The Purple Pig is up there with my top 5 favorite dining experiences. If you are ever in Chicago, this restaurant is a must! The atmosphere is friendly and inviting with many communal tables, you never knew who was about to sit down next to you. My favorite part about restaurants with this style of seating, is that you can strike up a conversation with the random person sitting beside you.
Even though there was an overwhelming amount of pork on the menu, there was something for everyone. My coworker has a strict diet which includes…no pork or shellfish…had a wonderful experience. One thing I kept repeating throughout the week in Chicago was how great the service was at every restaurant. Going to a large, northern city, I was expecting the servers to give decent service, but to not be as friendly as what I am used to back home. Boy, was I wrong! Everywhere we went the wait staff were friendly as could be and my drinks never got sipped below halfway.
The waiter at The Purple Pig was very helpful in navigating the large menu. His advice and descriptions of each item in question was spot on. I decided to give the pig’s tail a try. I’ve had every other part of the pig except the tail, so I thought this was a must. After 6 bites, I decided I did not care for it. Not because of the meat, but because of the shaved egg on top. In my opinion, the egg brought out the strong swine flavor in the pig’s tail. The tail was cooked perfectly and I had chosen to order this, so even though I did not like it, I was not going to say anything. The server noticed that I hadn’t touched most of the dish and asked if there was anything wrong. I explained to him that it was great to try something new, it was cooked perfectly, but I just did not like it, and not to worry about it. When we got our bill at the end of our meal, the pig’s tail was removed from the check!
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| Deviled Egg with Arugula & Caper Berries |
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| Panino con Nutella {A Sweet Sandwich filled with a Chocolate Hazelnut Spread, Marshmallow Cream & Bananas} |
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| Pig’s Tails Braised in Balsamic |
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| Salt-Roasted Beets with Whipped Goat Cheese & Pistachio Vinaigrette |
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| Braised Baby Artichokes, Fingerling Potatoes, Asiago & Salami Toscana |
This Carolina Girl 
You sound like you had a delicious time! LOL When I do get around visiting Chicago again I will definitely stop by the purple pig!
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It was awesome! You could eat there every night, and have something completely different.
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You're brave! I'd never try the tail…something about it just weirds me out… Sounds like a great place and I'll have to remember it for the next time we make it down there!
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I remember walking by this place when we were in Chicago last summer! Darn it! Didn't go in. It is on our last for the next trip. Thanks! (I think one could put balsamic on anything and make it truly edible!)
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well im ready to come to Chicago!
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I live here and I've never been, then again I dont eat any red meat or pork…
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My co-worker doesn't either and she had a wonderful meal! She enjoyed the beets and got a fish that was delicious. The waiter was very helpful and said they could remove the meat from most of the dishes.
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It sounds like an interesting place and we do visit Chicago, having close friends and family in the area. I do think you were brave for trying the tail. (I don't think I will :-))New to following you from MBC!Daniellehttp://daniellepender.com/Please follow through Networked Blogs (Google connect does not work on WordPress) Thanks for your follow and comments!
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