Custom House: Best in the Neighborhood (Chicago Area Restaurant Review 34)

To say a restaurant is the best in our neighborhood (Printers Row/South Loop) admittedly is not saying a whole lot. We live in the Siberia of Chicago food. However, Custom House is definitely an oasis in this culinary wasteland.

We started with wine by the glass. Lisa had a Big Fire Pinot Noir which was a bit tart for her. Steve had a Swiss Syrah which was unremarkable. Our initial look at the menu left us thinking we'd made a bad choice, as the dishes are a little unusual for us, since we are somewhat unadventurous. However, our concern turned out to be misplaced because all the dishes we had basically worked well.

For appetizers, we ordered ahi tuna and duck prosciutto with buffalo mozzarella. The ahi tuna was excellent, like tuna tartare is supposed to taste, without too much seasoning to detract from the flavor. The duck prosciutto had an interesting smoky flavor and was lean (for prosciutto), and the mozzarella tasted very smooth and fresh. Our salads were escarole with bacon, bleu cheese, and mushrooms. Lisa found the bacon taste a bit strong, but still thought the salad overall pretty good. Steve liked the salad except for the mushrooms.

For entrees, Lisa ordered the prime filet. It was cooked a perfect medium rare, with a flavorful glaze that was somewhat sweet, and no charcoal. The meat itself was tender and had a pretty good flavor. While not the best filet she'd ever had, she liked it overall, especially the glaze. The filet came with mushroom topping, which Lisa doesn't particularly care for, but it was easily avoided, and might be good if you like mushrooms. Steve had short ribs, which fell off the bone and had an extremely good taste. The only part he didn't like was the horseradish glaze, which was too strong for him, but he otherwise thought it was quite good.

The desserts were another example of Custom House's menu not looking promising. By process of elimination, Steve landed on the scotch and maple custard with poached pear, and Lisa chose the hazelnut chocolate ice cream with shortbread cookies. Steve dumped the pear on Lisa, but otherwise enjoyed the custard more than he thought he would. Lisa really liked the poached pear, which had a milk chocolate custard filling. Her hazelnut ice cream was excellent, and came with three scoops. She gave the shortbread cookies to Steve, who really liked them. So, as it turned out, we really enjoyed our combined desserts. We also noticed the dessert menu offers several artisinal cheeses, which we plan to try next time. Lisa spotted a very intriguing looking chocolate almond biscotti tea. It has caffeine, so she didn't want to order it in the evening, but plans to try it some day at lunchtime.

The service at Custom House did leave something to be desired, as our waiter managed to be both obsequious and unfriendly, which is a difficult trick. He definitely detracted from our enjoyment of the meal.

For a change, Steve thought the Men's Room at Custom House was better than Lisa judged the Women's Room. The Men's Room was spotless and had a working automatic towel dispenser. While the women's bathroom had nice marble-like floors and also had an automatic dispenser, there were crumpled towels on the floor and counter, which made it seem less than clean.

Our total bill for two, with wine by the glass, was $215, which was a very good value, especially compared to our recent dinners in Hartford (see prior reviews of Max's and J. Gilbert's).

Our ratings for Custom House, 500 S. Dearborn Street, Chicago, Illinois:

8 of 10 Steak Knives; 2 of 3 Bathroom Brushes