Tramanto's Steak and Seafood in Wheeling: Great Food but a Little Chilly (Chicago Area Restaurant Review No. 42)

It was cold outside and, unfortunately, not much warmer in Tramanto's because the heat had gone out in the Westin North Shore where Tramanto's is located. We decided to stay anyway, and we are very glad we did. This is one of the best steak places we've been to, reflecting the pedigree of the chef-owners (who are famous for owning Trio and Tru, among others).

We started with a great bottle of wine, and we wish we remembered the name. But we can tell you it was the most expensive Zinfandel on the wine list (though still under $100). It had hints of dark cherry and was very drinkable, as evidenced by the fact that we finished the whole bottle, which we usually don't do, and Steve actually drank more than one glass. The appetizers were marvelous. We shared smoked salmon and steak tartare. The smoked salmon tasted as good as the salmon at any top notch fish restaurant, and was served on toast rounds with a salmon paste. The steak tartare was accompanied by brioche toast, capers, and egg, most of which we skipped. The meat was so flavorful, we didn't want to dilute it (except Steve could have eaten about 20 pieces of the brioche toast). These appetizers alone made this worth the trip.

But the really good thing is that here, unlike in many of our other recent experiences, the rest of the meal was also excellent. Steve ordered a wedge salad (surprise!). The lettuce was extremely fresh and crisp and the blue cheese dressing was perfect. Lisa had a mixed green salad which was also very fresh.

For entrees, Lisa had the bone-in filet. It was cooked a perfect medium rare and had an excellent taste. The inside was particularly good, and while Lisa didn't especially like the outside part, overall this was one of the best steaks she's had. Steve would have ordered the same thing, but he feels a duty to our readers (we hope there is more than 1 at this point) to try a different cut once in a while, so he instead had the T-bone. The filet part was tremendous, with a supurb flavor. The New York side was not quite as good, but still cooked perfectly medium rare with a fine taste.

Dessert was perhaps not quite as good, though still very enjoyable. Steve ordered coconut cream pie, which was supposed to be one of the signature desserts. He found it a bit too sweet, but still above average. Lisa chose the hot chocolate s'mores. It consisted of marshmallows, graham cracker pieces, and cake smothered in plenty of warm dark chocolate. It, too, was a little sweet for her taste, but still very fun and good.

We both agreed that the restrooms were deserving of superstar status. The women's bathroom was extremely clean, with attractive marble floors and separate rooms instead of stalls, plus clothlike hand towels and nicely scented soap. Steve would have rated the men's bathroom as perfect except that the door required touching the handle to exit, though there was a wastebasket there so patrons could use a towel to open it.

Tramanto's probably would have gotten almost our best rating had the air been a little less chilly and the waiter (who was unctuous and annoying) been a bit more chilly. Nonetheless, we heartily recommend this restaurant, even though it may be a bit of a drive for some.

Dinner for two, with a bottle of wine, cost $250. With wine by the glass, it would have been about $180. The quality makes this a good value.

Our rating for Tramanto's Steak and Seafood, 601 N. Milwaukee Avenue, Wheeling, Illinois:

8.5 of 10 Steak Knives, 3 or 3 Bathroom Brushes

Adelle's: Great Appetizer, Downhill from There (Chicago Area Restaurant Review No. 41)

We like dining in Wheaton because it's a lovely town, particularly in summer when we enjoy walking after dinner, and even in winter the drive there from downtown is fairly pleasant. We also wanted to dine somewhere with a fireplace on this bitter cold weekend, so Steve searched for a cozy place. He came up with Adelle's (so it is all his fault). It was immediately problematic that the main room with the fireplace was unavailable to us. Had it been available, we suspect it would have been very cold because the outside door opened right into the main room with the fireplace, with no wall or divider to shield diners from the windchill factor. The room we did sit in was small and cozy, with a faux fireplace with candles, but lacked warmth.

The meal started well enough, which has become a theme for us lately, with a Zinfandel (Red) called Old Ghost. Its flavor was very subtle, with a nice dark fruity aftertaste. It's unusual for us to finish the whole bottle, but we did. (Mostly Lisa, as Steve was driving.) The appetizers were extremely good. The cheese du jour course included a sharp cheddar, a goat cheese, and a sheep's milk cheese. The goat and sheep's milk were slightly dry but had a nice flavor, and the cheddar was just sharp enough. We suspect these cheeses might have seemed pedestrian to true cheese experts, but we really liked them all. We also really liked the mini-burgers (with goat cheese, mushrooms and onions), other than that they were bit too well done. They were still very juicy and flavorful, though, and we recommend them. But that's about all we recommend.

Lisa had the New England Clam Chowder, which tasted okay, but was watery. Steve's wedge salad tasted very ordinary and he didn't finish it, which is unusual. The buttermilk blue cheese dressing was particularly bland. But as mediocre as that course was, the main course was even more disappointing. Lisa ordered the meat loaf, which one would expect to be very good at a restaurant that bills itself as a nouvelle American comfort food place, and which the waitress touted. It looked rather scary and pale, and less appetizing to us than the average high school cafeteria meatloaf. It didn't taste rancid, but it didn't taste like much at all. The waitress said it had three meats, but it didn't have any particular flavor. Also, the alleged garlic mashed potatoes seemed to lack garlic. Steve ordered the pot roast special, again thinking it would be good comfort food. But it was quite uncomfortable on his stomach. The pot roast tasted extremely heavy and fatty. A good pot roast is extremely tender, and the meat here was very tough. He is not sure if his potatoes were supposed to be garlic, as they were basically tasteless.

Dessert improved. Steve had the coconut rice pudding with whipped cream on the side. The rice pudding was very good, and the whipped cream tasted homemade and extremely fresh, although the coconut flavoring was somewhat overpowering. Lisa had a chocolate truffle brownie. She, too, loved the whipped cream, and the brownie was also good. It was and made of fairly dark chocolate and was somewhat cakey but heavy, as she likes.

Both bathrooms were small, well-decorated, very clean, but cold. The women's bathroom did have a lovely black lacquer altar cabinet that Lisa really liked, but it was hard to appreciate while shivering. So we can only go with a mid-range rating.

Our total bill was about $225 with a bottle of wine, and would have been about $170 with wine by the glass. This strikes us as rather high for the quality of the entree, though we did enjoy the appetizers, wine and dessert (and even the atmosphere).

Our ratings for Adelle's, 1060 College Avenue, Wheaton, Illlinois:

5.5 of 10 Steak Knives. and 2 of 3 Bathroom Brushes.

Weber Grill: Couldn't Have Been More Average (Chicago Area Restaurant Review 40)

To cap off a day of Christmas shopping at the Yorktown Center, we ate at the Weber Grill in Lombard. This is an expanding chain of casual meat-based restaurants where the meat is prepared using the famous Weber grilling method. Unlike Wildfire, which is popular, touristy and great, this place is popular, touristy and mediocre.

We started with a bottle of Zinfandel (Red) which we thought was good but not spectacular. Our first course was a shrimp cocktail which consisted of shrimpy shrimp. The diminutive nature of the shrimp was matched by its diminutive taste. Next, Lisa had the mixed green salad which she thought was okay. Steve had a Romaine wedge salad which didn't quite work since Romaine isn't crispy, although Steve did like the blue cheese dressing. For a main course, Lisa ordered a filet with sweet potatoes. The filet had good flavor but was tough and the sweet potatoes were too mushy. Steve had the hamburger, which was supposed to be the specialty of the house, but it was too well cooked (he ordered it medium rare and it was more like medium well) to be any good. Steve's side order of onion rings was also just average.

For dessert, we had an apple pie and key lime cheesecake. The apple pie was uninspired, but the cheesecake was excellent, with just the right tanginess.

The bathrooms were a bit messy, and the hands-free faucets were difficult to work and spit out cold water.

The total bill was $130 with a bottle of wine and would have been about $90 with wine by the glass.

Our ratings for Weber Grill, 2331 Fountain Square Drive, Lombard, Illinois:

5 of 10 Steak Knives (being generous); 1.5 of 3 Bathroom Brushes (also being generous but we were in a Christmas mood)

Tru: An Experience to Remember (Chicago Restaurant Review No. 39)

Every year, at the end of December, we try to go to one of the destination restaurants in the area to celebrate both of our birthdays. This year we chose Tru, which is famed for being owned by celebrity chefs and is always booked months in advance. Tru's reputation is well deserved, as we had a great meal in a great setting.

To start, we ordered an Oregon Pinot Noir. We liked it because it was light and fruity with a grape aftertaste. The meal started with an amuse bouche with pears and fennel. We found it interesting, as an amuse bouche should be. The second amuse bouche, however, was not so good. It looked like a giant eye and was gelatinous (like an eye), so obviously eating it was a bit strange, although it probably didn't taste like an eye. The highlight of the meal came next -- the caviar staircase. This was a beautifully arranged painter's palatte of caviar with the most expensive at the top, going down to the "least" expensive on curving glass levels. The accompaniments included creme fraiche, capers, onions, egg white, egg yolk, and great brioche. We ate all the caviar and could have had even more, and there was plenty of creme fraiche, which we've noticed is a bit skimpy at some other places.

Next, we had a cheese course. Each of us had three cheeses, one sheep's milk, one goat's milk and one cow's milk. Five of the six were extremely good. The only one that was questionable was one of the cow's milk cheeses because it was a bit hard. The rest were delicious with just the right combination of mild and sharp.

For appetizers, we had the lobster soup and prime beef tartare. The soup was very good, though a bit fishy. The prime beef tartare, however, disappointed. We knew it had red pepper, but we didn't think the red pepper would totally overpower the beef. Unfortunately, it did. This is the result of a combination of peppers that were too strong and beef that was relatively tasteless.

Our entrees were Hollywood entrees -- lots of style, but little substance. Lisa's salmon was average at best, though it looked really good with its accompanying apples and coconut. Steve ordered the braised beef short rib. He expected it to be falling off the bone tender, but was surprised that it was somewhat tough and definitely lacked flavor.

For dessert, Lisa had flourless chocolate cake (called Dense Chocolate on the menu), which was, in fact, dense and dark chocolatty, though very small. Steve had vanilla pot de creme with lemon curds. He thought this would be right up his alley, since vanilla and lemon are two of his favorite flavors, but the directions must have been wrong, since there was very little taste. There were many dessert amuse bouches, including cups of dark hot chocolate, which were very creamy and good. The macaroons were a little too sweet but fun, and we loved the other little cookies.

We both were very impressed with the bathrooms. The women's bathroom was very clean and well-decorated, with dark gray marble or granite floors and sinks. The men's room was also very clean and had towels near the doors, which Steve likes.

The total bill, with a bottle of expensive wine, was $900 and would have been about $750 with wine by the glass. Despite the fact that we've panned a few of the courses, Tru is definitely a great dining experience that everyone should try for a special occasion. The decor is very relaxing, as the tables are well spaced and the room is large, and service is informed.

Our rating for Tru, 676 N. St. Clair, Chicago, Illinois:

8 of 10 Steak Knives; 3 of 3 Bathroom Brushes

Bistro Campagne: If Only We'd Skipped the Entree (Chicago Restaurant Review No. 38)

We seem to be in a rut. Everywhere we go lately starts out with wonderful appetiziers and good salads, but for some reason the entrees have basically been awful. Tonight was no exception. Bistro Campagna is very French and is a series of lovely rooms, plus what looks like a nice garden for summer dining. Our server was very knowledgeable and made everything sound delicious (even the rabbit dish, but we can't stomach eating Thumper).

The wine selection was not extensive, but there were several reasonably priced reds. We chose a French Syrah. It was a bit drier than we usually like, but it grew on us, and did have a bit of a fruit flavor.

We started dinner with a camembert appetizer. The camembert was served warm and tasted fresh and creamy. It was set off with thinly sliced pears, greens, and some other very small chewy thing that Lisa didn't like, but the rest was great. Steve also liked his onion soup which had the perfect amount of cheese topping and was not too oniony. Our salads were also excellent. Lisa had salade maison. The greens tasted fresh and crisp, and there was just the right amount of dressing. Steve ordered goat cheese salad. He devoured it in only a few bites, so he obviously thought it tasted great, particularly the dressing and the goat cheese.

Unfortunately, both of our entrees were lowlights. Lisa had salmon, which usually is at least passable almost anywhere. But not quite here. It looked brownish and hairy (sorry, no other way to describe it) and smelled fishy. The inside looked better (orangish) but hardly had any taste. Also, it was cool in spots, though ordered medium rare. It was not terrible, but not good, and barely approached average. Steve ordered chicken and onion frites because he wasn't in the mood for red meat, so he passed on what would have been the usual bistro choice, steak frites. Bad move. The chicken was okay but certainly nothing to squawk about. But the onion frites were crispy, tasty, and all in all the highlight of both entrees.

Dessert was better. Lisa loved her profiteroles, which had plenty of vanilla ice cream with a flaky pastry and almost enough chocolate sauce. At our server's suggestion, Steve had the bread pudding instead of the creme brulee. She was right because the bread pudding had a rich, smooth flavor with a bit of cinnamon and was accompanied liberally with the type of caramel sauce Steve really likes.

The bathrooms were small. Steve thought the men's bathroom otherwise would be a three, as it was very clean and was set up so a germaphobe did not have to touch the doorkknob to exit. Lisa was less enthused about the women's bathroom. It was fairly clean, but needed a paint job, as the area around the lightswitch was a bit grimy and the floor tile also looked a bit spotty.

The total bill, with a bottle of wine, was $200. It would have been about $160 with wine by the glass. If we'd made better choices on entrees, it might have been worth it. We do intend to return and try the steak and pomme frites (but still not Thumper) and also sample a couple other desserts (Lisa was eyeing the chocolate souffle). We also hope to get the same server, who would go in our Hall of Fame if we had one. Finally, already going back on his vow never to eat outside again, Steve wants to try the garden in summer. But he thinks there are less bugs in the city. We'll see.

Our rating for Bistro Campagne, 4518 North Lincoln, Chicago, Illinois:

6 of 10 Steak Knives; 2 of 3 Bathroom Brushes