Looks like everyone was eating up a storm over the holiday weekend, because today’s Tribune and TOC are chock full of reviews, and that’s only the half of it (the other half, features, will be posted about later in the afternoon; prepare yourself to be excited for something called “the man issue”). Let’s do it in…alphabetical order by reviewer, shall we?
• Bowles on Lake Side Cafe: generally very good vegan food with an emphasis on ingredient provenance and a bent toward spirituality. Service is knowledgeable and pleasant, if occasionally flighty. Your enjoyment of the tasty food will be heightened by the relaxed atmosphere, even if you don’t drink all the kool-aid [Tribune]
• Eng on Crust: going through some service-related birthing pains, but generally delicious flatbreads on the small side served to hungry and happy hipsters and your smarter yuppies. (N.B. this review was born last Friday in the Stew) [Tribune]
• Pang on David Burke’s Primehouse: the Primehouse is now offering a forty minute lunch that actually takes an hour but is worth both the time and the money (merely $20.71, a reference to their bull stud named 207L). You start with a popover, then choose between a soup or three salads, five main courses (only one of which involves beef), and three desserts, which were highlights. And, Primehouse donates $5 to Common Threads for every prix fixe lunch sold, so it’s ethical to boot [Tribune]
• Shouse on Anteprima: charming almost to a fault and an insti-institution, this spot is a neighborhood+ restaurant, with enough panache and good food to draw in outsiders while serving as a go-to for locals. Not every dish on the rustic Italian menu is stellar, but the simple dishes (grilled octopus; salumi; roasted quail) more than satisfy. You will feel (at someone’s) home here [TOC]
• Tamarkin on Sura: even though it wants to be known for its Thai tapas (or maybe its groovy-minimalist/”insane asylum” decor), the main dishes are the real stars of the show. Try the black noodles with squid ink, chicken and egg, or crab meat fried rice, both safe bets in a sea of uneven small plates. [TOC]
• Taylor on Golden Rise Bakery: retro bakery serves up modern-rustic sandwiches and salads, not to mention breads and pastries, and is a welcome addition to this emptyish corner of Logan Square. Also note their 16 flavors of ice cream and daily assortment of soups [Tribune]
