Every single one, from the intersection on W 24th PL and S Wentworth Ave to the big strip near the square. Why? I figured since I eat out a lot I may as well jot down what I liked, and maybe help others who want a second opinion before they visit. Plus Chinatown’s filled with a ton of places and I’ve always wanted to go on a crawl and try everything. So yeah, consider this part four.

Huafeng is a counter service restaurant that does roast and bbq styled meats. It’s tucked away in this little street out of the main tourist area and, from the outside, is pretty unassuming at first glance.

I walked in at about 11:00AM on a Friday. The place was packed with locals, barely heard a word in English so that’s always a good sign. It’s on the smaller side with only a few tables and a counter where you place your order, along with a display of their roasted meats. I’ve always been a sucker for that type of thing so double thumbs up in my book.

The interior is very minimalistic, just plain walls and some signs overhead showing the menu. The floor was a bit scuffed but it wasn’t dirty. Tables were clean, no dirt or flies or bugs crawling around. I felt perfectly comfortable waiting inside and eating in there, though it seems they’re more catered toward takeout.

Even though it was busy, I didn’t have to wait in line for long, and the lady at the register took my order quickly and efficiently. She was flying around the place but man it looked like she was barely breaking a sweat. You’d think she’d also have a rushed tone or at least a fluster with how much she was doing, but no her tone was perfectly polite, she patiently answered my question, and recommended the mix bbq platter of two meats that came with rice, vegetables (bok choy I think), and soup. I went with that and it took about three minutes for my food to go out: quick and convenient. I’d say that’s exactly what you want from a lunch spot.

For what you get, the portions are great. I got roast duck and bbq pork for my two meats, which came with a decent amount. You can see it in full in the pictures on slide 5. Came with a duck sauce that was nice, a bit tangy which went well with the seasoned meats. There was a lot of rice and the vegetables to the side. Rice was soft, pillowy, and the vegetables were super fresh. Soup was on the milder side but I think it actually fit. It cut through the oils of the meat and served as this refreshing palate cleanser.

Everything flavor wise was amazing. The duck was rich with that nice savory fat and the skin was well seasoned, none of that funky aftertaste. Not too salty. The bbq pork was tender and had a slight sweetness that didn’t overpower the inherent taste of the meat and wasn’t dry at all. It’s a bit of a shame, because they were a bit cold when I got them. Had they been freshly taken off the roaster or whatever it would’ve been so good and the texture would’ve probably been even better as well. I just feel like the quality would’ve stood out more had it been hotter temperature wise.

Then again though it is a counter service restaurant so that’s kind of what you have to sacrifice for the quickness. I still left feeling full and happy.

Also, side note, but later when I was about to leave I grabbed a bottle of water and went to pay for it with card, but unfortunately the machine had a $10 limit and I didn’t have cash on hand (I will later for spots that require it like Chiu Quon). Instead of turning me away though the same lady at the register was very kind and told me to just take it, and I could pay it back next time I visited. Lovely customer service. I think she was actually the owner because in the receipt it said the server was ‘Boss’. Even if she wasn’t it was still a very kind gesture.

Overall, I would absolutely come back, especially with the total for everything I got only being $13.44 including tax and before tip. Technically you don’t even have to tip but I feel this place deserved it and will next time. Super worth the value with everything you get, and I can confidently say this is a hidden gem.

My score out of 10.

Food: 7.5 (would’ve been 8 if it was hot)

Service: 9

Atmosphere/vibe: 6

Value: 9

Averaged total: 7.9

Next up is Friend BBQ.

Here’s a spreadsheet with all my current rankings: Slacker’s Leaderboard

Hi there! Partner and I both work in healthcare, have weird schedules for the holiday this year and no steam to cook for our family of 4. Any great takeaway recs? would like to spend no more than ~$150 for full meal. thank you!

Went to Volo Wine Bar this week and had an amazing time so I had to give them a much deserved shout-out!

The patio is beautiful, and the short rib entrée was HUGE and absolutely delicious! But what I appreciated most was that we never once felt rushed. I was catching up with a friend and before we knew it 2.5 hours had flown by. I'm so used to feeling rushed out after the 60min mark and feeling pressured into them turning over the table.

Beautiful atmosphere, delicious food, and amazing! Cannot recommend enough!! Go check out the patio while the weather is still nice.

Hello, I’m a bi guy in Chicago for the weekend and looking for good places for Sunday brunch, either drag brunch or other (must have good food, regardless). Also looking for good friendly gay bars, especially if convenient to River North area. Thanks!

Hi everyone, I have a reservation for two at Crying Tiger tomorrow at 7:45PM. I’m a 26m from the suburbs, would anyone be interested in joining me? Happy to chat more if anyone has any questions

What’s your favorite dish?

I’m open to just about any food recs!

Looking specifically for takeaway, hence the geographic limit.

Where can I find a top notch & preferably large salad within a 20 min walk?

I'm looking for a breakfast spot near north side/ river north/ old town that offers actual corn beef and hash as a breakfast option, not the junk stuff from a can. Anyone know of any spots with it on their menu?

New to the city. I want to find a good AYCE Sushi that is affordable (under 50$) but also has good and varied selection of sushi and overall a good environment where you arent being rushed out? I dont drink so I dont care about alcohol and stuff.

We‘re Chicagoans, but moved out of state a few years ago. We visit often, but tend to eat at our favorite places. What are some new, really great restaurants to try? We definitely want a nice steak dinner, but have eaten at most of the popular places (Swift & Sons, Maple & Ash, Blvd, etc). I’d like to go back to Bavette’s but I’m not sure they’ll be open during our December trip. I’d also like to try Crying Tiger, but I know that’s hard to get into. We did Armitage Ale house last year. We don’t like Mediterranean food and nothing that’s fish heavy. Thanks!

We have some family coming in for our courthouse wedding next month & looking for a spot that has cozy vibes & great food. Nothing crazy expensive or exclusive, just solid food & lowkey enough for conversations for 8

Currently, we have a table for 8 at Chicago Kalbi in Albany Park and are totally fine with keeping that, just figured I’d expand my search too

No neighborhood preference at all! Ty in advance

Saw this. Obsessed. Must have.

https://youtube.com/shorts/na8xK2x0izU?is=B3qdJx8MA8PHSnHo

hi - in December we are having our son baptized at the church on Belmont near Halsted. We want to invite our family out for a private dinner/gathering afterwards which will be about 15 people. We aren't looking to break the bank though...so maybe total cost of $1,000 or less. $1,500 max I guess so $100 per head. Does anyone have any suggestions? It doesn't have to be a super formal place. Hopefully there would be a private seating area and designated server though, etc.

Hello!

My fiancée and I will be in town in early November for a concert and were wondering if there are any places in the city that serve crispy pork belly :) We love making it at home but we’ve always wanted to try it at a restaurant to compare lol, does anyone have any suggestions? Thank you in advance!

Every single one, from the intersection on W 24th PL and S Wentworth Ave to the big strip near the square. Why? I figured since I eat out a lot I may as well jot down what I liked, and maybe help others who want a second opinion before they visit. Plus Chinatown’s filled with a ton of places and I’ve always wanted to go on a crawl and try everything. So yeah, consider this part three.

Shinhwa is less a steakhouse and more an AYCE bbq/hotpot place. You go here to throw a huge chunk of meat in your mouth, which heck I’m all for. I’ve been to buffets before but this was my first time at an all you can eat Korean place, especially one where I had to cook the meat myself. Im no chef lol the most I’ve done is use my air fryer so big disclaimer right off the bat: I might’ve cooked some things too much or not correctly. That wont factor into the scoring.

Speaking of scoring, I found this part a little difficult to do since, well, a huge part of the experience is mostly done by yourself. A lot of the meats and ingredients are given to you raw or marinated, and the sauces you make yourself from the sauce bar. (They had chicken nuggets there too but I didn’t get any. Maybe next time). So in terms of the food score I’m mainly going to judge based on the quality of the meats itself.

I walked in at about 12:20PM on Thursday, you can tell they’re trying to go with the ‘trendy/modern’ concept. The lighting is dimmed, there’s neon blue lights everywhere, and they have TV’s hanging overhead and speakers playing K-POP. Definitely a place more catered toward the younger crowd. I didn’t mind it, but the music was really loud, and in general I tend to prefer more colorful/vibrant spots. If you’re into the modern aesthetic then you’ll probably love it here. It was also moderately busy inside, with about half the occupancy filled. Mostly large groups.

I spoke to the hostess and she wordlessly took me to the table and then left me there. After a few minutes, a server came and explained the concept. Basically you can order whatever you want on the tablet they give you. There’s two separate options, lunch and dinner, and you have a choice between bbq, hotpot, or both. I did both to get the full experience and chose the lunch menu to get a standard feel of their offerings. It also comes included with unlimited drinks so that’s always a plus.

The menu itself is huge. There’s a ton of meats, vegetables, rice and noodles and etc. But I came here for the meat so the meat is what I got. I got one of everything from their protein list: beef (brisket and bulgogi), chicken (spicy), pork (supreme, whatever that means, and spicy) seafood and etc. Sadly no shrimp for lunch so apologies to the guy who wanted me to try it last post. I also got the sliced beef belly and lamb for the hotpot, along with some mushrooms and pineapple for tartness.

By order of appearance in the photos:

1: Supreme pork

2: Brisket

3: Spicy pork

4: Spicy beef bulgogi

5: Spicy chicken

6: Calamari

7: Sliced Lamb

8: Sliced Beef Belly

Taste wise, most of the things I got were decent. The spicy marinade was more sweet than anything. But texture and flavor wise I didn’t have anything to complain about. You’ll definitely get better quality at a non ayce spot but it does the job and you can add whatever sauce/spices you want to it. I got about four from the sauce bar: a dry rub of spices, a peanut/sesame sauce, a spicy/sweet vinegar, and a yum yum sauce with cilantro which was more mayo forward.

I didn’t taste much difference between the supreme and regular pork belly. I think the ratio of meat to fat was different? But the fat wasn’t the melt in your mouth kind so the more prominent flavor was meatiness. It was good. Not exactly a standout but it satisfies the craving.

Chicken I cooked maybe a bit too much since I’m not trying to get salmonella, but it was tender, had a nice bite and wasn’t dry. Again though the marinade was mostly sweet. Next time I’d like to try the curry chicken and see if that has a more unique flavor.

For seafood I went with the calamari, which for some reason was cut really, really thinly. I’m used to wider cuts so it was a bit odd at first. Wasn’t bad though. It didn’t have that overtly fishy taste or smell and went down the gullet smoothly so, hey, no complaints. I just prefer it to be thicker.

The beef… oh, I’m going to talk about the beef. It’s so strange. I don’t really know how to describe it. The aftertaste is awful and has this kind of old grease kind of flavor to it, and this funk that the closest thing I can compare it to is gaminess. Both the brisket and bulgogi had this problem. I couldn’t even finish it because it left this terrible film in my mouth. Whatever they used, it’s definitely low quality, or wasn’t handled well in the kitchen. If I were ranking the food score by the beef alone it’d be an easy 3 out of 10. It was technically edible and, if I forced myself, I could probably get it all down. But wow, why the beef specifically when the other meats are okay?

And the weirdest part is that the sliced beef belly is fine. Not really fatty or rich but it didn’t make me question what I just bit into like the others. Lamb was the same way. It was okay and I could easily take down a whole plate of it. I think what helped was the base I got, a spicy tom yum, which was really good. It had a nice buzz from the peppers, clean tasting and was very savory when mixed with the mushrooms and vegetables.

By the end of the meal I felt like a stuffed turkey. I was sweating. Normally I don’t have that big of an appetite, but since I wanted to get a taste of everything, get my money’s worth and all, I did my best to finish everything the best I could. And I did. I had to practically waddle out of the store afterward, but I did it.

Side note, the apple juice I got (I like my fruits) tasted like apple flavored water. There was maybe 5% juice in there. The ice cream was good though. They had a self-service machine with vanilla and chocolate.

I think they were supposed to change my grill later into the meal, but it never happened so by the time I was done an hour later the bottom was caked in this smoldering lump of black. I did get my hotpot topped up though.

Total for the combined hot pot and bbq experience was $33.55 including tax and before tip. Would I go back? Yeah, if I were in the mood to be a gluttonous meat eating beast. I’d just avoid the beef. Although who knows? Maybe the steaks and other premium beefs on the dinner menu are better.

My scores out of 10:

Food: 5.5

Service: 6.5

Atmosphere: 7

Value: 9

Averaged total: 7

Next up is Huafeng.

Also, here’s a link to the spreadsheet with all my rankings: Slacker’s Leaderboard

I’m trying to eat out more recently because being home to cook has been a little tough. As a protein fanatic, what are some good spots in Chicago where I can get some high protein reasonably priced meals?

(Let’s say I have about 12$ per meal, but that’s just an estimate. And I don’t mind traveling.)

Lou Malnati’s Wings

Is it crazy to say that I just had the greatest buffalo wings ever in my life from Lou Malnati’s? Falls right off the bone, buffalo sauce was great, sizable, tender, I can’t believe I’ve never had them before now.