Go Beyond Steak and Eggs With These Standout Specialties
As evidenced by the classic breakfast pairing of steak and eggs, it’s clear that eggs are a vital ingredient at steakhouses. But far beyond breakfast classics, steakhouses are inventing new and exciting ways to incorporate eggs into their menus. Whether served alongside steaks or on their own as standout appetizers or sides, there’s always a place for them in the pantheon of steakhouse cookery. Here are some of the best egg dishes to savor at Chicago steakhouses.
Steak 48: Deviled eggs are a menu MVP at plenty of steakhouses, and while the classic prep is all well and good, it pays to think outside the box and reinvent the norm. The perfect example can be found at Steak 48, a River North newcomer with a penchant for innovation. Case in point, deviled eggs here are dredged in panko breadcrumbs and deep-fried, providing a golden-brown crust around the exterior of the creamy, farm-fresh interior. It’s all capped off with a dollop of spicy sriracha aïoli, which brings a little added heat and color. Going even further, the restaurant serves another version of deviled eggs topped with parmesan and crispy shrimp.
Benny’s Chop House: Another commonplace egg prep at steakhouses is tartare, wherein raw yolks are typically nestled over finely cut beef with classic accompaniments like mustard and cornichons. The best and beefiest of the bunch, though, is the ritzy version served at Benny’s Chop House. Here, rare and coveted Japanese black grade A-5 Miyagi steak is cubed into tender tartare and crowned with a delicate quail egg. Capers, red onions, cornichons, whole-grain mustard and anchovies round it all out with well-rounded notes of acidity, salt and spice.
RL Restaurant: Borrowing inspiration from classic American lunchtime traditions, eggs play a pivotal role at this Magnificent Mile mainstay. Start with one of the best Cobb salads in town, here heaped with crunchy iceberg and romaine lettuces, chicken, bacon lardons, blue cheese, tomatoes, avocado and hard-cooked eggs with red wine vinaigrette. The Polo Club is a standout sandwich, layered with hard-cooked egg, roasted chicken, bacon, lettuce and tomato on toasted brioche. If neither of those are eggy enough for you, order an omelet. Perfectly cooked versions come filled with optional add-ons like bacon, ham, tomatoes, onions, mushrooms, peppers and spinach.
Bavette’s Bar & Boeuf: Another classic eggy salad is the Lyonnaise salad, a French staple that takes greens into full-blown comfort food territory. Nowhere in Chicago is this better than the version at Bavette’s Bar & Boeuf, a romantic haunt with a knack for frites, tartare, terrines and other French delicacies. The Lyonnaise salad is particularly good here, featuring delicate lettuces layered with bacon, soft-cooked egg and brioche croutons. The egg’s yolk serves as a silky dressing as you cut and toss it all together.
Ditka’s: Naturally, any steakhouse that serves brunch is going to have plenty of eggs to choose from. Cage-free and farm-fresh eggs take the spotlight at all three locations of this local institution, spotlighted in fan favorites like corned beef hash, eggs Benedict, breakfast wraps and hueves rancheros. One unique highlight is the pot roast hash scramble, which features succulent shredded meat cooked together with two eggs, cheddar Jack, peppers, mushrooms and caramelized onions.
Maple & Ash: In addition to the egg double whammy that is caviar with eggs and blini, this Gold Coast gem puts eggs front-and-center on the Sunday brunch menu. Among the snazziest steakhouse brunches in the city, the menu features masterful preparations like market omelets filled with truffled goat cheese, a ham and cheese version with slow-roasted porchetta and ’nduja, and fire-roasted eggs with hearth-cooked tomatoes and pepper ragout. Each and every dish is soulful and divine in its simplicity, designed to showcase the inherent deliciousness of eggs and how easily they adapt other flavors and textures.
Tavern on Rush: Get your egg fix any time of day at this Gold Coast icon, where omelets are offered in rotating flavors for brunch and lunch, and prime burgers come topped with pepper Jack cheese, bacon-sweet onion jam and a fried egg. Those eggs can be added to any other burger or sandwich as well, be it a veggie burger, a tequila-lime chicken sandwich or a bison burger with Cabernet onions, goat cheese and black cherry jam. Or if you’d rather just order something where eggs are the star, the lunch menu features a fried egg club sandwich with bacon, lettuce, tomato and mayo on multi-grain toast.
