Lula Cafe (2537 N. Kedzie Blvd.) in Logan Square has established itself as one of the premiere lunch destinations not only in Chicagoland, but really the country.  Yeah, they were on the scene way before some of the other guys joined the crowd during the past decade.  Lula has always been sourcing ingredients form local farms when possible and taking the extra time and care to exemplify what brunch cuisine can achieve.

Their lox and bagel sandwich is fantastic.  Their bagels are purchased from Red Hen Bakery just down the road on Milwaukee Avenue near Damen and North.  The light, doughy bagel is covered with all the goodies you’d expect from an “everything.”  Fantastic house cured salmon, airy decadent cream cheese, and of course delicious fresh veggies.  Their whole menu is great, but if you’re looking for a great bagel and lox, this could be your place.

On the other hand, Max’s Delicatessen (191 Skokie Valley Rd., Highland Park) is another viable option when dining on smoked fish.  In business for decades, Max’s has long served one of the best lox platters in Chicago.  Granted, I grew up going to Max’s, I still believe theirs is top notch.  A more firm, traditional bagel, theirs is always well toasted, also accompanied by their house made cream cheese, I take time crafting my delicacy.

Always hand cut, a plentiful portion is served platter style allowing you to construct your own sandwich.  I always seem to have some leftover slices even after layering more than enough on top of both bagel halves.  The natural oils in the fish are flavorful and set Max’s apart from most other delis.

Both your traditional delicatessen and the more modern brunch spot have the potential of serving up some of the best bagel and lox-wiches this side of Nova Scotia.  I suppose it just depends if you want yours served with a side of matzoh ball soup or a “crunchy” granola parfait.

Don’t forget to tell em’ Hungry Hungry sent ya…

I’m hungry.  Let’s eat!

Yes, Michael’s has some of the best cheddar fries on the North Shore, BUT have you even tried the Mike’s Bites?  I’m confident when I say that even many Michael’s regulars have no idea what they’re missing.  Extra large Idaho potatoes sliced into 1/2 inch thick slices – let’s say similar to home fries.  Then they’re fried until golden and crispy on the outside but still piping hot and soft inside.  Some of the best “bites” are the extra crispy scraps that fall to the bottom – edible gold I say.

The taters are artfully layered with real Wisconsin cheddar sauce and Parmesan cheese in a standard paper hot dog container – just likes their fries you say?…You’re in for a treat unlike any other.  The bites are piping hot as the cheddar slowly covers every starchy morsel.  The mixture of creamy mild cheddar and the sharp kick of the Parmesan play off each other just right.  Every chew is a little different.  The potatoes are cut in all sorts of shapes making for so much crunchy surface area.

A generous dip of ketchup will provide a great contrast of tangy vinegar tomato to the rich and creamy cheese sauce.  While hot dogs and burgers are undoubtedly the stars of the show at Michael’s in downtown HP, the Mike’s Bites are a close runner up to being front and center of the main stage of potato stardom.

Tell ‘em Hungry Hungry Hinden sent ya.

I’m hungry.  Let’s eat!

Only fresh rib-eye, sliced super thin, is spread on the flat top.  Dean uses the traditional method where you pile the grill top with the steak and onions, peppers and their special seasoning – I chose to add mushrooms.  You cook it down a bit and add the cheese.  Once that’s melted, bread goes on top and the whole thing gets flipped over – white American cheese on the bottom (Whiz and Provolone also available), steak on top.  This is genius for a few reasons.  First off, the cheese resting on the bottom hits your tongue first setting off a bevy of queso endorphins in your brain – yup, they exist.  Second, all of the ingredients become incorporated into one mass of delicious cheese, meat, bread and caramelized veggies.

The sandwich is fantastic.  Consistent time after time, plentiful and well worth the price.  They serve other Philly specialties like Krazy Kakes, a packaged dessert rarely found outside  the City of Brotherly Love.  There are a few excellent Philly Cheesesteaks around town – no doubt.  Philly’s Best, though, has satisfied my craving on each and every visit without fail.  With a few locations around Chi-town you’re sure to run into one.  Now it’s your choice to walk through the door.

Tell ‘em Hungry Hungry Hinden sent ya.

I’m hungry.  Let’s eat!

Besides a virtual endless array of both local and imported cheeses, spreads and other goods, Mars has a small almost hidden snack counter in the back that serves some toasty and tasty grilled cheese sandwiches.  The deluxe grilled cheese menu features a hand full of different selections each highlighting a different style or variety of cheese.  The specific producer is noted on the menu as I imagine it changes often.

Now even though we’re in Wisconsin, we KNEW we’d be enjoying some local dairy once settled in Milwaukee for the night.  So our first selection was a sweet and salty Dutch Gouda – one of our faves when it comes to melting and textural goodness.

Alright, alright, I suppose one of the two sandwiches should feature a Wisconsin cheese, so we chose a Butterkase from a  farm just down the road.  A mild farmer’s brick cheese, Butterkase melts like a champ, provides a creamy element with just a touch of flavor.  Really nice for sandwiches and one of my favorite burgers in the area (Jam) uses it to top their house ground patties.

Both cheeses melted to perfection.  The simple buttered white bread was toasted nicely and evenly.  Both sandwiches were oozing and came nice and hot from the flat top.  The Gouda was nice and salty while the Butterkase more mild and creamy.  Not life changing sandwiches, but they aren’t meant to be.  What they are is a a pair of excellent grilled cheese sandwiches of which any good home cook would be proud.

Don’t forget to tell ‘em Hungry Hungry Hinden sent ya!

I’m hungry.  Let’s eat!

We came here for two dishes that caught our eyes during our pre-visit research.  Poutine and Meatloaf – two of Comet’s specialties according to just about every user and professional review.  Let’s get ‘er done.  Poutine is a sensitive topic in Canada.  In fact, I have read articles criticizing America as a whole for bastardizing one of their nation’s most prized, popular and above all, respected, dishes.

While they aren’t completely incorrect – their opinion, we have taken the simplicity of fries, cheese curds and gravy for granted.  Three ingredients, it’s that simple.  Americans, too, have taken poutine and made it a side course.  Up North it’s an entree, it IS your dinner – a rare occasion where no meat is necessary.  A thousand or so calories of starch, cheese and gravy should do you good when it’s below zero a good portion of the year up in Canada, don’t ya know ay?

Duck confit.  Duck breast and legs slowly cooked submerged in their own fat.  Confit is one of the most successful ways, in my opinion, to prepare duck in general, let alone when it’s merely a topping.  A confit leg of duck will fall apart with ease and be as tender and flavorful as one could imagine.  After all, if you’d had a four hour long bath in…well…anything, you’d probably smell (and taste) that delicious as well.  Let’s not find out though…

Perfectly fried spuds rest on the bottom of a large plate.  Generous stringy lengths of cheese curd envelop the entire pile of crunchy potatoes.  A rich gravy covers the plate.  The gravy is poured on piping hot so that it melts the curds through and makes the crispy fries just soggy enough for an excellent version of authentic poutine – up to this point.  Now, we pile on the duck, and it’s glorious.  An excellent, maybe not so traditional poutine executed with skill any Canadian would be proud of.  Between courses we checked out the space.

Meatloaf.  The meatloaf of all meatloaves lives at Comet Cafe in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.  Who’da thunk?!  They make their meatloaf using only the best Wisconsin grass fed beef they could source.  They have a secret ratio of meat to fat that is another reason for such a successful and comforting dish.  Comet Cafe is known for everything bacon, so naturally they completely encase their meatloaf in the extra thick cut Neuske variety.

This open faced “sandwich” starts with a thick slice of salted rye bread, on top of which goes a massive slab of the legendary meatloaf that measures at least two inches thick – no joke.  Then comes the home made chive mashed potatoes, a couple slices of grilled tomato, onions and finally a rich beer gravy that takes a painstaking three full days to craft one of the best gravies of any kind.  And you can taste those delicious seventy two hours of patience and care, every damn minute I tell ya.  Oh, and as if wrapping the entire meatloaf in bacon wasn’t enough, Comet decided to add a few more slices to the sandwich as a topping – why not right?  Go big or go home!

Comet is also known for their baked goods (pie), but uh, yeah…just so much food.  So tall.  Neither of us knew how to conquer this monster of a sandwich.  We just dug in.  Every flavor played well with one another.  Smoky bacon, awesome juicy and flavorful meatloaf.  The gravy.  Holy moly the gravy was just out of this world.  Allowing something to reduce that much over the course of a number of days will inherently result in a fantastically rich and complex product. Unfortunately, no room for that dessert on this quick rainy day trip.  The pies and cupcakes looked to die for but I wanted to walk, not roll out.  As I often say – maybe next time.

I’m hungry.  Let’s eat!

I’m hungry.  Let’s eat!

I’m hungry. Lets eat!

*****   http://www.philslaststand.com/phil-press-release/    ******

Although Phil wasn’t there, the staff was extremely friendly and took our order with a smile.  We couldn’t pass up their famous fried shrimp to start.  The difference between Phil’s fried shrimp and others that claim to do this simple dish justice?  Phil uses gorgeous plump shrimp, their breading is flavorful and complements the shrimp.  And lastly, their cocktail sauces, both spicy and mild, are killer, I mean, really really good.

You are served an ample portion and they’re always fresh and hot out of the frier.  For a few bucks, this is a must eat starter at Phil’s.  Get it in addition to your dog and burger.  It won’t fill you up and where else can you enjoy a fantastic hot dog, burger AND fried shrimp?  Exactly.

For the first time on Hungry Hungry I’m going to blog about an item TWICE.  Why?  Because this tasty morsel of bread and “meat” is just that good.  The Shrimp Po’ Boy.  Yeah, I know we just started with an order of fried shrimp…but when crafted into a delicious sandwich, it’s another story.  Again, the execution was flawless.  Awesome toasty Turano french bread that’s been pressed well.  Shoe string potato strings for an added salty crunch?  Check.

The shrimp inside is just as expertly prepared as the previous dish.  The spicy aioli along with fresh veggies bring the sandwich round full circle.  Proportion of ingredients is key to all sandwiches and this one has it down pat.  Everything stays together and you get a perfect crunch from the bread in every bite.  A winner.

On to the Fatso.  A Double Fatso that is.  Their signature burger starts with two fresh four ounce patties cooked just right – still a bit of pink on in the center.  Classic American toppings, and in my case, sub Vern’s real cheddar from Wisconsin instead of American cheese, and Hungry Hungry is a happy happy camper.

The bun is soft and airy.  The cheese glistens in the sun.  Normally I wouldn’t ever enjoy tomato on a burger.  But in this rare case, it’s awesome.  EVEN PICKLES ARE LEFT ATOP THE SANDWICH!  It’s so simple yet so well prepared.  Delicious flavorful beef and that Vern’s cheddar sure do help, but the proper layering of toppings and freshly baked bun certainly are a welcome quality.

Chicago has literally hundreds of hot dog stands.  Many, even most, are basically the same.  A solid (usually) Vienna dog on a poppy seed bun with great ingredients.  Maybe they serve a burger and a few other items (ehem, pizza puff) but they are second to the dog.

Phil’s puts the burger on a pedestal, and deservedly so.  The classic thin patty burger without all the frills.  Other items like a grilled salami sandwich and of course the fried shrimp only make the small spot on Chicago Avenue that much more inviting.

I’m hungry.  Let’s eat!

With two locations in the city, we are lucky enough to be moving right down the street from their Wicker Park storefront.  From the moment you walk through the front door you’re overwhelmed with the aroma of slow roasting lamb and chicken featured in their Shawerma plates and sandwiches.  You can also take in the smell of delicious and just baked meat and veggie pies – a must try for a “light” starter.

On this venture out Jill went with the salad bar.  As you can see, there is no possibly shortage of options whether you prefer a standard more traditional variety or a more Indian influenced selection of cold salads, legumes and other goodies.

Everything is extremely fresh, they maintain their salad bar well keeping it both stocked and clean throughout service.  I’ve actually witnessed an employee going through the bin of lettuce and with tongs, picking out any wilted leaves – you can tell they take pride in their bar – as they should.

I began my meal with one of their meat pies.  It’s simple and cheap, but is very tasty and different from anything else offered in the area at least.  You start with a soft dough similar to that used for pizza.  Filled with minced beef and lamb that has been simmered in spices for hours, the dough is rolled up into a sort of “sealed taco” if you will, and served as is.

Enjoying the pie at a more room temperature was perfect.  It’s one of those items that when made ahead of time, the flavors are allowed to mingle more.  If the pie was served hot, it would be an ooey gooey mess – not worth it.

No sauce?  No problem.  There is a small condiment bar that is available to anyone dining at Sultan’s.  On the bar you’ll find at least two different kinds of hot sauce, a kinda spicy herbaceous cream based sauce as well as lemons, and water for self service.

I ordered the Lamb Shawerma Sandwich.  Marinated, spit roasted and perfectly sliced lamb is carefully tucked into a fresh and warm pita pocket.  You absolutely cannot have a great sandwich if you start with a stale and cold pita.  I mean, this would be like starting a great deli corned beef sandwich with crumbly two day old rye – boo.

The way the sandwich is constructed is key.  You need to be able to actually get the sandwich in your mouth, enjoying all the ingredients as the chef intended.  The lamb is topped with fresh onions, tomato slices and their Jerusalem salad.

Even though the lamb is incredible – savory, salty, a bit sweet and super tender, it’s the Jerusalem salad that brings the dish together.  They start with diced cucumbers as a base and add tomatoes, parsley, Tahini olive oil and a spritz of lemon juice.  It’s unique and full of different flavors and textures.  It’s available as a salad in fact, but it just works so well on the Shawerma pockets.

Jill and I couldn’t be happier with the new neighborhood we will soon get to explore.  Restaurants on every corner and a whole new array of different shops to experience.  There is one thing for sure though; we will be spending many a lunch at our local Indian spot – Sultan’s Market.

I’m hungry.  Let’s eat!