Why I like Lula's
My favorite restaurant in Chicago is Lula's. Or Lula's Cafe, or Cafe Lula, or whatever. People in the know know exactly the place whatever you call it. My most recent dinner was their Monday night prix fixe dinner.
The starter was a chilled cucumber and celery soup with yellowfin tuna, black sesame seeds and yogurt. I think the yogurt was spiked with just a touch of honey, and there was a garnish of celery strands, as well. I was surprised by the soup - the celery had just enough of its characteristic bite and the sesame seeds provided some heat, as well. This excitement paired nicely with the lush tuna and mellow cucumber. They may have been a little stingy on the tuna but it was excellent nontheless.
For an entree, they went with ricotta gnocchi with squash blossoms, lemon and sungold yellow tomatoes. The gnocchi were excellent. The ricotta added a subtle, creamy flavor and served to make them toothsome yet delicate enough to melt in your mouth. The tomatoes, I think, were slightly oven-roasted, or maybe just sauteed briefly, allowing their natural sugars to carmelize. The blossoms were julienned and sauteed in butter. This was thinned out with some pasta water and perfumed with lemons zest and provided an excellent contrast to the pillowy gnochhi.
Cherries proved to be the stars of dessert, featured strongly in a sour cherry tart with vanilla mascarpone ice cream and cherry gastrique. The tart dough was very, very dense and buttery, not at all flaky. Hardly a detriment, this allowed the tart flavor of cherries to permeate the whole pastry, and proved helpful in sopping up the bright gastrique and ice cream. The ice cream was more like a custard, having been made with mascarpone. It was lightly eggy and foamy, a far cry from the heavy, churned ice creams usually associated with cherry pie.
I started with a glass of prosecco. Perhaps not the best accompaniment for a chilled soup, it was nonetheless nicely effervescent and dry, perfect for a summer's night. With the entree, I chose a Spanish Sauvignon Blanc. Darker than expected, the strong citrus - grapefruit, in particular - flavors paired well with the pasta. Lula's house coffee, a mild blend with tobacco and berry flavors, finshed out the meal.
Service can be Lula's downfall, but tonight it was perfect. The server was attentive and did not come across as having something better to do, an all-too-common feeling among the hip, young staff. Though packed as always, I never felt rushed and the meal was a genuine pleasure.
Lula's can be as cheap or expensive as you want. If you want a $8 plate of spaghetti - a plate large enough to provide lunch the next day - it's yours. If you want to splurge, a pan seared hanger steak with artichoke, baby turnip, sorrel, fingerling potatoes (all naturally and organically raised/farmed) with a wonderful boutique wine, it's yours, as well. The Monday night menu runs $24 for all three courses, with glasses of wine ranging from $6 to $12.
Was there an occasion for this particular meal? Perhaps - the week prior had been less than ideal, and following a weekend that while nice, overall, had it's definate low points, I was ready for a night of gastronomic bliss. I may have written about it before, and forgive me for being too lazy to go back through my archives, however meager, to find the entry, but dining out, for me, is one of the most therapeutic things I know to do. Last summer, while in DC for work (ie. one of the most hellish periods in my life), eating out proved to be the only chance for me to indulge in a truly uplifting pleasure. I could forget about, however briefly, making labels and photocopying exhibits as I lost myself in a heady aroma of pan-seared lamb or a strawberry and goat cheese cheesecake or a glass of whisky. Lavish meals - all on the company dime, natch - were my oases, and I welcomed each and every one of them.
Since then, every meal eaten out at a restaurant has proven to to be just as important and worthwhile as these meals in DC were. They can still lift my spirits and quell my frustrations and satiate me more fully than I thought possible.
Lula's is one of my favorite places to lose myself and come out refreshed. The food, as I described, is generally excellent and well worth the modest prices. But more than that, the atmosphere is welcoming and warm and leaves me happy. More than anything, that's all I'm looking for. I'm glad to know where to find it.
email me
My favorite restaurant in Chicago is Lula's. Or Lula's Cafe, or Cafe Lula, or whatever. People in the know know exactly the place whatever you call it. My most recent dinner was their Monday night prix fixe dinner.
The starter was a chilled cucumber and celery soup with yellowfin tuna, black sesame seeds and yogurt. I think the yogurt was spiked with just a touch of honey, and there was a garnish of celery strands, as well. I was surprised by the soup - the celery had just enough of its characteristic bite and the sesame seeds provided some heat, as well. This excitement paired nicely with the lush tuna and mellow cucumber. They may have been a little stingy on the tuna but it was excellent nontheless.
For an entree, they went with ricotta gnocchi with squash blossoms, lemon and sungold yellow tomatoes. The gnocchi were excellent. The ricotta added a subtle, creamy flavor and served to make them toothsome yet delicate enough to melt in your mouth. The tomatoes, I think, were slightly oven-roasted, or maybe just sauteed briefly, allowing their natural sugars to carmelize. The blossoms were julienned and sauteed in butter. This was thinned out with some pasta water and perfumed with lemons zest and provided an excellent contrast to the pillowy gnochhi.
Cherries proved to be the stars of dessert, featured strongly in a sour cherry tart with vanilla mascarpone ice cream and cherry gastrique. The tart dough was very, very dense and buttery, not at all flaky. Hardly a detriment, this allowed the tart flavor of cherries to permeate the whole pastry, and proved helpful in sopping up the bright gastrique and ice cream. The ice cream was more like a custard, having been made with mascarpone. It was lightly eggy and foamy, a far cry from the heavy, churned ice creams usually associated with cherry pie.
I started with a glass of prosecco. Perhaps not the best accompaniment for a chilled soup, it was nonetheless nicely effervescent and dry, perfect for a summer's night. With the entree, I chose a Spanish Sauvignon Blanc. Darker than expected, the strong citrus - grapefruit, in particular - flavors paired well with the pasta. Lula's house coffee, a mild blend with tobacco and berry flavors, finshed out the meal.
Service can be Lula's downfall, but tonight it was perfect. The server was attentive and did not come across as having something better to do, an all-too-common feeling among the hip, young staff. Though packed as always, I never felt rushed and the meal was a genuine pleasure.
Lula's can be as cheap or expensive as you want. If you want a $8 plate of spaghetti - a plate large enough to provide lunch the next day - it's yours. If you want to splurge, a pan seared hanger steak with artichoke, baby turnip, sorrel, fingerling potatoes (all naturally and organically raised/farmed) with a wonderful boutique wine, it's yours, as well. The Monday night menu runs $24 for all three courses, with glasses of wine ranging from $6 to $12.
Was there an occasion for this particular meal? Perhaps - the week prior had been less than ideal, and following a weekend that while nice, overall, had it's definate low points, I was ready for a night of gastronomic bliss. I may have written about it before, and forgive me for being too lazy to go back through my archives, however meager, to find the entry, but dining out, for me, is one of the most therapeutic things I know to do. Last summer, while in DC for work (ie. one of the most hellish periods in my life), eating out proved to be the only chance for me to indulge in a truly uplifting pleasure. I could forget about, however briefly, making labels and photocopying exhibits as I lost myself in a heady aroma of pan-seared lamb or a strawberry and goat cheese cheesecake or a glass of whisky. Lavish meals - all on the company dime, natch - were my oases, and I welcomed each and every one of them.
Since then, every meal eaten out at a restaurant has proven to to be just as important and worthwhile as these meals in DC were. They can still lift my spirits and quell my frustrations and satiate me more fully than I thought possible.
Lula's is one of my favorite places to lose myself and come out refreshed. The food, as I described, is generally excellent and well worth the modest prices. But more than that, the atmosphere is welcoming and warm and leaves me happy. More than anything, that's all I'm looking for. I'm glad to know where to find it.
email me
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