I first ate at the Publican in Chicago in early 2010. This was just over a year after it opened and it was hot, hot, hot. I enjoyed that dinner very much*. And so even though it is now 2015, and I haven’t really kept up with its reputation, it was my pick for a place to go to when we passed through Chicago this weekend with the kids in tow: their regular menu is very kid-friendly; and there is no way in hell that even very badly behaved children can put a damper on anyone’s evening at the Publican (they’d have to be screaming into a megaphone to be heard) and ours are very well-behaved indeed when an iPad is deployed.

On the whole, it was a nice meal but it didn’t get me as excited as the previous. Continue reading →