NW Suburbs Restaurant Week, March 3-12

Not really sure if this is an event or just eating out in Chicagoland -- but whichever -- I've got a few places I want to try out or, in one case, revisit, during restaurant week, and while I'm perfectly happy going alone, I figured I should at least check and see if anyone else would be interested in tagging along.

The three places participating in Restaurant Week that I want to try are Pinoy Grill (Filippino street food) and Southern Kitchen (first time for both), and the one I want to revisit (haven't been there since COVID) is Palm Court.

Southern Kitchen is breakfast and lunch only. Palm Court is more affordable and available at lunch, but would consider dinner. Pinoy Grill is any time. The days and time slots I have available are any time 3/5, 9, 10, or 12, and lunch only on 3/6.

Any interest?

https://www.chicagonorthwest.com/events ... rant-week/

Dave148 wrote:https://www.chicagonorthwest.com/events/annual-events-festivals/restaurant-week/

Yes -- lots of other places to explore. Might consider Madurai and/or Cubano Brothers -- but only if I get to Southern Kitchen and Pinoy Grill. Priorities. (And already have plans with a friend for Little Greek Fresh Grill -- been there before, very tasty, but going because it's my friend's favorite.)

I'll do Southern Kitchen:
3/9 - breakfast/brunch

Dave148 wrote:I'll do Southern Kitchen:
3/9 - breakfast/brunch

Great. Does 11 am work for you?

Cynthia wrote:

Dave148 wrote:I'll do Southern Kitchen:
3/9 - breakfast/brunch

Great. Does 11 am work for you?

Yup! See you then.

In case anyone is wondering -- this is not limited to one person per destination -- or one destination.

I plan on hitting at least three destinations.

So there is still room if you want to visit one of these places. Pinoy Grill seems to be a place that would really benefit from having more than one person dining--so many unusual items.

That said, no worries if I'm on my own. I'll report back.

Lovely lunch at Southern Kitchen. Enjoyed the company of and conversation with Dave 148.

Also enjoyed the restaurant, though a serious draw for me is that it's 3.3 miles from my front door. Charming -- really attractive -- clean and bright with lots of white wood. Cheerful, skilled staff. The waitress was great, and the manager also stopped by a couple of times. The restaurant is only a bit over 7 months old, so still eager to make a good impression.

Food was of very high quality -- but I think I'd call the menu "Southernish" -- grits, biscuits, sausage gravy, and pimento cheese aplenty, but also lots of stuff for people who might not be excited about Southern food (burgers, wraps, omelets, crepes, sandwiches, steak-and-eggs -- the stuff one expects at a breakfast and lunch only place). Nice touches, such as the syrup for pancakes being served hot. Everything I saw being served was impressive.

The Southern elements are definitely "pan-Southern" -- everything from shrimp and grits to Nashville hot chicken sandwich to Ragin' Cajun omelette to fried catfish. And there are several items that are southern inspired but probably not being served anywhere else (some really over-the-top -- such as the pulled pork and cheese fritter as the base of one of their Benedicts or the pimento cheese BLT).

I ordered the shrimp and grits, and while it was really good, it wasn't Charleston -- it was more shrimp and grits by way of New Orleans, with their "Ragin' Cajun" cream sauce -- but seriously, with bacon, mushrooms, jalapeños, and abundant shrimp, there was a lot to like -- and the grits were perfect. And in case you forgot that it's a breakfast place, the dish was topped with two eggs (had mine over-easy, as advised by the waitress). Dave148 had the spinach and feta omelet -- looked really good -- generous amount of food. The pancakes that came with his omelet were slightly larger than the dinner plate on which they were served. So while the place is not cheap, the servings are generous.

I'd say it's the perfect place to go if you're with people who don't know what they're in the mood for -- because there is a little of everything. So I'd say not a place you'd drive forty miles to experience (unless you really can't good grits anywhere else), but a place that could become a regular stop if you live nearby.

Oh -- and they have a liquor license, so bloody Mary's and mimosas are on offer.

The Southern Kitchen
818 E Kensington Rd, Arlington Heights, IL 60004 (right behind the AH Mariano's)
https://oursouthernkitchen.com/

For the record, my leftover “side” of pancakes held well and were quite tasty for dinner.

Dave148 wrote:For the record, my leftover “side” of pancakes held well and were quite tasty for dinner.

Glad to hear it -- because they were certainly abundant.

I've decided I need to go back to try the pimento cheese BLT. It's haunting me.