Stephanie Izard's Little Goat Diner

Stephanie Izard’s Little Goat Diner

January 14, 2013  |  City of Chicago

I love diners. So no wonder Stephanie Izard’s new hotspot Little Goat is now my favorite restaurant. I have a deep, emotional attachment to diners. My family moved to Arkansas when I was 9 from the east coast, so trips back to New York City always featured a visit to Waverly Diner near our old apartment in the Village. The mid-South simply doesn’t have a culture conducive to diners. Diners represent equality like no other eating establishment. In violent movies & TV shows diners are often used to create a ‘Switzerland’ environment for the characters to host détentes. Think about Breaking Bad, When Harry Met SallySeinfeld, etc…

The most epic diner scene of all time… Pulp Fiction

On New Year’s Day I went with a pal, just three days after the diner officially opened. Although there was a waitlist for booths and tables, they offered us a spot at the bar with no wait. We snatched up the opportunity and sat next to none other than Steve ‘Hungry Hound’ Dolinsky. I didn’t recognize him, not even the seven plates of food arrayed in front of him was enough to jog my memory. I knew he was a food critic (duh), but it wasn’t until a fan came up to introduce herself that I realized it was him. Let me just say, that man can eat an insane amount of food.

little goat parathas burrito

Parathas Burrito with avocado-bean salad

I went dramatically outside my comfort zone and ordered the Parathas Burrito. I have food allergies and sensitivities severe enough that I carry an Epipen and prednisone in case I experience anaphylaxis… again. I know what I’m allergic to, but you just never know – especially in more complex dishes. I timidly took a bite of the parathas slathered in hot sauce and waited, just to be sure. All good! The burrito was excellent, because it combined two of my favorite things – dippy eggs and indian food. Brilliant. Plus, the little ‘mom’ inside me was proud of myself for not ordering the most boring (read: SAFE) item on the menu, which is what I usually do at new restaurants.

The holy grail of breakfast food 

The second time I went I ordered the Corned Beef Hash and I can say – without risking a U-Turn accusation of ‘being hyperbolic’ – that it was the single greatest breakfast dish I have ever eaten in my 26 years. Ever.

Little Goat adventure numero tres was all about the Tomato Apple Soup with ‘yay toast’ and several bites off my friend’s The Fat Club sandwich, which was epic in size. And the bread? Yeah, Stephanie replaced butter in the recipe with duck fat drippings. If Ron Swanson was a real person, this is the only kind of toast he’d eat. Oh, and as if Anthony Bourdain wasn’t already in love with her food, she went and made bread with the ‘nectar of the gods’…

Little Goat Menu

820 West Randolph Street

Open 7 a.m. to 2 a.m.


1 Comment


  1. Holy pop culture Batman! Any article that incorporates Ron Swanson, Weeds, Bourdain, AND Pulp Fiction is a major winner. Awesome read. Looks like I’ll have to check out Little Goat ASAP 😉

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