Street Level

chicago blogmap

It is getting hard to keep track of all the blog action in chicago, but here is a site that is attempting to do so... I find it interesting that they and other sites are using the L maps as the graphical way to show the city... CHICAGO BLOGMAP

Travel + Leisure Magazine rank 7 hot new restaurants from Chicago

Magazine's list of hot new restaurants tags 7 in Chicago

November 11, 2004

BY JANET RAUSA FULLER Staff Reporter

Where are the nation's newest and hottest restaurants?

Seven of them are right here in Chicago, Travel + Leisure Magazine says in its December issue, on newsstands Nov. 23.

The magazine gives a nod to what it calls the best new American restaurants in 10 cities, but a quick glance at the list makes clear that "American" might better be described as "anything goes."

Magazine's list of hot new restaurants tags 7 in Chicago

November 11, 2004

BY JANET RAUSA FULLER Staff Reporter

Where are the nation's newest and hottest restaurants?

Seven of them are right here in Chicago, Travel + Leisure Magazine says in its December issue, on newsstands Nov. 23.

The magazine gives a nod to what it calls the best new American restaurants in 10 cities, but a quick glance at the list makes clear that "American" might better be described as "anything goes."

Chicago restaurants on the list include Green Zebra, the vegetable-focused West Town eatery by chef Shawn McClain; chef Homaro Cantu's experimental Moto in the Fulton Market district, and the "unapologetically haute" Pluton on Orleans from celebrated French chef Jacky Pluton.

All three restaurants opened early this year, though local foodies on culinary chat sites like LTHForum.com have debated how long Moto, where cooks double as waiters in black lab coats, will last.

"We've gone beyond the whole idea of comfort food as American food. I think American food is really every food," said Travel + Leisure food editor Niloufar Motamed.

Hot spot: Lincoln Square

The magazine also notes four dining spots in Lincoln Square, which it proclaims the "next great neighborhood": Charlie's on Leavitt, Acqualina, Tank Sushi and the not-so-new Cafe Selmarie.

The cafe -- cited for its banana eclairs and apricot kolacky -- actually has been around for 21 years, but general manager Connie Kobayashi isn't complaining about being included.

"It's definitely a pleasant surprise," said Kobayashi, who credits chef Christopher Stoye for improving the menu since taking over the kitchen four years ago.

Getting a special mention as "chef to watch" is 30-year-old Grant Achatz, whose restaurant, Alinea, won't even open until January.

Achatz has been chronicling every detail of the restaurant's development, from the food to the flatware, on eGullet.com. In September, he released an online trailer of sorts to whet diners' appetites. Travel + Leisure editors say their readers are among those salivating.

"Our readers are obsessed with eating and obsessed with being the first people to go to places," Motamed said. "This is our attempt at giving them a cheat sheet so they can be prepared to eat in style."

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