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Christy Bennett
Dolce Casa Cafe
May 17th 2012
4947 North Damen Avenue
Chicago, Ill 60625
Cost: $Free
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New Orleans comes to Lincoln Square
New Orleans comes to Lincoln Square
Date Posted: May 11 2011
Written By: Randy Freedman
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Mardi Gras, the festival for which New Orleans, Louisiana is most famous, literally means “Fat Tuesday” (from the French “Mardi” (Tuesday) and “Gras” (fat)). It occurs forty-six days before Easter, and can be any Tuesday between February 3 and March 9. This year Fat Tuesday fell on March 8. As has been the tradition for the past several years, bandleader and trombonist Russ Philips led his Windy City All-Stars band in a rousing evening of New Orleans jazz at Chicago Brauhaus (4732 N. Lincoln Ave). This event always fills the Brauhaus to capacity and requires reservations well in advance. It was an event I had long looked forward to attending.
For over forty years, the Chicago Brauhaus has been offering old-school German cuisine and spirits served by wait-staff dressed in traditional Bavarian garb to patrons of Chicago’s Lincoln Square neighborhood. As is my custom, I arrived early to get a head start on dinner before the music began, so that I could give each my full attention. As I entered from the front, I noticed the layout of the interior of Chicago Brauhaus is basically one large room with light shaded woodwork forming three large arches separating a wood parquet floored stage/dance floor area and long rectangular liquor bar from an even larger dining room with two- and four-top tables. The walls directly behind the stage area are decorated with mounted string and horn musical instruments. Colorful, huge German beer steins are on display in clear glass cases throughout the stage/bar area and dining room.
Normally closed on Tuesdays, the restaurant provided a special combined German/New Orleans menu when it opened on Fat Tuesday to celebrate the occasion. The menu offered so many tasty choices that it was hard to decide what not to order. As an appetizer, I found the fresh tasting Bismark Herring, pickled in vinegar with raw onions, impossible to resist (though I was relieved afterwards to find some breath mints in my pocket). It was served with light rye sunflower seed bread that matched it perfectly. A choice between traditional Bavarian liver dumpling soup and equally traditional New Orleans gumbo proved impossible for me, so I ordered a cup of each, and was glad I had skipped lunch that day.
The liver dumpling soup was delicious, but the gumbo was quite a bit thicker and creamier than are traditional Cajun gumbos. It was very enjoyable in its own way, though was perhaps more of a goulash than gumbo. The roast duckling entree with a homemade tangy gravy scored high marks for being as crispy, moist, and lean as you hope duck will be, but seldom is. A side of red beans and rice was slightly smoky, not too salty and made an excellent cross-cultural compliment to the duck. A melt-in-your-mouth hot bread pudding with bourbon whiskey sauce and coffee rounded out a terrific meal with unusual combinations.
Entertainment at Chicago Brauhaus is ordinarily provided by house musicians playing in a polka band style mixed with a smattering of Irish jigs and old pop/folk standards. As with the meal, the music was a multicultural mix of “Max” on electric accordion and prerecorded rhythm, alternating sets with the Windy City All Stars (Russ Phillips, trombone; Jeremy Kahn, keyboard; Bob Rummage, drums; Stewart Miller, bass, Eric Schneider, saxophone and clarinet; Bob Ojeda, trumpet; and Jeannie Lambert, vocals). Max seemed undaunted by sharing the stage with seven of Chicago’s finest jazz musicians.
The Windy City All-Stars performed long extended versions of songs that afforded each member of this talented band ample and fairly divided time to demonstrable their musical skill both together and in solos. The musical highlights of the evening included “Rosetta” (Hines), which was graced by the sugar-sweet clarinet sound of Schneider. During “The Mooch” (Ellington), patrons on the dance floor twice broke into applause––first for the exciting keyboard work of Kahn, and then for the authentic New Orleans trombone flavor provided by Phillips.
The always-impeccable phrasing of Lambert’s vocals brought a new level of post-Hurricane Katrina pathos to “Do You Know What It Means To Miss New Orleans? (DeLange and Alter).” Between jazz sets, local favorite Max filled the dance floor to overflowing with a highly stylized version of the already highly stylized Abba disco hit “Dancing Queen.”
By embracing, cultivating, and virtually reveling in the multicultural and ethnically diverse nature of Chicago, the Chicago Brauhaus has created a unique and extremely popular new Fat Tuesday tradition, born of old tradition, but now seemingly self-sustaining. With a delicious food and music variety, the undeniable talent of a true all-star jazz band paired with a popular neighborhood musical icon, and even a “funny hat” contest that helped keep the mood whimsical, the Chicago Brauhaus may have laid claim to being the top venue for Fat Tuesday revelers in Chicago for years to come.
For more information contact: russphillips.net or chicagobrauhaus.com.
Chicago freelance writer Randy Freedman is a jazz connoisseur, photographer, food critic, humorist, and devoted music fan. He is a regular contributor to Chicago Jazz Magazine.
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