Before we get too deep into January, let’s take one last nostalgic look at what made 2005 a distinct year for dining, and take a quick peek at what’s likely to be newsworthy in 2006:
Looking back:
Restaurant of the Year: Can there be any doubt? Grant Achatz’s Alinea received cover-girl treatment from every foodie magazine in the country, and that was before its opening in May. As soon as Alinea debuted, the national press was out in force, and the worst thing anybody managed to say about the place is that it wasn’t as good as El Bulli, the otherwordly Spanish restaurant that some consider the world’s best. Even that back-of-the-hand dismissal was really a tribute to Achatz’s star power; who else has his restaurant compared to the world’s best in its first week?
(One last time: Alinea is pronounced uh-LIN-ee-ya, and Achatz rhymes with brackets.)
Best newcomers: Chicago had other interesting openings besides Alinea, however. Scylla took seafood to rarely duplicated levels, Carnivale proved you could attract trendies and still be serious about your food and X/O proved itself to be as good as its culinary-dream-team staff portended. Sarah Stegner and George Bumbaris opened the delightful Prairie Grass Cafe in Northbrook; Paul Virant put Western Springs on the dining map with the outstanding Vie.
A slew of new-concept Italian restaurants–Osteria Via Stato, Ballo, Francesca’s Forno and Extra Virgin (and likely the just-opened Quartino)–proved that the best Italian cuisine is often the simplest. Kendall College moved its culinary school to Goose Island, giving Chicagoans easy access to its student-run restaurant–the best fine-dining bargain you’re likely to find.
And though their restaurants weren’t new, chef Graham Elliott Bowles of Avenues and Homaro Cantu of Moto garnered buckets of publicity in 2005. The two were linked to Achatz in several national articles profiling Chicago’s cutting-edge culinary scene.
Sad farewells: Some of the oldest names in Chicago’s restaurant community bade farewell in 2005. Eli’s the Place for Steak was forced out of its Streeterville home after nearly 40 years, and The Berghoff, a Loop fixture since 1898, announced that it will close (becoming banquet space) in February 2006. Tiki culture suffered a blow when Trader Vic’s vacated its space in the Palmer House Hilton, but that concept hopes to reopen in River North later this year.
Elsewhere, fires claimed Butterfield 8 in River North and Ann Sather’s Wicker Park location. Masck closed after a nine-month city run, but returned to Deerfield (though not its original Deerfield location). Wendy Gilbert’s untimely death closed her quirky restaurant, Savoy Truffle. Jacky Pluton shuttered his namesake restaurant in order to move to the Gold Coast, but that deal fell through. Pluton is running Narra in Evanston but still hopes to revive Pluton in the city.
It seemed that as soon as restaurants closed, others moved in. Soju closed and Parlor moved in. Ditto for Bob Chinn’s Crabhouse Chicago, replaced by Fulton’s on the River. Saiko became Zapatista, SWK made way for Meztiso and the Outpost died that Cleary’s on Clark might live. Nick & Tony’s closed its Wacker Drive location, but McCormick & Schmick’s is taking over the space, though it won’t be open for months. And Cafe 36 in La Grange closed, only to reopen, with new owners, as Cafe 36.
The most newsworthy closing of a never-opened restaurant took place in New York, where Charlie Trotter pulled the plug on his seafood restaurant in the Time-Warner building, citing runaway costs.
A big part of the reason people think chefs are cool: Although public response to Hurricane Katrina was remarkable and gratifying, one would be hard-pressed to find a group that responded more quickly or more generously than America’s chefs. Fundraiser dinners popped up all over the country, and one of the biggest was Jimmy Bannos’ Recipe for Relief dinner. Seven dozen chefs, a virtual Who’s Who of Chicago culinarians, contributed time and expertise; the event drew 1,500 people and raised more than $175,000. You people rock.
Fastest-growing concept: The number of Brazilian-style churrascaria restaurants in the Chicago area tripled in 2005. Suddenly they were popping up in places such as Orland Park and Northbrook, all offering all-you-can-eat grilled meats.
Most ubiquitous dish: Again we look to Alinea, whose first menu included an opening nibble dubbed PB&J, and consisted of a peeled, peanut-butter-coated grape encased in toasted brioche and served suspended on a wire contraption. Just about every story about Alinea managed to include a photograph of this dish. As did ours.
Liver let die: The debate over foie gras–beloved culinary tradition or barbaric animal abuse?–turned nasty in Chicago when Charlie Trotter announced that he was forswearing the dish on humanitarian grounds. Tru chef/owner Rick Tramonto suggested that Trotter was hypocritical (they saute chickens, don’t they?), and Trotter responded that Tramonto’s liver was sufficiently engorged to qualify for menu status.
Is that a maki roll in your pocket or are you just admiring the centerpiece? How do you distinguish your sushi restaurant amid an ocean of similar concepts? If you’re the owner of Kizoku in River North, you put an almost-naked model on a table, top her with a strategically placed sushi and charge $500 for the experience. Careful with those chopsticks, buddy.
Quickest divorce: The long-awaited Saltaus restaurant was barely open before owners Nader Salti and Michael Taus had a falling out, leaving the money partner in control and chef Taus out–or so it seemed until Taus filed a lawsuit just before Christmas. The lesson for you young chefs out there: If you’re going to bankroll your dream concept with a single investor, it’s best if the guy leaves you the money in his will.
Looking ahead at who and what will be making headlines in 2006:
Chicago butts out: On Jan. 16, the first phase of Chicago’s no-smoking ordinance goes into effect, banning smoking in most public places but providing 18-month delays for bars and for restaurants with attached bars.
Anticipated openings: Il Mulino, considered by many to be New York’s top Italian restaurant, is scheduled to open in the old Biggs space on North Dearborn Street on Jan. 12. Jason Paskewitz is working on Cathedral, an ambitious restaurant in the old Jazz Record Mart space on North Wabash. We eagerly await Jerry Kleiner’s unnamed Hyde Park restaurant, opening next door to the relocated Checkerboard Lounge. And I have yet to check out such late-2005 openings as Quartino, Emilio’s Sunflower, Dine, Del Toro and DiPescara.
Trader Vic’s, which shuttered its Loop location, plans to be pouring mai tais in River North this year. Pops for Champagne will get there first, relocating its Lincoln Park spot to River North in April.
Hottest restaurateur: Alinea’s getting most of the press, but Shawn McClain starts 2006 as the owner of three restaurants, having opened Custom House to go with his previous hits Spring and Green Zebra. How thin can McClain stretch himself and still dazzle patrons? How popular can his restaurants remain when customers know there’s just a one-in-three chance he’s in the kitchen that night? We shall see.
Hottest meat: Tallgrass Beef Company, owned by TV legend Bill Kurtis, is bringing its open-range, grass-fed beef to Chicago restaurants. Said to be a more eco-friendly, healthier and tastier alternative to grain-fed beef, Tallgrass is on the menus of Harry Caray’s and Prairie Grass Cafe (where Kurtis is a partner).
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pvettel@tribune.com
