Dengaku Side from Mana Food Bar
Item Purchased: Dengaku Side
Location Purchased: Mana Food Bar / 1742 W Division St / Chicago, IL
Price: $5.00 + tax
Purchased on: 07/28/08
Review: Along the stretch of Division that lies between Ashland and Damen, one might think they are actually in Lincoln Park. With all of the clubby bars, baby supply stores and boutique eateries, it’s becoming harder and harder to tell the difference, so when I heard of this new vegetarian fresh food spot that doesn’t rely on tofu and seitan to cover their ass, I became quite excited. Of course, I should have realized that the Oprah-popularity of veganism and vegetarianism through books such as Skinny Bitch may start to have an effect on niche restaurants.
Mana Food Bar comes with from great pedigree, having been birthed from talented folks from other notable Chicago restaurants, de cero and sushi wabi, yet falls disappointingly flat on execution. Mana has the right layout, the right concept and the right prices, but all of these rights seem to come at the expense of flavor balance. It is unfortunate, but not all bad. That’s why I’ll start with the highlights.
Small plates are the formula here, with little else than the menu layout to distinguish sides from regular dishes. The Dengaku is a side made up of simple spears of grilled Japanese eggplant heavily drizzled with a thick miso glaze. Though the eggplant could have been grilled or dried a bit more, the dish offered a beautiful presentation and a great dialectic of fresh flavors. Despite some soggy spears, the full, sweet flavor of the eggplant paired well with the tangy earthiness of the miso glaze. As a “side,” the Dengaku’s portion size fit the price and my expectations of what a fresh, seasonal vegetarian creation should be. This was quite an exciting beginning to my meal.
I soon discovered that I should have built up to the Dengaku instead of starting my meal off with a bang. Though I would return for this dish, I doubt I would stay long. If only the rest of my order could have pleased me half as much as this dish did.
Rating: 3.75 / 5 (if it weren’t for the soggy spears of eggplant, this would have been a solid 4)
August 8th, 2008 at 12:01 am
[...] myself in the area. That one thing is not the cutesy ridiculous Sake-tinis or even the delicious Dengaku. That one thing is the Mana [...]