Sandwich Classics, but they probably would have appreciated the convenience. More
Turns out that most of the ingredients in ratatouille came from the New World, which means that before any French cook got his or her hands on the raw ingredients, they were probably served with corn tortillas. And thus was born the idea of ratatouille tacos. More
Squash blossoms are the only flowers I genuinely love cooking, probably because they can take the abuse. But while they don't have to be treated like dainty little treats, you also wouldn't want to completely cover up their flavor. Making a squash blossom quesadilla requires some restraint. More
Most people understand that pairing pork chops and apples is a foolproof dinner, so why is it such a stretch to pair the meat with some in-season peaches straight from the farmers' market? All you need is some bourbon to balance out the flavors. More
Instead of rushing around the Green City Market last weekend, I forced myself to eat at every single stand selling food to go. I encountered ten wildly different options, and I feasted until I couldn't possible feast any more. Along the way I snacked on bite-sized doughnuts, sprout filled sandwiches, and hefty grilled burgers. Then I washed it all down with all natural sodas and refreshing smoothies. More
To order from the walk-up window at Scooter's Frozen Custard, just pull the string next to the window. It is connected to a bell inside, which clanks back and forth a few times, alerting the staff inside that you're ready. This is an operation built almost entirely on frozen custard, and it's a silky smooth foundation. More
Though Cemitas Puebla is well known for cemitas—exceptional ones, I might add—there also happen to be a lot of tacos on the menu. It was time to try them. Considering how carefully those cemitas are constructed, I knew that the chances were good that the tacos would at least be solid. That, however, wouldn't have been good enough. The cemitas are near transcendent, so anything less than great would be somewhat of a disappointment. More
Every discussion about La Casa de Samuel in Little Village begins and ends with the tortillas. The restaurant obviously knows this. They make everything taste better. That includes any of the meaty fillings, the beans, guacamole, or the salsa. I used up so many so quickly, my waitress had to run around the restaurant for more. (And if you ask nicely, and tip accordingly, she'll even send some tortillas home with you.) More
An impressive collection of gins, easily surpassing 40 bottles, decorates Scofflaw's richly painted antique bar. Practically every variety of gin is represented, from London drys, Old Toms, and Dutch genevers, to the loosely defined but growing category of American gins. "Our bar program's inspiration comes from our love of gin," Shapiro says, "and the resurgence is a telling sign that the time is right." More
Sure, a great outdoor patio is worth celebrating. But if you really want to find the best places to eat outdoors in Chicago, your best bet is to set down a blanket in one of the city's amazing parks, which, if you haven't noticed by now, are in full bloom. More
Sure, I know that today is meant celebrate pi as in π (the marvelous mathematical constant) and not pie (as in the delicious dessert). But considering pi helps you measure the circumference of a circle, and pie is a circle, perhaps the two can be combined in some meaningful way. More
The Beatles vs. The Rolling Stones: It's the ultimate rock question of allegiance. Do you want to hold her hand or spend the night together? The feud will probably never die, but two prominent rock critics and two chefs are taking the fight to the kitchen to see what happens there. More
Haters gonna hate.