Accanto
Accanto shares a building and an owner with Lucky Vito’s Pizzeria—but that’s about all. With a separate entrance and brown-and-beige decor, the little restaurant exudes the fine-dining aesthetic of another era: polished tables set with look-of-leather runners, shiny silver show plates, and textured-gold hardcover menus. Chef Domenico Acampura is from Milan (where he was awarded a Michelin star), but his small menu is as much continental as Italian, with contemporary twists. In the case of lobster bisque that meant a flavorful soup poured tableside over morsels of lobster claw and sweet-tart mango with a flourish of basil chiffonade. Pan-roasted vension chop rested between a lightly crisped risotto cake and a crown of spiky wild arugula, set off by a chocolate and juniper berry reduction. Our main courses were equally composed. Pan-roasted Atlantic turbot napoleon had moist fish fillets layered with “champignon-chestnut ragout” and Savoy cabbage braised in apple cider. Saffron and lemon zest risotto topped with oven-braised short rib, a refined riff on osso buco, came on a huge black plate painted round with ivory bone-marrow cream, and best of all, the rice was the perfect texture. —Anne Spiselman
This smart BYOB spot started life as a casual deli and cafe, but hit its stride after introducing multicourse prix fixe dinners, and recently was awarded a Michelin star. Chef Shin Thompson’s eclectically influenced contemporary American menu showcases clean, streamlined, seasonal flavors; tasting menus are now available in five, seven, and thirteen courses. On Saturdays the restaurant offers a six-course “underground dinner”; to get an invite, sign up on the mailing list at bon-soiree.com. On “No Menu Sundays,” where the offerings are determined by what’s best at the farmers’ markets, a four-course tasting menu is $45, a seven-course menu $75. —Martha Bayne
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BAKERY, FRENCH | MONDAY noon-7 PM, tuesday-FRIDAY 8 AM-7 PM, SATURDAY-sunday 8 AM-6 PM
Scene: Vincent Colombet stands silently behind the counter making crepes, jaw grimly set while his workers awkwardly explain to one customer after the next that they cannot a sell a single of his exquisitely flaky croissants, pain au chocolate, pain almond, or pain raisin because the coffee shop next door says no. If lack of access to the Parisian-bred baker’s pastries wasn’t so frustrating, it would actually make a wicked French comedy. Instead Colombet—who after all should have known what he was getting into—must bag them by the dozen (at $24.50 per) in order to comply with a noncompete agreement with New Wave Coffee. That’s the sad reality, but this Logan Square retail outpost of Colombet’s Elston Avenue bakery and cooking school also happens to produce transporting boules, batards, and baguettes—which certain LS denizens have been using as picket-sign posts to wave in front of New Wave. These wondrous breads are baked and delivered three times daily from the mothership. One way around the pastry embargo: customers can pool money and combine orders with others in line. Barring that, the unspoken benefit of having to buy a dozen of Colombet’s croissants is that you’ll have a dozen of Colombet’s croissants. —Mike Sula
Malaika Marion moved her “soup, sandwich, and shake shack” to a new Logan Square location over the summer, but otherwise didn’t mess with the formula. With help from her partner, Adam Lebin, she’s made the place a destination for hearty down-home standards like a gooey grilled peanut butter, banana, and honey sandwich and beefarific chili laced with head-clearing handfuls of cumin and chile (a vegan version is also available). The daunting Reuben—a popular choice based on a peek at the other tables—comes piled with thick folds of corned beef topped with the traditional Thousand Island dressing and melted Swiss, plus grilled onions. There’s also rich mac ‘n’ cheese, meatball subs, Goose Island root beer floats, and daily soup, sandwich, and dessert specials (one week it was Lebin’s grandmother’s brownies). —Martha Bayne
This Puerto Rican joint seems to be off the radar of local foodies. Maybe that’s a good thing, because the place is remarkably unspoiled. From the first bite I had there, my primary sensation was wow. We started with guachitas, smashed fried plantain disks topped with guacamole and a slice of salchichon, a piquant red sausage—an inspired combination. The canoa, a large sweet plantain filled with cheese and beef, was also killer. Mofongo is plantain smooshed together with lots of garlic and chunks of pigskin and served with a side of golden consomme that’s meant to be dashed in. At Cocina Boricua I had the best version I’ve ever had—and I’ve tried it all over Puerto Rico. Another guaranteed pleaser are the pasteles, plantain tamales with a core of lightly spiced pulled chicken. Served the cabrito en fricassee, exceptionally tender chunks of steamed baby goat in a light wine sauce speckled with green olives, I knew I had found my paradigm for preparations of the horned beast. There are also jibaritos, the Chicago-invented sandwich of two flattened fried plantains filled with beef, chicken, or pork. For dessert we had an exquisitely eggy flan and the templeque, a light yet rich coconut gelatin. Cocina Boricua is BYOB, as a pink neon window sign announces. —David Hammond
