We've been waiting for a warm day to make cool drink from Mercat a la Planxa. Let the rum drinking begin! more ›

Frontier is making smoked turkey, pheasant and goose, and Mercat a la Planxa is serving roast suckling pig to-go. more ›

Iron Chef America is generally a silly show, but it still has its drool-worthy moments. For us, the best moment is when the food is presented to the judges, and we get to see the finished products that the celebrity chefs have come up with. But food porn has its limits; mostly, we want to be there and taste that food! Then, after the show is over, we go into the kitchen and eat an entire block of cheese to soothe our pain. But, enough about us - you can eat exactly like the judges on Iron Chef America. Starting in early April, Mercat a la Planxa will be replicating one of Iron Chef Jose Garces winning Iron Chef America menus. Special ingredient? Mexican Chocolate. more ›

Last Sunday, we were bowled over by the best brunch deal we've encountered in ages. Mercat a la Planxa is running a promotion called "Sunday Funday" (we know, it's a horrible name) which accomplishes all of the goals of a great brunch: amazing food, social dining, lots of booze and a low low price. We've mentioned our love of Mercat in the past, but the restaurant's relatively high prices and recent popularity (thanks in part to Chef Jose Garces appearance on Iron Chef) may have deterred some visitors. If so, this is your chance. more ›

The skyline of our fair city is much more beautiful looking and complete from the South Side than the North, where it always seems like it opens up in stages. Likewise, some of my favorite restaurants are located south of Madison Street. With Restaurant Week beginning today and running through the end of the month, I thought that now might be an ideal time for readers to venture "out South" and see how things are done. more ›

On our first visit to Mercat a La Planxa, we asked to taste this strange-sounding concoction before we committed to an entire $30 pitcher. We were completely taken with the flavor, and have ordered it every time we’ve been back. The folks at Mercat were good enough to give us the recipe, which we’ve adapted for your home use. After looking at the effort required to make it, we’re less shocked by the price tag. more ›

Chuck asked that each of the food and drink staffers offer readers recommendations of places to visit during Chicago Restaurant Week, which kicks off today. Here are my picks: more ›

We love tapas and (since this author lives in the South Loop) we love to see good restaurants opening in the neighborhood. So, it’s possible that we were predisposed to like Mercat a la Planxa before we walked through the door. Chef Jose Garces' tapas outpost made Esquire's list of Best New Restaurants last year. On the other hand, Time Out Chicago's David Tamarkin decried Mercat's supposed "lack of soul," and there have been a fair share of mediocre reviews on Yelp, so we were interested to see how the place would stack up. more ›

• Mercat a la Planxa's Jose Garces flays Bobby Flay on Iron Chef [Philly City Paper]
• Applebee's "owns riblets." Wonderful; another reason not to go. [NYT]
• Joanna MIller delves into a vegetarian nicoise salad. [My Vegetable Blog]

Just added to the list of participants for September's Chicago Gourmet event are Koren Grieveson of avec, Jose Garces of Mercat a la Planxa, the Hearty Boys duo of Dan Smith and Steve McDonagh, Takashi's Takashi Yagihashi, Christophe David of NoMI and Terrance Brennan of the soon-to-open Chicago location of his Artisanal Bistro and Wine Bar. more ›

We know that Chicago is a restaurant hot spot. While out-of-town writers particularly tend to maintain the clichés (earned, mind you) of Chicago being a steak and potatoes, deep dish pizza town, out-of-town chefs know the real score. more ›