The Purple Pig opened in the last few days of 2009 and has since received numerous accolades. 2010 Top 10 Best new restaurants in America by Bon Appetit and 2011 Michelin Bib Gourmand, to name a few. The no-reservation policy, along with its location on Michigan Ave., make for heavy crowds and long waits. With my parents in town, I thought I'd remedy the situation and make our maiden visit.
We arrived right at the opening time of 11:30, but were stuck waiting outside in the cold for about 10 minutes as the gate was locked. Only then, an employee came out and advised us of the unmarked, "main entrance" through the office building next door.
The Purple Pig serves up small plates and whole animal cooking in a loosely Mediterranean style. The menu is broken up into Antipasti, Smears, Fried Items, Cured Meats, Salads, Cheeses, and A la Plancha items. Our waitress gave us the option to put in an order for a few dishes, and continue ordering until we were We tried a couple items from each, saving the (mostly housemade) cured meats and cheeses for a future visit. We ordered a quartino of a 2009 Domaine Brunet "Mediterranee" (100% Pinot Noir), which was an easy-drinking, prototypical Pinot. I appreciated the fact that many of the wines at Purple Pig were available by the glass, quartino, and half-bottle.
Our first round started with two vegetable dishes and a smear. The first to come out was Fried Brussels Sprouts with Thyme, Lemon, and Chili Flakes. The individual leaves were fried and dressed with a lemon vinaigrette. We enjoyed this immensely, possibly the favorite dish of the day for all of us. The lemon vinaigrette added a bright punch, cutting through the fried brussels sprouts leaves. I wish there were some more chili flakes in the dish, though, as I didn't really detect any heat.
The second dish, from the smear section, was Roasted Bone Marrow with Herbs. Two marrow bones were simply roasted, waiting to be spread on olive-oiled toast. A pretty standard preparation, served with an herb salad and sea salt. Although the herb salad contained capers, it still needed a bit more vinegar to cut through the rich marrow and (too) oily toast.
At this point, I'll note that the service throughout the meal thus far was great. Our waitress was friendly and provided good suggestions for both menu items and quantity. Other waitstaff make sure our water glasses rarely, if ever, dropped below half full. However, we asked for some more toast to finish the marrow, and they didn't come. We had to ask another 3 (!) times before the toast was finally fired, and by that time the marrow began to cool and congeal slightly. This was the only misstep in service.
Our final dish was the Broccoli with Roasted Garlic and Anchovy Vinaigrette. This was another contender for favorite dish. The broccoli was roasted hot enough to caramelize yet retain its firmness. The anchovy vinaigrette didn't have any fishiness to it, but like the brussels sprouts, provided the perfect acidic kick. The toasted breadcrumbs added nuttiness and texture.
Putting in a second round of orders , we received our first plancha item, Charred Green Onions with Romesco Sauce. This reminded me of a similar dish that I saw on an Anthony Bourdain "No Reservations" episode in Spain. I love green onions prepared like this, and I often char knob onions in the same way when I make grilled steak tacos at home. I prefer Romesco sauce that is more creamy and nuttier, but it still worked well with the green onions.
We ordered one salad, the Chanterelle, Apple, and Celery Root salad with Truffle Vinaigrette (we may have "tasted" this before remembering to take a picture!). The cubed apple and celery root were indistinguishable until eating, making for fun and interesting bites. The chanterelles and truffle vinaigrette played off each other with meaty, earthy notes contrasting well with the cold apple and celery root.
The final savory dish was Porcini Rubbed Bone-In Beef Tenderloin with Portabello Mushrooms and Aged Balsamic. Instead of one, thick piece of meat, it came with three thin slices of beef. While center was medium rare as requested, the cooking was a bit inconsistent from end of the slice to the other. The aged vinegar, continuing a reoccurring theme, added a bright touch to an otherwise straightforward dish.
Comfortably full, we decided to split just one dessert, the bread pudding (whipped cream on the side). I'm a sucker for bread pudding, and this was no different. A rich caramel sauce sat below the eggy bread pudding triangles.
We really enjoyed the Purple Pig.. I was really impressed by the vegetable dishes in particular, and look forward to trying some more of the plancha menu (morcilla!) and the house-cured meats.
No comments:
Post a Comment