Mon Ami Gabi - Not Authentic But Good (Chicago Area Restaurant Review No. 90)

Shortly before Halloween, we wanted to take Lisa's niece and her husband to a special Halloween street that we had discovered in the western suburbs so, before doing that, we stopped at the Mon Ami Gabi in Oakbrook. This was a solid place, albeit not really very authentic French (particularly compared to Kiki's Bistro, which we just also rated). Despite not being authentic, in our opinion, Mon Ami Gabi has a nice, relaxing atmosphere, even on a crowded Saturday night.

We started with a bottle of french red, Gevry Chambertin, which we found interesting but a bit too tangy. For appetizers, we ordered the onion soup, the smoked salmon and the baked cheese with herbs and tomato. The onion soup was a bit too sweet, the cheese was very good, but we thought the salmon was a bit fishy tasting.

We then moved on to a cheese course. It was accompanied by bread and olives. Three of us thought this course was only average, but Michelle did like it alot. Steve liked the bleu, but not the others. For entrees, we had the prime rib, steak au poivre, ribeye and steak frites. The frites were excellent, but the meat was uninspiring, except again Michelle liked her steak au poivre more than any of us liked the rest of the meat (perhaps she has the most positive outlook of anyone in the group).

For dessert, we had creme brulee, lemon tart, profiteroles and flourless chocolate cake. Even Michelle did not like the cake, which didn't have enough dark chocolate for her. Lisa was not wowed by the profiteroles. But Sean and Steve liked their creme brulee and lemon tart.

The bathrooms were problematic, as the floor contained more stuff than the garbage can.

All in all, this really wasn't that great, but perhaps the good company helped, as we have rated it fairly high (as we look back now, we don't really know why, but we have to trust our notes at the time, and much of the food was tasty).

Dinner for 4 with a bottle of wine was $350, which was probably about right for what we got.

Our ratings for Mon Ami Gabi, 260 Oakbrook Center, Oakbrook, Illinois

6.5 of 10 Faux Berets; 1.5 of 3 Bathroom Brushes

Cafe Absinthe - Very Disappointing (Chicago Area Restaurant Review No. 89)

After a meeting Lisa attended for one of her non-profits, we decided to go to a nearby restaurant that we had heard good things about, Cafe Absinthe. We shouldn't have bothered. Our immediate problem with Cafe Absinthe was its smell. The place smelled very musty, and noticeably so, thus casting a pall over the meal.

We started with a bottle of Turley Zinfandel, which we liked because, typical of Zins, it was light and fruity. We very very psyched for the cheese course, but were again disappointed. There was more bread than cheese, and the only really good cheese was the goat. All the others were blah, although Lisa liked the olives.

Steve then had the hearts of romaine salad, which he liked, particularly the caesar dressing. Lisa's mixed green with feta and artichoke was too sweet and spicy for her. Steve's filet mignon was not charcoaled enough for him (although too charcoaled for Lisa when she tasted it). All in all the dish could have been better. Lisa had horseradish crusted salmon. She liked the salmon alot, as well as the accompanying mashed potatos.

For dessert, Lisa had the lava cake, which was okay on the chocolate end, but the ice cream was too sweet. Steve's bread pudding with cinammon ice cream was bad in all aspects (but he ate all the ice cream anyway because he had actually left most of the other dishes partially uneaten).

In addition to the musty smell, the service here was very uneven, and the staff in general seemed somewhat uninterested.

The bathroom was a small but pretty unisex that was clean BUT had no hot water whatsoever (which is very scary since the waitstaff probably had to use it), and a questionable lock.

Dinner for two with a bottle of wine was $160 and would have been $140 with wine by the glass. This is reasonable if the food was good but here since it was only average seems somewhat pricy.

Our ratings for Cafe Absinthe, 1954 North Ave., Chicago

5 of 10 Steak Knives; 1.5 of 3 Bathroom Brushes

Kiki's Bistro - A Taste of Paris (Chicago Area Restaurant Review No. 88)

Prior to attending Chicago Shakespeare's version of Macbeth (very bloody as usual and she still hasn't gotten that troublesome spot out) we went to nearby Kiki's Bistro, which we had heard good things about. Kiki's was impressive right from the start, since the hostess sat us in a nice corner far from the window on yet another frigid Chicago night.

We started with wine by the glass. We wanted to try a French wine, so we both got French versions of Pinot Noir. Lisa had the Burgundy Pinot which she found a bit too tart, albeit light. Steve's Santenay was very dry, almost like drinking air; lesson learned - stick to American Pinots. Anyway, for our first food course we decided to warm up with soup. Steve's onion soup was great - very cheesy with the sort of strong oniony flavor he likes. Lisa's grilled tomato soup was also excellent. The tomato was very tangy and it was set off nicely by sour cream.

The salads were unremarkable. We both had the goat cheese salad. The goat cheese itself tasted very fresh and smooth, but the greens were both lacking in flavor and drowned in a too powerful vinaigrette dressing. The asparagus was also too soggy. For entrees, Lisa had the pepper steak, which was New York with a peppercorn sauce. The steak was cooked a perfect medium rare and had a good flavor, but there was a bit too much sauce for Lisa's tastes. Steve had the duck, which consisted of the breast and the leg. The leg was excellent, crispy, tasty and juicy. The breast, however, was too chewy and was undercooked even though he ordered medium instead of medium rare for just that purpose.

Desserts were fantastic. Steve's lemon tart was tangy and tasted just as he would have hoped. Lisa's profiteroles were plentiful, pretty and the best she's ever tasted (dark enough on the chocolate with great homemade ice cream with unsweetened cocoa sprinkled over it). She also liked her taste of Steve's lemon tart.

The bathrooms were very chic and very french. We loved the design but both thought the floors were a bit grimey (obviously they are truly going for reality here).

Kiki's was an overall great experience, right from the free valet parking to the nice room with french paintings behind the windowpanes, to the professional service to the great desserts (we each had 3 or 4 alternative choices) to the very reasonable price. While nothing (except maybe the dessert) was spectacular here, everything was very good, and this is well worth a visit.

The total bill, with wine by the glass, was, as noted, a very reasonable $155.

Our ratings for Kiki's Bistro 900 N. Franklin Street, Chicago

7.5 of 10 Berets; 2 of 3 Bathroom Brushes

Mitchell's Fish Market - The Epitome of Mediocre (Chicago Area Restaurant Review No. 87)

On a very cold and wintry Sunday, we had cabin fever so we decided to go out to the suburbs, partially to go to a Container Store so Lisa could have her closets organized (which she did and is happy with), and partly so we could go to a nearby Half-Price Bookstore to unload some of the many books both of us tend to collect. Since we have vowed to eat more fish this year, we picked a fish house in the same area, called Mitchell's Fish Market. Unfortunately, this was not one of our better choices.

The restaurant itself is unremarkable, with a large bar area and then tables and booths in the room with the kitchen. The best part of the decor was that it was warm even by the window on a frigid night.

We started with wine by the glass. Steve's Ravenswood Zinfandel was good, as this brand always is. Lisa's Kim Crawford Pinot Noir was a bit too tart for her liking. For an appetizer we split the shrimp cocktail. We did not care for this dish, as we found the shrimp tasted fishy, always a killer. The service was uneven, as the next course came out right on top of the appetizer. Steve had the wedge salad, which he found acceptable, but not great because the dressing was weak. Lisa had the lobster bisque, which she found too salty.

For entrees, Lisa had the salmon, which she again found tasted fishy, although she has had worse. Steve actually liked his salmon, and also liked the asparagus (amazingly) that it came with.

For dessert, Lisa had the chocolate java lava mocha cake, with vanilla ice cream, and Steve had the creme brulee. Both the desserts were pretty good, but nothing special.

The bathrooms were clean and warm, although not particularly fancy.

There was nothing really wrong with Mitchell's Fish Market, but that's not exactly a ringing endorsement either. It was basically mediocre and not worth a special trip. Dinner for two with wine by the glass was $120, which is less than our usual tab, but actually is pricey for the quality here.

Our ratings for Mitchell's Fish Market, 2601 Navy Blvd., Glenview

5 of 10 Fish Hooks; 2 of 3 Bathroom Brushes

Va Pensiero - Another Great Evanston Restaurant (Chicago Area Restaurant Review No. 86)

Whenever we want to almost assure ourselves of a good suburban dining experience, we pick a restaurant in Evanston, which is probably the gourmet capital of the Chicago suburbs (Steve, as an NU grad, is biased but Lisa also agrees). Toward the beginning of the fall (yes, we are really, really behind on our entries) we decided to drive to Evanston on a nice night, and chose Va Pensiero. The location is great. Like Quince, it is in a small hotel, but unlike Quince, this hotel is upscale rather than SRO-like. We walked downstairs into a lovely Italian country-like room, which would have been perfect but it was a little too cold.

We started with a bottle of Italian Pinot Noir, suggested by the waiter since we are unfamiliar with Italian wines. His suggestion was excellent as we found the Pinot fruity and light with a good flavor. Because it was rather cold in the restaurant, instead of having our usual types of appetizers, we both ordered soup. Lisa tried the potato/tomato leek, which she didn't particularly care for. Steve, on the other hand, really enjoyed the minestrone, which was among the best soups he's ever had.

Steve was adventurous with his salad choice of the beets with goat cheese (although he basically only wanted the goat cheese). He was not disappointed, because the goat cheese was great, but he also actually liked some of the beets (who knew). Lisa had the mixed field greens with duck confit and fresh tomato. Lisa liked this dish, and had special praise for the tomatoes.

For entrees, Lisa had the short ribs. She thought they were okay, but she wasn't wowed. Steve thought they were good, but since they didn't fall off the bone they couldn't be classified as any better than that. Steve did really like his spaghetti with rock shrimp. The pasta was truly an excellent taste experience.

For dessert, Steve had the panna cotta, which he thoroughly enjoyed. His enjoyment of this dish was enhanced by the fact that very few places have good panna cotta, which is one of his favorite desserts. Lisa actually ended up having two desserts because she didn't really care for her first one, the chocolate cake. The second time was a charm, though, because she really liked her spumoni, particularly the chocolate chip part. The host/owner was so enthused that Lisa had two desserts that he gave us two free after dinner liqueurs, which were very sweet and tasty.

The bathrooms here were quaint, but very small and cold. Nonetheless they were clean and well appointed.

We highly recommend Va Pensiero, which we found to be a very enjouable dining experience in pleasant surroundings. Dinner for two with a bottle of wine was only $245, and would have been under $200 with wine by the glass (a great value for all the food and courses we had).

Our ratings for Va Pensiero, 1566 Oak Avenue, Evanston

8 of 10 Steak Knives; 2 of 3 Bathroom Brushes

The Cape Cod Room - Retro But Good (Chicago Area Restaurant Review No. 85)

During the holiday season, we wanted to eat somewhere with a holiday flair. After doing some Christmas shopping on Michigan Avenue we chose to try the famous old time Chicago fish house, the Cape Cod Room in the Drake Hotel. Befitting a restaurant that has been around forever, the Cape Cod Room was a little worn, but had an interesting faux nautical decor (with an accent on faux). Nonetheless, it did feel quite homey and warm on a very cold night and the atmosphere made it seem as if we had left the city for awhile.

We started with wine by the glass. Steve had Murphy Goode Zinfandel, which he found a bit too dry, especially compared to other Zins that he has liked. Lisa, on the other hand, liked her Five Rivers Pinot Noir, which she found fruity with a good flavor. For appetizers, we shared the shrimp cocktail and the Scottish salmon. We loved the shrimp, which was very fresh and tasty, and we also loved the sauce, which was tangy but not too spicy. The salmon, though, was a bit fishy tasting, although the accompanying rye bread was excellent.

For entrees, Lisa had the Lobster Thermidor, just because it's the type of old fashioned dish we could only find at the Cape Cod Room (literally). Steve opted for the more traditional salmon. Lisa thought the lobster was unremarkable, but she enjoyed the novelty of the dish as a whole. Steve liked his salmon, but not so much the bamboo it came with. However, surprisingly, both Lisa and Steve really liked the baby carrot vegetable dish (remarkable, actually, given their general antipathy to veggies).

For dessert, Lisa had the profiteroles. She found them a bit dry, but that was offset by the chocolate sauce, which was plentiful and very good. Steve loved his raspberry mango sherbet, and could have eaten several of them.

The bathrooms were in the hotel, and were fairly clean but not at all luxurious, as one would expect from a fancy hotel's bathrooms.

All in all, we really enjoyed our retro experience here. Dinner for two, with wine by the glass, was a liveable $220. The whole here was better than the sum of its parts, and the experience was actually quite pleasant. We hope the Cape Cod Room keeps going for another 100 years.

Our ratings for the Cape Cod Room, 140 E. Walton St., Chicago

7 of 10 Fish Hooks; 1.5 of 3 Bathroom Brushes

Chop House in Chicago: What's the Fuss? (Chicago Area Restaurant Review No. 84)

The Chop House is one of those restaurants that gets uniform accolades from reviewers. It is always suggested as a top steakhouse in the city. We respectfully disagree. We didn't find it bad, but it definitely rates in our book behind many other steak restaurants (including ones like Wildfire, which do not get nearly as high reviewer marks).

The decor of the Chop House is interesting, in that it has three levels and is done up in a sort of faux Victorian style. We ate at the top level, which had a good view of the street below. We started with wine by the glass, but unfortunately did not write down what kind, so we can't comment (though we thought about making something up). We liked our shrimp cocktail appetizer. The shrimp were large, as we like them, and tasted fresh, and the sauce was tangy, as we like it. Lisa liked the house salad, which came with the entree, particularly the creamy garlic dressing, which was flavorful. Steve, however, did not like his tomato and onion salad because the tomatoes were hard.

Lisa ordered a bone-in filet for her entree and found it flavorful and cooked a perfect medium rare. She also liked her baked potato, which came with plenty of butter and sour cream. Steve ordered charred prime rib. It came closer to well-done than medium rare (and he'd ordered medium rare), yet there was not enough charcoal for him. This was the worst charred prime rib (which is not often available, but which Steve usually really likes) that Steve has ever had (but the potato cake that came with was okay). Steve was so distraught about the prime rib that he actually couldn't muster any interest in dessert. Lisa had no such qualms, and ordered the Chocolate Triple Play, which was flourless chocolate cake, chocolate mousse, and chocolate ganache. None had much flavor, and they were not dark enough for her.

Even though the shrimp appetizer and a lot of the food Lisa had was good, Steve didn't enjoy either his salad or entree, so we couldn't give the Chop House a particularly high rating, though Lisa recommends the filet mignon.

The bathrooms also were bad. There were two singles, both were cold, not all that clean, and yet had a sickly disinfectant smell.

Dinner for two with wine by the glass was $200, which is less than some steakhouses we have been to, but those had far better overall quality, in our view.

Our ratings for the Chop House, 60 West Ontario St., Chicago:

6.5 of 10 Steak Knives; 1.5 of 3 Bathroom Brushes

Lockwood in Chicago: Better than the Reviews (Chicago Area Restaurant Review No. 83)

We were looking for a nice restaurant for dinner before seeing Amadeus at the Chicago Shakespeare Theater, and we decided to try Lockwood, which is located in the Palmer House Hilton. Unlike some restaurants that we go to that have a lot of positive buzz and turn out to be duds (in our view), for some reason, Lockwood has gotten a lot of negative press, but we liked it a lot.

We started with a glass of St. Francis Zinfandel for Steve, and a glass of Domaine Carreras Pinot Noir for Lisa. Lisa really liked the Pinot, which was light and fruity with a good flavor, but Steve was not a fan of the Zinfandel. Our amuse bouche was a rock shrimp with cucumber. Despite the presence of a vegetable, we both thought it very good. Lisa particularly liked the olive oil over it. For an appetizer, we shared the cheese course. Overall, the cheese was good, but not outstanding. We both liked the goat cheese, Steve liked the bleu -- which was a bit strong for Lisa -- and Lisa liked the smooth cheddar for its mild flavor. The rest were non-descript.

For entrees, Lisa ordered the ribeye. It was cooked a perfect medium rare, and she really liked its flavor, although finding it a bit fatty, as she usually prefers a leaner cut. Steve's duck was pretty good. It had a great flavor, but it was a bit chewy.

Steve ordered the pear with vanilla flavor, which came with almond crisp and brown butter ice cream. He liked everything but the pear, which is what he expected when he ordered, but he wanted to try the ice cream. He was glad he did, because it tasted like butterscotch and was very good. Lisa had the chocolate terrine, which was not particularly memorable.

We liked Lockwood's decor. It was modern but the tables were well-spaced and it still had a warm feeling. Service was friendly, albeit uneven, as though we had plenty of time, we ended up rushing somewhat to get to the theater.

The total bill for two was $210 with wine by the glass, which seemed about right for what we got. The bathrooms were those in the hotel lobby, and we didn't stop, as we had to the get the theater.

Our ratings for Lockwood, 17 E. Monroe Street, Chicago:

7 of 10 Steak Knives; and, in a first, no bathroom rating (sorry! -- but the play was good)

Spiaggia in Chicago: Lives Up To its Reputation (Chicago Area Restaurant Review No. 82)

Every year we celebrate both of our December birthdays at one of the premier restaurants in the Chicago area. This year, Steve heard that our new President had taken his wife to Spiaggia for their 16th anniversary. He figured if it's good enough for Barack and Michelle, it's worth a try, particularly since it has always gotten rave reviews. We were very happy with this choice, and it was befitting of the fine evnts it was helping us celebrate.

Unfortunately, one mistake we made was reserving months in advance on Open Table. Open Table is great for making restaurant reservations, but we suspect reservations made through this website often produce bad results in terms of table location. Spiaggia has 3 rows of tables, the first closest to the windows, which provide its signature view of Michigan Avenue. Despite the fact that we booked 3 months in advance, we were seated in the third row. Perhaps we'd have done better either calling directly or putting our special occasion in the requests part of the Open Table menu. In all events, we were still able to get some of the view, and it was a cold night, so it might have been too cold by the windows anyway, and we did love the rest of the experience.

We started with a bottle of Renatto Ratti Barolo 2004. This was a choice from the waiter, since we know little about Italian reds. This started the trend of very informed and professional service, since we really liked this wine, which was light, fruity and medium bodied, with a nice taste that went well with all of our courses.

Our first courses were appetizers of steak tartare and sturgeon. Steve thought the steak tartare was the best he'd ever had, and Lisa also liked it alot. The sturgeon was also very good, although not remarkable and perhaps with a different non-salmony taste than we had hoped for. Next we had a pasta course. Steve's sheep milk pasta was delicious, cooked perfectly and with a very interesting pasta, set off nicely by the sheep's milk sauce. Lisa's veal stuffed ravioli with crunchy prosciutto was divine. She is not even really a veal person, but thought this tasted awesome, with a good combination of veal and prosciutto tastes helping the dish.

Up until the main courses, this dinner was almost perfect. However, the main courses were a bit weak compared to what came before them. Steve's lamb entree consisted of a chop and two braised portions. The chop was excellent but the braised portions were surprisingly tough, rather than the fall-off-the-bone consistency he expected from a restaurant of this caliber. Lisa's filet was cooked a perfect medium rare, and had a great flavor, but the bone marrow crust was a bit too herby (not Steve's long time golf partner, but spicy).

Next was the cheese course. Interestingly, the waiter never even mentioned this, even though the "cheese cave" is one of the things most mentioned about Spiaggia. Nevertheless, we specifically asked for the course, and chose 5 cheeses with the help of the cheese server. Some were smooth, some hard, and they ranged from bleu to parmesan. We liked the variety, since we usually don't have Italian cheeses. However, this course was just good, not great, with the cheeses best described, for the most part, as interesting but somewhat iffy.

Finally, for dessert, Lisa had the chocolate terrine, which was excellent, and was one of the few desserts of this type where the chocolate was dark enough for her tastes. Steve had the lemon panna cotta, which he raved to Lisa was one of the best desserts he'd ever had.

All in all, this was a great dining experience. great service in a marvelous location and excellent food. We would definitely highly recommend Spiaggia, but only for a once a year splurge, because it is very expensive. We spent $700 for two, and it still would have been upwards of $400, even had we only selected wine by the glass (although Lisa rightly points out that this seems cheap compared to the 900euros we paid for dinner at one place in Paris).

Washrooms were clean and well appointed but not over-the-top fancy and lacked substantial hot water, thus reducing their score.

Our ratings for Spiaggia, 980 North Michigan Ave, Chicago

9 of 10 Steak Knives; 2.5 of 3 Bathroom Brushes