As most know, Saturday is the night when chefs ask off to avoid the suburban crowd,

Really? I find this hard to believe.

Don't most chefs take off Monday or Tuesday?

misterchico wrote: As most know, Saturday is the night when chefs ask off to avoid the suburban crowd...

OK, I've made a New Year resolution, which is calling out idiocy.

Thanks for getting me off to an early start.

misterchico wrote: As most know, Saturday is the night when chefs ask off to avoid the suburban crowd,

now you tell me....., if I could have had every Saturday night off I might still be cooking.

Since Friday's and Saturdays are typically the two busiest nights of the week, I dont know any cook/chef worth their salt that had these nights off. This is speaking from experience, I worked every Friday, and Saturday night, and would have gotten a good laugh from the head chef if I would have gone up, and asked him for these nights off. A chef wants his/her best cooks on the line on these nights.

Any experienced restaurant person knows that cooks who don't show up on Saturday nights don't keep their jobs for very long.

=R=

Whew. Thanks, guys.

I felt like I was taking crazy pills.

Wow so maybe it isn't always the case. When I worked in the business in NYC it always seems that Friday/Saturday your longest tenured non-gratuity folks (Managers and Cooks) would get the nights off. Avoiding the Bridge and Tunnel crowed, mad rush, boozier guests, etc... would be their reward. I have thus always been more forgiving of miscues on Saturdays....

Perhaps this is not the case anymore, or could just vary from place to place. However, I will still impressed that Paul was deep in the throes during the saturday rush.

chico

When I cooked in NYC, my first Saturday night off was also my last.

misterchico-
Aside from the Saturday night issue, I am curious about your comment about this being a "mainstream restaurant". The fact that it serves pig's tails, pig's ears, pig skin, and has a monster beer list indicates that it is not mainstream. To my way of thinking, the "esoteric menu" itself would dictate that this is not mainstream.

stewed coot wrote:misterchico-
Aside from the Saturday night issue, I am curious about your comment about this being a "mainstream restaurant". The fact that it serves pig's tails, pig's ears, pig skin, and has a monster beer list indicates that it is not mainstream. To my way of thinking, the "esoteric menu" itself would dictate that this is not mainstream.

I have to agree with misterchico on the Publican being pretty mainstream. It's not Cheesecake Factory mainstream, but it's definitely a media darling. It helps that, after bacon, I think it's become very fashionable to like other pig parts. I've talked to more non-foodies than foodies who've raved about the Publican, many of whom have no idea who Kahan is, previously had no interest in Blackbird or Avec.

Why does it matter if it's "mainstream" or not?

jesteinf wrote:Why does it matter if it's "mainstream" or not?

It's not a terribly important distinction, but I think it matters in terms of what kind of expectations visitors have, overall feel of the place, etc.

I have never heard of a restaurant in which the chef was able to be off Friday or Saturday. That's nonsense.

That said, sure, Friday and Saturday nights are more tourist and B&T crowded than during the week. A friend of mine who was GM of a Michelin *** in NYC said, "During the week, it is American Express; on the weekend it is (said with great distain), Visa and MasterCard."

I remember Bourdain writing (or saying) that mid-week is when a restaurant's regular, loyal customers show up. When he was still cooking, he really appreciated those customers because the restaurant relied on them to keep things going. He'd happily show his appreciation of their loyalty by sending out something special fairly regularly for these types of customers.

Weekends, it's definitely more of a non-regular crowd. Folks are generally less loyal, less understanding and more demanding. Their business is appreciated -- and accepted as the coin of the realm -- but not in the same way as the mid-week customers.

As for the BOH, because of the heavy volume on weekends, those days are typically just not available for taking off. A place that can give cooks days off on Friday on Saturday probably isn't doing very well.

=R=

I was trying to make the point that as a big restaurant, on the mainstream public radar, it has an aggressive menu- but I guess Avec's was too when it opened. I wonder if they will have to adjust ever so slightly and add some more approachable dishes to fill the seats day in and day out. I for one hope they do not.

Went back again on Tuesday and Paul (who works on Tuesday too ) recommended some awesome oysters from his mussel purveyor in Maine. I apologize that the name escapes me (Magadoo?) They were on the small side, briny, metallic, balanced....definitely the best oysters I have had in my 1.5 years back here in Chicago- and hold up to some of my favorite oyster places from across the country (Blue Ribbon, Bathazar, and Uglesich in NO.) I would be happy just to eat the oysters. The new cold veal head dish was not one of my favorites- it was almost like a veal head crudo- but I am committed to making my way through the menu. They added a new pork belly dish too, which may have complimented/contrasted the oysters better.

I am looking forward to returning often in the new year.

chico

First time there tonight, and throughout the meal I thought "Serious food; amateur service." The frites--and I say this as a Belgian frites loving Dutchman--are killer. Some of the best I've ever had; notably better than the two times I had Vlaamse (Belgian) frites in Amsterdam a couple of weekends ago. These are serious frites--fried, according to our waiter--in duckfat and lard. (Maybe one for the first fry and the other fat for the second? I'm not sure). The apple salad was also killer, as was the Tuscan kale. The trio of hams was outstanding, except that no one ever told us which was what--the plate was just put in front of us and the server walked away without a word. The two "mains" (my term) were just ok---the pork shank (huge portion) and the country ribs. Both were a bit dry and on the bland/flavourless side. But the country hams, frites and kale more than made up for the deficiencies in the larger portion dishes.

The service could use a total makeover. Greeting at the door was somewhat perfunctory and lifeless. I had read they had a "beer sommelier" and when I asked our waiter if the "beer sommelier" was available, the reply was "He might be if he's not busy." My reply was "Not too busy to help out a customer, I hope." He did come over and offered guidance and is quite knowledgeable but with little enthusiasm or energy. He did (correctly, I believe) correct my misunderstanding as to which Saison beer was still brewed with steam, but commented "If I have time I'll look it up and let you know." He came back to the table twice (in the role of 'runner' to bring food to the table) but never again mentioning whether he looked up the issue or not.

That said, the food--most of it--is really serious and spot on. Next time, I'll avoid the two larger dishes we had and focus instead on the smaller plates. The frites were so good we ordered a second order. And they're ('correctly' I might say) served with mayo/aioli rather than ketchup.

If the service were as serious as the food, they'd have some place on their hands.

First time there tonight, and throughout the meal I thought "Serious food; amateur service."

I agree there are still quirks with front of house..

We went to The Publican for the third time on Friday and one of our friends (who is not a beer aficionado) told the server that he liked 'Corona or Heineken' and the server kind of shrugged his shoulders, said 'sorry dude' and walked away. Granted, they were slammed and my friend didn't know exactly what he wanted but with the depth of beer (and prices) that The Publican has, the server could / should have done more to identify a beer that matches my friends tastes. For example, I was able to identify a German pilsner on the list that my friend enjoyed. The rest of the night was fine, but this incident has stuck out in my mind.

I DO think that The Publican is a victim of their hype a bit.. I mean, it is a beer hall with communal tables - so white tablecloth service is not to be expected. But not being able to assist a customer who is not familiar with the wider world of beers to select something from the list? Doesn't seem to be in the best interest of the restaurant for sure..

When I was at the Publican, Paul Kahan told me the fries were fried in Beef Suet and lard....not sure if they've changed things...either way, the frites, as you suggest were as killer as any I've ever had.

Also, gotta agree...service is very amateurish and no match for the food. Had a similar experience where my in-laws asked for Baileys with their coffee, and I swear the server almost laughed....then she came back with shots of rum instead....ultimately it they were snobs, I'd hope they could at least back it up, but instead, we then ordered the Deus Brut, a Belgian made in methode champenoise, aka like Champagne...one of the most expensive beers on the menu....the waitress didn't know how to open it, and shook the thing and popped the cork like Sammy Sosa during the Cubs World Series run....it was all foam...

Still, the food is incredible in my opinion and justifies these shenanigans, though I know others disagree....

I was a bit surprised that Paul Kahan would be ok with the low quality of service at his newest creation. We showed up at this restaurant with high expectations, given the quality at Avec and Blackbird. Unfortunately, we were sorely disappointed. We were told we would either have to wait for 40 minutes for a table (on a Monday night), or stand at the bar. We chose the bar, but it still took the waiter a half an hour to take our beer order, and then they would only offer a very limited food menu at the bar. By the time we actually got our beers, we had been there about an hour, and in that 1 hour span, noticed several empty tables throughout the restaurant that they could easily have seated us at. They also brought me the wrong beer, but I was too tired at that point to argue. Finally, we had to ask for our bill three times. I wish I could comment on the food, but since they were not too interested in actually letting us order any food, I can't comment. I think there are plenty of other restaurants in Chicago I'd rather spend my time at.

Jessewolfe1 wrote:

First time there tonight, and throughout the meal I thought "Serious food; amateur service."

I agree there are still quirks with front of house..

We went to The Publican for the third time on Friday and one of our friends (who is not a beer aficionado) told the server that he liked 'Corona or Heineken' and the server kind of shrugged his shoulders, said 'sorry dude' and walked away. Granted, they were slammed and my friend didn't know exactly what he wanted but with the depth of beer (and prices) that The Publican has, the server could / should have done more to identify a beer that matches my friends tastes. For example, I was able to identify a German pilsner on the list that my friend enjoyed. The rest of the night was fine, but this incident has stuck out in my mind.

I DO think that The Publican is a victim of their hype a bit.. I mean, it is a beer hall with communal tables - so white tablecloth service is not to be expected. But not being able to assist a customer who is not familiar with the wider world of beers to select something from the list? Doesn't seem to be in the best interest of the restaurant for sure..

This is strange because I had a discussion with the "beer sommelier" about what he recommends to people who tend to like Bud, Heineken, etc. He showed me a the few of his picks. Too bad your server didn't make this connection.

3 of us went to The Publican last night. I have to say, I was disappointed.

I do like the decor very much, but it is really loud in there - even at half-full, we had to talk pretty loudly to hear each other, so I can't imagine what it's like when it's totally full. It is a little strange being "penned in" to the booths, but the waiter said this is typical of a German pub.

The service: our hostess and waiter were both very nice and helpful. I can see where some diners have found the staff leaving something to be desired, because the food runners were pretty morose and silent as they dropped each dish off. Our waiter made up for it though, helpful with suggestions and checking in on us.

The food is what disappointed me. We had sardines, frites, Rosso ham, broccolini, the cauliflower dish, and ribs. Sardines were so incredibly fishy that 2 of us could not eat them, and they also had a smooshy texture. I usually don't mind "fishy fish" but these were just a turnoff. Frites were good, not great - cut too thick and I wish they were crispier. Ham was my favorite of the dishes, it came with some very nice brown bread and butter. Broccolini was pretty boring - just sauteed in garlic. Cauliflower was a souffle-like texture which tasted mostly of cheese and was overly rich, and the kale with it had a strange sweetness. Ribs had a great flavor but cooked quite rare and had a ton of fat on them. I know that's just a matter of preference, but I couldn't eat more than two bites.

3 glasses of wine and 2 beers and the food listed above was 150$ including tip. I don't think we'll go back - I'd much rather go to Hopleaf if I want great Belgian food and beer list.

Had dinner here last night. Amazing. I was nervous as I had read some bad reports about service, but we had no problems. The bussing service was amazing (thank you Alberto ). Jennifer, our waitress, was really friendly and knowledgeable. I think they could do with one or two more waiters for the number of tables, but Jennifer always said "thanks for waiting" if she took slightly too long to get back to us, so you knew she was doing her best.

On to the food. OOoooh the food. Wow. My bf had two oysters, which he loved (the kumamoto and the beau soleil), we then had the mussels.. wow. We actually just got back from a trip to Belgium and these mussels knocked the socks off more than any that we had (and paid a lot more for) in Belgium. They are cooked in gueze, a type of belgian lambic, and herbs and i could have drank the broth straight out of the pot it was so delicious. We next had the veal brain. Outstanding again. And we ended with the rillettes. I am a huge fan of rillettes and this one did not let me down. we both thought it worked better without the bread, perhaps slicing the bread slightly thinner would work better, but it was still spectacular.

We were also both really impressed with the beer menu. They have a lot of great beers on draught and tap and the draughts are pretty reasonably priced (~5-7 dollars). We ended the evening with the waffle. It had an excellent texture, crispy but very light and fluffy inside, and some dessert wine that was also superb.

I think the best compliment I can give the place is that I'm already planning my return visit. I very rarely visit the same restaurant twice but I want to try everything on the Publican menu

Also, for those of you interested in price, my boyfriend and I had approximately 6 or 7 beers, two glasses of dessert wine, and enough food to make us pleasantly stuffed and it all came to $140 ish (with tip included). Not too shabby for a Fulton Market restaurant

This is a tough restaurant in which to be a server. There is just not much space between the booths and tables. Plus, the chairs are extremely high backed, which makes it difficult for servers to reach over/between. That said, our server was good, if a bit harried, but it didn't hurt the meal.

I love the atmosphere. It feels like Peter Luger's of the future. Everything coated in a brownish hue (that reads awful, but I really enjoyed the feel). It is loud when crowded, which it was last night. If this is something you can't stand in restaurants, this is not the place for you. I also like the huge paintings of enourmas hogs around the room.

Everything I had I enjoyed:
Chefs choice of oysters-fresh tasting, lots or liquor.
tasting of hams-la quercia rossa, country ham and serrano. country especially flavorful.
beets with garlic aioli-the aioli made these beets
pork rinds-fun, good spicy dusting, but unneccesary
daily pickles-fine, but nothing special

farm chicken w/fries-some of the best chicken i have had in a long time. now second only to the pollo at papa's.
pork belly was great and the crepinette that was served with the potee should be served on its own, that is a great sausage.

with two bottles of wine and three beers, total with tip and tax came to $287. not cheap, but not out of line, either. I'll be back soon.

AMW wrote:with two bottles of wine and three beers, total with tip and tax came to $287. not cheap, but not out of line, either. I'll be back soon.

How many people?

My wife and I went to Publican on Thursday night and just loved it!
We started with the Spicy pork rinds. They were great, we then moved in to a half dozen oysters chef's choice and the pork rillettes. As stated above the oyster's were very fresh and had a lot of liquor. Rillete's were great and we actually asked for more grilled sourdough. Next was grilled Sardines, Artichokes, Olives and pine nuts. We also got a side order of the Fries with an egg on top! These fries were very tasty and I think they must get some help from the oil the Pork rinds are fried in! I think these are the only 2 items coming out of those fryers!! The one thing I would have changed is to add the steak tartare which comes with the fries and egg for $15, the fries and egg alone $7. When I asked my wife if she wanted dessert she said YES the pork belly! Very good dish with Baked beans and a little salad on top! We had 6 beers and I was drinking all regional and she was drinking the Belgium types! Our meal was $125 befor tip which we thought a great value. I could also see just dropping in and having a great beer with an appetizer and not making it just a dinner destination. When we left early at 7:30 the music was cranked and the place was filling up!
Cheers,
Danny

G Wiv wrote:

AMW wrote:with two bottles of wine and three beers, total with tip and tax came to $287. not cheap, but not out of line, either. I'll be back soon.

How many people?

Six.

jhawk1 wrote: When I asked my wife if she wanted dessert she said YES the pork belly!

The fevered run-on of this delightful sentence makes it even better. Banner-worthy!

For anyone who's curious, the next brewer's dinner will be on Sunday, March 1st and will feature Three Floyds from Munster. I was told, too, that this dinner will feature the debut of the Publican's very own beer, as brewed by FFF!

As with any Sunday night dinner at the Publican, cost is $45 for for courses and they estimated anoter $15-20 for beer pairings. No clue about the menu (it is some weeks away!), but this is what was served as the last brewer's dinner with Goose Island:
“Saison”
bouchot mussels—Stonington, Maine
orange & espelette pepper

“Juliet”
guinea hen—Grimaud Farms, Stockton, California
cannellini beans & blood sausage

“Madame Rose”
whole young lamb—Swan Creek Farm, North Adams, Michigan
golden turnips & almonds

“Matilda”
Winnimere—Jasper Hill Farm

“Bourbon County Stout”
banana pudding
malted milk chocolate ice cream

Had a really nice meal with my wife at the Publican last night. Overall, it seems that they have worked out some of the kinks with the food and the service that folks have complained about upthread. This was our third trip, and was the best thus far in terms of overall experience.

We started off with chef's selection of 6 oysters (which ended up being one of each variety they had on offer that night), which was a good way to compare and contrast the different flavors of each. Right up there with the best oysters I have had in Chicago. Mussels were outstanding; and I feel pretty confident in saying these were the best mussels I've had in Chicago. The cooking liquid was really, really good -- celery, garlic, butter, and spices in gueuze -- we sopped the pot dry using the accompanying house-made baguette. Ordered with a side of really wonderful fries -- a fork combo of mussel plus fry dipped in the cooking liquid ranks right up there for me with a fork dipper of a fry plus a piece of hot link dipped in sauce. Porchetta with fig mostarda over farro was very good as well, although extremely rich. We took a fair portion of that home; our one-year-old stringbean of a son (who we are lovingly trying to fatten up on doctor's orders, although he eats like a ravenous wolf already) was digging it for breakfast this morning.

For beers, my wife had a couple of bottles of Poperings Hommel, which scratched her itch for a somewhat hoppy and dry Belgian. I had a really nice La Rullés triple on draft (really pretty orange/peach color, muted fruit, with a nice, long dry finish) and a Scaldis Noel (very fruity and spicy, big alcohol (12%) that was not all that well hidden -- but not in an unpleasant way).

All in, about $115 with tax, pre-tip -- not cheap, but not break-the-bank expensive and not out of line for what we got. If anything, we would order slightly less food next time, as we started to lag a few bites into the porchetta.

I went there with some friends about 2-3 months ago. The food was pretty good, although I wouldn't say excellent. The beer selection was phenomenal, of course. The layout and seating is subjective so to each their own.

My big issue is that the service was not only really bad, we had an extremely rude waiter. We were actually laughing at how bad it was - there was at least 3 times where they brought the wrong dishes to our table and when we told the waiter what was happening, he said "well, you shouldn't have ordered it then" (we didn't order those dishes). It also took forever to get the check, which of course, included dishes we didn't order or eat.

Other than that, I think the place has potential and is just going through some growing pains.

.02

Weighing in on a great night for food at The Publican.

Overall: A-

Pros- Food and Bartender (I wish I remembered his name...I want to say it started with a P)

Cons- Service (not the actual servers or the attitudes but the attention given to us)

Food tried;
spicy pork rinds- Great...just great. Light and crispy pork rinds tossed with vinegar and what seemed like powdered cheddar cheese and chili flake (just my take on the flavors).

potted rillettes, shallot marmalade, sour dough- Overall a big hit. This 'appetizer' had plenty to share with many thick charred slices of sour dough and a good size bowl of shredded pork and tasty shallots.

beef heart- We tried it to try it and....I'm glad we did. It had so much flavor and yet didn't make me queazy eating it. It was grilled off and served sliced pretty rare.

frites with george’s organic egg- Overall my least favorite dish. I love eggs and really like fries but this missed the mark. The fries were fries but didn't go over better than any order of fries around the city and the two eggs on top were cooked pretty firm allowing no run of the yolk, if that's how it's meant to be served shame on me but I like the yolk to run.

daily pickles- Phenomenal. I love things pickled and the small assortment hit the spot. The plate included thinly sliced sweet pickles, wax beans, and a crunchy veg very similar to rutabaga to me but I didn't bother to listen to him explain it.

*I also saw a Porchetta come out and it was GINORMOUS, on my list of dishes to try if its on the menu next trip.

Overall a great experience that could have been perfect had we not waited a half hour for a glass of water to start and not get our order taken for 45 minutes after being seated....along with excessive waits the rest of the night.

I'll be back after I try Avec and Blackbird soon.