Umamicue and friends smoke out the neighborhood

Check out this historic barbecue supergroup's menu at the next Monday Night Foodball.

Food & Drink This time it's for real: the sweet narcotic haze of smoked meat will haunt the streets and alleys of Irving Park. That's when Odesza, Charles Wong's candy apple-red, 22-foot, 500-gallon mobile road pit, will pull up at the corner of Kedzie and Belle Plaine for Monday Night Foodball, the Reader's weekly guest chef pop-up at the Kedzie Inn. It's the return of Odesza's keeper, the peripatetic new-school, Asian barbecue pop-up Umamicue, aka Wong, the hardest working pitmaster in Chicago showbiz. Wong's shown up for many a Foodball, helping out his comrades even when he wasn't headlining. This week a rogues' gallery of five chefs has his back, each one harnessing Odesza's smoky mojo in the service of a dish of their own. It's a combined prix fixe platter that will shatter your assumptions about what barbecue is and shall ever be. Central Texas brewery barbecue ronins Heffer BBQ will preview their December guest residency at Kimski with a smoky chicken thigh tostada, with pinto chipotle salsa, pickled red onion, and queso fresco. Mike Shaker, aka Shaker BBQ, is a Texas apostle himself, bringing in a peppery prime beef brisket and jalapeno-cheddar beef-pork sausage duo. Returning Foodball heroes SuperHai are throwing some cabbage on the grates for yakisoba with honey miso poached shrimp, shiitakes, tamago, and Kewpie; while another illustrious MNF OG, Thattu, returns with a Keralan-style smoked bean curry. I might be most stoked for Wong's tea-smoked duck breast bao, a collaboration with yet another Kedzie vet, Annie Xiang of Volition Tea, who will post up in the bar with a pair of cold brews for sale, along with her exquisite dried teas.   The mad rush for limited walk-in orders begins at 5:30 PM this Monday, September 19, but you can secure your preorders for this barbecue supergroup right now. Meanwhile, gaze upon Monday Night Foodball's fall schedule in progress. More dates to come. 9/26: Chicken and waffle night with Avrom Farm 10/3: Pasta night with Tony Quartaro of Gemma Foods 10/10: Night of the Copi (the invasive species formerly known as Asian carp) with Chả Cá Nuggs 10/17: Traditional Jewish deli with a modern purpose with Schneider Provisions 10/24: Sausage party with the Hot Dog Box 10/31: Halloween bye night 11/7: Plant-focused taqueria pop-up Piñatta  11/14: TBA 11/21: TBA 11/28: Thanksgiving break 12/5: TBA 12/12: Kimski rumspringa with Won Kim 12/19: First night of Hanukkah with Zeitlin's Delicatessen and Schneider Provisions Check out the menu and preorder now! Food books are falling this month Four Chicago books on pies, Palestinian cuisine, veggies, and bread by Mike Sula   Pastry chef Ollyvia Putri's 20-layer cakes are legit Her Lapis312 is the go-to U.S. supplier of labor-intensive cakes and cookies to Indonesian expats. by Mike Sula December 2021   The flood that birthed Love Cork Screw wines Négociant Chrishon Lampley turned a business loss into a trailblazing brand. by Janaya Greene 🗞️ The Chicago Reader is published in print every other week and distributed to nearly 1,200 locations! Find yours on the map here 👇 Issue of September 15 - 28, 2022 Vol. 51, No. 25 Download Issue (PDF) View this e-mail as a web page Forward this e-mail to a friend. Want to change how you receive these e-mails? You can update your preferences or unsubscribe from this list. Copyright © 2022 Chicago Reader, All rights reserved. You were subscribed to the receive emails from Chicago Reader Our mailing address is: Chicago Reader, 2930 S. Michigan Ave., Suite 102, Chicago, IL 60616