Frontera Grill - Rick Bayless Amazingness

In my final recap of my recent Chicago trip, I think I saved the best for last.  After going to Chicago with Nick last year, one of the only things that he wanted to do was go to Xoco (the walk-up/fast food restaurant) for lunch.  However, once we got there the place was closed and Nick was somewhat devastated to say the least!  Not only was it closed, it was closed for two weeks while Rick Bayless took his entire staff to Mexico to learn about local food, so we could not go back.

So, when we were headed back to Chicago this summer, I called about 4 months in advance to make reservations at Frontera Grill.  Frontera is the family style restaurant of the Rick Bayless Chicago complex, and on a Saturday night you can wait up to three hours for a table!  They generally only take a few reservations an evening, and lucky for us our reservations were all set, so we were sat straight away. To begin, our server brought over a bowl of spiced mixed nuts, a flavorful bite getting us ready for the rest of the evening.

Spiced Nuts

When we were looking over the menu, it was difficult to make a decision on what to order because everything sounded delicious.  Lucky for us, our server seemed to know just about everything on the menu (I mean they go to Mexico to learn!) so we felt we were in good hands.  

Sushi at Coast

After a bit of a whirlwind weekend in Chicago seeing the sites and dealing with our cancelled flight, Nick and I were finally able to spend some time with our lovely hosts, C and S.  While we spent some time with C already, seeing them together is always a bit more fun!  Having covered many of our food bases already, we decided on sushi.  One of C's favorite places, Coast, was right down the street in Bucktown.  With a modern and fun atmosphere it makes for a great place to enjoy good company over some wine brought from home (yay for BYOB!).

I was actually the first person to take C to a sushi dinner.  It was some random NYC restaurant when were in high school, so needless to say we had no idea what were were ordering.  We ended up with some interesting rolls, including octopus and eel - why we chose those I still don't know.  In retrospect, salmon and tuna would have been some good starting points.  While eel is now one of my favorites, back then it definitely wasn't.  This is always a story we have to go over whenever C and I go out to sushi because it still makes us laugh!

After placing our white wine in some ice buckets we put an order in for Hamachi Carpacio, which had five pieces of yellow tail sashimi style topped with garlic olive oil, jalapano, and cilantro and was drizzled with lime juice and garnished with mixed greens with garlic balsamic dressing.  The fish was fresh and the citrus and jalapano added a perfect contrast. 

Hamachi Carpacio

In true Erica sushi ordering fashion, we got a serving of edamame.  All of the pods were filled and steamed well with the perfect amount of salt mixed in.   

Wishbone - Wake-up Chicago!

Heading back to the mid-west!  We were supposed to be flying back to Boston, but thanks to Irene we were in Chicago for a few more days and wanted to make sure we took full advantage of that time.  First step: breakfast.  In July when I was out visiting C we went to Wishbone and it was delicious.  Even better, the restaurant was big enough so that there was no wait!  Since Nick and I had driven downtown for last three days we jumped when his friend C offered to come out to us!

Home done hot sauce

Just as before, the three of us were sat immediately and started to examine and discuss all the delicious offerings on the menu.  With a restaurant that sells itself as in the style of contemporary American cuisine and steeped in the home-cooked table fare of North Carolina mixed with a dash of Creole spice (AKA Southern Reconstruction), it was tough to making a decision.  After settling in a bit with some delicious coffee and fresh squeezed OJ, we made some choices.

Milk and Honey Sandwiches and Italian Dinner

While hanging out (stranded) in Chicago we were lucky enough to be staying with one of my favorite people, C and her husband.  However, they are in the midst of gutting their kitchen, which left no space to cook or to really hang out on a couch (their kitchen is connected to the family room!).  So rather than lounging around the house and driving our lovely hosts nuts, one afternoon we headed out to lunch at Milk and Honey Cafe in Bucktown.  When we walked up to the counter to place our order, I was in awe of the amazing pastry display - so many yummy looking things!

Needless to say, we jumped on one of the cupcakes.  This was a banana cupcake with a caramel frosting.  Delicious!

Cupcake

Back to lunch foods (we actually did wait to eat the cupcake!)  We decided to keep it easy and order some sandwiches because they had a great variety.  Once we placed our order we headed outside to grab a table and enjoy the sunshine.

Pequod - Chicago Deep Dish and some Touristy Activities

When going to Chicago there are so many incredible food options, but one of the most basic is also the most delicious: Chicago Deep Dish Pizza. When you ask for recommendations you can get any number of names, including the original Pizzeria Uno.  However, when I asked my friend C, who we were staying with, where to go for some good deep dish, without hesitation she suggested Pequod's Pizza. 

Chicago Deep Dish

When we were seated at our table, we noticed that not only was Pequod's C's recommendation, it was actually just named the Best Pizza in Illinois by Food Network Magazine.  With those types of endorsements I knew we would be in for a treat. 

Mercadito - Mexican, Chicago Style!

A couple of weekends ago I went to Chicago to visit one of my very best friends who is also my Lady of Honor (much better sounding than Matron of Honor)!  The point of the weekend involved very little Chicago exploring and more catching up.  However, when you go to Chicago, one of the big decisions is where to eat, since there are so many delicious places to try! 

Before I even arrived, C had made reservations for us at Mercadito, a great Mexican restaurant in the downtown area of Chicago with some of her friends.  When we arrived we were welcomed into a really unique atmosphere where you just knew you were going to have a fun time - good music with a bright, fun decor!

We sat at a high-top table and immediately began reviewing the delicious drink menu.  The first cocktail to arrive literally was made with fire.  Not only that, the fire was actually within an inverted lime, so basically the lime skin was containing the fire.  When it was placed on the table, the server stirred with fire into the drink and put it out.  Quite the presentation, that is for sure! 

Big Nose Goes to Mexico - Herradura blanco, tequila reposado, dark rum, guava, orgeat and FIRE!

I ordered Misty's Sleeve, a drink with some spice and a big kick to it (which may have had something to do with the Serrano chili!)  I seem to be into those recently.  Again this is a great drink but with all that spice, I really could only handle one.