Chicago

Chi Town! Definitely not a shy town when it comes to food. Quieter than other cities when it comes to its track slider gastronomical delights, but boy does the city have it! Chicago’s more laid back style when it comes to it’s restaurants and the way it practices the whole dining experience—not the quality of its food, mind you—has lured some of the country’s finest chefs away from the glitzier, flashier restaurants in equally glitzy and flashy cities. From its more extravagant restaurants down to its most basic street food, Chicago is getting rave metal detector reviews for its great eats. Let’s take a tour of some highlights; the city has so much to offer, we have to pick just a sampling or we’ll be here forever talking about it instead of out there eating. Let’s begin. Where can you find a hot dog stand that has made it Bon Appetit as one of the best restaurants on the planet? Chicago! That’s where! Hot Doug’s to be precise. This is indeed the restaurant that gas tankless water heater hot dog built. Hot Doug’s is a self-proclaimed “sausage superstore and encased meat emporium;” a place where lovers of meat in tubular form can rejoice—sounds totally wrong, I know. Hot Doug’s features a diverse and rotating menu that includes the traditional Chicago dog, to more exotic items such as the “Game of the Week”, a rotating selection of game-animal sausages. Their menu also features several hard money lenders sc specials that rotate over time. Some specials that have been featured include Calvados Infused Duck Sausage with Apple Mustard; Beef and Lamb Gyros Sausage with Artichoke Tzatziki, Kalamata Olives and Feta Cheese; and White Wine and Dijon Rabbit Sausage with Sauce Moutarde and Tilsiter Cheese.Most of the items on the menu, both specials and regulars, are named after a microdermabrasion celebrity, a well-known Chicago personality, or friends and relatives of owner Doug Sohn. Examples include the “Elvis” (polish sausage), the “Brigitte Bardot” (spicy Andouille sausage), and the “Charlie and James Sohn” (mini bagel dogs and tater tots). The names attached to the permanent menu items are changed frequently but usually maintain a consistent theme: iconic Hollywood sex symbols, legendary comedians, famous Chicago Cubs basebaball players, and so on. Hot Doug’s is also notable for its “duck fat fries,” served on Fridays and Saturdays only, in which the potatoes are deep fried in oil rendered in duck fat. Hot Doug’s is a destination for locals and tourists alike, thanks to the loads of press it has gotten in the last few years. An award from the Chicago Tribune, features from The New York Times, USA Today, The Sun Times, and Time Out Chicago; plus coverage from television networks such as CBS, NBC, NBC, ABC, and the Discovery’s TLC do not hurt. If you have the cash along with the sense of humor and adventure, then you ought to dine at Moto. This restaurant is the brainchild of Homaru Cantu who, for lack of a more fitting description, brands himself as a culinary terrorist. Cantu is something of a mash-up of a mad scientist, chef, and incorrigible practical joker. But there is one thing he does take seriously, his food. As full of fun, play, and whimsy as they may all seem, each dish takes a whole lot of ingenuity and work to create. While all that food engineering is all seriousness, chef Cantu seems to be thumbing his nose at all the conventions we have come to expect. The best thing is, he let’s you in on the joke as well. Moto is located in an old industrial warehouse, across from the Latino meat market. Its nondescript exterior hides a modern, if minimalistic interior. The atmosphere is sophisticated and relaxed. By the end of the dinner, you will be best friends with your neighbors. The sheer absurdity of what you are to eat needs to be discussed, right then. Oh, and you’ll have plenty of time. The 20-course Grand Tour takes 4 hours. The service is fluid, with at least a half dozen servers with earpieces swapping out duties. Look, the food at Moto is not your nightly fare; that is for sure. But it might be worth the experience, the surprise, the laughs, heck even the trepidation—or two.