Looking for the perfect winter meal? A Chicago restaurant’s hearty, alpine cooking is one option to escape from the cold. NBC 5’s Steve Dolinsky reports.
When you think about food from Germany, Austria and Switzerland in the winter, you think heavy dishes and hearty portions. That’s the approach one couple is taking at their revamped restaurant, where they used to focus on barbecue. They still use the smoker, as well as the live fire, and the cooking is way more interesting than just a pot of fondue.
It’s the owners’ Alpine heritage that inspired a name and concept change to Dorothy’s Bistro, on the western edge of Logan Square. There’s stuffed squash being grilled on the open hearth; dry rubbed ribs sprayed with Worcestershire and honey to balance the smokiness, and a willingness to cook exclusively from these cold weather climates.
“It started as my love for cooking over open fire, with both myself and my wife’s heritage,” said owner Brian Bruns.
Chacroute garni lets you choose how you want your pork: smoked ribs or perhaps homemade sausage.
“We have a mettwurst, which is similar to an ‘nduja; then the other one we have is a knockwurst,” said Bruns.
His porchetta is textbook.
“A pork belly that’s been cured for 10 days, we butterfly it open and we stuff it with a mettwurst, which is a fermented sausage. We then roll the whole thing back up, and smoke for about six to eight hours. It’s kind of somewhere between bacon, pork belly and like a pork chop,” he said.
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Sauerkraut is a given; they make their own.
“Ours is braised in a Riesling, and we ferment it with caraway.”
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Rather than traditional dumplings, potatoes here are boiled then tossed with sour cream and dill. It’s not all pork. Bruns grills kale directly over the fire, charring and softening the tough leaves, which get tossed with a homemade apple cider vinaigrette.
“And then we top it with toasted pumpkin seeds and grated Alpine cheese,” he said.
All of the bread is made in-house as well. Including a Black Russian rye made with cocoa powder, molasses, coffee and caraway.
“We grill that over the wood fire, top it with some marscarpone cheese…” said Bruns.
He adds a few thinly-sliced apples to balance the richness of the cheese, then some shaved duck breast prosciutto; finishing it with preserved Melrose peppers that provide acidity and mild heat.
Desserts are simple and required. Especially his canelé.
“Very difficult and finicky to make. Because you want the outside to be crispy and the inside to be creamy like a custard. And they’re a little bit floral – vanilla, rum – and once you try one, you’re kind of floored by the flavor and the texture and everything that you get in such a small bite,” said Bruns.
Here's where you can go:
3524 W. Fullerton Ave.
773-904-7152
