Tavern Spirit

Michael Nagrant / 03.07.08

Chicagoist loves West Town Tavern. So do we. We can’t get enough of it’s accessible prices and come as you are welcoming spirit, and tasty reasonably priced food. Add in fried chicken night on Mondays, some of the cities best duck confit, and, well, why aren’t you there already?

Susan and Drew Goss, the husband and wife, who run the place built West Town on the idea of what they’d love in a neighborhood place. As a result, they attend to every detail from filling out the wine list to making sure the dog water dish outside is filled for neighborhood pups.

We interviewed Goss last year for Centerstage, here are some excerpts from that Q and A:

What do you wish you could change/pickle about the Chicago restaurant scene?

The variety of neighborhood restaurants. There aren’t a lot of cities where you can get amazing food, so much ethnic variety and all at a decent price from owners who have an incredible commitment to their customers. My partner, Drew, and I love to explore different neighborhoods like Chinatown. I love Evergreen restaurant; they have great seafood. We also like the South Side barbecue joints, like Lem’s.

What would your last meal be?

A bottle of Bollinger Special Cuvee with a perfectly roasted chicken and potatoes cooked in duck fat, all served in bed.

What Chicago chef would you like to share a kitchen with?

I share my kitchen every year for a fundraiser to benefit the Greater Chicago Food Depository. It’s called the “Girl Food Dinner,” and this year on June 10, I’ll be cooking with Jackie Shen from Red Light, Stephanie Izard from Scylla, Christine McCabe from Park Grill and Missy Robbins of Spiaggia. If you’re nice, not uptight, down to earth and love to eat, I’ll share a kitchen with you.

What’s the can’t-miss dish at your restaurant?

It used to be the duck confit, but now we do a fried chicken special. I always wanted to cook it, but I’m a fried chicken snob and a purist, so it took a while. Now on Monday nights you can get a leg, breast and thigh with sauteed swiss chard, my great grandmother’s buttermilk biscuits, garlicky mashed potatoes and wild mushroom gravy (which includes seasonal mushrooms—currently hen of the woods, hedgehogs and shitakes).