A quick delicacy review of Taste

if you go this weekend and need a recommendation

07/02/2010 2:27 PM

By Bonnie McGrath

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Don't have a lot more to say about Taste of Chicago (which I consider a South Loop thing because it all takes place south of Madison St.) than I did last year on this blog--and you can read what happened then and some of my Taste memoir here. But I did stop by a couple of times already and thought I would provide you with a rundown of the five things I ate:


1) Had strawberry pecan salad again this year from Home Run Inn. I didn't like it as well. The pecans tasted like rolled up sugar baked in a little ball. I couldn't taste any pecans. The greens were OK, the berry vinaigrette dressing was ordinary. The strawberries, however, were plentiful, whole and very fresh--they still had the green stems on.

2) Had spinach pizza from Bacino's again, too--what can I say? I'm a creature of habit. The "taste" slice was about the length and width of two fingers--and for the equivalent of roughly $2 in tickets, it wasn't really worth it. The only time I visit Bacino's is during Taste, for some reason. I do like their pizza.

3) and 4) Had two wonderful things from The Grill on the Alley--and I should have had three (the grilled anjou pear salad with walnuts and maytag blue cheese instead of the strawberry pecan from Home Run Inn). The gazpacho made with avocado and chopped chives was superb--although my first small taste lacked avocados--so the very nice person in the tent gave me another one chock full. And I also tried the mango rice pudding with dried cranberries, which was chewy and delicious. I recommend it in the "taste" portion as it is rich.

5) And last but not least, I had a "taste" portion of Cubby Bear's garlic fries--which were, without a doubt the best thing I have ever tasted in 30-plus years of Tastes. Good fresh fries, slathered in olive oil, chopped fresh garlic and a little grated cheese. Haven't been to Cubby Bear for decades--but I will go there for these fries. I would go anywhere for these fries.

Have fun! Hope this helps! Enjoy!


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