Chicago is a great place to visit, especially in the company of old friends. This past weekend, my mom’s college BFF was in from Philadelphia for their 25th Northwestern University reunion. On Saturday afternoon, I took the train to meet them in the famous Windy City.
The three of us are all super adventurous and we were absolutely starving by the time we started searching for a restaurant. The Chicago Diner, an iconic vegetarian restaurant with two locations downtown, was our first choice. However, Saturday night in the city combined with the Cubs possibly clinching their ticket to the World Series made for quite a long wait… An hour and a half to be exact. It was time for Plan B: Revolution Brewing.
How did we discover this little pub, you ask? Well, we were hungry and couldn’t bear to allow our stomachs grumble any longer, so my mom’s friend went to investigate the restaurant right next door—which was conveniently Revolution Brewing.
It turned out that they could seat us immediately. Plus, my mom’s friend had an awesome idea: why not sample as many of their vegetarian dishes as we could? Revolution Brewing was our savior that night with a short wait, lots of great vegetarian options, AND a front row seat to the Cubs game! Well, on the TV at least.
Appetizer: Smoked Cauliflower
Smoked cauliflower was one of the most unique options on the menu. The smokey flavor of these little stalks was insane! Perfectly cooked and seasoned, this was one of our favorite menu items. Another great vegetarian appetizer was their house soft pretzels with cheese fondue.
Smoked Cauliflower: Roasted cauliflower, smoked cauliflower puree, fresno sambal pepperonata, kale, toasted almond, citrus crumble.
Salad: Burrata
This salad was so simple, yet extremely complex in flavor. Chickpeas added extra crunch and avocado puree served as almost a second dressing. Plus, a whole slice of burrata cheese, which is kind of like fresh mozzarella stuffed with ricotta, topped off the dish.
Burrata Salad: Burrata cheese, mighty Vine tomato, spinach, radish, spiced garbanzo bean, pickled cucumber, avocado puree, thyme-citrus vinaigrette, fresh herb.
Sandwich: Veggie Burger
Most veggie burgers are made of quinoa, beans, or lentils. However, this burger changed the game by using beets to give it a reddish tint, resembling an actual beef patty! To round it all out, the patty was topped with red onion marmalade and sandwiched between a fluffy quinoa bun.
Veggie Burger: Roasted red beet, cremini mushroom and black bean patty with red onion marmalade, arugula, whole wheat quinoa bun.
Entree: Yukon Gold Pierogis
I have saved the best for last. We almost didn’t order these pierogis, but in the spirit of adventure, we decided to give it a go. These little pillows of cheese and potato topped with an amazing chive sauce were the highlights of the night. Plus, if you don’t ordinarily love Brussels sprouts, I can guarantee you’ll crave them when they’re dunked in french onion gravy.
Yukon Gold Pierogis: Yukon gold potato & farmer’s cheese stuffed pierogis, braised red cabbage, mutsu apple, Brussels sprouts, french onion gravy, chive sour cream.
After our little experiment, we concluded that the best way to try a new restaurant is to order a bunch of different dishes and sample EVERYTHING. There’s something so fulfilling about discovering great vegetarian options at a traditional American pub. Plus, the Cubs rounded out our night with a win, guaranteeing their spot in the World Series for the first time since 1945! Go, Cubs, go!
