Winter Comforts at the Slurping Turtle

As I've noted in a recent blog post ("Falling Back"), one of the best things about winter is taking comfort in hearty and soothing food. Nowhere is this more apparent than at the Slurping Turtle, a new Japanese comfort food restaurant in River North specializing in dumplings, sashimi, bincho grill and noodle soups.

Take comfort in this bowl during
Chicago's deep freeze. 

Given its proximity to Hubbard Street "to be seen" type places like EPIC (and my natural aversion to these places), I was skeptical at first. However, this all changed upon walking into the warm, inviting and casual restaurant.

The large communal table anchored the dining room and despite the 20 foot-plus lofted space, it wasn't overly noisy. The staff was laid back but attentive, and the wine and sake list was affordable and varied.  

I order shumai at most Japanese restaurants (they are a favorite), and the steamed pork and shrimp shumai at The Slurping Turtle were among the best I've had in the city, especially with a dash of spicy dipping sauce.

The bincho grill plates were small, leaving ample room to sample several types of meat and fish over the course of the meal. We had seared tuna and scallops, both of which were cooked perfectly and enhanced further with the lingering flavor of the charcoal and wood bincho grill. (Interested in learning more about the bincho grill? Check out this great video from Grub Street in which The Slurping Turtle's Chef Takashi Yagihashi explains this traditional japanese cooking method.)

The noodles, although difficult to share, are a must. We tried the Slurping Noodle with tiger shrimp, napa cabbage, fish cake and cilantro. Sharing soup is always a messy endeavor but certainly well worth the effort in this case.

I'm looking forward to going back to the Slurping Turtle in the dead of winter when I can settle in with a fragrant saki flight and a steaming bowl of noodles. While many Chicagoans tout the greatness of deep dish pizza during the winter, I'd argue that the type of meal served at The Slurping Turtle is just satisfying and warming (if not more so). With many vegetarian, seafood and grilled options, it's also lighter comfort food for the post-holiday winter months. Unfortunately, this does not include the Slurping Turtle's duck fat fried chicken dish, which I've heard is as decadent and addicting as it sounds.

In Appreciation: Blackbird

On a frigid January night several years ago, I had one of my first truly amazing dining experiences in Chicago. I was relatively new to the city and was more focused on getting to know my new home through its various bars, more so than its acclaimed restaurants. I guess we all go through those phases.

As it so happened on this night, I received an unexpected dinner invitation from an old friend who was in town for a few days. He recommended we meet at Blackbird. At the time, I remember thinking how the West Loop seemed light years away from my comfortable and familiar north side confines.

Blackbird's gorgeous and understated dining room.

As is the case with friends who you haven't seen in ages, we had a lot to catch up. Lives, loves, careers, families. The high-points, the low points. We sat at the bar in Blackbird's elegant white dining room and caught up for hours.

I remember drinking champagne, eating wild boar, sipping on a west coast seafood chowder and winding the meal down with a luxurious cheese course. I remember the invigorating feeling you get when you pick right back up with an old friend after many years out of touch. I remember the attentive, knowledgeable, unpretentious and wonderful staff.

Most importantly, I remember realizing how much of Chicago there was to see and taste and how much I had been missing. It was a perfect evening, and the first of many special meals I've been fortunate enough to experience. It was also the official start of my love affair with eating out in Chicago, and I'm happy to report that I've returned to Blackbird many times since this first visit.

Earlier this week, Blackbird received a coveted four star review from the Chicago Tribune's Phil Vettel.  Congratulations to Chef Posey and the entire team on this much deserved accolade. Blackbird is truly one of Chicago's treasures that is consistently a beautiful, flavorful and exciting dining experience.

2012 Cooking Resolutions

When it comes to cooking, 2012 is looking to be an ambitious year for the Drunken Goat. Like anything in life, it's easy to get into a routine. There are standby recipes and dishes I come back to time and again. Roast chicken, salmon & spinach, a quick and easy pasta dish are all in frequent rotation (as is the midweek call to Butterfly for sushi and seaweed salad).

This time of year, people like to set ambitious resolutions to quit smoking, lose weight or stop hoarding emails. Ok, maybe that last one is just mine (I can't help it if I'm a digital hoarder).

So what do I want 2012 to hold in terms of food? Of course, there will be eating out (that's a given). But when it comes to cooking, there are a few aspirations I have for the year ahead.  

Image courtesy of Real Epicurean. 

Homemade Pasta: Daunting, messy and time-consuming? Sure thing. Delicious and often worth the work? Absolutely. In a perfect world, I'd move to Italy for a few months and learn the craft of pasta making. Until then, I guess a few winter Sundays hunkered down in my West Loop condo will have to do.

Authentic Asian: Doing more experimenting with Asian flavors and cooking techniques has long been a goal of mine, but truthfully, I've always been a bit intimidated. However, this recipe for shrimp and cilantro shumai from Mark Bittman changed my view and made me think, "Maybe, just maybe, I can make this work."

Soufflé: What's all the fuss about anyway? Something about collapsing egg whites?  Let's give it a shot.

Baking Fundamentals: I've had some impressive baking failures in recent years. In the pre-2004 era, my Dad (a longtime Yankees fan) always remarked how the Red Sox found "absolutely spectacular" ways to lose games. From salty cookies to muffins as dry as the desert to icing that slides off cupcakes, I've found some absolutely spectacular ways to fail at baking. 2012 will be the year I bond with my Kitchenaid and begin appropriately measuring flour and considering ingredient temperatures (both of which I now understand are fairly critical when it comes to baking).

Check back for periodic updates on how the Drunken Goat is tracking against these goals. One thing is for certain: there will be an epic souffle fail blog post in the future.

And finally, good luck to you on whatever goals, resolutions, hopes or aspirations you may have for the coming year (whether food related or not). Cheers!

2011: A Year in Eating

December is always a time for year end lists. Best albums. Best songs. Best concerts. Best new restaurants. Best desserts. Best new bars. It seems like there's a list for everything.  

This got me reflecting on the best things I ate in 2011. But, how to rank? How to compare an appetizer or one simple ingredient to a full entree or ten course prix fix? So in no particular order, the best things I ate in 2011: 

Fresh Brazilian starfruit
plucked right from the tree. 

• The delice de bourgogne cheese plate at Maude's Liquor Bar. Absolute decadence. It was the dish that spurred me to launch The Drunken Goat Dispatches in May, and I'm still in love. 
• The deluxe focaccia at Avec, with taleggio cheese, ricotta, truffle oil and fresh herbs is salty, savory and more addicting than a Big Mac.  
• An authentic Brazilian fish feast prepared by the lovely people at Salto das Nuvens, a small, waterfall-side restaurant, bar and resort located in the Matto Grosso state. It was like being on an episode of No Reservations.
• Fresh starfruit picked off a tree (also in Matto Grosso) and eaten. Nature's sweet tart.  
• Mom's stuffing at Thanksgiving. So incredibly simple (bread, onions, celery, stock and pork sausage) yet delicious and flavorful. The memory of Thanksgiving leftovers is still lingering.  
• Served with crisp sourdough bread, sea salt, parsley and red onion jam, the bone marrow at Longman & Eagle is savory and rich.  
• While I love the cheese and charcuterie at The Purple Pig, the olive oil poached tuna with lima beans, fresh herbs, red onion and vinaigrette is still the dish that I keep thinking about. 
• Fetucine a la Pasquale at my family's favorite restaurant, Pasquale's Osteria in Norwalk, Conn. Homemade pasta, shrimp, ham, asparagus, tomatoes, fresh basil in a garlic red sauce with a touch of cream. It's ultimate Italian comfort food made by Pasquale, a former Vatican chef (more on that in a future post).   
• The lobster roll at B&G Oyster in the South End of Boston served just the way I like it: heaping mounds of lobster, slightest touch of homemade mayo, herbs, S+P, on a butter toasted roll. 
• I'm still blissed out from The Lair of the Minotaur burger at Kuma's Corner. The brie, pancetta and bourbon poached pear made the burger worth the wait...and the calories.    
• The cheese cart at Tru. An unpasteurized heaven on wheels.   
• The hen at Graham Elliot: a savory and memorable dish that embodied fall with every bite.

What was your favorite dish or dining experience in 2011?