Urbanbelly - Review - West Loop - Chicago - The Infatuation
"The “Belly” restaurants are like the Brady Bunch of Asian cuisine. Between Belly Q, Belly Shack, and Urbanbelly, you’ve got your bases covered with Asian barbecue, Korean and Puerto Rican Fusion, and a slightly more traditional but still somewhat fusion noodles, dumplings, and rice spot. Urbanbelly is the more casual noodles, dumplings, and rice spot of the three, and is connected to its older Belly Q sibling. What we’re basically saying is Urbanbelly is the Cindy/Bobby Brady of the bunch, except for as far as we know Urbanbelly isn’t growing weed in the back - something real life Cindy Brady admitted to doing because she “liked gardening.” Sure, gardening. The way things work here are pretty simple: order at the counter, grab a number, and take a seat at one of the long communal tables either inside or outside on the patio. Don't feel like sitting? You can also pop in, drop $15, and be back at your desk or apartment in no time with a meal that you'll be perfectly content with. Either way, you should probably know that Urbanbelly is a straightforward operation, and it's also a gluten bloodbath, so leave your gluten-free but probably not actually Celiac crew at home. Don't make things complicated. You know what make things complicated? Kissing your step-sibling. Leave that to the Brady Brunch. Food Rundown Spiced Edamame You'll be very tempted to start with dumplings, but this spiced edamame is a great move. They come covered in Szechuan peppercorns, ground coriander, and fennel. Pork & Cilantro Dumplings Steamed pork dumplings with a soy-balsamic sauce. These are one of our go-to moves. Duck & Pho Spices Dumplings Fried duck dumplings with citrus and cucumber. Decent, but not breaking any records. If you're with someone else and need a starter then go for it, but not necessary on your own. Lemongrass Chicken Jasmine fried rice with scrambled egg and ground chicken. Pretty basic, but the rice is great and it has good flavor for what it is. If you're looking to keep it real simple then we support ordering this. Urbanbelly Ramen Ramen with braised pork belly, mushrooms, and an egg. It has almost a sweetness to it along with the heavy mushroom flavors that we can't even pinpoint. What we do know is that the pork belly is delicious and this is a good ramen for $13. Half versions are also available for $8 at lunch, a very respectable option. Hamachi Poké Bowl Not on the regular menu, but keep an eye out for this as a special. Same great jasmine rice with some hamachi, avocado, and some other basic veggies to round things out." - Sam Faye
