Thanks for the find, Michael. Argyle Street could always use more annotation.
I must, however, disagree with the notion that we don't need Chang. Perhaps we don't necessarily need haute street food, but this town seriously needs a great ramen and soup dumpling place. NYC and the Cali have it; we do not.
If you're looking for just the best fish, go to Katsu. What it lacks in hipness and a centralized location (it's on the far north side), it makes up for fantastic presentations and freshness--go with omakase and tell your waitress what you want to spend per person. Katsu will do the rest.
This argument reminds me of my love-hate relationship with OAD: I enjoy living vicariously through SP's adventures with his Black Card, but he's no critic (in the idealistic sense of the term); and I certainly can't fathom how he could or would objectively collect and synthesize the opinions of others. That doesn't seem to be the strength of his blog--I mean, who was asking for this? Really. He was supposed to be Alan Richman--minus the ability to write in grammatically correct sentences--not Tim Zagat.
I think it's a truth universally acknowledged in Chicago that this place is brilliant; even their Broasted Chicken (!) is incredible. And if you think the Chicken Boti in the photo is amazing, the goat channp is even better.
I generally bring Indian cuisine neophytes here because of the restaurant's focus on protein; most are blown away by the sheer awesomeness of the food. It'd be nice if they took credit cards and improved the gruff, spotty service some, but this is one of the best food experiences in Chicago.
There is a rumor, though, that the place was shut down for a poor health inspection...
sushi wabi on Randolph is delicious-has traditional and some excellent "different" types of sushi-it is small so you may have to wait.
nothing like Mirai, best sushi and scene over all. sit at the bar up-stairs. Must try is the spicy octopus tuna roll and the king crab.
Our favorite places for nigiri-zushi are Katsu and Ginza Fish. Ginza Fish is a very traditional place, and nigiri are served two to an order, so for that reason my husband likes Katsu better - but they both use the most pristine fish for their nigiri.
For makimono, my favorite place is Meiji (they also have excellent nigiri, but also served two per order). Meiji's "Yuri" is, I think, the best makimono in town - delicious, and so dense it could be a lunch all by itself. Another favorite is the "Koto."
None of these places are "scene" sushi-ya - Katsu has a normal restaurant atmosphere, Ginza is more traditional, with lots of Japanese businessmen, and Meiji is elegantly serene. It's all about the sushi.
If you're in the burbs, Sushi Kushi Toyo in Vernon Hills is the best. It's a fairly small place, but the quality cannot be beat!
Great article! If you're looking for good restaurants in the area check out www.foodjoker.com. Great selection of places to eat and great site. Available also in 8 languages.
Finally - I don't disagree with Steve about everything. We agree about Mr. Bruni. I dined at Michael's Genuine in Miami this week - Mr. Bruni's 4th or 5th best new restaurant of the year. Left me scratching my head. It's not a bad place - it's quite ok. But almost the best new restaurant in the US? Was about on a par - give or take a bit - with Bistro Aix here in Jacksonville FL (near where I live) - which serves similar food. Bistro Aix is a great Jacksonville restaurant - but I don't think anyone would confuse it with one of the best restaurants in the country. RobynG
Regarding rating restaurants - I personally did not rate any restaurant I haven't dined at within the last 3 years or so. What's the point of rating my meal at Troisgros when I dined there 20 years ago? FWIW - we were never told that our ratings would be weighted by the number of places we reviewed. If that were the case - I could have rated dozens. But again - what would be the point of rating a place where I dined from the 1970's through the 1990's? RobynG
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