Toro: A Sushi Mecca

Toro Sushi (http://www.yelp.com/biz/toro-sushi-chicago) is spectacular. Not only is it levels above all other sushi places I've tried in Chicago, it is one of the best sushi places I've been to ever, including, I must admit, the New York ones. It all started with my complete disappointment in the Chicago sushi scene after a string of highly recommended establishments tried, but miserably failed to impress. Refusing to subject myself to the rampant mediocrity, I finally went on a no-sushi diet, interrupted only haphazardly by an occasional trip to NYC. After months of unsatisfied cravings and a number of fresh disappointments, I was almost ready to, like pizza, retire the eastern cuisine into the “vault of foods not to eat in Chicago,” when a miracle occurred. An acquaintance, who had for a number of years lived in both Chicago and NYC threw out the name of Toro. My incessant cravings for the little fish morsels and a particularly long stretch of time away from New York finally overpowered my resolve and led me, hesitating and full of dread, to Toro. The rest is history. Let's just say that my cravings now involve visions of Toro's sushi bar and Mitch (the guy behind the bar) orchestrating the magic that only those salivating over tiny little slivers of fished rolled in rice and seaweed can understand.

For those of you who have yet to experience Toro, the place is tiny, reminding one of the little hole-in the-wall establishments of the city I love so much. The elbow room is tight and getting in is as easy as acing a calculus exam. Needless to say, it is worth the wait. To avoid a NYC-style wait (i.e. – 2 hours or more) skip the peak hours and go during the week. If offered a seat at the bar, take it and enjoy watching Mith at work. Try one of his spectacular inventions of the day. The guy is a master with mixing flavors and textures, so just trust him and order whatever he makes. If you see a particularly attractive roll being devoured at the table next to you, don't hesitate to point and ask for the same.

It's been a few months now since my discovery of Toro and I have not only not been disappointed, but every time I go there, I get even more excited about it. The rolls are particularly amazing – lush in number and variety and so well thought out that I guarantee you, you will like any one you try. I am now, in fact, having second thoughts about posting this entry, as I know it will only make the lines bigger and the wait longer.

Hopleaf Bar: Great Beer Selection

The Hopleaf Bar (http://www.hopleaf.com/) in Andersonville is a great find. It's pretty loud and was crowded this past Saturday night, but they have a great beer selection which includes a lot of excellent Belgian beer. There is a quieter "restaurant" section in the back, but my friends and I stayed in the more lively front bar area and knocked down a few beers along with very good mussels and decent escargot. This is certainly a fun place for a hang-out with friends. I shall be back.

Topolobampo

If you want spectacular ceviche, Topolobampo (http://www.rickbayless.com/restaurants/topolobampo.html) is the place to go. This is the second (first being Blackbird) high class restaurant that I've been to in Chicago where the food and not only the price was high class. Overall, I was impressed with the food, but in this economy I'll have to think twice before going back anytime soon.

For starters, guacamole was good. The most memorable dish was the Ceviche Yucateco (steamed organic shrimp and calamari tossed with lime, orange, habanero, avocado, jcama and cilantro) which was one of the best ceviches I've ever had. It combined the freshest possible ingredients with just the right combination of tangy seasoning. Excellent.

I also had a cream of something soup, of which the remaining impression was that it was delicately balanced. For my main course, I had a pleasingly inventive version of black cod which came in banana leaves with pan juices, habanero-pickled red onions, white beans and tangy guero chile "jellies." I tried B's crispy-skin, pan-roasted Gunthorp duck breast in red peanut mole (ancho chiles, sweet spices, red wine), which came with braised black lentils with duck "carnitas," pea tendril salad and crunchy duck chicharron, and was not impressed with it. The flavors were unusual, but not immediately appealing and the duck was quite raw, which is not my personal preference, but B said he liked it. The deserts were, as usual, quite good despite being a bit too sweet and boasted the best panna cotta I've had in Chicago.

Overall, the food was in many ways surprising, interesting and quite delicious. The restaurant with its warm-toned, Mexican-inspired decor and excellent service was also quite appealing. Nor did I dislike the fact that Rick Bayless walked by our table at least 5 times. What I wasn't too keen on were the prices with the duck dish at $38 and the black cod at $37. So while I certainly do not regret my first visit to Topolobampo, I doubt I'll venture back there before the economy bumps back to the top.

Avec: Yes! Yes! Yes!

AVEC! Like water to parched lips. Yes! If only all restaurants in Chicago were like this! The food was exhilarating, the vibe was ecstatic, the crowd was entertaining and who minds a 45 minute wait if you get all that in the same place on the same night?!

My excitement is making my thoughts run ahead of my words. But who can blame me - this place felt so right. I only wonder why I did not try it before. In fact, the whole experience was one jumbled happy combination of sensory excitement. The small plates - each intense in its own clique of flavors and each different from the next. The variety - intriguing, but not overwhelming. The waiter recommended an astounding red that seemed to go brilliantly with everything from escargot to chorizo-stuffed dates. I wanted to try each and every dish, but alas, my stomach does have limits. No matter - it gives me an excellent excuse to go back again and again and I recommend you do the same!

Here's the link (http://www.avecrestaurant.com/new/smallplates.php). Look at the menu. Judging by the 6 or so dishes I tried, the rest of them will be as good if not better and the prices are reasonable - so what are you waiting for? Take your friends. Go! Have fun!

A Tavola: Mamma Mia!

It's been a couple of months since I last favored these pages with a review, but while my pen (or in this case, my keyboard) has been dormant my wanderings in the Chicago food forest have continued. First, a look at A Tavola in the Ukrainian Village (http://www.atavolachicago.com/).

To sum up for those with short attention span - a disappointment. The LTH Forum people have led me astray once again (no longer a surprise for me). Take a look at this thread (http://lthforum.com/bb/viewtopic.php?f=14&t=6754&hilit=a+tavola) about the pillowy-ness and the heavenly delight of A Tavola's gnocchi. I was intrigued and, not having had good Italian food in several months, excited, especially since I'm quite a fan of good gnocchi. I no longer remember what else we ordered. And since I don't remember it, it must have been uninspired and uninspiring. What I do remember is the cozy room, small tables, white tablecloths, black and white framed pictures (of naked bodies artistically rendered), flowers and candles. I also remember completely tasteless and, yes, super pillowy gnocchi with butter and sage leaf, sage leaf being the one and only taste producing ingredient on the plate. The butternut squash version of same had slightly more flavour, but really, all the effort must have gone to pillowing up those gnocchi since none of it was spent on making them flavorful.

And I cannot even express the extent of my indignation for their sorry excuse of a panna cotta. As I've likely mentioned in one of my other posts, I am bit of a freak when it comes to panna cotta. I first tried it in Trieste, Italy and was instantly seduced by its rich silky texture and delicate vanilla flavour. I have since tried this dessert in countless restaurants in the US. A couple of the NYC ones did not disappoint, but most did. A Tavola's was a disaster not equalled by many. It was utterlly too runny and too soft and too unlike what a panna cotta should be. And all that in an "Italian" restaurant. Please! The panna cotta at Topolobampo, with its Mexican-inspired cuisine, was infinitely better. Now for an Italian restaurant to get upstaged in an italian dessert by a mexican restaruant (even of Topolobampo's caliber) is simply shameful.

A Tavola gets marked as a blah in my annotated Zagat's. The search for mouth-watering dishes and mind-boggling taste combinations continues.