byA. LaBan
Over the past two decades, we've created and evolved a uniquely Chicago summer ritual, the Taste Festival. For those of us who choose to avoid the crowds of the granddaddy of them all, Taste of Chicago, but can't get through summer without a little booth grazing, the upcoming Taste of Lincoln Avenue offers a manageable option for celebrating summer with an assortment of greasy entrées cradled in paper trays and washed down with hops-based beverages.
Lincoln Avenue is steeped in ethnic traditions that the lend themselves to a Taste celebration. Once an old Indian trail leading to the Green Bay and Fox River portages, Little Fort Road, Lincoln's predecessor, had become by the mid-nineteenth century the main drag through the village of Lakeview. Village officials' tolerant attitude toward social drinking made Lakeview particularly attractive to the ethnic Germans whose farms flanked the road, and the biergartens of "Chicagoburg" flourished thanks to the Saloon Keeper's Society, which was organized to "protect and demand their common interests by all lawful means and measures."
By 1889, Lakeview had been annexed by the city, and improvements in public transportation encouraged settlement of areas to the north and west. German families relocated from Lakeview to what became the posh suburb of Ravenswood and the more modest Lincoln Square area at Lincoln, Western and Lawrence avenues. Brauhauses, delicatessens and pumpernickel bakeries continued to pop up further and further north to feed this movement.
Today, a trip up Lincoln Avenue is a study in Chicago's ever-changing demographic profile. The southern tip of Lincoln now runs through Old Town and DePaul, the gems of urban renewal. The former burgs of Lakeview became largely Latin, but now can be certified "regentrified." Further north, the Lincoln Square area has retained its Germanic atmosphere while acquiring various Eastern European and Greek elements. North of Lawrence, the flavors of Lincoln Avenue become distinctly Korean.
For a flavorful sampling of the street's culture, start in the shadow of St. Alphonsus, where South American flavors stand out. On the west side of the street, Mr. Pollo serves a South American specialty, pollo a la brasa, char-broiled chicken prepared from a family recipe and broiled in an oven imported from Ecuador. Just across the street, Colombian Las Tablas specializes in slabs of thin, tender steaks and chicken, marinated and served on butcher blocks with potatoes, plantains, fried yucca and tangy chimichurri sauce, as well as assorted fish and seafood dishes.
As you head up Lincoln to the traditionally German Lincoln Square, the neighborhoods become a polyglot mixture of ethnic conclaves, many of which are reflected in the menu at Simplon Orient Express. The restaurant specializes in traditional dishes from the countries on the route of the original Orient Express. Your culinary expedition starts in France with veal cordon bleu and continues east through Switzerland for chicken sauté in wine sauce. There's a side trip to Germany for Holstein schnitzel, then back on track to Austria for wiener schnitzel and continuing south to Italy for spaghetti Milanese. Some fancy stomach work takes you back up through Hungary (veal goulash) and Romania (meat a la Romanian), then back down to Serbia. A side trip to Greece for royal moussaka, and then you're heading back through the Balkans to Bulgaria (natur schnitzel) and, finally, Istanbul for a finale of sarma (stuffed cabbage).
Continuing north past the Chicago Brauhaus, a Lincoln Square landmark where you can celebrate Oktoberfest year-round with a traditional German oompah band cranking out your favorite Bavarian drinking tunes nightly, you find the Seoul of Chicago. If you've got a taste for hot and spicy, try Gin Go Gae, where a huge selection of complimentary sides (standard at good Korean restaurants) are served with entrées grouped into charcoal-broiled, stir-fried and "very traditional." Celebrate summer with bulgogi and the galbi, Korean barbecue that's far tastier and more tender than what you'll ever sample from any booth.
Chicago Brauhaus, 4732 North Lincoln, (773)784-4444
Gin Go Gae, 5433 North Lincoln, (773)334-3895
Las Tablas, 2965 North Lincoln, (773)871-2414
Mr. Pollo, 2960 North Lincoln, (773)755-1539
Simplon Orient Express, 4520 North Lincoln, (773)275-5522
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