Category Archives: ..and more

Holy carbs. To think this face-stuffing extravaganza (food porn, one friend dubbed it) I call elizabites has made it six months, leaving a hefty trail of calories, dining bills, satisfied dining companions, and valet tickets in its wake. I loaded up on red velvet cupcakes, and had to trek to Milwaukee to find a ridiculous steak fit for a king. I fell in love with new restaurants like Mado, The Bristol and Urban Belly, gushed over old standbys like Milk and Honey and Le Bouchon, and developed a relentless addiction to Berry Chill. I schleped out to Downer’s Grove for steamed hot dogs, attempted to uncover the mystery that is Duk’s, and prayed fervently to the duck sausage at a temple of encased meats. But there’s so much more to digest in Chicago and beyond as I plan to take elizabites to Chile in January, Las Vegas in March, New York City in May and more. Watch for posts from these destinations as well as usual updates from Milwaukee and other hidden Wisconsin gems. Look for more guest bloggers, head-scratching mystery posts, tabletops, reviews and a redesign in the coming months. Thanks for reading, commenting, linking and generally keeping up with the bloat-fest… I raise a Saint’s Alp almond milk tea to you. Here’s to even better bites in 2009!

When it comes to the Jewish food I grew up on, I couldn’t get enough of the lox, latkes, challah, hell, I even love me some fried Matzo now and again. But I could never get into Hannukah chocolate coins or “gelt.” In the mid-’80s my older brother and I would share a serious nerd moment and tear open the mesh bags to wear them on our hands as fingerless “breakdancing gloves,” but even then we weren’t feeling the chocolate inside. It’s always had a weird texture, a bland, chalky taste and is way too much trouble to get to what with Fort Knox alumium foil wrapping that would throw a one-two paper-cut-punch as you tried to pry it apart. Somehow I still end up with a bag of Hannukah gelt every year, and I give it a shot hoping my tastebuds will finally acclimate just as they evenually did to gefilte fish. But the chalky taste remains. Next year, I’ll ask my aunt to send good chocolate or real coinage? Now don’t get me started on Manishevitz. Happy Hannukah y’all!

I read a story recently about how along with restaurants in general, independent coffee shops and diners are getting hit especially hard by the economy right now. I noticed that Blend on Division closed up shop not too long ago (but may be reopening as Fuel?), and Sip Coffee House was strangely empty last weekend. It was after 1PM on a Sunday and my laptop and I had our veritable pick of tables and outlets to boot (note: I am hoping it was just an unusually slow day, if Sip closes I will truly cry). And while I’ve definitely noticed just a slight drop in the number of diners at restaurants around town, I believe Chicago will always have its fail safe institutions that never seem to slow down. These places are so consistently great in everything from the food to the service, that no matter how much people are spending, you’ll still be ousted you to a corner of the restaurant or to the bar if you try to drop in on a weekend. My recent two-hour wait before dinner at La Scarola had me thinking about it, and I wanted to give a shout out to the other steadfast institutions I still see going strong. Here’s a list of some places I’ve recently visited over the past few months with their respective wait times. Anyone wait longer or shorter than usual for a popular spot? Shout it out in the comments below..

1). Le Bouchon..reservation, 10 minute wait
2). La Scarola…no reservation..2 hour wait
3). Hopleaf…..no reservation..2 and half hour wait
4). Sushi Wabi…called day of for reservation, earliest available 9:45PM
5). Hot Doug’s….no reservation..45-minute wait (outside)
6). Rockit..no reservation..sat right down, but every table packed around us