Longman & Eagle

Last night I went out for a friend's birthday to the newly opened, much awaited Longman & Eagle (aka vealman and eaglebones), located at 2657 N. Kedzie, Chicago, in Logan Square.  The space is fairly small and was completely packed at 7:30 pm on a Tuesday.  The food here is no joke.  However, in spite of the menu's serious use of fancy food words such as "fourchettes," "charmoula," "velouté," "fonduta," and "mostarda," it still maintains a down-to-earth vibe and very accessible food.  Beyond the food, there is something that makes L&E totally unique to Chicago.  Come Spring, there will be a boutique Inn above the restaurant, offering 6 rooms for overnight stays.  Perfect for those nights when too much whiskey has been drunk and the fun has lasted far into the night.  Word is, they will also start serving breakfast around the same time they open the Inn.  And what could be better than waking up to the smell of bacon emanating from the kitchen below?

The journey begins!

There were six of us, so we opted for two bottles of wine.  The Forlorn Hope Syrah and a bottle of Mâcon-Villages White Burgundy.  They averaged about $40 each.

After getting settled in, the chef sent an amuse bouche of Tuna Tartare garnished with pickled fennel.  I enjoyed this so much that I requested an appetizer portion for the table.  The chef promptly made it for us even though it wasn't on the menu.

The menu is divided into Bar Snacks, Salads and Sandwiches, Plates, and Entrées.  We started with an order of House-Marinated Olives - $4 and someone ordered the Kobe Meatballs - creamy polenta, parsley pesto, fonduta - $6.  This photo looks like it was pulled out of a 1960's cookbook - haha!

 














Pear Salad - endive, green beans, Stilton, cress, sherry-walnut vinaigrette - $9.  Under those greens is a heaping pile of finely shaved bosque pear.  Not too sweet and very juicy.  The bleu cheese was mild enough not to overpower the other flavors.








Now for the small plates...


Seared Maine Scallop - braised oxtails, potato gnocchi, fontina fonduta - $12.  This was a hit at the table. 
















Fried Ipswich Clam Bellies - celery root rémoulade, toasted brioche, mâche - $9.  The mâche was a slightly sweet, the brioche buttery and soft, and the rémoulade salty.  It kind of tasted like a deconstructed crab cake.  This would make for a taaaaasty hangover lunch.

It doesn't get much manlier than this.  Roasted Marrow Bones - red onion jam, sea salt, sourdough croutons - $9.  The guys really seemed to enjoy tunneling through this thing.  A nod to you, Mr. Freud.   



Order two more bottles of wine - quick!  75 Cabernet Sauvignon and a Cuvée - the name of which escapes me.    A-ha!  Les entrées!  Yes, we went all out.  What.

Pork Belly Confit - pumpkin risotto, chestnuts, apple, soy-caramel broth - $18.  I tasted the pumpkin risotto which just as well could have been a sweet potato rice pudding.  mmm..yes please.

Braised Slagel Family Farm Veal Breast - piggy Brussels sprouts, cheek manicotti - $17.  Jared let me taste a sliver of the beef cheek manicotti.  It was minimally seasoned seasoned.  The flavor of the meat speaks for itself.  I'm so afraid this blog might cause me to revert back to my long forgotten carnivorous ways...sigh.

Bouillabaisse - market shell and finfish, saffron-infused lobster broth, rouille - $17.  Kim and I shared this gorgeous stew.  The market shellfish were clams and mussels.  Again, subtle seasonings, allowing the flavor of the seafood to really come through.  

















Being that this was a birthday dinner, it was only natural to order all three desserts on the menu.  Classic Crème Brûlée - plum compote, langue du chat cookies - $6, Chocolate Banana Bread Pudding - vanilla bean ice cream, bourbon caramel - $7 and a Candy Apple dessert.  Pictured is the Crème Brûlée, my favorite of the three.
 

Thus concludes our epic culinary adventure at Longman and Eagle.  I'm so grateful for birthdays and friends, for great meals are only great when shared in good company.  Cheers!

Mana Food Bar

As I am still trying to get the hang of this whole process, you will sometimes have to make do with slightly substandard photography!  I left my memory card in the computer yesterday so I was stuck taking pictures of food with my Palm Pre.  Forgive me!

Welcome to Mana Food Bar 1742 W. Division, Chicago.  We came in for a late lunch on a Saturday.  It was surprisingly quiet with only one couple dining at one of the two booths. 

Here are some photos of the gorgeous, earthy yet modern space.  I got them off of the Mana Food Bar facebook page. 

I started with the Apple Cider, Cinnamon and Nigori Sake cocktail - $8.  It was very delicate and not too sweet.  The cinnamon tasted freshly grated.   Jared ordered the 14 oz Avocado, Pineapple and Coconut Water Smoothie - $8,  which was deliciously fruity and just the right amount of creamy.  Luke had a very tasty Two Brothers French Country Ale and a Sapporo - both $5.

We decided to start with the vegan Blue Corn and Plantain Tamale, which was one of the two verbal specials.  It was served with a sweet/spicy relish.  It was fairly moist and I think I preferred it without the sauce.  The absence of cheese was not a fault.

Unfurled...

Next, we ordered a couple of salads: Seaweed and Cucumber - wakame and cucumbers in lemon sesame dressing with daikon (radish) sprouts - $5.  There was also a bit of oil in it but it didn't taste like sesame oil.  I love seaweed, so I thought this salad was perfect.  I could have eaten a giant mound of this alone. 

...But then came the next salad!  Jicama, Mango and Cucumber Salad - with cilantro and chili lime salt - $5  Very summery and crisp.  Dressing was tart and spicy.  Great.

The next three items we ordered were sinfully rich.  The Blue Cheese Tart - with caramelized onion - $5 - was served warm alongside a sweet/tart red beet salad.  The crust was perfectly soft and flaky and the cheese sooo creamy.  Several bites preceded the taking of the photo! 

The Sweet Potato Pancake with apple cranberry chutney and crema - $6.  This was probably my least favorite, but that's only because it was fried.  The chutney was fabulous.  In fact, I might even say that the savory potato pancake was just an excuse to eat the chutney.  There, I said it.  Also, the scallions on top were the perfect garnish.  Mmmm...

Finally, the amazing pasta dish.  Tomato Pumpkin Ravioli - in a sage cream sauce - $7.  These 4 little squares of pumpkin-stuffed tomato pasta heaven were topped with a delicate, rich sage sauce with just a tiny hint of sweetness. 

In addition to all of the above, we also shared a large order of the Curry - cauliflower, peas and sweet potato over brown rice with a cilantro relish - $13.  The photo of that was unusable.  It was very tasty though with a flares of ginger and chili.

The service was casual, but attentive and friendly.  This was the most enjoyable restaurant meal I have had in quite a while.  Needless to say we were very pleased with ourselves after this meal.  I wonder if anyone can go wrong ordering from this menu.  I have every intention of going back to find out!

Seat-of-the-Pants Broccoli Soup

Welcome to my first post!  I have been wanting to do this for so long.  I'm thrilled to finally have a place where I can share my love of cooking, dining out, gardening, entertaining, etc.  Even if no one is listening!  When cooking for myself, I try to focus on low fat, low carbohydrate ingredients and I use as many vegetables as possible.  When cooking for a group, those rules get thrown out the window and delicious fat and sugar calories abound!  

Tonight, I decided to experiment with the broccoli that's been waiting very patiently in my fridge.  I also had some leftover milk from last weekend's cornbread so I improvised a creamy broccoli soup.  The soup turned out alright, but there are some things I will change next time around.  This is more of a test-run to see how I like this blogging business.  Let's get to it!

What to gather:

For Soup
5-7 cloves of garlic - chopped
1 medium white onion - chopped
1 and 1/2 tbsp olive oil (separate)
1 cup vegetable or chicken broth
2 cups milk/soymilk or 1 cup cream
2 heads of broccoli (stalks optional)
1/2 bunch of kale or other dark leafy green
salt, paprika, cumin, black pepper, cayenne pepper - to taste

For Tofu
1 package firm or extra firm tofu
3-4 tbsp peanut butter or prepared peanut sauce
sriracha if you like it hot

What to do:

Sauté the onions and garlic in 1 tablespoon of olive oil until they are tender and begin to brown.

Tear the leaves away from the stems of the kale and add them to the pot along with the broccoli.  Stir in the broth.  Cover the pot and bring the soup to a boil.  Lower the heat and let it simmer for about 5 minutes.

Add the milk or cream and spices to taste.  Simmer until broccoli has reached desired tenderness.  I like my vegetables al dente so I didn't keep it on for too long. 

Blend until desired consistency is reached.  I went for a chunkier soup but I think it might taste better if I blend it longer for a smoother texture.  Leftovers!  

Now for the tofu!  Chop the tofu into one inch squares.  Sauté in 1/2 tbsp olive oil on high heat for about 5 minutes, stirring often.  Add the peanut butter or peanut sauce.  I used the Trader Joe's brand peanut satay sauce.

 Add the sriracha to taste if desired.

Serve and Enjoy! 

"And what to drink?" you ask.

I've been enjoying this unoaked, unfiltered $10 Bonarda from Mendoza Argentina the past few weeks.  Argentina's Bonarda grape can also be found growing in California under the name Charbono.  I don't believe I've ever tried this varietal before finding this bottle, which is surprising because it's wonderful!  I purchased the wine at West Lakeveiw Liquors - 2156 W. Addison St, Chicago.  I love this store!  It's a little on the expensive side, but it is just so lovely and quaint and they just opened an even more quaint little grocery right next door.

Well, that was really fun even though it took me a long time.  Next time around should be easier.  I might check out some other blog hosting sites to compare platforms.  Until tomorrow!