Arcadia Euro Bistro in Niles

Mixed bag of a lunch earlier this week at this relatively new Polish spot on Milwaukee Avenue in Niles. Small, but ultra-clean and comforable store-front. A handful of tables and friendly, efficient service. At 12:30 pm a few items were 86'd, including the fried sauerkraut side dish, which seemed weird because they had cold sauerkraut and, presumably, a kitchen. Hunter Stew had also been 86'd.


3 Mushroom Chef's Soup (portabello, porcini, champignon)
This soup was excellent and pretty much my favorite part of the meal. It was especially rich and flavorful, deep with umami. Not pictured is the Borscht with dumplings my companion ordered. Borscht, especially when served warm, is not my thing but it had a pleasant vinegar note and, if I'm not mistaken, a hint of smokiness.


Stuffed Cabbage With Mushroom Sauce & Mashed Potatoes
The well-prepared cabbage rolls were fine, maybe a bit on the bland side. But the mushroom sauce was really a stand-out here.


Breaded Pork Cutlet With Dumplings
Perfectly fine cutlet but I found myself craving some sort of sauce with it. It could have been juicier. I loved the pillowy and tender potato dumplings, which were very well-buttered.


Cold Sauerkraut Salad
With the fried sauerkraut 86'd, I opted for the cold as my second included side dish. It was fine, leaning more toward sweet than sour.


Sauerkraut & Mushroom Pierogi
I wasn't in love with the filling and the wrappers were a bit thinner than I'm used to -- though, still plenty tender -- but the prep here was nice. I carried out some potato & cheese and some meat pierogis for a co-worker and when I tried them, I enjoyed both of those fillings more than this one.

Overall, nice with some promise and potential. As we left, we were told that a new menu, a more Polish menu, was coming in a few weeks.

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7165 N Milwaukee Ave
Niles, IL 60714
(847) 410-7788

Stuffed Cabbage With Mushroom Sauce & Mashed Potatoes
The well-prepared cabbage rolls were fine, maybe a bit on the bland side. But the mushroom sauce was really a stand-out here.

Was this stuffed with mushrooms and rice or with meat?

Last weekend, my mushroom club hosted their annual mushroom-centric luncheon at Staropolska. Mushroom and rice stuffed cabbage with a mushroom sauce was one selection. I have had these from various producers, almost always it is a very mild tasting dish. It is a favored dish for Polish Christmas Eve.

Regards,
Cathy2

Cathy2 wrote:

Stuffed Cabbage With Mushroom Sauce & Mashed Potatoes
The well-prepared cabbage rolls were fine, maybe a bit on the bland side. But the mushroom sauce was really a stand-out here.

Was this stuffed with mushrooms and rice or with meat?

This was my companion's order, so I'm not 100% sure. It was definitely meat, and there may have been a little rice in there, too. The menu does not specify. While I really liked the mushroom sauce, tomato sauce is also offered (you can choose either). Presuming it had some acidity, that may have been a better accompaniment for the relatively mild cabbage rolls.

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ronnie_suburban wrote:Overall, nice with some promise and potential.

Terrific pics.
Ronnie, you are a better man than I, a filling Polish lunch prior to the Steve Z Memorial Dinner at Sun Wah, impressive.

G Wiv wrote:

ronnie_suburban wrote:Overall, nice with some promise and potential.

Terrific pics.
Ronnie, you are a better man than I, a filling Polish lunch prior to the Steve Z Memorial Dinner at Sun Wah, impressive.

Haha - make no mistake. That lunch was yesterday!

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