Since we stayed at downtown for our arrival night, I looked up restaurants in the touristy area and tried the popular tapas place called Purple Pig. As their name indicates, there’s pork in all their dishes. Even a bowl of almonds are fried in pork fat. Their menu sounds watering, there’s a intensive menu of charcuterie, and dishes featuring bacon and sausage to more exotic stuffs such as pig’s ears and bone marrow.
We walked in and was told there’d be a 30 min wait. Turns out we were sat down in 5 mins, lucky! The people on yelp were going gaga over the bone marrow, but since I’ve had it a lot in LA so it’s a bit expected.
Jamon Serrano with Oyster Mushrooms & Fried Duck Egg over Grilled Bread. Just looking at the name on the menu already made my mouth watered. It’s three yummy ingredients in one, it’s heaven in mouth!
Pig’s Tails Braised in Balsamic. wow surprisingly good! The meat is juicy and tender. The fruity, acidic flavor is just light enough to dress the meat. On top of it are soft, pillowy eggs.
Milk Braised Pork Shoulder with Mashed Potatoes. This is a bit drying than I expected.
The food is good but didn’t give me much surprises. I think it’s mainly because the place itself lacks charm for me – the interior is slick and just overall a generic ‘downtown wine bar’ setup. I thought they could have do much more with their awesome name.
Purple Pig
500 N Michigan Ave. Chicago, IL 60611-3777
