Maillard Tavern

 

The Maillard Tavern is the chemical reaction that browns meat when it's heated, so I guess that it's appropriate to name a burger joint after it.  It was founded by, the chef and restauranteur of popular Italian restaurant, Piccolo Sogno and is actually located across the street from it in a small triangular building that had been empty for more than 20 years.  While I will grant that a good chef is constantly learning and burgers are relatively easy, when I think of Italian chefs/restaurants, fried foods and burgers are not the first things that come to mind.  Tony Priolo, the chef, has been working with the market for many years and is very familiar with the farmers and vendors, so the food could be counted on to be fresh and local.  Despite it's small size, it might seat 36 people, the space actually has two entrances.  The main entrance is at the front corner, but there is a small step inside, so there is an ADA compliant entrance that comes in in front of the kitchen in the back of the dining room.  The bar is located along one wall with the kitchen opposite it in what is essentially the back corner.  There is a large service counter for the kitchen where you can see inside the kitchen somewhat.  While you really can't see the complete layout, because of the shape of the building, I have to imagine that the kitchen is also triangular.  There are big windows surrounding the entrance with the other walls painted blue.  Other light comes from the lights laid out vertically from the high ceiling, but hanging horizontally.

 

Seating was either at a four top or at the bar.  As I was by myself, there was no reason for me to take a four top, so I sat at the bar which I like to do anyway.  They had a good liquor selection and a small but well varied tap list.  I was amused to see a Minion standing at the bar seemingly running things.  I do suppose that they can run things as long as they can be kept from touching anything.  Things seemed to run well, so I guess that they were being successful in that regard.  While they did have a good tap list and beer does go well with burgers, the cocktail list spoke to me more and I ordered a Good Vibes which had Ford's Gin, Luxardo, Kombu Syrup, Cucumber, Lime, and Bubbles (Prosecco).  I liked it a lot, it tasted very fresh and green and was both sweet and tart.

For my burger, I went with the Maillard.  There are 7 burgers on the menu plus salad, soups, and 3 other sandwiches, including a veggie burger, but I decided to go with the standard served with Duck Fat Fries.  The Maillard came with two Grilled Burgers, Crispy Onions, Bacon and Onion Jam, Cheddar, Pickles, and Dijon Mayo.  It was very good.  The burger was juicy, the cheese was nice and gooey (and flavorful), the crispy onions added a nice crunch, and the bacon and onion jam and pickles added a flavorful finish.  Duck Fat Fries are always a win.  They were crispy on the outside, soft on the inside, and well salted.  While I was served ketchup on the side, it was unnecessary.

As this is a burger and milkshake place, I couldn't leave without having both.  As I already had a drink for while I was eating, I figured, it would work for dessert.  All of the Milkshakes start with Vanilla Ice Cream and Creme Anglaise (and garnished with a mint leaf), after that you can add Chocolate, Vanilla, Mixed Berries, Banana, or Maple.  You could also add a shot for an additional charge.  I will always go with chocolate first, so that's what I did.  I had had a few drinks before I got there, so I decided to lay off on making the milkshake boozy.  It was good in any case and was what I thought would be a nice finish.

I thought that the milkshake would be a nice finish, but it turned out to not quite be the case.  As I said, they have a pretty good tap list.  There was only one beer on the list that I had not tried.  When the bartender heard me asking someone dining next to me what she thought of it when I saw that she had ordered it, he poured me a sample.  All American Macro Brews are Lagers, so it could potentially be pretty boring.  This was very nice.  It has a clear amber color and some nice lacing, and a light bready flavor.  This turned out to be the nice finish to a nice stop at a good burger joint that I will have to return to.  

Vinsetta Garage, Berkley, MI

 

 

 

 

 

While I like to be knowledgeable about the restaurant scene in Chicago, when I travel, I also like to get an idea of the noteable places to eat and drink.  I went to a few places when I was in Southeastern Michigan that were pretty good.  I mentioned Zingerman's Deli, we then went to a few breweries in Ann Arbor (Arbor and Jolly Pumpkin), before traveling to Berkley to visit Vinsetta Garage.  Vinsetta Garage was originally the oldest garage east of the Mississippi, originally built in 1915, but converted to a restaurant, serving foods that the mechanics that worked in the garage would appreciate (pizza, pasta, burgers, etc.).  The building is still the garage complete with neon trim and garage doors and the space still retains equipment from its garage days including an old tune up machine.  The floor is cement with some tile (and pennies encased in resin in the bathroom).  The bar is curved and looks into the open kitchen and the ceiling is unfinished with large skylights and hanging lights to provide additional light.  To provide additional atmosphere, an antique dragster sits on a ledge above the entrance. 

For drinks, they have a full bar with a good beer list and some cocktails, but they also go the soda fountain route with some very good milkshakes and concretes (which could also work as dessert).  We started out with a Chocolate Milkshake and a New Belgium Hemperor HPA.  The shake was nice and thick with a lot of chocolate, and as I said, could have served as dessert.  The New Belgium Hemperor was a Hemp Pale Ale.  I had read about it and it sounded too weird not to try if I ever saw it.  It was on the menu at Vinsetta, so I tried it.  It was very dank.  The flavor was very pronounced.  Hops and Marijuana are related and I have had some beers that aimed for the skunky flavor of marijuana and got there generally, but this was like drinking a joint.  While I will say that I was glad I got to try it, it also won't be a regular thing for me.

For food, we started with Chili Verde, with Pork Shoulder, Tomatillo, Jalapeno, Sour Cream, and Corn Tortilla Chips.  It was really good.  It had a lot of flavor with some spice, tender pork shoulder, and crunchy corn tortilla chips to add some additional texture and to finish things off.

 

For our main courses, while I did try both things we ordered, we essentially ordered separately.  There was a Coney Island Pizza (Sir Shakes Coney Pie) with Hot Dogs, Housemade Coney Chili, White Onions. Cheese Blend, Aged Cheddar, and French's Mustard.  It was unusual, but it was really good.  I had a slice, but it wasn't mine.  What I had was the Union Mac and Cheese which won an award as the area's favorite Mac and Cheese.  It had Vermont Sharp Cheddar, Pinconning Colby, Penne Rigati, Parmesan, Bechamel, and a Crunchy Crust, served with Ham.  It was big, rich, and I took over half of it with me.  The crust seemed to be made of a combination of breadcrumbs and fried cheese.  It was crunchy and had the great flavor of fried cheese, which led to the cheese covered pasta which was cooked perfectly and had the perfect amount of ham. 

While this is where dessert would have come, we were too full for dessert.  In addition to the milkshakes, they had several very nice looking pies.  The place was a lot of fun, the food was really good, and I would be happy to return.

AMK Kitchen Bar

 

I will admit, that when it first opened, I was a little turned off by AMK Kitchen Bar, because the name seemed a little jingoist, being a shorthand abbreviation of America.  This attitude was helped with reviews mentioning the paintings of the American Flag and Uncle Sam on the walls inside.  Considering the neighborhood, though, I am not sure if a place with an "America Right Or Wrong" attitude would really fly.  I later went to their sister restaurant, Nosh and Booze for brunch, and really liked it and I had heard that they operated as a scratch kitchen, making a comfort food menu from scratch, so I become interested and recently stopped there for dinner.  Located near a major intersection in Bucktown.  The front window/wall is a garage door which is opened when it's warm outside.  It was not warm when I went, so things were buttoned up tight.  The walls on which there are many murals are old brick, giving the murals the appearance of being weathered with age.  I was seated next to a mural of Uncle Sam which was very big, weathered, and kind of cool.  The flag, also very large and weathered. was on the wall behind me and to one side.  There was a painting of a woman on tile behind the bar between the bar shelves and beside one of the several TVs around the dining area.  The kitchen was open and a little small, sitting next to the bar and the lights are on wires hung in the unfinished ceiling.  It looks like they started the design of this place by stripping it to the bones before painting on the walls and putting in furniture.  The look was very rough, but it worked.

AMK has a nice cocktail list combining classics with originals.  They also have a good whiskey list of American Whiskeys primarily focusing on Kentucky Bourbon, but also including Rye and Tennessee and local varieties.  The beer list seems to be split pretty evenly between local and national craft beers, but it does have a macro representative, Miller High Life, the Champagne of Beers, whose ABV "Doesn't Matter" (from the beer list).  I started things off with a cocktail, actually the same cocktail I had at Nosh and Booze, although with a slightly different name.  Here it was called an IPA Mule (at Nosh and Booze it was called an IPA Jackass).  It started with Hophead Vodka, and included Ginger, Lime, Deschutes Freshly Squeezed IPA, and was garnished with Mint Leaves.  It was both hoppy and sweet, with a tart finish, and was very refreshing in it's copper mug.

The food served at AMK could both fall under bar food and comfort food, everything of which as made in house, so there were many things that looked of interest.  The menu was divided into Snacks, Salads, Sandwiches, and Mains.  While there were several snacks that interested me like the Cheese Curds and the Dorito Pie, I decided to start things with Fried Pickles with a Spicy Ranch Sauce.  The Pickles were sliced and coated in breadcrumbs and fried.  The exterior was crispy while the center was still juicy.  While I like pickles as they are, they lose little flavor in the frying and the spicy ranch dipping sauce went with it well.

 

There was an item in the snack list that was quite a bit more expensive than the other snacks, the Mac and Cheese.  I was told that it won the Mac and Cheese Fest this year, so it was a must try.  What I didn't expect was how big the serving was going to be.  It was served in a 6 inch cast iron pan and filled to overflowing.  In addition to the cheeses (I'm not sure how many or what cheeses were used) and the Cavatappi Pasta, it included Bacon, Jalapenos, Parmagiano-Reggiano, and Breadcrumbs (I think Brioche).  It was spicy, cheesy, and had plenty of bacon flavor.  As it was listed under snacks, I ordered a main course as well.  I saw as soon as it arrived that I was going to have to bring part of it home and at least half came home with me.

Under the mains they had a Chicken Pot Pie listed that I was very interested in.  I was told though that the Chicken Pot Pie would require a 30 to 40 minute wait (because they would have to make it).  I was interested in it, but I didn't really want to wait as long as it would take, so I decided to switch my order.  A burger would have been an easy order and they have been recognized for their burger, but I wasn't interested in a burger, so I went with Nashville Hot Chicken on a Biscuit.  This was a big piece of fried chicken covered in pepper sauce on a large biscuit with a dill pickle slice skewered on top and served with fries on the side.  There was also a small container of Ranch Sauce served on the side, I assume to temper the heat of the hot sauce, like it's done with Buffalo chicken, but I really didn't want to take the sandwich apart to add it.  The sandwich was very big and I had to stretch my mouth a lot to get a bite of it, but it was very good.  The Crust was crispy and crunchy and held in the juices of the tender chicken.  The biscuit was unusually square, but it did have the crispy exterior and crumbly interior of a good biscuit.  The hot sauce was very spicy, as might be expected, but it wasn't so hot as to make it inedible and did add to the flavor of the sandwich.  The fries that were served with it were done well, and were lightly salted, but with everything else that I had eaten, were kind of unnecessary.  

When it came time for dessert, I was starting to feel a little full, but I couldn't turn away dessert.  I asked about a dessert menu and was told that they only had one thing that they offered for dessert called a Brookie Sundae.  The waiter described it and after hearing Brownie, Cookie, and Ice Cream, I was interested, though still unsure what I was going to be getting.  What came out was ridiculous and something that I knew that there was going to be no way I would finish.  It was a Chocolate Chip Cookie baked in a Brownie in a Cast Iron Frying Pan, topped with Vanilla Ice Cream, Whipped Cream, and drizzled with Fudge Sauce. Knowing that I wouldn't be able to finish it, I wanted to at least try everything together and eat it in a way that I would be able to bring home what I couldn't eat.  The brownie and cookie were warm and were great with the vanilla ice cream and whipped cream.  I only had a few bites of the brookie in the restaurant because I knew that would be transportable, I did eat the ice cream, and left very full.

While I really enjoyed the food here, I know now that the portions are very large, and I can plan next time to order less or plan to bring something home.         

Old Irving Brewing

 

 

I will be the first to admit that I like beer.  I also like exploring and have been to many of Chicago's breweries and have gotten to know brewers, partners, owners, or other employees of several breweries.  One such brewery, Old Irving Brewing, I have been friends of the brewery since it was an idea in the head brewers head.  I met Trevor Rose-Hamblin, the Head Brewer/Partner at Old Irving Brewing when he managed fine dining restaurant, Moto.  The last time I had a meal there, he mentioned that he would be leaving to train with the guys from BrewDog in Scotland, so he could start his own brewery/brewpub.  He returned a few months later and worked toward opening the brewpub.  There were complications and things took longer than expected, but it opened at the end of 2016.  I tried to get there soon after it opened, and I did actually get there a few times, but complications prevented me from actually going in until last spring.  I have been there a few times and enjoyed both the food and drink.  They had a bottle release on black Friday for a beer that I was very interested in.  So I decided to stop in shortly after to pick up a bottle and have some more of their excellent food.

As it is a brewery and I was coming for a specific beer, I decided to try a few of the beers that they have on tap.  They generally have 8-10 beers on tap ranging from low alcohol to high, and light to dark.  There is always a very drinkable Kolsch, an IPA, and a Stout on the menu.  For this trip, I went with House of 'Pagne, an American Strong Ale that was a collaboration with Pipeworks Brewing, that used White Peaches and Belgian Candy Sugar, Trendi the Sixth, a Double Dry Hopped IPA that goes through frequent variations (hence the Sixth part of the name), and Imperial Krampus Cookies (the bottle I was picking up), a Barrel Aged Imperial Milk Stout with flavors of Cherry and Vanilla.  A ll of the beers were good, though House of 'Pagne was a little dryer than I generally like.  Of the three that I tried that night, I liked Trendi the Sixth the best.

As I was sitting there drinking and it was close to dinner time, I decided that I should eat.  Their restaurant menu has some really good food.  In the past, I have had some Brussels Sprouts, Marrow, and a very good burger that changes topping from week to week.  This time around, I decided to stat things off with the Fried Zucchini which was served with Sicilian Caper Salsa, Garlic Aioli, and Parmagiano-Reggiano.  It was very good.  The zucchini was sliced lengthwise and had a crisp crust, but it was not completely fried through, so you got some of the texture of the zucchini in the center.  The flavor of the zucchini also went very well with the caper salsa and the garlic aioli.  As this was very much an Italian dish, what better way of finishing it than by topping it with grated Parmagiano-Reggiano Cheese.

For my main course, I went to Spain and had the Wood Fired Spanish Octopus.  It was served with Crispy Potatoes, Piquillo Peppers, more Garlic Aioli (I can say for certain that I am not a vampire, because I like the aioli and think that it goes well with the food it was served with), Oregano, Lemon, and Green Olive Salsa.  Many people confuse octopus and squid and think that they might taste similarly.  Octopus has a much meatier texture and flavor, and goes better with savory elements.  The potatoes (which would have gone well with a steak), were cut in large pieces had crispy edges, but were well cooked fried potatoes.  I am generally not a huge fan of green olives, but the salsa went well with the octopus and other elements of the dish. and the piquillo peppers added a nice spice.

To finish things off, I was a little torn.  They generally, have a brownie, a panna cotta, and a strudel on the dessert menu.  All sounded good, but I decided to go with the Chocolate Fudge Brownie that was served warm with Fudge Sauce, and Vanilla Bean Ice Cream.  It was very good on it's own, but also, I drink my beers from light to dark and by this time, I was down to the Imperial Krampus Cookies Barrel Aged Milk Stout, which it went very well with.  I enjoyed my dinner and beers here.  The food was good and the staff is very friendly.  I will definitely return to enjoy more of their good beer and food.   

Vacation 2017 - Washington DC area Breweries

When I travel, now that the number of local breweries have grown, I try to visit local breweries as well as local restaurants.  I recently traveled to Washington DC and Greenville, SC and decided to try out the local breweries in each area.  Obviously, breweries weren't the only place that I visited, but it's a way to look at the culture of an area.  Because the Washington DC area encompasses two states and the District, I wanted to see something in each area, there was discussion about running out to Rehoboth Beach, Delaware to get to Dogfish Head Brewery, but despite the fact that it isn't far as the crow flies, there really is no easy way to get there, so that was waved off.  We started things off in Washington DC at Right Proper Brewery.  Right Proper actually has two locations.  Their brewpub is located in the Shaw neighborhood,  near Howard University, and their production brewery is located in Brookland.  We went to the brewpub which is smaller, doesn't take reservations, and has a very comfortable feel to it.  The building was brick with hardwood floors, unfinished ceilings, and hanging lights.  There were also several very cool and slightly weird murals throughout the dining room.  We sat near something that looked like a blue radish with arms and their was another one on another wall of the Washington DC area with a raccoon zapping a panda bear near the zoo.  The food menu has a Southern vibe to it.  We arrived around noon, so we decided to go for brunch.  We started with a very good Smoked Salmon Mousse with Everything Bagel Chips and Housemade Bread & Butter Pickles.  Unfortunately, it was so good that it was mostly eaten before I remembered to take a picture.  It was a spin on Lox and Bagels done in the form of crackers and dip.  The bagel chips were crisp with a lot of flavor and were good even without spreading the very good smoked salmon mousse on them.  My only compaint is that we could have used more bagel chips.  For my main course, I went with what is becoming a brunch standard, Chicken and Waffles.  This version was done with Fresh Blueberries and Blueberry Syrup and Butter.  While it was good, I especially liked the slight tartness of the blueberry syrup, the ratio of chicken to waffle could have been a little better.  The chicken that was there was nicely breaded and was tender, juicy, and flavorful, but it would have been nice to have more.  Looking at the beer list, it appears that while they might not be exclusively a sour beer brewery, they do like sour beers.  I like sour beers as well, so I thought I would see what they did.  They don't do flights, so I got a couple of beers in their smallest size, so I could try more than one.  The beers that I got were Tropic of Capricorn, an American Brett Pale Ale and Kick, Kick, Snare Dry Hopped Berlinerweisse.  While both beers had a sour flavor to them, neither was exceptionally sour.  I did like both of them although I think that I liked the Tropic of Capricorn more which is surprising, because I generally like the berlinerweisse style more.

After enjoying Right Proper Brewery, we continued on to Silver Spring, Maryland to visit Denizens Brewing Co.  Located on a hill, it had a two level brewing area, both of which had beer gardens outside.  They also served food, but as we had just eaten at Right Proper, food was unnecessary for us.  The place had an industrial vibe, especially the basement with one wall looking like it was made from ductwork aluminum.  The upper interior taproom seemed smaller, so we ventured downstairs where we had to walk through barrel storage and by an entrance to the brewing area to get to the downstairs taproom.  It was raining a little when we arrived, so we really had no desire to sit outside in either of the beer gardens (which did look like they would be nice if it hadn't been raining).  The long bar in the basement was open behind it, so you could easily see the brewing area.  Other than the bar, there were a variety of tables to sit at.  They were black topped metal tables with metal chairs which looked more comfortable than the bar stools, so that's where we sat.  There was art hanging throughout the taprooms, but the series that caught my eye was the hipster Presidents (and Hillary Clinton).  There was John Kennedy, Barack Obama, George Washington, Hillary Clinton, Abe Lincoln, and Ronald Reagan.  They all cracked me up, but I think I liked Washington in a track suit best.  Denizens offered three set flights of four beers, although there was some overlap between the three.  Their flights were labeled Malty, Hoppy, and Seasonal.  While all had things that caught my eye, both the Malty and Seasonal flights had a Porter on the list and I wasn't terribly interested in a porter at that time, so I went with their Hoppy Flight.  In their Hoppy Flight was Lowest Lord ESB, The Mack IPL, Trainspotting Pale Ale, and Southside Rye IPA.  On the other flights were a couple of Tripels, a Red Ale, and the aforementioned Porter.  All of the beers that I had were hoppy and they were all pretty good, but they were all pretty similar.  There were differences and I did have a favorite, the Lowest Lord ESB, but my friend who is a home brewer suggsted that it looked as iff all beers were made using the same ingredients.

After Silver Spring, we traveled back to Lorton, Virginia to a brewery that, given the name, I would have put on the coast and not in a business park.  Fair Winds Brewing Company is located in a business park and doesn't seem to have any connection to the water, but all of their beers follow a sailing theme.  As opposed to Denizens, the Fair Winds is located in a large single floor space with high ceilings that looks like it was a warehouse at one point.  Part of the curved bar is located near the entrance, but it curves back into the room.  Other than the bar, there are several large communal tables, one of which we sat at.  They do not serve food, but it is BYOF and there was a food truck in the parking lot when we were there.  The beers seem to have quite a variety in color and flavor both and flights consist of 4 - 5 oz pours of the drinkers choice.  I went with Quayside Kolsch, Siren's Lure Saison, Sessions in the Abyss Session IPA, and Dank and Stormy Imperial IPA.  Of these, I liked the kolsch and the IIPA best.  The kolsch being light and crisp and a good summertime beer and the dank and stormy being big and very flavorful with a very definite dankness to it.

While I mentioned we decided not to go to Delaware, that does not precisely mean that we did not go to Dogfish Head.  A few days after we did our brewery tour, we stopped at the Dogfish Head Ale House in Fairfax, Va.  While they might not specifically brew here, it is owned by Dogfish Head and does feature their beers and did have food.  We stopped for lunch on the way to the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum near Dulles Airport.  Located in a stand alone restaurant in front of a strip mall, it kind of reminded me of a Chili's (as far as location and heavy use of wood in the design).  The food served was a bit more upscale than that served at Chili's.  We had some very good starter's starting with Smoked Cucumber Cups which were hollowed Cucumber Cups filled with Goat Cheese and topped with Smoked Salmon and Dill.  We also had Pop Pop Shrimp which were Popcorn Shrimp served with a Spicy Sauce over an Arugula Salad.  Both of these were very fresh and flavorful, but I was a bit overwhelmed when my burger arrived.  Called the Alehouse BBQ Burger, it was enormous and I was unsure at first how I was going to eat it.  It consisted of two 4 oz Wood Grilled Hamburger Patties basted with BBQ Sauce, topped with Cheddar Cheese, Applewood Smoked Bacon, and Onion Rings and a Wood Grilled Bun brushed with BBQ Ranch Sauce.  I did eat the onion rings separately which did make it somewhat smaller but I saw that I was going to be committed to eating it once I picked it up because there would be no easy way to put it down without it exploding.  It was a very good burger even if it was enormous and hard to eat.  As far as the beer was concerned, they had a set flight.  Many of the beers I was interested in, but I might have chosen differently on others.  It started with the Namaste Witbier, went to Dogfish Head standards, 60 Minute and 90 Minute IPA, the Indian Brown Ale, which is a combination of a Scotch Ale, a Brown Ale, and an IPA, Raison D'etre, their Belgian Ale made with Beet Sugar and Golden Raisins, and Romantic Chemistry IPA, their seasonal.  Of their beers, I have liked all that I have tried.  I knew that I liked their 90 Minute IPA more than the 60, and Raison D'Etre was a favorite.  I had Namaste before and thought that while it is good, it isn't really that distinctive.  The Indian Brown Ale, I had not had before and I was really surprised at how good it was.  It had elements of all three beers that it was a hybrid off, but it was all its own as well.  I was very interested in Romantic Chemistry, but it took a few drinks to impress me.  It was the last one that I had so it may have taken a few drinks to clear my palate.  It was an IPA made with Mango, Apricots, and Ginger.  The apricots were obvious in the nose, but it took a few tastes to get the mango and the ginger finish.  After several drinks, I was able to decide that it was a good beer.

The breweries that I tried in DC all had something to say for them, and it was a lot of fun exploring, though there were definitely a few that I would return to more readily than others.         

 

Smylie Brothers Brewery

And the unplanned brewery tour continued with Smylie Brothers Brewery in Evanston.  This is the first brewery in Chicago, outside the city of Chicago, that I have gone to.  While there are many other breweries in the suburbs to visit, I am done with breweries for a while.  Located near the northern downtown part of Evanston, it is in a brick building with a large patio area that would be great for sitting in the summer, but not in January.  The inside is gray brick and black wood with a cement floor.  It kind of has a hunting lodge feel to it (although there is no taxidermy there).  There are several large communal tables, but there are also several two tops and four tops closer to the bar which is curved and sits close to the back of the dining room.  There is also a second level dining/drinking area that has a vintage bicycle sitting near the top of the stairway, but as I never went up there, I can't talk about how it looks.  The brewing area is off to one side of the dining area and is viewable through a large window.  The beers that they serve generally lean toward the sessionable with an alcohol content between 5-6% and a lighter flavor.  When I was there, they were making only one IPA and that was sold out.  They do make Belgian Strong Ales and do barrel aging for a stronger and more distinctive flavor.  As this was my first time here and I had not previously had much of their beer, I decided to do a flight.  I decided to drink two base beers and their barrel-aged counterparts, the Farmhouse Saison and its Gin Barrel-Aged counterpart and the Belgian Strong Ale and its Bourbon Barrel Aged counterpart.  All of the beers were good, but I liked the barrel-aged versions more.  The base saison was light in flavor (and the lighter color of the two beers) and wasn't as funky as many saisons tend to be.  The gin barrel-aged version added a nice herbal flavor similar to a good gin.  As there was no smokiness to it, I have to imagine that the barrel was made from a light wood and was uncharred.  The Belgian Strong Ale was richer and definitely had more flavor, considering the fact that it was 10.25% ABV, this is not surprising.  The Bourbon Barrel-Aged version was smoky and boozy and my favorite of the four that I tried.

The menu that Smylie Brothers puts out is similar to a smokehouse crossed with a bar.  There are a lot of sandwiches, burgers and pizzas, but there is also a lot of barbecue.  I was there for lunch and my trip home would take about an hour, so I wasn't really interested in anything heavy, although admittedly, seeing it on other people's plates, I did think that the barbecue looked really good.  I ordered a Grilled Cheese Sandwich and Tomato Soup with Sharp Wisconsin Cheddar, Gruyere, and Fontina Cheese and House Smoked bacon on Challah Bread, and Tomato-Basil Soup.  Grilled Cheese Sandwiches with Tomato Soup is a total comfort food thing and this just stepped things up.  There was a lot of cheese with a gooey texture and a sharp and funky flavor and the bacon added a sweet, smoky, and porky flavor and a variation in texture.  The tomato-basil soup was creamy with a sweet tomato flavor and a nice basil finish.  It was good for dipping the sandwich in or on its own.

While I have been told that there are better breweries in Evanston (Temperance and Sketchbook), I liked Smylie Brothers and would be happy to return.  The food is good and I would like to try their barbecue and more of their beer which doesn't seem to rely on a single style.     

Lagunitas Brewery Taproom

 It is a good time to be a beer drinker.  There are over 5000 breweries in the United States and about 50 in the city of Chicago alone.  Most are pretty small and self-distribute if they distribute at all, but there are a few big boys in town.  Many places have a capacity of a few thousand barrels per year, Lagunitas Brewery Chicago has a capacity of 600,000 barrels per year.  I had been to several several breweries before I first went to Lagunitas, so I knew what to expect, I thought.  Riding there, I noticed that it is much bigger than the other breweries that I was used to.  While I had seen breweries in warehouses before, this seemed to take up an entire large warehouse space.  The sign was on one corner with a very complete address.

Walking into the building the fun continues.  The Long hallway leading back into the building is blue with a lot of black light and lasers.  The painted sign leading to the tap room is yellow and orange with a real psychedelic vibe.  The letters are twisted and have a winding tail that leads down the hall.  In addition to the blue light and the lasers, the Willy Wonka theme (Pure Imagination) plays on repeat.  At the end of the hall is a picture of a woman holding a beer labeled Waldo that is completely made of bottle caps and around the corner is another painting of a cartoon monster with a green body and red horns and tongue.

At the end of the hall where the art is, the passageway turns left and passes window, behind wich are brewing and packaging areas and a sense of scale is started to be gained.  The number and size of brewing and fermenting vessels are of a scale I had not previously seen and I was kind of blown away.

At the end of the hall is a stairway that leads to the third floor where the taproom is located.  On the way up, there is a door on the second level that references Star Wars, saying that this is not the door that you are looking for and instructs the prospective drinker to go higher.  At the top of the stairs, there is more wandering to be done.  There is a Schwag shop across from the stairway and windows showing a party room and the upper level of the brewing area.  A walk down the passageway at that level, it turns right and then enters the taproom.  The taproom is well lit with windows on three sides, wood paneled walls, long picnic tables and a large rectangular bar on the far side.  there is a small "stage" on one side that frequently has live music, typically Roots, Folk, and Americana.   In addition to the seating inside the taproom, there are couches and tables in the passageway before entering the taproom and tables on a catwalk overlooking the brewing area.  While it is cool to walk out on the catwalk, I prefer to do my drinking and dining in the taproom and at the bar as well.

There is a chalkboard on the wall dividing the taproom from the kitchen listing the beers on tap.  there are generally about 16 beers on tap.  You can order by the pint or 5 oz pour in a flight of 4 or 8.  Because they have so many beers, I like to get a flight so I can try as many as I can.  generally, i go for a flight of 4 because I want to be able to get home without issue.  I discovered Lagunitas through their IPA and while I like it, I generally prefer to order new beers or limited runs.  Fo r this trip, I went with Aunt Sally Dry-Hopped Sweet Tart Sour Mash Ale, CitruSinensis Pale Ale, Fusion American Double/Imperial IPA, and Hop Stoopid American Double/Imperial IPA.  Aunt Sally is a hoppy Wild Ale and it's pretty good.  It is pretty sour, but the hops actually complement the sour flavor.  The CitruSinensis is a Pale Ale made with Blood Oranges.  I like their standard Pale Ale which is what their base beer is, but the addition of blood oranges adds a sweet tart flavor.  The Fusion and Hop Stoopid are both High Alcohol beers.  the Fusion leans more toward a Double and the Hop Stoopid is more an Imperial IPA.  Of the beers, I think I liked Aunt Sally best.

The food menu at Lagunitas leans toward barbecue, burgers, and bar food, but they do have salads and some entree plates.  This time I decided to go with Pork Schnitzel with Mashed Potatoes, Roasted Brussels Sprouts, Apple Demi, and Pickled Fennel and Onions as a garnish.  The Schnitzel was tender and juicy with a nice crispy crust.  The apple demi added a cider flavor to the schnitzel and acted as a gravy to the mashed potatoes.  The Brussels Sprouts were tender, flavorful, and the entire plate was very good and enjoyable.

For dessert, I went with a Spent Grain Brownie with Vanilla Ice Cream, Caramel, and Candied Malt.  I am a sucker for brownies, and this brownie, very large and made with grain that had been used in the brewing process, was very much a winner.  The ice cream, while nice, was unnecessary.

I always enjoy coming to Lagunitas.  The beer is good and there is always something new, and they don't skimp on the food.  While there are other beers that I like more, the beer here is good and they know how to have a good time, so I will surely return.