Clandestino Chicago Supper Club | Underground Dining

11.13 Art Dinner: Hermosa

chEfrain — Thu, 02 Sep 2010 06:30:56 +0000

Our wandering dinner table knows no bounds. Our latest dinner takes us to an industrial zone, transformed to an underground restaurant for one night only. The space is located in the Hermosa neighborhood near Logan Square.

This is not your ordinary woodshop. The space is shared by several of Chicago’s most talented cabinet makers and custom furniture makers. We are thrilled to be collaborating with these individuals.

We’re working on the menu, collaborating with each craftsman to compose each dish. More details to be announced…

Cocktail + Amuse + 5 courses + Byob

Cost $79

Click on the RSVP button below to register.
Submit your information then complete online payment via PayPal.
Final event details including location information will be emailed to you upon completion of your reservation.

Questions? Contact us: eat@clandestinodining.org

10.30 Day of the Dead: Country

chEfrain — Thu, 02 Sep 2010 00:11:09 +0000

We’re assembling a spirited feast out in the country.

Dinner will be served in a barn in Mokena, IL

The menu will focus on classic flavors and dishes savored by our ancestors, but prepared with a modern, seasonal twist.

More details available soon.
Goulish costumes encouraged for this event.

Cocktail + Amuse +5 course dinner + Byob

Cost $79

10.29 Day of the Dead: City

chEfrain — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 23:59:38 +0000

We’re assembling a spirited feast in our favorite city loft space.

The menu will focus on classic flavors and dishes savored by our ancestors, but prepared with a modern, seasonal twist.

More details available soon.
Goulish costumes encouraged for this event.

Cocktail + Amuse +5 course dinner + Byob

Cost $79

9.25 Pear & Pork Feast: Loop

chEfrain — Tue, 31 Aug 2010 19:01:22 +0000

There’s Peas & Carrots, Peanut Butter & Jelly, Chicken & Waffles, but no other combo is quite as decadent and complex as Pears and Pork!

It’s the height of Pear season, and we are composing a multi-course meal that highlights some of the best local pears and heritage pork in the region.

“True to Life” Sketches on display by artist Heidi Tunea.
Ms. Tunea’s work pays homage to celebrities from the Silver Age of Hollywood. We challenge you to identify the people in the sketches. Praise and prizes for the smartest dinner guest.

Dinner will be served in a beautiful Loft in the Loop.

Cocktail + Amuse + 5 courses + Byob

Cost $79

Click on the PIG button below to register.
Submit your information then complete online payment via PayPal.
Final event details including location information will be emailed to you upon completion of your reservation.

Questions? Contact us: eat@clandestinodining.org

9.18 Tailgate Party in the Studio

chEfrain — Tue, 31 Aug 2010 18:28:02 +0000

On Saturday night we will once again be at the Campbell House Studios for the sporting event of the season.

Resident artist, G. Vincent Gaulin, will battle his opponent in a Ball Snatcher tournament.

The artist describes the sport…

…”Ball snatchers is cheap entertainment. This local, non-commercialized
alternative expands the concept of “local produce” beyond fruits and
vegetables. It is intended as an excuse to have a tailgate party, get
your people together, and pick sides in a fight. It’s a dramatization
of abstracted sculptural projections (balls), a platform for life’s
contention, and a playful allegory of our times. The rules are few and
simple—stay in bounds, keep your balls within reach, and grab your
opponent’s (yoga) ball before she gets yours.”

Choose your side, but no gambling allowed.

Food stands open at 7pm. Drop your bottle(s) off at the bar table and enjoy some gourmet tailgating fare all night.

Cocktail + Food Stands + Byob

Cost $39

Questions? Contact us: eat@clandestinodining.org

9.17 Art Dinner: Back of the Yards

chEfrain — Tue, 31 Aug 2010 16:59:33 +0000

Once the meatpacking capital of the world, this neighborhood has evolved into one of the most diverse neighborhoods in Chicago. Our Dinner will be served at an old sink factory that once supplied nearby meat processing plants. These days, the building houses artist studios and residents.

Resident artist, G. Vincent Gaulin, will perform as Wrinkledy Kinkledy, a curious character with a knack for storytelling and tall tales. It’s a celebration of talk, and we’ll be serving up some southern comfort food that you’ll want to write to grandma about.

Dinner starts at 7pm.

Cocktail + Amuse +5 course dinner + Byob7

Cost $79

TomatoFest w/ Danielle Klinenberg

chEfrain — Wed, 04 Aug 2010 06:51:39 +0000

It was time for a meat break. It seems I had been pork obsessed for quite some time. I blame Chef John from Entre Underground and the Mangalitsa pork for causing my overdose. (And what a glorious overdose it was)

Not to mention I had over 100 pounds of tomatoes from my garden that I had to use asap. We started out with caprese lollipops with some heirloom cherries. Then it was on to the full blast tomato feast.

Our lovely hostess for this dinner was Chicago artist Danielle Klinenberg. There is movement in her watercolor paintings, and layers of color that inspired us to cook like placid banshees.

My favorite bite (hands down) was the tomato gelato. I used raw milk from Southpork Ranch in Chatsworth, IL. Other ingredients in the gelato: tomatoes (of course!), balsamic vinegar, sugar, honey, cinnamon, nutmeg, vanilla, bourbon, and sea salt.

I used tempeh made by the Simple Soyman in Milwaukee for the main course. It marinated for 4 hours in a homemade vinegar based sauce, then grilled. I found it to be quite meaty and delicious. We all agreed though that it would have been enhanced to enlightened tempeh realm if it simmered in the bbq sauce for a while after it was grilled. Wanna try it? Get it at Green Grocer.

The TomatoFest Menu

Cocktail: Bloody Maria: Smoked tomatillo tomato serrano, tequila anejo, pickled green tomato garnish
Amuse: Caprese Lollipop
Roasted Chiogga Beet and Anaheim Chile, cocoa mole and tomato jam
Housemade spaghetti, sage pesto, tomatoes, and raw milk cheese
Tomato galette w red onion jam, heirloom tomato salad
BBQ Tempeh, red kale and purslane salad, tomato gastrique, raw milk gruyere
Basil Corn Cake, tomato (raw milk) gelato, balsamic caramel

Dinnerpalooza Summer Jams

eric — Tue, 27 Jul 2010 06:51:23 +0000

For this dinner, I paid homage to my fav Lolla bands, assembling a 5-course face-melting tribute menu that Gaga and Spoon would love. Chef Lauren Parton worked on the desert.

My favorite part of this meal had to be the jams. And specifically the tomato jam. Who knew that when you cooked down some tomatoes with sugar and spices for hours and hours, the result would be a food of the gods??!!

Tomato jam recipe:

4 pounds heirloom tomatoes
2 cups sugar
1 tablespoon cumin
1 tablespoon nutmeg
2 teaspoons cinnamon
2 serrano chiles
salt and pepper to taste

Hull then chop the tomatoes. Drop them into a stock pot with a thick bottom. Add the sugar, chiles, and spices then stir to combine. Heat on medium-high and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium-low and continue to cook for another hour or two. Stir occasionally making sure to scrape the bottom. Beware of HOT tomato spatter. It hurts. Continue to cook until the jam thickens and the color turns to a deep reddish brown. You almost have to burn it. In fact, the tomatoes and sugar will begin to caramelize in the bottom of the pot, but simply stir and scrape and incorporate these burnt bits into the jam. THIS is what will give your jam its “food of the gods” status.

If you plan on canning your jam, CAREFULLY transfer the hot jam to a sterilized mason jar and fill almost to the top. Cover and twist the lid tightly. Then put the jar into a hot water bath and allow to cool to room temperature. The jar will be sealed and shelf stable.

If you plan on using your jam sooner, just transfer to a container. It will stay fresh and good in your fridge for up to 10 days.

The Summer Jams Menu…

Manu Chao: Roast Anaheim chile stuffed with smoked pork belly and chihuahua cheese, melon jam
Los Amigos Invisibles: Sweet Corn Arepa, aged cheddar, heirloom tomato and ground cherry jam
Weezer: Grilled Octopus, warm purslane salad and serrano jelly
Common: Roasted baby root veggies, watercress, and onion jam w/ Three Chile Mole
Lady Gaga: Turkey drumstick ravioli w/ tomato jam
Spoon: Pistachio gelato and white peach jam cookie sandwich, lavender and honey

Bees and BBQ Dinner in Pilsen

chEfrain — Mon, 19 Jul 2010 16:27:24 +0000

Bzzzz, the infamous bee dinner in Pilsen…

There are two beehives on the property, maintained by Beekeeper Willie Jr. Honey was harvested twice to compare late spring and early summer honey.

Pastured halal chicken and turkey from Whole Earth Meats, a local start-up dedicated to developing a high quality supply of sustainably raised and processed, humanely slaughtered meat and poultry.

Proper Boleros and cowboy songs by Urban Djin

Mixologist Chris Roberts served up the Dirty Margarita: mezcal, lime, sugar, and smoked poblano chile

Amuse bouche: corn tortilla, Pilsen Honey, Cotija cheese from Tecalitlan, Jalisco, Mexico.
Al Dente noodles, roasted tomatillo and eggplant caviar, Gunthorp Farm chicharrones
Smoked Turkey drumstick mole and grilled zucchini
Garden Cucumber salad w/ honey vinaigrette
Grilled Chicken w/greens
Serrano cornbread ice cream w/ corn cake and honey
Honey sea salt caramels

Forlorn Hope Wine Dinner

chEfrain — Fri, 02 Jul 2010 07:52:43 +0000

One of the best wines I’ve tasted in my entire life, a Forlorn Hope Suspiro del Moro Alvarelhao, got me thinking about putting together a wine dinner. I got in touch with Andrew Grossman, owner of Lagniappe Beverage here in Chicago.

Andrew works directly with the wine maker, Matthew Rorick, to bring these wines to Illinois. What I appreciate most about Mr. Rorick’s Forlorn Hope wines is that he has selected some Portugese varietals grown in sunny California.

So I composed an Iberian BBQ feast and paired each dish with one of Matthew’s wines.

Dinner was served at our friend Saya’s place, the force behind Mac n Cheese productions.

Here’s the menu:

Tasting of Lushious Rose (exclusive Rose wine available only at Lush)

grilled bacon-wrapped strawberry
grilled oyster w/ oregano butter, pickled radish and cilantro gremolata, Paired w/ Nacre Semillon
grilled quail salad w/ city farm greens and tarragon vinaigrette, Paired w/ Que Saudade Verdelho
grilled pork blood sausage w/ fennel and fava beans, pickled rhubarb relish, Paired w/ Suspiro del Moro Alvarelhao
grilled hanger steak w/ Cabrales cheese, russian blue potato mash and purslane salad, Paired w/ Old Woodsbull Syrah
And for Dessert: Frozen ricotta strawberry custard, almond cake, balsamic caramel