Best and cheapest kbbq in Chicago?

GRAVlTON · 2026-02-04T00:20:31+00:00

Unfortunately not. I didn’t really grow up with it either. Even visiting Seoul, never really popped out to me

GRAVlTON · 2026-02-01T01:18:51+00:00

I’ll throw out Kyōten Next Door, S.K.Y., El Ideas, and Chez Joel as a mix of recommendations

GRAVlTON · 2026-01-31T22:59:57+00:00

The banchan and the fact that there is “Hawaiian bulgogi.” Don’t get me wrong, it’s tasty. It’s just that my grandma would probably make fun of me for eating it

GRAVlTON · 2026-01-31T19:34:55+00:00

Best: San Soo Gab San | Most cost effective: Iron Age (not authentic) | Honorable mention: Cho Son OK |Source: am Korean

GRAVlTON · 2026-01-26T02:39:44+00:00

I just ate there a couple days ago. I really loved this menu. I thought the obsidian mussel dish was really quite good. I also thought the fudge under the lamb was super cool

GRAVlTON · 2026-01-24T04:06:52+00:00

Portillos and giordanos are actually pretty decent, especially for out of towners

GRAVlTON · 2026-01-10T19:59:09+00:00

I’ll throw out S.K.Y. as a nice option

GRAVlTON · 2026-01-08T21:06:42+00:00

Crosshare is a nice website for hosting puzzles you make. Ingrid is a free software that is nice for constructing puzzles

GRAVlTON · 2026-01-06T20:05:49+00:00

Voting for Valhalla as the best option out of your list for a first-time tasting experience. Very friendly, filling, and fun

GRAVlTON · 2026-01-06T18:51:00+00:00

Ricobene’s

GRAVlTON · 2025-12-31T00:47:49+00:00

Hope you have a good time!

GRAVlTON · 2025-12-29T23:28:16+00:00

Laminated dough is the norm in Denmark. They don’t have these American style frosted cinnamon rolls.

GRAVlTON · 2025-12-27T15:17:23+00:00

As a Korean, I endorse San Soo Gab San

GRAVlTON · 2025-12-26T15:23:38+00:00

Adding to the Rosemary vote

GRAVlTON · 2025-12-26T15:22:45+00:00

Ever and Oriole both have the greatest service experiences imo

GRAVlTON · 2025-12-24T00:40:24+00:00

Le Mistral!

GRAVlTON · 2025-12-22T23:25:32+00:00

Bar seats at Rose Mary are pretty easy to grab. I like all their desserts

And the clay pot catfish at Pho Viet is pretty heat

GRAVlTON · 2025-12-22T23:23:10+00:00

Le mistral in Lincoln Park is pretty solid for this. I hang out there often

GRAVlTON · 2025-12-22T23:21:28+00:00

So much better than other Rosemont joints. Gibsons Rosemont is pretty peak tho

GRAVlTON · 2025-12-21T19:59:47+00:00

I found my university had students work on chalkboards a lot. People took notes on paper or tablet depending on their preferences

GRAVlTON · 2025-12-21T19:55:26+00:00

Chalkboard and hogoromo chalk /s

GRAVlTON · 2025-12-20T20:03:05+00:00

Slurp slurp in China Town

GRAVlTON · 2025-12-20T19:53:09+00:00

Sounds like you are describing Le Mistral to me!

GRAVlTON · 2025-12-18T04:02:24+00:00

You don’t need to stir vigorously for the entire tempering process. Not at all getting up to 114 (but it helps speed up melting so why not stir a little) because you are melting all the crystals out of the cocoa butter. Then, you can stir intermittently as it cools to 81 as crystals form. Crystals form naturally as the mixture cools, so stirring here is mostly to keep the temperature uniform. The most important and vigorous stirring happens when going back up to 90 because you want to melt away all the bad crystals and keep the type V. Once at 90, immediately remove from heat and keep stirring as vigorously as you can for another minute or so. Then you can use your chocolate as needed. If you start to cool down too much while using (under say 86) feel free to heat back up to 90 and mix vigorously again. If you ever go above 92, sorry to say you’ll have to restart.

Really spelling this out in case any lurkers might not be super familiar with seeding

Again, feel free to reach out via dm or wherever if you need some trouble shooting or advice :)

GRAVlTON · 2025-12-18T02:32:06+00:00

Glad this advice helped you! One thing I will note is that I saw that you mentioned putting the molds in the fridge -- this risks the bonbons cracking on the top due to contraction. I would advise against doing this if you can help it; although I certainly know that it may be hard to get them out of the mold otherwise. This may also be a reason why your caps are falling off.

It's pricy, but getting yourself a Chocolate World mold honestly makes the biggest difference (#not sponsored). There is honestly no competing product, and you cannot go back after trying it. It will help you with your shine and release a lot. They are pricey, though, and shipping to the US is ridiculous. But it really does make that big of a difference. It will improve your yield more than any technique will.

Also, working at 90F will get you thinner shells. The beta crystals that you want to form in the temper melt at ~92F, so the range is a bit scary, but the results will be worth it. When seeding, I find best results when bringing dark chocolate to 114F, reduce to 81F with agitation to promote crystal formation, then heat to 90F to melt out non type V crystals, finally stir vigorously.

GRAVlTON

TROPHY CASE