Miracle Berry in Restaurant Form

/ Shane / 2 Comments

iNG Restaurant is a new restaurant in Chicago, specializing in synsepalum dulcificum, otherwise known as the Miracle Berry. Billing itself as “the worlds only restaurant that specializes in a flavor changing experience”, the menu is built around the taste-modifying fruit.

My own experiences with synsepalum dulcificum have been documented, and I can tell you it’s pretty nifty stuff. However, as I discovered, you do need to have the right food to make it work right. So there’s definitely something to having a set menu of things that will work well with the fruit. On the other hand, part of the draw is taking something that you know how it tastes, and seeing how it tastes while “under the influence” as it were. But if you’re eating something amazing at a restaurant you’ve never been to before, then you don’t really have that baseline comparison.

Anyway, it’s a cool idea. A little pricey for my blood, since it essentially hinges on a gimmick, but if anybody checks it out, you’ll have to let me know. Judging by the pictures, it looks to be as interesting visually as it is orally.

Today’s Very Important Poll

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As always, I turn to you, Internet, to solve all of my disputes.

Urban Belly

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We were looking for somewhere new for lunch and Sara vaguely remembered hearing about a restaurant by the name of Urban Belly.

It was A.M.A.Z.I.N.G.

I think I can say that with some confidence too, since we ordered about 50% of the menu. Each dish was more amazing than the last. Seriously. There wasn’t a one that I tried that I didn’t like. We had Asian squash & bacon dumplings, duck & pho spices dumplings, and pork and cilantro dumplings. Pork belly & pineapple rice, phat rice and sticky brown rice. We had udon (shrimp, coriander, and sweet chili lime sauce) and Asian egg noodles stir fried with spicy garlic chili, tofu, and Chinese eggplant. And finally we had wrinkle beans and kimchi. I wasn’t kidding when I said we sampled half the menu.

As proof of the fact that all of the dishes were equally good, everyone had a different favorite. We were all eating off each other’s plates, but my dish was the phat rice, and I thought it was the best.

It’s Asian food, but Asian like I’ve never had it before. It’s kind of hard to describe what it is exactly that makes it different, but whatever it is, it’s kind of awesome.

I would be remiss if I did not mention the decor, which was also amazing. Everything is made of rough, old, reclaimed wood. The decoration on the walls, the table tops, and the “stools” which are sort of like sitting on a pile of old, stacked logs. The dining room is set up to promote “communal dining”, which it certainly would do, except it wasn’t very crowded when we were there.

Despite it’s pedestrian appearance on the outside (it shares a strip mall with a laundromat and a dollar store), this place is highly recommended. Well worth the trip.

Quote Monday isn’t very interesting

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Girl: “Daddy, can you help me with my sparkly lotion?”
My co-worker: “You’ll have to talk to your mom about that, that’s more her department. I don’t know how to do it.”
Girl: “But daddy, you’re an engineer!”

Something tells me she hears that a lot around the house.

Sara: “What did you do at the park today?”
Oliver: “Cough.”

He did have a cold.

Sara: “I want to show you something. Look on top of that building. There’s a big crane that’s used to lift very heavy things.”
Evie: “Oh, I thought you were going to show me something interesting.”

Without doubt the awesomest commercial ever made

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Some profanity (but I assure you, it’s done tastefully).

I always did want to have a coctail made from a fighter jet that I knocked out of the sky with a crossbow. Is it true that you can spin an electric eel so fast it rips the space time continuum and take you to the future?

Wouldn’t it be awesome if all commercials were made like this? It would totally make me want to watch commercials again. And also, to buy a TrackChair:

Link via Sylvain.