Renaldi’s Pizza, 2827 N Broadway St

TOTAL COST FOR TWO: $24.89

WHAT WE ORDERED: Italian Salad, Medium Mother Meatball Pizza

STARS: *****

Renaldi’s. Maybe we love it so much because it was our first meal in Chicago after a horrific day of unpacking. Or maybe it’s the flavors that make each bite of pizza taste better than the next. Or maybe its the authentic checkered table-cloths, the mobster posters on the walls, or the photos of Italy on the walls. Maybe its because the owner reminds me so much of my Italian grandfather. But I think what really makes the pizza so addictive, something that can pop into your thoughts at any time (mostly when exercising, I’ve found)…is the grease. Renaldi’s pizza is unbelievably good, but something to be saved for special occasions. Trust me, your body will thank you. When you do decide you’re ready to indulge, however, order the Mother Meatball, deep-dish pizza and an Italian salad. We’ve tried a few other things there, but the Meatball pizza is out of this world. It’s worth the wait (the deep dish takes about 45 min) and worth the calories. Go there now.

La Finca Restaurant, 3361 N Elston Ave

TOTAL COST FOR TWO: $28.02

WHAT WE ORDERED: Guacamole, Chicken Burrito and Chicken Soup

STARS: ***

It was a cold night. The coldest it had been yet this fall. We were having some trouble navigating the Avondale bus routes, so we decided to walk from Belmont + Elston four blocks or so up to Roscoe + Elston to La Finca, a mexican restaurant my husband found on metromix.com…and received 4.7 of 5 stars! So we came in with high expectations. The restaurant was a small but open room, not very crowded, but exceedingly spotless. There were only two wait staff, seemed like mother-son team. The chips and salsa were FREE – not something you find much anymore – and the salsa was delightfully spicy. The guacamole was good too, perhaps a touch too much sour cream. My husband ordered the chicken burrito which he liked, but said was a lot like other chicken burritos he’s had. “It’s not Chipotle”, he said. “The meat was much better, but not as many vegetables”. My chicken soup was very flavorful, filled with large chunks of carrots, half a chicken, rice, onion, and cilantro. It was not too greasy, and perfect for such a cold evening. La Finca was good, we might go again. But it wasn’t quite the homerun metromix.com said it would be.

Wilde Bar & Restaurant, 3130 N Broadway Street

TOTAL COST FOR TWO: $27.29

WHAT WE ORDERED: Fish & Chips, Meatloaf Sandwich

STARS: ****

Wilde was surprisingly terrific. On the outside, it looks like a place the typical Lincoln Park-residing recent college grad, “I-still-haven’t-accepted-that-I’m-an-adult-and-still-obsessed-with-my- college-sports-teams” would frequent. However, the crowd was very diverse; from super-stylish gay men to 50-somethings who reminded me of my parents, to young kids, to us (whatever generalized category my husband and I fall into). I had originally wanted to order shephards pie from Wilde’s nouveau Irish pub menu, but when I gave the waiter my selection, he said “Oh no, you don’t want that”. I was taken aback. “What do I want?” I asked. “The fish and chips”. They were $2 cheaper so I figured he must be serious, not just trying to make a sale. So I ordered the fish and chips and they were DELICIOUS. Light batter, flaky white fish, and delicious, homemade french fries. My husband’s meatloaf sandwich was also very tasty, moist, with a flavorful tomato sauce. And I’m not usually a meatloaf eater. This is a great place for a cold night. They decorate the restaurant based on the season, so when we were there it had soft orange lights, lots of pumpkins, and fall leaves draped around the bar. The cozy atmosphere makes the savory food taste even better!

THE CHICAGO BRAUHAUS, 4732 N Lincoln Ave (between Giddings St & Leland Ave)

TOTAL COST FOR TWO: $24.25

WHAT WE ORDERED: Sheboygan Bratwurst and the Knackwurst

STARS: ****

I’m giving the Brauhaus 4 stars, mostly for the atmosphere and less for the food. You’d think the place might have changed in the past 30 years – but it hasn’t. In fact, I think it’s probably still the same old Germans sitting at the bar drinking their pints of Stiegl. My husband is German and I – being half Irish and half Italian – am still learning the ropes of what it means to truly be German. The Brauhaus made me proud of my new last name, adorned with white and blue checkered flags and the chatter of the German language all around. The food was ok – I prefer my bratwurst grilled as opposed to boiled, and everything on the plate, from the pretzel to the kraut to the sausage, was the same bland grayish brown color. In any other setting it may not have been an ideal meal, but at the Brauhaus on a crisp September day, it was almost perfect.

pingpong RESTAURANT, 3322 N Broadway

TOTAL COST FOR TWO: $27.98

WHAT WE ORDERED: Eggplant and Tofu Noodles, Spicy Tuna Maki, pingpong Roles, $5 corking fee

STARS: ***

pingpong is a trendy Lakeview neighborhood pan-asian restuarant. The interior is entirely white, with no art on the walls. Instead, old 1970′s dance videos are projected on the walls. The waiters – it was all gay men in the restraurant – were all wearing VERY tight jeans and seemed to know everyone (excpet us) who came in. I kind of felt like our waiter, who was flaboyant with all his other tables, was bored by us since we were the joykilling hetero couple. The sushi had too much rice and not enough filling, but the eggplant/tofu noodles were delicious. They had a grilled flavor to them which was very tasty. pingpong is BYOB, and they do charge a $5/bottle corking fee. Take out of town guests here, but be prepared to wait.

EPPY’S JEWISH DELI, 224 E Ontario Street

TOTAL COST FOR TWO: $15.67

WHAT WE ORDERED: A large mixed green salad, motzoball soup and a corned beef sandwhich

STARS: ***

Eppy’s is a restaurant my husband found over his lunch our one day. It’s in the lower level of an office building in Streeterville and is very tradional Jewish deli food, created by “Eppy the Jew” has he calls himself. They have a long list of sandwiches which, if I liked sandwiches, would have been terrific. However, I’m not much for things between bread so I ordered the salad and soup. The salad was ok, nothing special. But the citrus vinagrette was light and tasty. The motzoball in the soup was delicious, but the broth had the distinct flavor of chicken boullion cube. I did have a couple bites of my husband’s corned beef sandwich was was absolutely one of th best sandwiches I’ve had. That will definitely be what I order next time. Eppy’s seems’ a little dirty, maybe because it’s in a basement. But either way, go there and order a sandwich.

SALUD TEQUILA LOUNGE, 1471 N Milwaukee Ave

TOTAL COST FOR TWO: $28.17

WHAT WE ORDERED: Chips/Salsa/Guacamole appetizer, Tequila Lime Chicken, Steamed Calamari

STARS: ****

Salud Tequila Lounge doesn’t look like much on the outside, but it’s quickly becoming one of my new favorite hangouts. We’ve had out of town guests for the past few weekends and we’ve taken each one to Salud. The atmosphere is fun; loungy but you could get away with cocktail wear or windbreaker pants. The wait staff is attentive, but not overly so. My water glass was never empty. The chips and guac rivaled those at some of the more traditional Mexican restuarants I’ve eaten, and the entrees were generous but reasonably priced. The calamari was actuallty an appetizer, but large enough to be my entree. It was a little salty, but delicous nonetheless. The chicken was also tasty, flavorful and tender. Our waitress even gave us a handful of $5 off coupons to use the next time we came in!

JOY’S NOODLES & RICE, 3257 N Broadway St

TOTAL COST FOR TWO: $22.10

WHAT WE ORDERED: Crab Wonton Appetizer, Chicken Basil Curry and Tofu Cocunut Curry

STARS: ****

This was actually our second time to Joy’s Noodles. It’s a great place for a weekend night because you rarely have to wait in line. We went here on a Friday and were seated immediately by one of the MANY wait staff. At one time, there may be 20 waiters in Joy’s Noodles – sometimes a little overwhelming. We were seated near the door, and unfortunately it was a blustery cold night and each time someone came in the restuarant, we were hit with a blast of frigid wind. That aside, the food was just as good as we remembered; fresh, flavorful, and very reasonably priced. Joy’s is BYOB so we brought a bottle of wine along with us, and they never charge a corking fee. Definitely check it out, much healthier, crisper and CLEANER than many of the Asian restaurants in the area.

Greetings!

In a city known for its fabulous food, eating out can drain your wallet before you can say “Check Please!”. AlphabetSoupChicago is a blog dedicated to helping two under 30′s eat well for under $30. Each week, I’ll add a new restaurants to AlphabetSoupChicago, complete with a review based on a star sytem.

***** What are you waiting for? Grab your CTA card before they raise fares January 1st and get in there!

**** Pretty darn respectable, just a few minor and insignificant unpleasantries (perhaps an overly friendly waiter or table near the kitchen door).

*** Meh, forgettable. Not bad, not great. Is it even worth blogging about?

** Don’t waste your time, the positive aspects were few and far between.

* You might as well drink Liquid Plumber because your stomach would feel better afterwards than eating here.

My rules for my restaurant reviews include: Alcohol is NOT figured into the final bill (although if its a BYOB restaurant with a corking fee that WILL be included in my final tab). For the most part, I am not a dessert eater so for all you sweet tooths out there, sorry. But appetizers are almost always included!

That’s about it! Hope you enjoy, and please send me feed back.