Urban union

Went here for a very early dinner tonight and I am not sure what I think about this place. Fairly empty when we arrived at about 5. Tried to seat us in the back but I requested to sit up front which was a little more lively. Our server was great and spent a lot of time going over the menu and her favorites. Started off with the charcuterie plate which had salami, chorizo and sofressato. No cheese or olives or anything else, it was fine. We also ordered the calamari and bone marrow. The bone marrow was really salty and the calamari was ridiculously small. If you think the servings at fish bar are small try this place. We followed with the cod which was very good and the pork schnitzel which I thought was a little tough. Also ordered the lentils. Daughter loved these but I thought I could make better. I think this place has promise but I will not be rushing back. Perhaps if we had stuck with the seafood it would have been better but 19 year old girl will not eat fish. The decor reminds me of a lot of the recently opened places but the back room seemed really ill- conceived and I would not like to spend an evening back there. Someone from channel 5 was filming while we were there so maybe a forth coming review. Oh, sorry this is a new place on Taylor st.

Urban Union

1421 W Taylor
Chicago, IL 60607
312-929-4302
http://www.urbanunionchicago.com

I dined at Urban Union last night and had a very good meal. We had grilled oysters, grilled octopus, wood oven roasted mussels, snapper crudo, pork cheek ravioli, fresh pasta with mushrooms, crispy pork schnitzel, wood oven roasted porchetta, wood oven roasted squab, lamb riblets, a whole roasted red snapper and three desserts. Everything was at least good, but I agree that the portions run on the small side. I typically don't eat dessert, but these were great. We had a banana cake, sticky date pudding and a take on a Kit Kat with hazelnuts whose name I don't remember. The Kit Kat was consumed very quickly.

I've been very disappointed with the wine lists at some of the newer restaurants in Chicago. In my opinion, the offerings at Maude's were embarrassing and places like Perennial Virant and Girl and The Goat didn't seem to be trying very hard in this area. This is clearly not the case at Urban Union. It's probably the most exciting wine list at a new main stream restaurant I've seen in a long time (Ria takes the crown for fine dining, money is no object). There are really great offerings across very reasonable price points.

I'll head back for brunch soon and furnish a report.

I've been eating there fairly regularly since they opened last year and really should have posted awhile back, one of the best things I ate in 2012 was UU's duck leg confit. It's a very warm space, soft lighting, energetic, but you can still have a conversation easily with your table-mates. I prefer to eat at the chef's counter in front of their wood burning oven, it's enjoyable to watch the food being prepped and chat with the cooks.

I had a terrific meal here on Wednesday (which is half price wine by the glass night as well). Chef Shrader recently introduced 4/6/8 course tasting menu, which can be tailored to your preferences. My RDC and I went with four courses, and left ourselves in Chef's hands. Our first course was an impeccably fresh fruits de mer in a light chili oil. This is an off menu item, but they've always had such beautiful fish/seafood that I wouldn't be surprised to see it turn up on the menu. This was followed by a pasta alla chitarra with grilled shrimp, and smoked tomato, which was fantastic as the pasta here typically is (always made in house). Next, we received pork schnitzel in a beautiful Bearnaise sauce, topped with a fried egg. This was the showstopper, one of my favorite schnitzels in recent memory. As this was our first run at the tasting menu, we had no idea what would be next, and we were pleasantly surprised to be presented with steak frites, with Roquefort & shallot butter and a Sauce Bordelaise. At this point, I could do no more than take a bite as these were fairly sizable portions, but I certainly enjoyed the rest at my desk today. Next time, I think I might ask for something lighter at the end of the meal, they typically have an excellent cheese selection.

In any case, at $40 for four courses, a really terrific value. I mentioned earlier that Wednesday was 1/2 price wines by the glass, and they really have a fine selection. If you watch their Facebook page, they regularly post other nightly specials. Very nice place, I'm fortunate to live close enough to it that I can make it here easily.

Wine and food enthusiasts in Little Italy and University Village are getting a new hotspot from two of Chicago's top sommeliers. 2013 Jean Banchet best sommelier winner Jason Prah (Acadia) and 2012 nominee Scott Harney (Eno Wine Room) signed a lease yesterday to take over the former Urban Union space and hope to open their first restaurant, Bascule, in mid-September.

http://chicago.eater.com/archives/2014/ ... street.php