The N.N. Smokehouse name means good barbecue to loyal patrons of the Irving Park Road restaurant. Barely two months ago, Smokehouse owners Larry Tucker and Conrad Baldrias added a new set of initials to the North Side restaurant scene with N.N. Spice Island.
The latest N. N. (which stands for wives ‘Nerva Baldrias and ‘Nita Tucker), goes beyond barbecue with a melting pot of Asian and Caribbean flavors, welcome casual fare for this new venture.
Spice Island is the duo’s attempt to create a multi-ethnic restaurant that partly draws on the Filipino heritage of both wives and Baldrias, Tucker says.
The word may not yet be out. On our Saturday night visit, only a handful of customers occupied the well-lit, two-part dining room, simply decorated with Caribbean art and posters. The service was friendly and helpful to the point of anxiousness, but a bit more traffic should relieve some of the pressure on diners.
Get into the spirit of the place by ordering lumpia Shanghai ($2.95 for about eight pieces), the Philippine version of egg rolls. The wrappers encase a nicely garlicked, minced pork filling, which goes well with the sweet-and-sour dipping sauce. Like many fried, filled pastries, the bite-size lumpia are on the oily side and lack the crunchy lightness that vegetables give to regular egg rolls, so a few suffice.
Another hearty starter is the Jamaican meat pie ($1.95) from another island altogether but sharing traits of its Philippine cousin. Here, the pastry is flaky and rich with butter, and the palm-size wrapper holds spiced, minced beef. A little pepper heats up the package, but otherwise, the ingredients are simple, and satisfying.
For a large party, consider ordering the eight-piece Wings of Heaven chicken ($3.25). Marinated, lightly battered and served with a sweet chili sauce, the fried drumsticks and wings are a meatier alternative to regular chicken wings and are just as fun and messy to eat. When the weather turns nasty, the arroz caldo ($3.50), a chicken rice soup, will not only soothe but also should wake up taste buds with its flavorings of ginger, toasted garlic, saffron and calamansi, an Asian lime juice.
Entrees here offer a mix of styles, from whole catfish brushed with Szechwan sauce ($9.50) to seafood and Spanish chorizo paella ($13.95), a nod to the Spanish influence in the Philippines. We settled on the familiar, noodles and kebabs.
The noodles, called pancit, are southeast Asian and a featured item at Spice Island. Don’t expect anything too exotic; the dish consists of soft egg noodles stir-fried with a tangle of chopped vegetables ($7.50) or Chinese sausage and pork ($7.95). The seasoning is mild and the noodles go down easily, making it an easy choice to order for the table.
The kebabs, called Stick Barbecue here ($9.99 for three), are another safe bet, literally a matter of mix and match. The menu offers a choice of three beef, chicken, pork, vegetables and shrimp skewers in the first column, to be paired with a choice of nine sauces, such as teriyaki, tamarind, Indonesian peanut, mango curry, hot Thai and Manila barbecue. Watch out for overcooking; some of the meats can be a little tough. But the glazes and dipping sauces in all their forms are a smart idea and add some personality to a staple.
We never saw the black beans and rice we ordered, but nicely steamed white rice appeared with the main course.
Drinks are a must with this well-seasoned fare. Aside from soft drinks, coffee and iced tea, try a glass of the tart calamansi ($1.90). Beer and wine are strictly bring-your-own for now.
If there is room for dessert, flan with rum sauce ($2.95) and pecan pie ($3.50) are popular choices, but the menu also features a weekend special, halohalo ($2.95), a fun mix of jackfruit, fresh coconut, pineapple and sweet beans with crushed ice.
You’ll leave the restaurant full, pleased with the low tab and the food. With all of those flavors, it might take a little longer to put a finger on where on the map you were dining, but Spice Island seems right at home in Chicago.
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N.N. Spice Island
(2 forks)
3314 W. Foster Ave.
773-478-7190
Hours: 11:30 a.m.-2:30 p.m. and 5-10 p.m. Tues.-Sat., 1-8 p.m. Sun.
Closed Mondays.
Credit cards: A, D, M, V
Noise rating: Conversation-friendly
Ratings key:
4 forks: Don’t miss it
3 forks: One of the best
2 forks: Very good
1 fork: Good
Reviews are based on anonymous visits by Tribune staff members. The meals are paid for by the Tribune.
