Had a knockout meal at Mercat a la Planxa this weekend. We went with the tasting menu (which included something like fourteen dishes), and while everything was spot on, the star for me was also the most peasant-y dish: stewed lentils with sherry vinegar and goat cheese. They had a deep, earthy, caramel flavor that was brightened by the tang of sherry vinegar and goat cheese. Eaten with the perfectly marbled and very rare seared wagyu filet, the lentils cut through the richness of the steak and was an excellent partner.

There is some discussion on the Mercat thread that they've gone downhill recently, but I don't see it at all. Our meal was excellent, the server was engaging and genial, and they handled a large party of 13 without a hitch. The tasting menu is a fabulous value at $65, and is perfectly suitable if you don't want to spring for a whole suckling pig.

mike

Soft shell crab followed by garlic fried ribs at Sun Wah. (Homer voice: "Garlic fried ribs, aaagghhh!") Breaded deep fried ribs, what could be better? The leftovers were stellar as well.

I have been reading about Korean fried chicken for a while now and have never experienced it. So last week I finally made it up to Crisp in Lakeview and had the Seoul Sassy half fried chicken for dinner and this shit was good. I also sampled some of there other things, but this was by far my favorite.

Crisp
2940 N. Broadway
Chi, IL
http://www.crisponline.com/Crisp.aspx

I had a tasty bowl of shrip and grits @ Hot Chocolate on Sunday. Just the right amount of heat, and the flavors were on point. The dark hot chocolate drink was super tasty too! Just like a melted chocolate bar!

This weekend I made a short trip for a focaccia sandwich from Joseph’s food mart.
Dang I love those things.

Spare rib soup at Aroy Thai.

Tee, one of the Aroy family indicated to us that it was somehow a seasonal special, but I did not see anything especially seasonal in this tamarind heavy, herbal broth loaded with tender rib meat. Man it's good though. (As about everything else is at Aroy)

This is kinda cheating but .....fresh oysters from Isaacson & Stein Fish Company

Soft Shell Crab appetizer at Sticky rice...crispy deliciousness. Sticky Rice's tempura battered and fried items are really damn good.

I found the Andy's in Bolingbrook and ordered myself a key lime pie concrete. It was crazy good! The tartness of the lime and the pie crust took the frozen custard to another level.
http://www.eatandys.com/product.aspx?p=17&ref=home

Tacos al pastor from Tierra Caliente, followed up by a vanilla tart and a mille feuille from Vanille at the French Market. Opposite ends of the dining spectrum, but both awesome nonetheless. Could've used some more crispy bits on the tacos, but they were still solid. The pastries were just decadent, especially the first: a real wallop of vanilla in every loving bite.

Mashed potatoes in my smoker.
Hickory and Apple chips
2 -1/2 Hours at 220 degrees
Taste was out of this world but the texture was a little pasty (not sure why).

curry71 wrote:Mashed potatoes in my smoker.
Hickory and Apple chips
2 -1/2 Hours at 220 degrees
Taste was out of this world but the texture was a little pasty (not sure why).

did you smoke the potatoes, then mash them, or mash them, then smoke them?

Smoked then mashed.
I think I might need to but them in a pan of water in the smoker. The texture might just be a result of being dried out.

I've been thinking back on the meals I've had so far this year, which include many good ones. There are three dishes I keep thinking about, because they were so delicious.

Best savory dish I've eaten this year goes to Michael in Winnetka for their Dover sole and Maine lobster duo, with half of a 1.5-pound Dover sole (2 filets) and half of a 1.25-pound Maine lobster (claw, tail and arm meat all shell free), served with Grilled thin asparagus and Drawn lobster butter over creamy polenta. Both fish components were incredibly moist, tender, and flavorful. This item is not on the normal menu but is featured frequently as a special, for which they send out notifications to those on their e-mail list.

Best dessert is a tie, because I keep thinking about two of them. One was at Michael, at the same dinner as above. It was a "mango charlotte" - a buttery rich moist cake, almost like an upside-down cake, with chopped mango in the middle, and a small scoop of coconut ice cream on top. Just wickedly sinful.

The other was at Cibo Matto, the new-ish Italian restaurant in the Wit Hotel in the Loop. The dessert was a composition in which the largest and primary component was a cardamom panna cotta, and it was just heavenly.

Deep-fried soft shell crab over sweet corn at Girl and the Goat.

Possibly the best thing I've eaten all year.

Salted crab som tum at TAC Quick. Now that I've had this salty, funky, fishy masterpiece I don't think I can go back to the regular som tum. It seems almost bland by contrast.

A Ramadan double-dip. Devon at 4:30ish.. Daata Durbar, for the daily-during-Ramadan Haleem (a goat Haleem, freshly made at that time, for the up-charge price of 7 bucks).

Followed by a trip to Jaafer Sweets on Lawrence/Kedzie, for fresh out of the fryer Ramadan-only-katayif (one cheese, one walnut, both fresh out of the fryer and crip.. I took a half-dozen to go, but they wont be the same).

Both awesome. Both Ramadan-only specials. Thus, available for 3+ weeks more, only.

c8w

Wanting to have something completely different for lunch yesterday, we came upon Tap House Grill on Rte 64 west of St Charles. We were really aiming for the restaurant a few doors down but they weren't open so we thought we'd give Tap House a try. Pretty interesting menu but the thing that caught my eye was Tater Tots! I have been craving them for years but am too afraid to try Sonic just for that. The Tater Tots at Tap House were fried to crisp perfection. The actual meals were pretty good but no where near as satisfying as the Tots.

I know many here are beer lovers and this place would not disappoint. There is a huge (to me, I'm not a beer drinker) selection of beers I never heard of plus they have beer pairing dinners every few months. I was surprised to find a web site and that they have locations in Glen Ellyn, Oswego and Westmont besides this one in St Charles. I know the location they have in Oswego used to be an outpost of Emmet's Tavern.

http://www.taphousegrills.com/

The roast corn soup with sweet garlic flan at Naha. Not just the best thing I have eaten this year, but the best corn-flavored dish *ever*.

Burger and chicken/corn chowder at Duke of Perth yesterday after a movie at the Century.

snax wrote:

The roast corn soup with sweet garlic flan at Naha. Not just the best thing I have eaten this year, but the best corn-flavored dish *ever*.

We had dinner at Naha three Saturdays ago, and my Customary Dining Companion would agree with you. Damn good soup!

Faidley's crab cakes at Lexington Market in Baltimore. Evil Ronnie and I ate them 3 lunches in a row. The best.

BBQ spare ribs with honey & fabulous duck egg foo yung at Sun Wah tonight

Fresh baked triple berry pie at Hoosier Mama's Pie Shop. Just the essence of a perfect piece of pie. Wow.

And the better half nominates the cold watermelon soup at Naha. With cucumber, cantaloupe, and lump crabmeat as well as what we think was creme fraiche - the best cold soup she's ever had. It was summer in her mouth!

The Lovely Donna wrote:Faidley's crab cakes at Lexington Market in Baltimore. Evil Ronnie and I ate them 3 lunches in a row. The best.

I want to point out that it was Faidley's jumbo lump crabcake. I also tried their claw crabcake, which was good, but not on the same level.

Grilled octopus and black truffle risotto at Riccardo Trattoria

Portuguese Custard Tart, St. Lawrence Market, Toronto.

saluki9 wrote:Grilled octopus and black truffle risotto at Riccardo Trattoria

Woah, was that a special? I dont see it on the regular menu but I would destroy that dish.

Commbrkdwn wrote:

saluki9 wrote:Grilled octopus and black truffle risotto at Riccardo Trattoria

Woah, was that a special? I dont see it on the regular menu but I would destroy that dish.

Sorry, It's two separate dishes, but I did eat them side by side

simply amazing stuff.

The salumi with figs and honey was also incredible.

One of Blackbird's desserts. A sweet corn ice cream that was eased into a tube shape in the middle of the plate (kind of like the cob from the corn), studded with bacon brioche fritters, perfectly candied pecans, and a basil-maple syrup here and there. Also some errant kernels of the sweet corn itself. Stunning.