Uncle Mike's Place

I am pleased to nominate everyone's favorite Filipino corner diner, Uncle Mike's Place, as a Great Neighborhood Restaurant.

Commentary from the main Uncle Mike's thread:

Jefe wrote: I could eat this every morning... Near perfect- light, garlicky rice, topped with just- right over easy eggs, yolks adding their creamy joy to the rice. Sweet, salty tocino had a char siu thing going on with a subtle spicing and sublime char. I sampled my buddy's longanisa, which I could also eat a whole plate of. And the brilliant addition of the salsa, bright and sour cutting just right the unctuousness of the rest of the plate... Uncle Mike's Place is going to become a ritual in my dining rotation.

fusionfan wrote:I liked the tocino (which evoked many pleasant memories of road trips to Pampanga, the province that this meat product is indigenous to, when I was a kid), but the longanisa was just superb! It was firm, sweet, garlicky...and beautifully grilled. I loved the free chicken lugaw as well - very robust and comforting with many, many pieces of shredded chicken meat (which you wouldn't expect in a complimentary dish

Hombre de Acero wrote:We all left with a big smile... Uncle Mike's is now on our breakfast rotation.

Da Beef wrote:I love to cut up the pork shoulder into pieces and mash it all together with the garlic fried rice and over easy eggs, throw the pico on top and that's my type of breakfast. You can count me amongst the big time fans of that garlic rice... I actually have three Uncle Mike's on my moms side of da fam. I wish this Uncle Mike was my fourth.

I wrote:The food and service were both top notch. From the first spoonful of the garlicky and intensely chickeny lugaw, everything was delicious.

Gypsy Boy wrote:Another fabulous breakfast! ... Can't say enough good things about this place... Service was great and aimed to please. Highly recommended.

mtgl wrote:Huge portions of homemade food for good prices in a worn but friendly atmosphere... Uncle Mike's had both great food and fine character, with enough quirk to easily elevate it above the rest of the burgeoning breakfast pack... I walked out tempted to write this up as a GNR.

swine dining wrote:It was just after 2, and I hadn't had anything but coffee all day so I was hungry bear. Of course I had the longanisa/tocino breakfast combo, and despite my starviness, I easily had enough leftover for another meal. The food had me sighing with happiness. ...thanks LTH! Loved this place.

Seems to me that Uncle Mike's has been in the "How-Is-This-Place-Not-Already-a-GNR?" file for long enough.

Uncle Mike's Place
1700 W Grand Ave
Chicago, IL 60622
(312) 226-5318

Yes, yes, yes! Let's make this the year of the Filipino GNR (mirroring the national trend of the cuisine's rise in profile).

I approve of this one, too. Before marrying into a Filipino family, this was my first and only exposure to the food, and I loved it so much I was tempted to nominate it some time ago. It's very much part of its neighborhood, full of all types of people, serving absurd amounts of quality food. I've never wandered off the Filipino path here--who can say no to longanisa AND tocino AND lugaw AND champorado?--but I've been with others who have and they find everything to be satisfying. Reliable excellence, off the beaten path, enjoyed by everyday people--that's what GNRs are, and Uncle Mike's more than meets the criteria.

I had my first crack at Filipino food here too, as limited as it may be. When the secret menu opened up to the masses, this place injected a well needed alternative to huevos in my neighborhood brunch repertoire. Its warm and inviting and a little bit hard to figure out. They make my second favorite bangus, which has been my must order since graduating from the sweet red meats. My favorite part of breakfast here though– the gratis lugaw, so elemental and restorative, popping with little hunks of ginger and perfect with a squeeze of lemon, the antidote to the chilly West Town streets.

Yes, GNR absolutely! Terrific nomination.

Hard to argue with this one. It's the epitome of comfort food and some really distinctive offerings, as well. A great nomination.

=R=