Photo Credit: Rockit Bar and Grill

September 12-16 Rockit River North 22 W. Hubbard, Chicago

September 15-16 Rockit Wrigley 3700 North Clark, Chicago

If you love wings or if you are in the mood for some amazing gourmet food then this is the place to satisfy your taste buds.

Our staff recently attended a pre-tasting at the River North location and were very impressed. Chefs Amanda Downing and James Gottwald have been busy creating a spin on the good old chicken wing that’s so popular during football season.

We sampled:

Polynesian Wings: (scallions, grilled pineapple, rum red pepper glaze)

The wings have a smokey, sweet and semi hot flavor. They are finger lickin’ great with a roasted pineapple garnish. Both sweet and hot (but not too hot) they have enough kick and are also a little crunchy. Flavor bursts in your mouth!

Rosebud Restaurant Review
22 E Chicago Ave
Naperville, IL 60540
(630) 548-9800
Open Daily 11am-11pm

The Scoop- Total Dining Experience: ★★★ ½ out of 4

We’ll go back, due to the food, service, atmosphere, attention to details, ease of parking and fun factor. Favorite item we tried − ‘Priest Stranglers’.

Don’t you just love spreading the word about a great movie, book or restaurant? I know I do. In fact, that’s just part of my nature. Rosebud restaurant in Naperville recently reopened this past February after a 14 year stint on the corner of Main St. and Chicago Ave. and they’re doing so many things right over there, I just had to write about it! They’ve actually moved down a block and are now on the corner of Chicago Ave. and Washington St.

 

Rockit Wild Hogs Chili'

We've been taste testing some of the chili, fries and mac&cheese−you're in for serious chowing down when you stop by next week.

Looking for some comfort food to warm you up during this hyper-cold weather? Stopping into Rockit Bar and Grill for their annual Chili Fest Jan. 17-21, will not only you warm up−but you may discover some interesting mixes on the dish. For starters try the 3 Wild Hogs Chili, it has a hearty flavor with gigantic white beans, ancho chillies, pepper jack cheese, wild boar, bacon and pork crackling. Wow, the flavors blend together and offer a gamy twist to the old traditional red beans and ground hamburger.

Alligator Fricassee Photo Credit: Sarah Adamson

MoeJoe’s Cajun and Caribbean Cuisine Restaurant Review
510 Lockport St.
Plainfield, Illinois
(815) 230-2790
Hours: 11am - 1am Monday through Thursday
11am - 2am Friday and Saturday
Noon - midnight Sunday

The Scoop- Total Dining Experience: ★★★ out of 4

Here’s a hidden gem of a place if you’re looking for authentic cajun upscale food. We’d go back, due to the food preparation, service, New Orleans atmosphere, attention to details and location (downtown Plainfield).

Favorite item we tried − ‘Alligator Fricassee’. Forget about booking a flight to New Orleans. With a menu that features alligator fricassee, turtle soup, crawfish etouffee, jambalaya and Southern-fried frog legs, MoeJoe's Cajun and Caribbean Cuisine is a lot closer to home and just as good as anything you'll find in the French Quarter.

If you decide to experience this downtown Plainfield eatery, save room for a final course. Dessert lovers will be in "voodoo heaven" after sampling the homemade beignets and bourbon chocolate ganache cheesecake. We certainly were.

A sampling of Gordon Biersch's Micro-Brews Photo Credit: Sarah Adamson

Gordon Biersch Brewery/Restaurant
639 E. Boughton Rd.
Promenade Shopping Mall Bolingbrook, Illinois
(630) 739-6036
Hours: 11am - 11pm Monday through Thursday
11am - midnight Friday and Saturday
11am - 10pm Sunday

Menu Proves Perfect Match for Gordon Biersch's Micro-Brews

The Scoop - Total Dining Experience: ★★★ ½ out of 4

In April 2007, I was invited to attend a soft opening for the then-new Gordon Biersch Brewery/Restaurant restaurant in the Promenade Shopping Center in Bolingbrook.

I’ve attended many restaurant openings in the past and am always pleased to do so, but the invite always comes with an expectation -- to make constructive suggestions to the owners before they have their official opening. The idea is to help the place run smoother and to make modifications to the menu if needed.

I tell you all of this for reasons of full disclosure: I have no ties to Gordon Biersch but I have critiqued them before. I might also add that if you're invited to a soft opening, there is some obligation involved. Fast forward three years later. While I've had a quick few lunches at Gordon Biersch while shopping, I haven’t really "dined" there for quite a while. My daughter Kathrine and I dropped by about at 5 p.m. on recent Thursday night and by 6 p.m., the place was packed.

One often wonders if the food at a brew house will be any good given that beer is the main focus. Thankfully, Gordon Biersch takes great care with its menu and offers a slew of choices, from steaks and seafood to pasta and burgers. And in addition to a regular menu, it offers six seasonal menus throughout the year.

Super Fiesta Mini Enchiladas, includes 5 different types including ground beef, chicken and cheese. Photo Credit: Sarah Adamson

Fiesta Mexicana Grill and Cantina Restaurant Review
24136 W. Lockport St.
Plainfield, Illinois
(815) 609-4444
Hours: 11am - 9:30pm Sunday through Thursday
11am - 10:30pm Friday and Saturday

Superb Entrees Spark Fiesta Mexicana's Traditional Menu

The Scoop- Total Dining Experience: ★★★ out of 4

We’ll go back, due to the food, service, atmosphere, value, ease of parking and fun factor.

Favorite item we tried − ‘Enchilada Super Fiesta’

Plainfield’s restaurant scene is moving in a great direction, and one of the newest additions, Fiesta Mexicana Grill and Cantina, celebrates its one-year anniversary Feb. 1. What was once the Plainfield Supper Club has been transformed into a lively, brightly colored dining spot. Owner Dave Lopez is no stranger to the restaurant business; he owns three similar eateries in central Illinois.

The murals on the walls set the tone for what is an authentic Tex-Mex dining experience. The restaurant is more spacious than it might appear from the street, with a large front dining room with windows facing out toward Lockport Street, a bar area and two rooms are in the back. All told, they can seat about 100 diners and in the summer, an outdoor patio adds space for 60 more.

The minute you take your seat, the waitress appears with a basket of tri-colored tortilla chips -- red, green and gold -- and freshly made salsa, which we deemed not far from perfect. It's flavorful, with plenty of cilantro, whole tomatoes, jalapeno peppers, spices and onions, all of which gave it a nice kick.

Yum Factor− Details of the items we tried.

Cheese Quesadilla Appetizer− The melted white cheese was delicious, but we could have lived without the accompanying side of beans. Also, for this price, a whole quesadilla would seem more appropriate than a folded half. My suggestion would be to skip the beans and increase the size. $6

Enchilada Super Fiesta −The entree features five kinds of mini enchiladas -- ground beef, chicken, shredded beef, beans and cheese. Tomato-flavored rice is served on the side, as are beans, lettuce, enchilada sauce, tomatoes and sour cream. The dish was unique, with fantastic presentation and rich flavors to match. $11

Close-up view of the ribs sold at Baby Back Blues. Photo credit: Sarah Adamson

Baby Back Blues BBQ
16200 S. Lincoln Highway
Plainfield, Illinois
815-254-6939

Baby Back Blues the Real McCoy When It Comes to Barbecue

The Scoop- Total Dining Experience: ★★★½ out of 4

We’d go back as the ribs were some of the best I’ve ever tasted. The restaurant would have scored all 4 stars if the location were closer to a city and offered a few more menu choices. (It’s a bit isolated and away from the downtown area.) I would have liked to have seen more side choices such as corn bread and baked sliced apples.

If you didn't know you were in Plainfield, Illinois you could easily surmise that Baby Back Blues was an authentic barbecue smokehouse in southern Mississippi. Slow-cooking in hickory-stoked ovens produces ribs, pulled pork and other fare that falls off the bone and packs a punch. The stainless steel smoker ovens behind the main counters are blackened from a dozen years of use and stoked with hickory logs to provide that much- loved smoky flavor. Baby Back Blues is the real deal, and the barbecue that's cooked at a low temperature for more than four hours proves it.

The restaurant's atmosphere is causal and picnic in style -- paper plates, plastic silverware. It would appear that Baby Back Blues does a regular carry- out business based on the number of patrons we saw coming in to pick up orders.

Yum Factor − Details of the items we tried.

Ribs-The first thing you notice when you bite into them is the caramelized glaze coating -- a combination of brown sugar with a hint of honey yet with a noticeable crunchiness. The meat is tender and oh-so-hickory in flavor; it really does fall off the bone. Half slabs are $13, full slab $22, and come with two sides, bread and a drink. I was so delighted with the taste that I ordered more.

Beef Stew, Photo Credit: Sarah Adamson

Finnegan's Irish Pub

24102 W Lockport St

Plainfield, IL 60544

815-733-5177

Finnegan's Will Have You Dancing a Jig -- and Not Just Because of the Pumpkin Pie Martinis

The Scoop- Total Dining Experience: ★★★½ out of 4

Entering this lavishly autumn-themed restaurant one can't help but get in the mood to dance an Irish jig right into fall, and its season-based menu is the perfect match.

Located at the corner of Lockport and Des Plaines streets in downtown Plainfield, Finnegan's Irish Pub is a convenient dining spot for before or after running those endless errands and you won't have a problem finding a parking space.

To begin with, how about a pumpkin pie martini? They can't be serious -- in a pub? They are at Finnegan's, and their specialty drink was a big hit with me. It's not easy to distinguish all of the flavors, but the cinnamon and nutmeg certainly stood out. Imagine a pumpkin pie milkshake, topped with whipped cream, and you'll have some idea of what this concoction is like.

The exact recipe is a secret, although Kahlua and pumpkin spice liquor are two of the ingredients. Well worth the $8 price tag. Finnegan's is also known for its extensive beer menu, and claim to have the largest selection in the western suburbs. With more than 200 to choose from, the task can be daunting. No worries here ! as the servers undergo extensive training and are required to pass a test similar to that of a wine sommelier.

We also sampled the Wild Onion pumpkin ale beer and found it to be utterly delightful. And while we couldn't resist trying one of the beer flights, too -- tangerine wheat is one of their best sellers so we coupled that with a milkstout and autumn ale -- the pumpkin ale was still the hands-down favorite.