Top nosh

Market days In a perfect world, we’d spend our summers leisurely strolling to the farmers’ markets, picking up perfect little pints of organic fruits and vegetables, chatting with farmers, tossing an apple up in the air before taking a ceremonious bite and thinking, Ah, what a world. In reality, we grab a bag of washed-and-ready mesclun greens from Jewel and head to work. Luckily, the boys at HB are doing the farm-to-market-to-table thing for us with their $50 Saturday-night Green Market tasting menu. After chef Joncarl Lachman hits Green City Market for supplies each Saturday, he creates a four-course meal utilizing the farmers’ best stuff. It changes weekly, but a recent menu included chilled strawberry soup with balsamic and basil, delicate mixed greens topped with a goat cheese crouton, grilled veal porterhouse and purple asparagus on garlicky polenta with rhubarb jam, and a finale of Dutch-style buttermilk pancakes with mascarpone, honeycomb and candied mint leaves. Yeah, we’d say that pretty much trumps salad-in-a-bag. 3404 N Halsted St between Roscoe St and Newport Ave (773-661-0299).—Heather Shouse