Four Days in Chicago

[C Simril]

The trip began at Wrigley Stadium, a rollercoaster of images from my father's ancient Cub fandom, to my own enjoyement of the team as called by Vin Scully when they played the Dodgers, the amusing sequence in one of my favourite films The Brother From Another Planet when a couple of white guys from Chicago find themselves in a Harlem bar and try and break the ice with their enthusiasm for Mr Cub, Ernie Banks, a favourite of my distant youth. Will the Cubs win the series in my lifetime? Not in my father's (1917-2008). It was a wondrous Rosebud coloured sleighride into 2nd base just to be here, and finally, see the Cubs in their memory amber-friendly confines. They won the game with a grand slam. How ever does that happen in a lifetime?

My discovery last year of the s. pallegrino http://www.theworlds50best.com/2008_list.html

list of restaurants inspired me to try them out when the opportunity arose. The chance to spend the last 4 days in August in Chicago, a city I had not visited since childhood in the 50s, led to reservations at Charlie Trotters, Alinea, and L20. My former Chicago-based cousin Elicia joined me in the feast and total tourism in a city I found enchanting. The food is pictured and described at length on my blog, www.seemrealland.blogspot.com but I'd like to contribute a few comments for the Heartland section as it was my source for much of our dining.

At Charlie Trotters, Elicia order the Vegetable Menu, I had the Grand. My amusey Dungeness Crab with Seawater & Sturgeon Roe was about the crabbiest tasting morsel that has ever entered my mouth. And I hate roe! Here in Vancouver, great crab is ubiquitous. But this was actually better, in its realization, as if Leonardo da Crab etched on your palate an oriignal insight into what the taste of crabmeat could be.

Then some other stuff.

Elicia kindly allowed me a bite of her Michigan Heirloom Tomatoes with Fava Beans, Basil Seeds and Chervil. . I'd had some faboulous heirloom tomato feasts at Vancouver restuarants and expected someone like Charlie to come through here. I was not expecting those molecules. I have never had finer.

Until a few minutes later.

I enjoyed the scallop. No, really, I really enjoyed the Grilled Nantucket Scallop with Boudin, Pig's Tail & Fennel. The Tail of pig was truly evil. But the scallop was wondrous. E had the other and concurred, though we also agreed the leafage was counter-productive. E agreed to exchange her Oregon Morel Mushrooms with Miso, Toasted Koji & Shiso for my Forty Eight Hour Braised Short Rib with Chive Blossoms & Fermented Black Garlic. She found it edible, though the bite I had proved daunting. The morel, on the other hand....

There are no words.

Perhaps this is what is meant by magic mushrooms? I am in an unimagined universe. Who knew food could do this?

Wine pairing wasn't instrusive. After the dish cooled, it wasn't nearly as good. But still, The chance to enter such a totally unknown universe of goodness after almost 6 decades in search of such things. A moment of Faustian time, in which one could only wish to live eternally. But like life, it is brief.

Other stuff was between ok (trout) to far from ok (quail) on my menu and my cousin was not as excited by her menu as she was expecting.

Deserts were more cloying than enjoyable and pairings adeqaute at best. Not what you'd expect at this level of restaurant. Many were the bites of food I wish had been revitalized, transformed, elevated or at least helped along with a bit of the expected somelier deftness.

After a gram of heriloom tomato visitor from other universe and morel explosion of everything I thought I knew of taste, what more could Charlie do? That was more than enough. We zipped off for our 930 reservation at the bar on the 96th floor of the Hancock Building for sidecars. An evening endlessly exploding with enchantment.

Alinea was the reason I wanted to come to Chicago in the first place. I may vist it again. Or, not. Whichever.

We had to decline our tour of the Trotter kitchen to catch our table in the sky the previous night but Alinea let us right in to gawk at its gadgetry at play before our seating. Our host had actually been to my cousin's brother David's restaurant, West, one of Vancouver's best, but not had one of his equally celebrated cocktails. My first at Alinea was excellent, a profoundly floral cava much reminscent of David's great creation, the Jolie Coure. Alas, it was all downhill from there.

There was some good foam. A bit of cubed tomato, others, here and there. I really appreciated the use of sugi, a smell I cherished from decades in Japan and its exported olfactory realities, but after all, we left the restaurant quite depressed. Much of the food was beyond bad. The oyster dish was perhaps the first time in my life, the first time an oyster entered my mouth I didn't immediatley need to expel it, but many other bitefulls could not meet that level of tolerability. There was the good (a bit) there was the bad (far more than one would expect) and there was the bizarre. All that effort, but not into creating an actually higher aesthetic experice, such as we got from Charlie's less Rube Goldberg techno-centric cooking the night before. The pairings at Alinea were hit and miss, though they had a larger landscape to shoot at. I kept having the sensation I was back in Disneyland not long after it opened (we arrived in Southern California in Jan, 1956). There was much possibility here. The bones are there. The flesh can flower. Much greatness will be done. But not at this point in time. That's NOT all, folks.

Egullet made me aware of L20 and E was able to get us a table. I think that may be hard to get soon. The best fish I've ever eaten was Chef Gras's Amadai, loudly promoted by the server, for which he should receive a raise. The somelier was so entertaining we almost forgot how slipshod her pairings were. The staff seemed as much a part of the atmosphere as so much else. E's Santa Barbara Shrimp was a revelation to us both. When I lived in Japan in the 70s-80s and visiting again in 03, great tasting shrimp were ubiquitous. You would have to search real hard to find a bad one. When I last visted Japan in Aug 07, great prawns were an oxymoron. They could not be found. Great beef too. Her Santa Barbara Shrimp was a voyage back for me to the consistancy of quality I thought would last forever. Alas.

E thought the consistancy of L20 much higher than Charlie or (shudder!) Alinea in that we werent presented with these mountains and valleys. (or in the case of Al, valleys, and lower valleys). After reading the L20 blog, the experience was pleasently enhanced, even if the passion fruit marshmellow so lovingly described proved unedible. I barely tolerate sweets anyway. But I would return to Chicago to taste that Amadai again, by covered wagon if necessary.

I look forward to hearing from others who've had these dishes and differing reactions. Everyone has a different tongue.

[glauer]

I did two of the three in May (Trotter and Alinea).

I have to say that Charlie Trotter was a major letdown. There was not a single memorable dish, and most of the food came out lukewarm. I loved the wine service. Ambiance (and food) is quite dated and could use a makeover. Overall, especially given the price point, this was barely a * Michelin experience.

Alinea was memorable. Together with a lunch at l'Arpege the best meal in 30 years of fine dining. There was not a single dish that did not work, and despite the large number of dishes I still have the experience of several of them "burnt" in my memory. I also loved the overall experience, the service was what one can hope for: Highest standard but with a contemporary relaxed feel. And incredibly smart wine suggestions. For me this is one of the great restaurants in the world at this time.

[Lenski]

I am also very surprised at your experience at Alinea. My last two "tours" there (December 07 and July 08) have been nothing short of amazing. It had always been good, interesting but those two experiences are, as Glauer, wrote imprinted in my memory in a very proustian way.

Now, l'Arpege in June 08 was the best meal of the year for me (I am going to Barcelona and the Basque Country in October and then Berlin and San Francisco, New York and Chicago...and I am still pretty sure that nothing will beat my experience at l'Arpege.

l, hungry now.