Torben Reviews: Reviewing Life One Experience at a Time! Books, Movies, Restaurants, and More!

Torben Review

I'd just finished my meal at Chicago Chop House, and remarked to my friend. "This is Chicago." Now, it's not 'Chicago' in the touristy sense of the word (such as the Rock 'N Roll McDonalds located about a block away, nor in the hip hidden sense of the word (such as the gem, Humboldt Pie Cafe), but in the mainstream Chicago kind of way.

Chicago Chop House is located at 60 West Illinois Street (between State Street and LaSalle Avenue) in Chicago's River North neighborhood.

My meal was a business lunch. We were wishing a departing co-worker good luck, and so we came to dine around the noon hour. From the curb, I was a little dismayed by the large 'Chicago' sign that indicated this might have been a bit touristy. (The neighborhood is an interesting amalgam of the best restaurants in the city and the ridiculous tourist traps. For every Fogo De Chao and Cafe Iberico, there's a Rainforest Cafe, Rock N Roll McDonalds, or a Portillos.) However, once inside the converted brownstone, there was no mistaking the real ambiance of a genuine steakhouse.

The seating areas are on two floors (at least). There was a large bar on the ground level, and a larger seating area on the second floor. The tone is set by hundreds of photographs from Chicago's history. On the stairwell, I caught site of Cubs and Bears memorabilia. Upstairs, there was a wall of fame with 1800s era photos of all the meatpacking moguls. (One of them looked like George Clooney.)

When the waiter came to take our order, we missed out on the opportunity to enjoy their massive wine list, as this was an actual business lunch, but one need look no further than the back wall of the room to see a large selection of wines.

As we perused the menu, we joked about ordering the 96 oz. porterhouse, but the $105 price tag on that slab of cow was a little steep for the expense report, so most of us stuck to the lunch menu. (The typical dinner entree looked to be about $40 - $50.)

The lunch menu was significantly less expensive than the dinner menu. Most entrees were below $25 and only fractionally smaller portions than the dinner menu. I ordered an 8 oz. fillet mignon with a price tag of $18. On the dinner menu, a 10 oz. fillet mignon was listed as $31. When the food came, the most appetizing meal looked to be my co-workers steak salad, which was a salad with a large steak sitting in the middle of it. Now that's how you do a steak salad!

For sides, I can report that their table bread is excellent. It's served warm, and was very popular. My steak came with a side of mashed potatoes and gravy. The potatoes were light, fluffy, and certainly not made from a mix. The gravy was excellent, and I don't generally care for gravy with my mashed potatoes. Finally, the onion rings were also pretty good.

If you're planning a trip to the Chicago Chop House, I'd encourage you to also consider Fogo De Chao. It's a block away, similarly priced, but I feel the meat selection at Fogo is much better, and I prefer sampling all of the different types of steaks, rather than selecting one piece of meat.

Torben Review: 5 stars if I were only evaluating ambiance, and taste... and since I didn't pay for my lunch, I'll give it 5 stars. If I were paying myself, it would get a 4 star rating as I can think of a few other places where I would rather go for a ritzy meal.

Filed under: Restaurants

Tags Chicago (5), Restaurant Reviews (4), River North (1), Steakhouse (1)

Posted by Byron on May 13, 2008

I took a trip to the cinema and watched Ben Stein's documentary, Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed. It was an eye-opening, thought provoking documentary that ultimately suffers from the same disease that the Michael Moore documentaries suffer from - it's one sided.

The film begins by exploring the stories of a handful of academics who have been fired, denied tenure, or otherwise forced to discontinue research because they had the temerity to propose intelligent design as a scientific paradigm through which one could address the question of the origin of life.

After establishing that intelligent design was the common thread leading to the turn of fortune for all of these academics, Ben Stein sets out to determine what's so bad about intelligent design. He first visits several well known evolutionary biologists and asks them all the question about whether intelligent design is a valid theory. In about 45 seconds of air-time, the film shows the disbelief and arrogant denial of these individuals that intelligent design ("ID") could possibly be valid. Unfortunately, this is the extent to which the film addresses the reasons that evolutionary biologists reject the ID notion. (The film suffers from this in that it is completely one-sided, and so there's no real intelligent debate about why ID is rejected.)

After showcasing the emotional rejection of ID, Ben Stein travels around to meet a panel of Intelligent Design proponents. He visits professors from both religious institutions as well as non-religious institutions. They speak about some of the holes in Darwinian evolutionary theory, and suggest that ID is a valid paradigm for approaching the outstanding questions.

At various points in the movie, Ben Stein then goes back to the evolutionary biologists and asks them the questions raised by the ID proponents. The one argument he consistently scores with is that evolutionists do not have an answer for how inorganic material transformed into life. There's a humorous scene in which one of the biologists (I think it was film villain Richard Dawkins) tries to explain how proteins latched onto a crystal that mutated, but ultimately can't answer the question of how life was created.)

Next, the film looks at the statistical improbability of 250 proteins aligning in the correct order for life to somehow come together. This is displayed with a man asked to pull the lever on a slot machine. After he wins the first time, he thinks he has won, but they tell him he must pull the levers of another 249 machines and they all must be winners so that he will win.

After addressing the probability of life appearing from proteins, Ben Stein explores some of the logical conclusions that come from an adherence to Darwinism.

It is in this twenty minute segment that I feel the film is least biased and most poignant. Stein says that as a Jew, one instance of Darwinism leading to horrible consequences stands out for him, and that is the holocaust. The film shows some haunting clips of Hitler speaking about the need to eradicate the worthless people from society. It shows a propaganda film calling disabled people food wasters, and explores the racist sentiments of the late twenties and early thirties. Essentially, Hitler was trying to help evolution along by weeding out those in society who were unfit.

With Hitler's aims clearly established, Ben Stein visits Hadamar, an 'insane asylum' in Germany where 15,000 unwanted people were killed, dissected, and cremated. One of the best parts of the film is the questions and responses he gets from his tour guide throughout the Hadamar visit. (Clearly some conflicting reactions.) After Hadamar, Stein also visits Daccau. (Hadamar was the trial ground, Dachau was the 'mass production site.')

After visiting Dachau, stein returns to Down House, Charles Darwin's home and examines some of the museum artifacts there. Interspersed with his trip to Down house are several more interview bites about how Darwinism leads to the loss of respect for human life. He also points to Darwinism as the root of the Eugenics movement.

The film finishes with a hilarious interview with the ever-so-arrogant Richard Dawkins, who seems to be an easy target for Stein's selective film editing.

All of his trips and interviews aside, the thesis of the movie is that there are holes in the Darwinistic Evolution, and that intelligent design is a viable avenue to find possible answers, but the scientific community has quite unscientifically built a wall that says any research that even suggests intelligent design is valid, is not science. On his thesis, Ben Stein does well. It seems apparent to me that the scientific community is not as open minded as it ought to be and are likely curtailing the freedom of inquiry that he is pushing for. On whether or not intelligent design is truly valid, the film really never takes the time to serious examine both sides of the issue.

The challenge for anybody watching this film, like a Michael Moore documentary, is to put your own opinions aside long enough to be open minded about the subject material... but also realize that the film has been carefully edited to support one conclusion.

Torben Review: 3 stars out of 5

Filed under: Movies

Tags Ben Stein (1), Documentaries (1)

Posted by Byron on May 10, 2008

DirectTv Episode Description:
Floyd, Liz's ex-boyfriend, needs a place to stay overnight after his flight is canceled; Jack is demoted to the 12th floor, causing him to question his future with the company.
First aired: May 1, 2008 on NBC

This was a marvelous episode of the funniest show on television. For a comprehensive and complete recap of the episode, check out IMDB.

Basic Recap: Don Geiss (Rip Torn) is still in a diabetic coma, and Kathy Geiss, Don's idiotic daughter, is the CEO. Of course, Devon Banks (Kathy Geiss' homosexual husband) is pulling the strings, and so Jack (Alec Baldwin) has been reassigned to the twelfth floor.

In the writer's room, it is Sandwich day, and I'll let Frank (Judah Frielander) explain it to you:

Frank: "What's that? You've never heard of Sandwich day? Why, it's the most wonderful day of all! Once a year the teamsters go to this italian sandwich shop in brooklyn. No one knows what it's called or where it is. It's a teamster's secret, but they buy us these sandiwches. Oh! Such sandwiches! And the dipping sauce. Oh Joy! God bless us everyone!"

Meanwhile, Floyd (Jason Sudeikis), Liz Lemon's (Tina Fey) old boyfriend who moved to Cleveland, is back in town and has asked if he can 'crash' at Liz's place. Liz is still angry because another woman answered the phone when she called Floyd eight months ago, but Liz still loves Floyd, so she decides to prove to Floyd what he's missing. (There's a hilarious scene that involves Liz, a spotlight, a fan, a tight red dress, and Floyd.)

The funniest exchange of the episode occurs as Jack is cleaning out his office to move to the twelfth floor. Kathy Geiss is the new resident, and she has moved in with her stuffed animals and unicorn paintings.

Jack: Well, I wish you the very best with the office, Kathy. By the way, you know who hates unicorns? ... Mark Wahlberg. Jack picks up a picture of Wahlberg off her desk.

Jonathan (Maulik Pancholy), formerly Jack's Assistant: Kathy Geiss's office... please hold. Jack pauses at hearing Jonathan answer the phone. He's betrayed. Jonathan rushes over to Jack. Jonathan's whining throughout the scene. Mr. Donaghy, you're not really going down to twelve are you?

Jack: I have to. Of course it's humiliating. Banks is trying to shame me into leaving, but where else am I going to go? I've been sleeping with the Cindy Crawford of corporations for the last twenty two years. What am I supposed to do? Just lie down with some skank like 3M?

Jonathan: What about Washington. I'm sure your friends in the Bush administration...

Jack:Laughing... Bush, has it gotten that bad? Good God, I'd rather work for an American car company than jump on that sinking ship.

Jonathan: I made you this. He holds up a poster with pictures of Jack and himself. The top clearly says Friends 4 EVA!!!

Above Picture courtesy of: Video Gum

Jack: Uh no. No, no, you didn't.

Jonathan: Singing the Sarah McLaughlan song... weakly I will gremember you. Will you remember me? dubey do... dubey do... don't let your life pass you by.

The scene above was absolutely hilarious. I almost rolled off my couch while I was watching. Anyhow, after this, Liz hangs out with Floyd and they have a great time, but Floyd has to go catch his flight. But Floyd can't seem to get out of New York as his airline has declared bankruptcy. (They still pop popcorn, but there's no more airplanes.) So Floyd returns to Liz's apartment, and she confronts him about the girl who answered his phone. Floyd (who has already told Liz that his phone's battery died) pulls out his phone and announces he's got a flight and they'll have the conversation later. Later happens when Liz is jogging through Central park (singing 'Bitch' by Meredith Brooks) and she sees Floyd sitting on a bench reading the paper. He admits to lieing to Liz because he didn't want to have the conversation and has no idea who answered the phone eight months ago.

Back in the writer's room, the writers are scrambling to get Liz another sandwich, because they ate her sandwich earlier. When a contingent goes to ask the Teamsters for another sandwich, they learn that they have to participate in a drinking contest in order to get another sandwich. (It's in their contract, according to Jack.)

The episode ends with Liz and Floyd reconciling at the airport, all the writers and Teamsters singing Danny Boy, and an announcement on MSNBC.

Television: MSNBC has learned that former GE executive Jack Donaghy has joined the Bush administrations as the Homeland security director of crisis and weather management

Great Quotes:
Jack Donaghy: "I'm losing it Don. I mean, I've been walking the streets in this crazy snow trying to figure out who I am, where I fit in. I even stopped to catch a snowflake with my tongue, but evidently that's some sort of signal in Chelsea."

Liz Lemon: You used Ghostbusters for evil!

Kenneth: "Alcohol? This smells just like Hill People milk. I've been drinking this since I was a baby!"

Chuckles: 9
Full throated belly laughs: 2
By the Hammer of Thor(s): a disappointing 0.

Torben Review Episode gets 4 stars out of 5, "30 Rock" is 5 stars out of 5.

Filed under: Television

Tags 30 Rock (2), Comedy (4)

Posted by Byron on May 5, 2008

I've been to the Dark Horse Tap & Grille in Wrigleyville (3443 N. Sheffield Ave, 1 block from Wrigley Field) three times now. I've had their burgers three times, and I don't plan on going back or having another burger from there again. (Why have I been there thrice? $1 burgers on Monday, and the bar is about one block from the Cubs.) The kitchen needs a lot of help... or at least their burgers do.

Aside from the less than tasty burgers (it's not that they're horrible per se, it's that there are about six pubs within a block of the Dark Horse with better food, including Bar Louie, Central, and Houndstooth), the Dark Horse is a pretty nice place.

The alcohol selection is pretty good, but I'm not the best qualified to evaluate that.

In terms of service, I haven't had any bad experiences. On warm summer nights, they open up the windows to make it an open air pub, and that's good stuff. However, in the evenings, there's also a blinding effect from the setting sun that can blind you if you're facing the window, and force you to eat in a black & white setting if your back is to the window.

The Dark Horse is also a Pittsburgh Steelers bar and a University of Michigan Wolverines bar.

Torben Review: Two stars out of Five

Filed under: Bars

Tags Chicago (5), Hamburgers (1), Pubs (2), Restaurant Reviews (4), Wrigleyville (3)

Posted by Byron on May 1, 2008

I chose to have LASIK Surgery on January 12, 2008 at the LASIK Vision Institute (44 E Grand Ave) in downtown Chicago. After three months, I can say it was one of the best decisions I've ever made.

The Experience: I didn't know much about LASIK surgery, but a co-worker had it in January 2007 and mentioned that they had used their Flex money to pay for most of the surgery. This throw away comment planted a seed in my mind, and I began planning and budgeting for the surgery almost a year before I underwent the laser.

In November, when I had the opportunity to re-set my FLEX withholding for 2008, I started talking with co-workers and friends. The general consensus was that there were two really good options in Chicago.

The first option, for those who had the cash, was the Kraff Eye Institute. Kraff is significantly more expensive than most options, but they throw in things like a limousine to ferry you to and from the procedure, and a hotel stay for the night after.

Not being made of money, and also living less than a mile from the doctors' office, I didn't value either the limo or the hotel. In hindsight, I would have valued them more, but I'm still glad I didn't pay for them. (My motto for this situation is: Pain, Discomfort, and a mild panic are temporary, $2,000 can be used better.)

Anyhow, for those of us earning less than $100K, the LASIK Vision Institute of Chicago is a good alternative. It combines low cost without the strip-mall sketchiness of some of the other LASIK providers. Located at 44 E. Grand Avenue, the LASIK Vision Institute shares space with Eye Glass World, a quality-looking eyeglass store. It is next door to a Homewood Suites hotel, across the street from a Jimmy Johns, and about a block away from Nordstroms. (The importance of this will all be explained later.)

So where were we? Right, it's November and I'm trying to determine how much Flex money I should set aside so I can pay for the LASIK surgery with pre-tax money. (I ended up saving $600 after tax just by paying for the surgery with Flex money.) Well, I called the Lasik Vision Institute, and they explained to me the basic process.

Continue reading "LASIK Surgery performed by Dr. Jerome Swale at the LASIK Vision Institute"

Filed under: Experiences

Tags Chicago (5), Lasik Surgery (1)

Posted by Byron on April 30, 2008

Direct TVGuide: A model in an office-supply catalog makes Michael feel things; to win back Dunder-Mifflin's parking spaces, Kevin and Andy oppose bosses of five businesses...
Originally Aired: April 17, 2008

After the disastrous dinner party, Michael gets a crush on the girl in the office-supply catalog, and then announces it to the office (in case they were going to try and set him up with one of their friends.) When no one has an immediate suggestion, Michael makes it mandatory that everyone give him a name on an index card within the hour, or they are fired.

Kevin gives him the name "Wendy." When Michael calls, it's the fast food restaurant. He ends up ordering a meal and sends Dwight to pick it up. Seeking to seal the deal, Dwight calls the catalog, leading to the funniest part of the show.

Dwight (on phone): That is fantastic! Thank you. Thank you very much. This is just what I needed. (Hangs up phone, turns to camera.) The furniture company gave me the name of the advertising agency. They gave me the name of the photographer. The photographer, a spaniard, used a Wilkesbury modeling agency. The agency gave me the following information: Deborah S 142 S. Windsor Lane. Dead. Car Accident. Case Closed.
Michael: She's dead?
Dwight: (drags finger across his throat, making a cutting noise)
Michael: But she's so young.
Dwight: She was so young, but now she is dead. As dead as every dead animal who has ever died.
Michael (reacts in agony): Gawd.
Stanley rolls his eyes.
Dwight: (Whispering) Why don't you sit down Michael... come on... here we go.
Jim: Michael, you didn't even know her.
Michael: Try not to be so hurtful, Jim. Please. Not at a time like this.

Because she feels so bad for Michael, Pam gives him her landlady's name. Michael goes to meet her at Starbucks and tries to dodge the date because the landlady isn't as pretty as the girl ordering coffee in front of him. They end up talking, hitting it off pretty well, but Michael's very rude and they part ways.

When Michael returns to the office, he is mad with Pam because she thought to set him up with someone who wasn't good for a passionate affair. Jim walks over and tells Pam that she should realize that her landlady's going to kick her out. Pam replies that she'll have to move in with her boyfriend. Jim is agreeable to this, but then Pam says very seriously that she will only move in if she's engaged. Jim, without missing a beat, says that it's coming. Later, he shows an engagement ring to the camera that he claims he bought a week after they started dating.

The show closes with Jim and Pam walking back to their cars. The sun is setting. The lights are hitting a tree in full fall splendor, and Jim drops to one knee. Watchers scream at the TV, and Jim says "Hey Pam... will you wait for me one second while I tie my shoe?"

Chuckles/Cringes: 8
Belly Laughs: 1
"That's what she said": 0

Filed under: Television

Tags Comedy (4), The Office (1)

Posted by Byron on April 26, 2008

DirectTv Episode Description:
Don Geiss decides to name Jack his successor as the chairman of GE, but a shocking turn of events involving Geiss' health jeopardizes Jack's promotion; Tracy thinks his career embarrasses his son.
First aired: April 23, 2008 on NBC

To begin, this is an excellent episode. Don Geiss tells Jack Donaghy (Alec Baldwin) that he will be the new GE Chairman, but Jack has to keep it a secret until the board meeting in three days. Jack can only tell his successor, so he tells Liz Lemon (Tina Fey). He promotes her to an executive (she initially refuses until he shows her a slip of paper with her new salary... she slaps him, but eventually 'pioneered the button classic campaign.')

At the same time, Tracy Jordan brings his son's flute to school and realizes his son neglected to invite him to 'bring your father to school day,' likely because he is embarrassed. (Tracy ends up dancing topless in front of his son's class.) So, feeling like a bad dad, Tracy decides he's going to do something to make his son proud of him. After seconds of thought, Tracy decides to combine his two passions in life (Video games and pornography) to make the never before done porn video game. Frank (Judah Frielander) tells him it cannot be done because of the uncanny valley (Frank pulls out a chart to explain:

Frank Rossitano: "as artificial representations of humans become more and more realistic, they reach a point where they stop being endearing and become creepy"
Tracy Jordan: "Tell it to me in Star Wars."
SNIP
Tracy Jordan:
"I was born to design a video game where characters get with each other for golden points. My genius will not be denied!

Anyhow, as Tracy (and Kenneth (Jack McBrayer)) work on the porn video game, Devon Banks (Will Arnett) attempts to hi-jack the GE chairmanship. Remember, despite being gay, Devon is marrying Don Geiss' daughter. Eventually, the episode ends with Don Geiss in a diabetic coma, and his daughter, who is totally dependent on Banks as chairman.

Best Quotes
• "The head of the stressball division hanged himself." - Jack Donaghy
• "You get one cry in life... you've chosen well." - Don Geiss
• "Uggh, Hugging, it's so ethnic." - Jack Donaghy
• "Suck it Monkeys, I'm goin' Corporate!" - Liz Lemon

Finally, Chris Parnell makes another hillarious appearance as Dr. Leo Spaceman. The scene with the slow mo running to save Don Geiss is hillarious. It involves a montage with the Star Wars soundtrack, Spaceman in a brown cape, Frank losing control because of Tracy's superior porn affinity, and Tracy finishing his video game too fast for Kenneth.

Chuckles: - 12
Belly laughs: - 1 (a little lower than normal)
By the Hammer of Thor's - a dissapointing 0, but one hilarious "Ah Blurg!"

Filed under: Television

Tags 30 Rock (2), Comedy (4)

Posted by Byron on April 23, 2008

I recently ordered the Thinner Scale by Conair (model TH100) from Amazon.com. I am very happy with the scale, but back on a diet.

For a little over a year, I had a Taylor 7322 Lithium Electronic Scale, but one day it stopped giving me reliable readings. I'm not sure if it got wet, or just tired, but the scale suddenly had a crack in the plastic and the readings were unreliable.

After doing a little research, I realized that the one year lifespan was typical of digital scales, so I decided my next scale would be an high-quality analog scale. Further research indicated that the Thinner Scale was the appropriate choice.

Pros
• The Thinner Scale is an analog scale. It should work for a long time, in fact it comes with a limited 10 year warranty.
• It is a heavy, high quality bathroom scale. The frame is metallic, so it won't crack like plastic framed scales.
• It has a capacity of 350 pounds, so one scale fits almost all.
• It has a large rubberized footmat. Those are my US Mens 10.5 feet actually fitting on the scale. Nifty. The rubberized mat is really nice.

Cons
• The large 6" dial is easy to see, but with a 350 lb. capacity, that leaves about 1 degree per pound, so it is difficult to read the scale to the nearest pound, but easy within a few pounds. So, if you fixate on the number, maybe a digital bathroom scale is appropriate... but if you just want to know within a pound or two, then the Thinner Scale is fine.
• There was about a two-week shipping delay from Amazon.com
• The Thinner Scale is larger than a typical bathroom scale, so be prepared for it to take up about six inches more of your bathroom floor.

Torben Review: 4 Stars out of 5

Filed under: Household

Tags Bathroom (2)

Posted by Byron on April 19, 2008

Let's see here. My early favorite, Michael Johns is gone, but Mariah Carey is mentoring our last seven.

David Archuleta - When You Believe
He's very star struck and tells Mariah he - gasp - listens to her - gasp - all the time. The song was boring, but decently sung. Simon tells him he would have bet a million that David chose When You Believe.

Carly Smithson - Without You
Generally when a chick sings that she can't live with you, you think that's a good thing... er not. Carly can go on living without me... and the ending just proves that Carly doesn't have a big enough voice to sing a power song... and Simon agrees with me.

Syesha Mercado - Vanishing
Like the rest of these songs, I haven't heard Vanishing before... but Syesha seems to get the song and is singing the heck out of it. She's got the big voice for these songs that Carly doesn't.

Brooke White - Hero
Brooke, on stage, just the piano and her voice. This isn't the greatest song ever, nor is it particularly suited to her voice, but I still want to go see Brooke in concert. Randy liked everything but the bridge... Brooke needs to learn not to interrupt the judges... and Simon thinks it was like ordering a hamburger and only getting the bun... Randy and Paula are assuring Simon the meat was in the bun. You can't make this stuff up. Randy says there was no mustard or mayonaise though.

Kristy Lee Cook - Forever
Mariah Carey says Kristy Lee sings this better than Mariah... um we'll see, but the opening notes aren't so promising, and the rest of the song is very plain vanilla. As the camera pans to show the crowd, even the crazies near the stage don't know how to react to the song. Simon says it was whiny.

David Cook - Always be my baby In the session with Mariah, I think David's going to try and channel Eddie Vedder with this one, and he starts the song that way. Then about 30 seconds in, it's like he takes a back seat to the music and there's some guy on stage singing along with the band... and then he just starts shouting... baby... Gurrgg, that was not something I want to hear on the radio. Simon starts to label it Karaoke hell, but he's referring to the others and not David Cook. I vote that this one is included in Karaoke hell.

Jason Castro - I don't wanna Cry
Then don't. I've often thought I would like Jason Castro a bit more if he was a little less geared toward winning the hearts of high school girls, and more Jack Johnsonish... he was tonight and it was good. Randy couldn't see past the drum-circle get-up on stage and didn't like it, but Paula and Simon both did.

Votes best to worse: Brooke White, Jason Castro, Syesha Mercado, David Archuleta, David Cook, Carly Smithson, Kristy Lee Cook.

Filed under: Television

Tags American Idol (2), Music (2)

Posted by Byron on April 15, 2008

Cozy Noodles n' Rice at 3456 N. Sheffield is my favorite Thai place in the city. And when I say Thai, I really mean Pad-Thai, because pad-thai is one of the greatest dishes on the face of the earth, and it's the only dish I ever order when going out to a Thai place.

Located about 100 yards from Wrigley Field, Cozy has seating for about twenty people, and there's typically thirty in the place. Every square inch that isn't filled up with diners is packed with seemingly random trinkets and signs, which give the place a claustrophobic, but adventurous environment. (Click for the Official Cozy Website)

Aside from the aforementioned pad-thai, Cozy also has a drink called Bubble Teas with little Tapioca balls at the bottom. The Bubble Tea doesn't taste at all like tea, but more like a smoothie that takes on the flavor of your choice. My favorite is Mango, but the Bubble Tea also comes in Honey Dew, Coconut, Plum, Red Bean, Green Tea, and Taro.

Also, if you're ordering for two, you'll generally have spent enough to qualify for the free crab rangoon (orders over $18 as of this writing). Make sure to ask about that, because the crab rangoon is excellent. There are also a few other coupons available by clicking here.

And finally, as a special bonus. If you get their takeout (or delivery), the containers they use are really quite nice, and I keep mine to use as tupperware.

Torben Review: 5 stars out of 5. Oooh I want some Crab Rangoon after writing this.

Filed under: Restaurants

Tags Chicago (5), Restaurant Reviews (4), Wrigleyville (3)

Posted by Byron on April 8, 2008

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