Brunch Bites: Tre Soldi and White Oak Tavern & Inn

In this week's batch of brunch bites, Tre Soldi puts a Roman spin on the American weekend pastime and White Oak Tavern & Inn raises the brunch bar in Lincoln Park. 

(Tre Soldi pizzas are even better for brunch)

Brunch may be as American as apple pie and baseball, but that doesn't mean we're not open to cultured brunch menus that stretch beyond borders. Take the new Italian brunch menu at Tre Soldi, for example. The Streeterville restaurant is giving brunch an Italian accent with pancetta-strewn breakfast pizzas, French toast with cocoa feuilletine, n'duja-filled omelets, and eggs Benedict made with polenta cakes in lieu of English muffins. 

While Tre Soldi skews Italian, a new Lincoln Park restaurant is as local as it gets. White Oak Tavern & Inn, so named for Illinois' state tree, is an edible homage to the Midwest, showcasing the culinary handiwork of executive chef John Asbaty. This modern take on a community tavern, complete with an adjacent inn, features dinner, bar options, and coming soon, brunch. Most ingredients in the kitchen hail from local farms, including the flour used for White Oak's baking program and the dairy used for housemade ice cream and butters. Asbaty utilizes both modern and timeworn cooking techniques and inspirations for his menus, and if any of the dinner dishes are indication — caramel popcorn flecked with bourbon maple and aged Gouda; parsnip cake with olive oil ice cream and milk jam; seared rainbow trout with celery root and celery chimichurri — guests are in for a serious treat when brunch service begins in the near future.   

- Matt Kirouac