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22 | January 25, 2018 | The glencoe anchor dining out
glencoeanchor.com
Quick Bites
Bacon mania runs wild on North Shore
Staff Report
In the late 1990s, enthusiasm
for bacon seemed to
hit a fever pitch here in the
United States. Now, years
later, it doesn’t appear that
what some have coined
“bacon mania” is slowing
down anytime soon.
Bacon is so popular that
it even has its own day on
Dec. 30. While some argue
for or against the health
merits of the salt-cured
pork, few outright dislike
the taste. Even vegetarians
get in on the fun by adding
meatless bacon knockoffs
to the diet.
Finding ways to slip
bacon into every dish is a
challenge many chefs are
more than willing to take
on. Last week, 22nd Century
Media editors ventured
out to different North
Shore establishments to get
their bacon fill and taste
some unique creations. The
results were delicious.
Bacon pancakes — Walker
Bros., Wilmette
Bacon and pancake lovers,
rejoice. I introduce
you to the ultimate two-inone:
the bacon pancakes at
Walker Bros. The Original
Pancake House.
The Wilmette restaurant’s
manager, Tom
Zehnder, said the restaurant
has served up the speciality
pancakes for as long as
he could remember. And,
that’s not by chance, but by
choice.
“We make maybe 35
orders or more a day,”
Zehnder said. “It comes in
a close second as the most
popular dish to our apple
pancakes.”
When ordered, customers
can expect six fresh
pancakes to come straight
from the kitchen’s griddle.
The fresh bacon is sliced
and added to the pancake
batter — a secret recipe —
just for this dish.
“We’re not going the
cheap route here. We actually
use the same bacon
that would be served as
a side, not just dry bacon
bits,” Zehnder added.
When I tried the pancakes
for myself, I could
tell. The bacon wasn’t
overly cooked or sparse.
The flavor wasn’t odd either;
the bacon complemented
the pancake nicely.
It also came with a side of
maple syrup and whipped
butter, which provided a
sweet flavor to the more savory
pancake.
The bacon overload
doesn’t stop there. Recently,
the restaurant’s bacon
cheddar omelette was featured
on Food Network’s
“The Best Thing I Ever
Ate.”
For more information,
call (847) 251-6000 or
visit www.walkerbros.
net. The restaurant is open
daily from 6:30 a.m.-9
p.m. at 153 Green Bay
Road, Wilmette. There are
also locations in Highland
Park, Glenview, Arlington
Heights, Lake Zurich, Lincolnshire
and Schaumburg.
Story by Contributing Editor
Megan Bernard
The Defibrillator — Chief’s
Pub, Lake Forest
Chief’s Pub in Lake Forest
put its own spin on nachos
by substituting a few
ingredients and changing
its name.
At Chief’s Pub, 502 N.
Western Ave., Lake Forest,
guests can try the Defibrillator
appetizer ($8.99),
which substitutes nachos
for tater tots and ground
beef for bits of bacon. The
dish is covered with cheddar
cheese and jalapenos.
The bacon is cut up into
tiny chewy pieces making
it easy to dive into. The
tater tots are soft and are a
great combination with the
melted cheese.
Joe Knesley, owner at
Chief’s Pub, said the dish
was coined by his father
and former owner, Chuck
Knesley.
“My dad loves bacon
and he is kind of nutty. He
wanted to make nachos
with tater tots and we chose
to put bacon on it instead of
pulled pork [or other traditional
meat toppings on nachos],”
he said.
The name ‘Defibrillator’
comes from a device used
by paramedics when a patient
is having a heart attack.
Joe Knesley said the
staff at Chief’s Pub know
this is not the healthiest of
dishes and many people
look at it and think “heart
attack,” which is how it got
its name.
Chief’s Pub is open from
11 a.m.-1 a.m. Monday-
Saturday and 11 a.m.-11
p.m. Sunday. For more
information, visit www.
chiefspub.com or call (847)
234-3444.
Story by Contributing Editor
Alyssa Groh
Bacon-wrapped dates —
210 Live, Highwood
Unique bacon appetizer?
Live music? Look no further
than 210 Live, 210
Green Bay Road, Highwood.
The restaurant/concert
venue’s menu offers a lot,
but perhaps its most unique
offering is the baconwrapped
dates ($9). The
appetizer is complete with
marcona almond-stuffed
Medjool dates wrapped in
house smoked cherrywood
bacon and a red pepper puree.
Fruit and bacon are an
unlikely pair, but the sweet,
salty and savory combo
makes for a memorable
experience. The marcona
almond center adds a slight
crunch to the dish.
It comes with six dates,
so getting two orders may
be wise if your group is
larger than two.
The live music venue
seeks to offer more than
your standard music venue.
It has a full kitchen and
menu, a full bar staff and an
area to sit or a dance floor
to move your feet.
Chris Nibeck, one of the
partners at 210 Live, said
the bacon-wrapped dates
are easily one of the most
popular menu items. The
dish is also gluten-free.
You’ll come for the music
and stay for the food ...
or vice versa.
Nibeck said the restaurant
is changing its name
from 210 to 210 Live to
emphasize the music aspect.
210 Live’s hours are
5-10:30 p.m. Wednesday-
Thursday, 5 p.m.-1 a.m. Friday-Saturday
and 5-10:30
p.m. Sunday. It is closed
Monday and Tuesday.
Story by Contributing Editor
Xavier Ward
Grilled cheese and
bacon — Fred’s Garage,
Winnetka
Grilled cheese — it’s
practically the quintessential
nostalgic American
sandwich that fits appetites
best when craving something
deliciously gooey and
perfectly crispy. And, when
achieving that ideal butterto-bread
ratio outside all
while balancing the perfect
Bacon pancakes ($8.50) are available at Walker Bros.
The Original Pancake House in Wilmette, as well as its
other locations. Megan Bernard/22nd Century Media
210 Live’s bacon-wrapped dates ($9) are complete with
marcona almonds stuffed into the center of a Medjool
date, wrapped in a house smoked cherrywood bacon,
nestled on top of a red pepper puree. Xavier Ward/22nd
Century Media
amount of cheese inside,
you’ve got a comfort food
staple.
When Fred’s Garage
opened this fall, the goal
was to bring American favorites
to an establishment
that could quickly become
a neighborhood staple.
And, what comfort food
menu would be complete
without grilled cheese?
But, at Fred’s, not only
can you have a yummy
plate of their grilled cheese,
but you can also throw another
American favorite —
bacon — into the mix.
The grilled cheese with
bacon ($14.50) consists of
sourdough bread cooked
on the griddle with soft,
creamy havarti cheese and
smoked cheddar cheese,
and long, crispy strips
of bacon pressed in the
middle. Then, the outside
of the bread is generously
crusted with Swiss cheese
and fried to a crisp.
General Manager Cary
Michael said the grilled
cheese with bacon was a
recent menu add-on and so
far, has been a big hit.
“We’re actually listening
to a lot of what the neighborhood
and the regular
customers are giving us
feedback-wise,” he said.
“We’ve made a ton of
changes to the menu since
we opened, so essentially,
it’s a whole new menu.
More comfort foods, homey,
elevated classics, stuff
of that nature.”
Fred’s Garage, 574
Green Bay Road, is open
4:30-11 p.m. Monday-
Thursday, 4:30 p.m.-midnight
Friday-Saturday and
4:30-9 p.m. Sunday. For
more information, visit
fredswinnetka.com.
Story by Contributing Editor
Jacqueline Glosniak