By Jae-Ha Kim
Chicago Sun-Times
April 3, 1994
I’ll be the first to admit I had a bias about Lulu’s the first time I went there for dim sum, the traditional Chinese brunch where diners sample small portions of many dishes. First of all, there’s nothing traditional about Lulu’s. It’s in Evanston, which doesn’t have a large Chinese population. Second, I didn’t see any Asian chefs. And third, does a place named Lulu’s really sound like it would have good dim sum?
I was wrong on all counts. The restaurant bills itself as “Lulu’s for dim sum and then sum.” It offers a variation of the Chinese brunch throughout the day, including in its small but eclectic menu dishes from Japan, China, Thailand and Vietnam. Diners can choose small dishes tapas-style or larger entrees.
The cuisine is freshly prepared, beautifully presented and surprisingly economical, with many entrees priced under $6. The clean, minimalist atmosphere is reinforced by its no smoking policy, which means some diners put on their coats between courses to take a couple puffs outside. But according to the owners, most of the patrons are happy about the ban.
“We used to have smoking when we first opened, but it just didn’t work,” said chef and co-owner Laura Van Dorf. “We’re in a relatively small space, and having a smoking section affected our non-smokers.”
I was wrong about the chefs, too. Van Dorf’s husband, partner and fellow chef Daniel Kelch is part Japanese. Not that his nationality makes him a better chef; actually, it’s the combined experience of the duo that’s helped them come up with just the right menu. Between them, the young couple has 25 years experience in the
restaurant business.
And for those of us who’ve always wondered what chefs really did to our food before serving it to us, Lulu’s lets us in on the experience. The chefs prepare the meals in an open kitchen to the left of the entrance way.
Lulu’s has more of a bistro feeling than that of a Chinese restaurant. Bright and airy, it attracts a strong following of Northwestern University students, who, like all students, are out for a deal.
“My husband has been wanting to do a noodle shop for a while,” said Van Dorf. “There are a lot in (Chicago), so we didn’t see the point of starting another one there. We both liked Evanston a lot, so we decided to open Lulu’s here.”
Samantha Rand said she’s grateful to the couple for introducing a concept that’s “fun and innovative” to Evanston.
“It’s a great place to go to when you’re not sure what you want to eat,” Rand said, taking a bite of her Chinese noodle stir fry. “It definitely doesn’t have the selection you’d get at a dim sum place in Chinatown, but it doesn’t pretend to, either. There’s always something here to make you happy.”
My favorites are the vegetarian pot stickers with just a trace of ginger and the humongous beef (or chicken) salad with sesame dressing.
Dim sum and then sum. Somehow it all makes sense now.
