October, 2007

J.P. Anderson
Where Magazine

From:
Comfort Food Classics

8 Chicago favorites for stick-to-your-ribs fare

Chef John Hogan of Keefer's is another of the city's great comfort food maestros. At his sleek. contemporary restaurant—a top spot for power-dining suits and out-of-town visitors alike—the native Chicagoan whips up everything from incredibly tender Guinness-and-panko-bread-crumb-battered calamari (quite possibly the best in the city) to sides of decadent "Hogan's Peas" dressed up with leek cream, bacon and pearl onions. The chef's latest concoctions, created for the restaurant's autumn menu, are both hearty and haute: coq au vin, seafood pot pie and, notably, a delectable, hungry-man-size cassoulet that's brimming with white beans, duck confit and big hunks of lamb, pork and garlic sausage, all covered in toasted breadcrumbs and baked till piping hot. You won't be able to finish it, but you'll have a lot of fun trying.

 

 

 

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