Prairie Grass Café is in Full Swing

Prairie Grass Cafe Chef, Sarah Stegner prepares arctic char
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While many , if not most people are still stunned by all of the changes in their lives, routines, and expectations. Prairie Grass Café co-owners,  Sarah Stegner, and George Bumbaris, present one creative event/activity after another aimed at making life a little easier and more pleasant for the rest of us. Whether it is adapting restaurant meals, breakfast lunch and dinner to curbside pick-up, answering questions about food preparation for people preparing their own meals, keeping children engaged and productive or providing holiday meals for Passover and Easter, and even fresh fish, Prairie Grass  Café is on it.

PASSOVER and more

Brisket for Passover

Sunday, April 5th is a busy day the last time to order for Passover and fresh fish and the time for children’s pizza party.

Pre-Order your Passover Dinner by Sunday Evening, April 5

 for Curbside Pickup on Wednesday, April 8

While many families have cancelled or postponed their annual Passover celebration, there’s no reason not to enjoy a small immediate family dinner with traditional Passover food. You may choose to make the Haroset yourself, but Prairie Grass Cafe (601 Skokie Blvd., Northbrook, 847-205-4433) is cooking the Brisket (or Chicken) with Cauliflower Mash & Roasted Carrots, Matzo Ball Soup (using cookbook author Joan Nathan’s Matzo Ball recipe), and Flourless Chocolate Cake ($75 for two portions) for you. All you must do is order before Sunday evening, April 5 and pick up curbside at Prairie Grass Cafe on the first night of Passover, Wednesday, April 8. The first 40 orders will receive a complimentary pre-roasted lamb shank for your seder plate.

Wines by the bottle are also available at Prairie Grass Cafe. “We are offering all of the wines on our list for 50 percent off,” says Rohit Nambiar, Prairie Grass Cafe, co-owner and wine program director.

Passover Package Dinner for Two!

Matzo Ball Soup 

Passover chicken soup and matzo balls

Matzo

Pint of Chopped Chicken Liver 

Chopped liver, Passover

*Brisket with Cauliflower Mash & Roasted Carrots

Flourless Chocolate Cake

Passover cake

(each Passover Dinner serves two people)

$75

*roasted chicken instead of brisket upon request

Wednesday, April 8th we will only be offering our Passover Dinner.

We will not have our full menu. 

Order by Sunday for Curbside Pick Up Every Monday

Check Website for What’s Available

Prairie Grass Cafe, led by chefs/co-owners Sarah Stegner and George Bumbaris, is offering fresh, uncooked fish for preparing delicious dinners at home. Fish is available to pre-order and pick up curbside every Monday at Prairie Grass Cafe, 601 Skokie Blvd. in Northbrook. This Monday, a variety of sustainable fish will be available.  Call 847-205-4433 to order and visit the Prairie Grass Cafe website for daily special menus available for pick up.

Sustainable Fish at Home Available to Pick Up Monday

Swordfish Steaks 2 each 5.5 ounce portion skin off per tray $ 13.50

American Red Snapper 2 each 5.5 ounce portions skin on $ 21.50

Halibut portions, 2 each 5.5 ounce portions skin off $22.50

Arctic Char portions 2 each 5.5 ounce portions skin off $15.00

Canadian Salmon portions 2 each 5.5 ounce portions skin off $18.50

Alaskan Cod, 2 each 5.5 ounce portions skin off per tray $13.50

Pizza for Kids

Sunday pizza

Watch video

Making pizza

Shelter in Place and Enjoy Easter Dinner at Home from Prairie Grass Cafe Sunday, April 12
Order Your Easter Sunday Dinner by Thursday, April 9 for curbside pickup at Prairie Grass Cafe on April 12

Moussaka for Easter

Just because you are adhering to the Shelter in Place mandate, there is even more reason to celebrate Easter Sunday by enjoying a delicious family meal from Prairie Grass Cafe (601 Skokie Blvd, Northbrook, IL 60062). Chefs Sarah Stegner and George Bumbaris have created a memorable takeout menu, priced from $48-$53 depending upon which entrée you select. The price is inclusive of tax but not tip. Any gratuity you choose to donate will go to Prairie Grass employees.

We encourage you to pre-order by the end of day on Thursday, April 9 for curbside pickup on Sunday, April 12.  Please 847-205-4433 to order.

If you are cooking at home and need help, Chef Sarah has opened a cooking
hotline which operates everyday from 2 pm to 4 pm. The Cooking Question
helpline number is: 847-920-8437.
 

Easter Dinner Package for One!
Spring Green Salad
Radishes, Beets, Peas, Balsamic Vinaigrette
Side of Grilled Asparagus
Basil Remoulade, Balsamic Reduction 
Carrot Cake
Cream Cheese Frosting

Ham for Easter
Salad for Easter
Strudel for Easter
Easter dessert

Choice of Entrée 

Sliced Ham with Crispy Sweet Potato Wedges, Mushrooms & Roasted Carrots 
$48
OR
Moussaka Layers of Tender Braised Lamb, Eggplant, Potato, Golden Crusted Bechamel 
$50
OR
Parmesan Crusted Halibut with Creamed Spinach & Sauteed Potatoes
$53
OR
Strudel of Spring Greens with Feta, Toasted Pine Nuts with Grilled Vegetables
$42

Bonnie Kearns and family

Creative ways one mom has stepped up to help neighbors, community and restaurants

Bonnie Kearns of Glenview IL is extraordinary. She didn’t want to feel helpless and knowing that her neighborhood was homebound with concerns of the Corona Covid 19 virus, she kicked into action.

“It takes a village. It really does. Our little block in Glenview is just one component in the quarantine,” she said in a recent interview. 

In efforts to curb the spread of COVID-19, moms have been texting each about limited trips to the grocery store.  Every other day, someone “takes one for the team” and makes the dreaded trip.  “Asking everyone if they need anything, deliveries are dropped off on porches in plastic bags and we send a quick text that food and paper towels have arrived.”

We’re relieved we don’t have to face the impending doom of touching doors, credit card machines, carts, anything outside of our control for just another day.

Our new normal:

  • Cooking every meal became exhausting quickly. It is difficult to figure out what to make. “I felt like a failure,” says Bonnie. I was staring at a box of Mac & Cheese and felt like raising a flag in defeat. Then I received an email from Prairie GrassCafe regarding curbside pickup and Sarah Stegner’s cooking tip hotline, 847-920-8437 and Rohit Nambiar’s selection of delicious reasonably priced wines to complement the food. Since I knew the neighborhood was suffering, I decided I would order food and wine for my neighbors who weren’t comfortable leaving their homes. I texted moms to take a break from cooking tomorrow and that we would have pot roast and wine delivered to their doors with Clorox-wiped delivery boxes.  This snowballed with other opportunities to help. 
  • Sarah Stegner said “after I got her call, things started to come together for us. I thought it was a great model for how we could sell in large quantities. I thought, wow, I have to let other restaurateurs know to think outside the box  to help make curbside and delivery viable. People are picking up for their neighborhoods, too. This may be a solution. We have also added on a neighborhood in Evanston IL and are going to add a couple high rise buildings in Chicago.”
  • Bonnie continued: “I knew that medical professionals and first responders desperately needed help. A mom in our Facebook group mentioned that he was trying to boost morale in his office and ordered his employee’s lunch. After reading it twice, I realized it was my pediatrician’s office.  I was feeling helpless seeking ways I could provide relief to people that so desperately needed it. Bingo. I knew I could order wine from Prairie Grass and have it delivered to their office for the staff. That’s what I plan to do. I also plan to order lunch from our neighborhood deli and have it dropped off.”
  • I had planned a surprise birthday party for my husband at Chicago’s Kaiser Tiger in the West Loop on Saturday, March 14. Obviously, we had to cancel the 40-person dinner with less than a day’s notice. It made me sick to know that servers were depending on the income and the loss to the restaurant would be great. I didn’t care about the deposits or what I was going to be charged; it became so apparent that people weren’t going to be celebrating anything anytime soon. The event planner was completely understanding. The next day, Governor Pritzker issued the stay at home order. After receiving the Prairie Grass Cafe email, I immediately figured out what I could do to help Kaiser Tiger and the people in their area. “Surely, the EMTs, firefighters, urgent care workers, and hospitals in the West Loop had people that needed to eat. Since I have no idea when we would be able to reschedule the party, I asked the restaurant to use the money for better, more worthwhile cause and did not ask for a refund, said Bonnie.

See Bill Curtis


Photo credit: Cindy Kurman, Kurman Photography

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