Parachute

To call Parachute 'creative Korean-American dining' is a misnomer; I'd prefer to call it 'American fine dining with a Korean twist', as the menu items had very little in common with the food I usually eat in the motherland. Nevertheless, the concept intrigued me enough to warrant a visit into a neighborhood that I otherwise never frequent.

The menu was full of intriguing items that embodied the creativity I often look for in a restaurant, but I wasn't too pleased with the interior; aside from a few tables on either side, most of the restaurant consisted of an extremely long table in the middle of the room at which multiple unrelated parties would sit side by side.

But since when has a less-than-ideal ambiance ever deterred me from enjoying a meal? I promptly sat down and ordered the baked potato bing bread, which according to Yelp is one of their most popular appetizers.

This dish tasted very much like a baked potato because of the scallions, cheese, bacon, and potato bits baked into the bread. The sour cream butter on the side was a perfect accompaniment to the warm bread and the sesame seeds added an Asian flair. It was insanely delicious, but hardly Korean.

The next course was the pork belly and mung bean pancake with kimchi and black garlic, topped with bits of pineapple and a sunny side up egg.

I have always been a fan of the savory pancake as populatized in East Asian countries (e.g. okonomiyaki in Japan). This was a unique twist on that concept, and though I could barely taste the kimchi, the flavors that I could taste complemented each other well (especially the runny egg yolk on top).

Next we moved on to the main course. I ordered the hwe dup bap, which is essentially bibimbap (white rice, veggies, meat, and a spicy pepper sauce called gochujang) with bits of sashimi and roe.

This dish is very popular in Korea, and the Parachute rendition drew no recognizable western inspiration. The fish was fresh and the dish overall tasted as delicious as other hwe dup bap's that I've had in the past.

The last (and least impressive) dish was the lamb ribs with a yuzu and honey rub.

In contrast to the hwe dup bap, I would argue that this dish had little to no Korean inspiration, as lamb is not eaten very often in Korea and the ribs were prepared in a very western manner. 

The downside, however, was that they were composed almost entirely of fat. Though the restaurant ended up not charging us for the dish, it did put a bit of a damper on the experience.

I did enjoy myself at Parachute, but because of the suboptimal seating arrangements and the inedible lamb, I am still on the fence as to whether I will return.

Restaurants mentioned:

Parachute

3500 N Elston Ave.

Chicago, IL 60618

(773) 654-1460

parachuterestaurant.com