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