The Roost (Food Truck)

Hello, today we are doing our first Food Truck Review.

The problem with food trucks is that they might not always be in the same spot. Roost had their truck parked at 600 W Chicago on the day we went there. (This is a spot where there are always food trucks during the work days, as far as we know.) You can check out the tweets of who is there on what days at Chicago Food Truck Finder.

Max:
I don't go to that much food trucks. And I've never been here. And honestly, for a fried chicken food truck, this is really good. You can choose to get you chicken bone-in or bone-out. And you can choose to get it in sandwich form, taco form, or bone-in with the sides. On bone-in, you can get Herb Seasoned, Spicy, or Nashville Hot. On bone-out, you can get Spicy, Nashville Hot on a buttermilk biscuit or kaiser roll. They also have tons and tons of sides. I got the bone-out as a sandwich with the Nashville Hot. and a side of peach cobbler, and cucumber coleslaw. The chicken is really good and incredibly spicy. In fact, it was so spicy that my tongue felt like it was almost on fire when I finished. But it was still delicious chicken. The coleslaw wasn't my favorite. Its just that I've had better coleslaw. The peach cobbler was delicious. It was some of the best peach cobbler I've ever had. It had just the perfect amount of peaches and sauce. So this was really good for a food truck. And I'll give 4.5 plates to The Roost.

Ruben:
Food Trucks. the new trend. what could be better then fried chicken mobilized. like seriously. I have had the Roost 3 times total now. once from the truck and twice from there restaurant on Irving Park Ave in my neighborhood. I had the bone in chicken herb seasoned with chips and slaw. the chicken is decent. i thought it was a little too much breading, but other than that it was good! The Chips were good, very crunchy. The slaw, a little too fatty and milky. i like more of a vinegar slaw. the service was very good and nice. I think The Roost was a great first food truck review. and i can't wait to try more trucks. I give The Roost 4.5 plates.

Otto:
I got the bone-in Herb Seasoned. And a side of fresh potato chips and a buttermilk biscuit. The chicken was great and it was pretty well seasoned. And the biscuit was delicious but not quite as good as Bang! Bang! Pie Shop, in my opinion. The chips were delicious. And I think that they were made on that day. The service was good. They were very nice. I would give the Roost 4.5 plates.

Us and the truck

Ruben's herb seasoned.

Max's Nashville Hot.

Close up

Paciugo Gelato

Hello, today we are reviewing Paciugo Gelato in Lincoln Square.

There are several locations of this in Chicago, and they're a franchise with lots of locations worldwide. We try not to review a lot of franchises, but when we find a good one, we think it is worth mentioning.

Max:
This is one of my favorite gelato places in the world. I know its not a local Chicago gelato place, but it's just a good idea to stop by here wherever you live. All the gelato here is good, and you can even stop by here if you're a vegan or lactose intolerant because they have soy flavors too, and sorbet. The atmosphere is like a real Italian gelato restaurant. And it looks how it tastes because the gelato here tastes like real Italian gelato. And I have had actual italian gelato before in Italy. and this is one of my favorites other than Italy. So i give it 4.5

Otto:
I got Coconut Dolce de Leche and the normal Dolce de Leche and Sea Salt Caramel. It's a little bit too much caramel. But they were all delicious. I don't have much more to say about it but it's just really good. So i give it 4.5

Ruben:
I have never been here before even though i have lived in the neighborhood and visited lincoln square frequently. I was very Impressed with Paciugo's selection. dairy free, fat free, sugar free Extra which is really great for me since I'm sensitive to dairy and i'm always looking for a good sorbet dairy free ice cream or Italian ice. I had half dairy, free strawberry, and half dairy free mixed berry. They were very flavorful tasted fresh and i was impressed since it is very hard to make a good dairy free ice cream/gelato. Even though Paciugo is a franchise they are very friendly and a great addition to the neighborhood. therefore i give it 4.5 plates.

Ice cream selection

Ruben

Max

As a bonus, you can stop in, at Gene's Sausage. (just across the street from Paciugo). This market has almost everything you need. Including a lot of imported chocolate.

Pork Shoppe BBQ

Hello, today we will be reviewing Pork Shoppe.

Ruben:
Pork Shoppe. now this is all American food. fries, ribs, coleslaw, ect. And let me tell you this is probably the best damn Barbecue in the city. and I have gone to quite a lot of places not to mention I usually go to Ribfest. First of all the service, very good. food came out in a reasonable time. the staff is very nice too. The atmosphere was so cool very Texas/modern/hipster. lots of pictures of pigs on the walls. and nice counter brewery signs. Now the food was awesome. we had all shared one slab of ribs. half baby back. half St. louis Ribs and they were good. first, i'll start with the baby back. they were pretty good. really nice seasoning. came easily off the bone but less meat then the St. louis ribs. one of the employes said that the St. louis definitely has more meat on it and a little more fat so it's a better deal. The St. louis Ribs were my favorite. the meat had a little different taste and i just preferred them more then the baby back. Oh and i almost forgot the sauces. there was Hot, Tangy, and Sweet. i liked the sweet and the tangy. so flavorful. The fries were probably the best fries i have ever had. i would say the fries of pork shoppe are tied with Franks'n'Dawgs waffle fries. Now i would say this is the best Barbecue i have had in the city of Chicago. for now and i plan to get me some of 'em ribs again soon i would give this place a prefect 5 Plates.

Max:
So this is real American barbecue. I have to say the ribs, coleslaw, additional sauces, chicken, corn, and fries are some of the best I have tried in Chicago. Especially their ribs and sauces. There's two different ribs you can order. St. Louis. And Baby Back. I liked the St. Louis a little more than the Baby Back. The St. Louis are flavorful and not too smokey, which makes them delicious, since some BBQ restaurants have ribs that are too smokey. The Baby Back ribs are sort of like the St. Louis ribs. Just not quite as good and well flavored. And now time to get to sauces. There's Tangy, Sweet, and Hot. In my opinion, the St. Louis and Baby Back ribs are very delicious and flavorful with the Tangy sauce. The Chicken is good with the Sweet sauce. The Fries are so flavorful with the Sweet and Tangy Sauce mixed together. I didn't like the Hot sauce, though if you're going to use it, I recommend to only use a little. But I loved this restaurant. and it's one of the best BBQ places I have tried in Chicago. So I'll give 5 plates to Pork Shoppe BBQ.

Otto:
I liked this place quite a lot. I personally liked the St. Louis ribs the most, and I think the Tangy sauce was the best of the sauces. The chicken was better with the sweet sauce, and I think we all agreed on that. The Hot sauce was too spicy for me. The atmosphere was a mix of rustic, with this one area on the wall of a bunch of license plates surrounded by sheet metal, some of it rusty. The floor was so greasy that it was almost too slippery to walk on. But I don't mean any of that negatively. I really liked it. I will give 5 plates to this restaurant. This is the best BBQ I've had in Chicago so far.

Outside

It's casual. You place your order at the counter.

Rustic (or rusty) art.

Know your cuts of pork.

Sauce center.

Before...

And after.

looking to the east

More interior shots.

brewery signs

Ribs and Slaw

Atmosphere

Yummy Corn on the Cob

what was left.

90 Miles Cafe

Today we have a restaurant review that ties into a movie the boys all attended together. The movie, Chef, is about a chef who opens a food truck that serves cubano sandwiches. This inspired us to try the cubano sandwiches at 90 Miles Cuban Cafe.

Max:
This is a pretty good cuban cuisine. I would say their food is good and their atmosphere is very authentic. By the way, 90 miles means 90 miles to Florida. That's how long it takes to get from Florida to Cuba. Also, we all saw the movie Chef. It's a great movie if you love food or if you're a food critic. But don't watch it on an empty stomach. I got the Ropa Vieja. It has Shredded beef, choice of cheese and plantain chips as the side on it. It's really good but really greasy. And after you finish it you might have a hard time walking because it's so greasy and fattening. Though its still good. And the beef on it is really good and well cooked, and goes with the cheese pretty well. The plantain chips are not the best. They're pretty dry. But I know that plantain chips are supposed to be a little dry. It has a great authentic atmosphere and it really makes you feel like you're in Cuba. So their food is good, their atmosphere is authentic. And i think they're a good Cuban restaurant, and i would give this place 3 and 3 quarter plates. But i probably won't go back that soon because there are other Cuban places around. Like Carl Casper's El Jefe. LOL!

Otto:

I tried the Cubano sandwich, but I got it with only meat and the bread, so it was pretty boring and not amazing. It was a little bit dry, which I can understand since I only had the plain meat, but maybe it's not a very good place for me to eat. The yuca fries were okay. It was the first time I tried yuca. They were really really burning hot when they came, but they didn't have too much taste to them without the garlic sauce that was on them (and I didn't eat the sauce, so it was kind of bland). My sandwich came with plantain chips, but I didn't actually try those. All in all it wasn't a good place for someone who eats in a sort of limited way, like me. But the atmosphere of it was really cool. It was an indoor patio where we ate, and it had all sorts of lights and art and was colorful and really fun to see. well, i guess i would rate this place 2 plates. i wish i could like it more but its just not a good place for me. and the movie was 5 stars.

Ruben:

90 miles cuban cafe is a great place to go if your in the mood for some delicious cuban food. I got the Cubano Sandwich Ham pork pickles and mustard it usually comes with cheese, but since i am sensitive to dairy i didn't get it. The sandwich was very good the bread was phenomenal and the ham and pork really were seasoned well and went well together. The pickles and mustard were a very nice touch also but the sandwich it's self was a little greasy. We also got the Yuca Fries which had some garlic one them they were really awesome and i want to try to make them in my kitchen. I really liked the atmosphere of the place felt very cuban and mystical with cool lights and just a good color pallet. after 90 miles we went to go see Chef the movie. which i highly recommend Chef stars Jon Favreau and he was really good. it's about a chef who works in a restaurant but then gets a bad review and gets fired and then he starts his own food truck and go's all over the country.  Anyway 90 miles and Chef were great. I give the Restaurant 4 plates and the movie i give 5 stars.

90 miles

Ruben's Cubano

Dining in the interior patio.

Appetizer has arrived.

Yuca Fries with garlic sauce.

Another sandwich option, served in between two pieces of friend plantain.

Otto's very plain Cubano sandwich.

Inside.

Lots of leftovers. And rain.

At the movies.

The movie received rave reviews by all three boys. Watch the trailer here.

And as summed up by Otto: sadly we liked the movie better than the food we had at 90 Miles. If we could actually eat the food that he seems to be cooking in that movie, we would all be so happy.

Doughnut Vault

Finally made it to Doughnut Vault!

Max:

We have tried to go here once before, but they were sold out. And this time we finally made it! I got the Strawberry Filled. And I just have to quickly say: it was.... The.... Best..... Donut.... I have ever had.... And I'm not too surprised because a bunch of our friends said that this is their favorite donut place. So that's that. I think one of the reasons why it tastes so good is because it's made with real strawberry jam. And a lot of jelly filled donuts are made with artificial jam. So it's nice to have a donut with real and natural jam. Another reason that made it so good is the vanilla glazing. I have never really had a vanilla glazed donut. And trust me, they're really good. I really like the atmosphere of the place because it seems to be an old Bank Vault, that was turned into a donut place. And that's probably why they call it Donut Vault. It's also very small to be the best donut place in the city, but they must have a kitchen somewhere in the bakery, probably behind the donut trays. But I just have to yell that I LOVED DONUT VAULT! and its my FAVORITE DONUT PLACE IN THE CITY! And I would give Donut Vault four and a half stars (out of five) because there might be even better donut places out there, and I'm sure I'll find them.

Otto:

This place is really small. Only about four groups of people can even stand inside. It was a rainy day when we went, and we were so lucky that there were only two people in front of us and lots of doughnuts left for us (and there were not any people after us, so we didn't feel rushed). The guy who was working there pulled out every single tray of the types of doughnuts available that day. He was really nice. I got the Buttermilk Old Fashioned and the Gingerbread Stack. These doughnuts are amazing, the best in Chicago, or at least the best I've had so far. The old fashioned was basically just a really delicious old fashioned. And the gingerbread stack was three smaller cake donuts, coated in cinnamon sugar, which was perfect for sharing. I usually like old fashioned or yeast donuts, but these cake donuts were just amazing. They were lighter than any other cake donut I've had, so light that I wasn't even sure it was a cake donut (in a good way). I can't wait to go back. I want to go back right now, ha ha. (I actually kind of do.)

Ruben:

The holy Donut vault we have been waiting to go here for months and we finally made it. We got up pretty early in the morning and we were on our way at about 9:00 AM. we got there and we all were so excited. Now what i did not know is that the vault is so small it's like the size of a hobbit home or something. I loved the atmosphere of the place very edgy and 1920's a small glass chandelier mirrors a old cash register so cool. The service was awesome the vault guy as we like to call him explained and told us all the flavors and was very patient while we we're deciding which donuts to get. Okay lets talk donuts these are the best donuts i have ever had in city of Chicago and probably the second best in the country. the first is Dough Brooklyn NY. I got a half dozen 2 for me and the rest to bring home to my family and they loved them too. I had the special of the day Roasted almond it was so FLAVORFUL fresh creamy everything you could ever want in the donut. The roasted almonds on top were so good sweet and salty. The donut itself was a yeast donut kinda had a vanilla taste and i might have tasted some kinda of coconut in there. The other donut i had was the classic glazed best glazed donut i have ever had better than Krispy Kream. folks you can see the vanilla bean! overall the Donut Vault was great place and i plan to go back really really really soon.

Inside the vault.

We get the grand tour of the day's doughnuts from the extremely helpful and patient and awesome Vault Man.

From top left: Buttermilk Old Fashioned, Strawberry Jam Filled, Gingerbread 3-Stack, Pistachio Old Fashioned, another Buttermilk Old Fashioned, and the special of the day, Roasted Almond

Love at first bite.

Max's Strawberry Filled.

Amazingly light and delicious (but extremely filling!).

 

The boys experience a true doughnut high.

Donut Vault Menu

Entrance to the vault

Ruben's Dozen, Two Glazed, Two Toasted Almond, One
Pistachio Old Fashioned and One Buttermilk Old Fashioned. 

Inside the Vault

Spotted The Cheesie's Food truck on the
way to the vault.