Sweet Home Chicago

Just stumbled across a new pizza place in Draper. Haven’t been there in person yet but it is on our list for upcoming evaluation.

Their menu incluldes thin-crust chicago style pizza, stuffed crust pizza, Chicago dogs, salads, and sandwiches.

Sweet Home Chicago Pizzeria
1442 E. Draper Parkway
Draper, UT 84020
801-545-0455

www.sweethomechicagopizzeria.com

The Chimi Project: Bajio

My brother and I continued our survey of chimichangas available in the greater Salt Lake area. Today was stop number 2. See our first stop in the previous post on Su Casa.

Today was Bajio Mexican Grill. For those not close to a Bajio, it is a regional mexican chain that started here in Utah. From what I’ve heard, although it’s unconfirmed, the guy who started it used to be one of the partners in another Mexican place in Provo called Rosa’s which has since closed. After Rosa’s he opened Bajio. Another unconfirmed piece of info that I’ve heard is that Bajio is at least partially owned by or has an investment from Subway. Bajio, which may have been local to Utah at one point, now has locations in several states and is actively franchising additional ones.

Enough of that though, back to the chimichangas. When we first made our list Bajio was on it. And like I mentioned, we had both been there in the past but neither of us had ever had the chimi there. The one we went to is on 2100 South in Salt Lake — the part of the city known as Sugarhouse. Fortunately the lines during lunch are nothing like they are at the one in Provo which always has long lines. My brother went for the chimichanga with their spicy chicken filling (as opposed to the lime chicken filling). I myself got their new mexican pizza with their al pastor pork and sweet rice.

Let me get my impressions out the way first. This actually is the second time in a week that I have been to Bajio. And while the mexican pizza was good, it was not good enough to supplant my two favorite Bajio items – first and foremost, the honeybutter sauteed shrimp tacos and the chicken taquitos with the works on top of them. The pizza was good, but ohhhh… the shrimp tacos with their mango salsa and sweet rice on the side cannot be beat. The pizza was good, but I will once again be ordering the Shrimp Tacos on future visits, the pizza was not good enough to keep me away from them.

For the chimi, here are my brother’s impressions:

• high marks for the fact that it was made and fried fresh right in front of you, a little extra wait but worth it, especially since Bajio is a semi-fast food place.
• you cannot beat the plate-bending heft of the finished product
• the quality of the accompaniments (salsa, rice on the side, guac, sour cream, etc) significantly add to the overall experience. In Bajio’s case they do it right.
• not really food related, but this Bajio has the good ice. I can’t really describe what the good ice is since it is a thing that was defined in our family long ago. But if you want to know what it is go to this Bajio, their drink machine dispenses the good ice.
• the quality of the tortilla used, which was cooked fresh after we ordered, adds to the overall quality of the chimi. Again, a big positive for Bajio.

On the negative side:

• Our opinion is that a critical factor in a good chimi is the variety of textures in the chimi. You need the soft, moist, seasoned filling contrasted with a crunchy exterior. Bajio could have cooked their chimi a bit longer to give it some added crunch.
• Another important factor, related to the variety of textures is the filling to tortilla ratio. In this case, if there is too much filling, it overwhelms the crunch of the tortilla on the exterior. It is important that the filling to tortilla ratio is balanced. We decided that Bajio erred a little on the too much filling side in relation to the amount of crunchy tortilla available.

But that is it on the negative, which is pretty minor. The consensus was that it is vastly superior to the Su Casa version, but might not quite measure up to the one they serve at Baja Cantina in Park City, although that is based on a 13 year old memory of the last time my brother had a chimi at Baja Cantina, so it may be a bit idealized. We hope to get an updated impression from there soon.

Bajio Mexican Grill

1010 East 2100 South

Salt Lake City, UT

www.bajiogrill.com

(many other locations listed on their web site)

Big City Soup

At this time of the year, you have to love a place that specializes in soup. One of their three locations is just around the corner from my office and I was in a bit of hurry today so I ordered some to go. Although I was only in the store briefly, I had a good first impression.

They have a list of signature soups and also daily specials. It looked like they have also started offering sandwiches as well. I ordered their cream of tomato with gorgonzola. The service was friendly and speedy. Before I could decide whether or not I should try one of their rice krispie treats for dessert they had spooned me up a fresh container of the soup, added some good toasted croutons, packaged it up with slice of fresh bread and for a nice additional touch included a pre-bagged set of accompaniments — spoon, knife, salt, pepper, two kinds of mints and a napkin.

The cream of tomato was excellent. Mostly creamy with some chunks of tomato. It was perfectly seasoned and I didn’t even think about extra salt or pepper. I have a strong appreciation for food that is seasoned correctly. I want to go back and try several others of their signature soups and some of the daily specials the day I was there looked good as well. It is going to be a good winter.

Big City Soup
234 South Main
Salt Lake City, UT 84111

www.bigcitysoup.com

(this location is only open during lunch, see their website for their menu and other locations with longer opening hours)

The Year 1000: What Life Was Like at the Turn of the First Millennium by Robert Lacey

The Year 1000: What Life Was Like at the Turn of the First Millennium: An Englishman’s World by Robert Lacey

On my to be read list.

Elizabeth’s London by Liza Picard

Elizabeth’s London: Everyday Life in Elizabethan London by Liza Picard

More reference material than anything else, still quite fascinating to get a feel for how people would have lived in 1500s in London. Especially those not part of the monarchy or royalty or aristocracy of the day.

London: The Novel by Edward Rutherford

84 Charing Cross Road

I just saw this for the first time a week ago. Beyond some annoying cinematic effects (like having your characters speak at the camera), I’m surprised I haven’t seen this before. While half of it is set in New York, it creates a good atmosphere of London in several of the scenes that are in Anthony Hopkins’ characters part of the story.

Bend it Like Beckham

Vivid in my mind, beyond the story itself, are the Hounslow tube stop and the scene on Carnaby Street in Central London.

Pride and Prejudice (BBC 1996 version)

I can’t really add to what some people have already written. For now, for me, on this site, it’s just on my list of London films.

Notting Hill

The first in my collection of London-based movies. This one has Hugh Grant and Julia Roberts and is set in Notting Hill, which is the neighborhood I lived in when I studied in London.