COOK LIKE CHARLIE

Dazzle dinner guests with recipes created by the master of modern American cuisine, Charlie Trotter. The new cookbook, Home Cooking with Charlie Trotter, takes the mystique out of gourmet cooking with more than 130 straightforward recipes grounded in clear, time-honored cooking techniques. Many dishes take a minimum of prep time, so you won’t be a slave to the stove. Chef Trotter understands the mindset of the home chef, so he’s careful not to overdo a dish. His focus on basic ingredients is the basis for his repertoire of favorite home dishes. A nice touch is that complete menus are offered with brief commentaries and useful preparation tips. The photographs are beautiful – don’t you just hate cookbooks without color photos to show the actual dishes? I tried several of the recipes from the book and, while reservations to my favorite restaurants shall remain in speed dial, I believe I’m ready to invite Chef Trotter over to dinner.

DRINKS OVER DEARBORN

Sing along with me – 100 bottles of beer on the wall, 100 bottles of wine…that pretty much sums up Drinks Over Dearborn, a recently opened full-service specialty boutique offering regular and out-of-the-ordinary beer, wine and spirits. DOD is much more than a wine shop. Located on the second level at 650 North Dearborn in River North, this is the place to sample some rather unique items such as gluten-free beer, organic and kosher wine, beer and spirits. You’ll be amazed at the rare, unique and uncommon selection for sale. Owner Kyle McHugh, aka The Boozehound, has assembled an inventory from around the world. The Boozehound Classroom will educate your palate with a variety of tastings from winemakers, master brewers and master distillers. Check out www.drinksoverdearborn.com or call 312.337.WINE (9463) for upcoming events and classes.

HALL WINES NAPA VALLEY

Kathryn Hall of Hall Wines Napa Valley was recently in town with the winery’s president, Mike Reynolds, who led a guided tasting seminar at Tru. Hall Wines is a premier boutique winery known for its precision winemaking and its current construction of a new six building facility designed by Frank Gehry, considered by many to be the world’s most prominent architect. Hall limited-production wines include the signature Cabernet Sauvignon named after Kathryn Hall, a distinctively smooth varietal that rated 92 points in the December 2008 issue of Wine Enthusiast magazine. Another choice with a colorful label is the Jack’s Masterpiece Cabernet Sauvignon. The label is the work of Mike Reynolds’ 18-month-old son, Jack, who gifted his dad with this abstract painting. Hall bottles mostly Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Sauvignon Blanc under two brands: Hall and Kathryn Hall, their reserve bottling. www.hallwines.com

THE GIFT OF AN ORGANGE

During World War 11 when Germans controlled France, many people were poor, gifts were sparse and simple. Kiki recalls that special holiday when he saw an orange for the first time. It was his Christmas present and he realized the great effort that it took to bring the oranges into France. He symbolically invites diners at Kiki’s to recall with him the joys of the simple things in life, such as friendship and good food, by gifting patrons with an orange. Kiki’s Bistro, 900 North Franklin Street, 312.335.KIKI (5454)

ALL ABOUT EVE

Eve is the new go-to Gold Coast restaurant recently opened in the former Flapjaws Café space, with a total makeover, by Tallulah’s owner Matt Fisher and his Executive Chef Troy Graves. This upscale yet casual restaurant attracts an eclectic crowd of area residents, business types and Michigan Avenue shoppers. The menu is contemporary American with a few fun twists. And the hip interior space is a ladies-who-lunch décor dream come true because just invites gossip. 850 North Wabash Avenue. 312.266.3383

L2O WINS TOP TABLE AWARD

Congratulations to Rich Melman and Chef Laurent Gras at L2O (pronounced el-two-oh) on receiving the Restaurant of the Year award from Esquire magazine in its annual list of the 20 Best New Restaurants in the Country. And you really should take time to visit Chef Gras’ blog, updated every other day, which chronicles all aspects of the restaurant through text and images at http://l2o.typepad.com. Chef Gras writes about food with the same passion that romance novelists write about sex.

IN THE BAG

Red Light restaurant Executive Chef Jackie Shen created a dessert masterpiece, called Jackie’s Chocolate Bag a quarter-century ago. “The chocolate bag was created 25 years ago at my old restaurant, Jackie’s,” she says. “It’s my signature dessert. To create the sweet piece, Jackie first takes a wax paper bag mold and paints the inside with Belgian chocolate. After the chocolate chills and sets in the refrigerator, the paper is removed, leaving a tasty chocolate bag to be filled with white chocolate mousse, fresh berries and whipped cream, and topped off with a delicious raspberry sauce. $9. 820 West Randolph Street, 312.733.8880. Interview by Megan Yeiter.