She’s a Boeuf haus
Ahh, June in Chicago. When the weather is nice enough for us to venture out of our comfort zones and head west of Halstead.
This month’s adventures took us to Boeufhaus in the 1000 block of Western.
Excited to try a different spot – I reached out to Boeufhaus weeks in advance. They were worried they couldn’t handle a party larger than 6 without a set menu, but after much cajoling, they relented to 7 but at 8 they would enforce.
The dilemma: we have 10 people. Sensing the recent attendance issues, I took a gamble. Don going AWOL sealed the bet.
We started the night at Sportsman’s. Which despite its Yuppie sounding name, the only sport seemed to be have been celebrated there was taxidermy. However, it was a perfect spot for Scottie’s penalty shot – Malort. Greater concern was on trying to concoct what could be in Scottie’s briefcase. I imagined boxers, tiny bottles of jack and more annuity forms than any man could imaginably possess.
We then ambled over to the Boeufhaus and after a 5 minute wait were seated at our table in the back.
Table was a tight fit and the vibe was a bit more date night than steak night. Still was good to try something different.
Given this was not a typical steakhouse, our waiter suggested we create a 3 course meal of starters, pasta and steaks. Given the group’s reviews of the steaks glad we went heavy starters.
We started with the Short Rib Beignets and the Rillon. The beignets were a hit.
The pasta course consisted of the Cavatelli. Which was also a hit.
Brad and I split the 35-day Ribeye – and it was cooked pretty well. I think it was almost comparable with the better steakhouses. We had sides of Fries, Mushrooms and Cauliflower…they were ok.
In honor of the start of the NBA finals, Rick broke out his Golden State Warriors Yellow Blazer and White Pants to go with his Trump – Make America Great Again hat. It really seemed to pull the outfit together.
We debated the NBA finals and discussed the new financial ventures for Scottie and myself. I may have signed up for an annuity.
After dinner involved a dunk contest at a middle school (I got net) and watching stand up at de ja vu (which was surprisingly good).
Overall: Solid 8, 8.5 for the after-dinner events.
Filed under: General
Upon arrival at the Boeuf Haus, it was determined to be far too small a bar area for our predinner activities so the audible was called for the Sportsmans Lounge. I don’t believe it would actually be possible to participate in any sport if I was dressed like the other hipster patrons in this north woods themed joint. They do however make a pretty mean summer sazarac that features mezcal in lieu of the normal elixirs, highly recommend it. Mayor Bill recounted some of his golf course fiascoes and I tried to figure out what i could stash in Scottie’s briefcase that would be weirder than what was already in there. I assume it was the ringer full of his dirty whites to be used in a shady pay off later that night.
Our second arrival to the Boeuf Haus was just in time for our seating at the rear table in the space that was both cozy and kept us out of earshot of most other patrons. I am pretty sure it would be possible to easily die a glutton from tossing back the short rib beignets like tic tacs. What a culinary masterpiece and the dipping sauce, wow. It was clearly the high light of the meal, I managed severe restraint and allowed others to partake as well. I went with the strip as I am not a fan of the 35 day aged steaks. The steak comes pre sliced, which to me is an insult to both the steak and my ability to operate a fork and knife as an adult. It lets out all of the juices before it even gets to the table and leaves the steak tougher than it should have been. Flavor of the meat was okay, but for the price it was a sub par cut. The sides picked up where the steak fell short and were among the best we have had over the years. We celebrated my belated birthday and wandered off into the night to find the tail end of the NBA game, which entailed peering like a bunch of creeps through a window across the street into a polish dive bar. The bar owner liked the looks of our group and invited us in to which we politely declined. The walk to Bar Deville was approximately 8 miles and included a stop at a school playground to see who had the whitest vertical leap in the group. Surprisingly Glick has some ups, I am still trying to figure out how to post the video.
I give the BH a 7.5 and the evening a 9 as a great outing outside of river north.
It’s not a secret that for steak night I prefer going to more traditional steak places, we don’t need to try and get too cute with our selections. However contrary to popular belief I am ok with trying a different type of place on occasion, I just don’t want to make it a habit.
June brought us to Boeufhaus which is a surprising pick from Glick because there is like a 6 block radius in River North that he doesn’t leave. In fact I used to think he never left because there was one of those electric dog fences around the area and if he left he would get shocked, apparently I was wrong.
All the fine dressed men of steak night stood out at the hipster Sportsman Lounge but it provided a memorable location for pre-dinner drinks. Good to have Scotty Martin back in the mix for the first time since what seems like 2012, I believe he was in the area selling insurance door to door.
Boeufhaus is really small, I can see why they were concerned with hosting a large group. The setup and table were a bit cramped but we managed. They had a whiskey smashes although not as good as Dick Rays they were excellent.
The short rib beignets were unbelievable, a tasty combo of sweet and meat. One of the most creative and delicious apps I have had in a while. The cavatelli was also excellent, it almost had a gnocchi quality to it. I believe we also got some sort of pork belly which was just ok. I went with the 35 day ribeye medium rare, disappointing. The steak comes already cut which is just stupid for a ribeye. It was really rare, almost felt like seared tuna, it lacked any real flavor. The polenta and cauliflower gratin were both outstanding sides. Honestly I felt all the food was excellent, except that steak.
The random (it seemed like a good idea at the time) post dinner stop at the park, to test our jumping ability was hilarious. I used to be able to grab the rim with ease, not just touch it but grab it. Obviously I expected father time and the injuries to my back and left leg to have compromised my vertical over the years. Throw in the fact that I had like 6 cocktails and was wearing dress shoes and probably not the ideal jumping conditions but I couldn’t get the rim, not even touch it with the tips of my fingers. I do want to give this another try in sneakers, shorts and sober just to see where I stand, if I fail again I will accept that I’m old and white. None the less this little side excursion on the way to the bar was fun.
The evening ended at Bar Deville and some standup comedy in the backroom, pretty funny for an open mike type of night. Great evening.
Nothing like a welcome trip back to the old haunts with a jaunt to the outskirts of the 606 for some penalty shots and an establishment that puts a new twist on fine beef. After gathering with Gimms we met the solid evening crew at Sportsman’s for what was easily an aptly planned pre-dinner bev fest including some “local” Malort for me provided by the bartender Gabe. Nice enough place for some dead people and a few of Chicago’s finest businessmen, gentlemen and insurance salesman, i.e. us.
Upon arrival at the new age type joint, Boeufhaus, I was turned on like a 10-pay premium life insurance policy with the quaintness and bustling nature of the place. While a tight space, they packed in well and it was a nice feeling to have our group be the main event of the restaurant’s evening.
We received some good guidance from the waitstaff and off we were on the rediculously good beignets and their sauce, which i do believe Zee German took into the coat closet (if there was one). The steak arrived, I ordered the usually solid, sometimes famed, NY strip cooked medium rare. Came out to my surprise sliced, but with a great cook and color, yet a true lack of flavor. It was literally like there wasn’t a dash of S&P on the piece and char didn’t provide much additional. After seeing such a great cook, the taste was definitely a let down.
Night finished up with a few more bevs on top of the Greyhounds that I was running most of the night to chase the dreams of the earlier stated local Malort I was sad to miss “White Man Can’t Jump 2” but figure the lore of post steak night trips to the annals of a further Olympiad might just be necessary a few more times around.
7.5
I don’t have much to add to this accurate and dramatic portrayals that preceded mine above.
This was a nice trip off the usual trail. A refreshing drink at Sportsman’s Lounge began the evening. They made some kind of whiskey concoction in a martini type glass that was delicious.
This lead to Boefhaus. I did enjoy the environment. It is a quaint place with a cool vibe, definitely not like your traditional steakhouse (e.g. Gene & Georgetti) or your more avant garde steak restaurant (e.g. Swift & Sons).
As far as apps, the short rib beignets were especially delightful. The first wine pairing that the waiter talked Glick into was not great, however when Glick went with his heart, we were all treated to an excellent pairing with our steak.
As for the steak, I agree with Mr. Predicto above that it was mediocre. I had the Filet and it was not as lean and a little gamier than I generally like. Not bad, but maybe not as much up my alley.
The afterparty at Bar Deville was great. The open mic night of comedy provided hearty laughter after a satisfying meal. It was great to get out of the general area where we normally dine.
Not normally being one to completely whiff on a steak night post, I figured I should probably come up with a little something on our June excursion to BoeufHaus. Better late then never right?
BoeufHaus is not the traditional steak night place. Wedged between West Town and Ukrainian Village, suits and briefcases are not part of the normal attire in these parts. Well, unless your name is Skip Martin. What was in there? The glowing mystery item from Pulp Fiction? $1M cash to pay off gambling debt? Various business papers with fine print raising the fees on Brad Ray’s IRA? We’ll never know. But what we do know, is that Scott Martin is odd, yet pleasant.
Moving on to dinner, 7 of us crammed into a table for 6. But we, or the restaurant I should say didn’t have much of a choice. This was the type of place you bring date and share a steak. Not 7+ bros to “get after it” or “kill it” or whatever bromo-sapiens are doing these days.
All of this aside, the food is what matters. And this did not disappoint. Short Rid Beingets? Check. The Ceci Bean Cavatelli? One of my new favorite dishes in Chicago. The Rillon? Not sure. Hans ate it all prior to it making its way around the table.
I had the 35-day dry-aged rib eye. I should have known in a place like this they were going to serve the steak already cut. It was my fault for not recognizing it sooner. But nonetheless, the steak was great. Top 10? No, but still pretty good. This place is a great date spot. You know, after like three or four when you decide spending decent money on them is worth it.
After a long-ish walk that included four out of shape white guys trying to grab net on a basketball hoop, we ended up at Bar DeVille and unknowingly catching a really good comedy showcase.
All in all it was a great night. It was good to get out our comfort zone, and dust off Glick’s passport to get him out of River North.
8.5/10