Kookkook Khao Man Kai — Restaurant in Lake View Township

The newest food offering on Clark Street. This place’s speciality is Thai Chicken rice cooked 3 ways. The inside of the restaurant is small but tastefully decorated. Lots of great items on the menu so I guess I’m going to have to go again to try their noodles which looked good too. To start we had the curry puffs and fried chicken. Both were delicious and crispy. The piece de resistance is most definitely the chicken rice. I tried the steamed version which came with a bowl of soup and your choice of dipping sauce. The rice was tasty and you could tell it was cooked with the stock of the chicken - so good (and you can order more as a side). The ginger garlic dipping sauce was slightly spicy but paired well with the chicken. If I think there is anything I would suggest is that $2 for a side of sriracha sauce is very steep especially when a lot of thai restaurants offer this condiment free when asked. Apart from that, I definitely recommend you give it a go. First week of opening and it was busy. Long...

Finding a decent Hainanese chicken rice in the city had proven to be quite a difficult task for me. So naturally, when I learned a restaurant specializing in it just opened, I knew I had to check it out. I have to say this is the closest I’ve gotten to the Hainanese chicken rice I’ve had in Asia in Chicago. The rice was well-seasoned and incredibly fragrant: rich with chicken fat, ginger, and garlic. I could have easily eaten it by itself by the spoonful. The chicken was juicy and tender though I found it not as firm and flavorful as what I’m used to. The ginger sauce was flavorful and aromatic, supplementing the lack of flavors in the chicken. The accompanying broth was simple yet hearty and delicious. I could tell they were still smoothing out the service side but the kitchen’s already...

Friendly service, delicious food and colorful chicken wallpaper can all be found at Kookkook Khoa Man Kai. This dish (Khao man kai) is my ultimate comfort food dish. I seek it out everywhere I go and it’s sometimes hit or miss but they got a hit here. The broth, the rice and of course the chicken are all spot on. They also have a delicious sauce that brings it all together. There are different options of chicken to go with the rice too. In addition to steamed, there are grilled and fried options. All very tasty and you can’t go wrong with any choice. This was the first of what will be many future...