CT Going on Hiatus

Last month, all of us here at the Champaign Taste worldwide headquarters realized that we have been publishing this weblog virtually nonstop for five solid years. We sat in stunned silence for several minutes, absorbing that information, and then we shouted, almost in unison, "For the love of all things food in C-U, let's take a freaking break!" Thus was the executive decision made: We will take the summer off.

The solstice—the official beginning of the summer season (i.e., today)—seemed like an auspicious time to make the announcement. As editor-in-chief, I'll regroup, reevaluate, recharge, relax, and do other re- things, and see where the respite leads. Maybe it'll lead right back to this blog, in the fall. Maybe I'll end up doing something else with my spare time, and we'll disband the corporation and send massive disbursement checks to the investors. Hard to say at the moment. But I'll let you know when the summer winds to a close.

To those of you who've read and commented: Thanks so much for being part of Champaign Taste for the past 5 years. We've enjoyed the interaction (it's always fun to talk about food, isn't it?). Please feel free to still leave updates and info in the comments on existing posts this summer; I'll read them. And I may post on the CT Facebook and Twitter pages during the break.

Don't forget about the companion blog to this one, where you can peruse the recipes that have appeared on the blog, and all the CT restaurant reviews (full reviews and Quick Bites), any time you feel the need.

The change of seasons seemed to call for a fresh, new look, break or no break. Thus, the banner, on which is featured a personal-sized tiramisu, just one of the many fine pastries to be found at C-U's own Mirabelle bakery. Yours truly took the photo, and credit for the banner design goes to Keith, CT art director and all-around bon vivant.

Have a wonderful summer, and eat well.

Ciao for now!

-Lisa

Taste of C-U 40th Anniversary Celebration: Who'll Stop the Rain?

I'm reposting my report on last year's Taste of Champaign-Urbana, below, in case you haven't been before and want to see what goes on. This year marks the 41st Taste of C-U; I can't believe the event has been going that long.

Some pertinent details for 2011:

• Tickets will be 8 for $5 this year, instead of 6 for $5 as it was last year.
• Many of the same restaurants and catering operations will be represented.
• There will be plenty of arts and crafts to check out and purchase.
• The children's "fun zone" will be going strong.
• You can pick up info on any number of community groups and local pols on the northeast corner.
• Pets are not allowed at the event, so leave your iguana at home.

Regarding the food: I recommend the following (number of tickets listed for each vendor is for their "taste" size offering—well, except for Zorba's, and I'm giving them a pass because I'm so happy they've survived the devastating fire that destroyed the building they were in for 30+ years on campus):

• Empanadas at the Manolo's booth (3 tickets)
• Jerk chicken, mac & cheese at Caribbean Grill (2 tickets; mac & cheese is free)
• Pad Thai at Nitaya (2 tickets)
• Sushi at Ko Fusion (2 tickets)
• Chips and salsa at Mas Amigos
• GYROS at ZORBA'S! (small classic or chicken gyro, 7 tickets; large, 13 tickets; pita w/hummus, 4)

I'm also interested in trying

• a "signature" slice of pizza from One World Pizza (they do "fusion" pizzas);
• something from Shanghai 1938, because I've never been there; 
• Houlihan's pot roast slider; and 
• a smoothie from Smoothie King, because I've never had one. 

It looks as if the vendors this year have a better handle on the concept of offering inexpensive tastes of their food, which I'm happy to see, as that is, after all, the point of this event—to be able to sample SMALL BITES of foods from numerous vendors.

The 2011 Taste of C-U starts tomorrow (Friday, June 17) at 5 p.m. and runs through Sunday (see more info at the bottom of this post). Let's all do a dance for NO RAIN.

Now here's my report from the 2010 Taste, which celebrated 40 years of the event.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
[Post from the 2010 Taste follows; we went on Sunday last year.]

There's not been a Taste in recent memory that did not take place on either the hottest weekend of the year to date, or the rainiest, or both. Shame. But if you brave the weather, you'll find, on this last day of the event, some great food, fun kids' activities, arty-crafty stuff, and good music.

We went yesterday. I'm not going to do exhaustive coverage of the event here, but I did want to tell you about the food and drink that we thought stood out.

First off, when you get to the Taste, walk to the center of the park and buy tickets. Tickets are priced at 6 for $5. Once you've secured your tickets, you're off to eat, drink, and play.

One of the things that makes a standout experience at the Taste, to me, is that the vendors offer tastes of their food. This may seem obvious, but some vendors understood the concept, and others did not. A small portion of this or that for a small number of tickets is what I'm looking for; after all, if one is going to sample a number of vendors' offerings, one doesn't want to either eat or pay for regular-sized portions at any one spot.

One of the vendors who did a great job in that department was Nitaya Thai restaurant. We got a small cup of pad Thai (both chicken and tofu versions were available) for 1 ticket, which was just perfect. The portion was large enough to give you a healthy sample of the dish, yet small (and cheap) enough so that you still had plenty of appetite (and tickets) left to try other things. And there were a number of very reasonably priced tastes of other dishes available, as you can see:

The food stylings of the Caribbean Grill were also well worth sampling. We tried the jerk chicken and the rice and beans, and both were delicious.

The chicken was wonderfully tasty and tender, with lots of charred bits of skin all over. The rice and peas (red kidney beans) was fabulous. If you get out there and try this today, which I strongly urge you to do, don't forget to drizzle (or douse) your chicken and/or rice and beans with some of the CG's sweet-hot sauce (in squeeze bottles on the table). That sauce was out of this world (but if you're a tender-mouth, be careful—it's spicy!).

The Caribbean Grill was also offering a large, ice-cold glass of fruit punch that was refreshing and delicious and complemented the food perfectly. You'll find the Caribbean Grill booth at the Urbana Sweet Corn Festival later this summer, if you don't get a chance to taste their offerings this weekend. If all goes as planned, you'll see, later this year, a Caribbean Grill restaurant somewhere in C-U.

We had a small taste of a pulled pork sandwich from Louie's BBQ. Louie's is an outfit that does catering only; they don't have a restaurant. The pork was tender and flavorful, and there were three flavors of sauce you could choose to put on your mini-sandwich. You can find contact and other info for Louie's at their booth.

We also stopped at Xinh Xinh Cafe's booth. Shai Mauth, the owner, and his staff were offering beef skewers, chicken wings, and samples of boba tea (many flavors of which are made at the restaurant in Urbana) as well as shots of a variety of "exotic" canned beverages such as sugar cane and coconut juices and soy, guava, and grass jelly drinks.

We spent our last tickets on empanadas (one beef, the San Telmo Carne, and one cheese and corn) from Manolo's Pizza and Empanadas. Man, are those empanadas good. Flaky, tender dough encases delicious fillings, and the whole thing just melts in your mouth.

You could get mini-slices of Manolo's wonderful pizza at the Taste booth, as well, served to you by lovely, enthusiastic staff. Here's the Manolo's Taste menu:

I mentioned kids' activities at the top of this post. There looked to be many fun things for children to get involved in. We saw a stage where a magic show takes place:

And a large mural that needed coloring in (the guy in the foreground below, a renegade, was creating his own drawing on the mural—nerts to filling in someone else's drawing!).

I also mentioned music. We stopped to listen to the Kevin Lucas Orchestra, a marimba band including flute, sax, guitar, bass, drums, and violin. They were playing their hearts out in the heat, and we found their sounds very enjoyable and well suited to the event.

I must stop here, as the last day of the Taste starts NOW. Hopefully the rain will hold off; it doesn't look too bad at the moment. Oh, and if the sun does start blazing, don't worry; you can always find a table and some shade:

Remember that the Taste is the main fundraiser for the Champaign Park District's Youth Program Scholarship program. So, if you can, go on out today this weekend and help the CPD celebrate 40 41 years of this event.

Taste of Champaign-Urbana 2011
West Side Park in Champaign
Friday June 17, 5:00 – 10:00 pm
Saturday, June 18, 11:00 am – 10:00 pm
Sunday, June 19, 11:00 am – 6:00 pm
Information, maps, list of vendors, etc., on the CPD website

Crawfish Boil Brings Taste of Louisiana to Downtown Urbana

I'm reposting my report on last year's crawfish boil at Crane Alley, because this year's boil—the 3rd annual—is coming up on Sunday, June 19, 2011. If this looks like something you want in on, you can register your intention to attend on the relevant Facebook page and stop by the bar this week to buy a ticket. Advance tickets for the all-you-can-eat extravaganza are $15; if you wait and buy in on Sunday, you'll pay $20. ~Lisa

If you're reading this right now (Sunday, June 20, 2010), what are you doing at home? Get yourself down to Crane Alley in Urbana and join the party! That's right—probably the best thing to happen in downtown Urbana all year is going on all day TODAY. I refer to Crane Alley's Second Annual Crawfish Boil. Sorry I didn't give you more notice, but I only found out about the event myself yesterday. Naturally, I rushed to the scene of the happening minutes before the party started at 1 p.m.

The Crane Alley staff were just putting up the sign over the alley when I arrived. The giant beer bottle was already in place. And a crowd was just beginning to gather. I smelled the cauldrons of potatoes, corn, and Andouille sausage in the adjacent parking garage before I saw them. General manager Aaron was kind enough to take me behind the serving line to show me the preparations.

There, I feasted my eyes on sausages, green peppers, and onions boiling in their Cajun-seasoned broth:

Ditto for the corn on the cob, cut into easy-to-eat pieces:

And the potatoes, here being lifted, drained, and readied for the serving line:

But of course, the focus in the prep area was the crawfish (a.k.a. crayfish and mudbugs). Aaron told this reporter that 400 pounds of live crawfish were delivered to the bar/restaurant yesterday, direct from Louisiana. Yep, I said FOUR HUNDRED POUNDS. Here are but a fraction of them lounging on chicken wire before their big dunk into the water.

Actually they were not lounging; they were mostly on the move. I snapped one guy as he was making his way to the edge of the table, and he was giving the others ideas. A few of the mudbugs did make a break for it and managed to flip themselves off the table; they were scooped up, carefully, by Aaron and the kitchen staff and unceremoniously dropped right back on top of the pile.

And then, suddenly, it was all happening. Vegetables, sausages, and crawfish were poured into serving pans, a line formed in the alley, the music was cranked up, the beer and Hurricanes started flowing, and I was in the thick of a suck-that-head, eat-that-tail, chug-that-drink, and wipe-your-face carnival.

Maybe I exaggerate a little bit. There were, after all, children in attendance at that early hour. All bets are off once the sun goes down tonight, though.

I glimpsed local celebrity chef Thad Morrow (of bacaro fame) there; he was one of the first in line. Chef Morrow obviously knew that Crane Alley was the place to be today.

I stood in line for a very short time, and soon I had my paper boat filled with the good stuff. Every single bit of food was deliciously seasoned and perfectly cooked. It was kind of amazing to be eating the mudbugs I'd seen crawling around only moments before. I mean, how often does that happen in C-U?

Have you never eaten crawfish before? If that's the case, take a gander at this precious video. It's a painfully simple process; crawfish are like teeny-weeny lobsters. Be prepared to get messy; that's all part of the fun.

I got a shot of the beverage menu for you. Notice the FOUR DOLLAR Hurricanes (I'm not so interested in beer, so it was the cheap cocktails that drew my attention; however, if you're a beer drinker, have at it).

There are also games and contests going on. Think you can peel and eat 25 crawfish faster than anyone else? Sign yourself up!

The price of admission to this fun event is $20, and that twenty covers all the crawfish and other boil food you can eat. Not a bad price at all, and when you factor in the $4 Hurricanes . . . (all right, that's all I'm going to say about the Hurricanes). The boil started at 1 p.m., and it'll be in full swing until at least 9 p.m. (or "whenever everybody feels like going home," according to manager Aaron).

Celebrating Father's Day? I think your dad would like to go.

If you missed it this year, make your plans for the third annual crawfish boil next June!

Crane Alley Bar and Restaurant
115 West Main Street (just west of Broadway; convenient parking is available in the adjacent parking deck)
Urbana, IL
217-384-7526

Tickets for the 3rd annual crawfish boil, which runs from 1 p.m. to around 9 p.m., are $15 in advance and $20 at the door on Sunday, June 19, 2011. Stop by Crane Alley this week to pick up advance tickets. Here's a link to the event page on Facebook.

Mexican Fast Food + Hawaiian Ices = A Fine Meal from Mobile Vendors

If you're a lover of great tasting, inexpensive eats and treats, make a point of stopping by the corner of Prospect and Bradley in north-central Champaign sometime soon.

This is the same corner where last fall you could find Lord and Lacy barbecue. I don't know what happened to that operation, but it has been replaced by the Mas Amigos taco truck and, more recently, the Hawaiian Ice trailer as well. Two mobile food vendors on one corner! Which is very convenient, because that way you can pick up dinner and dessert all at the same time.

The Taco Motorizado offers so much more than just tacos, as you see on the menu, but we can start there. I've had chorizo tacos and the steak variety ($1.85 each), and both were very tasty. These tacos are Mexican style: two small corn tortillas, lightly grilled, are topped with the meat of your choice plus onions and cilantro (you can have lettuce and tomato on top if you'd rather).

Counter person Ilyana will give you tiny cups of red and green sauce that you can dress up your tacos with, as well (be careful—both sauces will start a little fire in your mouth). And notice that you also get the traditional lime wedges for that extra flavor boost.

On another occasion I stopped by the truck after work and picked up a steak burrito ($4.99) and a quesadilla Suprema ($5.99). Both were very good—nice and hot, even after I'd driven home with them, tortillas and fillings very fresh, really great. The burrito was large, and as you can see, it had beans, meat, tomatoes, lettuce, cheese, onions—all kinds of good stuff in there.

I ordered the quesadilla Suprema without meat, asking for avocado instead, and that was no problem. The final product was a delightful, big, chewy, cheesy mess, big and cheesy being the operative words. Loved it.

But wait, there's more. We haven't even gotten to my favorite Taco Motoizado items yet! Those would be the chicken torta ($4.99) and the elotes ($2.00).

A torta, as you may know, is a Mexican sandwich that comes on a giant bun and has everything but your smart phone on it: the meat of your choice, refried beans, mayo, avocado, jalapeno slices, lettuce, onions, cheese, etc., etc., etc. (Of course, as for all of these items, you can have it your way, so if don't want certain toppings, just tell Ilyana and she will take care of it.) I've had a pork torta and the chicken, and though the pork version was perfectly adequate, TM chef Gilberto does something to the chicken that's extra-good, so that's my standard order these days.

Now, elotes you may not be so familiar with. At its most basic, elote is corn on the cob on a stick. Yes, it's reminiscent of fair food. Boiled or grilled corn on the cob is coated with mayo (or a mayo-and-butter mixture), chile powder, and cotija cheese (which is sort of like Parmesan) and sprinkled with lime juice. The Taco Motorizado corn is very tender, and the whole deal is sweet, salty, tart, and a little zingy.

I urge you to try it right away, but you can't be prim and proper when you eat it, so be sure you take someone you don't mind getting creamy and sticky and messy with. Someone you can feel free to smack your lips and lick your fingers with.

Where was I? Oh, yes. What's to drink with all this food, you ask. The TM carries a full line of soft beverages including Mexican Coke and Pepsi, several flavors of Jarritos sodas, Boing! guava drink (my personal favorite), and bottled water.

You can call your order in and then go pick it up, if you want, so put the TM number in your phone: 217-372-0129. The truck serves lunch and dinner from 10:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. every day but Sunday. There are no tables on the corner of Prospect and Bradley, so either take a card table and set up your own, eat in your car, or grab and go.

For dessert, or as an accompaniment for your Mexican food, take a few steps to the left of the TM and you'll find yourself at the window of the Hawaiian Ice trailer. There a very pleasant young man will make you a cup of shaved ice drowned in the sweet syrup of your choice.

There are more than 100 flavors (including Horchata!), so you should be able to find something you like. Ten of the flavors are calorie-free, even (sweetened with Splenda). I tried the flavor known as Tiger's Blood, which is a combination of watermelon, strawberry, and coconut, and I thoroughly enjoyed it. I dare you to try Wedding Cake, or Red Hot.

Ices are available in three sizes: small ($2.00), medium ($2.50), and large ($3.00). I didn't get the volume figures on those, but my small looked to be 8 ounces, at least.

The Hawaiian Ice truck is open from noon to 9 p.m. every day, and the phone number is 217-722-9530. Go give owner Kyle a shout, he's a friendly fella and intrepid entrepreneur doing his best to keep you cool this summer. You can find out the latest by liking the Hawaiian Ice truck on Facebook.