2913 N Clark

We had a great time in Scotland 12 Articles from Our Scotland Trip and it's kind of surprising and sort of sad we haven't ventured back to the Duke of Perth since our trip.  We're glad our out-of-town-friends suggested it this night and double glad that when they weren't-out-of-town-friends they found it all those years ago and ultimately triple glad that it's unchanged from the first time I ventured through it's wee front door.

If you really want to know what a Scottish Pub is like, you'll get about the best clue (make sure you read the Oor Wullie and Broons comics spread around the place!) as you could expect to find in the streets of Chicago, but really it's no match for the real thing A Previous Article where you sit in front of a fire with the locals, their accents, their food, their beers and whiskeys and their dogs.  Regardless of whether you have the real thing to compare to or not it's a wonderful place, and for people like us it now also does a great job of bringing back the memories of our Scotland 12 Articles from Our Scotland Trip trip (especially at Whiskey Selection time...).

Outside there's no bright shiny lights, but a big gold sign which does more than enough to attract a good crowd - we had a short wait for a table and after we were sat there was always someone waiting for a table and a bit of a line when we left.  It's broken into 3 sections, the bar with a few tables (where we sat for the first time after many times out the back), the dining room and a patio (which was closed this evening and where we've never sat).  The bar itself is tiny, our side and the bartender's, but the rooms are filled in nice and fairly with a variety of different types and size of table.  We got a seat at the wee small bar and went straight for a brew we remembered from our trip, but embarrassed ourselves a little by not reading the blackboard properly - don't say 'we'll take a pint of each of the Belhaven's' when there are 2 of you but actually 5 varieties... There are many Pub trinkets around the place including a deer over the bar, but I have no idea where any of them may have come from.  I am, however, pretty sure the comics are the real deal, plucked from various compendiums.

Our Server and the Host took care of us.  The two of us arrived first and put our names down, expecting a total of 4.5 people.  Our table opened up pretty quick and they allowed us to sit at it, even after we suggested we could wait for another as our friends were still in transit.  We started to feel guilty about the missing friends (not totally unexpected as they have a young 'un to amuse and prepare) so ordered a snack and just prior to it arriving we got a call that our party was now 7.5.  Our Server figured out how to make it work, the Host agreed and we moved all the way to the next table where we were cozy and happy once all were seated.  She wasn't overly chatty, but she got us our drinks and our food and was polite and smiley and all with an accent that most would hear as Scottish being where we were sitting but I'm sure was not.

The menu is certainly Scottish Pub influenced, but no Haggis for the American diners...  It's ultimately comfort food, with a bit of fun in the descriptions, lots to choose from and depending on your mood could be hard to make a final decision.  Friday is all you can eat Fish & Chips night and there are other Specials through out the week.  Not a lot for the wee 'uns and when ours tried to order a cheese sandwich we got a no and an offer of chicken fingers.  A short 'negotiation' ended with an order of a cheese burger, hold the burger to which a light went on with our Server, which led to further negotiation with the chef and wallah!, a cheese sandwich was born.

Our meal went a little like this:

• Belhaven Twisted Thistle - We've had a Belhaven not once A Previous Article, but twice A Previous Article before and seeing they had 5 on draft we thought we should pick a couple.  A bit hoppy in a good way.
• Belhaven Wee Heavy - creamy and a bit nutty.
• Tattie Skins - great on their own, perfect for filling in 'guilt' time.
• FraΦch Heather Ale - A previously pleasant encounter A Previous Article with this made it a no brainer to have it come our way again, just as we remembered although the bottle was about half the size as our first encounter.
• Belhaven Stout
  
• Soda
• Cranberry Juice
• Margarita - is a pint of anything a bad thing?
• Cheese Sandwich & Fries - the aforementioned cheese burger hold the burger...  Not the best cheese sandwich ever, but enough Fries for everyone to get a handful.
• Shepherd's Pie - is it really a Shepherd's pie if it's made with Beef?  Tasty all the same and the Potatoes on top are the perfect amount for the sauce in the bottom.
• Fish & Chips - I think way more often than not you'd be happy with the first serving that comes your way and decline a 'refill'
• Bangers & Mash - fun to say, fun to eat with a perfect ice cream scoop of mash
• Islay Chicken Sandwich - an equal to any of the burgers, just not so beefy...
• Burger - sorry, missed which one but they all sound great and this one looked great
• Slam'n Salmon & Cod Cakes - I think I'd prefer Fish & Chips on Fish & Chips night, but there are 6 other nights in the week.
• Ardbeg 10 year - a bit of smoke up front, smooth all the way down.
• Talisker 10 year - if peat is what you like in your Whiskey, there are others with more but you sure know it's in this one.
• Caol Ila 25 year - there's a lot going on and it's hard to stop at just one.

After having a great reminiscence type dinner with our friends and their family who we just don't see enough - and who have yet to get over to Scotland - which would have been just as much fun and memorable with ordinary burgers at a Burger Shack we look forward to seeing them again sooner rather than later.  But, with or without them, we'll be back much much quicker next time around.  Perhaps even for just a pint or 3...

Stay JOLLY!
DJay & John & Maggie, Pat & Dale & Grandma

215 West North Avenue

Walking in the door we were presented with a very pleasant and very pronounced aroma of cooking tomatoes. Now noting how pronounced it was, it's surprising how few restaurants greet you with the wonderful smells found in the kitchen.

Looking around the restaurant I sort of got the feel of an Italian Cafe / Restaurant as described in books and movies (maybe one day I'll be able to visit and confirm or reject these descriptions) - relatively small tables situated quite close together with staff bustling their way through.  This, combined with the mostly Italian music (of the modernish variety) playing and the black and white prints of Italian vistas (for sale if you're interested) there's no doubt you're in for Italian treats for your meal.  As the Restaurant filled up the music was a little harder to hear clearly if you wanted to sing along, but the tunes were there.

Inside is split into two sections due to the nature of the building.  Perhaps it was two buildings they joined as part of an expansion, I don't know?  We were in the back section and I'm not sure if that made any difference to our experience, but the front section also got the Bar.  They have a nice sized outside area with a separate Bar and it certainly looks pleasant enough, but being right on North Avenue, I think we'd always choose to dine inside.

I'm not sure why, but I was intrigued / amused by the short hallway to the bathrooms - it was covered in coat hooks which being Spring were mostly empty.  I kind of want to go back in the middle of winter just to see them all filled up - again, I'm not sure why this caught my attention...

Our Server took great care of us, offering suggestions, being available when we needed him, checking in on us unobtrusively and not even batting an eye lid when we ordered dish by dish.  He also happily and knowledgeably shared a cooking tip which we'll try amuse ourselves with sometime soon.  The Busser whisked away our plates almost before the final bite had been swallowed and I would argue that's a little too efficient, but he also kept our water nicely topped up.

Our meal went something along the lines of:

• Brancaia Tre 2006 (Sangiovese blend) - full flavor and quite smooth, and a popular pick this night as we saw it go past us at least 3 times
• Rosemary Potatoes - yummy and the perfect start for dinner
• Calimari Fritti O Grigliata - perhaps the tomato sauce was what we smelled on the way in?
• Rucola con Prosciutto (Arugula Salad) - a simple but very tasty salad, with the crispy prosciutto easily my favorite dish of the evening
• Spaghetti Bolognese - with the Veal Sauce and Homemade Fennel Sausage not your average Bolognese
• Crustini Dinotto
  • Tapenade - typically olivey
  • Bruschetta - yummy
  • Garbanzo Bean - surprisingly not beany!
• Chocolate Lava Cake - not a lot of lava, but moist and rich and tasty
• Chocolate Martini - with the generous coating of chocolate sauce in the glass, easily the favorite beverage of the evening

Dinotto proudly announces that they have been named one of the top Italian Restaurants in Chicago.  I can't really comment to that having not sampled a large enough selection, but they certainly are no where near the bottom.

Stay JOLLY!
D