Eat This: When an ice cream cone is made of pie crust, you order it (no waffling)

How is it we put a man on the moon in 1969, and yet we're only now inventing ice cream cones made out of pie crust?

"I always found the cone part of the ice cream cone to be bland and disappointing," says Dinah Grossman, the owner of Spinning J in Humboldt Park. "The pie cone is something I've been working on for a long time — probably about four or five years."

Grossman won't share her recipe or exact technique, but here's what I know: She molds an all-butter crust into a cone shape, sprinkles it with crystalline granules of sugar and bakes it. The resulting cone is flaky and crunchy, comfortingly buttery and a touch sweet. Of course, a cone this good deserves top-dollar ice cream (or in this case, gelato). I was happy to find that Spinning J offers flavors from local favorite Black Dog. Try the strawberry balsamic ($3 single scoop or $4.75 double, plus $2.50 cone).

If you want a pie cone, don't dawdle: Spinning J's daily supply is so limited the cone isn't even listed on the menu, and the dessert already has a lot of fans. "We were a little blindsided by the enthusiastic response," Grossman says.

Spinning J, 1000 N. California Ave., 872-829-2793, www.spinningj.com

jbhernandez@chicagotribune.com
Twitter @joeybear85

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At 63rd and Western, you can take your taste buds on a trip to Central America at Garifuna Flava, its walls lined with Garifuna and Belize flags. Place your order in the back at the full-service bar. The food is deserving of the praise they’ve received from Guy Fieri in the past. The conch fritters ($8.95) are seasoned with Caribbean spices and the panades ($8.95) — accompanied by a spicy but not overwhelming slaw — feature buffalo fish in a corn tortilla. Both are crispy bites of fried seafood heaven that have an authentic island taste. On the side, I ordered a tower of red beans and rice ($4.75/small), served with a chicken-based gravy that when poured on top texturizes the rice as it absorbs the flavor, and the sweet plantains ($4.50), which a knife glides through like butter and maybe rival the ones my mom makes — ssh! 2518 W. 63rd St., 773-776-7440, garifunaflava.net — Natalie Wade (Natalie Wade / Chicago Tribune)