Tavern at the Park: Touristy but Above Average (Chicago Area Restaurant Review 23)

We wanted to go to a restaurant in the downtown Chicago area and to walk through Millenium Park, so we chose to dine at and review Tavern at the Park, which just opened about a month ago. This restaurant caters to tourists, and we basically got what we expected, decent food, nothing spectacular.

We started with a warm goat cheese appetizer with tomato fondue. This was probably the highlight of the meal. It was just the right mix of tomato sauce and goat cheese and was almost as good as our favorite goat cheese appetizer at Wildfire in Oakbrook. Steve also really loved the soft rolls, which were fresh and tasty, and he asked the waiter for a second basket. (Lisa did not eat any of them.)

For salads, Steve ordered a wedge. The lettuce was crisp and the dressing, served on the side, was a perfect accompaniment, but it was not inspired. Tavern at the Park's menu did not include any sort of mixed green salad, so Lisa requested one. The waiter seemed a bit confused about what a mixed green salad might be. He eventually brought a plate with fresh spinach leaves, arrugula, and sliced tomatoes and onions. It was a bit too heavy on the spinach and the tomatoes did not have much taste, but it was okay.

For our an entree, Lisa decided to try something different, and got whole wheat pasta with artichoke, red pepper, and cream sauce. The sauce was good, but the pasta was very grainy, which she probably should have expected with whole wheat. Steve ordered the short ribs, which came with mixed vegetables, plus a side of shoestring potatoes. It is very sad when Steve likes the vegetables more than the meat, but that is what happened here. The meat was tough and tasteless, but the veggies were great. The shoestring potatoes were average.

LIsa had triple chocolate cake for dessert. It had fairly dark chocolate frosting and chocolate ganache filling and was served with a fresh mint leaf that gave a nice flavor to the cake. The frosting was a bit too sweet, however, for a dark chocolate lover. Steve ordered the apple crisp with vanilla ice cream. The ice cream was good, but the apple crisp was grainier than Lisa's pasta, which gave it a rather weird flavor. He also would have liked more caramel, since the menu advertised that the dish would be drizzled with caramel and instead it was dotted, at best.

We ordered an excellent Etude Pinot Noir, which set off the meat and pasta perfectly. Initially, Lisa thought it tasted a bit tart, but it had a wonderful fruity, grape aftertaste and really grew on her.

In keeping with the touristy ambience of Tavern at the Park, the restaurant is noisy and has many TVs, though not one directly in our line of sight. Which was too bad from Steve's perspective since the Cubs actually won a game. There is seating upstairs that overlooks Chicago's Millenium Park, but we were seated downstairs. If you make a reservation, you might want to ask for the upstairs seating.

The total bill at Tavern at the Park was about $215 with a bottle of wine. It would have been about $150 with wine by the glass, which seems overpriced to us for what we got.

Steve, as is often the case, was a harder critic of the bathrooms than Lisa. First, both of us found it challenging to even locate the restrooms. Lisa asked a busboy where they were and thought he said to take the elevator downstairs. But the lower floor doors opened to a kitchen and a storage area. Another wait staff person boarded the elevator and told her to take it up to the second floor, where it was still difficult to find. Steve had similar adventures, even though Lisa gave him directions on how to get there by staircase. As to to the bathrooms themselves, the Women's Room was fairly clean, with nice dark marble counters. The Men's Room, unfortunately, was a bit grimy, with towels on the floor.

Our rating for Tavern at the Park, 130 E. Randolph St., Chicago:

6 of 10 Steak Knives; 2 of 3 Bathroom Brushes