g g,

Thanks for posting the photos. That papardelle might have been the best rabbit dish I've ever had. The sauce was essentially a heavily reduced stock, which was packed with flavor. As always at Mado, the house made noodles were perfectly cooked.

Sometimes I need to remind myself that Mado is not just about charcuterie and offal; it's also among Chicago's finest places for a simple pasta or roast chicken dinner.

KZ

gastro gnome wrote:Lucky Dog

Said dog. Lucky indeed.


--Rich

When you think about it, the pets of LTHers are pretty much lottery-winners.

So I probably need to go back to Mado for dinner, because, went I went for brunch last Sunday, right before Wickerfest, I was gravely disappointed. There's been so much hype from some of my friends, and from the media and blogs, that I really, really wanted to like it. Unfortunately the roast chicken and potato hash was so underseasoned that we had to ask for sriracha to make it come alive (is this the roast chicken that has been talked about in this thread?). The famous shortbread cookies which made so many "ten best" lists two years ago tasted, like, well, regular shortbread, not the miraculous vision-inducing shortbread that Timeout and the Trib made it out to be. I love shortbread, and I liked this version, but it wasn't really anything spectacular (and it wasn't delicate, melty, what have you, but rather kinda solid...and tasted, gulp, frozen).

So I will go back for dinner, just to experience the Mado that folks have talked about and written about. But I'm of the mind that if you're a great restaurant at dinner, you should be at least a good one at brunch...Brunch isn't an afterthought meal.

fusionfan wrote:So I probably need to go back to Mado for dinner, because, went I went for brunch last Sunday, right before Wickerfest, I was gravely disappointed.

To judge a great, or any restaurant, based on brunch (unless it is a breakfast/brunch spot) to me would be very short sighted.

Definitely go back during dinner service.

jtobin625 wrote:

fusionfan wrote:So I probably need to go back to Mado for dinner, because, went I went for brunch last Sunday, right before Wickerfest, I was gravely disappointed.

To judge a great, or any restaurant, based on brunch (unless it is a breakfast/brunch spot) to me would be very short sighted.

Definitely go back during dinner service.

And to judge any place on only 1 visit would be unwise, as well, although that was acknowledged in the initial comment.

=R=

I think it is clear from fusionfan's post that he was being fair - not judging dinner based on brunch, and not relying on one visit to make an all-or-nothing decision. I, for one, appreciate his thoughts on the brunch.

Darren72 wrote:I think it is clear from fusionfan's post that he was being fair - not judging dinner based on brunch, and not relying on one visit to make an all-or-nothing decision. I, for one, appreciate his thoughts on the brunch.

Agreed. When a person states from the outset that 'need to go back,' you know they're being plenty reasonable.

=R=

I had a superb dinner at the bar at Mado last night. I eat there more often than I'm ready to admit, and Rob's porchetta has become my go-to dish when I'm craving fatty porkiness. (Having grown up in a Filipino househould, where pork belly was one of the four food groups, I have this craving often.)

I was having my craving the other day, knew this week was a porchetta week at Mado, and that's how I ended up at the bar on a Wednesday night. My plan was to go in, eat porchetta and go home.

Rob greeted me at the door, asked me if I even needed a menu. Just before I was about to say no, I decided to ask if there were any other special dishes coming out the kitchen that night. Rob's first response was the Shishito peppers that he picked up at the market that morning. Fried and sprinkled with sea salt, this dish really gets at why I love Mado--simple and straightforward and just delicious. I never knew the smell of peppers could be so intoxicating, and it was the most perfect bar food. When the dish arrived, I reached for my knife and fork. Rob stopped me: "No knife and fork. Fingers." So that's what I did and, paired with a bottle of Goose Island Pere Jacques, this is what I want to eat after every long work day for the rest of my life.

Next came the porchetta. Now I've had porchetta served 4 or 5 different ways at Mado. Last night's was my favorite--with bitter greens and pickled Melrose peppers. The previous versions were completely satisfying, though I've come to realize that I'm not the biggest fan of beans on pork. I'm not crazy about the juxtaposition of textures. The porchetta I'd had before last night had all come with beans of some sort. Last night, I loved the crunchiness and brightness of the peppers against the pig. The greens were also lovely. Rob said he thought I'd like that particular piece of porchetta "with extra belly." He can read minds, too!

After the porchetta, I really did think I would go home but was too easily convinced to stay for almond-cornmeal cake with sour cherry jam, goat cheese mascarpone cream and candied almonds, the one dessert I hadn't had off their menu. (Actually, I've had the almond-cornmeal cake before, just not this particular preparation .) Again, Mado just continues to impress me. This dessert was stupendous--the ratio of the different components was perfect, the cherry jam the ideal balance of not-too-sweetness and tartness and, well, almonds should be candied much, much more often in this world. The waitstaff swooned over the cake with me as I ate it.

At the end of my meal, Rob said, "You've just had yourself quite a dinner." Indeed. I've said it before, but I love this place. There's real passion behind the food. The space and service are relaxed and with no airs. It's not cheap, but the value is outstanding. I don't think I've ever really had my own GNR. Mado is it for me.

happy_stomach wrote:I had a superb dinner at the bar at Mado last night.

...

At the end of my meal, Rob said, "You've just had yourself quite a dinner." Indeed. I've said it before, but I love this place. There's real passion behind the food. The space and service are relaxed and with no airs. It's not cheap, but the value is outstanding. I don't think I've ever really had my own GNR. Mado is it for me.

While you were having an outstanding Mado meal last night, I was at least talking about Mado with some folks. I think there might be a mad rush out of the gate come tomorrow to see who is the official GNR nominator.

Vital Information wrote:

happy_stomach wrote:I had a superb dinner at the bar at Mado last night.

...

At the end of my meal, Rob said, "You've just had yourself quite a dinner." Indeed. I've said it before, but I love this place. There's real passion behind the food. The space and service are relaxed and with no airs. It's not cheap, but the value is outstanding. I don't think I've ever really had my own GNR. Mado is it for me.

While you were having an outstanding Mado meal last night, I was at least talking about Mado with some folks. I think there might be a mad rush out of the gate come tomorrow to see who is the official GNR nominator.

last time I nominated a place, it started sucking right after. I'm out.

Vital Information wrote:

happy_stomach wrote:I had a superb dinner at the bar at Mado last night.

...

At the end of my meal, Rob said, "You've just had yourself quite a dinner." Indeed. I've said it before, but I love this place. There's real passion behind the food. The space and service are relaxed and with no airs. It's not cheap, but the value is outstanding. I don't think I've ever really had my own GNR. Mado is it for me.

While you were having an outstanding Mado meal last night, I was at least talking about Mado with some folks. I think there might be a mad rush out of the gate come tomorrow to see who is the official GNR nominator.

It's my own personal thing--I can't take the rush (crush?) of GNR season in general--so it certainly won't be me. I will be in that thread with my support though, and I will be very happy to organize as many GNR decide-for-yourself meals as it takes.

wow, what a great thread. i just spent an hour reading this. wonderful stuff.

Vital Information wrote: I think there might be a mad rush out of the gate come tomorrow to see who is the official GNR nominator.

Wait, Mado isn't a GNR yet? Inconceivable!


I've been meaning to report on two outstanding meals that REB and I have enjoyed at Mado over the last few weeks.

As several posters have already detailed, the bistecca alla fiorentina dinner was outstanding. The steak itself was, without a doubt, the best all-around grass-fed steak I've ever had. It was cooked far closer to rare than the advertised medium rare, and that was plenty fine with us. It had a great char from the wood fire. Other folks have commented on the rabbit papparadelle and the beef heart, both of which were standout dishes along with the steak.

More recently, I celebrated a birthday blowout meal at Mado. Ben, Rob, and Alli made it a memorable night even though they were stretched super-thin and facing a room full of unexpected walk-ins on a Wednesday. Here's what we ate:

• We started with the always-fabulous charcuterie plate featuring Rob's delicious chicken liver pate. It also included ciccioli, a fatty, porky terrine, which was new to us. It was unctuous, delicately seasoned, and a big hit with the table.
  
• We had a few repeats from the bistecca dinner. The sungold tomatoes and zucchini escabeche with ricotta and marjoram was well worth revisiting. Smoky veggies over delicious salty cheese.
  
• We also repeated the whitefish baccala with spring onion and chilies from the bistecca dinner. Not at all like any baccala I've had before, this dish reminds me of a crazy cross between Kosher deli-type smoked fish and sashimi.
  
• REB's favorite dish of the night was the carpaccio -- a huge, thin slice of completely lean beef, topped with sea salt, capers, olive oil, and a raw egg yolk.
  
  
• Wood-grilled pork heart with treviso, pickled sour cherries, and saba was another winner, though a few at the table complained that the treviso was too bitter.
  
• Half of us really enjoyed the very spicy harissa marinated pork kidney with couscous. The other half are afraid of kidneys.
  
• We tried the intriguing roasted eggplant with honey and rosemary. Served cold, this was an odd, but surprisingly wonderful flavor combination.
  
• Wood-roasted sweet corn was brilliantly simple, served with a smoked paprika compound butter.
  
• Saving the best for last, my personal highlight of the meal was the crispy lamb belly, served with chard and aioli. This dish resembled a crab cake filled with perfectly seasoned, braised, fatty lamb. A true last request-type entree. Out-of-control delicious, but so hard to describe. Maybe a pic will help...
  
  
• Alli never fails to impress, and the almond-cornmeal cake described above by happy_stomach was amazing.

Mado is way up at the top of my list of favorite Chicago restaurants. Wonderful, creative food from Rob and Alli, two individuals who are passionate and unapologetic about what they do. Going back and reading Michael Nagrant's article from more than a year ago makes it clear that they knew what they wanted to accomplish all along. It's great to see them succeeding.

If ever there were a no-brainer GNR, this place is it.
--Rich

RAB wrote:Wait, Mado isn't a GNR yet? Inconceivable!

Mado opened sometime after the last round of nominations. That's both why it's not yet a GNR and also why it's good to have GNR nominations every year.

RAB wrote:[*]Saving the best for last, my personal highlight of the meal was the crispy lamb belly, served with chard and aioli. This dish resembled a crab cake filled with perfectly seasoned, braised, fatty lamb. A true last request-type entree. Out-of-control delicious, but so hard to describe. Maybe a pic will help...

Crap... I've got a busy weekend, but somehow I'm going to have to slide in a visit to Mado. That sounds awesome.

-Dan

RAB,

I was at Mado yesterday, I don't remember seeing the pork heart, kidney, and the lamb dish (which sounds delicious and I would have ordered in a heartbeat). In fact I was a little disappointed with the lack of offal on the menu. When did you have these?

Great pics, btw!

Stephen wrote:RAB,

I was at Mado yesterday, I don't remember seeing the pork heart, kidney, and the lamb dish (which sounds delicious and I would have ordered in a heartbeat). In fact I was a little disappointed with the lack of offal on the menu. When did you have these?

Great pics, btw!

Stephen,

The meal I described was two weeks ago yesterday. I meant to post about it sooner, but... you know how it goes. They've pretty consistently had either pork or beef heart on offer lately, but since they change the menu constantly, it's not a great idea to go with your heart set on anything in particular (pun intended).

--Rich

Was lucky enough to have another epic meal at Mado last night. I had dinner there last Friday, and was impressed to see that a good third of the menu had changed (new or modified). The only low point of my meal on Friday - the whitefish, which was good, but didn't pop - had been replaced with another preparation which was one of the favorites of the table.

Pork tongue with giardiniera

I felt like the pork tongue needed a tad of salt, but with the giardiniera it was perfect. A little grill char on the tongue couldn't hurt, but the texture was awesome.

Eggplant with rosemary honey

This is the second time I've had this dish and I continue to find it surprising with every bite - especially that it's served cold. My palate just doesn't expect cold, sweet tastes with eggplant. That said, it totally works.

Charcuterie plate

The pate was a winner and the chicken liver mouse (not pictured) is always incredible. The cooked salame in the background of the shot was not my favorite of Rob's charcuterie offerings.

Shishito peppers with olive oil and salt

Oh man. Hot, salty, savory, with perfect charred pepper flavor. This might be my favorite finger food.

Smoked trout with (pickled?) watermelon

This cold-smoked trout had the familiar flavor of smoked trout, but with the texture of lox. I think that between myself and the person seated next to me, we camped out on this plate and didn't let the rest of the table have their fair share... sorry.

Kidney with harissa, pickled peaches, and greens

The kidney texture was a little on the firm side, but the combination with the soft pickled peaches and bitter greens made for a great bite. If the kidney had been softer (as I might have expected in another preparation), I think the peach/kidney combo might be too texturally blah. Nice heat from the harissa brought it all together.

Whitefish with agro-dolce onions, melrose peppers and cherry tomatoes

My favorite entree of the night. Crispy crunchy top, buttery flaky bottom - this fish was perfectly cooked. The peppers, agro-dolce onions and (roasted?) cherry tomatoes were incredible.

Porchetta with pickled padron peppers and arugula

A perennial Mado favorite, which I feel like has improved over time. I was never a big fan of the beans (garbanzos, some huge bean I had never heard of, etc) which were often served on top - they seem to have disappeared. The bitter arugula dressed with a bit of acid, and the spicy pickled padron peppers were the perfect offset to the unctuous fatty pork.

Deep-fried, cornmeal-crusted rabbit over with braised greens (kale?)

Ummm... yes.

A bit hard to make out, but on the far right of the shot you'll see a couple of skewers - this was the belly of the rabbit, rolled with all sorts of deliciousness, skewered, and then fried.

Roasted pigs head with peaches and greens

Hidden in a oft-ignored (at least by the group at the table) section of the menu titled "salads", was this dish. The chopped bits of pork head were rich, fatty, and intensely meaty - almost too much so - but when offset by the sweet/tart peaches (or nectarines?) and bitter greens, it all came together. More salads should feature wood oven-roasted pigs head.

Yogurt sponge pudding with candied pistachios and blueberry compote

This is probably my favorite dessert from Mado, though the plums overshadowed it for the night.

Cornmeal cake with apricot jam, goat cheese/mascarpone cream, and candied almonds

Total winner. 'nough said.

Sour cherry compote over rice pudding

Delicious, though I think the consensus was that the sour cherries weren't very tart - perhaps more of a sweet black cherry thing going on.

Stewed plums with cacao nibs over mascarpone

This was my favorite dessert of the evening, though opinion at the table was definitely mixed.
Note: The dairy element below the plums and nibs was, I think, mascarpone mixed with something else, but I forgot to grab a copy of the dessert menu to be sure.

With Mado nominated for a GNR, I've been struggling with how to write a post supporting the nomination without sounding like a total fanboy. I give up - I love this place.

-Dan

Edited to include links to higher-resolution photos at flickr.

I've hesitated to post about Mado because it has some rabid fans, but in the midst of the excitement about this place, I'd like to inject some moderated praise.

dansch wrote:I felt like the pork tongue needed a tad of salt,

My major complaint about Mado -- and it is a major complaint -- is the kitchen's clumsiness with or lacksadaisacal attitude about seasoning. I ate there last week. The menu seemed a bit familiar (they must have just changed it the next night when you were there, Dan), so I ordered something I hadn't had there before -- the rotisserie half-chicken. At first glance, I received what appeared to be a beautifully roasted 1/2 crispy-skinned chicken, with a jus so clear and shimmering it made me swoon. (I love sauces and sauce-making, so this was a bonus for me.) Taste? Blech! It was bland, bland, bland and so underseasoned that I don't think that chicken (or jus) had seen a grain of salt. What is a roast chicken with a good salting? I had to ask for salt, and after a good shaking, it was much, much improved. But that's a kind of rookie mistake, IMO - a really good kitchen doesn't forget the importance of seasoning. (Similarly, a porchetta I had there recently was oversalted in parts, under in other.)

The yogurt sponge pudding also needed more seasoning, IMHO - sugar. I rarely ask that a dessert need more sugar, but it did. On the other hand, the shortbread needs infinitely less. For my money, shortbread should taste primarily of one thing: butter. Mado's much-lauded shortbread has a cotton-candy-like consistency that tastes only of sugar to me. The funny thing is, I've made Mado's published shortbread recipe for the 3rd LTH Dessert exchange and was more pleased with the results, which had longer, flakier butter layers and was less heavy-handed with the sugar.

A kale dish I had there recently was a disaster; but on the other hand, I agree with dansch that the eggplant with rosemary honey is inspirational (although, again, the kitchen could be less heavy-handed with the honey), and the fried shisito peppers are a great snack (but alas, could have used more salt).

Anyhow, I keep going back to Mado because I admire their philosophy, it does some things well, it's reasonably-priced, I love the feel of the place, it's easy to get into (for now), it's BYO, and it's comforting. But I think it is a work in progress. The kitchen seems inexperienced. It is not "great," yet, despite the media and LTH-praise heaped on it (which, if we're being honest, centers around the uniqueness of what Mado is doing, i.e., its whole-animal cooking and it's fearlessness in serving the various animal parts). If you set aside the novelty in that, I'm not sure the remaining aspects of Mado are quite there yet.

aschie30 wrote:My major complaint about Mado -- and it is a major complaint -- is the kitchen's clumsiness with or lacksadaisacal attitude about seasoning. I ate there last week. The menu seemed a bit familiar (they must have just changed it the next night when you were there, Dan), so I ordered something I hadn't had there before -- the rotisserie half-chicken. At I first glance, I received what appeared to be a beautifully roasted 1/2 crispy-skinned chicken, with a jus so clear and shimmering it made me swoon. (I love sauces and sauce-making, so this was a bonus for me.) Taste? Blech! It was bland, bland, bland and so underseasoned that I don't think that chicken (or jus) had seen a grain of salt. What is a roast chicken with a good salting? I had to ask for salt, and after a good shaking, it was much, much improved. But that's a kind of rookie mistake, IMO - a really good kitchen doesn't forget the importance of seasoning. (Similarly, a porchetta I had there recently was oversalted in parts, under in other.)

When I read this, it made me remember having posted a comment about the corned beef tongue needing more salt (which then in later photos I saw had been served sprinkled with salt). A quick survey of the thread history found:

chezbrad wrote:-tagliatelle with ramp leaf pesto and pecorino: pasta was clearly homemade and had a great chew to it. Ramp leaf pesto read somewhat better on menu than tasted, but the dish grew on me, even if it was a bit salty.

chezbrad wrote:-Order the pasta: it was nettles and ricotta gnochi this week, and it was still overly salted without bringing the taste.

lmb wrote: Two of us ordered the tagliatelle pasta (small portion) and found the texture amazing but the flavor lacking — it improved with salt. (Salt? On a pasta dish? I'm Italian and expect pasta dishes to sparkle. Maybe it needed more cheese?) My swiss chard side was incredible. My friend's carrot soup seemed to beg for salt.

ronnie_suburban wrote:The meat components were stellar, especially the sausage, but the chard was minced into such small pieces, it was not particularly satisfying. It was also bit too salty for my taste.

REB wrote:Entree - polpette with sauerkraut, roast pork shoulder with cured olives, and greens with braised pork belly. The polette were almost amazing - a little heavy handed on the salt.

wizzy wrote:Overall we thought the food very good, although much of the meats seemed over-salted to our taste.

ronnie_suburban wrote:That said, I thought that between the nuts, olives, bacala and anchovies in the salad (which were fresh), there was a lot of salt. Even discounting my personal sensitivity to sodium, I would have appreciated a bit more diversity. But again, this may be quite typical of a Roman meal, so I'm only talking about my personal take on the experience.

REB wrote:Stunning pics and report, Ronnie! We had the same feeling about salt at the Slagel Farms whole pig dinner. There were a few dishes that would have greatly benefited from being less salty and I really like salt.

Mike G wrote:• Excellent testa, a bit of charcuterie that has only improved over time (since this). They also debuted their housemade prosciutto, which was too salty, but still, for a first effort had admirably clean flavor, this is the kind of thing where you really taste how good the non-factory pork is.

dansch wrote:

dicksond wrote:Corned beef tongue on toast with mustard and a tiny sprinkle of salt crystals ...

As to the tongue itself, I would agree that it was smooth, dense and luxurious. I would have liked a bit more salt (rare that you'd say that about corned beef), but it looks like that's now been addressed with the sprinkle at service time.

Definitely a lot of talk about too much salt or too little salt in specific dishes. People obviously have differing levels of salt tolerance/preference, but it does seem to be a very recurring theme.

aschie30 wrote:Anyhow, I keep going back to Mado because it I admire their philosophy, it does some things well, it's reasonably-priced, I love the feel of the place, it's easy to get into (for now), it's BYO, and it's comforting. But I think it is a work in progress. The kitchen seems inexperienced. It is not "great," yet, despite the media and LTH-praise heaped on it (which, if we're being honest, centers around the uniqueness of what Mado is doing, i.e., its whole-animal cooking and it's fearlessness in serving the various animal parts). If you set aside the novelty in that, I'm not sure the remaining aspects of Mado are quite there yet.

This is where I completely disagree with you. The dinner I had on Friday was with a dining companion who wasn't interested in any of the odd bits and so our whole meal (IIRC, shishito peppers, eggplant, baccala, whitefish, trout, and stewed plums) was free of offal, etc., and was completely satisfying and stood on its own as a great meal. Has the kitchen evolved since it opened and does it still have room to grow, sure, who doesn't, but I disagree that its current level of greatness (however great that may or may not be as a separate issue) is tied to shtick.

-Dan

aschie30 wrote:It is not "great," yet, despite the media and LTH-praise heaped on it (which, if we're being honest, centers around the uniqueness of what Mado is doing, i.e., its whole-animal cooking and it's fearlessness in serving the various animal parts). If you set aside the novelty in that, I'm not sure the remaining aspects of Mado are quite there yet.

Though I disagree with this, I'm not what meaning it would have even if I agreed. How can one "set aside" the thing that is a restaurant's main focus, whether that focus is novel or not. Setting aside Mado's focus on whole animal cooking is like setting aside Lou Malnati's focus on pizza.

I have to admit that I went into my meal (first meal indeed) at Mado with some skepticism. I looked at the menu, read others' reviews, looked at pictures - it all just seemed so simple, nothing special and perhaps limited. I knew I wasn't going to love it; I thought I might like it. Wow was I wrong - loved it, and this might have been the best dining experience I have had this year (easily topping heavyweights such as Avenues, L.20 and the like).

I arrived at the restaurant for an 8:30 reservation. I was immediately struck by the beautiful simplicity of this place - casually elegant yet very relaxed and inviting. As I waited for my friends to arrive, I'm pretty sure every member of the restaurant's staff approached me at one point or another to make sure that I had been taken care of. Unfortunately, tables of diners were lingering over booze and not vacating the restaurant. All of a sudden, our 8:30 reservation turned into a 9:00 dinner. The staff was very apologetic about the delay.

We didn't ask to be compensated in any way, but within a couple of minutes of being seated, we were treated to a complementary charcuterie plate; the bread, mustard and pickles and still and sparkling water. All of a sudden, I was reminded of my experience at Piccolo Sogno, and was thinking how much better Mado handled the situation. The charcuterie consisted of the salami, chicken liver and pork terrine. All were excellent but my favorite was the pork terrine - sublime.

Appetizers included a wonderful corn chowder, heirloom tomatoes with olive oil and sea salt (nice but it didn't excite me since I've been eating very similar tomatoes from farmers' markets all week and I just think this was too simple a preparation), the spicy greens with pig's head and peaches, and bruschetta with pork fat and a fried egg. As good as the corn chowder was, the latter two appetizers were my favorites.

The greens, pig's head and peaches was amazing. Two reluctant tasters at my table tasted and fell in love, immediately erasing all fears of pig parts and other presumptively unappealing animal parts. It was just the perfect composition of flavors, evoking memories of many a summer bbq (think smoked ribs and peaches).

The bruschetta was extremely simple, but it was layer of pork fat between the fried egg and the toast which elevated this dish to perfection and made this the best bruschetta I have ever tasted.

Mains - While waiting for a table, a woman nearby was brought the pork shoulder and she was oohing and aahing immediately upon tasting. I decided then that I would be ordering the pork shoulder. Imagine my disappointment when I was told they had run out of the pork shoulder. My disappointment turned to joy as I ended up enjoying the best whitefish presentation I have ever tasted - really. The whitefish, with the roasted onions, tomatoes, peppers and greens (pictured in Dansch's photo above) was a match of crispy tender whitefish, paired with the wonderful sweet-sour combo from the vegetables. Seemingly simple, but then why have I never had whitefish prepared so well. This dish could introduce whitefish to an entirely new generation of diners who might have grown up watching their elderly relatives destroy the dish.

The hangar steak with gorgonzola polenta was also excellent, perfectly cooked to medium rare and the polenta was so creamy. But I preferred the trout with bacon which was also fantastic - whole trout, beautifully cooked and the bacon/lardons was outstanding.

After all of the above, you might think dessert would have been an afterthought. But I'm a dessert fanatic and I thought Mado's desserts were about as good as I've tasted anywhere.

My favorite was the cornmeal cake with goat cheese, apricot jam and candied almonds. Have you ever tasted the almond pound cake with pine nuts at Pasticceria Natalina? If you have, you know how good a pound cake can be. Well, this version blew PN's version out of the water. The combination of ingredients, the ultra creamy goat cheese (mousse-like), the fresh taste of apricot and the crispy, sweet almonds made this the best dessert I have tasted all year, hands down.

Amazingly, the yogurt sponge pudding with blueberry compote and candied pistachios was pretty close behind. Aschie30, I loved the minimal sweetness which really allowed the tang of the yogurt to perfectly marry the blueberries and pistachios, but for all I know Allie re-tried the dish and added a bit of sugar. In any event, simple yet perfect.

The rice pudding with cherries was also excellent and so creamy. The migas chocolate bark, made with luscious dark chocolate and toasted bread crumbs, seemed so simple and, yet again, so perfect.

Service throughout the night was stellar - attentive, relaxed and friendly. They could be teaching many a restaurant how to take care of your customers. The future is bright, really bright at Mado and I'm just sorry it took me so long to get here.

Even though I'm quoted in the above, I should point out that it's no surprise if something cured like prosciutto is a little hard to calibrate for the optimum saltiness. (Note, too, that I had just come back from La Quercia, who deliberately aim for as little salt as possible, so my ideal would have been less salty than typical.)

As far as the regular dishes go, some have been better than others, but I don't recall ever thinking there was too little or too much salt, specifically. In any case, I think Mado is a restaurant that has gotten steadily better and more accomplished over time, and I just don't see the inconsistency problems any more (beyond the normal variation by which some things will always be better than others). I haven't had a dish at Mado that I thought was a genuine dud in almost a year (it was a lamb risotto, last fall).

How can one "set aside" the thing that is a restaurant's main focus, whether that focus is novel or not.

I believe Aschie to be saying we judge them a bit easily out of admiration for their nose to tail focus/ethos. That's certainly possible, but I don't believe I'm doing it at all. Novelty for novelty's sake wears off quickly for me, I'm not looking to eat the weirdest thing I can every time I go out. Mado just does incredibly solid cooking for me, part of which includes, naturally, using all sorts of parts, because part of what makes it such solid cooking is not just cooking chicken breasts and pork loins and other parts that trade flavor for mainstream palatability/ease of portion control.

Mike G wrote:Even though I'm quoted in the above, I should point out that it's no surprise if something cured like prosciutto is a little hard to calibrate for the optimum saltiness.

No doubt. Having experimented around with home curing myself (nothing as long in cure and ambitious as prosciutto), I can say that getting the salting right is really hard. It's the slowest feedback loop I've ever had as a cook - you making something now with a ton of variables, wait a couple of months (or in the case of a ham, a year or two), then taste it and have no ability to alter it.

I pulled those quotes (including one from me) together out of the history of this thread in fairness to Aschie that salting has been brought up a bunch of times, but it certainly doesn't change my opinion of Mado in the least.

-Dan

Mado's recent appearance on Bon Appetit's Top 10 list is probably having the exact effect Rob and Allie would have wished for. Enthusiastic eaters who do not track the local dining scene quite as diligently as some of us here, are now finding their way to Mado. A case in point is our friends M & C, who saw the BA piece and immediately thought, "we have to go there." Since M & C felt they owed us dinner, they called and asked if we'd ever heard of Mado and if we'd like to go there. Of course, the answer to both questions was "yes" and the plan was hatched.

We arrived about 30 minutes early for our 6:30 reservation and the restaurant was, not surprisingly, sparsely occupied. However, by the time we left at around 9, it was comfortably full. This was our first trip to Mado on a Saturday night, so I cannot say if this was typical for Saturday night. In any event, even as new diners arrived, the vibe remained friendly and laid back, in typical Mado fashion.

We brought a bottle of Champagne and some fixings for Old Fashioneds and that's how we started out (cabernet was for later). Our server, Ben, was very helpful in getting us set up with flutes, glasses, ice, etc. and throughout our meal, he tended to us well. He had a very good sense of when to check in but he never hovered. He enthusiastically answered questions and provided information, which really added to the enjoyment of our meal . . .



Country Pate, Tuscan Chicken Liver Pate & Ciccioli (left to right)
I posted this particular pic because, for me, while everything on the plate was exceptional, the chicken liver pate continues to blow me away. The flavors are intense and complex, and the texture is legendarily creamy. The bread and pickles served with this plate were also excellent in their own right.



Pig Brains and Eggs on Toasted Brioche
Rob sent this out for us and it was startlingly good. It tasted like intense, supremely rich eggs, and the buttery brioche was a magnificent vehicle. At first, because of the 'squeam' factor, I thought I'd get to enjoy this one all by myself but after everyone else at the table tried little tiny bites to see if they liked it, I ended up having to share it 4 ways



Roasted Eggplant with Rosemary Honey
I think the key here was the rosemary infusion, which bridged the gap nicely between the rich, savory eggplant and the sweet honey. This was a very successful combination and one that I wouldn't have anticipated.



Crispy Pork Skins with Spicy Creme Fraiche
What's not to love? Pork rinds are fun and delicious.



Beets with Ras El Hanout Creme Fraiche and Pistachios
It's great to see the constant evolution at Mado, where I'd never had raw beets before. The reh and pistachios were very nice touches.



Migas: Bruschetta with Smoked Paprika, Pork Fat and a Fried Farm Egg
Glorious decadance. Here, the way the fat delivered the pimenton was truly inspired. It coated the palate and lingered magically.



Spicy Greens with Roasted Pig Head and Nectarines
Another phenomenal dish. The bitter greens, slightly acidic dressing and nectarines and unctuous pork complemented each other amazingly. When I ordered this, I was the only one who was interested in trying it. But after everyone at the table loved the brains, I knew that I'd be sharing this 4 ways, too.



Rainbow Trout with Roasted Corn, Shelling Beans and Bitter Greens (cooked on wood grill)
I could not believe how rich, fatty and flavorful this trout was. The accompaniments worked very well with it.



Hanger Steak with Gorgonzola Polenta (cooked on wood grill)
Really beefy-tasting and (obviously) cooked perfectly. As much as I loved the gorgonzola polenta, we also ordered a side of the standard polenta (nothing really standard about it), which we loved even more. It had a remarkably tender texture and an intense corn flavor and aroma.



Cotecchino and Garlic Sausage with Black Shelling Beans and Braised Greens (cooked in wood oven)
I really enjoyed the way these 2 sausages worked together. The slightly sweet and aromatic cotecchino played nicely against the more intense garlic sausage. In both cases, the sausages had great definition and were cooked perfectly. The beans were very firm but still smooth to the bite. A wonderful dish.



Chicken with Roasted Chinese Broccoli (cooked on rotisserie)
This bird, which was brined and roasted very well, was juicy and bursting with flavor. At so many places, chicken is a throw-away. At Mado, it's an attraction.

We negotiated long and hard about how to order our desserts. Even though we were plenty full, I wanted to order 1 dessert for each person at the table, because Allie's desserts are so distinctive and inventive, and I always want to taste as many of them as possible. My feeling -- and I lie to myself all the time about this -- is that I have ample self-control and just because we order a bunch of desserts, it doesn't mean we have to finish them all. Others at the table were answering more to their fullness and preferred to just split a couple of them. Then, because they all sounded so interesting, we'd also have to decide on which ones to order. I won the quantity battle and compromised on the specific choices but it ended up not mattering at all because what desserts we didn't order, the kitchen sent out for us. In other words, we ended up with 6 desserts . . .


Yogurt Sponge Pudding with Blueberry Compote and Candied Pistachios
I loved the combination of flavors and textures here. It was tangy but that note was balanced perfectly by a judicious sweetness. The crunch and flavor of the pistachios were well-placed, too.



Almond and Cornmeal Cake with Peach Compote, Goat Cheese-Mascarpone Cream and Candied Almonds
I think this was my favorite of the lot because the cake was spectacular. You could taste the almond and the corn, and the texture was moist and slightly crumbly. The compound cream and candied almonds took it to yet another level.



Italian Plums stewed in Goose Island Pere Jacques with Creme Fraiche and Cocoa Nibs
I'm generally not a fan of chocolate and fruit together and in spite the deft hand in executing this dessert, I couldn't overcome my burdening preference. Others at the table really enjoyed it, though.



Migas Bark
From what I could hear of the description, this migas bark contains semi-sweet chocolate and crunchy bits of toasted bread. It was spectacular, and made me wish that I wasn't as full as I was. M & C took the uneaten portion home.



Vanilla Bean Rice Pudding with Sour Cherry Preserves
Wonderfully floral and satisfying vanilla notes here (no surprise it used bean, not extract), great texture, and the tart cherries foiled the pudding's richness perfectly.



Shortbread
In the past, I've sometimes felt that this legendary shortbread has been too light in texture for me, because I prefer a little more density in my shortbread. But this was perfect. Obviously the flavor was wonderful but texturally, it had some bite, which made it entirely satisfying for me.

I just love Mado and was thrilled that they hit such a home run on our friends' first visit (which I'm sure will not be their last). Not only do I respect their constantly-evolving inventiveness but I consistently love it on the plate, too. There's a fairly long list of foods that I'd never tried before Mado opened and I've loved almost all of them. I'm grateful to have experienced and enjoyed so many of these items that I may have otherwise never had the opportunity to have tried. No, it's not perfect but this meal was pretty damned close.

=R=

Much as I love the charcuterie and all things pork fat at Mado, last night - after recent days of decadent eating - my companions and I were looking for a light meal. I was pleased to be reminded that Mado can excel just as well in that style. We had raw beets with creme fraiche, shishito peppers with olive oil and salt, toast with melrose peppers and an egg, pasta with tomato-braised beans, simply grilled trout, and whitefish with barely-cooked corn. Everything burst with freshness and flavor, and I left feeling that this dinner had added a few days to my life expectancy rather than the more common, opposite effect.

This week is a particularly gluttonous one for me with family visiting from out of town. We're eating our way through the city and suburbs. Tonight, it was Mado, and a pretty special meal it was. We started with the usual, yummy suspects: beets, Shishito peppers, eggplant, baccala and pig's head & nectarine salad.

For our main dish, something new awaited us. REB mentioned to me last week that Sous Chef Chris was thinking of experimenting with tagine. Given my guests this week, I inquired with Rob & co. about the tagine and was told that Chris would be happy to make us one. And so it was...an absolutely gorgeous pork shank tagine with an array of late summer vegetables:



If one is going to celebrate the arrival of fall and the equinox, this has got to be the best way to do it. Chris nailed this dish--rich, hearty, nuanced with pork front and center. The tagine was served with mint & preserved lemon couscous, house harissa and flatbread--all lovely:





I was sure the tagine in taste and quantity would sate my family of hungry stomachs. And it did...almost. There was a second tagine in the kitchen. We ate that one, too:



Chris said the tagine will likely go on the menu as an advance request item--available with a few days notice. To that, Stomach says, "Hooray!"

We rounded out the mains tonight with porchetta ('cause that's just what my family does), and then, after saying just a few days ago that I had probably eaten through Mado's summer dessert menu enough times, I was delighted to hear from Danielle that there were new items since my last visit.

Peach, plum & pistachio crisp:


I loved the pistachio crisp topping, and this dish would have been the perfect fall dessert after the tagine except that some of the fruit was cold. It was still a favorite at our table.

Crème caramel with apple butter and gingersnaps:


I'm not so much a flan person, but I was intrigued by the crème caramel accompaniments of apple butter and gingersnaps. For me, the flavor and texture combination didn't work. Both the apple and gingersnaps seemed too muted and felt odd against the custard. I would have liked more spice, maybe in the direction of chai. Again, I've never been a flan person.

Blueberry streusel cake with goat cheese-mascarpone cream:


The blueberry streusel cake was another favorite at our table. There wasn't much cake to it, more just blueberries with cream (but wonderful goat cheese-mascarpone cream it is) and candied almonds. This was satisfying, but the blueberries themselves didn't really sing for me.

Chocolate cream pie:


My favorite from the desserts, a surprise, was the chocolate cream pie. I was initially put off by the amount of cream topping--I thought the pie would be too light as a result (and thought I might reach cream fatigue given the toppings of the other desserts)--but the chocolate part was much denser and silkier (and therefore more pronounced) than I expected and deeply satisfying against the, at parts, very thick crumb crust.

I know I gush about Mado... Well, when Rob, Chris, Allie & team stop giving me reason to gush, I'll quit.

Rolled into Mado just after 10 pm on a Saturday night. With my mom. Yeah, I'm cool. This was my second visit, as I had stopped by several weeks ago on a trip to Chicago earlier in the summer. That first visit was good, but this one was better. On my first visit I found the charcuterie served way too cold. I also thought the headcheese itself was a bit amateurish. The aspic wasn't fully set, so the headcheese couldn't really hold its shape. The ears, as they were prepared here, were also more cartilage-y than they probably should've been. I've eaten many a pig ear (and have prepared a few), so it's not as if I'm unfamiliar with the ingredient.

Anyway, on to the good. Well, not quite yet. This place is too quiet, even when nearly full. A lame complaint, but throw in a couple more tables, turn up the music. This place is hip, it should feel that way. Feel free to direct the hate mail to my PM account.

So, really, onto the good. Well everything was good on this most recent visit, so here's how my meal unfolded. First, love the BYO. Second, the servers generally seem chill and well-informed. Started off with a beef heart ragu flatbread. Assertive beefy flavor and something bordering on Serious Heat, something that's effectively non-existent in white people food. Also had a pig's head salad. Nice porky flavor, some sweetness and acid from the nectarines. This was a very nice plate of food.

For mains, a beautifully grilled trout and a nicely roasted chicken. I totally respect this restaurant for letting the natural flavor of the animal come through. The chicken was simple, perhaps overly so for many diners, but actually looked and tasted like chicken. One quip, I'd like to see some starch on the plate instead of the just protein and veg. If Keller does frites and Zuni does bread salad, I'm sure these folks can come up with something. The trout was definitely Beautiful Food. Smokey and nicely framed by the sweet-sour onions.

So, moving forward, I will likely start eating here whenever I can. Bring on more offal, like the serious stuff. I have faith these guys can bust out the kidneys and the four-legged animal livers. Would love to see that brain toast dish mentioned upthread make it on the menu so I can try it.

BryanZ wrote:This place is too quiet, even when nearly full. A lame complaint, but throw in a couple more tables, turn up the music. This place is hip, it should feel that way. Feel free to direct the hate mail to my PM account.

Why yes, yes it is.

Too quiet? It's awesome. It's peaceful. I can hear myself think. I can hear my dining companions talk. Perhaps if I were dining with my mother I'd prefer to hear background noise and loud music*

There are plenty of noisy restaurants in town - perhaps you should head up Damen to the Bristol. Great food, too noisy for me (and some others - 1, 2, 3, 4)

-Dan

* Sorry Mom! Love ya!