I’m hoping that Opus, a 2-month-old French restaurant in Oak Brook, does well. It isn’t a given; owner Andrew Markuch is charging River North prices in a strip-mall location. But if locals can get past the nondescript exterior and give chef Stephen Leonard’s cooking a try, they should be very happy.
It’s easy to miss the restaurant, which sits unassumingly in a satellite mall across the street from massive Oakbrook Center. But once through the door, the 54-seat interior is charming, a contemporary white-tablecloth space with black-and-tan banquettes, curvy metal-frame chairs wrapped in tan Naugahyde and a long bar in stainless steel and black granite. Halogen track lighting focuses a spot of light on each table, a dramatic effect diminished by the overly bright fluorescent light that, curiously, illuminates a back hallway as though it were to be used for surgery. Dial down the wattage, please.
Leonard, whose resume includes work at Cyrano’s Bistrot, Biggs and the Sutton Place Hotel, prepares contemporary French dishes with style and whimsy. Meals start, for instance, with a complimentary amuse from the kitchen, perhaps tiny profiteroles stuffed with mushroom duxelle, or hollowed cucumber cups filled with smoked salmon and cayenne-seasoned cream cheese.
Soups and salads dominate the first-course options. Soups range from a silky smooth lobster bisque with a dollop of creme fraiche to a lively chilled gazpacho with a distinct spicy undercurrent. Salads are uncommonly pretty. One creation presents matchsticks of turnip nestled in endive leaves, surrounding a disk of creamy chevre topped with red oak lettuce bound by strips of roasted beet. Another combines mesclun greens, haricots verts and chewy strips of pastrami-cured duck meat; I couldn’t discern the Grand Marnier vinaigrette dressing the greens, but I loved the brie croutons, actually cubes of warm brie coated with crispy breadcrumbs.
Lightly sauteed rouget (a French mullet uncommon to Chicago menus) is the star of a summery salad of mixed greens dressed in a lemon vinaigrette; thick pieces of seared-rare tuna lead a composition that includes dried tomatoes, thin-sliced saffron potatoes and nicoise olives. Crispy prawn salad wraps butterflied prawns and aromatic vegetables (carrot, fennel, leek) in crisped sheets of potato, over a celery-root remoulade.
Leonard really ratchets up the artistry for his entrees. Rack of lamb, carved into individual chops, are accompanied by a “bouquet” of wild-mushroom barley and spring vegetables, bound together with a wide band of carrot. Beef tenderloin arrives with an intriguing tart of lobster meat and savory lemon mousse, along with fava beans and a sturdy port wine sauce. The same port wine sauce nicely supports grilled pork tenderloin, which is wrapped into a roulade with spinach, crabmeat and papaya. Grilled venison chops, propped vertically against a pile of bulgur wheat with grilled baby corn, couldn’t look prettier; a sweet lingonberry chutney balances the venison’s gamy flavor.
Seared swordfish is presented on its edge, so the triangular steak points upward like a shark’s fin. Purple sticky rice holds the fish in place, while yellow squash and bright-green sea beans add color and texture; around the plate is a gentle soubise (a creamy onion sauce) jazzed up with accents of vodka and lime.
Jumbo scallops are injected with a thin lime mousse, which oozes forth when prodded, and are stacked between thin sheets of crisp pastry; these are presented along with tall towers of intensely yellow saffron potato, slightly hollowed to hold a sprinkling of caviar and creme fraiche, and scattered slices of artichoke hearts, with red-, yellow- and green-pepper syrups painted on the plate.
Leonard’s signature dessert is his St. Etienne cake, which layers white-chocolate cake with dark-chocolate mousse and sliced strawberries, enveloping them in dark-chocolate ganache. The chocolate truffle cake is another ganache-covered creation; within the chocolate exterior is chocolate truffle, chocolate cake and chocolate mousse with a thin inlay of raspberry mousse.
Non-chocolate options include a straightforward lemon tart and sauteed baby bananas in a rum-caramel sauce with homemade cinnamon ice cream.
Opus makes an appealing lunch destination; entrees ($9 to $18) include a trio of burrito-sized seafood crepes stuffed with crabmeat, scallops, shrimp and lobster over a silky lobster veloute; and twin filets of beef stacked with oven-dried tomato, alongside a ragout of wild mushrooms and eggplant and a pinot-noir sauce.
The wine list, which does not include any bottlings of the famous Opus One wine (too obvious, perhaps), is slowly building; for now, it’s a compact but nicely varied list with moderate prices.
Opus
(star)(star)
W. 16th St., Oak Brook
630-928-0901
Open: Dinner Tue.-Sat., lunch Tue.-Sun.
Entree prices: $17-$29
Credit cards: A, DC, DS, M, V
Reservations: Recommended
Noise: Conversation-friendly
Other: Wheelchair accessible; Free parking lot.
Reviews are based on no fewer than two visits. The reviewer makes every effort to remain anonymous. Meals are paid for by the Tribune.
