One Sixty Blue - Celebrating Our 100th Blog Entry In Style - (Chicago Restaurant Review No. 75)

We knew that our next review would be our 100th, so we wanted to go somewhere special. And what better place to go than our favorite fine dining restaurant in the Chicago area - no, not Tru, not Trotter's and not even Everest, all of which we love - but our choice for most underappreciated gem -- One Sixty Blue. Hidden away in a rather desolate patch of the Randolph Street area, One Sixty Blue may be low profile, but the food is outstanding.

We were a bit disconcerted at the beginning of the meal when we were told a new chef had taken over, since we have always loved the old chef's cuisine, particularly the emphasis on cheese. Well, we needn't have worried, because the transition was seamless, as we might have expected given the new chef's background at Charlie Trotter's.

As always, the atmosphere was very welcoming, starting with the helpful maitre d', and manager. We started with a bottle of Aida Zinfandel. Initially, this tasted a bit tart, but both of us really ended up liking it alot. Lisa particularly liked the chocolate undertones and Steve liked the operatic name. Our appetizers were a smoked salmon and a tuna tartare, both of which were wonderful. The tuna was just short of the best we have ever had, and the salmon was not only great, but actually had enough creme fraiche, which is unusual.

For entrees, we had the delmonico rib-eye and the short ribs. Again we both loved these dishes. The steak was a perfect medium rare, well marbled and very tasty. The short ribs fell off the bone like they are supposed to, and also tasted great. The accompaniments (potatoes for the steak and grits for the short ribs) were good but nothing special.

One thing that has changed is that there is no longer an automatic choice for the cheese, which usually came as a first course. Now, they have gone back to a cheese plate, which we ordered for dessert since the desserts, while adventuresome, didn't quite look up our alleys, The cheese was tremendous. There was a cheddar, a bleu a Brie and a "Stinky". We loved them all, particularly the cheddar and the Brie (although the bleu and Brie were both a bit strong). We also had a dessert amuse bouche of excellent pumpkin madelines and chocolate pieces.

One Sixty Blue is, for whatever reason, maybe location, not one of the restaurants that people think of when they think Chicago fine dining. We believe, however, that this is the best restaurant in its category and that everyone should try it for special occasions or just for a night out (since the prices, while high, are not at the level of the other places mentioned above).

The washrooms are very nice and clean. However, they are not fancy, and they require knob touching to get out, so they don't get our highest rating.

Dinner for two, with a bottle of fairly expensive wine was $360, and would have been about $230 with wine by the glass. We should also note, for one of our readers (Jason, this means you), that there are many other dining choices here that would produce even a lower bill, so if $230 for two sounds a bit high, you probably could dine here, well, for $150 or less for two.

Our Ratings for One Sixty Blue - 160 North Loomis, Chicago

10 of 10 Steak Knives; 2.5 of 3 Bathroom Brushes