Openings

What to Eat at The Purple Pig, Opening November 30

In one month, this will all be yours.
In one month, this will all be yours.

The Purple Pig — the long-awaited “cheese, swine, and wine” venture from restaurauteur supergroup Jimmy Bannos, Jimmy Bannos Jr., and Scott Harris — has officially settled on an opening date. One month from today, the doors will open at 500 North Michigan. But despite the tourist-friendly spot, the menu pulls no punches. For starters, it’s truly epic in scope — per our highly scientific hand-count, there are 85 items, and that’s not including the cured meats & cheeses, which easily push the selection over a hundred.

We’re particularly drawn to the “Fried Stuff” section (chickpea panelle, pigs-head cakes with fennel, and those chorizo-stuffed olives are positively moaning our name) and the whole section of “Smears”: pork-neck bone rillettes, Mortadella mousse with balsamico, and super-garlicky skordalia. And of course, there’s that wine list. But really the whole thing has us excited — read on for the full Purple Pig experience.

The Purple Pig
ANTIPASTI

* Shaved Brussels sprouts with pecorino and Parmesan dressing
* Clams with rosmarina
* Marinated anchovies with mozzarella di bufala
* Salt-roasted beets with whipped goat cheese and pistachio
* Baby artichokes and potatoes with salami Toscana, Asiago and grain-mustard vinaigrette
* Sepia with toasted almonds and fried rosemary
* Sicilian marinated eggplant
* Pickled vegetables with olives
* Olive oil-poached tuna with cannellini beans
* Butternut squash with sage brown butter emulsion and ricotta salata
* Marinated olives
* Rabe with ricotta
* House-cured baccalà and Kalamata olives with shaved red onion
* Cured salmon with marinated cucumbers and pickled shallots
* Deviled eggs
* Baby carrots with cumin and avocado

SALADS

* Crispy mussels with frisée, smoked paprika and sopressata vinaigrette
* Arugula with shaved fennel, olives, radishes and lemon vinaigrette
* Winter caprese with burrata, oven-dried tomatoes and basil pesto
* Mâche and beets with pine nuts, roasted wild mushrooms and pecorino vinaigrette
* Endive with Cabrales cheese and oranges
* Winter greens with roasted butternut squash, apple and apple cider vinaigrette

SMEARS

* Pork neck bone rillettes
* Sheep’s milk ricotta and tomato gravy
* Brandade
* Mortadella mousse with balsamico
* Whipped feta with cucumbers and oven-dried tomatoes
* Pork liver pâté
* White bean and fried prosciutto
* Eggplant caponata
* Skordalia

FRIED ITEMS

* Sardine fritti with preserved lemon jam
* Speck and potato gnocchi with smoked paprika aïoli
* Pumpkin and goat cheese with honey
* Chorizo-stuffed olives
* Prosciutto bread balls
* Deep-fried lamb chops
* Fried calamari in parsley and lemon batter
* Fried pig’s feet cakes with bronze fennel and pine nut gremolata
* Fried chickpea panelle

PANINI

* Roast lamb, Kalamata olive tapenade, aged feta, oven-dried tomato
* Prosciutto and Scamorza cheese
* Truffled egg, Serrano ham and Manchego cheese
* Braised pork, broccoli rabe, piquillo peppers
* Mortadella, grilled radicchio, pistachio vinaigrette
* Cacciatorini, goat cheese and black olive pesto
* Prosciutto cotto, mozzarella, hot mustard, housemade pickles
* Coppa, provolone, pickled red onion
* Croque monsieur
* Croque madame
* Porchetta with salsa verde

HOT ITEMS

* Fried Padrón peppers with sea salt
* Seared quail with salsify-tarragon emulsion and pomegranate molasses
* Parmigiano sformato with porcini vinaigrette
* Housemade sausage with duck confit cassoulet and pancetta crisp
* Cottecchino with green lentils
* Pork shank with porcini mashed potatoes and sherry jus
* Caulfat-wrapped confit pork with chicory and sherry-honey sauce
* Pork involtini with ricotta, pipérade and Parmigiano
* Crispy octopus with fingerling potatoes and aged sherry aïoli
* Charred baby leeks with romesco sauce
* Crispy pig’s ear with tart apple, winter greens and preserved lemon vinaigrette
* Crispy purple pig’s tail with grape seed-mustard sauce
* Crispy skate with cauliflower, raisins, pine nuts and capers
* Skirt steak with farrotto and bone marrow vinaigrette
* Prawns alla plancha with pimentón and garlic chips
* Pork saltimbocca with braised escarole and white wine-butter emulsion
* Whipped white polenta with goat ragoût
* Balsamic chicken wings
* Razor clams alla plancha with lemon garlic
* Calamari stuffed with chorizo, shrimp and saffron rice, baked in lobster sauce
* Lamb kebabs with grilled lemon and parsley salad
* Meatballs with gravy and Parmigiano
* Grilled Greek sausage with braised rapini
* Roasted bone marrow with garlic toast

FILLETED FISH

* Roasted monkfish with celery root puree and brown butter
* Striped bass with butternut squash agrodolce
* Sea scallops with chorizo, chickpeas and caper berries
* Sea scallops with pork belly and balsamic jus
* Salmon confit in pork fat with roasted beet and blood orange
* Black bass with roasted endive and speck

DESSERTS

* Homemade soft-serve ice cream in a cone, cup or brioche
* Crêpes with Nutella
* Ricotta fritters
* Whipped ricotta with honey

CURED MEATS

* Porchetta
* Nduja
* Lardo
* Sopressata
* Coppa
* Finocchiona salami
* Testa
* Prosciutto di Parma
* Pata negra (Spanish black foot Ibérico ham)

CHEESES

* Parmigiano-Reggiano
* Pecorino Tartufo
* Taleggio
* Gorgonzola
* Drunken goat
* Manchego
* Cabrales
* Fourme d’Ambert
* Sheep’s milk feta

What to Eat at The Purple Pig, Opening November 30