This week I decided to swoop on down to Delightful Pastries at 1710 N. Wells Street in Chicago. First let me say that getting into this place can be a bit of trouble. There's no practical owl entry, so I had to wait for someone to open the door so I could fly in.
The place is indeed delightful, as the name implies. There were several places to sit, though perching space was at a minimum. The shelving is full of colorful creations from some dedicated chefs. Some people think we owls don't see colors due to the abundance of rods as opposed to cones in our retinas, but let me tell you, folks: we can.
With so many pastry choices, I did the only rational thing I could: I ordered a caesar salad with chicken. Usually when I take down a chicken from the air, I end up getting more meat then I need. To circumvent this, the restaurant grilled up a peppered chicken breast right there on the spot. It took a few minutes, but the fact that my food was made to order definitely made it worth the wait. I wish I could say the same for the rest of the salad. There were anchovies on it. Now, if I had the ability to read, then I would have known this beforehand, but I'm just an owl. Reading is not in my wheelhouse. Neither are anchovies. Too much salt for this palette. So I picked them off and discarded them only to find a whole bunch of iceberg lettuce. Yaknow, the pastry side of this place was really nice and thus I expected them to use a higher quality of leaf, like maybe a Romaine or some spinach. I don't get down on the veggies that often, so when I do I only want the good stuff. The croutons were above average, probably made from house bread, and the dressing was lightly applied. Altogether a healthy meal.
To counteract that health, I had a key lime pie for dessert. It was a single serving pie with a graham cracker crust. I'm a big fan of citrus and sour things, since my beak leaves me with the inability to possess a sweet tooth. It was nice as a novelty - not something I'd get all the time, since I prefer a little more lime and a little less crust. Still a treat for the likes of me, since peeling my own limes can be a daunting task, and flying to the Florida Keys to get them just isn't practical, what with my schedule and all. For on-the-go birds like me, they pack things up in a to-go bag that suspiciously resembles a bag from Victoria's Secret. I held it with both talons to make sure nobody got the wrong idea.
Delightful Pastries is worth a stop. It's a charming little bakery. I won't be ordering a salad there anytime soon, but the wonderful array of pastries as well as the house-made coffee make this a go-to spot for people that are a bit disenchanted with the whole Starbucks scene (and hoo isn't?) I'll be back soon to see if they've made that mole flavored quiche that I asked for.
Overall, 3 out of 4 hoots.
We're 2 Owls. And We Review Food. And Other Stuff.
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