Chicago: Sticky Bun Bread Pudding at Publican

The last time I wrote about Publican, it was in the middle of a rant about One Off Hospitality’s impeccable taste in hand soap.

While I still stand by those claims 100 percent, I’m also ready to recognize another of the many things that makes the Fulton-Market meat haven so great – their Sticky Bun Bread Pudding.

I went to Publican this week expecting to eat more carnivorously than I would at a Texas Roadhouse – and spoiler alert – I totally did that. But no matter how tender my steak was (read: very), or how savory the pork belly tasted, I was more than ready for dessert come meal’s end. And my eyes gravitated to those four little words without a second guess.

Aside from a mouth-watering lineup of maple-cream anglaise and spiced pecans, the Sticky Bun Bread Pudding has one major aspect going for it. Described on the menu as “family-style,” it comes in a cast-iron pan larger than my actual head. This thing could feed a family of sweet-toothed elves, and I don’t think they’d complain for a minute.

The pudding itself is easily pulled apart with a fork, but it still maintains that requisite dusting of caramelized brown sugar around the edges, making it stick to the sides of the pan and allowing only the bravest dessert fiends to scrape for the final bites.

And in case it wasn’t obvious, I was right there scraping until the bitter end. No worries, though — I headed to the bathroom to wash my hands with some Mailin and Goetz directly afterwards.

Publican, 837 West Fulton Market. For more information call 312-733-9555 or visit online.