Green Street

I was out of my West side neighborhood over the week-end and found Green Street Restaurant behind the Williams-Sonoma store on Lake Avenue. It was the only place that wasn't advertising burgers, a bar, and beer, so I went in hoping for something green, like a salad. They are famous for their Diane salad, a version of Chinese Chicken, with asian crisp noodles, shredded lettuce, sesame seeds, and sliced chicken, served with a tangy sweet dressing.

It appeared that every table was ordering it and according to the restaurant, it is their most popular dish. It arrived almost immediately after I ordered it and it was HUGE, but sadly also a huge disappointment. The chicken was tender but completely bland, which was probably purposeful because the sweet dressing drenched the salad and made it practically inedible. If I were to ever order this again I would definitely specify dressing on the side. The orange slices were a nice touch, but something else that would add some color and freshness to the salad would have been a better addition. Nearby tables had equally huge spinach salads with grilled shrimp, pasta primavera, and tri tip blue cheese sandwiches which all looked good; I probably should have ordered something other than the Diane Salad, but I wanted to try the most popular dish.



The saving grace was the zucchini bread that came with the salad; it was fantastic, moist, flavorful, and not too sweet. There were many nice things to be said about Green Street, from the welcoming decor and hostess, to the efficient server and busboys. It might be worth trying again, but next time I'll skip the most popular dish and go renegade with something more exotic.