Moveable Feast + Co

It may bring to mind the novel of the same name by Oak Park native Ernest Hemingway, but Moveable Feast in Wheaton borrows less from the writer’s Parisian lifestyle and more from the free spiritedness behind it.That spirit is evident in the menu and atmosphere at Moveable Feast & Company, opened last fall on the site of the former Front Street Cantina. The front of the space is a sit-down café with a small bar, while the back half is a marketplace, with take-home fare, on-the-spot desserts, and packaged foods, drinks and products for cooks and foodies. 

This is the second Moveable Feast in the area, but unlike the original in downtown Geneva, this one serves sit-down dinners. And while the Geneva location in a set-back house is homey, this one is open, airy and modern, with white painted brick walls.

Just as Moveable Feast is eclectic in a smaller-scale food hall kind of way, so is its menu. Brunch items include some outstanding breakfast dishes, such as the MF Toast, a grilled hunk of multigrain with a schmear of herb chèvre topped with roasted tomatoes, "billionaire" bacon (divine), and local microgreens, served with roasted garlic aioli. Other brunch items are just as inventive, from the Roasted Sweet Potato Cakes to the Hemp Seed Waffle.

For lunch, there’s a burger with more than a few twists. Hand-formed, it is topped with seared halloumi cheese, roasted tomato, roasted black garlic aioli, cucumber, and preserved lemon and pickled fennel arugula salad, and served with "Feast Fries" and artichoke aioli. Salads include an appetizing, colorful Kale Caesar and Figgy Green Salad. Given the popularity of bowls, it’s no surprise to see a Grain Bowl and Tandoori Chicken Bowl on the menu.

The creative and unusual infusion of flavors is also evident in the limited but diverse dinner menu, which includes such entrées as a Seed Pan Roasted Salmon, complete with spirulina shrimp mousse dumplings, and a Grilled Beef Tenderloin with poached black pepper, pickled grilled red onion and arugula and black garlic pommes purée (a.k.a. mashed potatoes) with a red wine syrup.

A full bar on-site is stocked with an array of red, white, rose and sparkling wines, along with signature cocktails and a selection of bottled and canned beer, ranging from old-school Pabst Blue Ribbon to the locally brewed Two Brothers Prairie Path golden ale.

Now, onto the marketplace and a vibrant case teeming with goodies to bring home. Be sure to take a look at the sweets — Oprah Winfrey once included the MF Brownie on her influential list of Favorite Things.

Overall, there’s an almost palpable celebration of artisanal food and for sourcing  ingredients here. It’s reflected in the mission statement to help "celebrate life through thoughtful, wholesome, hand-made foods and the joy of entertaining."

Quick Facts

Contact

112 N. Hale St., Wheaton, 630 868-3777

www.moveablefeastandco.com

Recommended Dishes 

Seed Pan Roasted Salmon, Moveable Feast Toast

Cost

Shared plates: $7 – $19

Entrées:: $12 – $22

Desserts: $5 – $7

Hours 

Tue – Wed: 8 a.m. – 7 p.m. 

Thur – Sat, 8 a.m. – 10 p.m. 

Extras

Marketplace; take-home dishes; open for breakfast