Slow Food, Efficient Service Make Cellar Door Provisions Logan Square's Newest Restaurant Gem
By Staff in Food on Feb 10, 2014 8:50PM
Much has been said already about Logan Square’s latest lunch installment, Cellar Door Provisions. With a long communal table, crisp white walls, and a reclaimed wood counter, the 20-seat establishment is bright and bustling, even on the freezing Friday when we stopped in.
The menu at Cellar Door is inspired by slow food practices, but the service is quick and efficient. There seemed to be no opening jitters from the staff, even though they’d only been open 48 hours and the meal was smooth and served with competent, confident hands.
The food was prepared in the same way. Lamb leg and Breslin bean soup was a steaming bowl of simple, fragrant broth, tender chunks of lamb and locally sourced beans. The tartine, which will change frequently along with the rest of the menu, was smothered in creamy elderflower kefir, warm charred red onions, thinly shaved watermelon radishes and carrots, with an added sprinkle of greens. It was as pretty and delicious as a painting. If you’re going to eat raw vegetables in the wintertime, they may as well be nestled in a thick, yogurt sauce atop warm whole wheat, crusty bread.
The pastries were far and away the stars of the meal, a small custardy canelé with a brown sugar crust that was like a sweet, dense bread pudding and bostock—a fist-sized pastry made with croissant dough, draped in almond paste and baked until the sugars and almond caramelized to perfection.
The soup takes its name from Breslin Farms which also provides produce and grains for the restaurant, as well as Werp Farms, Genesis Growers and other regional farms. All the flour for the daily bread and pastries is sourced from Illinois farms as well.
Stop in for an easy, sophisticated lunch or a delectable afternoon treat and watch the snow fall.
Cellar Door Provisions is located at 3025 W. Diversey Ave.
— Cyndi Fecher