When you do what I do, this sort of thing happens quite often: An acquaintance, looking to dine extravagantly (someone else was paying), wanted to know if he would be able to get a table at, oh, Charlie Trotter’s. Or, failing that, could I recommend another restaurant that was Trotter-like?
The first part of my answer was that a weekend table at Trotter’s is difficult to obtain a month in advance, let alone two days out (although it never hurts to check). The second part was that if there were another restaurant just like Trotter’s, Charlie’s tables might not be so hard to come by.
But it got me thinking. When people swap restaurant recommendations, the same names surface with almost mind-numbing regularity. Trotter’s for cutting-edge fine dining. Le Francais for high-end French. Everest if you want a view, Rivers if you have tickets to the opera, Blackbird if you’re dressing for show.
These aren’t bad suggestions. There’s a reason these restaurants have become top-of-one’s-head choices, for the most part because they frequently are the best at what they do. But, with all due respect, there are other options.
A Tribune panel of experts and food-lovers identified a handful of Usual Suspects–restaurants everybody thinks of first–and came up with three alternatives for each. Maybe you’ll discover a few new No. 1 choices among them.
And for my Trotter-seeking friend? I passed over Tru (same reservation problem) and suggested Zealous, Tallgrass or Le Titi de Paris. He snagged a table at Le Titi, and loved it.
EXHIBIT A: Casual Italian
Usual suspect
The combination of stylish decor and hearty Italian favorites at Mia Francesca’s (3311 N. Clark St., 773-281-3310) is no secret — especially now that there are Francescas in nine locations.
Unusual suspect
Jim & Pete’s (7806 W. North Ave., Elmwood Park, 708-453-5204) doesn’t boast an exotic name, but this 61-year-old restaurant is diehard Italian, and recently got a facelift that can compete with Francesca’s casual elegance. But credit Jim &
Pete’s staying power in part to its top-notch pasta dishes and highly regarded thin pizza. Though its large menu offers some fancier fare, what we really love is that you also can order spaghetti and meatballs: a mountain of pasta doused in a perfectly balanced sweet-acidic tomato sauce and topped with two large, juicy, tender orbs.
Palermo’s Fine Italian Cuisine (4849 W. 95th St., Oak Lawn, 708-425-6262) has been a south suburban institution for almost 40 years. The dining room’s traditional ambience offers a hint of its skillful way with Italian favorites, but the kitchen also produces fresh twists on its pasta entrees. So if you like Francesca’s linguine verdure (pasta sauteed with wild mushrooms, tomatoes and assorted vegetables), try out Palermo’s penne portobello (mushrooms, fresh basil and garlic sauteed in olive oil and served on a bed of penne pasta with grated Parmesan cheese).
Sabatino’s (4441 W. Irving Park Rd., 773-283-8331) is, like Francesca’s, Italian. But the similarities end there, because this longtime restaurant has the career waiters (in uniforms, no less), piano bar and dark, traditional decor that would disqualify it as a “trattoria.” This is the place for good old-fashioned Italian dishes and homemade pasta–served with soup, salad, Italian and pizza bread. Even the desserts will bring a nostalgic smile: How many trattorias serve baked Alaska or bananas Foster, flamed at your table?
— Renee Enna
EXHIBIT B: Steak
Usual suspect
The consistent complaint about Gibsons (1028 N. Rush St., 312-266-8999) is that it’s too hard to get a table–which is often the case. Between its local fans and the flocks of conventioneers (if there’s a big show in town, forget it), Gibsons keeps its seats pretty full–not surprisingly, given the quality of its steaks.
Unusual suspects
Shula’s Steak House (301 E. North Water St., Sheraton Chicago Hotel, 312-670-0788; also at 400 Park Blvd., Itasca, 630-775-1499) has a lower profile than many Chicago-area steakhouses, even though it’s part of a large and growing chain. But its Angus-beef steaks can compete with just about anybody’s. The dining room is warm and contemporary; you decide whether the nonstop Sinatra music is a plus or a minus.
Another well-kept secret is Stetson’s Chop House, tucked inside the Hyatt Regency Chicago (151 E. Wacker Drive, 312-565-1234). It presents prime, dry-aged beef of uncompromising quality, and the recently remodeled dining room is striking, with its very comfortable furniture, olive walls hung with vintage Chicago photographs and a sleek, metal-clad display kitchen.
But if you crave the beef without the high-end prices, take a look at Las Tablas (2965 N. Lincoln Ave., 773-871-2414), a Colombian restaurant offering everything from strip steak to flank steak at modest prices. The wine list won’t hurt your wallet, either: Las Tablas doesn’t have a liquor license, so bring your own.
— Phil Vettel
EXHIBIT C: Vietnamese
Usual suspect
Le Colonial (937 N. Rush St., 312-255-0088) has a beautiful decor and great colonial setting; you feel as though you should be wearing starched linen and bossing around the servants. Its proximity to the nightclub Le Passage (a related enterprise) makes Le Colonial popular with the trendy set.
Unusual suspects
Although Cafe Hoang (1010 W. Argyle St., 773-878-9943) is really a Vietnamese and Thai place, we have always been delighted by its well-priced Vietnamese fare. Among our favorites: tightly wrapped goi cuon (fresh spring rolls); marvelously crunchy, sweet, salty and spicy goi ga (chicken salad) and great “bun” bowls (dishes of rice noodles topped with grilled meats, herbs, vegetables and an egg roll, all ready to be doused with fish sauce-based dressing). The surroundings may be humble, but folks flock to this little eatery for a reason.
Visitors to Argyle Street have a lot of options for the traditional slow-simmered, clear, beef noodle soup called pho (pronounced fuh). With its thick tangle of rice noodles, the soup makes a hearty but light (really) breakfast, lunch or dinner and should be sprinkled with fresh bean sprouts, basil, lime juice and cilantro as well as any number of sauces that also appear on the table. And although Pho Hoa (in a strip mall on Broadway) may be the most consistent spot for this aromatic elixir, Pho 777 (1065 W. Argyle St., 773-561-9909) is the place that really packs ’em in on weekend mornings. Also try one of its great avocado, jackfruit and soursop shakes.
Pasteur (5525 N. Broadway; 773-878-1061) is no cheap option. But if you want upscale Vietnamese food in opulent surroundings, this Edgewater restaurant is a good alternative to Colonial with easier-to-find parking. Entrees can go to $20 and beyond, but it is worth it to find elegant versions of Vietnamese classics like the banh xeo fried crepe stuffed with meat and vegetables. Often greasy and tasteless elsewhere, here it is done with care and packs plenty of flavor. Also, don’t miss the Saigonese Duck, chef Dan Nguyen’s take on duck a l’orange.
— Monica Eng
EXHIBIT D: Mexican
Usual suspect
Frontera Grill (445 N. Clark St., 312-661-1434), Rick Bayless’ Mexican restaurant (along with its adjacent dining room, the more upscale Topolobampo), is a civic treasure. But Frontera isn’t big enough to accommodate everyone looking for fine Mexican food, as is apparent from the long waits.
Unusual suspects
If Frontera Grill’s mole sauces are what send your senses reeling, you’ll love Ixcapuzalco (2919 N. Milwaukee Ave., 773-486-7340). Geno Bahena worked at Frontera for a dozen years before opening this Logan Square jewel, which has been such a success that Bahena now operates two Mexican restaurants in town (and is about to add a third). Here the menu features a mole of the day, such as the cinnamon-laced mole chichilo on Saturdays or the fruity mole manchamanteles on Wednesdays, in addition to the sauces that show up under the daily specials.
Frontera has a terrific beverage program, but so does Salpicon (1252 N. Wells St., 312-988-7811), an outstanding regional Mexican restaurant with an impressive list of wines that match chef Priscila Satkoff’s spicy dishes, and an imposing selection of fine aged tequilas for after-dinner sipping.
And if great salsas get you excited, check out Perez Restaurant (853 W. Randolph St., 312-666-3640). A few cognescenti have known about this little gem on trendy Randolph Street row for a while, and have wanted to keep it their own secret. But with a recent dining room expansion and longer hours, it might now be safe to expound on its three fabulous salsas (pico de gallo, roasted chile de arbol and tomatillo), great daily soups, outstanding guacamole, and huge, fresh, cheap “dinner platters,” available any time–even at 6 a.m. when Perez opens each day.
— Monica Eng and Phil Vettel
EXHIBIT E: Historic
Usual suspect
German restaurants are disappearing from the Chicago area, but The Berghoff (17 W. Adams St., 312-427-3170) keeps plugging along. In addition to its German specialties, hefty sandwiches and heart-of-the-Loop location, the restaurant enjoys a sense of history, as well. It’s the proud owner of Chicago’s first post-Prohibition liquor license.
Unusual suspects
For another taste of German cuisine, head northwest to Mirabell (3454 W. Addison St., 773-463-1962) for hearty schnitzels and imported beers in a friendly neighborhood atmosphere. If it’s Prohibition-era history you crave, check out Chicago Pizza & Oven Grinder Co. (2121 N. Clark St., 773-248-2570). This is Chicago pizza as you may never have had it before; it’s sort of an upside-down pizza pot pie, if you can picture that. And though there’s nothing to indicate it, the 30-year-old restaurant is more or less across the street from the site of the St. Valentine’s Day Massacre. And for a big, gut-busting sandwich, there’s Manny’s Coffee Shop and Deli (1141 S. Jefferson St., 312-939-2855). Manny’s has been around long enough to qualify for historic status, and enough judges, lawyers and politicians have passed through these doors to fill a small prison. The cafeteria-style setup is frill-free, but the end product–soul-satisfying soups, corned-beef sandwiches, beef brisket and other deli standards–is hard to argue with.
— Phil Vettel
