Hachi's Kitchen

Hello. Today we will be reviewing Hachi's Kitchen located in the heart of logan square on California Ave. (just south of Logan Blvd).

Ruben:
The minute i walked in i knew it was gonna be good. This was my first time at Hachi's but Max and Otto are regulars so they know everyone who works there. I was greeted very nicely and when i sat down i was presented with a steaming hot towel so nice and relaxing. the boys didn't tell me about that so that was a surprise and let me say it was a good one. I loved the atmosphere, and the look of the place. it felt very welcoming and friendly but at the same time cool and modern. We started off with some pot stickers and they were amazing crispy dough on the outside and fresh meat and veggies on the inside. very good. After the pot stickers we had some Miso Soup and it was probably the best Miso Soup i have ever had. very flavorful and i loved the broth. For my main course i had the classic California Roll i really liked it. The crab was okay nothing special but it was still decent and the veggies were also decent. I also had a bite of Otto's teriyaki chicken and that is what i'm getting next time cause that homemade teriyaki sauce OMG was it good. Hachi's kitchen is a great sushi joint and i would love to go back i give it 5 plates.

Otto:
I've been going to Hachi's Kitchen for years, and it is one of my favorite restaurants, even though I always get the same thing: the chicken teriyaki with rice or sometimes just the rice and teriyaki sauce. Their teriyaki sauce is the best I have ever had, and I've tried to find anything existing that is as good. We have bought many different brands, and we don't like anything as much as theirs. Sometimes we just order sides of the sauce and take it home with us so that we can make rice and teriyaki sauce at home. The pork pot stickers are pretty good too, although I didn't finish mine. I really like their miso soup, although I only eat the broth. The broth is delicious. I would give this place 6 plates if I could, but since there are only 5 to give, I'll give it 5.

Max:
I love this restaurant! I've been wanting to review this place for a whole long time now. I've been going here since I was very small. And it might just be the best sushi in Chicago. First off, I love the atmosphere, and the Japanese feel of the restaurant is so authentic and fancy. They also give you a hot towel for washing your hands before you eat. The restrooms are some of the nicest I've seen in a restaurant. And right outside of the restroom there's a huge wall of real roses that you can smell, that's right, roses. But now moving on to the food. I got the Soft Shell Crab Maki. It was delicious. I love how the crab legs were sticking out of the crab rolls. And they are also very fun to eat. The crab legs were fried, and I don't eat that much fried crab. And this was awesome! I also tried some of the Rainbow Roll. Its salmon, tuna, avocado, and yellow tail wrapped around a crab stick. That was also very good. Almost all the dishes they serve here come with ginger and wasabi. And that's good for me because I like my food pretty spicy. But not SPICY! just spicy. I love Hachi's Kitchen, so I give them 5 plates.

Outside.

Pot Stickers.

Max's Soft Shell Crab Maki

Otto's Chicken Teriyaki

Rainbow roll.

Revolution Brewing

Hello. Today we will be reviewing Logan Square's Revolution Brewery.


Ruben:
Revolution Brewing. I have been wanting to try Revolution Brewing for a year now! and let me say I was impressed. Revolution Brewing is beyond a cool awesome building, great location, and great decor.
lemme talk about the food. i had the Workingman burger. The bun was great. it tasted very fresh. The bacon went very well with the burger. The burger tasted a little too fatty and and my stomach hurt a little after. The fries were okay not amazing but better then average. We also got the soft pretzel for a appetizer and it was very good. it tasted fresh. not much salt and very soft in the middle. also the mustard that it came with, Oh my god. it tasted so good! some of best damn mustard my taste buds have ever tasted. So that's about it for food. but their service was great our waitress was very nice and the food came out in a reasonable time. I give REVOLUTION BREWING 4.5 plates.

Max:
This is a really good place to get a burger, in my opinion. I think that their burgers are the best thing on the menu. I've been going here for a long time. And everything about this restaurant is really cool. You can see the brewery through a large glass that's about half of the restaurant. And the atmosphere is very authentic brewery. We got the Soft pretzel as our appetizer. It was a delicious pretzel. It came with 2 sauces. One was a beer cheese sauce, and the other was a mustard sauce. The cheese sauce was too rich and creamy, and it gave me a small stomach ache. But that might be because i'm not a big fan of beer cheese. The mustard sauce was very good and it went very well with the pretzel. I got the Hombre Burger. It had cheese, poblano peppers, and avocado. It was very good, though I wasn't a huge fan of the poblano peppers. They were a bit smokey and not just my taste. I was impressed with the avocado. It really complemented my burger. My side was a caesar salad. It was about an average caesar salad. And i enjoyed it, but I've had better caesar salads. But anyway, I love Revolution Brewing. and it was delicious. So I rate Revolution Brewing 4.5 plates.

Otto:
I got a cheddar cheese burger with fries. Their burgers are big and good. They are served on a brioche bun which is toasted, which makes it even more delicious. I couldn't eat the whole thing. Their fries are pretty good, I think they are better than average fries. The pretzel is delicious. Soft and kind of salty, maybe a tiny bit too salty. It comes with a beer cheese sauce which I didn't try. We like to sit in the booths that are upstairs. It's nice because the upstairs is open to the downstairs, you look down on the bar from above. The walls are made out of the wood of old barrels, they are still roundish and make a kind of wavy pattern on the walls. The light fixtures have these cool covers that are made of the metal barrel rings, all crossed to make a globe shape. I like the overall atmosphere of it. There's lots of wood and it feels nice. It's fun to look down into the bar and look at all the pulls of the beer taps, which are all shaped differently and look really cool. Most of them are the Revolution Brewery fists, in all different colors and designs. Overall, I would give them 4 plates.

In our booth, overlooking the bar.

Inside

Soft Pretzel with beer cheese and mustard sauce

Ruben's Workingman Burger

Max's Hombre Burger

Otto's cheese burger and fries

First bites.

Beer Taps

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.