On a recent visit to Chicago for the American Library Association conference (I am a trustee for the Vestavia Hills Library in the Forest), I spent four big, long days learning about trends in publishing and programing (inclusiveness is key in all kinds of ways) and how to be a better advocate for our library.
During my free time, I hit the town for some food-centric touring. Here’s what I did.
Located in the midst of some great Mexican and South American restaurants in the Pilsen neighborhood, HaiSous is simply delightful. It was the best meal I had the entire time! Chef Thai & Danielle Dang’s critically acclaimed restaurant with its elevated Vietnamese cuisine has made the Michelin Bib Gourmand list five times and has been nominated for a James Beard award four times. They had just run out of their famed fried whole fluke with nước mắm tỏi, herbs and Bibb lettuce wraps. No matter (although that’s reason to return).
We got emperors rice noodles with lump crab meat, chili-tamarind sauce and Vietnamese shiso. Amazing! So was the grilled ribeye with lemongrass, mở hành and chili-lime-salt for dipping. We also enjoyed a side of roasted wild mushrooms with tofu and smothered onions. I’ll be going back for that fluke … and the colossal prawns and lump crab in garlic butter with lime leaves. Or maybe we’ll do Chef Thai’s grand tasting menu, which rotates seasonally and highlights the culinary significance within regions and time periods significant to chef and his family.
Pro tip: Get a coveted seat at the chef’s table. Also, there’s a $10 happy hour menu (of both small plates and craft cocktails) Thursday-Sunday from 4 to 6 p.m. Go early. Bar seating only.
Extra pro tip: Read Hello Beautiful, the new novel by Ann Napolitano which is set in Pilsen. And before dinner or after happy hour, take a meandering walking tour of this neighborhood’s colorful and impactful murals.
Pizza at Lou Malnati’s
Lou got his start in the 1940s working in Chicago’s first deep-dsh pizzeria. He and his wife opened their first Lou Malnati’s Pizzeria in 1971. The buttery crust is heavenly. I got the “Chicago Classic” with the restaurant’s signature blend of sausage and extra cheese beneath a fresh red sauce.
Pro tip: Join a waitlist for dine-in seating. If you forget, give the hostess your name and then go straight to the counter and pre-order. Your pizza will be ready shortly after you sit down.
Stephanie Izard opened her world-famous restaurant on Chicago’s Restaurant Row in the West Loop in 2010. The global flavors are as bold as ever. The place is beautiful—inside and on the festively lit patio out front.
I started with a Goat Fashioned (goat fat-washed Evan Williams bourbon, demerara, Angostura and fennel bitters. Then, still on trend, I enjoyed the Roasted Pig Face entrée with the tenderest shredded meat—flavored with tamarind and red wine maple syrup—beneath a nest of crispy potato sticks and a farm-fresh egg sprinkled with fresh cilantro. “After you take that photo,” the server told me, “just mix it all together.” Also, I had blistered shishito peppers—the peppers topped with an aji Amarillo ranch and shio kombu crunch.
“Drag your dog through the garden.” That means get everything (except ketchup!) on your Chicago-style hot dog—mustard, relish, celery salt, freshly chopped onions, sliced tomatoes, kosher pickle and sport peppers.
The hot dog at Portillo’s (large although I didn’t get the jumbo) had a nice snappy bite and the poppy seed bun was perfectly steamed. Also, the place is cool—inside and out.
Rose Mary is chef/owner Joe Flamm’s debut restaurant, and it’s located in the historic and hopping Fulton Market district of Chicago’s West Loop neighborhood (near Girl & the Goat and Time Out Market Chicago, which is a fun place for a drink). He named his restaurant—with its Italian and Croatian flavors—after his grandmothers, Mary and Mary Rose, and the herb.
I started with a Spruce Moose—gin, spruce something or another, Carpano Antica vermouth, Campari and yellow Chartreuse. Then I enjoyed some charred mushrooms and leeks with fontina truffle fonduta, prosciutto and arugula as well as an order of baby octopus “peka style” with potatoes, peppers and lots of garlic. Just so you know: “peka” refers to both the beloved Croatian dish and the way it’s cooked—slow and covered.
MCCB Chicago in Chinatown Square
The food here is both modern and authentic. And it’s delicious. MCCB (the acronym stands for Modern Chinese Cook Book) is a small place with a menu nearly the size of a small cookbook. It has been a Michelin guide restaurant since 2019. The truly special dish here is charcoal-grilled whole fish, a street-style food from Chongqing, China. Wild-caught tilapia is grilled and then soaked in a hot chili broth and served tableside.
Since I had no one to share that with, I ordered Szechuan-style twice-cooked pork belly, and it was fantastic—the pork belly sliced thinly and cooked to caramelized crispness and served with colorful vegetables. Consider the Szechuan marinated cucumbers for a light, cool appetizer instead of chicken egg rolls or the crispy crab Rangoon (although that dish was delicious).
Pro tip: This place is closed on Tuesdays. After dinner (or while you wait on your table at MCCB, find your Chinese zodiac character in the square.
Extra pro tip: Head across the main road to the main street in Chinatown for souvenirs.
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