Grahamwich Lovewich

adminChicago Dining, foodie, gourmet sandwiches, Graham Elliot, Grahambulance, Grahamwich, laughter, River North, Ryan, sammies, true love, truffled popcorn, Uncategorized%s Comments

I’ve said it once (the first time I went there), I said it again (the second time) and I’ll say it again right now: Grahamwich is a marriage of flavors in my mouth.

I’ve always loved a good sammy but chef Graham Elliot’s gourmet sandwich venture takes it to another level.  This cash-only River North shoppe offers a chalkboard menu with 8 wildly creative sandwiches, sides (pickled seasonal veggies!  truffled popcorn!) and a long, communal table.  The communal table inevitably leads to perfect strangers gushing over their food together.  Trust me- been there, done that.

Ryan and I may have laughed all the way down Ontario about my “marriage of flavors” comment but every Grahamwich stop I make absolutely justifies that statement.  The Turkey Confit with candied yams, stewed cranberries and sage mayo was unbelievable and I thought I would love it forever but then I had the Smoked Whitefish.  Perfection.  And don’t even get me started on the Truffle Popcorn.  Or the Salted Caramel Apple Pie Frozen Yogurt.  Or the homemade soda…  Or…

You get the point.

Oh and word on the street (literally) is that a Grahambulance (!!!) is in the works: a delivery VW van bringing sammie joy to the people.

So much love for Grahamwich.

(photos via metromix)

Restaurant Week and Japonais

adminChicago, date night, martinis, Restaurant Week, River North, sushi, Uncategorized%s Comments

It’s Restaurant Week in Chicago, which means that for $34 you can try a 3-course meal at some of the top restaurants in the city.  Reservations fill up quickly so I snagged a 9pm at Japonais, a japanese/euro fusion restaurant.  I’ve been wanting to go to Japonais since I moved to the city so I was really excited for Saturday night.  After a fashion consult from my friends Jillian (who told me point blank what I would wear) and Laura (who informed me that black denim is definitely in), Ryan and I cabbed it to this River North hotspot.

After checking in with the hostess, we went downstairs to a lounge-y area to have a drink.  Their signature Floating Orchid martini was fantastic and our table was ready in no time.  We took advantage of the Restaurant Week menu so we samples things we may not have tried otherwise.  My crab cakes and tuna/eel roll was amazing and Ryan loved his rib-like thing and kobe beef carpaccio.  We don’t usually order dessert out but the marscapone-chocolate cake thing was just sinful.  Sushi. steak and martinis…right up our alley.

We really had a great time and I definitely want to go back to order off their regular menu.  The only drawback for me was our waiter.  He reminded me of the pool boy from “The Bird Cage”, which is fine because I loved that movie but I didn’t love his demeanor.  Not very accommodating and a little too attitude-y for me.  All in all though, it was an excellent date night and introduction to Restaurant Week.