By Nicole Bayne
“It’s the childhood classics,” says Nate Anda, reimagined, that inspires the menu of B Side, opening in Mosaic District tomorrow afternoon. The chef-butcher behind the new restaurant also helms its neighbor, Red Apron Butchery, and the two share a commitment to meat-forward dishes.
“Take something like Bolognese and Brussels sprouts, and cook them in new way, paying close attention to texture,” is how Anda repurposed these two dishes. Other items include beef-fat-fried French fries and a rotating charcuterie menu (with cheeses curated from Righteous Cheese). The meat comes from farms selected through research and first-hand experience from Anda, who sources pasture-raised pigs supplied with non-GMO feed.
More meaty dishes include meatloaf; pot roast; pig tails braised in beef lard and served with Anda’s signature chili sauce; and rotisi-fried chicken, a rotisserie chicken deep-fried in beef fat. There’s also the Italian beef burger, named after the Chicago staple: Italian beef between two beef patties with fontina with and au jus bun quickly grilled to hold it together.
Neighborhood Restaurant Group‘s drink team put together a combination of meat-friendly sips: 12 draft beers and 150 craft bottles, especially highlighting sours; 20 wines by the glass and 120 bottles, with a focus on drier Lambruscos, the classic wine Italians drink with charcuterie that is usually very sweet; and a cocktail list named after classic B Side hit songs.
Anda’s love of cocktails shows in his experimentation with alcohol and charcuterie. The Campari rosemary salami actually mirrors a Negroni cocktail and the Eva Peron salami is made with Fernet, sweet vermouth, ginger liqueur and lime juice like an Eva Peron. / Opening Oct. 4 at 4 p.m.; B Side, 8298 Glass Alley, Fairfax
