Restaurant Review: Week Two of Chicago Restaurant Week Begins!
Welcome to Week Two of the 17-day celebration that is Chicago Restaurant Week!
Through Sunday, February 8, braving the cold weather reaps great rewards at Chicago’s award-winning restaurants. Diners can enjoy special prix fixe menus for brunch and lunch ($30), and dinner ($45 and/or $60) at a record-breaking 550+ restaurants across the city.
Take, for example, Miru, 401 E. Wacker Drive. This award-winning restaurant, whose name means ‘view’ in Japanese, in the heart of Chicago’s Loop offers stunning views of the Chicago River and Lake Michigan inside The St. Regis Hotel. For $30 per person at lunch or $60 per person at dinner, you can dine on such delicacies as Chirashi, with tuna, hamachi, salmon, ikura, sushi rice, and wasabi, Crispy Chicken Katsu, made with pickled onion, radish, ginger rice, and Tonkatsu sauce, Miso Black Cod, Flat Iron Steak, and Wild Mushroom Sizzling Rice. For reservations, click here.
In Andersonville, Uvae Kitchen & Wine Bar 5553 N. Clark Street, offers two dinner options: a $45 per person, three-course globally inspired dinner menu and a $60 prix fixe menu that includes wine pairings. You can enjoy dishes like Lobster Cakes, Braised Pork with Cheddar Grits, and Short Rib Wellington. For reservations, click here.
River North’s brunch spot, Toast It IZ, 22 E. Hubbard Street, has concocted a special Southern-inspired, three-course $60 per person menu that includes a cocktail or mocktail. Choose from Fried Green Tomatoes with remoulade or Cajun Deviled Eggs, followed by your choice of Banana Pudding Chicken & Waffles, Crispy Fried Catfish & Grits or Shrimp & Grits with Cajun Cream Sauce. Finish out with Decadent Bourbon Bread Pudding French Toast! For reservations, click here.
Lincoln Park’s The Albion Manor, 1480 W. Webster Avenue, a bi-level English pub and cocktail lounge known for its traditional pub fare, is offering lunch for $30 + tax/tip, and dinner, which includes one craft cocktail or mocktail for $45 + tax/tip. Choose from starters like Fried Brussel Sprouts tossed in hot honey with slivered almonds and goat cheese, or the Albion Winter Salad with baby kale, grilled pear, roasted squash, caramelized pecans, goat cheese, and honey ginger lemon vinaigrette, followed by your choice of entrees like a Steak Sandwich, made with skirt steak, English cheddar, horseradish aioli, grilled red onion & mushroom, and arugula, on ciabatta roll, or a Vegetarian Shepherd’s Pie with lentil, peas, carrots, and onions, topped with mashed potatoes and served with sourdough. You can get that with ground lamb for a traditional Shepherd’s Pie as well. For reservations, click here.
In Avondale, Eden, 2734 W. Roscoe Street, offers a $30 lunch and $60 dinner featuring seasonal dishes created just for this limited-time celebration. Lunch includes your choice of a Short Rib Pastrami Reuben with savory sauerkraut and rye sourdough, or a Wood–Grilled Lion’s Mane Mushroom Sandwich with miso-marinated mushrooms, provolone, and truffle aioli on rosemary focaccia, and includes your choice of soup or Eden Salad, plus a classic cookie for dessert.
Their three-course dinner includes your choice of Farmer Greens and Sprouts with tangerine and sunflower basil vinaigrette, or Wood–Roasted Cauliflower and Lentils with fermented ground cherry and pistachio dukkha. Main courses include Roasted Mushroom Lasagna or Roasted Duck Lasagna, each layered with béchamel, ricotta, and pecorino jus. Dessert options include Winter Citrus Tart or a gluten-free, plant-based Rice Pudding. For reservations, click here.
Tacotlán, 4312 W. Fullerton Avenue, is a Hermosa-based Mexican taqueria that specializes in quesabirrias (a combination of quesadilla and taco). They’re offering a three-course $30 lunch and $60 dinner that includes such choices as a Lalos on the Beach Burrito, ChileRelleno or 3 Quesabirrias Dinner, and for dessert, your choice of Tres Leches flavors, including Abuelita Chocolate, Café fe Olla, and Churro. No reservationsaccepted. For more information, click here.
Alison Moran-Powers and Dean’s Team Chicago
