Hungryasfck Pop Up Brunch at Kimski

This has taken a while to get up, but I really liked it, so I thought it was worth writing about.  I had been interested in Kimski since it opened.  Attached to and actually a part of Maria's Packaged Goods and Community Bar, it is a counter service place with a Korean/Polish Menu that draws on the ancestry of the owners, the Marszewski family.  It started out with a neighborhood bar in Bridgeport.  When the kids took over from their mother, Marz Community Brewing, a very creative small batch brewery was started with Maria's used as it's taproom.  While Maria's had a great beer selection (and also worked as a bottle shop) they had no kitchen so it was BYOF (Bring Your Own Food).  They decided to open Kimski, both as a kitchen for Maria's and as an entity of its own.  The two places are connected in the back, but they also operate separately.  Maria's as a great neighborhood bar and bottle shop, and Kimski as a small counter service place that serves Korean/Polish Cuisine.  From the outside, the two places look very different and it would be hard to guess that they were connected or related to one another.  Maria's has a very classic Chicago Bungalow appearance with Kimski being very modern and angular with a nice open patio in the front.  Entering Kimski, it looks a lot smaller than it actually is.  There is a small lobby with paper menus on the counter and a menu on the wall.  There is probably seating for about 8 people in this area.  The kitchen window is to the side of the counter so the counter people can pick up and deliver food to customer's tables.  To get to the actual dining area, you have to walk around the counter and through a door behind the counter.  The main dining room is much larger and has a nice bar with a very good tap list with Marz as well as many other local breweries featured.  The room is wood, with the main color being black.  The back wall is made up of several glass sliding doors over looking the enclosed back patio (also wood, although this left light colored) which used picnic tables for seating.  I really liked the look of the place and the tap list and will definitely have to return sometime.

The food and drink looked very good, but I was actually there for a Pop Up by the Hungryasfck Team who were doing a Hawaiian themed Ono Brunch (Ono is Hawaiaan for delicious).  I had never heard of Hungryasfck, but saw that they were formerly from Parachute, which I really like, so I had to try their stuff out.  I had never been before to Kimski (or Maria's) and was surprised by how small it apparently was.  After I ordered, I was guided behind the counter and through the door and was relieved to see that it was much bigger than it had seemed.  I sat on the back patio and enjoyed the sunny day.  I started things off with a coffee drink from local roaster Passionhouse, a Wasabi Bloody Mary, and donuts because no proper brunch starts without donuts.  The Coffee drink was called Ice, Ice, Baby and in addition to the Passionhouse Cold Brewed Iced Coffee contained Macadamia Nut Milk, and Coffee Bean Honey.  I like iced coffee and the macadamia nut milk and the coffee bean honey added to it.  It had a bittersweet, nutty flavor with flavors of dark fruits.  The Wasabi Bloody Mary did have a slight bite, but in my opinion, it was light on the Wasabi.  It had a Celery Stalk and a small Maki Roll garnishing it. The celery did contribute to the flavor, but the maki sat above the liquid, so it only contributed as a pairing.  The donuts were actually Donut Holes, but I'm not complaining about that.  They were Yeast Donuts topped with Powdered Sugar, and Chocolate Syrup and were very light, if a little messy.  It was like eating Chocolate-Covered clouds.

Next on the menu was the Spam Musubi which was served with a spicy dipping sauce.  Spam is very popular in Hawaii and Spam Musubi is apparently sold all over the place.  While I generally don't consider it haute cuisine, I also don't consider it vile.  Since this was a Hawaiian themed brunch, I figured that this was a must try.  Spam Musubi is Grilled Spam wrapped in Sushi Rice and then wrapped with Nori.  It's like spam maki, although a little larger.  I cannot say that I thought it tasted fantastic, but it wasn't bad.  It was better, though with the spicy dipping sauce.

 I finished things off with what they called a Pork Bowl.  To me, it was like an Asian version of Hash, replacing Potatoes with Fried Rice.  It started with Pulled Pork, and added Pineapple and a Fried Egg over the Fried Rice and Spices and served on top of a Banana Leaf.  The Pulled Pork was very tender and the Pineapple added a tropical flavor to it.  The fried rice added a great texture. 

I really enjoyed my brunch at Kimski.  Hungyasfck put together a great menu and Kimski is a great space.  I will have to watch for more pop ups and I will have to return to Kimski so I can try their actual menu.