Chicagoist's roundup of the best places to get biscuits & gravy has us quite literally on the verge of calling it a day and taking off to consume the artery-clogging perfection. Our pick: Hawkeye's Bar & Grill (if only because it reminds us of our youthful years).

Still, we're pretty freaking intrigued by Chuck Sudo's suggestion that you "Keep a close eye on your wallet or purse while you're" at Huddle House (4748 N. Kimball, 773-588-5363), which "looks like the place where runaways go to permanently disappear." Wonder how long it'll take before the authenticity-hounds at LTHForum are swarming all over the place (not, for a moment, that we blame them).

Where to Go For the Biscuits and Gravy [Chicagoist]
Hawkeye's Bar & Grill [MenuPages]
Hawkeye's Bar & Grill [Official Site]

[Photo: Biscuits and Gravy, via su-lin's Flickr]

Our picks for best places to take frozen communion, presented in random order and without commentary, because having to think up descriptions for all of these places will result in us being forced to leave our desks to acquire samples from each one, and we can't have that:

And for a suburban ice cream crawl, we can't suggest a better itinerary than the one outlined in a National Ice Cream Day celebration from last year. Shout out to Mitchell's in Homewood! Chocolate chip milkshake, what?

Hungry Hound dutifully observes National Ice Cream Month [2007] [ABC7Chicago]

[Photo: Margie's Sundae, via lisa_h's Flickr]

Two weeks ago, we wrote a post on some findings from a day of processing menus, including Mothers-In-Law (tamales in buns with chili) on the North Side and Mexico City-style tortas at La Baguette on the South Side.

All this piqued the interest of Peter Engler a.k.a. Rene G, one of the superstars of LTHForum, and the MIL expert we quoted about the no-MIL-on-the-North-Side thing. Turns out what he meant was, no one on the North Side calls it as such, but the component ingredients of the Mother-In-Law are on plenty of North Side menus. We stand corrected!

Engler also had insight into the torta chilanga (milanesa, chorizo, ham and queso fresco), one of the Mexico City-style tortas we mentioned in the post. He wrote:

Tortas chilangas are not too uncommon in Chicago. Doña Torta Chilanga (2152 W Cermak) sounds like a good place to begin. A large window sign also advertises tortas guapachosas (I had no idea what those were until today). BomBon Café (38 S Ashland) makes an upscale version with ham, salami, Serrano ham and queso Chihuahua. On the north side you can get them at Cardona's (3537 W Lawrence), filled with milanesa, queso Oaxaca and chiles poblanos. Although there are some common features, the ingredients tend to vary.

The conspiracy theorist in us didn't get very far along in its investigation because neither restaurant has English-speaking staff, but that could be a ruse! Incidentally, Dona Torta Chilanga's menu doesn't resemble Dona Torta's menu in the slightest. Go figure.

Anyway, there's still a mystery surrounding the tortas guapachosasa, which appear on both menus. La Baguette's has milanesa, queso y pierna (i.e. breaded steak, brick cheese & sliced pork shoulder), while Dona Torta Chilanga's contains milanesa, pierna, queso amarillo, jamon y salchicha (i.e. breaded steak, flank steak, cheddar cheese and a hot dog). What makes this all the more strange is that "torta guapachosa" receives virtually no hits on Google, while "torta chilanga" has several thousand (although the top two are Yelp's page for DTC and our previous blog entry on the subject, so take it with a grain of salt).

The way we want to imagine it is, two brothers from Mexico City were up late one night with the munchies and they each constructed a torta that, under the circumstances, they named "groovy." And then they came to Chicago and opened competing torta shops, and one did quite well (La Baguette has a dozen locations, it seems), while the other has had to languish in his brother's shadow. Isn't this narrative more entertaining than the truth?

Because the truth would have to encompass an explanation for why there's a hot dog in DTC's guapachosa, an addition truly beyond the bounds of rational behavior and certainly good taste. We would, nevertheless, eat this sandwich in its entirety.

Dona Torta Chilanga [MenuPages]
La Baguette [MenuPages]
La Baguette [Official Site]

[Photo: Dona Torta Chilanga's guapachosa torta, via Peter Engler]

This cheeseburger dress is the coolest thing that's ever been knitted. The artist, Joy Kampia O'Shell, has created several of these one-of-a-kind pieces, and they are the real thing (i.e., wearable). Could you imagine actually sashaying into a burger joint with this on? Let's take a stab at it:

Places Where This Dress Would Help

• Hamburger Mary's would probably let you eat and drink free for the night, or possibly even join the stage show. You'd be signing autographs left and right! Extra points here for creative stowage of your pickle

• Kuma's Corner has a notoriously long line during peak times...unless you were wearing this dress. Because you know what? Dressing as your dinner is pretty f'n metal. The waitresses would clear a berth for you at the bar, and maybe someone would even whistle appreciatively! Probably better to be a lady for this one, though — metal has its limits

Places Where This Dress Wouldn't Help

• Boston Blackies' touristic clientele might think you were a charming fixture of Chicago cosmopolitanism, and the sports fans glued to the big TV in the back might not even notice your presence. But the suburban children milling about the place will call as much attention to you as their whiny little voices and flailing limbs allow them. You may not get the best seat in the house

• Billy Goat Tavern Original at least gives you a chance at making the papers, but not in a good way

On the whole, we say, worth it.

[Photo: Joy Kampia]

Okay, between the Gawker comment that first problematized the issue and the corroborating letter from Rick that Mike Nagrant published on Hungry, we're satisfied that the frozen scallops on Wednesday night's episode of Top Chef were a plant by the show's producers, and that the part of the show explaining this was edited out.

But then why would Rick "take the shot" during the judgment round about having frozen scallops in his walk-in when they weren't really his? It doesn't seem like a cover-up; instead, Rick probably just got really flustered by the audacity of Spike's claim, and responded by acceding to something that he knew to be not his fault (since the scallops, after all, were not his). Had Rick been thinking clearly, he obviously would have defended his honor and his business, but all that goes out the window in a fast-paced verbal tit-for-tat.

Let's hope a lawsuit comes out of this.

It is your patriotic duty to eat barbecue at some point this weekend. Perhaps you'll do so at a party with friends and family, but failing that, we've compiled a slideshow of worthy barbecue from around the city, and nearby parks where you can picnic. The park photos are from Microsoft's new Live Maps "Bird's eye" feature; hopefully they won't sue us for using them!

Rib tips from Honey 1 BBQ, via andrewc:

Humboldt Park is a short drive away:

Three more pairings, after the jump...

Continue reading "Viewing Pleasure: Barbecue And The Parks In Which To Eat It" »

According to everybody and sundry, the stupid foie gras ban was stupidly repealed. What's worse, having bad convictions or not sticking to them? Oh well, the people rejoice!

[Photo: foie gras from the Chef's Station in Evanston, via eszter/flickr]

Things you know about Myanmar/Burma:

1) On May 3-4, the country's Irrawaddy delta region was hit by a powerful cyclone, killing 22,500 and leaving over 40,000 missing as of publication time (nationwide population: 55 million)

2) Last fall, the ruling military junta cracked down on widespread, monk-lead demonstrations, leading to the political imprisonment of hundreds and quashing hopes of a democratic revolution

3) Aung San Suu Kyi, the Nobel prize-winning democracy activist, has been under house arrest there for much of the past two decades

Things you may or may not know about Myanmar/Burma:

1) "Myanmar" is a pre-colonial name that the junta encourages you to use, and "Burma" is the somewhat racist colonial appellation that Aung San Suu Kyi prefers, because one really sticks it to the junta that way

2) Until a few days ago, Burma — let's just go with that...stupid junta — was a net exporter of rice, but the country's rice bowl (this is an official term) was storm-surged into oblivion. Maybe China will give them rice?

3) Burma is shunned by most of the world for its human rights violations and narcotics-based export economy. The junta is reasonably good friends with China

Things you don't know about Burma:

1) The junta is being pretty cagey about taking aid from the international community, but you can donate through the Anglican Relief & Development Fund

2) Burma has a unique and wonderful cuisine that's hard to find in the United States but always a joy to come across. It's a natural fusion of Indian, Chinese and South-East Asian traditions, meaning you can get chicken biryiani, durian ice cream and night market rice noodles in a single sitting if you so desire. They even have their own form of tofu, made from chana dal (split, skinless chickpeas) or yellow split pea flour, depending on the ethnic group. Better than soy-based tofu? In many ways. You like dumplings? The Burmese have half-a-dozen indigenous varieties to try. And so forth.

For us, though, the single biggest achievement of the Burmese kitchen is its myriad and exotic salads. Thai salads are more famous, but the Burmese do a job at least as sophisticated throwing raw and pickled vegetables and miscellany together into something greater than the sum of their parts. Observe:

• Pork Ear & Tongue Salad from the recently closed Burmese Cafe in Queens, NY (Jane! Jane! Jane!):

• "Burmese Feast" Tofu Salad from Golden Triangle in Whittier, CA (Tales of an LA Addict):

More salads than you could properly digest, after the jump...

Continue reading "The Salads Of Myanmar/Burma: A Timely Appreciation" »

So we called NoMI and got in touch with the pastry chef and was like, "WTF is this?"

And he was French and very nice but also like a lockbox. He confirmed that those gorgeous half-sun wedges are grapefruit (for a moment we thought they were tuna sashimi), and that they're sitting on top of a rectangular prism of basil crème brûlée, but the crumble in between is the greatest mystery since..."Why French Women Don't Get Fat." We know it's some kind of biscuit, i.e. cookie, but exactly what variety is unclear. We're thinking maybe lemon, because that would totally go. Meanwhile, the flutter of whimsy on top is coconut tuile. The dessert is a not-unreasonable $10, and a light and bright way to end a lovely meal.

Mostly, though, we're just suckers for high-quality photography involving fruit.

NoMI [MenuPages]
NoMI [Official Site]

[Photo: Pecan Sandies/flickr]

We mostly like the framing of this, but also — sweater aside — it's hot out! Margarita time! Woo!!!

This particular specimen comes from Tecalitlan in Ukie Village for $6.20. A regular with lime is $5.50, but the very nice young woman who answered the phone when we called recommends the raspberry, her favorite. For our part, we always get plain because the fruit flavors are just sugar, and then we get a headache. When it comes to margaritas, though, you can do whatever your heart desires.

Have an uproariously enjoyable weekend!

Tecalitlan [MenuPages]

[Photo: allwood/flickr]

We're not positive we'd actually like this cupcake, but we're sure glad we've seen it, and we bet it appeals to at least some of you. Texture combinations aside, this looks like something out of Wonka or the Nutcracker, or maybe Marie Antoinette. The aesthetic is whimsy, but the reality is much starker: there are only three of these left at Bleeding Heart Bakery, where Michelle Garcia dreams up all manner of limited-time cupcakes that rotate in and out of the line-up. All cupcakes at Bleeding Heart are $3.50, but for your money you get something 1) unique 2) attractive and 3) organic.

Anyway, if popcorn's your thing, you know what you have to do.

Bleeding Heart Bakery [MenuPages]
Bleeding Heart Bakery [Official Site]

[Photo: Bleeding Heart Bakery/flickr. They put their cupcakes photos online. Why doesn't every restaurant do this?!]

Potatoes are a terribly versatile starch; you can mash them, smash them, fry them, scallop, dice, puree, bake, roast, gratinate, chowederize and latkefy them...they take well to almost any preparation. Now that the UN Food and Agriculture Organization has decided that they are the food of the future by dint of their caloric yield per acre (a critical metric in an era of unmitigated cereal price spikes), there will be opportunity for even more permutations of potato dishes, like some of these exotic specimens:

"Tornado Potato" — as purchasable on the streets of Seoul (superlocal):

After the jump, spuds galore!

Continue reading "Potatoes: Feeding The World In Their Many Guises" »

Last we checked in with Szalas, it was because an Omnivorous feature was designed specifically to accommodate the restaurant. To whit:

The restaurant round-up that follows Omnivorous this week is "Twenty-four restaurants south of 52nd Street," so themed because Gary is...south. But why 52nd street in particular, we wondered? A quick check of the addresses reveals the northernmost restaurant to be Szalas, a Goralean restaurant in Brighton Park. Come again? They're Polish highlanders, they eat veal goulash, and on the weekends, they dance. If the column was named to accommodate this particular restaurant, you know it must be good.

Right or wrong, Polish food is simply not a cuisine we expect to pay a lot of money for; Chinese and Mexican are also in this category. Thai and, say, Greek, are not anymore, because the gentrification of Thai and Greek food have inured us to $15 and up entrees. Which is not to say there aren't plenty of places to get delicious and cheap Thai and Greek food! But we're fine paying a little or a lot for either. Of course, Chinese and Mexican have been making inroads, too — witness Shanghai Terrace and Topolobampo.

As for Polish food, though, there's really only one "expensive" Polish restaurant in the area (Lutnia). This doesn't need to be the case! Any cuisine can be elevated to gourmet heights; all it takes is one enterprising and aesthetically gifted chef. But that hasn't happened yet in Chicago, which is why a $15.50 entree at Szalas is jarring. But hey, if they can get away with it — and again, this looks pretty tasty — more power to them.

Okay, have a good weekend then!

Szalas [MenuPages]
Szalas [Official Site]

[Photo: cohodas208c/flickr]

Lito's Empanadas, operating out of a little storefront in Lincoln Park, has built a nice reputation for itself since it opened late last year. We're happy to see a family-run place that decides to offer only one thing, and does a really good job at it.

Look how positive MenuPages reviewers have been!

Make it a point to get to Lito's. Lito's is a very small, sparkling clean place which has a few window seats for dining in. Much of their business seems to be take out. The empanadas which are fabulous, travel well and stay warm. Try my favorites: beef,olives,rainsins, rice or the beef and rice. My ultimate favorite is the choco-banana. The empanadas are inexpensive -a wonderful deal for the money. The owner and his wife are very friendly. These would be great to take to a party. If you are in the neighborhood, stop by. If you are not in the neighborhood, make it a point to get there. I am convinced you will not be disappointed.

Lito's empanadas range from $2.09 to $2.29 (regular unleaded, premium unleaded circa 2005?), with the beef and rice smack in the middle at $2.19. Which is a bargain, compared to how empanadas are priced elsewhere around town. Que Rico! does two cheese and spinach empanadas for $6.80 (but we didn't want two!); Cafe Ba-Ba-Reeba's are $5.25 a pop for your choice of chicken or beef; and it doesn't get much better from there. No, Lito's is pretty unique in what it's doing — if you've never had an empanada before, this is a good place to start.

Lito's Empanadas [MenuPages]

[Photo: R.A.M.O.N.E./flickr]

Next time you find yourself at West Side soul institution Edna's, pass on the peach cobbler (which is amazing, by the way), and try a slice of coconut cake instead. A monster hunk is $3, and the cakes are, of course, homemade. If you were wondering where Chicago's highest concentration of trans fats was located, look no further. But totally worth it!

Edna's [MenuPages]

[Photo: Made in Mississippi]

This Croque Madame from Sixteen (which, by the way, was incorrectly spelled "Croque Madam" on the menu they emailed us) is as billed - a grilled ham and cheese sandwich with a fried egg on top.

Want to know how much they charge for it?

FIFTEEN DOLLARS. We are not offended by much, price-wise, but come on. $15? You can sprinkle it with as much thyme and paprika or whatever as you want, but it's still a pretty anemic-looking platter for what would also buy all-you-can-eat Indian buffet for two at Sher-A-Punjab, for all intents and purposes. The photographer, dane brian, captioned his photo with, "pretty pretty good.. the fried egg was a little much, but it was still great." We say, a single egg is a pittance for the money; and doesn't the whole thing come off as looking a little dry and sad? Compare to what is, admittedly, the most appetizing Croque Madame we've ever seen, just under $13 from Green Grocer in Melbourne, Australia:

Now are you offended? Good. Obviously you're paying for the sixteenth floor view and the Trump power trip, and there are lighting issues with the photography, but still, we are not impressed.

Sixteen [MenuPages]
Sixteen [Official Site]
Green Grocer [Official Site]

[Photos: Croques Madames at Sixteen (dane brian/flickr) and Green Grocer (Wodetzki/flickr)]

The world is generally a horrible place, but we can at least take some solace in the fact that the first few digits of pi, 3.14 specifically, correspond to today's date of 3/14. Basically, though, any excuse for a pie slideshow will do. These pies were all photographed in Chicago, many of them orderable at local restaurants. There seems to be a wintery theme to the pie fillings, except for one in the middle that reminds us summer is sort of around the corner! Enjoy.

• Pie Day! Vlad Lazerian:

• Coconut cream pie at the Golden Nugget Pancake House, Kim Scarborough:

• Key lime pie at Mity Nice Grill, jellybeanjill13:

• Turtle pie at Gibson's Steakhouse, Stitcher:

• Pumpkin pie on a fork in Chicago, Euro Joe:

• Blueberry pie at Zingarella, Glenview, jellybeanjill13:

• Red wine and poached pear pie at First Slice, tympan:

• Peanut butter crunch pie at a Border's in Chicago, lorilea:

• Chocolate chip pecan pie at Dine, Zesmerelda:

• Found Chocolate pie on the streets of Chicago, CPW!:

Right. Have a "filling" weekend.

No matter where you live, you've probably heard of this legendary Brooklyn pizza joint known as Di Fara's. If you haven't, welcome to the big leagues, pizza lovers!

Brooklyn is, by many accounts, the nation's pizza capital (sorry Chicago. It kind of is). And Di Fara's is, by many of those same accounts, the best pizzeria in Brooklyn. So logic dictates that Di Fara's is the best pizzeria in the nation. At least by many accounts.

And many of those accountable for this opinion weighed in on an Epi-Log poll and voted Di Fara's the best on the East Coast. The result? We get a virtual photo-walk-through of the process of making a Di Fara's pizza. Not surprisingly, it all has to do with one dedicated pizza master. According to Epi, Domenico Di Fara's recipe for quite possibly the best pizza on earth boils down to this:

"I use only the freshest ingredients, the bufala mozzarella from the town I grew up in, the oregano and basil from Israel, tomatoes from Salerno, flour from Italy," he says with a smile. "That's the secret recipe."

Secrets of Di Fara Pizza [Epi Log]
Photo credit: Michael Y. Park [Epi Log]

Bruno this week was a big snooze. He reviewed an Italian and a tapas in the 'burbs, and we were skimming and wondering, why are these so long? And it turns out because in both articles, several paragraphs are repeated! The scary thing is, it was kind of hard to tell.

On the (thorny?) subject of tapas vs. small plates, Bruno writes:

The fact is, there is little or no connection between tapas and small plates. In most instances, small plates are simply appetizers with a higher price tag, while tapas have an identity and long culinary history.

Moving on, Mike Sula does one of his customary visits to a small- to mid-sized artisanal junk food maker. This week's is on Katie Das and her Das Caramelini caramels, with flavors like "lavender oil, lemongrass, citrus zest, coffee beans, dried Chinese plum, cardamom, ancho chile powder, star anise, and Szechuan peppercorns." So caramel is just like ice cream and politicians - a sugary medium into which we mix our hopes and dreams, and then eat the results after dinner.

Talk about a real hit at a party. The New York Times' John Tierney posted a blog entry celebrating Pi Day, the geekiest holiday in the history of civilization, which happens to be today. First celebrated by the Exploratorium in San Francisco exactly 20 years ago, March 14 (3.14) is a day to sit back and marvel at the mathematical miracle that is pi.

Here are a couple of Tierney's food-related suggestions on how to ring in the day. Hold on to your pocket-protector:

There's a method of calculating pi that involves throwing hot dogs onto a piece of paper. You'll have to check out Wiki-How for that one.

You could eat a slice of pie at pi second: 1:59 p.m. (3.14 1:59)

Our own humble suggestion includes a nod to the time of year. We've been eating oranges like they're going out of style because, well, they are. At least, they're going out of season. But these globular fruits also encompass nature's love of a certain mathematical equation. So, using the round fruits and a round pie pan, please enjoy the following orange pie recipes.

Fresh Orange Pie [Recipe Zaar]
Mandarin Orange Pie [Essortment]
Orange Meringue Pie [Allrecipes]
Key Orange Pie [Diana's Kitchen]

Photo credit:Profkaren [Flickr]

LTHForum user "djenks" writes:

"The thing about the vienna beef cafeteria that boggles my mind is that, imo, the two most average things they have there are the hotdogs and fries. The fries are bad and the dogs just....are pretty average. Sure, they are vienna and really good - but the prep just doesn't sit with me well."

(In all fairness, djenks does say that sandwiches are generally good, and one would be hard-pressed to find a better place in Chicagoland to purchase uncooked Vienna hot dogs in bulk, especially the natural-cased version.)

Other hot dog options in the area:

• Hot Doug's in Logan Square is an obvious choice; in addition to all the crazy foie-gras-style stuff they do, they also offer Vienna dogs

• What's the Beef in Lincoln Park offers eponymous existential quandries, but also online ordering!

• Big Boy Gyros in North Center gets great reviews on MenuPages, and is said to be the best of its kind in the area

Vienna Beef Cafe [MenuPages]
Vienna Beef Cafe [Official Site]
The Vienna Beef Cafeteria [LTHForum]

[Photo: they're called sport peppers? Yes. (Vienna Beef - Building A Chicago Style Hot Dog)]

Bad news in the follow-up to our Pink Grapefruit Mentos post yesterday: Candy Blog maven Cybele commented yesterday, and Mentos parent company Perfetti Van Melle confirmed in an e-mail today, that the pink pellets of grapefruit goodness are over and done for.

According to Jacqueline (no last name given) of PVM, "Pink Grapefruit was a limited time flavor and is no longer available." Oh. Okay, then. It would appear that the time is right for moving on, however now that seems impossible. Now that it's confirmed we'll never get to taste this candy that received a "10" from Candy Blogs, and that our friend went on and on about Sunday, it is the one and only goal we have left in life.

So what are your/our chances of ever tasting this mystery candy? Well, slim, obviously. Cybele indicated the grapefruit may still be in production for the Indonesian citrus-mix Mentos. Meanwhile, a Google search turned up a store in San Francisco, Miette, that is tracking the issue.

"Yes we have carried them in the past and I'm trying to find them again," says Miette Confisserie manager Kelly. "Currently, I'm searching for them. I'm trying to find a vendor." Kelly said the candies moved well, but that if they must be imported in future, the price may jump. It might still happen, though. These Miette people are enthusiastic about their candy. "We're in love with them. We're obsessed with the grapefruit flavor. We make a macaroon [and a layer cake] with grapefruit flavor and we carry Haro gummies. They make a white and a pink grapefruit slices... We also carry Jelly Bellies' pink grapefruit jelly beans."

Well, if anybody can track down this mystery sweet, surely Kelly will. Meanwhile, it looks like this will be a chocolate-and-jelly-bean kind of Easter. Boring.

Miette [MenuPages]
Miette [Official Site]
Perfetti Van Melle [Official Site]
Candy Blog [Official Site]

Photo: Jeffrey Zalesny [Flickr]

A friend of the blog (who chose to remain anonymous) went to Moto recently for the Grand Tasting Menu. The meal and accompanying wine pairings were reportedly quite tasty, if a tad overpriced in a head-to-head comparison with Alinea, but he or she was impressed by the email Moto sent out the next day. It contains a recipe for "Doughnut Pancakes" from Chef Homaro Cantu and Pastry Chef Ben Roche (even if it was more the brainchild of the latter, the former cannot go uncited) that, despite the esoteric kitchen equipment Moto frequently uses, can be made at home. The recipe is simple enough, and it smacks of the alchemy and whimsy that Moto is famous for:

Doughnut Pancakes

5 doughnuts
2 eggs
1 quarter cup powdered sugar
2/3 cup milk
1 tsp baking powder
2 tbs flour
1 half tsp salt

Method:

• Roughly chop doughnuts
• Combine doughnuts, milk, eggs and powdered sugar in a blender
• Blend the ingredients until smooth (approx. 1 minute)
• Add flour, baking powder and salt
• Pulse in a blender until combined
• Cook in a greased skillet as you would a typical pancake

Alchemy and whimsy, yes, but also how the world's most precocious five year old would make pancakes.

Might we recommend the donuts at Old Fashioned Donuts down on 112th and Michigan (did you know Michigan goes down to 150th street? No, you shut up!), which are often said to be among the best in Chicago? Or maybe it would sort of be a waste to use high-quality artisanal donuts for this project. Then again, you are going to be eating donuts while preparing the pancakes, aren't you?

Moto [MenuPages]
Moto [Official Site]
Old Fashioned Donuts [MenuPages]

[Photo: Apple Fritter from Old Fashioned Donuts, a perfectly reasonable substitute for doughnuts in this recipe, sazerac2k/flickr]

Bad choice, should've bought the lotto - If you want attitude, so-so food and a punishing experience, then you belong here. I tried the pulled-pork "world-class" sandwich and I think the name is correct for a third-world place in a first-world country...not so good. Rib tips were maybe less than average. Service gets a zero from me and if you want to know why, just visit this place and it will be obvious when they short you on your food, your taste, but not the cost, Calvin's website states that "...if you don’t really like people, you’re in the wrong business..." well guess what Calvin, either you change your staff or delete this from your webpage, because it's not happening dude. Most importantly, looks like Calvin needs to go back to St. Louis for retraining immediately if not sooner. [Ed.: haha]

Was a huge fan of Fat Willy's in the beginning. Absolutely LOVE their spicy bbq sauce. Recently, however, I notice the prices are high and the service is low. I called for delivery on evening and was rudely put on hold (had to hang up and call back 5 times) before being told that delivery orders aren't taken until 5pm (it was 4:55). Overall - the cold and soggy food that arrived was very expensive, in my opinion. Two sandwhich dinners for $30.00. Will be trying some over, more down-to-earth bbq joints from now on.

The only thing missing...is a bigger dining room with an actual wait staff. We went here on a Saturday night and the place was PACKED! Not that I mind rubbing elbows with strange people at a picnic table...but they have the volume to warrent a bigger space. That said, the food was DELICIOUS!!! I had the pulled pork sandwich with fries and mac & cheese. YUM! Love the fact that it's BYOB. A great value, too.

Opened in 2005, this simple little rib joint has 3 folding plastic tables and 6 or 8 folding chairs... friendly store front atmosphere... and slow (attention to detail) service. This place has the best ribs... pork and beef, super greens and beans, and killer cornbread. Typical of a lot of small rib joints there is no diet pop. Oh well... try it! It's great.

Honey 1 has amazing ribs and excellent sauce. Their hot links are also very, very good with the right amount of zip. My only (small) complaint is that the pulled pork sandwich, while delicious, is tiny and seems overpriced at 8 bucks. Overall, this is the best BBQ I've had in Chicago and I HIGHLY recommend it.

The drink tastes a bit like barbecue sauce.... The short rib hash was delicious, but greasy. The basket of donuts, and especially the short bread cakes with jam, were strong. Observed 1 friend adore her market inspired (sweet crab) eggs Benedict. While, another complained of a bland root vegetable omelet.

No wait, nice service, a bit like slipping into an old smoking jacket.