For my 26th birthday (gross) Lindsey wanted to take me out for dinner and of course she chose a pizza place. It was fine with me though because I've been wanting to try Stella Barra in Lincoln Park for a while.
I met her at the Armitage L stop, when it started pouring rain. We weren't expecting the rain until later on, so we tried to wait it out before walking over to the restaurant. Of course, it didn't stop but we started walking anyway.
Stella Barra is connected to Summer House with a pastry and sweets counter in between. We asked to be seated in the back atrium area where we were the only diners. It was raining so hard that it was very loud, but we didn't mind.
I have been to Summer House before and LOVE the atmosphere and the way it is decorated, so it was no surprise that Stella Barra was just as cute but a little more cozy.
Not only were we celebrating my birthday but it was also National Wine Day! What a fantastic coincidence. Of course we had to participate and ordered a glass.
I have a recently formed obsession with Burrata. It is so so good and I could spread it on a piece of bread and eat it every day if I could.
This Burrata plate came with balsamic roasted purple grapes which were sprinkled with red pepper flakes. I wasn't particularly fond of the grapes and would have preferred tomatoes, but it was still good.
The pizza menu had the usual Margherita and Four Cheese pies, but we wanted to try something a little different. Our waitress also told us that we can get any pizza half and half, which was nice, but we ultimately decided on the Smoked Bacon & Goat Cheese pizza with only half bacon.
It was really tasty. The crust was crispy but also soft and chewy. The goat cheese was creamy and delicious and the charred tomato added a little sweetness.
We always feel like we need something to accompany our pizza and we thought the Crispy Brussels Sprouts sounded really good, which surprised us both. My dad used to wave brussels sprouts in our faces at the dinner table when we were younger and told us he'd pay us $100 if we tried one. We always refused. Looking back on it, I would have eating a million of them if it really meant he'd pay up.
They were very crispy on the outside but soft on the inside. I liked the crispy texture because they kind of tasted like kale chips. They were coated in a moscato vinegar, parmesan cheese and breadcrumbs.
I always like to take advantage of my birthday and make sure the server knows because it usually means a free dessert.
Sure enough, our waitress brought out a cookie with a big scoop of vanilla ice cream and a candle. I'm pretty sure the cookie was chocolate chip but Lindsey kept arguing that it was butterscotch. I guess we'll never know.
Either way it was really good!
Wine, pizza and cookies. What a great way to celebrate the day. Happy birthday to me!
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