On the Town: The Publican (Chicago)

The Publican
845 W Fulton Market
Chicago, IL 60607
(312) 733-9555

(Photo from The Publican )

The Publican has won over my stomach because of its pure deliciousness!  Seriously.  Ever since I had dinner there a few nights ago all I can think about is my meal that fateful night.

The Publican is in Chicago’s Market District and opened in October 2008 and is definitely a hot spot on Chicago’s restaurant radar.  The decor is evocative of a European beer hall (see the long wooden tables) and has a definite yellow/orange tint on the place.  Along the side are a set of banquettes which looked inviting.  The long tables work well for groups to dine together.  There are a few simple touches which made me smile.  Underneath each chair is a bit of a ledge where you can rest your purse.  I hate putting my purse on the floor (it’s bad luck) and I refuse to hang my purse from the back of the chair (pickpockets!) so I tend to dine with my purse on my lap or between my ankles off the floor… so this was great.   The communal washrooms were also great and I appreciated the choice of soap and lotion.

The menu is based on simple farmhouse cuisine with an emphasis on pork.  Emphasis on pork?  SOLD.  And the pork is all certified organic and sourced from Iowa. Even better.  The dishes are designed for sharing which is one of my biggest pet peeves in terms of current dining trends.  In this case however the sharing was perfect because the menu is so varied and you kind of just want a few bites of a lot of things versus a full plate of whatever it is you ordered.

I went with my best food buddy Mandy and we ordered a good assortment of things: daily pickles, white anchovies with summer squash, Italian greens with potatoes and gouda and the pork belly.  Now, the menu online doesn’t have anything that we ate on there so I’m not sure how often the menu changes but trust when I say this stuff was great!

The daily pickles were small carrots, turnips, fennel and bread n butter pickles.  They were so fresh and they made my mouth pucker from the pickledness of them.  They were a perfect start and a good nibble throughout the meal.

The white anchovies and summer squash was more of an appetizer size but was a good enough portion for us to share.  It was a simple dish with anchovies that were lightly marinated or dressed with summer squash and some greens.  I rarely have anchovies aside from on pizza or in Caesar dressing so it was nice to have fresh anchovies.  The taste is a lot more delicate than what I think most people associate with anchovies and not as salty at all!

I don’t remember what the description of the Italian greens and potatoes said on the menu but when the waiter brought it out it was totally different than what I had expected!  It was more of a gratinee/casserole where the greens and potatoes were baked together with the cheese melted throughout and on top. O.M.G. it was AMAZING.  I’ma  sucker for a gratin of any sort so to be SURPRISED by one was like Christmas.  It was something so simple but so delicious and also made me realized that I need to be doing more interesting veggie dishes.

For me the showstopper was the pork belly.  Now, I’ve been hearing about pork belly for a while.  People RAVE about it, it’s on a ton of menus but I’ve never tried it.  I think what has freaked me out is the idea that I’d get a mass of pork fat or something and I can’t eat fat like that… barf.  But I saw pork belly on the menu and thought it sounded worth trying AND it was served with figs and polenta.  Totally sounded like a winner.  I’m a pork belly convert!  I will now be one of those people that I used to roll my eyes at for extolling the virtues of pork belly.  The pork belly was crispy and sweet on the outside but the inside was tender and meaty with a hint of rosemary.  It wasn’t fatty at all but was more melty, buttery, meaty goodness.  The sweet and meaty combination was perfect.  I will be talking about this pork belly for months.

The Pubican was amazing.  Do visit. This is a reservations required kind of place.  It is not vegetarian friendly.  Even the veggies tend to have meat in them.  Amazing.

Enjoy!