{"id":6849,"date":"2012-11-17T19:30:01","date_gmt":"2012-11-18T02:30:01","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/endoedibles.ifm.yji.mybluehost.me\/?p=6849"},"modified":"2013-05-06T16:01:04","modified_gmt":"2013-05-06T23:01:04","slug":"lost-meals-balena-chicago-il","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/endoedibles.com\/?p=6849","title":{"rendered":"[lost meals] Balena, Chicago IL"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"11\"

The lost meals entries consist of meals that occurred at various times throughout 2012 which, for any number of reasons, escaped my documentation \u2013 some due to a cross country move and a new job, some due to the Los Angeles Kings run to the Stanley Cup, and some simply as a result of too much travel. Having enjoyed many of these meals with friends or family and with some of them amongst the year\u2019s very best the reality is that with time my memory has deteriorated and as life moves forward I\u2019ve realized there is little hope to ever \u201ccatch up\u201d or document these experiences as well as I\u2019d hope, yet in order to preserve them I present these pictures, notes, and thoughts on the experience.<\/p>\n

\"021

Strawberry No1 Dimmi, Grey Goose, Fragoli, Wild Strawberry<\/p>\n

\"021

Peter\u2019s Bread: Salami and Red Wine, Heirloom Beet Crostini, Orange and Anise Grissini, Pumpkin Spice Brioche, Cranberry Walnut Roll (Maple Fig Butter, Gorgonzola Milk Jam, Cauliflower Curry Yogurt)<\/p>\n

\"221\"

Venison Terrine, House Pickles, Violet Mustard<\/p>\n

\"021

Mushroom Bruschetta, Rye Toast, Marsala Onions, Cream<\/p>\n

\"021

Bayley Hazen Blue, Honey Crisp Apples, Frisee, Caramel Vinaigrette<\/p>\n

\"3321\"

Tagliolini Nero, Crab, Sea Urchin, Chili<\/p>\n

\"021

Hen Egg Tajarin, Sage, Brown Butter<\/p>\n

\"021

12\u201d Pizza with Mozzarella, Basil, Tomato<\/p>\n

\"021

Baked Polenta, Tomato Fondue, Dante<\/p>\n

\"021

Wood Roasted Squash, House Ricotta, Honey Chili Butter<\/p>\n

\"021

Afogato, Vanilla Gelato, Espresso, Cinnamon Sugar Donuts<\/p>\n

\"021

Caramel Pine Nut Tart, Vanilla Gelato, Rosemary<\/p>\n

\"021

Chinotto Float, Chai Spice Gelato, Charred Dates, Rum, Demerara Sugar<\/p>\n

\"021

Vanilla Gelati, Chocolate Chip Cookie, Malt Chocolate Sauce, Toasted Milk<\/p>\n

\"212\"

Apple Pie Gelati, Salted Caramel, Pecan, Brown Butter Crumble<\/p>\n

\"021

Americano<\/p>\n

\"021

The night after a late dinner at The Bristol I found myself seated alongside my family at sister restaurant Balena, a classy high ceilinged, white walled space on Halsted where Chris Pandel and Amanda Rockman take on Italian cuisine with the same local-seasonal ethos and \u201cHonest Cooking\u201d sensibilities as at their Bucktown staple. Similar in craft \u2013 an extensive cocktail list, plenty of seasonal vegetables, and a few meat dishes \u2013 but swapping out meats and charcuterie in favor of pasta and pizza (though charcuterie still exists at Balena just as pasta does at The Bristol) and comparable in atmosphere as well as clientele the difference between the two is subtle but certainly worth exploring.<\/p>\n

\"021

Beginning first with the service, our captain Keith did an admirable job throughout the evening, but taking into account the size of the room and use of back servers at Balena it simply is not possible for the restaurant to offer the same personal connection a diner feels at The Bristol \u2013 suggestions feel pre-determined, descriptions formulaic, and timing a bit more stilted with plates at times appearing too quickly and at others with substantial delay (such as when my Americano arrived nearly 15 minutes before desserts as opposed to with, or even after.) Perhaps as a result of \u2013 or perhaps leading to \u2013 the above, plates such as the bruschetta and polenta also suffered from temperature issues, both cooler than I\u2019d have expected (though both were admittedly excellent even luke warm.)<\/p>\n

\"021

…and speaking of the food, selecting nine plates plus five desserts amongst our party of five, I\u2019ll first echo my comments from The Bristol and suggest not overlooking the vegetables as the beautifully balanced frisee salad, decadent mushroom bruschetta, and unexpectedly complex wood roasted squash were amongst the best dishes of the evening. Less successful, while others have raved the bread program I personally found all but the Pumpkin spice brioche to be rather standard while it was the accoutrements that truly made the basket \u2013 particularly the expectedly sweet maple-fig butter and pungent, rich Gorgonzola milk jam.<\/p>\n

\"021

Focusing on the more \u201cItalian\u201d options, the pizza was fine \u2013 neither particularly bad nor particularly memorable while the pastas shined; the ribbon like tajarin coated in butter but not at all heavy while the jet black tagliolini nero was springy without being chewy, spicy without being hot, and delicately briny from the uni while retaining the crab\u2019s unmistakable sweetness \u2013 the best dish of the night by a landslide, especially considering the desserts \u2013 none nearly as impressive (a tall order to be sure) as the duo at The Bristol just one night prior; the Pine Nut Tart a lone exception in its interesting balance of sweet and salty with texture aplenty.<\/p>\n

A good meal, though not a great one, there are certainly some impressive things going on at Balena and with careful ordering I\u2019ve no doubt one could have an exceptional meal, yet at the same time I really cannot think of a reason to revisit the space considering A) the quality of Chicago\u2019s Italian scene in general and B) the overall superior experience available from Pandel and Rockman on North Damen.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The lost meals entries consist of meals that occurred at various times throughout 2012 which, for any number of reasons, escaped my documentation \u2013 some due to a cross country move and a new job, some due to the Los … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1007,7,96,28,13,27,153,97,16,900,34,12],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-6849","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-balena","category-bread-basket","category-chicago","category-coffee","category-dessert","category-food","category-ice-cream","category-illinois","category-italian","category-lost-meals","category-pizza","category-vacation"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/endoedibles.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6849","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/endoedibles.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/endoedibles.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/endoedibles.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/endoedibles.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=6849"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/endoedibles.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6849\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6878,"href":"https:\/\/endoedibles.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6849\/revisions\/6878"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/endoedibles.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=6849"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/endoedibles.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=6849"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/endoedibles.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=6849"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}