When I first tap-tap-tapped the glassy, porky exterior of Roel Estanilla’s lechón back in January, I knew he was Monday Night Foodball material. Just a shard of the crispy skin jacketing the lush roasted pork belly would be worth the price of a ticket to the Reader’s weekly chef pop-up series at Irving Park’s Kedzie Inn.
Estanilla and his wife Jen had other priorities, namely the incubation of a Little Lechonita, who finally arrived late last month. She’ll be there with mom and dad this Monday, April 25, when their marvelous Pig & Fire catering/pop-up operation ventures from its Hatchery HQ for an evening of sublime Filipino food straight out of the Kedzie’s kitchen.
They’re bringing crispy chunks of that luscious pork belly swaddled in warm tortillas, along with platters of sizzling sisig; crispy, cigar-sized lumpia stuffed with beef, pork, or veggies; heaping mounds of Roel’s mom’s pancit recipe; and chocolate chip ube cookies, restoring your faith in dessert. Meanwhile, former Blackbird/Spiaggia barkeep Derek Mercer of Present Tense has deployed a couple pointed riffs on the classics for Jon Pokorny to pour, to wit:
MOJITO: rum, mango, lime, mint
OLD FASHIONED: rye, pineapple, bitters, demerara
Preorders are open now, but as always a limited number of first-come, first-serve walk-in orders will be taken. It starts at 5 PM and goes until the lechon is gone.
Meanwhile, see the abiding Monday Night Foodball schedule below.
- May 2: Former Lost Lake chef Dani Kaplan with the return of Chick-Feel-Gay
- May 9: Dominican food with Angelina Bastidas of Tournant
- June 6: The triumphant return of Kedai Tapao (Malaysian)
Kedzie Inn
4100 N. Kedzie
(773) 293-6368
kedzieinn.com
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