Been to Pasteur lately?

I haven't been to Pasteur in about 5 years but I'm thinking of going back this weekend. Wondering if anyone has been there lately and what their impressions were.

(Insert something witty here about Ho Chi Minh and Jerry Lewis impressions.)

Thanks...

I was there last in early January. Everything was fine and reliable, per their usual, if a bit unexciting. I regard Pasteur as a safe, PG-13 choice when I'm introducing people to Vietnamese food, but when I'm jonesing for the real thing, there are much better places right nearby.

What do you consider to be better places nearby?TIA.

Yes, what would you consider as an alternative in the neighborhood that was a little more fancy-schmancy then your basic Argyle joint?

The fancy-schmancy requirement is a challenge: I can't think of any place with a tablecloth that's consistently better than Pasteur. But 5 blocks south of Pasteur on Broadway, I like Ba Le and a place across the street a block south, the name of which I can't recall. Tank, of course, and Vin Paht on Sheridan, a half block south of Argyle. I had a good dinner at Hai Yen on Argyle recently, but that was after a few unremarkable experiences.

I have heard that Hai Yen does a good job with the 7 Course of Beef (whose Vietnamese name escapes me at the memeont). And they have tablecloths. Very pleasant service the 3-4 times we've been there.

What you won't find is the whole French colonial influence theme that hovers over Pasteur - at least decor-wise. For that, I guess you have to to do Le Colonial, and pay even more I believe.

It's not near Pasteur, and it's neither fancy nor schmancy, but this is as good an opportunity as any to promote my new favorite Vietnamese place--Vien Dong on Clark & Belmont.

My wife and I have been three times now, and we've enjoyed all of the dishes we've tried: Thit lui (grilled lemongras-beef skewers), ca kho to (catfish stewed in clay pot), bo xao lan (curry beef hot!), and a couple of others. Also, a friend of mine became weak-kneed describing the pho, but I can't vouch for that.

The atmosphere is a notch more upscale than Hai Yen, I'd say, and the dining room is sizable and comfortable. And it's BYOB.

I haven't seen the place with more than a smattering of patrons inside. I'd hate to see it go under, so maybe give 'em a try next time you're in Lake View.

Vien Dong
3227 N Clark
773-348-6879

I had dinner last night at Pasteur with a small group of friends.

First, a note about the closing-reopening-reconcepting of Pasteur that was announced earlier this year in Chicago Mag's "Dish" newsletter:

I asked the owner about the planned closing, and he emphatically stated that they are NOT closing. I asked about the move and reconcepting and he repeated that they are NOT closing, they are waiting for a new space (pointing north), and definitely NOT closing, and he thanked me for coming, signaling the end of our conversation.

Now for the dinner:

I had not been to Pasteur in the past five years before last night and my memory had always been "good food, overpriced". This memory was validated last night.

I enjoyed the fresh flavors from our two appetizers: beef salad and spring rolls. Both are pretty standard selections that I've had in other restaurants (I don't have the Vietnamese names). Pasteur's are full of flavor and balance: spicy, sweet, and refreshing.

I also enjoyed the entree muc nhoi nuong, petite squid stuffed with ground pork and black mushrooms in a ginger-lemongrass sauce. This dish consists of four baby squid, expertly stuffed with a meatball-like filling that had nice earthy notes from the mushrooms. I was impressed with the preparation and the sauce, but at nearly $20, I expected that the plate would contain something beyond four baby squid. The menu advertised noodles which were not present. I was informed that they were part of the stuffing which just kinda made me shrug.

I am not someone who is portion-concious or overly cost-concious, unless I really feel the pinch. The two of us left Pasteur hungry and about $100 lighter (that included just one beer for each of us).

The entrees at Pasteur seem to me like they'd be best enjoyed family-style since the plates are so monotonous. My plate was just a row of stuffed squid, someone else had a bowl of chicken curry, another person had a plate that mainly consisted of steak and onions. Nevertheless, Pasteur doesn't seem very family-style-friendly in their presentation or service. This disconnect was really off-putting to me. I don't really want a plate of just one thing for dinner, especially at that price. I'm sure if I were with a different group, we easily could have turned the dinner into a family-style affair, but that's really not the way Pasteur designs it.

The food is very good and presented very well, but I can't help but feel that they've priced themselves one level above what they serve. I can walk a few blocks south and get a more exciting, more varied meal at a third of the price.

Pasteur's chef is talented and I hope they strike a better chord with me after their reconcepting.

Pasteur
(773) 878-1061
5525 N Broadway St
(moving sometime soon)

Best,
Michael

I have basically the same impressions and response to them as Eat above. If I will myself to look at the price difference as reflecting all the atmosphere and decor, I can almost justify it. Frankly, I miss the informal Pasteur of old at Lawrence and Sheridan. But for what it is, the combination of attributes are more or less unique, at least for the area.

There are very few Vietnamese restaurants outside the city, and it's a real shame, especially to neophytes that respond to Vietnamese food with, "...what do they serve, dog?"

But about 15 years ago one of the former chefs from Pasteur left and opened his own shop in Skokie, called Annam Express. Their lunch specials were one of my wife's cravings while pregnant. The chef did well, expanded, then decided to move to Evanston, calling his new venue Annam Cafe, serving the North Shore and N'western students.

It has been at its present location for maybe 5 years, and quality has stayed consistently great while prices have have been raised only incrementally. Most entrees are still well below $10. You absolutely can do no wrong in the summer (or any other time for that matter) with a bun bo salad (thin rice noodles with marinated beef, shredded carrot & cucumber, cilantro, bean sprouts, sauteed onion, topped with chopped peanuts & their special vinegar dressing) and a Vietnamese iced coffee with sweetened condensed milk.


Annam Cafe
724 Clark St.
Evanston, IL 60201-3701
847-492-0631[/b]

mrbarolo wrote:If I will myself to look at the price difference as reflecting all the atmosphere and decor, I can almost justify it.

That's exactly how the Mrs. justified it last night. She fondly remembers summer dinners at Pasteur with the front windows open, the dining room, bustling, and the liquor flowing. For me, the value didn't really translate to a cold, winter, Tuesday night.

Pricey as it is, Pasteur isn't as costly as Le Colonial, where you pay for even more ambiance as well as the location.

Has anyone been to Flight in Glenview, since Le Colonial's last chef, Quoc Luong, has been cooking there? I've been wondering whether he's added much in the way of Vietnamese flavors to the menu. It's not revealed on their Web site, if so.

It is curious how few suburban Vietnamese restaurants there are, given the spread of other Asian eateries (downtown Arlington Heights now has three Thai restaurants), and the fact that other Vietnamese-owned businesses, such as nail salons, have spread throughout the 'burbs. The last time I splurged on a professional manicure, the manicurist told me she lived in Glendale Heights, and that there was an appreciable Vietnamese-immigrant community there. There are Vietnamese Buddhist temples in Des Plaines and Naperville and a few Vietnamese Zen centers in the suburbs, too.

Yet the only other suburban restaurants I can think of are My Green Kitchen, a somewhat insipid spot in Park Ridge/Rosemont, and Le Saigon de Manila in Niles.* The latter has Vietnamese dishes, which they prepare well enough, but the ownership is Filipino. They have balut on the menu.

You could count Nam Viet in Edison Park as being almost in the suburbs. I do enjoy that place. The menu doesn't have the depth or breadth of some of the Uptown establishments, but they do what they do nicely, the dining room is attractive and no one begs you for spare change as you walk down the street toward it.

Pasteur
773/878-1061
5525 N. Broadway St.
Chicago

Le Colonial
312/255-0088
www.lecolonialchicago.com
937 N. Rush St.
Chicago

Flight
847/729-WINE
www.flightwinebar.com
Glen Town Center
1820 Tower Drive
Glenview

My Green Kitchen
847/698-1168
712 Higgins Road
Park Ridge

Le Saigon de Manila
847/663-8323
Four Flaggs Shopping Center
8211 W. Golf Road
Niles

Nam Viet
773/763-0307
773/763-0029
6731 N. Northwest Highway
Chicago

*A search uncovers this thread, with a couple more suburban options I haven't explored, including one in Glendale Heights.

As I was walking to check out La Unica for the first time, I was delighted to see a BIG sign that said "Viet Bistro coming soon." I recall my server at Pasteur telling me that they were opening to a location further north on Devon, near Speakeasy Supper Club.

When I looked in Metromix, it said:
Viet Bistro
1348 W. Devon Ave.
The folks behind Pasteur are slated to open this more casual eatery in late spring of 2006. Look for Vietnamese bistro fare with lower price tags than Pasteur. Check back for additional updates.

It seems that I am a bigger fan of Pasteur than everyone else, but I am new to French-Vietnamese fusion and I suffer from new neighborhood pride as a recent transplant to Edgewater Glen. I will update if I get any news, but please let us know if you know anything else!

asami

Another update (from Metromix):

Original plans have changed; owners tell us to look for modern Asian tapas instead of Vietnamese bistro fare. Check back for additional updates.

When I called Pasteur to get more information, they said that they are keeping Pasteur open, not replacing it with the new Devon location. No set opening date yet, as they are "tied up with getting permits" and still working on construction.

asami

I found Pasteur terribly disappointing. The food was 2-3x as expensive as any other Viet place, yet wasn't any better. The gigantic room was wide open and incredibly noisy, kind of like a narrow Dim Sum restaurant. And the service - TERRIBLE! 10 minutes to get ack'ed by the server when we first sat, 20+ min for the food, and we had to FLAG her down to get the bill.

Including a bottle of wine, (the very good "Angry Jack" Syrah), our bill was $110. I'd have rather bought that myself, then eaten the same food at Tank - and made out for less than $50.

I don't see any reason to go to Pasteur. It's just not worth the effort. If the service was outstanding and the room nicer, it could be a nice "upscale" place for decent Vietnamese food. But it's not. Instead, we left feeling like we'd been taken advantage of.

Gentle Northerners - I always forget to look when I'm up in that neighborhood, and haven't seen an update in the Openings/Closings thread. I know Pasteur was supposed to close last April. What is the current state of that address?

Santander wrote:Gentle Northerners - I always forget to look when I'm up in that neighborhood, and haven't seen an update in the Openings/Closings thread. I know Pasteur was supposed to close last April. What is the current state of that address?

Still dark and dusty, I'm afraid.

I never understood what people saw in Pasteur. Of the three times I dined there, not once did the food match the price. It was always just adequate; nothing special or transcendent at all. The service was absolutely horrendous on two occasions; and the last time I was there, I sent the bill back twice before they got it right. Good Riddance. There are so many better options six blocks south on Argyle.

Looks like Pasteur is making a comeback in its previous space:
http://www.edgevillebuzz.com/news/pasteur-set-to-re-open-later-this-summer
This makes me happy more as a neighbor than as an eater. It's nice to see them reviving the facade which has become a dusty eyesore these last few years.

Thanks! Since they're about a two block walk for us, that's potentially great news. I'll reserve judgment until we see what, uh, price point they're shooting for in this incarnation. At Lawrence, they were to die for. The move north put them in a different league and we just never visited often: we found the prices too high and the food just not as good. Maybe this will strike a point halfway between. Here's hopin'!

I always loved the atmosphere & food at Pastuer...can't wait to see it reopened.

This is totally bittersweet, I loved Pasteur and we went there a lot. It was expensive but it was good, and I never had a bad meal there. But we leave town in a week, dang.

Noticed today that progress has been made at the old/new Pasteur location. Big "now hiring" sign out on display.