Make Your Own Stir-Fry At Big Bowl
My husband and I like dining at Big Bowl because it’s one of those Asian/Thai fusion restaurants that allows you to pick your own mix of stir-fry vegetables. That makes it fun, vegetarian-friendly and even vaguely healthy. As a restaurant in the Lettuce Entertain You company’s stable of fine dining options, Big Bowl is a (more or less) local chain that owns four places in the Chicago area (two within the city), three in Minnesota and one in Virginia.
You don’t have to pick the stir-fry option, but it’s quite popular. You pick the protein and one of six sauces, then go up to the bar to fill a bowl with a selection of more than 20 fresh veggies—everything from bok choy and shitake mushrooms to baby corn and green onions. They’ll fry it up for you with your meat and sauce and bring it to your table. I highly recommend trying the crunchy sesame chicken as your protein; the cooks put it on top of the veggies instead of mixing it in so that it stays crispy and hot and delicious. They also offer salmon, shrimp and tofu. My favorite sauce is the sweet and sour lemon, which has lots of tangy flavor, but the kung pao and the coconut curry are also favorites.
Or you can just order off the menu. Their appetizers, especially the three kinds of dumplings with soy-ginger sauce and the spicy sesame peanut noodles, are excellent. Their delicious entrees include homemade curries, a selection of pad thais, crispy orange chicken and fresh fish. The dishes marked spicy are actually pretty spicy. And for a revitalizing drink, I’d recommend either the hibiscus flavored teas or their fresh flavored ginger ales.
Big Bowl is usually noticeable by the big sign, which features—what else?—a big bowl on top. The décor of the place is casually elegant, with attractive wood finishes, colorful dim lights, cloth napkins and high ceilings. Service is usually exemplary. Dinner entrees range from about $8-$15. If you have a big party you might want to try the group share, which comes in at just a little higher per person but gets you a great selection of foods. Everything here is homemade and fresh, and the chickens are whole and anti-biotic free. We always think we’re going to come here more than we do, because we don’t have a location too close to us. But we always enjoy it when we do finally get there.
The main Chicago location, which can get pretty busy, is at 60 East Ohio St. It’s walkable from the CTA Red Line Grand stop, or you can get there by car by using I90/94 and exiting at Ohio. Another location is at 6 E. Cedar St., which is basically River North right along along Rush St. The suburb of Lincolnshire has one at 215 Parkway Drive, next to a big mall right on Milwaukee Ave., and Schaumburg boasts one at 1950 E. Higgins Rd. in the Woodfield Mall area. For more information and a menu, go to www.bigbowl.com.
