PRICE:
Frommer's Highly Recommended

Chicago's a red-meat town, but if you need a break from all the beef, it's worth tracking down Green Zebra. It's about a 10-min. drive beyond the western boundary of the River North neighborhood, in a gentrifying area with few other restaurants, but the out-of-the-way location hasn't deterred diners -- probably because of executive chef Shawn McClain, who won raves for his seafood at Spring. It's all very restrained, from the minimalist decor to the straightforward food presentation, but McClain's flair for flavor and emphasis on fresh ingredients make this an almost gourmet experience. My only complaint is the "small plates" menu: With no distinction between appetizer and entree, it's hard to know how much food you're getting (and you'll definitely need two to three dishes to fill up). Still, vegetarians who have gotten tired of ordering plain green salads at other restaurants in town will find a wealth of choices here: curried potato potstickers with cilantro lime sauce; herbed goat cheese ravioli; and Hawaiian heart of palm with kaffir lime and Thai basil chile. The menu is not strictly vegetarian -- you'll find a few chicken and fish dishes -- making this a good compromise spot for groups with both meat and non-meat eaters. Green Zebra won't have the power to convert real steak lovers, but it will certainly open up a whole new world of veggie flavors.

Copyright: Excerpted from Frommer's Chicago 2009, (c) 2008, Wiley Publishing, Inc.

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