The legendary three-martini lunch may be dead, but the workday lunch is very much alive–and faster and more creative than ever before.
Velocity, variety and value are the watchwords driving today’s lunch market. Andeven the fine-dining restaurants are playing along.
“Time is the commodity,” says executive chef Mark Baker of the Four Seasons Hotel. “People come in and say they need to be out in 20 minutes; if we insist on an 1 1/2-hour lunch, we’re going to have a lot of empty seats.”
A built-for-speed, streamlined menu lets Seasons customers order quickly and get food faster. “They might sit and talk business for a half-hour afterward,” Baker says, “but the point is, they want lunch on their terms.”
Given that today’s worker spends less time at lunch than in years past, restaurants are scrambling to provide attractive alternatives to brown-bagging. Time-sensitive service, intriguing carryout options and larger delivery menus are the most common lures.
Pricey restaurants also are enticing customers with multi-course, reduced-price options.
For example, the three-course prix-fixe at Seasons is $21; at Spiaggia it’s $25; at MK, a two-course lunch is $18; $23 with dessert. The cost is far less than dinner at any of these restaurants would be.
You can always save the tuna sandwich for dinner at home.
$5 FEASTS
When your wallet and stomach are on empty, youll cherish these cheap choices.
Old World Pizza, 7230 W. North Ave., No. 102, Elmwood Park, 708-456-3000. Don’t be fooled by its strip-mall location: This pizza pit is the real deal. Instead of over-the-top deep-dish pizza, OldWorld serves up pies the way they were meant to be –lean and mean. The thin crust is always crunchy, the tomato sauce is deliciously sweet and the cheese and toppings are perfectly applied.
Irazu, 1865 N. Milwaukee Ave., 773-252-5687. This cozy hotspot serves up wonderful empanadas, avocado burritos and fried yucca, all complemented by an exquisite green-pepper hot sauce.
If you’re feeling indulgent, begin with chips and salsa and be sure to end with one of Irazu’s shakes, in papaya, guanabana, blackberry and oatmeal flavors.
Bangkok Cafe, 9 W. Hubbard St., 312-222-1178. Particularly good here is the kao pad kanar with chicken, a red rice dish with bitter pieces of Chinese broccoli and egg. The pad siew is one of the best noodle dishes, and the mild kan karee soup really heats up when you add a little chili-garlic paste.
— Scott Helman
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`RAW-DEAL’ MEALS
Your head will still be clear after you visit these bars.
Brasserie Jo, 59 W. Hubbard St., 312-595-0800. Belly up to the zinc-topped bar and order the combo of three plump oysters and three chilled shrimp. It comes with a warm baguette.
Shaw’s Blue Crab Lounge at 21 E. Hubbard St., 312-527-2722. The menu usually includes five varieties of oysters, and $8.95 buys a half dozen. Bring a companion and share the combo: four each of oysters, littleneck clams and jumbo shrimp and eight crab fingers for $17.95.
Sushi Wabi, 842 W. Randolph St., 312-563-1224. How about a little midday maki? This trendy restaurant serves two dozen types of sushi and 26 kinds of maki. Sit at the sushi bar and watch the chefs go to work. Its lunch and a show.
— Andrew Fegelman
OFF THE BEATEN PATH
You’ll be glad you made the trek to these lunch spots.
La Sardine, 111 N. Carpenter St., 312-421-2800. It’s right across the street from Oprah’s high-profile Harpo Studios, but La Sardine has a surprisingly low lunch profile. So you’ll impress your friends and colleagues by suggesting the dynamite three-course fixed-price meal ($19.95). Expect bistro favorites like French onion soup, croque-monsieur (ham-and-cheese sandwich), grilled fish and lots of crispy pommes frites.
Flo, 1434 W. Chicago Ave., 312-243-0477. This is a Ukrainian Village taste treasure. A limited menu of sandwich plates usually includes a veggie Reuben, a Mediterranean tuna salad or a turkey BLT with bacon, arugula, red onion and avocado. All come with Flo’s spicy slaw.
Sun & Moon, 1467 N. Milwaukee Ave., 773-276-6525. Owner Gerty Leong serves homemade soups, salads and sandwiches with an Asian twist. Salad choiceswhich may include Thai cold noodles and wild rice with wheat pilaf are seasonal and sold by the pound. Sandwiches also are fresh and first-rate. Try the roasted turkey or grilled vegetarian options.
— Steve Dolinsky
GREEN SCENE
You don’t have to be a vegetarian to savor these salads and more.
Earth, 738 N. Wells St., 312-335-5475. This River North restaurant is the place for a vegetarian power lunch. Try the Moroccan stew, thick with brown rice and garbanzo beans. The poblano peppers stuffed with yogurt cheese come with a feisty tomato-chili sauce, and the menu has several veggie sandwiches as well as specialty salads. The broccoli salad is the most popular, but don’t overlook the chicken salad.
Indian Garden, 247 E. Ontario St. second floor, 312-280-4910. The lunch buffet is a bounty of possibilities for vegetarians and carnivores. There are meaty favorites like tandoori chicken and lamb vindaloo, but vegetarians can stick to the mattar paneercheese cubes cooked in green peas; sag paneer-seasoned spinach with cottage cheese; or chana masalachick peas simmered in savory North Indian spices.
— Jay Ferrari
LOTS OF LUXURY
It may sound decadent to spend $50 or more on lunch, but properly regarded it can be a real bargain. For example, you can have a three-course meal at Seasons Restaurant, including a glass of wine. An equivalent dinner would cost far more. So treat yourself.
Seasons Restaurant, Four Seasons Hotel, 120 E. Delaware Pl., 312-649-2349. Thai-style snapper in a lightly spicy broth is a delight for the eyes and palate.
Smith & Wollensky, 318 N. State St., 312-670-9900. Nothing says indulgence like a peppercorn-crusted filet au poivre at lunch. Or try the Angry lobster- half of a four-pound lobster dusted with cayenne pepper.
Spiaggia, 980 N. Michigan Ave., 312-280-2750. The view of Lake Michigan is gorgeous. Also beautiful are the veal medallions with artichokes and the feather-light gnocchi.
Trio, 1625 Hinman Ave., Evanston, 847-733-8746. Trio serves lunch on Fridays only, offering a $29 three-course menu with goodies like house-smoked sturgeon with dill crepes, monkfish with black-olive emulsion and Venezuelan chocolate pav.
— Phil Vettel
COURTING SPORTS FANS
Catch the game while you grab some grub.
ESPNZone, 43 E. Ohio St., 312-644-3776. For the kind of excess that usually only can be found in Florida theme parks, come here for lunch. The costumed greeters, game rooms and souvenir stores help set the manic mood. But it’s the explosion of TV sets on all the walls that makes this place a sports heaven.
There even are reclining chairs in front of the screens. Oh yeah, theres also pasta, burgers, salads and beer.
The Hunt Club, 1100 N. State St., 312-988-7887. With 17 TVs, abundant bar space and satellite hookups, the Hunt Club is almost guaranteed to be showing whatever game you want to see. And the pizza and sandwiches will keep your belly full as you root for your favorite team alongside the tourists, frat boys and other North Side denizens.
— Darnell Little
CHAT OVER CHOW
Go for the noteworthy nibbles and the conversation-friendly ambience.
Bistro 1800 & My Bar, 1800 Sherman Ave., Evanston, 847-492-3450. Meals in this buttery yellow dining room include terrific, colorful salads (a shrimp nicoise with a half-dozen fat, peeled shrimp on a platter of mixed greens, tomatoes and briny olives) or sandwiches big enough to take half home, such as the tomato focaccia filled with portobello mushroom, red peppers and sage pesto.
Emilio’s Tapas Sol y Nieve, 215 E. Ohio St., 312-467-7177. Select from an array of easy-to-share portions of Spanish dishes and desserts such as fresh figs in sherry sauce. Other perks: good art, good light, good wine selection.
Villa Kula, 4518 N. Lincoln Ave., 773-728-3114. Your girl group will fit right in among the bridal showers, birthday parties and other such gatherings at this unfrilly tea room. Lunch specials range from pats to tuna melts. Miso soup is a permanent menu fixture, as are more than a dozen types of soothing tea by the pot.
— Susanne Fowler
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SOUTHERN COMFORT
Here are a few exceptional places to put little South in your mouth.
Edna’s Restaurant, 3175 W. Madison St., 773-638-7079. Ednas is the stop to make on Chicago’s West Side, but it could hold its own anywhere, with its combination of authentic soul food, relaxed atmosphere and affordable prices. Try the soul classics–fried chicken, greens and out-of-this-world biscuits. And don’t forget the stellar peach cobbler.
Paige’s Place, 16 E. Huron St., 312-397-9390. This North Side newcomer is a bit more upscale than the usual soul food joint. But the foodchoices include fried catfish, ribs and grilled salmonis among the best in the neighborhood, and the service is friendly and fun.
Army & Lou’s, 422 E. 75th St. 773-483-3100. Lou’s is a Chicago landmark: Fried chicken, macaroni and cheese, it’s all there. Lou’s also is a good place to spot politicians. The place long has been a favorite of aldermen, state representatives and other luminaries.
— Darnell Little
PLATTERS THAT MATTER
You make tough calls all day long; does lunch have to be one of them? Here, variety comes on a single plate.
Vong, 6 W. Hubbard St., 312-644-8664. A lunching twosome can opt for the Black Plate, a shared assortment of five appetizers for $18 per person. It also includes a tasting of sorbets (at lunch only), so you don’t have to mull over dessert choices.
Mantuano Mediterranean Table, in NBC Tower, 455 Cityfront Plaza Drive, 312-832-2600. Order the antipasto platter, a large bowl filled with hummus, taramosalata, baba ghanoush, dolmas, falafel, tzatziki, tabbouleh, roasted peppers, whipped feta cheese, olives, caperberries and grilled pita bread–a $12.95 virtual tour of the Mediterranean.
Cyrano’s Bistrot & Wine Bar, 546 N. Wells St., 312-467-0546. Four courses–appetizer, salad, main course and dessert–arrive together when you order the $11.95 Lunch Express.
— Phil Vettel
DINE AT YOUR DESK
Can’t escape your cubicle? Count on these choices for quality food and quick delivery.
Potbelly Sandwich Works, 2264 N. Lincoln Ave., 190 N. State St. and 1422 W. Webster Ave. Choices from this sandwich specialist are a cut above the rest. Order just one or treat the whole gang to one of the bakers dozen specials and it will arrive at your office courtesy of Room Service delivery. Call 312-664- 1600 or visit www.room-service.com.
Taste of Thai, 1029 W. Golf Rd. Hoffman Estates. It sounds like a show you’d see on the History Channel, but Soldiers in the Red Sea–featuring shrimp, scallops, mussels and squid with red-curry paste, hot peppers, onion and basilactually is one of the many great entrees here. Have Takeout Taxi847-882-2525 or www.takeout taxischaum.comdelivery it.
Volare, 201 E. Grand Ave. Use your computer to choose from an extensive on-line menu of incredible Italian food, including linguine with tomato, vodka and mascarpone cheese sauce, or one of the fresh risottos. When it arrives in your lobby, everyone will get the aromatic message that you know how to eat. Go to www.food.com or be old-fashioned and call 312-410-9900.
— Dean Richards