There are quite a few new restaurants opening in the city as of late, but NBC 5's Food Guy Steve Dolinsky is particularly fond of a new one in West Town.
It’s run by a couple of industry veterans who’ve created the kind of restaurant they’ve always wanted to visit themselves. Steve Dolinsky joining us tonight with the story.
There is an exuberance in the kitchen at Maxwells Trading – which occupies the first floor of a non-descript brick two-story building in West Town. Cooks are busy grilling over open flames or sauteeing braised vegetables under the watchful eyes of Erling Wu-Bower and Chef Chris Jung. The goal for the owners was simple.
“A beautiful bar where my partner and I our wives could sit down, have a martini and listen to records and eat kinda the food we want to cook and the food that we want to eat,” said Wu-Bower. “My mother is from China; Chef Chris Jung’s parents are from Korea, and we grew up in the big cities of America,” he said.
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Despite their backgrounds, the menu isn’t all Asian. Start with griddle bread – think half scallion pancake, half naan. A perfect vehicle for scooping up a housemade French Onion dip with a lot of chives.
“The French onion dip has truffle oil, chives, black pepper, there’s a little bit of soy sauce in there as well,” he said.
Suzuki tartare is Thai-inspired with coconut, peanut and lemongrass, topped by large nasturtium leaves.
The Food Guy
From the starch section of the menu: a clay pot of Japanese rice for starters…
“On top of the rice is a 5-spice braised pork belly, swiss chard, yuba – which is tofu skin – braised shitake mushroom and lap cheong sausage.”
Arriving alongside, a trio of sauces.
“There is a housemade sriracha and a housemade chili crisp,” said Wu-Bower.
Plus, a soy sauce his mom imports from Taiwan. There’s also a fantastic Japanese sweet potato, served atop a pool of mellow Thai curry.
“The massaman curry is just a delicious, homemade curry; no cheating, made from scratch. And then put a Japanese sweet potato on top of it that we steam for three hours.”
That softened potato is layered with sugar then bruleed until the surface crackles beneath a fork. A half dozen heartier dishes feature lots of grilled items, like the half chicken a la brasa, marinated then grilled over hardwood, before being sliced and plated for easier eating.
“Black-eyed peas from the South, and then it has a ginger-scallion salsa verde which is a sauce from my childhood that I grew up eating on Argyle Street,” he said.
There’s also a vintage bookstore and coffeeshop adjacent to the dining room. You’ll find honey made from the rooftop. Wu-Bower says the menu is a reflection of his team’s collective experience.
“We call it city food by city kids,” said Wu-Bower.
And please save a little room for dessert! Only three on the menu, but the Basque butter cake is a crowd pleaser you can share.
1516 W. Carroll Ave.
312-896-4110
