The cavernous multilevel dining room is still consistently packed, even if time has dulled the kitchen’s edge—or maybe the competition has just gotten sharper. Brightest of the bright spots is the grilled baby octopus enhanced by endive, preserved lemon, golden raisins, and aïoli. But there’s also well-handled gnocchi with fava beans and a poached egg, as well as fresh fluke with Brussels sprouts and salsify. Desserts are essential, especially an intense dark chocolate bomb with Mexican chocolate ice cream. Cocktails include the boldly seasoned and aptly named On Top of Old Smoky: Hirsch bourbon, chi-potle, and orange bitters.
Additional Information
Rating: 2 stars
Price: $50-plus
Cuisine: Contemporary American
Neighborhood: River North
Noteworthy: 3 or more vegetarian items child friendly wheelchair accessible
Dishes We Liked:
Grilled baby octopus with lemon aïoli ($18), gnocchi with fava beans and a poached egg ($14), seared Atlantic fluke with Brussels sprouts and prosciutto cream ($32), frosted chocolate cake with dark-chocolate nougat and a vanilla malted milk shake ($11), dark chocolate bombe with cajeta mousse and Mexican chocolate ice cream ($11)
