Hau'oli Lanui a la sola! (Happy Holidays from sola!)

Featured Menu Item:
Wagyu Burger

Get away from the office for lunch and cozy up to sola's fireplace to enjoy our mouth-watering Wagyu Burger! Our burger is unlike any other and gives a decadent twist on plain old ground chuck and cheddar. Moist and marbled wagyu beef, cooked medium rare, is blanketed in slightly spicy yet creamy cambazola cheese, house smoked, thick-cut bacon, fresh arugula, and sweet maui onions caramelized in pineapple juice and bacon fat, all sandwiched in a chewy pretzel roll. It's the perfect way to treat yourself during a long day at work!


Featured Beverage:
Winter Blues

Escape the chilly Chicago temperatures with sola's Winter Blues Cocktail. This refreshing mix of stoli blueberi, fresh lemonade, cointreau and sprite is the perfect way to forget about the return of winter!


Featured Champagne:
Laurent - Perrier Brut

Grape varietials: Chardonnay 45%, Pinot Noir 40%, Pinot Meunier 15%. Between 10 and 20% of the blend is comprised of reserve wines, which allows the winemakers, Alain Terrier, to ensure stylistic consistency year after year. Brut L.P. is made only using the first pressings of the grapes. It ages on its lees for over three years - three times the legal minimum.

Try this champagne on New Year's Eve
call 773.327.3868 for your reservation today

Save The Dates
We will be hosting

beer dinner
Wednesday, January 23, 2008.

wine dinner
Tuesday, February 26, 2008

Hau`oli Lâ Ho`omaika`i (Happy Thanksgiving)

Ingredient of the Month:
Hawaiian Sweet Potatoes

As the cold air sets in and we prepare for Thanksgiving, November at Sola promises more than just turkey and gravy - Hawaiian sweet potatoes! Sola's Berkshire Pork Chop, Hawaiian sweet potatoes, housemade bacon, and fuji apples, will assure that you experience the best that Hawaiian sweet potatoes have to offer!

Facts and Tips:
* Hawaiian sweet potatoes, also known as Okinawan poatoes, are native to Japan
* A one cup serving has only 140 calories and 4 grams of dietary fiber
* Used medicinally in Japan for treating diabetes
* Stays a deep purple in color even after cooking


Beverage of the Month:
Rogue Hazelnut Brown Nectar Ale

Rogue Hazelnut Ale is a nutty twist to a traditional European Brown Ale. With its dark brown color, hazelnut aroma, rich nutty flavor and smooth malty finish, Rogue Hazelnut Ale is the perfect beer for fall!

Our Price: $ 9.00 (22oz.)

Around Town:
Although there is a lot going on at sola, there are also som exciting events happening right here in our own neighborhood.

Art Exhibition - "Germans In Mind"

Fall, Fun and Fine Dining at Sola

Ingredient of the Month:
Pumpkins

Fall is here - a time for watching the leaves change, sipping cider, and carving pumpkins! You may not realize it, but pumpkins can be used for much more than making jack-o-lanterns. They can also be used to create a variety of delicious fall dishes, such as sola's Mahi Mahi with a pumpkin seed crust or Honey Bacon wrapped Venison with Roasted Pumpkin and Apples. Pumpkins are not just tasty; they're healthy for you too!

Facts and Tips about Pumpkins:

* Pumpkins have zero cholesterol
* Pie Pumkins (a.k.a. Sugar Pumpkins) are the best for baking and cooking, they are sweeter than other types and have a smoother texture
* Pumpkins are high in potassium, fiber, and vitamin A
* The largest pumpkin ever grown is 1,502 pounds!
* Pumkins contain beta-carotene, which lowers the risk of heart disease
* Pumpkins are 90% water

Beverage of the Month:
The Great Pumpkin Martini

This unique cocktail, perfect for Fall, is made with Carol's famous homemade pumpkin syrup, which includes pumpkin, simple syrup, clove, ginger and cinnamon mixed with stoli vanil vodka and garnished with a cinnamon stick. Look for us on ABC 7's Hungry Hound, October 17th, at 11:00 a.m. where Steve Dolinsky will feature our pumpkin martini.


Congratulations Dale Levitski
Top Chef Finalist
Season 3

What's Going On at Sola:

2nd Annual Wine Dinner,
October 23rd at 6:30 p.m.

Chef Carol Wallack and sous chef Aleksiy Shalev are creating a menu inspired by the flavors of the season. It will feature smoked Maple Leaf Farms duck breast with Michigan blueberry gastrique and pan seared Hapu Upu U with roasted japanese heirloom squash.


The dinner will be held on Tuesday, October 23rd beginning at 6:30 p.m. The menu will be 4-courses, each paired with a complimentary wine by sola Sommelier John Arents and Ken Winn, Wine Educator of Signature Wines. The cost of the wine dinner is $85 excluding tax and gratuity. Space is limited and we are filling up quickly. Please call 773.327.3868 for your reservation today.

Ha'ule I loko sola! (Fall Into sola)

Labor Day, the first Monday in September, is a creation of the labor movement and is dedicated to the social and economic achievements of American workers. It constitutes a yearly national tribute to the contributions workers have made to the strength, prosperity, and well-being of our country.

The first Labor Day holiday was celebrated on Tuesday, September 5, 1882, in New York City, in accordance with the plans of the Central Labor Union. The Central Labor Union held its second Labor Day holiday just a year later, on September 5, 1883.

In 1884 the first Monday in September was selected as the holiday, as originally proposed, and the Central Labor Union urged similar organizations in other cities to follow the example of New York and celebrate a "workingmen's holiday" on that date. The idea spread with the growth of labor organizations, and in 1885 Labor Day was celebrated in many industrial centers of the country.


Ingredient of the Month:
Green Beans

The beginning of Fall brings crisp air, changing leaves and fresh green beans! I'm sure green beans don't come to mind when you think of fall, but they are great with all types of fall dishes such as sola's flat iron steak or as our daily market side with macadmia nut pesto. Green beans are easy to prepare at home and are a healthy complement to any entree!

Facts and Tips About Green Beans:

* 1/2 cup of green beans is only 22 calories
* High quality green beans are crisp and tender without scars
* Green beans can be held in the refrigerator for several days without loss of quality. Store them in a plastic bag to prevent moisture loss and wilting.


Beverage of the Month:
Hitachino Nest - White Ale

A refreshing mildly hopped Belgian styled beer with a complex flavor of coriander, orange peel, nutmeg. White Ale has won gold medals at several beer conpetition in U.K. and U.S. This is deffinitely one of HITACHINO's top-selling beers both in Japan and U.S.

Kiuchi Shuzou Ltd. was established in 1823 in the tiny hamlet of Kounosu (= "Nest") as producer of Japanese Sake. In 1996 the company started brewing beer with a capacity of 1,500 barrels per year.

What's Going On at Sola:

2nd Annual Wine Dinner
October 23rd
sola will feature the flavors of fall on the new menu paired with an eclectic collection of wines from our list.

stay tuned..........


Outdoor Dining
Enjoy the Chicago weather while it lasts! Dine alfresco and take in the sights and sounds of the neighborhood on sola's outdoor patio.

sola is open for Brunch every Saturday and Sunday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Some of the highlights on the Brunch menu include, Gran Marnier Souffle French Toast and House Smoked Salmon in addition to an assortment of mouth-watering brunch cocktails such as our Maui Mosa.

Olu'olu 'e ma sola! (Cool Off at sola)

Ingredient of the Month:
Heirloom Tomatoes

August may be the hottest month of the year, but it is also the time when all of your hard gardening work finally pays off! Now in season, heirloom tomatoes are turning up in gardens around the city. Try the delicious heirloom tomato salad with shaved manchego, micro shiso with aged balsamic vinegar & hawaiian sea salt.

Facts & Tips about Heirloom Tomatoes:

* There are over 100 types of heirloom tomatoes.
* Heirloom tomatoes have names that reflect some of the history - Polish (smuggled into the U.S. on the back of a postage stamp!), Soldacki (arrived in the U.S. from Polish imigrants who settled in Ohio).
* Tomato products are beneficial in aggresive cancers that have also spread to other parts of the body.


Beverage of the Month:
Nice Pear!

What a better way to cool off than with an icy cocktail! The perfect refresher is sola's Nice Pear cocktail.

-2 oz. Grey Goose La Poire
- Splash of Ginger Syrup
- Splash of Yuzu Juice
- Squeeze of lemon
-Shaken over ice
-Strain & Pour

What's Going On:

Outdoor Dining
Enjoy the great food, purse hooks, shawl's, heat lamps, superb scenic sights and sounds of the neighborhood by dining "al fresco" on sola's outdoor patio.


Open for Brunch
sola is open for brunch every Saturday and Sunday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Some of the highlights on the brunch menu include, Gran Marnier Souffle' French Toast, Seafood Quiche and House Smoked Salmon in addition to an assortment of mouth-watering brunch cocktails, such as the wasabi bloody mary with pickled asparagus & shrimp.
Around Town

Although there is a lot going on at sola, there are also some exciting events happening right here in our own neighborhood.

Free Summer Concert in Town Square - August 8th
Head over to North Center's Town Square at 4100 N. Damen (at Belle Plaine, across from CVS) to check out Tin Lynott, a Thin Lizzy Tribute band. Refreshments are available for purchase. For more information go to www.northcenterchamber.com

North Center's North Side Summerfest - August 17th - 19th
This three-day event includes the area's best bands, a wide selection of arts and crafts and a mouth-watering array of food and drink from around the city. For more information check out www.northcenterchamber.com

"HAWAIIAN WELA A LA SOLA!" (HAWAIIAN HEAT AT SOLA)

Ingredient of the Month:
Pineapples

Summer is in full swing and what better way to refresh your taste buds than with a juicy pineapple! Pineapples are just right for an afternoon snack or the perfect addition to a light dessert. After a delectable dinner at sola, try the Braised Pineapple, served with coconut sorbet and macadamia nut shortbread cookies.

Facts and Tips about Pineapples:

* Ornamental pineapples are a welcome sign in the home, a symbol of hospitality.
* Pineapples should be planted where the temperature remains warmest, such as the south side of a home, or in a sunny portion of the garden.
* A good ripe pineapple has a dull, solid sound. Immaturity and poor quality are indicated by a hollow thud


Wine of the Month:
Chateau de la Fessardiere Muscadet, climat 2005

This pale yellow wine is a generous vintage with a fresh grape fragrance, accompanied by a complex bouquet, due to its maturation in oak casks. It has a discreet flavor of flint and slight vanilla flavor. The Chateau de la Fessardiere Muscadet can be kept for up to 3 years. It should be served at about 10 to 12°C, preferably uncorked an hour before drinking. It is best served in tulip glasses.

Around Town:

Green City Market's Chefs' Summer BBQ Festival

Thursday, July 12, 2007
6:00 - 8:00 pm
Rain or Shine

Please join us as we sample delicious tastings prepared by over 50 of Chicago's top chefs. Local wines, beers, sodas and water included.

12th Annual Lakeview Garden Walk, July 8th 12 p.m. to 5 p.m.

Hundreds of gardeners participate in the Lakeview Garden Walk by opening their yards and gardens to pedestrian visitors on this beautiful walking tour. The Garden Walk has grown to nearly one hundred gardens in recent years, and now includes an additional transport trolley to make it even easier for visitors to explore the neighborhood and see more gardens in an afternoon. The walk is growing geographically as well, as every year the walking map expands to include more gardens in all areas of Lakeview. For more information go to http://www.lvgardenwalk.com