A roundup of restaurants recently reviewed by restaurant critic Phil Vettel.
Brasserie Ruhlmann *** 500 W. Superior St.; 312-494-1900. This copy of a New York restaurant takes its name from Art Deco master Emil-Jacques Ruhlmann, and accordingly there are Art Deco accents throughout the bustling, 240-seat dining room. Chef Christian Delouvrier, who worked at L’Espinasse and Alain Ducasse, turns out classic brasserie food that is simultaneously hearty and nuanced — comfort food for the thinking person. Recommended: Le Chicago chowder, moules frites, raspberry napoleon. Open: Dinner Mon.-Sun., lunch Mon.-Fri., brunch Sun. Entree prices: $22-$42. Credit cards: A, DC, DS, M, V. Reservations: Strongly recommended. Noise: Conversation-challenged. Other: Wheelchair accessible, valet parking.
Crofton on Wells *** 535 N. Wells St.; 312-755-1790. Since its December 1997 opening, Suzy Crofton’s restaurant in River North has quietly become one of Chicago’s finest dining experiences, combining a handsome and quiet dining room with similarly understated but excellent cuisine from the chef and owner. Crofton’s seasonal American cooking is laden with comfort-food ingredients and a smattering of wild game, with the occasional spicy accent. Recommended: Quail with dried-cherry spoonbread, curried lentils with ginger creme fraiche, venison with tarragon sabayon, chocolate-banana plate. Open: Dinner Mon.-Sat. Entree prices: $26-$34. Credit cards: A, DC, DS, M, V. Reservations: Strongly recommended. Noise: Conversation-friendly. Other: Wheelchair accessible, valet parking.
Fleming’s Prime Steakhouse & Wine Bar ** 960 Milwaukee Ave., Lincolnshire; 847-793-0333. At the Chicago-area outpost of this national steakhouse chain, prime steaks are aged 21 days, cut on the premises (so it’s easy to order an extra-thick cut) and consistently excellent. Recommended: Fleming salad, NY strip steak, prime rib, chocolate lava cake. Open: Dinner Mon.-Sun. Entree prices: $24.50-$42.95. Credit cards: A, DC, DS, M, V. Reservations: Recommended. Noise: Conversation-friendly. Other: Wheelchair accessible, valet parking.
Fuego ** 17 W. Campbell Ave., Arlington Heights; 847-590-1122. Deftly combining elements of Chicago’s top Mexican restaurants (the Adobo Grill guacamole cart, for instance), this Northwest Suburban hotspot manages to satisfy the Tex-Mex neophyte and regional-Mexican aficionado with equal measure (and both groups are likely to enjoy the killer cocktails here). Recommended: Tamalitos, lamb shank, filet in mole poblano. Open: Dinner and lunch Mon.-Sun. Entree prices: $10.95-$25.95. Credit cards: A, DC, DS, M, V. Reservations: Accepted; parties of 6 or more on weekends. Noise: Conversation-friendly. Other: Wheelchair accessible.
Gabriel’s *** 310 Green Bay Rd., Highwood; 847-433-0031. Classic restaurants become classics for a reason; Gabriel’s demonstrates why they remain so. Gabriel Viti’s signature restaurant, which made a huge splash with its 1993 debut on the North Shore, has settled into a well-defined niche in the Highwood restaurant scene, offering Viti’s familiar, high-quality French and Italian dishes in a postcard-cute country-French dining room with a copper-skillet-lined display kitchen. Viti is a constant presence in the dining room, chatting up regulars and newcomers with equal enthusiasm, sommelier Bob Bansberg, late of Ambria, is a huge asset. Recommended: Sesame-crusted tuna, crespelle, pancetta-wrapped trout. Open: Dinner Tue.-Sat. Entree prices: $23.95-$46.50. Credit cards: A, DC, DS, M, V. Reservations: Strongly recommended. Noise: Conversation-friendly. Other: Wheelchair accessible, $5 valet parking.
Green Zebra *** 1460 W. Chicago Ave.; 312-243-7100. Shawn McClain’s mostly vegetarian (there’s always one fish selection) and vegan-friendly restaurant is one of those places to show off to out-of-towners, because no matter where they’re from, they haven’t got this back home. Not only is the vegetable-focused menu good enough to convert the most ardent carnivore, but it’s also presented with a fine-dining sensibility. If only the dining room were twice its current size, there might be room for all the people who want to eat here. Recommended: Burrata salad, poached over smoked-potato puree. Open: Dinner Mon.-Sun., brunch Sun. Prices: Small plates $7-$16. Credit cards: A, DC, DS, M, V. Reservations: Strongly recommended. Noise: Conversation-friendly. Other: Wheelchair accessible, valet parking.
Lockwood *** Palmer House Hilton, 17 E. Monroe St.; 312-917-3404. Giving the Palmer House the gourmet restaurant it has long deserved, Lockwood manages to embrace the hotel’s storied past while remaining very much a contemporary concept. Chef Phillip Foss cooks with imagination, humor and considerable skill. The lavishly appointed dining room manages to remain low-key and intimate. Recommended: “Crab apple,” squab breast, prosciutto-wrapped pork, veal trio, banana napoleon. Open: Dinner, breakfast, lunch daily. Entree prices: $28-$46. Credit cards: A, DC, DS, M, V. Reservations: Strongly recommended. Other: Wheelchair accessible, valet parking, discounted self-parking with validation.
Macello ** 1235 W. Lake St.; 312-850-9870. Giovanni DeNigris, who also owns Trattoria Trullo in Lincoln Square, once again specializes in the food of his native Puglia at this Market District spot. Housed in a former meatpacking space (Macello means “slaughterhouse”), DeNigris makes good use of vintage industrial materials to create a look that’s rustic yet distinctly urban. Two wood-burning ovens handle the brunt of the compact menu; roasted meats and fish are the best main courses, and though roasted antipasti (which change daily) are also satisfying, it’s tough to turn down the well-crafted, crispy-crust pizzas. Recommended: Mixed seafood grill, pizza barese, branzino, croccantino. Open: Dinner Mon.-Sun. Entree prices: $14-$44. Credit cards: A, DC, DS, M, V. Reservations: Recommended. Noise: Conversation-challenged. Other: Wheelchair accessible, valet parking.
Mercat a la Planxa *** 638 S. Michigan Ave.; 312-765-0524. The cooking of Spain’s Catalan region gets uncommonly reverential treatment in this South Loop restaurant whose multitiered, wildly colorful dining room would feel at home in the middle of Barcelona. Executive chef and local-boy-made-good-elsewhere Jose Garces (whose acclaimed Amada and Tinto restaurants are in Philadelphia) produces dishes that blow you away with pitch-perfect details, from the olive-oil drizzle that adds just the right brightness to pan con tomat to the bacon marmalade that adds salty-sweet grace notes to a flatbread pizza topped with shortrib meat. When Garces isn’t here, which is most of the time, chef de cuisine Michael Fiorello does the heavy lifting, ably abetted by an exemplary service staff possessing the eager zeal of religious converts. Recommended: Jamon de campo, Spanish omelet, hamachi en escabeche, rabbit agnolotti, mato y ubas. Open: Dinner Mon.-Sun., breakfast/lunch Mon.-Fri., brunch Sat.-Sun. Prices: Small plates $5-$16; tasting menu $55. Credit cards: A, DC, DS, M, V. Reservations: Strongly recommended. Noise: Conversation-challenged. Other: Wheelchair accessible, valet parking.
Old Town Brasserie *** 1209 N. Wells St.; 312-943-3000. Purists may sniff that this cozy restaurant isn’t a “true” brasserie (it’s not), but longtime restaurateur Bob Djahanguiri (Yvette, Toulouse) and acclaimed chef Roland Liccioni (Le Francais, Les Nomades) have partnered to create an outstanding dining experience. Dishes that starred on Liccioni’s Le Francais menus are here — at greatly reduced prices — along with simpler fare (escargots, salade Lyonnaise) that are just as satisfying. It wouldn’t be a Djahanguiri restaurant without live music, which is featured near the bar on Fridays and Saturdays (after 10 p.m.). Recommended: Duck consomme, artichoke terrine, poached salmon, lamb-sweetbreads duo, hazelnut souffle. Open: Dinner Mon.-Sat. Entree prices: $18-$29. Credit cards: A, DC, DS, M, V. Reservations: Strongly recommended. Noise: Conversation-friendly. Other: Wheelchair accessible, valet parking.
Sixteen *** 401 N. Wabash Ave.; 312-588-8000. Given all the chest-thumping and publicity-mongering that has accompanied the creation of its home, the Trump International Hotel & Tower, it wouldn’t have ruined my day if Sixteen had turned out to be an overpriced flop. But this dazzling restaurant, oozing with spare-no-expense luxury and boasting riveting city views, lives up to the hype. Australian chef Frank Brunacci fashions an International menu that’s rife with muscular, aggressive flavors — yet his completed dishes are full of nuance and depth. Reserved but unstuffy service is a major asset. Recommended: English pea soup, quail, Malaysian-style duck percik, diver scallop “bang bang,” Study in Strawberry. Open: Dinner and breakfast Mon.-Sun., lunch Mon.-Fri., brunch Sun. Entree prices: $36-$39. Credit cards: A, DC, DS, M, V. Reservations: Strongly recommended. Noise: Conversation-friendly. Other: Wheelchair accessible, discounted valet parking.
Tallulah *** 4539 N. Lincoln Ave.; 773-942-7585. In a neighborhood (Lincoln Square) dotted with intimate and personal restaurants, Tallulah, which opened in March, may be the most sophisticated. Chef Troy Graves’ contemporary American menu is delicious agony, one enticing choice after another, and the vision-in-ivory dining room is smart and comfortable, if rather noisy (the outdoor dining space, with its peaked metal roof, is an appealing alternative). And Graves has a knack for making incompatible-sounding ingredients (strawberries and fava beans), play nice together. Recommended: Lobster deviled eggs, mushroom-prune tart, lamb loin, pistachio cheesecake. Open: Dinner Tue.-Sun., brunch Sun. Entree prices: $17-$26. Credit cards: A, DC, DS, M, V. Reservations: Strongly recommended. Noise: Conversation-challenged. Other: Wheelchair accessible.
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Ratings key:
OUTSTANDING ****
EXCELLENT ***
VERY GOOD **
GOOD *
Reviews are based on no fewer than two visits. The reviewer makes every effort to remain anonymous. Meals are paid for by the Tribune.
