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Dixie (new restaurant)

Dixie (new restaurant)
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  • Dixie (new restaurant)

    Post #1 - August 9th, 2016, 10:10 am
    Post #1 - August 9th, 2016, 10:10 am Post #1 - August 9th, 2016, 10:10 am
    Dixie's been open a week or two now. I went with a friend last week on Thursday evening (August 4, 2016). We had a reservation, but our table wasn't quite ready, so we sat in the bar area. Very cute, and you can have small bites there. Staffing seemed a little scattered - we didn't seem to have anyone dedicated to the seats, so it took some time to order. It must be a separate business, you can't take your bar tab to the restaurant. We didn't get our wine before it was time to go to our table, though we didn't have a terrible long wait, so that was OK.

    We were seated upstairs, which is pretty but loud. There was one larger party and several individual "loud talkers" so without shouting ourselves we had a hard time hearing each other. It seemed quieter downstairs, but has fewer tables there.

    Our server was nice and quite personable. Speaking with him, it seemed as though quite a few of the servers had come from Alinea. At least one of the bus men there also works at other local restaurants Toast and AMK. Service was great, and we never felt a lag or rush. Food arrival timing was also just fine.

    Other reviews have said that dishes were small, but we though the amount of food was appropriate - we didn't get any of the larger dishes, so didn't expect to be getting huge plates of food. We shared the following (and I took my 1/2 of the Tomato Pie home):
    BUTTERMILK BISCUITS
    pepper jelly
    These were rolled, you could see the layers. I think maybe they were a little hard/crunchy but I liked that. My dining companion said that she though you had to have the jelly, that the biscuits themselves were a little dry. I didn't think that was the case, but I like that kind of thing.
    CARROTS
    boiled peanut hummus - cilantro - chicory coffee
    The hummus was sort of a peanut butter mousse. It was quite rich. We liked it, and fount it much more filling than other hummus.
    TOMATO PIE
    heirlooms - goat cheese - tomato jam
    Very tasty, very wet - the crust was thin and crispy, a nice contrast between the sweet tomatoes and the mildly tangy goat cheese.
    PIMIENTO CHEESE TAMALE
    green tomato chutney - fried green tomato
    I didn't really taste the pimiento cheese, that flavor seemed to get lost in the corn and "fried" flavors, but they were very tasty.
    DEVILED CRAB
    avocado - collard juice - jalapeno - seeded bread
    This was also quite rich. Very tasty. It was not big lumps of backfin meat, more shreds, but still tasted like crab.

    Overall I enjoyed it a lot. It's definitely more upscale than Lillie's, with prices to match, but I'd be happy to go back.

    Dixie
    1952 N. Damen Ave
    Chicago, IL 60647
    (773) 688-4466
    http://dixiechicago.com/
    Leek

    SAVING ONE DOG may not change the world,
    but it CHANGES THE WORLD for that one dog.
    American Brittany Rescue always needs foster homes. Please think about helping that one dog. http://www.americanbrittanyrescue.org
  • Post #2 - September 23rd, 2016, 8:42 am
    Post #2 - September 23rd, 2016, 8:42 am Post #2 - September 23rd, 2016, 8:42 am
    A warning if you sit at the Kitchen Eating Bar - be a tall person. Our feet did not reach the foot rail and there are no foot rings (rungs?) on the seats. Sitting trying to eat with your feet dangling from a tall bar seat is uncomfortable.
    Leek

    SAVING ONE DOG may not change the world,
    but it CHANGES THE WORLD for that one dog.
    American Brittany Rescue always needs foster homes. Please think about helping that one dog. http://www.americanbrittanyrescue.org
  • Post #3 - October 3rd, 2016, 10:07 am
    Post #3 - October 3rd, 2016, 10:07 am Post #3 - October 3rd, 2016, 10:07 am
    Sula reviewed it
    http://www.chicagoreader.com/chicago/di ... d=23731480

    He was nicer than I would be. That "country captain" was the worst thing I've eaten in a long time, like dry flavorless hospital food. My mother used to make that dish a lot and even with cheap ingredients it was better than that.

    I can't even deal with the "fusion" stuff. Who wants that? I guess it might be good/interesting if it was inspired by the modern South where there are a lot of SE Asian immigrants influencing food in the Delta and Panhandle. But to me this Dixie stuff tasted like they wanted to be both Husk and Parachute.

    The sad thing is the simpler more traditional dishes they are serving at the bar are pretty good. The Nashville Hot chicken I had there was great. You aren't allowed to order that stuff in the rest of the restaurant though.
  • Post #4 - October 3rd, 2016, 6:35 pm
    Post #4 - October 3rd, 2016, 6:35 pm Post #4 - October 3rd, 2016, 6:35 pm
    The sad thing is the simpler more traditional dishes they are serving at the bar are pretty good. The Nashville Hot chicken I had there was great. You aren't allowed to order that stuff in the rest of the restaurant though.


    Kiss of DEATH. What a dumb operational plan.
  • Post #5 - January 15th, 2017, 1:07 pm
    Post #5 - January 15th, 2017, 1:07 pm Post #5 - January 15th, 2017, 1:07 pm
    We stopped into Dixie yesterday for a cocktail, and ended up staying for an early dinner. Overall, we'll happily return and recommend it to others, especially those who would like to drop in for cocktails.

    The bar was an excellent, if small, space, serving up very nice drinks. We liked both of our drinks, although some of the special qualities of the drinks (e.g., fenugreek in the manhattan) were not obvious.

    Dinner had hits and misses. First, the biscuit was excellent. Crunchy, soft, and easy for two to share. Served with apple butter, but I didn't find it necessary. Second, the parsnip and pecan salad. The pecans tasted like they'd been lightly candied in bacon fat, and the parsnips were prepared so as to mimic hearts of palm. Even though the salad was served in a buttermilk dressing, it was quite refreshing (something the menu really needs, imo).

    The misses--fried oysters and mussels--weren't serious, but were obviously less successful than the biscuit and salad. The fried oysters tasted slightly doughy in the middle, and didn't have enough sauce or pickled peppers to balance out the dish. The mussels were high quality, but the broth was too pungent and the bread too burnt to enjoy. Since most people enjoy mussel broth, I figure it's worth noting.

    Again, we recommend Dixie, and hope it continues to improve as time goes on. We'll be back.

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