it made me laugh really hard when i saw they took off the panties (crust) of the french toast). Very good meal as always, also the cheapest french toast i have had in the city in years. Pretty good!

I swear all other places have regressed but buona has improved... its the best at the moment I will die on that hill

Went for lunch with my homegirl and I will say, this place is solid and it’s nice that it’s by the water !

Things we ordered:

Drinks :

Espresso Martini
Peaches & Mezcal

Appetizer:

Dips & Veggie Mezze

Entrees:

Build-Your-Own Rice Bowls with beef + chicken

Dessert :
Dessert Dumplings — Biscoff + Dubai Chocolate (so good!)

They also have a coffee and treats shop upstairs but I didn’t try any of those. That’s for next visit!

$18.95
8.9/10
Love the crispy texture of the rice at the bottom, as well as the rest of the flavors, and the Gochujang gives a nice bit of spice to the bowl. Also appreciate how they give you the Gochujang on the side, so that you don’t overwhelm yourself if you can’t handle a lot of spiciness

Transit Options Nearby
Right along the 36 Broadway Bus
12 minutes to the Addison Red Line Station
15 minutes to the Belmont Brown/Purple/Red Line Station
4 minutes to the 8 Halsted Bus
5 minutes to the 152 Addison Bus
5 minutes to the 146 and 151 Buses
6 minutes to the 77 Belmont Bus
11 minutes to the 22 Clark Bus
Biking options nearby:
Right along the Roscoe St/Aldine Ave Greenway
Not too far from the Chicago Lakefront Trail
Not too far from the Halsted Street Bike Lanes
Not too far from the Clark St Bike Lanes
Not too far from the Belmont Ave Bike Lanes

Every single restaurant I have been to lately is charging $12-$20 for chips and guac and I am very much over it. Where to get it under $10?

Need yalls help finding some Colombian empanadas i had years ago but cant remember the name of the establishment.

They were take out empanadas that were packaged in a white paper box(kind of the size and style where a cake is stored in) with a sticker or label of the restaurant on top of the box. The reason I am giving this detail is because it seems like this restaurant sells a lot of empanadas and a lot of people take them to go. So im assuming this place is pretty much known for mainly their empanadas

The empanadas came with a vinegar based sauce. The sauce wasnt blended but had pieces of chopped veggies like maybe parsley and red onion?

The empanadas were definitely fried and not baked.

Appreciate everyones help and hopefully you guys can help me track down these amazing morsels!

Edit - they also did not have any crimping on the edges and had smooth edges.

I'm trying to understand how people who've hired a private chef, or thought about it, went about it specifically in Chicago. Where did you look first? What made you trust someone? Did you experience any hesitations or red flags?

Hey y’all, like the title says! So far the only place I’ve found that serves Ochazuke in Chi is Strings Ramen but only the Chinatown location, it’s pretty good. I crave it all the time but have heard that Strings isn’t super authentic either. Anyone have any recommendations or know of any other places here that sell it? TIA, appreciate my foodies!

Long story short, my FIL is visiting soon. He loves grease-bomb food and sweets, but unfortunately it caught up with him and he narrowly avoided a fatal heart attack last night. That means our original plan of hitting all of the classic fast food & pizza spots is now out the window.

What are your favorite healthy/healthier casual spots that are still delicious but won’t blow up his newly installed stent?

Thinking Kabobi, 888 Pho, Happy Lamb Hot Pot, Ssyal, Handlebar so far, but would love to hear any suggestions.

Thanks and FTP 🙏

After seeing TONS of videos with negative feedback for Panda Fest, I had pretty low expectations.

We decided to buy our ticket at the gate as we were keeping an eye on the morning storms.
We arrived on Sunday at 11am to a very short line.  (When we left at 2pm, the line was very very long, wrapping around the block)
Since we didn't have tickets yet, we were able to go into the VIP line to pay at the gate and got right in. I think our timing made a HUGE difference on our enjoyment of the day.

We started by walking around - TONS of food and merch vendors, great vibes.  The longest lines were the grilled meat on a stick.  However, those also had the  most complaints on the videos I watched, so I knew to skip those. 

We grabbed a passion mango tea with strawberry popping boba - it was good but the straw wasn't big enough for the boba, thought that was a miss.

We never waited more than a few minutes in any line.

My very favorite bite of the day were the Dumpling King dumplings - some of the best I've ever had anywhere.  They were tender and flavorful, with a great sweet soy sauce.  There was a wait for the beef, so we just had pork and chicken. So good.

We also really liked the Korean Fried chicken with the honey garlic, made fresh as you wait.  I didn't love the rice cakes, but I realize I prefer them steamed. They would have been great with that honey garlic sauce though.

We really enjoyed the Chili garlic beef sauce noodles, glad I saw a recommendation for those.
The sushi donut was fresh and tasty.  
The onigiri from Kororin was very affordable - 4 for $20, competed with grocery store prices.  We had the hot honey miso salmon, it was solid onigiri.
My husband enjoyed the Papaya sald from Nog Ice Thai.

A few dishes I would have skipped...
The soup dumplings from Three Momos were a letdown for me - most of them stuck to the bottom of the dish, losing the soup.  And they just didn't have the flavor I'd hoped for.  
The Japanse Fruit sandwich - the cream was good but the bread wasn't that soft.
The Tanghulu was fine - not worth the price.
My husband liked the King Squid - but as expected, the texture on the bite I had wasn't great.

We wrapped up with the Golden Mango Snow ice from Te'amo - that was delicious.  

It was a great day trying delicious food.  It was very expensive, which I knew going into it.  For just two of us, it was perfect.  While the event was very family friendly, I wouldn't have wanted to foot the bill for more than two people :)

It was a fun experience and I'd definitely go back!

Have friends visiting from out of town on Saturday and they are available only for an early brunch. Looking for a place that fits the following:
- Ideally in River North, Old Town, Lincoln Park, West Town, or River West (or any areas in between). They're staying in River North and will have a car, but I'd like to keep their drive to under 15 min.
- Younger kid-friendly (kids are ages 3-6). Doesn't have to be kid-centric (though that's also OK), but I wouldn't want to go anywhere where we wouldn't see other kids there. This also means they ideally have food options that would appeal to a kid.. eggs, toast, etc.)
- Either takes reservations or is reliably easy to walk into
- Can easily fit a table of 8

Does anything seem obvious?

Hey all, I'm planning a 5-year anniversary dinner for me and my partner in the city, and want some recommendations on a place with lighter fare and excellent drinks. We've done a tasting menu in the past, but specifically want a lighter dinner this time around to leave room for a late night Gene & Jude's run (don't judge!).

Current contenders are After and Kumiko, but open to others! Seafood/caviar is a plus. Thanks!

Looking for a place where I can celebrate my 30th birthday with some omakase, only me as I don’t have many friends and I just want to treat myself in peace during the middle of winter.

I’m on the north side so anywhere CTA accessible.

Cheers.

After seeing that sad looking beef yesterday, I had to come to Luke's to show what their beef actually looks like. It's not only the best beef in the Loop, it's one of the better ones in the city. ​​​

I’m curious what everyone recommend for:

1. Cafeteria style restaurants

2. Vegetarian comfort food. None of the healthy stuff. I’m a chubby vegetarian & I love comfort food

3. Favorite place for high tea. Little sandwiches, tea, all that cute stuff.

Thanks in advance!

I feel so left out in Chicago. I feel like we do not have a solid chicken salad spot. I’ve heard Paulina Market is great but the last 4 times I’ve gone, they’ve only had turkey salad and tuna salad. I’m looking for a solid, go to deli chicken salad. Please make my dreams come true in the comments.

I recently tried Bar Mar. I had been looking forward to it because, you know, Chef Jose. Sadly, I came away thinking 'eh. it was fine.'

Per usual, as a single I was treated kinda less than. I had to ask for the corn nuts everyone else had. I actually checked first to see if they were something on the menu to order or free like chips and sals. The seating was not comfortable for eating, at least where I sat. The drinks were extremely unimpressive, especially as I was told the they're a cocktail bar. The dessert menu was so disappointing I didn't get anything; that hurt lol. I really enjoyed the seafood I had. I had steak and while it wasn't anything special, I was pleased that when I asked for medium rare I actually got medium rare. I spent a lot of money, though I was planning to spend more - really, really disappointed about no dessert. For the prices and the quality this is supposed to be, I expected to walk out happy. I really was disappointed to walk out thinking I could take it or leave it. I questioned to myself whether it's food quality going down over time, food prices going up over time, this restaurant being overrated, or me.

The next time I went out, a week or so later, I really was confused about my reaction to Bar Mar. This place I won't name had a ridiculous wait and somewhat poor service b/c the staff was down two people. I felt really bad for them but when it takes so long that *I* run out of patience, it's bad. I again got steak, I'm thinking low iron perhaps lol, and it was overcooked. The food prices were much more reasonable. I walked out thinking 'eh. it was fine.'

But I couldn't get over how I could feel the same about both places. In comparison, Bar Mar was sooo much better. I went back and listed out all the points, including some I didn't lay out in this post, about what was good at Bar Mar. And the comparison of the steak cooking nuance. Like really, I don't get steak often but it's rare (pun intended) for it to come out cooked the way I want, but Bar Mar got it right. And yet, even with the reassessment, I kept thinking 'eh. it's fine'.

Seems to me it's a me thing. Was it the price? Am I just not willing to appreciate the higher prices of eating out in general and the even higher prices of higher end restaurants? Is it that I just don't have a good enough palette to appreciate the nuances of good food (in which case, is all good food wasted on me regardless of the price point?)?

I just feel so disappointed in myself and wonder how I can fix whatever is wrong with me about this.

For the record, I also like cheap wine as much as expensive wine, so when I ask if I have a bad palette and if there's anything that can fix me, I am being serious.

Spouse and I are looking for good locally sourced spots for a celebratory dinner in about a month. Hoping for something up to $150/person including alcohol. We’re in the Old Town/Lincoln Park area but willing to venture out. Little spooked (probably overreacting but better safe than sorry) by all the beef headlines lately so want somewhere we know is trustworthy.

Thanks!