"Ridiculous"- Sunda

This time of year has always been particularly stressful for me. Between preparing for the holidays, planning multiple events for work, and moving (because I liked to burden myself with the extra stress of having to move in the midst of my already chaotic schedule), taking a few hours to enjoy an awesome dinner and wine seems like a luxury of time I can't afford. But eating out and spending quality time with my peeps is what keeps me sane. It's what keeps me going.



After a particularly grueling Monday, I did not hesitate to drop all the "need to dos" for the "want to do" of meeting my girl Dish out for dinner at Sunda (110 W. Illinois). I needed to relax; I needed to unwind; I needed to eat a "ridiculously" delicious meal. And, thanks to Executive Chef Rodelio Aglibot, aka The Food Buddah, all I needed after 2 hours at Sunda was a looser fitting sweaterdress.



Walking through Sunda's doors brought an immediate sense of tranquility- the dim lighting, plush seating, warm colors, and rocking sushi bar situated in the middle of the restaurant created the perfect setting for forgetting about my crazy day.



To start, Dish and I took ordered the Rock Shrimp Tempura. I was pretty shocked to see Rock Shrimp served on a bed of glazed walnuts, but I was pleasantly surprised at how much I enjoyed the combination. Having worked my way through lunch, it didn't take long to devour the entire bowl of shrimp. Luckily, our extremely attentive was ready with his next appetizer recommendation- The Devil's Basket, wok tossed crispy Soft Shell Crab served on a bed of dried chilis, shallots, scallions and garlic. The crab was wonderful, particularly the body, which was impeccably crispy and extremely flavorful. Word of advice: the dish is spicy enough as is- do NOT try to get too adventurous and eat a dried chili!



Do get adventurous and try the Lobster and Wagyu sushi roll. Despite our servers recommendation, I was pretty skeptical that creamy lobster, scallions, jalapeno, Kobe sashimi, truffle and foie gras wouldn't make me gag. I mean, the idea of raw beef, foie gras, and lobster together is enough to send shivers down my spine, but coupled with sweet truffle and spicy jalapeno and my gag reflex kicked into full gear. After my first bite, I was convinced that this is probably the best sushi roll I have ever tasted in my life. I loved that I could separate the flavors but that they worked so well together in a single bite AND, no soy sauce necessary. We also sampled the Baked Snow Crab Handroll and, though it was quite good, it was completely out shadowed by the Lobster and Wagyu roll.



The Charisu BBQ Pork entree had a terrific flavor, but the pork was a little too fatty for my liking. Rest assured, that didn't stop us from eating all but 2 pieces. We remained convinced we couldn't eat any more until, that is, our server brought us the dessert menu. With so many scrumptious, sinful options to choose from, it was impossible to say "No" regardless of how full we both were. We opted for the "Ridiculous" for no reason other than it had the coolest name on the menu. And it was ridiculous- a "snowball" of cold vanilla ice cream wrapped in carrot cake and drizzled with caramel. Seriously ridiculous.

Feeling a bit gluttonous, we finished our wine and called it a "ridiculously" terrific night.