Monthly Archives: August 2015

El Hefe

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**** (4 stars)

My second visit to El Hefe was much more successful than my first. I really liked the food, and the service was good.

I was a bit hesitant to try this place because of its reputation as a noisy dive bar and a jam packed disco. But that’s at night. At lunch time it’s just a Mexican restaurant. It was still noisy on my first visit, but the place was empty on a Friday at lunch during my second visit.

The nachos are a very generous pile of just about everything you’ve ever seen on nachos. The underlying chips are thin and crispy, and the only fault I found was the use of liquid cheese rather than melting real cheese under a broiler.

The guacamole and chips are also a very generous serving (and were free, because of a yelp check-in. Deal!)

I really liked the two tacos I had: pastor, and crispy fish. Both were on small single tortillas and piled high, so you have to eat at least half before you can pick them up.

My companion said the quesadilla was one of the best she’s had, and since she makes the best quesadilla I’ve ever had, that was high praise.

The margaritas are served in a 20-ounce glass, but they’re more than half ice cubes.

Service was friendly and efficient.

El Hefe
15 W Hubbard St
Chicago, IL 60654
(312) 548-6841
http://www.yelp.com/biz/el-hefe-chicago-3

Vermilion

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***** (5 stars)

Vermillion offers very interesting food in a trendy, upscale atmosphere with a nice soundtrack.

They bill their food as a fusion of Indian and Latin, but it seemed to lean much more to Indian, although none of the items were traditional Indian, each had a unique and interesting spin.

We tried an extensive assortment of tapas, appetizers, and one entree, and enjoyed all of them. There is also an interesting wine list with about half the selections available by the glass.

Service was friendly and attentive.

Vermilion
10 W Hubbard St
Chicago, IL 60654
(312) 527-4060
http://www.yelp.com/biz/vermilion-chicago-2

Bohemian House {BoHo}

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**** (4 stars)

If you’re looking for something different, BoHo offers excellent Central European food in a funky yet stylish environment. We tried it for Sunday Brunch, and enjoyed the relaxed atmosphere and attentive service.

We sampled the Hungarian Langos, a pice of fried potato bread with garlic butter, sour cream and shredded gouda. It was good, but one slice was plenty. The Pork Schnitzel Sandwich was more to out taste. Served open face, it was a stack of rye bread, sauerkraut, the schnitzel and Emmentaler cheese, topped with perfectly cooked sunny side up fried egg. Rich, but tasty. The beer flight provided an interesting accompaniment.

We finished with an order of doughnuts, which are really beignets, served with two dipping sauces.

While the menu is not extensive, there’s enough variety to bring me back to check out their other offerings of this interesting cuisine.

Bohemian House {BoHo}
11 W. Illinois
Chicago, IL 60654
(779) 333-0236
http://www.yelp.com/biz/bohemian-house-boho-chicago-3

Japonais by Morimoto

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**** (4 stars)

This is certainly one of the better sushi restaurants in Chicago, although it perhaps can’t live up to the prestigious name attached to it. The decor and vibe of the place is top notch, from the downstairs bar (the Blue Room) to the upstairs dining rooms.

The food features many of the items you’ll find at Morimoto in New York City and as far as I could recall they were nearly identical. Fish quality is, of course, excellent.

We had the multi course omakase, which is a bit different than other omakases in that you can pretty much pick your own items, so it’s just a way of bundling the items you’re interested in, at a reasonable price of $130 per person. Portion sizes were large, and we definitely left feeling well stuffed with sushi!

The best item we tried was the hamachi crudo, thin strips alternating with pimentos. The hamachi tacos were also quite good.

A few of the specialties didn’t live up to expectations, including the Caesar salad, which just was voted best salad in Chicago, but seemed rather pedestrian to me. Perhaps it’s just that I don’t like Caesars that are served deconstructed, leaving the prep work to me.

The vaunted Duck Duck Duck was also a bit lackluster, although there was nothing wrong with any of the (more than 3) duck preparations on the plate.

We also had octopus, both raw (supposedly live, but I think the octopus would disagree) and cooked, beets, a large platter of sashimi, and spicy crab legs.

The trio of sorbets was a nice light way to end the meal.

The wine list is extensive, and there is a nice selection of Champagnes, the perfect match for sashimi.

Service was friendly and attentive, although several times during the meal there was an attempt to deliver two dishes at once, a physical impossibility on such small tables and with such large dishes. This is apparently caused by them having three kitchen and no coordination between them, which seems very odd for a restaurant of this caliber.

Overall I enjoyed the meal, thought it was reasonably priced for what it was, and would go back. But I’m still looking for a truly great Chicago sushi restaurant.

Japonais by Morimoto
600 W Chicago Ave
Chicago, IL 60654
(312) 822-9600
http://www.yelp.com/biz/japonais-by-morimoto-chicago-2

The Oceanaire Seafood Room

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***** (5 stars)

They’ve really upped their game at Orlando’s Oceanaire. Years ago this was the sort of place with a tray of condiments including boxes of Old Bay seasoning and oyster crackers sitting in the middle of each table, which made it feel like a New England seafood house on the pier. No more. Now crisp white table cloths and elegant blue candles set the tone for more of a supper club experience.

While there is always a collection of fresh fish, my favorite things about Oceanaire are the starters and the steaks. Lump crabmeat, tuna tartare, and clam chowder are all standouts, and there are also some really nice salads. The steaks are actually better than at the Capital Grille next door.

Service is extremely professional, and wine service is knowledgable, with an extensive list to draw upon. This is my favorite restaurant at Pointe Orlando.

The Oceanaire Seafood Room
9101 International Dr
Orlando, FL 32819
(407) 363-4801
http://www.yelp.com/biz/the-oceanaire-seafood-room-orlando