Smak-Tak!

5961 N Elston Ave

Chicago, IL 60646

773.763.1123

www.smaktak.com

A cute and cozy, cabin atmosphere creates a comfortable setting for some good polish food at Smak-Tak on North Elston in Chicago. Jake and I have had to drive by this small restaurant a few times now, but yesterday it worked for us to stop in and have a bite to eat.

Smak-tak translates to Taste-Yes!

Jake ordered the special platter and I ordered the stuffed cabbage rolls (a favorite of Jake's family, called golumpkis in Polish, pronounced go-WHOMB-keys). They were quite tasty - the tomato sauce was nice and thick and coated the golumpkis just right.

We each received two side salads of coleslaw and warm shredded beets with onions, too. The coleslaw was more pickled tasting than traditional mayo-laced American coleslaw. Very refreshing after a warm afternoon. In fact, I bought some at our neighborhood polish grocery store tonight because I enjoyed it so much.

I hadn't realized how much of a role dill plays in Polish food. I can't say that I eat dill all that much, other than in pickle form, and that doesn't really ring true to the taste of fresh dill sprinkled on a cabbage salad or freshly mashed potatoes.

Chocolate turtle

One thing I love about living here in the Chicago burbs is that I can run to Mitsuwa Marketplace and grab some sushi and dessert like it's no big deal. What a great feeling! So cultural. So... delicious! I had never tried anything from the bakery in Mitsuwa, and boy, I wish I had sooner. This cute little turtle was like a soft bread/donut and had a yummy chocolate pudding inside. Next time I think I'll try a loaf of bread. It was probably the softest bread I've ever come across. 

Under the Sea

Shrimp, walleye, clam strips, oh my! Don’s Dock has been a favorite of mine since I moved to the area a few years ago – but with my recent move, I’ve become much closer to the tasty seafood hangout. I’m already tempted to sneak down there and buy some of their delicious Hush Puppies…

The Indian Garden

247 E. Ontario Street, 2nd Floor
Chicago IL 60611
http://www.indiangardenchicago.com

Friday marked my first taste of Indian food. I'll admit I was a bit apprehensive, but one our interns at work is from India and she was a great help in explaining her native cuisine. She suggested I would really like Murg Makhani (Chicken pieces roasted in a clay oven & then folded into a creamy tomato sauce). In one word - delicious! I loved it! It wasn't spicy, but had just enough 'pep'. I also tried some of her rice dish, also great. I'm sure our carry-out food was toned down from her usual meals, as she said her family's food is generally much hotter. Regardless, it was fun to try a new cuisine!

Cakes On Walnut

114 N Walnut Street
Champaign, IL 61820
http://www.cakesonwalnut.com

Delicious! We stopped here after walking around Champaign and eating at Cowboy Monkey (cool place, not so cool food). The cupcakes were delicious! Jake and I shared a salted caramel cupcake - so moist - and the creamiest, buttery frosting. Yum!


Jake noticed they had Dry Soda as well. He had read about it in a magazine article, so we decided to try the Rhubarb soda. Wow - completely awesome. It was really interesting - the dry texture made an interesting mouthfeel. It was refreshing and light; I felt kind of like I do after eating sushi. Currently there are only three locations in Illinois where you can purchase Dry Soda, and low-and-behold - Cakes on Walnut was one of them (the other two are in Chicago). Although it's still new and a bit pricey, I definitely recommend trying it.

Smoke Daddy

1804 W. Division Street
Chicago, IL 60622
www.thesmokedaddy.com

For those of you who haven't yet been wowed by Smoke Daddy in Wicker Park, you're really missing out! They offer delicious homemade BBQ sauces that rival my favorites from other establishments. The ribs are amazing - and the mac 'n cheese is great! The price is reasonable as well - a full order of Rib Tips with 2 sides is just $14.95.

Great causal bar atmosphere and super food makes Smoke Daddy's my favorite BBQ spot in Chicagoland.

Dinner In The Sky

Literally. No bathroom, no floor. Eight hours of nothing but the horizon to distract you from your food while 50 meters above ground.

Dinner In The Sky delivers - and the food looks pretty delicious- just don't drop your fork. Of course, all this fun doesn't come without a price. The basic meal will cost you $11,000.

If you'd like a little extra mood setting (think piano, violin, etc), your cost doubles. Although, there is something to be said for a grand piano in the sky...

[Images from Dinner In The Sky]

Baba Pita

1032 W. Lake St
Chicago, IL 60612
www.babapita.com

Today was my first taste of Lebanese food. This was a welcome change to the greasy chinese take-out we got last week for lunch.

The Victuals:

Beef Shawarma Plate
Grilled, sliced marinated beef served with onion, rice, salad, hummus, pita bread & tahini sauce.

Shawarma (SWHWAR-muh) - usually a sandwich made with shaved meat
hummus - blended chickpeas
tahini - sesame seed paste, garlic, olive oil, lemon juice, parsley

The Verdict:

Fresh, satisfying. The salad was great - resembled mesclun with other fresh veggies added. The beef was good, if not a wee-bit overcooked. The rice was cooked perfectly with a touch of dill and a few fava beans I think. I can't say that I was a big fan of the hummus; I've had flavored hummus before and it was ok, but I can't do plain hummus. Sadly, they did forget my tahini sauce but I was able to try a taste of a co-workers - yum! Pretty good overall.

Meiji

meiji
623 W. Randolph
Chicago, IL 60661
http://www.meijirestaurant.com/

I had the pleasure of dining with a coworker for lunch at meiji restaurant in West Loop this week. I'm still somewhat new to the world of sashimi, makimono, and japanese food in general, but if this is any indication of what I've been missing, I've been missing a lot!

I started with Miso soup - a great broth with tofu, scallions, and wakame (a type of edible kelp, it sort of looked like flat spinach pieces). We opted to try three different makimono:

Honey Fire
tamago (egg), shiitake mushroom, masago (smelt roe), yuzu (citrus fruit) sauce topped with tempura flakes, spicy crab, unagi (eel), jalapeno, red tobiko (flying fish roe) and sweet chili sauce

Philly Crunch
smoked salmon, wasabi cream cheese, scallions, and cilantro wrapped in wonton skin and topped with spicy salmon

Yuri
shrimp tempura, avocado, and spicy mayo topped with spicy shrimp, masago, tempura flakes

Delicious! I love the way I feel after eating this type of food. Energized. Alive. Happy. My favorite was the Philly Crunch, though they were all great. Honey Fire definitely had the most variety of flavors in each bite.

At this point in the meal we were basically praising the waitstaff for their attentive service and enjoying the occasional visit from the manager and waitress as they stopped by to ensure we were having a pleasant time.

Upon request of the dessert menu we were notified one item was sold out, but the manager was quick to recommend another dessert and ended up bringing us Green Tea Mille Feuille with raspberry coulis (layers of puff pastry and sweet pastry cream with a thick raspberry sauce), on the house! This was the perfect ending to a great lunch. The green tea cream was amazing - my coworker said "delightful" and "this is to die for!" about 10 times during dessert.

To top off the experience, we chatted with the manager as we were leaving. She was very friendly and told us how the restaurant is family run and managed by her and siblings. After mentioning their upcoming specials, and the hours for the lounge above the restaurant, she invited us to come back and gave us a gift certificate to use on our next outing. Needless to say, we'll be going back very soon!