CANASTA COUNTS DOWN THE BEST STUFF OF 2012

Part VII: Ryan Tracy’s Top Five Restaurants

5. Blackbird (Chicago, IL)
How dare I give a Michelin-star rated restaurant the 5-spot, right? Well, I certainly hand it to them, they make a hell of a short rib, make it look real nice, and make it taste even better. However, for anyone that’s seen me hiding out behind the keys on stage, I’m a bigger guy and I honestly could have eaten all five courses with 8 well placed bites in about 45 seconds. So to you Blackbird, I give you a top 5 spot for your great food and skimpy portions.



4. Smoque (Chicago, IL)
If you hear a person from Tennessee, St. Louis, Kentucky, or any state ending in “Carolina” tell you that Chicago doesn’t know BBQ, drag them in here. This place was fantastic and really is the real deal when it comes to BBQ food including fall-off-the-bone meats, sauces you could drink by the gallon, and a delicious mesquite smell so good you’ll wish they could turn it into a new Yankee Candle scent. Having eaten “authentic BBQ” in all of those aforementioned states, trust me, it’s good. At the end of the meal if your friend is still whining about how it’s just not the same as back home, consider getting new friends that aren’t liars.



3. Seabreeze Cafe & Bar (Picton, New Zealand)
Okay, so the restaurant itself isn’t important here, what IS important is the ingredient--green shell mussels, a local ingredient prized by the Kiwis. A simple plate of mussels with butter, garlic and a piece of bread to soak up all the juices had me taking pictures of my food and extracting every bit of mussel I could out of the shell.



2. Greenhouse Tavern (Cleveland, OH)
In the flavor department, this was the best tasting food I had all year. It’s so good, I almost recommend you make a trip to Cleveland just for their chicken wings which smell almost as good as they taste. I fortuitously stopped in during Cleveland’s Restaurant Week which allowed me to try four different courses each more delicious than the last. Somewhere around the 2nd course I realized I was getting full and still had an entree and dessert coming. I stopped right there and had them wrap up the first two courses just so I could make room for the entree. Why isn’t it number 1 you ask? Well, unfortunately I had saved up just enough money over the last three years to afford…



1. Charlie Trotter’s (Chicago, IL)
I admit that most of what was served to me was probably over my head from a culinary standpoint, but I walked away from this 10-course, 4 1/2 hour meal like I just got done watching a Bond movie. It was action packed full of things I didn’t even know you could do to food, and displayed on “plates” in designs I never thought possible. Oh, and everything tasted amazing too. I was sad to see this iconic Chicago restaurant close up shop forever this year, but was glad I got the chance to visit before it did. Simply amazing.