Westboro Baptist Church

The Supreme Court has recently agreed to hear an appeal concerning whether the Westboro Baptist Church was within its rights to protest the funeral of a marine with signs such as "God Hates Fags". The Church, primarily comprised of the family of the leader, Fred Phelps, believes that war dead are America's punishment for tolerating homosexuality. Therefore, they protest military funerals. The father of the dead soldier sued for damages based on harassment and mental anguish. After winding its way through the legal system, the Appeals Court found for the church based on the First Amendment. This is the correct decision, and the Supreme Court should and likely will uphold the decision. Though reasonable people may find the speech of the Church members horrifying and disgusting, their right to speak must be recognized, protected and indeed cherished.

The Bristol

This was my second visit to the Bristol, and both times I found a wonderfully well-rounded experience. The food, service, and atmosphere came together to create a very satisfying meal. The only quibble is a policy of no reservations. Since the Bristol seems to be waning slightly in popularity, it wasn't an issue at 7:30 on a Saturday night, despite a small dining room and a crowd that tends to linger as a result of leisurely course pacing and a wide variety of small plates served one or two at a time. That small room is cozily lit and dominated by a long communal table which ends in a blackboard wall, upon which is scribbled some of the specials which are also listed on the menu. The menu is made up of several categories; snacks, pastas and main courses, as well as the option of a cheese board. From the approximately ten snacks, duck fat fries were tasty and served with a complex, not-too-sweet ketchup, monkey bread with dill butter was a bit of a chore, too dense once past the tender, salty mounds of the muffin-like bread, and a flatbread with fromage blanc, bacon hunks and melted onions was fantastic, comforting and rich, though in need of some acidity or bitterness. The shining dish of the night came from the pasta section, shrimp ravioli in cream sauce with trumpet mushrooms. The ravioli resembled dumplings, but much more complicated in flavor. They also seemed to be popular, as the waitress mentioned there were only a few portions left. For the last dish, roast chicken atop miniature dumpling dough and a spicy celery-raddish mixture. The chicken was well-roasted, but this dish lacked the dimensions of some of the others. Roast chicken does seem to be all but required on gastro-pub menus, but it could be played with, re-imagined. Service was excellent, plates were cleared and replaced between each course, recommendations were on target, and the host made me feel as if I was a regular. The Bristol is quickly becoming my favorite gastro pub in Chicago, maybe even one of my favorite restaurants.

Cafe Sushi

Cafe Sushi in Old Town is an unassuming little BYOB sushi restaurant. It has an eerie blue glow inside a stuffy, small space and a nice patio fronting Wells St. Beef gyoza were a standout; meaty, not overly greasy and good sized. A sashimi sampler of various fish tasted fresh and also featured larger than average portions. The remainder of the food (edamame, miso soup) was standard. The issue was the service. It started out slow and ended even slower. Though large groups were clearly sitting and drinking, one large maki order seemed more than the two sushi chefs could handle, resulting in an hour wait for two rolls and sashimi. In a city with many BYOB sushi restaurants with few differences, Cafe Sushi's service puts it towards the bottom.

Sushisamba Rio

Having been to Sushisamba in Chicago and Miami, I knew to expect an odd amalgam of overdone maki and Brazilian fare. Of the many small plates I sampled, three stood out. A special appetizer of a large portion of sweet corn tempura was covered in a dusting of fresh white truffles shaved table side by a chef who informed us that the restaurant was one of four in Chicago to procure white truffles this season due to the usually merely sky-high cost being astronomical this year. Of course, the truffles were welcome, as their earthy, cheesy musk and complex flavors were an excellent foil to the chewy, fried disk they sat atop. The two other dishes that proved worth ordering were both grilled meats; a beautifully cooked portion of short ribs and an addicting charred octopus, which didn't need the thick, sweet mayonnaise-based sauce that accompanied the crunchy tendrils. The sushi, like most maki nowadays, was overwhelmed by too many ingredients. Yellowtail and lobster, stuffed into miniature taco shells, was cute but saturated by a sweet peanut sauce rendering the contents barely noticeable. Service was passable, if a bit slow. The large space was about half full of tourists on a Tuesday. Clearly, Sushisamba Rio has staying power in Chicago.

Overused Phrases

Sound and fury, the kids are/aren't all right, I only dabbled in witchcraft in high school.

DMK Burger Bar

DMK Burger bar takes the latter part of it's name seriously. The former, a bit less so. Walking in at 8 on a weeknight, the restaurant is long and narrow, dominated by a large bar along one side, a meandering red banquette on another, and a large, pink piece of wall art taking up yet another. With few tables, most people stood around the bar drinking. The drink menu was pleasantly eclectic, including one cocktail cribbed from NYC hipster locale Death and Co. The beer selection is lengthy as well, a peach fruit beer was fragrant and refreshing. The menu features about eight burgers (refreshingly, no do-it-yourself option to complicate things as is house practice at The Counter). Number four, a burger on a nice, pillowy ciabatta-type, slightly over-floured roll featured a nicely sized burger, cooked medium, with pepper jack cheese, a fried egg, thick slab bacon, and Hatch green chiles. The elements worked well together, though a bit more spice from the chiles would have been welcome. Also, fried eggs do not work on burgers. While the concept is sound, and a soft yolk spread over a patty provides a nice textural contrast and more mouth-feel, the problem is that egg white is tasteless. It seems to lessen the flavor of whatever burger is unfortunate enough to be sitting underneath it. Fries, chosen from a list of four, are nicely offered in single servings or doubles, even a single would have been enough for two. Fries smothered in Merkt's with limp, tiny green onions needed a more crisp onion to stand up to the richness of the cheese. Sweet potato fries were fine, but the accompanying lemon Tabasco aioli lacked any semblance of heat. Overall, DMK is a winner, a great place to drink and, if so inclined, eat.

Israeli Settlements

President Obama is pushing intensely for a settlement moratorium in Israel. This is a good thing; many of these new settlements are focal points for militant Jewish settlers who, with nothing more than some trailers and the odd structure, claim land for Israel. It's counterproductive and it gives all settlers a bad name. Many settlers live in large, established Jewish communities that an eventual two-state solution will be encompassed by the Israeli border line, while a corresponding bit of land from Israel proper today will be ceded to the Palestinians. But these tiny settlements won't go away, indeed they mushroom because there are plenty of hardcore settlers and it always looks awful in the news when the IDF has to forcible drag Jewish civilians from their "homes", so the government reacts or does nothing when instead it could act by establishing policies preventing certain types of settlement which would serve the two-pronged goal of appeasing the United States government and helping to usher in a Palestinian state next to Israel.