Biscuits Will Leave You Speechless At Endgrain Chicago

Our dining companions often expect us to provide critical commentary on the food we share.

But for the biscuits at Endgrain, we had only this to say: "Oh, wow."

And then: "Damn."

The buttermilk biscuits at Enoch Simpson's new Roscoe Village restaurant are among the finest in town: confidently salted, unabashedly buttery, with crisp sides and bottom and an impressively airy interior.

To achieve biscuit perfection, the chef–formerly of Girl & the Goat and Nightwood, and a longtime doughnut maker–watched YouTube videos of biscuit-making grandmothers. "It took me 400 attempts before I figured it out," he says, referring to the intricate rolling, folding and baking techniques that result in biscuit glory.

Try them at dinner alongside buttermilk-brined fried chicken that's tossed with a dressing of mustard, chile flakes, honey, white wine and dill ($20). At lunch, they're split and topped with pork belly and jalapeño aioli ($10) or, on a recent visit, a jumble of spring vegetables, black-garlic vinaigrette and a soft-boiled egg ($9).

Simpson's dough dexterity extends to pasta, too. A bowl of pappardelle with green-garlic pesto, roasted carrots, peas, burrata and pecans ($12) was unusual and wholly delicious.

Pair it with a glass of rhubarb lemonade($5)...and a biscuit.