Milt's is launching a food truck this August to "be located in the Loop, River north and University of Chicago locations."

Details here.

EvA wrote:Milt's is launching a food truck this August to "be located in the Loop, River north and University of Chicago locations."
Details here.

University of Chicago as in Hyde Park, or the Graduate Business School/Gleacher Center in Streeterville? Probably the former, but the latter would be geographically convenient for some of us

Made my first visit to Milt's recently and liked it a bunch--more than I thought I was going to, in fact.

I had the braised short ribs. I can't speak to issues of importance to BBQ zealots, since I don't believe the short ribs were smoked at all. What they were, was delicious. Buttery tender, seasoned perfectly, resplendent in their beefy glory. In fact, I believe they may have been the best short ribs I've ever had.

On top of this, Milt's is a fun place. (It makes me happy to be in a place full-to-the-brim of happy customers.) Service was excellent, including people who stepped up to do things that weren't strictly in their job description. Customer happiness is obviously a priority at Milt's.

riddlemay wrote:I had the braised short ribs. I can't speak to issues of importance to BBQ zealots, since I don't believe the short ribs were smoked at all. What they were, was delicious. Buttery tender, seasoned perfectly, resplendent in their beefy glory. In fact, I believe they may have been the best short ribs I've ever had.

Since they're described as "braised," they're definitely not bbq. That can be a bit frustrating when you go to a BBQ place in search of actual BBQ. However, it doesn't mean they're not delicious. Ben's BBQ on west North Avenue serves a beef rib dish that's cooked most of the way in a slow cooker, and it's fantastic. Those beef ribs do start out in a smoker, though, as may the ones at Milt's. Maybe that's why they're marketing to the perplexed.

=R=

Having been to MIlt's they do serve some excellent Barbecue including their beef ribs -

weinstein5 wrote:Having been to MIlt's they do serve some excellent Barbecue including their beef ribs -

And they sponsored that Kosher BBQ competition, which was pretty cool of them.

=R=

ronnie_suburban wrote:

riddlemay wrote:I had the braised short ribs. I can't speak to issues of importance to BBQ zealots, since I don't believe the short ribs were smoked at all. What they were, was delicious. Buttery tender, seasoned perfectly, resplendent in their beefy glory. In fact, I believe they may have been the best short ribs I've ever had.

Since they're described as "braised," they're definitely not bbq. That can be a bit frustrating when you go to a BBQ place in search of actual BBQ. However, it doesn't mean they're not delicious.

To tell you the truth, half the reason I ordered the short ribs was so that I could report on my meal without getting caught up in issues of BBQ authenticity! (The other half is that I love short ribs.)

Had a good meal at Milt’s last night. The place was fairly full by 6pm but they let us sit at the bar (3 adults) and window seats (2 teens). We started with a plate of their sliders shared between me and the teens. I liked the pulled chicken with their house made tomato and vinegar sauce but the brisket version just did not do it for me (“soft” texture, no noticeable smoke flavor and no bark for contrast). The hidden surprise was the burger slider, which while engulfed by the bun, packed a great char flavor. I could have eaten 3-4 of these.

For mains, the two teens had the fried chicken (tenders?) sandwiches of which there was nothing left for me to sample and the fries looked as good as the teen girls said. For the three adults we each ordered the half chicken, me making it a combo with the beef ribs. Each bbq platter came with a side choice and slaw, vinegar or creamy. The vinegar version was just okay but I really liked the creamy version that was not overly creamy and had a good blend of spices against the crisp cabbage.
Sides were sautéed spinach, baked beans with brisket (poorly set for myself a Smoqe-esq expectation– see comment on brisket above) and corn bread that was more like dense cake but very enjoyable as my desert at the end of the meal - no spread required. The forth side was lightly sautéed green beans that I am still thinking about this morning. Plump, bright green in color with no blemishes, firm/crisp to the bite and accompanied by a very soft touch of caramelized onions.

My two adult companions enjoyed their half chickens. I on the other hand detected a bitter taste that could have been a smoke issue in the breast meat (tasted like charcoal – but bartender/waiter indicated they use applewood) . All pieces were moist and I did enjoy the thigh. The star of my plate was the two very large smoked beef ribs (longest I have seen at about 9-10 inches). A good but mild smoke flavor (I like heavy, so this may need to be calibrated) combined with spice rub that created a great bark and minimal fat except for the underlying layer. I would like to eat a plateful of these again but for the price (dreaming of Victoria Station last night as I was going off to sleep not because of the price but the never ending supply of beef ribs).

Service was okay, perhaps a little slow if you go in thinking “bbq”. We were seated by 6:15 and paid the check at 8. The party next to us was seated shortly after and were out 30 minutes earlier. Total bill was $177 for five of us with one beer, one soda and a single desert (my wife ordered bread pudding but was told it is seasonal so opted for what they call peach cobbler – I did not partake). An issue that had me shaking my head was that my combo platter was $55 and included two sides +coleslaw, two ribs and half a chicken – admittedly that is two diner orders. The half chicken diner is priced at just under $19, so $36 for a two rib, albeit large, dinner. That was my fault as the menu does not list prices for the beef or chicken; just a “MP”, or market price notation, so I knew that there could be sticker shock and should have asked. Apparently beef ribs are the new skirt steak in terms of escalating prices for a previously discarded item. If asked I would go again, but not choose to on my own.

Sitting here about to hit submit on what will be perhaps my second post in three years - I notice its quite long and asked myself why. It’s because I had to explain to myself that at the end of the day, despite the price I had a meal with great company that hit several sweet spots but had an unexpected price tag. Sorry for bringing you into my self-help group.

Do Well,
Mike

c7umpm wrote: It’s because I had to explain to myself that at the end of the day, despite the price I had a meal with great company that hit several sweet spots but had an unexpected price tag. Sorry for bringing you into my self-help group.

Do Well,
Mike

The "Kosher tax" does muddy up the value calculations. You can feed a crowd twice the size for the same money at a place like Rub's - if Kosher isn't an issue, that is. If Kosher is a necessity then you just deal with it.

On the other hand, no beef ribs at Rub's and only pulled chicken.

my wife ordered bread pudding but was told it is seasonal

Wait - what?

Seasonal, that was the response. Four or five items on a printed desert card and bread pudding was "seasonal". Now i know were the "perplexed" comes from.

Do Well,

Mike

The ingredients are seasonal or it is not offered all the time?

I know the dessert menu is confusing. It was printed incorrectly, and was supposed to read "seasonal fruit dessert" and not the bread pudding. I wanted to run the cobbler during the summer, bread pudding in the winter. The bread pudding is a bit heavy for the summer, but it will be back with our new menu revision in a few weeks. Sorry for any confusion.

You know, I've never gone to a BBQ spot worrying about how heavy the food was.

Maybe it's the French training. I haven't ever heard of bbq doing seasonal menus, either. Peach cobbler in December? Yes, please!

From Milt's FB page:

"It is our pleasure to invite you to the soft-opening celebration of our new restaurant, Milt’s Extra Innings!!
What does a Jewish Baseball Museum, delicious deli style food and building a more inclusive environment in Lakeview all have in common?
The answer is Milt’s Extra Innings, a new cRc certified Kosher restaurant that will:
Serve excellent deli-style food; celebrate the history of Jews in baseball
AND
Be staffed by young adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities through a partnership with Keshet GADOL, a not-for-profit dedicated to doing whatever is necessary to allow individuals with disabilities to achieve their potential.
Located at 3409 N Broadway (directly south of Milt's BBQ for the Perplexed), Milt’s Extra Innings will offer cRc certified kosher food for takeaway/catering and casual in-restaurant dining."

What a Mensch...

Almost worth the trip to see shrines of Sandy Koufax, Hank Greenberg, and the infamous Moe Berg, who was a catcher with many teams in the 1920's and 1930's. After his career, he worked clandestinely for the OSS as a spy in World War II, reportedly was able to speak seven languages but as his baseball cohorts said, was able to hit in none of them.