A breakfast sandwich worth waking up early for

and...it finally happened

Hi, everyone!

Couple things. Remember when I wrote about a place called Mr. Pollo a few months back? Davida and I have noticed that there’s a new sign out front that says “My Pollo” now.

That being said, I did some nosing around, and I’m guessing it’s a change in ownership for that location, because the Mr. Pollo location in Belmont Cragin is still open. The good thing is, My Pollo’s menu’s exactly the same as it was when I visited, so that previous edition of the newsletter should still come in handy should you visit.

Also, some random restaurant news I stumbled across online: The Hard Rock Cafe in River North is likely closing at the end of March. I’d seen rumbles of this on Facebook and Reddit from a source I didn’t quite trust at first, but then I also managed to message someone who identified themselves as a Hard Rock employee. This person then confirmed the rumor.

Man. That location’s been around since I was a kid. What’s funny is I’ve actually been multiple times in the past few years — me and my former coworkers at The Takeout had turned it into a goofy little meet-up spot. The food was pretty much the same shit you’d get at a TGI Fridays, and somewhat unreasonably priced, but then again, so’s all the food in River North. It was never busy when we went, so I’m not surprised, but still, it’s a little weird to see it go.

It also sounds like Jaleo, the restaurant chain’s Chicago outpost opened by famed chef José Andrés, is closing too. That’s also in River North. I learned of this similarly through social media, but I haven’t done too much digging here, since I don’t quite plan on turning this newsletter into an industry gossip column. So if any of you are interested in starting a restaurant in an extremely expensive neighborhood, I know of two spaces that’ll soon be available.

Lastly, after a more than two year winning streak, I finally visited a place that wasn’t up to snuff for the newsletter. So I had to make a last minute change for today, which is why this edition’s a little later than usual. And no, I’m not going to reveal where I went that was such a disappointment. It’s not in the spirit of what The Party Cut’s about anyway — I’d rather give you recommendations and useful information, not post takedowns that at best would probably sound like a bunch of complaining.

So that means I had to find a new spot to visit, and extremely last second. But that’s actually good, because I finally scratched another place off my list that I’d been meaning to visit for a long time now.

I’d heard many wonderful things about the breakfast sandwich at Allez Café in Bucktown thanks to social media.

And that’s exactly why I decided to pop in.

What’s funny is that Davida and I had been to Allez Café before — but only for a charity pop-up that my friends Adam Witt and Chef Zealand were hosting during off-hours.

The shop, located on Western, just south of Fullerton, is adorably small. It consists of a tiny coffee bar with a communal table and a few individual tables, along with a fully-equipped catering kitchen next door. Man, did their breakfast sandwich light up social media for a while. In fact, I felt like I couldn’t get away from it since it’d show up in my feed so damn frequently.

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A post shared by @adamwitt

I took note of the sandwich’s popularity, but admit that I forgot about it promptly after the hype died down.

So, I just sorta let that one fall by the wayside until this past brutally cold weekend and my first pick’s disappointment. And I’m not actually sure what specifically triggered my memory about this place, but I figured it’d been long enough since people were obsessed with it that the lines had eventually calmed down a bit.

The menu at Allez Café mostly consists of coffeehouse beverages.

There’s also a pastry display, which was completely empty when I showed up, but that’s because I showed up nearly at closing time. Other than the drinks, there are only two sandwiches on the menu board, the famous Breakfast Sando, along with a non-breakfast one, the Fried Chicken Sando. I ordered one of each.

I don’t often cover drinks on the newsletter, mostly because I’m so laser-focused on food, but the Turkish Matcha ($8.50) caught my attention.

I heard someone in front of me in line murmuring something about it, so I thought I’d try one of those too. It’s made with matcha, baklava syrup, pistachio milk, walnut bitters, and orange blossom (which I’m guessing refers to orange blossom water, not honey). The cashier did mention it only comes in iced format, which was fine by me, even on a barely double-digit degree day.

I observed as the barista carefully crafted the drink using a bamboo whisk, mixing the ingredients together with a concentrated focus. I’m so used to ordering straight black coffee or a shot of plain espresso that I forget that some of these creations take a lot of care to concoct.

That work shows, because this drink is wonderful. It’s got that grassy and malt-like matcha foundation, while the other ingredients lend complex nutty and floral flavors to the aftertaste. The pistachio milk keeps the whole thing from weighing you down, too. You can count me as a new fan, and I have a feeling I’ll be repeating this order in the future when I’m in the neighborhood.

The Breakfast Sando ($13) at Allez Café features a square of steamed egg, cheese, a crispy hash brown brick, bacon, jalapeño jam, and aioli, all on a soft potato roll.

And I have to say, damn, I have indeed waited too long to try this, because it’s a marvel of a breakfast sandwich. You get the custardy egg against the backdrop of starchy fried potatoes, and then the sweet jalapeño cuts through with some spice, while the aioli and cheese add fatty richness.

But what I’m also a big fan of is the texture; the potato brick plays as much a starring role as the egg does. Barely any breakfast meat is even needed here, which is a testament to how the whole thing works together. I’d imagine that this thing does get soggy fairly quickly, which means I recommend you eat it on the spot, standing up, if you have to.

What’s telling is that if I hadn’t known about all the excitement around the sandwich, I’m sure I’d still feel just as enthusiastic trying it on my own. I have a feeling many of you have already enjoyed it by now.

I hadn’t heard anything about the Fried Chicken Sando ($15), so I was pretty curious about it.

I’m a little chicken sandwiched out, to be honest, since it seems like every restaurant has one now. Plus, I don’t think there are that many ways you can dress up fried chicken breasts that could possibly render them that interesting, but that’s just my opinion.

Now that I sound like a grump, the one from Allez Café is actually pretty good. It comes topped with a vinegary housemade slaw along with a pickle aioli, and what really stands out about it is the chicken’s crust. It has an unusually hard fry to it, one that borders on nearly too hard, but doesn’t quite overstep that boundary. The slaw doesn’t hold back with the acid, which I like, and there’s plenty of it. That bread gets soggy quick due to the slaw and aioli, but the chicken’ll stay crunchy through the end.

That being said, $15 for a single chicken sandwich is extremely steep. For perspective, Red Light Chicken in Lincoln Park currently serves its large sandwiches at $7.99 each. I do realize that not everyone loves egg sandwiches (or can even eat egg), though, so having a breakfast alternative is useful.

And hey, since there’s only two sandwiches on Allez Café’s menu, at least you won’t be standing around paralyzed about what to order. If you haven’t had it yet, go get that breakfast sandwich — and if you have, don’t forget to treat yourself to another one.

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Finally, before I close for today. I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention anything about the current political climate right now, especially involving potential deportation events here in Chicago. Hang onto this if you need it.

Okay, this is where I say goodbye for the week, so stay indoors (at least for today!), and be good to yourselves and each other. I love you all.