Trotter’s To Go

I am so horribly sad to find out that this place is gone. My culinary education really took off here and through this place and the staff of ’04-’08 I learned so much. Anyway, this review might be flagged for that — but too bad. I admire Chef T, everyone who worked under him, and I need to make a shout-​out to Rafa, Diana, and all of the morning staff who worked their keesters off to keep the place running behind the scenes year after year — and a big HUG to Chef Reggie, the funniest man I ever got to giggle with. What an honor. It’s the end of an era. I’m proud to have been a part of it, even infinitesmal.

[CLOSED]
This was my favorite place in the DePaul neighborhood for high-​quality, prepared foods. The entrees, sandwiches, soups, sides, and desserts were excellent. A great stop for a quick meal or to pack a picnic (Ravinia or lakefront). Sadly, the store is now closed. Looking forward to hearing about the next/​new Charlie Trotter’s restaurant sometime in the future.

I had no idea that this place was closing when I went in for a feast in late May. I purchased some packaged goods, several salads, a dessert, and a cookie.
The wheat berry salad with wood fired vegetables was a little on the bland side. The second salad was orzo or something, not very memorable. The best salad was the hoisin noodles. I have had a lot of cold Asian noodle salads, but this one had the best combination of flavors and I enjoyed the abundance of shitake mushrooms. The famed chocolate-​covered pretzel bread pudding was a little too dense and actually a little too salty (I am a huge fan of salted caramel anything, so I know my stuff). The sugar cookie needed about 2 minutes more in the oven. All in all, I was impressed with the quality and range of the food items. I really wish they would have stayed open, there were so many other things I wanted to try.
**** A note to Charlie Trotter **** You should partner with Whole Foods so they can bring us a Trotter’s line of salads in the prepared foods case. Good luck on your future endeavors. It’s never too late to follow your dreams.

I’m a food connoisseur but of prepared foods, not of cooking. I guess I was in the wrong place? I was quite impressed by their collection and variety and if I need unique foods, will be back to visit!
My friend went specifically because she had heard a lot about the chocolate pretzel pudding with caramel and she was a fan, although I found it to be sugar overload and not so enjoyable. If you’ve read my reviews, you’d know not only do I have a ‘sweet tooth’ but rather all my teeth crave dessert all the time.

I’ve wanted to go here forever and somehow never made it to the area (not super convenient for walking), but I finally stopped by Wednesday for a snack. The store is very pretty, with lots of wines and cheese and prepared foods. The food case had lots of options, and the man behind the counter helped me choose the spicy beef noodles. I had a little trouble handling the heat (a nonissue I’m sure for someone without my super-​sensitive spice-​o-​meter), but the beef in it was cooked perfectly and the dish was overall very tasty. I also let the cashier convince me I needed dessert, so I got the brownie with a huge layer of pecans and a solid chocolate bottom. Very nice. I think I’d like to go back and make a real meal out of the options and try some of the cheeses, plus this bread pudding I didn’t know about till now!

The food is good. This is Charlie Trotters to go restaurant, so of course it is good. But it is also expensive. Again, this is Charlie Trotters to go restaurant. If you go here and then complain about the price, as i Have seen some reviewers do, then you are a moron. You are paying for high quality, tasty food that carries the name Trotter. Did you really expect reasonable prices?

I like to think of this place as a super condensed Whole Foods. It’s a specialty foods store with pre-​cooked meals, specialty wines and cheeses, salads, and desserts.
I’ve tried the Chocolate covered Pretzel Bread Budding, which was awesome. You can’t go wrong with sweet and salty.
They’re located in a tiny corner strip mall and you can’t miss the place. I’d probably stop here a lot if I lived in the area, but otherwise probably not.

I stopped in here with my buddy last week. The prices are high and some of the people here seemed a bit bougie. They get points for having the biggest picnic basket I’ve ever seen in my life… I don’t think it was for sale, just stocked with display items. Plus other picnic toting gear. This would be a great store to get things for a classy picnic in the park or by the lake!
There were many things I wanted to try here but I ended up getting the Chocolate-​Covered Pretzel Bread Pudding due to all the rave Unilocal reviews. Thanks, Unilocalers! It was amazing. I shared it with my friend who over heated it a bit so most of the chocolate melted onto the plate… but somehow it was still amazing, moist and the flavors were spot on.
Sidenote, I saw the best trained dogs I’ve ever seen outside here. They made me want to go adopt a dog instantly (even though I resisted). This man had his two golden labs with him. He went int he shop and they both sat silently outside waiting for him. No reaction to people or cars, no leashes, just sat perfectly there. He came out and they got up, he threw each a piece of something he got inside which they both caught perfectly in their mouth. He then put them both on leashes and they trotted off in silence. What the?! Dogs are friggin awesome.

Well, I guess this is one way to experience Charlie Trotter’s if you don’t have money to burn.
I stopped in here on Saturday hoping to pick up some items to augment my Ravinia picnic fixin’s. Let’s just say It was a mixed bag.
I was expecting more of a selection of prepared foods, but sadly the variety just wasn’t there. And I was rather surprised to see mainstream items such as Coca-​Cola (well, it was in bottles) and kettle chips.
I will say that what I did purchase made me really happy: big slabs of grilled polenta (that had some corn, greens and cotija cheese in it) topped with oyster and enoki mushrooms, a big head of roasted organic garlic for only $ 1.00, and probably the second-​best sugar cookie I’ve ever had in my life.
Also available are wines, cheeses, breads, salads, fancy condiments and cookie dough (in the aforementioned sugar as well as chocolate chip).
Naturally this stuff comes at a premium, but this should shock no one. You could spend a pretty penny in here snatching up these gourmet items.

Approaching 5pm my Aunt noted that she wanted to grab some actual food — not just desserts but she wanted someplace that didn’t serve beef since it was Ash Wednesday. Realizing we were near Armitage I decided to look up Charlie Trotter’s as I remembered he had a «To Go» store with sandwiches, soups, meats, and other delights in the neighborhood. A few short turns later and we found ourselves parked in the private lot in front of Trotter’s To Go.
Making our way into the impressively large store the first thing that struck me was the wide open kitchen to right — it smelled like honey barbeque, garlic, and a fish tone that I believe was tuna grilling on a long plank. Looking left there was a large wine selection, gourmet cheeses (Humboldt Fog, Truffle Tremor, Midnight Moon most notable to myself,) Pâté, Breads, and even a small seating area. Further browsing revealed Christopher Elbow Chocolate, designer salts, Mani Olive Oil, and more esoteric vinegars than I’ve seen anywhere since Napa.
Browsing the prepped foods my aunt quickly identified her entrée — an enormous crab cake that was likely 75% crab, 15% vegetable, and 10% breadcrumbs. Prepared with a quick double sided searing on the hot grill by the store chef the cake was plated and served with a spicy Creole aioli. Taking a small bite I personally loved the crab cake on its own while my Aunt opted for the spicy topping. Crisp yet flaky, meaty yet fibrous — very nice. Alongside the cake my aunt deferred on the mac n’ cheese and instead opted for a savory croûton salad featuring house made butter croutons, ripe super 100 tomatoes, and mixed greens with a light vinaigrette.
Wanting to see what Trotter’s To Go had for dessert we checked out the cakes and cookies and next looked into the chilled case to find a creamy butterscotch pudding and a pair of bread puddings alongside multiple other items. Opting for the Chocolate-​Covered Pretzel Bread Pudding with Salted Chocolate Caramel over the Chocolate Marshmallow version we paid the tab and tried a couple bites then with more to follow later and the following day. Creamy and smooth yet thick enough to keep a spoon upright my aunt loved the pudding and compares it favorably to all but the Butterscotch pie at Boulevard in San Francisco for best ever. For myself — I really didn’t expect tons from a pre-​made pudding in plastic… but boy was I wrong. Featuring a Bread pudding using day-​old soft pretzels for the bread and a salty caramel custard as a binder the dish was subsequently smothered in a creamy bourbon accented caramel and Valrhona chocolate to produce a dish that would not have been out of place at any fine dining establishment — even with Alinea reservations in less than 30 minutes I had trouble stopping at a mere 2 bites (though I was glad I had the following morning when I warmed it up to find it even more spectacular.

I have mixed feelings about this place.
Generally, I think the sides and the sandwiches are good. And I had a really great mixed green salad there.
On the other hand, there’s never anything I want in the main courses, and the menu seems like it has stopped changing. I’m not sure the sandwich menu changes AT ALL, which is a major bummer.
Generally the quality is very good, but occasionally it’s spotty. And the prices are a bit ridiculous.

I can’t vouch for everything here… but if you find yourself in the neighborhood and have a hankering for Chocolate Mousse — you’ve come to the right place.
Probably the most affordable item in the market area… the chocolate mousse is so rich, lightly whipped and mmmm creamy and smooth. Their mousse puts other meese to shame.
A small nibble will tide you over and the container will last you quite awhile… that is if you have self-​control!

Am I a Valentine’s Day fan? Meh. I could do with or with out it. Maybe if I had that certain girl to spend it with, I might think different. However, seeing that my week before kicked my butt, I was happy to fend for myself and have the night for my own. I turned to my favorite place to celebrate solitude.
Walking in, I continue to face problems. Quandaries. Issues. Decisions. I look around and I see some amazing dishes that my tastebuds, my stomach and my eyes all want to try. Still to one side side dishes, soups, sandwiches among other things and to the front, a variety of meats, seafood and more side dishes. I made several and I do mean several choices, for pre-​dinner, dinner, post dinner and several meals around said dinner. I chose, a simple mixed green salad with a tangy vinaigrette, shaved fennel, cheese, carrots, roasted Yukon potato soup with aged Parmesan, black bean soup with smoked bacon, heart shaped crab cakes, grilled salmon, apple glazed pork chop, quinoa with chorizo and sweet potato, roasted fingerling potatoes with garlic and chili flakes, a mini key lime pie and of course bittersweet chocolate mousse.
A. Ma. Zing. What I love about this place is you have such a variety, so many choices with so many directions to go. I’ve recently cut gluten out of my diet, so that limits my choices some times. No more indulging in pastas, breads and the such, but I was excited to see quinoa being used in a few dishes. (Think like a heartier cous cous). But also, chocolate mousse. My mom always told me, (besides not playing ball in the house, don’t run with scissors and don’t you realize money doesn’t grow on trees???), my favorite dessert growing up was chocolate mousse. Not ice cream, not cookies, not cake, not pie. Chocolate mousse. Now this was a little heavier than dear old mom’s, (and mine), it was darn tasty and not too sweet. The quinoa was nutty but blended well with the spicy chorizo and sweet potatoes and the salmon was reheated to a perfect medium rare. Clean plate club achieved!
I have more to finish off and will do so in the next day or so, which fits in to my plan perfectly. Fitting into my jeans after all of this is another issue on its own. Do I need that special girl in my life? Hmmm do I have to share my key lime pie with her?

Seeing that I don’t cook AT ALL, this place has helped me out of many jams. I was picked to have Thanksgiving at my house a few years ago and I got just about everything from here. Warmed it up and, hello, everyone loved it. They were none the wiser.
I wish this place was closer to where I live — I’m sure I’d patronize it more often.

If you’re in the mood to blow some $$$ on a meal to go, need a quick picnic or potluck dish, or are too lazy to prepare a fancy meal… come here to pick up things for the perfect dinner, a la Mrs. Doubtfire. The «servers», so to speak, aren’t pretentious at all, and you don’t have to tip for a great meal.
I have yet to go to Charlie Trotter’s so I can’t speak for a comparison, but I hit up Trotter’s to go yesterday on a whim and it was kickass. Their ready-​to-​go cold prepared foods area is on your right when you walk in, and it’s a gold mine — I found these Buckwheat Soba Noodles with Chicken, Cilantro, Peppers and Yuzu-​Miso, which were amazing. Boyfriend picked some Mediterranean pasta salad, which he seemed to enjoy (personally, I thought it could be found at your local Whole Foods, but who are we kidding, the prices are comparable).
I saw Paella in the deli-​style area and asked the server behind the counter about it. It was about $ 13 for about ¾ lb of shrimp/​ham/​chicken and red pepper paella. A little underwhelming, especially when you consider that Café Ba-​ba-​reeba is a few blocks away — that’ll be a pass next time, but it was worth a try.
Just make sure to watch out for dish portions… We also got 3 ribs of lamb and that ended up being nearly $ 18 alone. In addition to the pastas, the paella, and drinks it was $ 60 for a takeout dinner for two…

Have you ever had a friend who is nothing but trouble with a capital T? The kind of friend that totally corrupts you and makes you absolutely forget throwing caution to the wind?
My friend Xtie is that person. Absolutely brilliant and totally fun… but she is trouble with a capital T to my wallet!
We had just spent the day at the zoo and realized that both of us did not have time to prepare dinner for our husbands. We had lost track of time. On her suggestion, we stopped into Charlie Trotters To Go to pick up a prepared meal.
If you’re a crack addict, you avoid crack houses. If you’re a drunk, you avoid bars. Me being a total food snob and on a budget had absolutely no business walking in there. Especially since I can never focus on one thing and want to try and taste everything under the sun!
I ended up purchasing a bottle of really nice wine, a Lavender and Rosemary infused roasted chicken with a roasted head of elephant garlic, French bread, Poached Tuna salad with roasted red peppers, green beans with grape tomatoes and red onions, 2 boxes of «melt in your mouth» chewy meringue cookies, chicken salad with apples and cranberries, pesto pasta with sun dried tomatoes and a beef tenderloin sandwich for the hubby’s lunch tomorrow. I seriously thought that I would have a food coma just looking at the selections! The staff were super friendly and helpful. One of them gave both of our little ones gigantic sugar cookies to hold so that we could shop.
Dinner was amazing! It is a good thing that my husband had no idea how much money that I spent. He was just happy eating and drinking his wine to ask.
P. S. Their sugar cookies are amazing! They use huge granules of sugar for the topping. It was like eating a yummy stick of butter! Sweet and salty at the same time!

I walked in like a scared little girl with a puzzled look on her face. «I’ve never been here before, so please bear with me.» The warm young man on the other side of the counter did just that.
He let me get as little or as much of each item as I wanted. I chose some fingerling potatoes that were flavored with garlic and tarragon. They were perfect and reheated well. I also chose spicy artichokes that were almost gone before I got home. My favorite dish was a bean bean salad with cherry tomatoes, figs, caramelized red onions, in a basil, balsamic sauce. The beans were cooked perfectly and all of the flavors worked well together.
The hardest part of the meal was the meat. I had him slice the beef fairly thin so I could eat it cold. Reheating a good filet is never a great option. Eaten cold, I could tell it was a quality piece of meat.
All of this for under $ 20. I thought it was a much better option to pay that amount for high quality food than to pay the same for «just okay» food. I will be back and wonder why I haven’t been in sooner. Next time I will try the yummy-​looking desserts and fresh baked breads.
Also remember that they have a nice selection of imported cheeses and wines too. Thanks to the young man behind the counter for his patience. I suspect you will receive the same friendly service whenever you decide to visit!

What’s the first thing I do when I get back in Chicago. Go to various restaurants that were closed. Then I was sad…“WHAT DO I DO?! I’M HUNGRY AND I FORGOT WHERE TO GO!?”
Then I remembered this lovely gem, oh the fennel duck leg is like a sexy ladies leg, but it tastes even better. Oh there various artisan sandwiches are tastier than a sexy ladies sandwich. AND THERE DELICIOUS PRETZEL ROLLS ARE TASTIER THAN A SEXY LADIES PRETZEL ROLL… if women had pretzel rolls… their deserts are also delicious as well as cookies.

Very good, but not five stars good.
I picked up a few things from here recently and was pleasantly surprised. Although Trotters has a great reputation, I am generally not a fan of prepared food takeout.
While everything in the store was great, I think the only reason to really come here is for the prepared foods/​desserts. Everything else can probably be purchased at other stores and specialty shops without having to pay a Charlie Trotter premium.
It was pretty hard to pick out what I wanted at the refrigerated case, but I ended up with: The Hawaiian Tuna Tartare (bc I LOVE tuna tartare), the Beef Tenderloin and the Oven Roasted Mushrooms.
The Tuna Tartare was absolutely fantastic. I had it with some thin water crackers and it went perfectly. The tuna was cubed into large chunks, was very fresh and had a spicy kick. Probably the second best tuna tartare I’ve had in the city (see my list!).
All of the meats looked very well prepared. Over the last year, I’ve become a big beef snob, and both the strip loin and tenderloin looked good. I went with the tenderloin — it was cooked perfectly to medium-​rare (closer to the rare side), just the way I like it. It was also unsalted when purchased, which is the way to go if you’re buying food to be reheated (never salt your meat until just before you serve it!)
The mushrooms were disappointing.
After reading the reviews, I had to try the Venezuelan Bread Pudding. I think I’m the only Unilocaler so far to not be a fan. It was way too sweet for my palette (and I love sweets!). I may have liked it better if it didn’t have nuts.
My only other complaint is the service of the guys behind the counter. They are really nice, but are much better at making small talk than actually talking about the food. First of all, I waited about ten minutes before I was helped, and I was one of two customers in the store. Secondly, I asked the guy for about a 3oz serving of the tenderloin and I got a deer in the headlights look back. So I literally had to tell him where to cut the meat to get a 3oz serving.
I was tempted to try the cookie dough, but no self respecting baker would do that!

Exceptional gourmet takeout.
This place is great if you want something light and flavorful for lunch or to make it easy on yourself for dinner.
The fish is generally very good, especially the halibut with herbs and any salmon variety. The traditional salads are decent (but why get a Caeser when you can get it anywhere), but the non-​traditional oriental salads, pasta salads, etc are great. I have had mixed experiences on the soups… in my experience they have been a little bland, would probably stay more in the entrée, veg, pasta salad realm.
This is also a great place to pick up obscure gourmet cooking items, like truffle oil and champagne vinegar if you can’t make it to Whole Foods.
I eat here probably weekly and never cease to be impressed by the variety and food quality… just watch your spending.