Please do not try this at home: Ed's vs. Big Bowl's Eggplant

After being thwarted in my first attempt to try the much praised eggplant at Ed's Postickers (I tried to order "fish fragrant eggplant" instead of the menu name "eggplant in garlic sauce"), I stopped by while visiting Chicago last Saturday afternoon to pick up an order. The place was about 3/4 full around 1pm and they quickly made my to go order-- eggplant and a shredded potato dish that had a tangy sauce and a few mushrooms in it.

It took about 20 minutes to reach my destination and in that time, the eggplant melded into one big syrupy glop. Heating in a skillet didn't help; microwaving made it edible, but this certainly was not the dish that people rave about. I hadn't realized the eggplant is deep-fried..not a good choice for carryout, especially when it's coated with a sticky sauce.

My biggest surprise was that it was not spicy at all, despite the menu's description--does Ed's throttle back the spiciness unless a customer requests otherwise?

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Later that night, my unrequited spicy eggplant desire made me attempt carryout at Big Bowl since they have Sichuan Eggplant on their revised menu. This version only had to travel a few minutes and was the typical eggplant chunks in sauce concoction. Nicely spicy, too, enough to break a little sweat. But this verson was missing that little sweetness that adds so much to a spicy dish like this. I added a few chunks of Ed's glop and the flavor, if not the appearance, of the combo was pretty good. I regret to say that the leftovers were chunked the next day--I couldn't bear to open the containers to peek but I'm pretty sure whatever was in them wasn't legal to take across state lines.

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On the other hand, Ed's shredded potatoes made a damn fine breakfast when browned in a skillet with some sausage...

veghead wrote:It took about 20 minutes to reach my destination and in that time, the eggplant melded into one big syrupy glop. Heating in a skillet didn't help; microwaving made it edible, but this certainly was not the dish that people rave about. I hadn't realized the eggplant is deep-fried..not a good choice for carryout, especially when it's coated with a sticky sauce.

Not only is this delicious dish a bad carryout choice, but it's even extremely time-sensetive when dining in. Even the slightest hesitation on the part of the diner will result in the same mass.

Eat this dish as soon as it comes out of the kitchen, and eat it fast.

Best,
Michael

eatchicago wrote: Not only is this delicious dish a bad carryout choice, but it's even extremely time-sensetive when dining in. Even the slightest hesitation on the part of the diner will result in the same mass.l

But is it usually served spicy?

veghead wrote:

eatchicago wrote: Not only is this delicious dish a bad carryout choice, but it's even extremely time-sensetive when dining in. Even the slightest hesitation on the part of the diner will result in the same mass.l

But is it usually served spicy?

I have no recollection of this dish ever being spicy-hot. I do have a high tolerance for heat, but this has never registered as spicy-hot with me.