This week I’m joined by two guests: Mike Gebert, excellent food writer/editor of Fooditor (fooditor.com) and Chef Won Kim, the food magician behind Kimski (kimskichicago.com // 954-960 W 31st St, Chicago, IL 60608).
Fooditor just published its annual must-read “Fooditor 99” collection of places to eat in Chicago, and for this episode we went to Kimski (which is one of the 99). Chef Won arrived with veritable Kimski buffet which didn’t last long in the Mazda.
Buy The Fooditor 99: Where To Eat and What To Eat There: 2019 Edition
Eat at Kimski.
KIMSKI SEGMENT
- “Ko-Po” cuisine: Did Mike make up that name?
- Where did the Korean/Polish cuisine concept come from?
- Regulated pre-show shots were consumed.
- You’d never guess what’s behind the doors of Kimski if you walked by on the street (“we wanted something cool, and something modernist”).
- Regarding Yelp: Never read the comments.
- The Kimski food is amazing. We sampled:
- The Maria Standard, which started it all. Kimski makes its own sauerkraut, and it’s really good. They also make their own soju mustard. Holy crap.
- Gołąbki: Polish cabbage rolls with a meat chili sauce.
- Polish dumplings, similar to gnocchi.
- Kopu Wangs (Wings). Complex and delicious, and they made me swear.
- Kimski poutine. Wow. I could have had that for a meal.
- Trips to Pekin House on Devon Avenue back in the day.
- Chef Won’s appearances on the Food Network (“Cutthroat Kitchen” and “some really shitty show with Anne Burrell”).
- Kimski’s pork chop sandwich competition.
- Chef Won can use salty language at times (“don’t ask stupid, tired questions”).
FOODITOR SEGMENT
- Mike is a “frequent podcast guest.”
- Food trends in Chicago. Is charcuterie still a trend?
- Oriole: A crown jewel in Chicago’s restaurant scene
- “What’s the point of living in a city this large and not taking advantage of its resources?”
- Roosevelt Road is Chicago’s Berlin Wall.
- “Dickhole” is a Car Con Carne first!
- What restaurant is housed in a former “rub & tug?”
- Five Loaves: Nicest restaurant in its area.
- The always-consistent Duck Inn: Chef Hickey gets lots of praise.
- Smack Dab in Rogers Park: An “adorably woke cafe.”
- Tempesta Market in West Town. I was drooling as Mike and Chef Won were talking about it.
- Mango Pickle: The Indian joint that’s not on Devon Avenue.
- Schaumburg isn’t just a chain restaurant mecca.
- passerrotto: For a “big, warm accessible meal.”
- Pork brings us together.
- The Chicago restaurant “classics”: Johnnie’s Beef, Superdawg, Vito & Nick’s, Pequod’s, Lem’s, Calumet Fisheries.
- My long history with Calumet Fisheries.
Car Con Carne is presented by:
