Restaurant Review

I am officially back in Chicago for Winter Break, and what a better way to spend these two weeks then dinning at Chicago's newest hotspots with good friends. Wednesday's lunch was had at Grahamwich in River North. Personally I found the hype to be a little built up. Graham Elliot's latest restaurant is wildly populated. The hour and half we were there the line took up most of the small restaurant space and doorway. Definitely a place to go at off hours. Also, it is important to know they are cash only and have very little seating. And do not plan on sucking up to your co-workers with lunch because there is a four sandwich max per person.

Dining on sandwiches and pickles at the counter

Standing in line we were greeted with a delicious taste of rosemary apple cider and a sample of their greek yogurt topped with pomegranate seeds, glazed chestnuts,  and dark chocolate. The menu is composed of 8 Sandwiches all $10. I chose their beef shortrib sandwich with baby watercress, shoestring potatoes, pickled shallots, and creamy horseradish on pretzel bread. The flavor profile of the pretzel bread was excellent, but the execution of table to mouth did not work. The bread was too small for the amount of ingredients, and the shortribs were tough and dry. Who am I a mere Culinary student to tell a Michelin rated chef how to serve a sandwich, but I like to think I have expertise in this category of cooking.  Personally I would have served the                     sandwich with jus to compensate for the dry meat. Pretzel bread would have been perfect for soaking it up. One friend ordered the turkey confit sandwich with candied yams, stewed cranberries, field greens, and sage mayo on a dinner roll. She described it as thanksgiving on bread, but did not seem overly excited about it. The last sandwich ordered by our small group was the grilled cheese with wisconsin cheddar, shaved prosciutto, tomato marmalade, and cheese curds on pullman bread. This seemed to be the winner of the group and the one I would go back for.

With our sandwiches we tried the g'wich pickles described as,"seasonal veggies, possibly local, probably sustainable , hopefully organic". I appreciated the chef's sense of humor with his description and they were a tasty/healthy choice to eat with our sandwiches. Not overly pickled and a creative mix of veg. Shared as well was the g'wich popcorn; grated parmesan cheese, chopped chives, sea salt, cracked pepper, and truffle oil. To say the least it is not your ordinary popcorn. Well balanced and fresh, worth stopping in for a bag on the way to a movie.

Overall I am not running back, but would not protest a second visit once Grahamwich has had time to settle in.

Wrap-around line

Staff and menu

g'wich pickles

g'wich popcorn

grilled cheese

beef shortrib

Out of the Kitchen

A view of the Port and Skyline

 Busy season is over in the Napa Valley giving me more time off work. I have started spending my weekends venturing through Northern California before my time is up here. My latest excursion was to San  Francisco. A few friends and I started the day at the Sea Aquarium at Pier 39. A little known fact about me is that until now I had never been to an aquarium. I have always wanted to visit the Chicago aquarium, but never got the chance (A certain mother decided my fourth grade trip to the aquarium would be the perfect time to schedule my adenoids to be taken out...thanks mom!). We spent a good hour at the aquarium where I was able to pet a shark, star fish, and a string ray. The fish were beautiful, but it was a bit of a tourist attraction.

I found Nemo

Continuing on with being tourists, we headed to Fisherman's Wharf for lunch. Its nice to say I have been, but it probably was not the smartest lunch destination for a person with a fear of birds. Sitting on a bench outside with hundreds of seagulls is not my idea of a stress free lunch. These persistent birds went as far as removing a piece of fish from my friends hand mid-sauce dunk, causing a horrific trickle down effect of bites, bird attacks, spillage, squawking, and running. We escaped, no thanks to the boat driver watching the entire show with a look of disgust on his face. Apparently he thought it was important to yell at us for feeding the birds as though we did it on purpose. As for the fish, it did not make it out as un-harmed as us. What the birds did not get to we threw in the trash for lack of flavor and loss of appetite.
 The best part of my day came when we headed to China Town. I was in the market for a new sharpening stone. At a store, our Cuisines of Asia instructor informed us of, I found the one I wanted for a fraction of the price. I was also able to complete my Holiday gift list to myself by purchasing a chinois and mortar and pestle. China town is a blessing for a chef's wallet, but it is important to be a conscious shopper there. A lot of trash is mixed in with the treasures.

Recipe Box

To Germany and back in 6 hours...

For the last few weeks I have been studying different cuisines indigenous to Europe and the Mediterranean. Today, my contribution to class was to make two dishes very traditional to Germany.

Picture above is a demo of Schnitzel our instructor
made for us. He added sardines on top. 

WIENER SCHNITZEL 

Veal cutlets, 4-5 oz. 12 ea. 

Standard breading 

Flour as  needed 

Egg wash (8 eggs) 16 oz. 

Bread crumbs as  needed (seasoned with salt and pepper)

Cooking fat 

Vegetable oil 1 pt. 

Butter, clarified 1 pt. 

Lard 1 lb. 

Garnish 

Lemon slices, no seeds 12 ea. 

Prepared horseradish 1/4 c

Capers 1/4 c

Butter 2 T

Parsley 1 T

Lemon juice 1 lemon

Fried eggs 7

Method  

1. Pound cutlets to an 1/8th of an inch in thickness

2. Bread the veal cutlets by dipping them in flour then egg wash and finally seasoned bread crumbs. 

3. Pan-fry cutlets in an oil and butter till light brown.

4. Remove veal and let oil drain off, meanwhile in pan with cooking fat add in more utter till it foams and turns brown. Remove from heat and add juice of one lemon, parsley, and capers.

5. Pour over cutlets

6. Top with fried eggs, horseradish, and lemon slices dusted in paprika (alternate dusted and non dusted slices as a method of presentation). 

A twist to this recipe is to sprinkle grated cheese on top and brown
under broiler. Fine herbs may also be added to dough for extra
flavor

SPAETZLE
All-purpose flour 13 oz. 

Salt ½ tsp. 

Nutmeg 1/8 tsp. 

Eggs 6¾ oz. 

Water 8 oz. 

To serve 

Butter 

Salt and pepper 

Dill, finely chopped 

Method 

1. Place the dry ingredients in bowl and form a well.  

2. Beat the eggs to blend and place in a well of the dry ingredients. Add about half the water 

and beat well. 

3. Add water, a little at a time, and beat mixture until bubbles start to appear and smooth 

batter no longer adheres to the spoon. Batter will be thick but wet. 

4. Fill large pot with water, bring to boil. 

5. Use strainer and spatula. press dough through holes in strainer with spatula into boiling water.

6. Remove spaetzle with skimmer when they float to surface. Place in bowl of cold water to 

remove excess starch and hold until service. 

8. To serve, sauté in butter to reheat. Season with salt, pepper, and finely chopped dill, if 

desired.