WE'VE MOVED

Savage Eating has moved to a different server so click here to go to the new site. Please update your bookmarks to www.savageeating.com and note that if you're typing directly into the URL bar, you HAVE to have to include the WWW.

DS

The Aioli--Not Just Another Band from Europe

Many of us learned what an “alfresco” lunch meant from Zero Mostel in the original movie version of “The Producers.” It sounded exotic to Leo Bloom, but it turned out to be just a dirty water dog in Central Park. Recently I was among the 80,000 people jamming Chicago’s Grant Park as part of the Lollapalooza festival. Of course, I was interested in what the food offerings were and was pleasantly surprised by many of them and the short waiting lines to get to them. It proved that you could do quality, interesting work on a mass level instead of just phoning it in.

Let’s start with local restaurateur Graham Elliot who recently upped his Q Rating with an appearance on “Top Chef Masters.” His restaurant set up shop along the Balbo Ave food row and sold food which was gourmet-adjacent but still appropriate for a big, sweaty rock concert. And what was really impressive was that he was THERE, every day—on the line, making sure it was all good. Sure he posed for a few pictures with some of his fans (it IS a rock festival, after all) but he was there to work. No Rocco DiSpirito here. And being a musician himself and a fan, he was also there to see some bands at night—we chatted about some of his faves.
On the menu was a lobster corndog with a lemon aioli. Terrifically meaty and tasty on the inside and delicately quick friend on the outside. Didn’t even leave a grease stain in the cardboard. Another great option, even for us carnivores, was the portobello satay with the spicy peanut sauce—a nice balance of sweet and spice with meaty pieces of mushroom, also on a festival-friendly stick like the corndog.

Or how about the black pepper-parmesan-truffle popcorn? Less successful were the buffalo chicken wings with a blue cheese foam, as the ones I got were cold and flabby,and hard to eat while you’re juggling a beer, but that’s the type of thing that’s hard to pull off in a mass catering situation. Nevertheless, I was impressed by his food and the effort he put into the weekend and look forward to visiting his real restaurant on my next trip to town.

As pedestrian as it sounds, I also really enjoyed the cheeseburgers by the Old Towne Smokehouse (don’t think it’s a real restaurant) stand. Good smokey flavor, fresh bun (a little sticky being warmed in foil) and totally manageable while walking to see your next band.]

Given the sweltering heat, and the dodgy bathroom situation (too much?) I was a little taken aback by the overall lack of options that didn’t involve deep frying, sausage, or beef. Normally, as in my Spring Training Baseball trip, I’d be all in, but this wasn’t the time or place. One option which was a really pleasant surprise was the black bean burger served up by Goose Island Clybourn, a pop up from a local brewpub. Coming on a warm pita with some shredded cabbage it was spicy (especially with a little extra sriracha) and completely satisfying. They also offered beer-fed pork sliders and a grilled cheese pretzel, but, hey, the festival was only three days long.

When I escaped the park and got out and about, I was able to sample some Chicago classics including Twin Anchors, covered in a previous post, the upscale and excellent Weber Grill (brought to you buy, duh, Weber Grills, and the inimitable Diner Grill in Lakeview, home of the infamous “Slinger.” Got some great video of that to post when I get a chance.

Rock On.



--Savage

Anchors A-WEIGH

I had the good fortune last week to visit Chicago--probably my favorite city that I wouldn't want to live in. Its importance as a food town has recently been highlighted for the unwashed masses by the appearance of locals Art Smith (Table Fifty-Two) and Art and Soul), Graham Elliot Bowles and Rick Bayless (Frontera Grill and Topolobampo)on Top Chef Masters.

The reason for my trip was to attend Lollapalooza and anticipating the impending frenzy of the Friday-Sunday event, I was looking forward to a relaxed night-before meal with my friend Jonathan and his wife, Liz. His dinner choice was right on the money--Twin Anchors Restaurant & Tavern, a Chicago institution dating back to 1932, housed in three-story Old Town building which was built in 1881. And the Dean of the Old School, Sinatra, helped make the place with his frequent visits starting in the 50's.

Even on a sultry summer Thursday evening, it was packed, but no worries as the "Tavern" part ensured some good, old fashioned bartending. And indeed I was not disappointed as I was poured an excellent Makers Manhattan with the inclusion of requested bitters (no, I didn't have the temerity to ask for Fernet Branca). Hey, I said, "on the rocks," but whatever.

The restaurant's name is a nod to its founders' affiliation with the Chicago Yacht Cub which also explains some of the nautical decor inside the informal, tavern-esque space. But even surrounded by anchors and steering wheels, this isn't the place you're ordering Sole Meuniere. You're ordering one thing, mister, and that's ribs, and make 'em "zesty!" The meaty baby backs are slow cooked and basted with either a mild or zesty (and well-named at that) barbecue sauce. They arrive at your table beautifully crusted with sauce and just the right amount of char at the ends, and the taste is magnificent.



For side orders we opted for "Homemade Zesty Baked Beans," of course with pulled pork in the sauce, and pepper jack creamed spinach which would have been better if it had been a little hotter and thus less coagulated, and of course, onion rings which seemed to be a requirement by the looks of everyone else's plates within view.

I left well-fed in both stomach and soul, ready to face the next three days of sweat, rock 'n' roll and ironic t-shirts. If only I had one that said "I"m keepin' it ZESTY, yo."

--Savage

Call Me Bitter

When I was a kid, anything that didn't taste good could be explained away as "it's an acquired taste." So was that code for "when you get older you'll have no taste buds left?" Hard to say, but I couldn't get with many of the members of the bitter family, especially when it came in liquid form, including tonic water and the elusive and Anglophilic Schweppes Bitter Lemon. Even Campari, which I consume happily now, either with soda or as part of a Negroni, was off limits. And what was with that bait and switch when it looked all cherry-sweet?

Fast forward to my bar set up today and you'll find six different types of bitters, which I use in all manner of cocktails. My latest discovery (ok, this stuff has been around since 1845) is Fernet Branca, an Italian alcoholic (40%) drink that has a distinctive bitter, herbal taste. Its manufacturer explains that it is made form over 20 different herbs, spices and roots, sourced from four different continents with the final product then aged in oak barrels for twelve months.


One whiff and you know you're in for some strong stuff, but it's not so out there, flavor wise that only the strong can handle it (like Vegemite). It has an earthy, medicine-y herbal taste, sort of similar to an alcoholic, herb flavored Ricola. Now there's a great marketing pitch, eh?

When I first heard about Fernet Branca, the description made it seem like you use it so sparingly that a 750 ml bottle would not only last you a long time, but would eventually make a handy heirloom, so I opted for the 375ml bottle which was very hard to find, by the way. Now that I've gotten the bug, I'll go big next time.

If you go online, there are all sorts of cool, old school euro-type cocktails you can use it in, but why not start slowly and ask your local barkeep to add a splash to your Manhattan. You'll be pleasantly surprised.

Let me know what you think of it and what drinks you're mixing up with it.

For more info, go to the official Fernet Branca website.

--Savage

Why?

Not like the Nancy Kerrigan "Whyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy?" but more like "Why on earth do we need another food blog, especially by someone who doesn't have any genius culinary skills.

A) I really like to eat--not a shock to anyone who's seen my expanding waistline, hears about my trips to Surfas in L.A. (which are now the equivalent to my joyful, early 80's excursions into Tower Records) or knows that I'm Jewish.

2) For the last few years, aided by the fad of celebrity chefdom, the explosion in the home cooking products category, and the umpteen different TV shows that have a regular home on my TIVO, I have become really interested in the world of food, constantly thinking that my destiny is to somehow make it a part of my professional career. Of course, my wife who is the modern day Alice to my Calvin Trillin, has said, "That's nice that you like all that stuff; that's called having a hobby." Yet, I can't help but think that if I just start doing SOMETHING, like this blog, it may someday lead to something good. At the very least, let's have some fun.

C) I have a blog based on my "real" career as a music marketing maven, Just B Major, but I seldom post because it's a job, and writing about it seems like a bus man's holiday. Maybe writing one fun blog will encourage me to write more on the pro side.

4) As my dear Mother, Evelyn, would say, "Oh, why not?"

So there it is and away we go.

--Savage