Restaurant #19 – Endgrain

Restaurant #19 – Endgrain

Saturday, July 20, 2013
Heather, Wigs, Kevin & Julie

Heather had made reservations at this BYO place for last Friday, but due to pre-vacation stress, we didn’t go. On that day, we couldn’t get in until 8:30. Kev called earlier this afternoon, and we were able to get a table for 4 at 7:30 tonight. Kev & I walked over (it’s on Addison and Wolcott), and the place was pretty wide open. Upon later discussion w/server, he said their slowest night was Saturday. Huh, who knew?? After going and reading on Yelp, their Saturday and Sunday brunches are their most popular times. Too bad for you people – you’re missing out on a great dinner!

When we first walked in, Kev says “wow – big bar”. (You know we love eating at the bar..) And the host offered us a normal table for 4 or to sit at the very end of the bar, where they could accommodate 2 stools on each side (vs. 4 in a row). Sold on the bar seating! The term ‘endgrain’ refers to wood and woodcuts (I’m sure I’m saying that incorrectly), and so there was a wood/2 x 4 theme to the décor. Nice setting, with lots of artwork on the wall. (I didn’t ask, but presume it’s all for sale??)

For appetizers, we ordered 3 things:

• Shaved Vegetable Salad, with mixed greens and garlic croutons
• Braised Pork Hand Pie with soybean sprout kimchi, ramps and radishes
• Pumpernickel pasta with heirloom tomatoes, roasted artichokes, zucchini, chevre and basil

They accidentally brought us a Mushrrom and Rapini Tart with cippiloni, parmesan and greens. So we got a bonus app!

  All were scrumptious. (This is getting embarrassing trying to find new adjectives for YUMMY.) The Hand Pie, was like a tart with 4 folded over corners and the delicious kimchi goop peeking out from the middle. I didn’t think the kimchi was as spicy as others I’ve had (and that’s not a bad thing). Just different. And delicious.

  For entrees:

 

• Heather – Smoked Chicken Pot Pie, masa corn crust, poblanos, mushrroms and peas. This looked fantastic.

 

• Wigs & Kevin (no, they didn’t share; they just both ordered the same thing) – Ham chop with beer chili glaze, cornbread crumble, rainbow chard, bacon and cheese curds. I asked the server what a ham “chop” was, and he gave us a great description… that in no way can I remember. It was basically a thick/fat piece of ham on the bone. (Not a round bone – it looked like a pork chop.) I had a taste of Kevin’s and it was super tender. Flavor was well, ham-like.

 

• Julie – Crispy Perch (yes, fried – I broke my fried food embargo for the evening) with cherries, snap peas, fennel, smoked maple ponzu sauce. I have no idea what ponzu sauce is/was, but it was served in a separate little bowl for dipping the fish in. It was very light, yellowish/clear/watery in color. Oh fine, I’ll look it up. According to Wikipedia (ha ha – my Go To):

 

o Ponzu (ポン酢) is a citrus -based sauce commonly used in Japanese cuisine. It is tart, with a thin, watery consistency and a dark brown color.

 

o Mine was definitely not dark brown, but yes, light and citrus-y, but not in your face citrus. I should also mention that this was an appetizer that I ordered for my main dish. It was 3 little pieces (2-fingers wide and a little longer), but was perfect for me.

 

Oh, and Wigs & I both also ordered a homemade biscuit which came with peach preserves. OMG - this was awesome. The peach preserves were so good – it was like eating peach cobbler. (I miss my Mom’s peach cobbler!!!) I couldn’t even finish the biscuit, nor could Kevin finish mine off.

  The waiter was also telling us about their homemade donuts, which got rave reviews on yelp. Some of them are flavored (I think – I didn’t look it up), like maple syrup and bacon. They are open for breakfast on weekdays, so people can stop by on the way to the El.

 

All of us give this a Thumbs Up. And since it was BYO, our bill was only like $120.

 

It had started raining while we were there, so thank goodness we had 3 bottles of wine to finish off. By the time those were gone, the rain was done and we headed over to Black Rock (on Damen) for post-dinner drinks. We’ve driven by this place a hundred times (on the way to Costco!), but never in. It’s way bigger inside than it appears, very deep. Great beer list, including Chicago brews. We sampled a couple and then headed home.

  It was a warm night (my favorite kind of summer night!), and just a laid back evening all around. All good. Yea Summer!!!