After revamping its entire menu earlier this year, Uno Chicago Grill is making changes again with the launch of a line of limited time offers across its 145 units for the summer.
The chain that popularized the Chicago-style pizza is reprising its popular Cheeseburger Deep Dish, which was introduced four summers ago. The dish is made with hamburger, Cheddar and mozzarella cheeses, plum tomatoes, caramelized onions, ketchup mustard and a dill pickle.
“Close your eyes and you’d swear you were eating a cheeseburger,” said executive chef and vice president for food and beverage Chris Gatto.
The cheeseburger deep dish is priced at $11.29 for an individual pie and $18.99 for a regular.
The West Roxbury, Mass.-based casual-dining chain is promoting lobster for the third summer, including what Gatto calls a typical new England lobster roll with mayonnaise and lettuce on a grilled roll. It is priced at $18.79.
Also on the summer menu is a lobster and shrimp scampi sautéed with garlic, diced tomatoes and basil in a light white wine sauce served on vermicelli with Parmesan. An appetizer portion is $9.99 and a main course portion is $18.29.
“But my favorite is the lobster melt,” Gatto said. To prepare the dish, aged Cheddar is melted on lobster meat with mayonnaise and scallions, and served on a stirato roll, which is similar to ciabatta but with a harder crust. The lobster melt costs $18.79.
Following this summer’s trend of adding fruit to salad, Uno is offering fresh spinach tossed with watermelon, blueberries, red onion, goat cheese, basil and fat-free vinaigrette for $10.
Uno also is extending its tikka masala line, an Indian preparation that is rare among casual dining chains.
Uno already offered a chicken tikka masala, and then in May introduced steak tikka masala with its menu rollout.
For the summer, though, the chain is featuring shrimp tikka masala, prepared by cooking the shrimp in a sauce of tomato, cream, onion, ginger, garlic, cumin, cardamom, tamarind, cilantro and lemon, and serving it with a whole grain farro dish that Uno introduced earlier this year as part of its new line of small plates.
The Italian grain is cooked, tossed with diced plum tomatoes, cucumber and balsamic vinegar and served cold. It is priced at $9.99.
“So we have this nice contrast of hot and cold,” Gatto said.
That same tikka masala sauce is used in Uno’s tomato vegetable curry pasta, which was introduced as part of the springtime menu revamp, and priced at $7.49 and $12.49 for appetizer and entrée sizes, respectively.
Other small plates introduced this spring included a $3.99 spanakopita pie — Uno’s play on the savory Greek pastry, but served in the chain’s deep-dish crust; a $3.99 spicy queso dip with nacho chips; and sautéed shrimp and white beans served with spinach, tomatoes and white wine sauce for $4.99.
The prices of the items vary depending upon the location.
Contact Bret Thorn at [email protected].
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