Tango Sur (Chicago)

This is one of my favorite restaurants in Chicago.

Tango Sur is an Argentinian steakhouse and restaurant in Lakeview (at Southport and Grace). Their specialty is Argentinian-style steak, which means sizable slabs of meat (mostly beef, although pork meats and chicken are also available), very lightly seasoned, charcoal grilled and served with simple garnishes (salad and chimichurri sauce). They also offer a few traditional entrees popular in Argentina (you may notice some italian influence). My recommendation is to get only appetizers and items from the grill. I've been disappointed when venturing onto the more elaborate dishes. The Provoletta appetizer and Longaniza side are quite outstanding. Notable beef cuts are Entraña, Churrasco and Vacío. You can get a sampling by ordering the Parillada.

For dinner, ambiance is quite intimate, ideal for a date. For lunch, the place is much more lively and family or group-friendly, especially in summer when their is outside seating. Don't forget to bring your favorite wine since this is a BYOB restaurant!

The Lives of Others

Surprisingly amazing.

The Lives of Others takes place in 1984 East Germany and tells the story of "Operation Lazlo", a surveillance effort led by Stasi officer Gerd Wiesler (Ulrich Muehe) to collect evidence against the highly regarded and otherwise state trusted playwright Georg Dreyman (Sebastian Koch) and his girlfriend, the talented actress Christa-Maria Sieland (Martina Gedeck). This is the debut feature-length film by director Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck

Acting, be it on or off-stage, is a recurring theme in the film. Von Donnersmark also explores concepts such as motive and existence in subtle ways. Acting, photography and music are good, however directing truly stands out thanks to a story-line that keeps you engaged until the very end.

12 Bones Asheville (continued)

I stumbled upon 12 Bones (and Asheville) on a BBQ trip last summer. Was enjoying a couple pints at Heinzelmanchen brewery in Sylva, NC on the ways from Great Smokey Mountain National Park with Dieter the brewer in his brewery (a converted garage). When I told him my reason for being in Sylva (eat all things BBQ down south), he suddenly became possessed. He frantically drew me a map of Asheville and directions to a BBQ place called 12 Bones and the Wedge brewery. Said it would be the best BBQ I have ever had. Now mind you Dieter was a german and didn't seem like a man who hastily dished out superlatives...so after about the 15th time of him telling me to go I agreed and we tossed aside our plans (whatever they were I forgot) and drove to Asheville. Best decision of the trip. What a great town. 12 Bones was closed when we arrived, but we soaked ourselves on the patio at Wedge Brewery while listening to a weird bluegrass/blues/country/Caribbean band...guitarist/banjo player was sick. 12 Bones the next day, after some pretty interesting experiences with the local.

Dieter can be found here.

From BBQ Roadtrip 2009

From BBQ Roadtrip 2009

From BBQ Roadtrip 2009

Breweries (Asheville)

Surprisingly to most, Asheville NC boasts a high number of microbreweries per capita. Asheville seems to have more breweries per capita than Portland, Oregon (often considered the microbrewing capital of the US).

City	City Population	Urban Population	Breweries within City Limits	Residents per Brewery
Asheville NC	75,000	220,000	9	8,333
Portland	580,000	2,100,000	50	11,600

I visited a few of them and was pleasantly surprised. Of particular note were Pisgah (in Black Mountain) and French Broad. Pisgah is an all-organic microbrewery that makes a coffee infused porter (Valdez) that tastes like you're drinking a cold shot of espresso with alcohol and an in-your-face Belgian (Solstice) that has a very rich and floral finish. French Broad (named after a river that runs through the region) specializes in unique interpretations of European style beers like their Belgian Stout which is a light stout with a Belgian finish (thanks to the yeast used during fermentation). "What's up with that!?" Trust me, it's quite interesting.

I'm considering a trip down to Asheville for the Brewgrass festival in September...

12 Bones (Asheville)

Le Shark threatened that if I didn't go to 12 Bones while in Asheville he would lose respect for me. I might as well say that to anybody going to Asheville from now on...

12 Bones is a southern/BBQ restaurant with two locations in Asheville (the original in south Asheville and the newer one in the River Arts District). As you would expect, they specialize in rubbing any kind of amazing sauce on pork and other meats. My brother and I devoured enough food to feed a few more people than the two of us. Of special note are the Fried Green Tomatoes, Sweet Potatoes, Collard Greens, BLT Sandwich and of course, the Baby-back Ribs. The sauces 12 Bones makes are amazing, very tasty and full of character. Their Blueberry-Chipotle sauce is award-winning.

Service is very friendly and incredibly fast once you've paid your dues and waited for a table. Make sure you go ready to eat a lot and get a really great value.

Bukhara Grill (New York)

My friend who recommended Bukhara (Midtown Manhattan) said it was the only place he knew in the US that prepares Sikandari Raan well. And what a delightful dish that was!

Sikandari Raan is a richly marinated leg of lamb baked in a Tandoor oven. Wow! Was it one of the tenderest meats I've eaten! Quite memorable also was the Chicken Malai appetizer (could very well have been an entrée) which brought a fresh and crisp flavor profile to plump and juicy chicken breast cubes. And to finish off, the Jamun-e-Gul was delectable as it was sweet enough but not overpowering as most places tend to make it.

Other than the Raan and the Makki Ki Roti (corn roti which was a first for me!) the menu at Bukhara is fairly standard Indian fare for a US restaurant. Portions are generous and as such, I recommend going in a group of at least 4 to share and try the variety.

The ambiance at Bhukara is relaxed and comfortable. If the place is full, I'd expect it to be quite noisy. Unless you get the pleasure of sitting close to some banker who forgot he's no longer at the center of his little universe and decides to discuss his wheelings and dealings privately with his mates for everyone in the restaurant to hear.