Koi-Fine Asian Cuisine & Lounge

I was meeting a friend for dinner at Koi, just as we’d done so many times in the past. It had been an exhausting day, and my appetite -even for Asian food-was challenged at best. I studied the menu, looking for something that would be as comforting as mac ’n cheese or meatloaf or warm apple pie with ice cream.

“You know,” I said to the waiter, “if this were an Americanized Chinese restaurant, I’d order egg foo young.”

He smiled. “We can make it for you,” he said. “No problem.”

I smiled back. Egg foo young and a glass of Riesling… my stress level plummeted.*

Koi’s egg foo young was so good that I’ve ordered it time and again, often as part of a family-style dinner. And, actually, a family-style dinner is a good way to sample Koi’s menu, which features dishes from eight of China’s regional cuisines, in addition to sushi, sashimi, maki rolls, nigiri, chirashi, teriyaki, and both Pad Thai and Thai basil fried rice. That’s a lot of culinary ground to cover, but owner Sandy Chen’s family tree includes a long line of professional chefs.

Now 54, she’s been working in the restaurant business since shortly after her family emigrated to the United States when she was 16. She bussed tables at New Diamond, a mom-and-pop Chinese restaurant in Highland Park, as a teenager, followed by front-of-the-house stints at T’ang Dynasty and House of Hunan, trend-setting restaurants that introduced Chicagoans to regional Chinese cuisine.

Koi is Chen’s second restaurant; the first was the eponymous Chen’s in Chicago’s Lakeview East neighborhood. Preferences changed during Chen’s eighteen year-run. Spice levels escalated as diners developed an appetite for hotter food, and -at the same time- sushi and its relatives went mainstream, as did Pad Thai, poke and edamame.

Chen opened Koi in 2004. Not only was the menu more diverse than at Chen’s, but the restaurant’s location was more convenient to her home in Wilmette. Having survived both the recession of 2008-2009 and the worst of the Pandemic, Koi continues to expand its culinary horizons.
Consider the options.

If, for example, you have a taste for fish, you can order a whole red snapper in a spicy Szechwan sauce rife with garlic and chilis or salmon with black bean sauce or sole paired with eggplant, asparagus and a sauce spicy enough to merit a single chili emoji or whole snapper in a mix of black vinegar, soy sauce and sugar or steamed Dover sole with scallions, cilantro, soy, broccoli and glass noodles.

And then there are the specials: Happy Hour from 4:30-6, Dim Sum brunch on weekends, $6 cocktails on Wednesday, half-priced bottles of non-sparkling wines on Thursday, and half-price on a specific maki roll until 9pm on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday.

And, of course, there’s the egg foo young. It’s not on the menu, so you have to ask for it. Trust me. It’s definitely comfort food Chinese-style. And given the news, we all need a lot of comforting.

Koi Fine Asian Cuisine & Lounge, 624 Davis Street, Evanston 847.866.6969

*As it turns out, egg foo young has authentic Chinese roots, and the dish-in various iterations-is served throughout the Chinese diaspora.

Sushi ComboHot Pepper Chicken

When you think of Highland Park, what first comes to your mind? Ravinia? Lake Michigan? John Hughes movies? High-priced homes on Sheridan Road? Whatever it is, they’ve now moved down the list a spot or two.

Highland Park, Illinois is now the latest town to have a mass shooting.

My family lived in Highland Park for two decades. My siblings and I are all graduates of Highland Park High School. While I wouldn’t call it a sleepy little town, it certainly is closer to a Mayberry existence than Chicago-esque. It was among the last places I figured that an event like today’s shootings would occur.

Maybe I was naive. I was definitely naive. I’m not anymore. As I write this, six are dead and more than twenty have been injured. If this can happen in Highland Park, at a parade, on the 4th of July, it can happen anywhere. It will happen anywhere.

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I’ve written before about my discomfort when people refer to “the holiday,” meaning whatever holiday is coming up or happening. But as soon as I turned on the radio this morning, July 4, I started hearing about “the holiday,” “the Fourth of July holiday weekend,” or just “happy Fourth of July.”

Well, I can wish my British cousins a happy Fourth of July with a clear conscience. As I noted in this post four years ago, the British (and the rest of the world) do have July 4 — they just don’t celebrate it.

But especially this year, when so many troubling things are going on, let’s talk about it as Independence Day. We can still celebrate our independence, and there’s something particularly precious in it this time.

So happy Independence Day, and enjoy calling it by its name.

When were kids, July 4 was a day to celebrate the nation that we learned in school was the world’s greatest democracy and a model for the rest. 

My mood on this July 4 is more mournful than celebratory in the wake of recent Supreme Court decisions about abortion, the authority of the Environmental Protection Agency, and concealed carry of firearms. 

Polls show most Americans favor gun control, action against climate change, and at least some right to choose abortion, but our preferences are thwarted by a polarized Congress and a politicized Supreme Court. 

Our democracy’s undemocratic aspects are evident in the inability to move the country in the direction most people want. Never a pure democracy — protection for minority rule was written into the Constitution — the United States grows less democratic. Consider:

US Senate: Democrats represent around 41.5 million more people than Republicans, but the Senate is split 50/50 due to equal representation for every state. The 39.6 million citizens of California have the same representation as the 581,000 citizens of Wyoming. Based on current population trends, 70 senators will represent just 30 percent of Americans by 2040. Furthermore, it is nearly impossible to get the 60 votes needed to override a filibuster. Nothing gets done — as citizens complain — when a party that represents a minority of voters can block legislation.

Electoral College: Because the Electoral College gives each state an elector for each member of the US House and Senate, small states have disproportionate voting power. Of the six times a president did not win the popular vote, two have been recent: Republicans George W. Bush in 2000 and Donald Trump in 2016. 

Gerrymandering: Both parties draw legislative districts to their advantage, but Republicans have benefited more. A 2021 Associated Press analysis of gerrymandering showed that Republicans in recent years won more seats in the US House and state legislatures than would have been expected from the percentage of votes they received. They now have a greater political advantage in more states than either party had in the past half-century, and redistricting after the 2020 census has increased their advantage.

Lobbying: Think of the role the National Rifle Association has played in blocking gun control legislation and you understand how lobbying affects Congressional action and inaction. The opinions of the 90 percent of Americans who lack the money to bankroll politicians have no influence on the political process, a study by Northwestern and Princeton University professors found. 

Supreme Court: The three newest justices were nominated by Donald Trump, who lost the popular vote, and were confirmed by a minority-constrained Senate. The court now has a conservative supermajority committed to an originalist interpretation of the Constitution. There are needs 235 years later that the founders couldn’t have anticipated.

The Constitution: Undemocratic facets such as the Electoral College and an unrepresentative Senate were written into the Constitution, which is difficult to amend. Since the Bill of Rights in 1791, only 17 amendments have been passed, none in the last 50 years.   

With the current Senate and Supreme Court, Democratic control of the White House and Congress matters little. Minority protection has slid into minority domination. Would it bother me if I were on the minority side? I hope I’d be honest enough to admit that democracy means equal representation for every citizen. A government controlled by a minority isn’t truly a democracy.

After a two-year COVID-19 hiatus, the Square Roots Festival is returning this weekend. The event takes place July 8-10 along Lincoln Avenue, between Montrose and Wilson Avenues (4400 to 4600 N).

Co-founded by the Old Town School of Folk Music and the Lincoln Square Ravenswood Chamber of Commerce, the event features three days of music from three stages, plus a Kid Zone. Lincoln Square restaurants and stores will be open for food sampling and shopping. There will be over 50 vendors and exhibit booths.

Returning this year is a Brew Lounge with 40 specialty selections from brewers in the Lincoln Square neighborhood and around Chicago. In Part 2 of this coverage, we’ll talk with Daniel Abel of Pilot Project Brewing, which will be among the brewers sampling out.

“We” (meaning me) got to talk with Carly Katz, who runs the craft-focused Bottles and Cans liquor store (4109 N Lincoln Ave.), who put together the craft beer program.

MM: Since the past two years saw the festival canceled because of COVID-19 concerns, was there a “point of no return” where you decided you’d have the festival this year, no matter what?

CK: I think we all had a lot of confidence, myself and the Lincoln Square chamber. We did a small festival in the winter to see how people would react, and people really, really were excited to be out again, so we felt like it’s time to try to get back to a little bit of normalcy. And we think people are ready to be out and about again. We have all the confidence in the world that this will go off as if nothing ever happened.

MM: Among the nearly 40 acts that will be featured at Square Roots will be some nationally known ones like Bob Mould, Guided by Voices, and !!! (Chk Chk Chk) (And Wiggle Worms for the Kid Zone). Were the bookings all handled by the Old Town School?

CK: Yes, Old Town does an incredible job at this booking component. I am not a very hip person so a lot of these guys I unfortunately didn’t know, but a lot of my friends, my family, and employees are insanely excited about the list. One of my employees even brought up to me that he’s concerned that we’re not ready for the number of people who want to be there to see these guys, so it’s exciting, and again I don’t know how Old Town does what they do but they can get some incredible artists out to to Square Roots.

MM: Besides beer and music, will the restaurants and retailers along the block be out there in some form?

CK: Exactly. The game plan is to have people also enjoy the restaurants that are there like everything else. After COVID, it’s definitely a little harder of a start up for a lot of smaller businesses, so joining festivals can be a little trying at this point, but they’ll still be there in their brick and mortar. We absolutely hope that people continue to patronize and go into these places. You know, go have lunch at The Warbler, come back out, get your beer, and enjoy some music.
All up and down Lincoln, there are all these wonderful mom and pop retail local shops, and artisans. Tori Grace Outfitters will be there selling all of her wonderful merchandise. We do a lot with like Urban Pooch, who will be out there doing their wonderful dog stuff. Because as I think everyone knows Chicago dog owners take this very seriously. So dogs are welcome and hopefully everyone will be able to get started again in their festivals.

MM: So tell us more about your craft beer offerings.

CK: Half Acre is coming in strong because Lincoln Square was where their home base was for a long, long time. We’ll also see our friends with Dovetail, Begyle, Brewers Kitchen, Alarmist, Maplewood, and Metropolitan Brewing. Northman Cider is going to be there serving just maybe the best cider ever.

Local beer on tap at Square Roots this weekend.

Half Acre has graciously offered to give us some of their very cool barrel aged items that not a lot of people get to see, that we will be able to pour out for people. Dovetail is also going to be pouring their fruited sour. There will be about 16 to 19 limited edition beers pouring at the Brew Lounge alone.But when those beers kick, they’re done. Add to the beers being showcased in the main area, and we have a total of 26 to 34 beers available.
This is all weather pending, I’m assuming it will be a beautiful day with some heat, so a lot of crushable beers out there.
Scarpetta Wine is also going to be there with us, so if you are a wine lover, we will have some very nice wine as well. And there will be cocktails and hard seltzers, too.

MM: Are there changes that will be apparent to anyone who’s been there before?

CK: We’ve moved Brew Lounge into kind of the main area because that was such a tremendous success, we decided to move it off Sunnyside and bring it closer to the music. And then the kids area is expanding because that’s a neighborhood with a lot of young families. If you have a lot of kids, we never want to give you a reason to not join us, so we’ll have a place for them.

Carly concluded by noting the job the Old Town School has done bringing all kinds of bands:

CK: The headliners are incredible, so now you’re coming out listening to awesome bands, drinking awesome beer,and browsing awesome retailers in an awesome neighborhood. We hope when people leave Square Roots, if they’re not in the neighborhood, they’ll venture out. Go visit Timeless Toys in the square, go, you know, go see L&M Fine Foods, because it’s the cutest little artisanal grocery store. There’s a lot to offer in Lincoln Square.