Rendang Republic brings a taste of Indonesia to Wrigleyille | Eater Chicago
"Chef John Avila’s upcoming Wrigleyville restaurant occupies a 1,200-square-foot space and blends Indonesian roots with Chicago traditions and community-building: Avila wants the space to bolster his communities — the creatives, artists, and, yes — those part of the AAPI family, including the modest Indonesian population (the last Census counted less than 2,000). The menu includes a hot dog that mimics a Chicago Dog with crispy shallot; an acar acar (Southeast Asian pickle) made from carrots, cucumbers, and shallots; and sambal aioli, and it uses a chicken sausage from his old stomping grounds at the Duck Inn in Bridgeport on the South Side. Owner Kevin Hickey’s cousin, Jim Hickey, was a pitching coach for the Cubs, “so it’s OK.” There's also a beef rendang sandwich that pays tribute to the Italian beef — topped with giardiniera, crispy shallot, green onion, and sambal aioli — and the menu is mostly halal beyond the hot dog, giving the whole offering a “third culture kid” vibe similar to restaurants like Kasama. The all-day café centers around rendang, a dish Avila describes as evoking pride in many Indonesians and one he compares in importance to Indonesians to sushi and the Japanese; rendang here is beef slowly simmered in coconut milk with a bath of spices — cumin and coriander seeds, peppercorns, and cloves — and the kitchen will incorporate techniques Avila observed on a trip to Padang. “The flavors were richer and bolder,” he says about what he ate there; he typically simmers his rendang for two to three hours, while in Padang he encountered versions cooked up to eight hours, and in retrospect Avila says the trip “was eye-opening and revealed ignorance as he didn’t understand the connection between the food and the country’s different terrain over its 17,000 islands.” The new venture is bolstered by business partner Rizal Hamdallah, who is from Padang and helped hone the focus on rendang. Avila also brought back his mother’s famous cross-cultural egg rolls — “Mama Betty’s” egg rolls, stuffed with chicken and shrimp — and the operation will feature drinks from Big Shoulders Coffee and Volition Tea and pastries from Umaga Bakehouse. Diners won’t see rijsttafel (noting that rijsttafel is a product of colonization); the program for now concentrates on flavors from Padang, though a future alternative might be Nasi Padang, a mini banquet centered around steamed rice. The restaurant will quietly debut with an afternoon opening before all-day hours begin on Saturday, April 5 (opening at 2 p.m. on Sunday, March 30; official opening on Saturday, April 5)." - Ashok Selvam
