Of soup and love, the first is best.-Spanish Proverb

Aja at the Dana Hotel and Spa

The Dana Hotel and Spa is a sleek and swanky boutique hotel located on State Street in downtown Chicago. I went to an event at the Dana that was catered by their Asian restaurant, Aja. I didn't get to enjoy any of the delicious looking food, so I decided to head back this weekend since I had a guest in town.

Asian food can be hit or miss for me, but Aja was a hit! I wanted to keep my meal light so I didn't go into a food coma post meal, so my group stuck with appetizers and sushi rolls. I chose the Aja Spare Ribs and the Rainbow Roll.

The spare ribs were exactly how spare ribs should be: tender, soft and flavorful. The ribs fell right off the bone and into my mouth. They weren't too chewy either; smooth as butter. There were a few more bones in the ribs than I would've liked but what can you do. They were also almost entirely trimmed of the fat which was a plus. They were covered with a spicy hoisin bbq glaze, which gave them a nice kick.

The rainbow was your typical rainbow roll: tuna, salmon, shrimp and white fish rolls filled with crab and avocado. They were good, not life changing, but still gone within five minutes because I'm completely gluttonous when it comes to sushi.

I got to try my friend's firecracker spring rolls that were stuffed with crispy chicken and peanuts and came with a hot mustard dipping sauce. These were just phenomenal! I love peanut flavoring, especially with chicken and the hot mustard sauce definitely lived up to its name. The spring rolls were so crispy you could keep popping them in your mouth like chips. If I go back to Aja, I'll definitely get those.

I decided to splurge on a cocktail and chose the Lemongrass Lemonade, which is essentially a classy vodka and lemonade, my latest drink of choice. The beverage was made with Grey Goose vodka, lemongrass syrup and fresh squeezed lemon. I noticed that our bartender tried our drinks with a straw and made a couple of changes after. He was checking its quality and wouldn't give it us until it was perfect. That's a great attention to detail and is a mark of a good and professional bartender.

Aja