• One of Chicago’s more successful Peruvian restaurants, Ay Ay Picante impressed Bridget & Tammy enough to earn a 17/20 [Chicago Bites]
• Most of the restaurants participating in Kid’s Restaurant Week excreted out the same mac and cheese that parents spend the rest of the year avoiding, but Coco Pazzo Cafe put some effort into it and made real adult dishes tweaked toward younger palates [Drive-Thru]
• For fried chicken without the leaden aftereffects, try Crisp’s light and crispy Korean preparation [Chicagoist]
• It’s a shame that Drake Bros.’ Bookbinders soup is made with red snapper instead of turtle like in good old days, but it’s very tasty anyway [Hungry]
• Super-healthy built-to-order salad spot Freshii is a good idea in theory, but the slow service and tasteless results make it less appealing in practice [Stew]
• Early word from graham elliot is, they’re still finding their sea legs with respect to service, but you can’t argue with their fat, juicy pork chops [Food Chain]
• A fabulous piece of parrotfish, among many other dishes at L.2O, succeeds at impressing…even if the dish’s description was overwraught and possibly inaccurate [Food Chain]
• Pairing culinary minimalism with scratch cooking and a sophisticated sensibility about ingredients, Mado has been winning the affection of foodies and the praise of critics in the few months it’s been open [Drive-Thru, Gourmet (the latter adapted from TOC)]
• While Margie’s Candies may have gotten accolades in Forbes for having the best ice cream in Chicago, our local food corps has vehemently disagreed; just because a place is old and cramped doesn’t mean it’s great, and did you know that the science of ice cream-making has improved dramatically since the Depression? [Drive-Thru, Serious Eats Chicagoist]
• The vanilla-on-vanilla cupcake at Swirlz Cupcakes disappoints, but specialty flavors like Key Lime make a trip worthwhile [Chicago Bites]
[Photo: wonder what the fortune was…via mousiekm/flickr]
