Umamicue and friends smoke out the neighborhood

Check out this historic barbecue supergroup’s menu at the next Monday Night Foodball. [READER]( [Food & Drink]( This time it’s for real: the sweet narcotic haze of smoked meat will haunt the streets and alleys of Irving Park. That’s when Odesza, Charles Wong’s candy apple-red, 22-foot, 500-gallon mobile road pit, will pull up at the corner of Kedzie and Belle Plaine for [Monday Night Foodball]( the Reader’s weekly guest chef pop-up at the Kedzie Inn. It’s the return of Odesza’s keeper, the peripatetic new-school, Asian barbecue pop-up [Umamicue]( aka Wong, the hardest working pitmaster in Chicago showbiz. Wong’s shown up for many a Foodball, helping out his comrades even when he wasn’t headlining. This week a rogues’ gallery of five chefs has his back, each one harnessing Odesza’s smoky mojo in the service of a dish of their own. It’s a combined prix fixe platter that will shatter your assumptions about what barbecue is and shall ever be. Central Texas brewery barbecue ronins [Heffer BBQ]( will preview their December guest residency at Kimski with a smoky chicken thigh tostada, with pinto chipotle salsa, pickled red onion, and queso fresco. Mike Shaker, [aka Shaker BBQ]( is a Texas apostle himself, bringing in a peppery prime beef brisket and jalapeno-cheddar beef-pork sausage duo. Returning Foodball heroes [SuperHai]( are throwing some cabbage on the grates for yakisoba with honey miso poached shrimp, shiitakes, tamago, and Kewpie; while another illustrious MNF OG, [Thattu]( returns with a Keralan-style smoked bean curry. I might be most stoked for Wong’s tea-smoked duck breast bao, a collaboration with yet another Kedzie vet, [Annie Xiang of Volition Tea]( who will post up in the bar with a pair of cold brews for sale, along with her exquisite dried teas. The mad rush for limited walk-in orders begins at 5:30 PM this Monday, September 19, but you can secure your preorders for this [barbecue supergroup right now](. Meanwhile, gaze upon Monday Night Foodball’s fall schedule in progress. More dates to come. 9/26: Chicken and waffle night with [Avrom Farm]( 10/3: Pasta night with [Tony Quartaro]( of [Gemma Foods]( 10/10: Night of the Copi (the invasive species formerly known as Asian carp) with [Chả Cá Nuggs]( 10/17: Traditional Jewish deli with a modern purpose with [Schneider Provisions]( 10/24: Sausage party with the[Hot Dog Box]( 10/31: Halloween bye night 11/7: Plant-focused taqueria pop-up [Piñatta]( 11/14: TBA 11/21: TBA 11/28: Thanksgiving break 12/5: TBA 12/12: [Kimski]( rumspringa with [Won Kim]( 12/19: First night of Hanukkah with [Zeitlin’s Delicatessen]( and [Schneider Provisions]( [Check out the menu and preorder now!]( [Food books are falling this month]( Four Chicago books on pies, Palestinian cuisine, veggies, and bread by [Mike Sula]( [Pastry chef Ollyvia Putri’s 20-layer cakes are legit]( Her Lapis312 is the go-to U.S. supplier of labor-intensive cakes and cookies to Indonesian expats. by [Mike Sula]( December 2021 [The flood that birthed Love Cork Screw wines]( Négociant Chrishon Lampley turned a business loss into a trailblazing brand. by [Janaya Greene]( 🗞️ The Chicago Reader is published in print every other week and distributed to nearly 1,200 locations! [Find yours on the map here]( 👇 [Issue of September 15 - 28, 2022 Vol. 51, No.]( [Download Issue]( [View this e-mail as a web page]( [@chicago_reader]( [/chicagoreader]( [@chicago_reader]( [Chicago Reader on LinkedIn]( [/chicagoreader]( [chicagoreader.com]( [Forward this e-mail to a friend](. Want to change how you receive these e-mails? You can [update your preferences]( or [unsubscribe from this list](. Copyright © 2022 Chicago Reader, All rights reserved. You were subscribed to the receive emails from Chicago Reader Our mailing address is: Chicago Reader, 2930 S. Michigan Ave., Suite 102, Chicago, IL 60616