HotChocolate Restaurant Review:
This relatively small, high-volume restaurant serves food that is, more often than not, first-rate. Mindy Segal (formerly the pastry chef at mk) is the chef-owner, and she --- along with Dennis Stover --- oversees the creation of seasonal, exciting plates. Options might include braised suckling pig, offset by English peas, ramps, watercress and turnips, or a simple, restrained roasted half...
Mindy Segal Stepping Down as Hot Chocolate Pastry Chef:
For the first time, someone besides Mindy Segal will mastermind the desserts at Hot Chocolate. The James Beard winner who many consider Chicago's top pastry chef is stepping down from executive pastry duties at her namesake restaurant in order to step up in her expanding company. She's naming Kymberli DeLost her first pastry chef, saying "I love her and want her to rock."
"Mind-blowing" desserts – including "high-quality" hot chocolates that are "heaven" – might get top billing at Mindy Segal's Bucktown American, but fans say the "upscale" comfort food is "really good" too; throw in "knowledgeable" service and affordable pricing, and it's no surprise the "small, intimate" space can get "kinda crowded."
Mindy Segal Signs Lease in Logan Square, Opening New Bakery Next Year:
Logan Square and the 2300 block of North Milwaukee have landed a new business from the best-known dessert chef in town. Mindy Segal, the 2012 James Beard winner for "Outstanding Pastry Chef in the Country," is preparing to unleash her second concept. And she's writing a cookbook.