Chicago outing - Lou Malnati’s & bellyQ
Totally delayed in creating this post (sorry!). In mid-April, I went to Chicago for the first time with a couple of my friends and had the best time ever! Of course, when you hear “Chicago,” you immediately think Deep Dish Pizza, right? RIGHT! So the first place my food-loving friends and I went to is this place called Lou Malnati’s, where they’re known to have the best deep dish pizza in Chicago.
First, we ordered their signature salad called “Malnati’s Salad” which had Romaine lettuce, tomatoes, black olives, mushrooms, Volpi salami bits and gorgonzola cheese with our Sweet Vinaigrette and romano cheese. Those salami bits were nice and crunchy, which gave it a nice touch in flavor. Since the pizza takes about 1/2 hour to make, we ordered some drinks in the meantime. I had the Goose Island IPA (since we’re in Chicago, why not?) while everyone else had their own specialty beer/drink.
Now for the best part...THE PIZZA! We ordered the Malnati Chicago Classic™ which is made with Lou's lean sausage, extra cheese (yum) and vine-ripened tomato sauce on Buttercrust. What’s not to love about all of those? The deep crust definitely added on the extra texture. Presentation of the food may seem small, but it’s quite filling (not to mention there were 4 of us)! Overall, I give this place a gold star for my first deep dish pizza experience in Chicago :)
Next for dinner, we went to this place called bellyQ, which is an Asian-Inspired BBQ restaurant in Chicago. As soon as I entered, I fell in love with the interior designing of this place. We ordered some drinks, appetizers and entree of our own. Did a little flight of whiskey/sake (which were provided with a mat that had full description of what each of them were), and they were both delicious! See below images for description of each item.
Chilled Edamame w/ soy balsamic
Noodle + Cheese (aka Asian Mac n’ Cheese). Hint of spice with a curry taste. Definitely recommend for those of you that love curry!
Special Jambalaya dish they had with duck.
whiskey flight for the gents...
...followed by a sake flight for the ladies.
My friend had the wagyu beef burger and it looked very appetizing....YUM!
Late at night, we stopped by Goose Island brew pub for a quick drink. What a successful 1st day in Chicago, amirite?
Last food adventure we went on is this American-Style gastropub called SideDoor which was located near our hotel. When you enter, you see multiple pictures of keys displayed on the wall, which gives it that mysterious and vintage look. We ordered the deviled eggs to share, and I had a cosmo fizz (I believe that’s what it’s called) to drink. I was pretty beat by the end of this day so I honestly didn’t get a chance to drink the whole thing, but it tasted amazing! We also ordered their baked mac n’ cheese which was baked to perfection! For our main course, I ordered the Pulled Pork Poutine (which was amazing and definitely filling) and my boyfriend had the slow roasted duck.
Overall, my trip to Chicago has been an amazing experience (to the point where I may even consider moving there one day)! If you’re ever in town, I highly recommend checking these restaurants out!