One Great Dish: BellyQ's Tea Smoked Duck Breast

By Chuck Sudo in Food on Mar 12, 2013 7:20PM

Photo credit: Chuck Sudo/Chicagoist

Bill Kim can sometimes be a confounding chef. Where other chefs put their best foot forward opening a new restaurant, the Charlie Trotter’s alum stumbled ever so slightly out of the gate with Urban Belly and Belly Shack only to see fast and successful course corrections at both restaurants.

BellyQ, however, was spot on from the moment it opened and the pared-down menus at Urban Belly and Belly Shack have had an indelible impact on the food coming out of the kitchen here. It’s a simple menu with basic dishes being prepared with a high degree of excellence that you’ll want to order again and again with each subsequent visit.

One such dish is this tea smoked duck breast, prepared in a Chinese water smoker that’s received as much publicity as the food. This is Kim’s idea of comfort food: perfectly crispy on the outside; tender on the inside; the faintest hint of smoke peeking through. Served on a bed of Chinese broccoli and a side of steamed buns, I threw table manners aside and made the messiest sliders from this dish. Most important for me is how comforting this dish me feel eating it.

Some critics and amateur gourmands have complained among their praise for BellyQ that what Kim is doing here isn’t traditional Korean Kalbi. Since I haven’t solely edited Chicagoist’s food and drink section in 2-1/2 years, I’m far enough removed from keeping up with the Joneses that I’m content to simply enjoy the experience of dining these days without getting bogged down in details. It’s a task made easier, so long as Kim continues what he’s doing at BellyQ.

BellyQ is located at 1400 W. Randolph St.