<p>I remember plenty of special occasions at the Pump Room years ago. It was old-style glamour. Will be fun to see what they’ve done with it.</p>
<p>Pizzagirl, thank you for that idea! I just made a reservation at the Pump Room for NU parents weekend.</p>
<p>I do not agree with those who say Alinea is overly expensive. Yes, $210/person is not cheap, but you are getting 18 courses for that price. Restaurants in its class that serve that many courses charg $300/person or more. </p>
<p>This said, I agree that the experience is over-the-top. I prefer restaurants that serve more traditional food with no more than 6 or 7 courses in a far more “conservative” style. Unfortunately, no Chicago restaurant that offers this kind of option comes close to Alinea in terms of quality. I have not tried L2O however, but I hear it is quite good in terms of quality but just as high on the theatrics!</p>
<p>Hanna, thank you for correcting my incorrect info about Everest.
You are right it’s near Willis, in the Chicago Stock Exchange.
From their website:</p>
<p>From its location on the 40th floor of the Chicago Stock Exchange, Everest offers breathtaking views of Chicago on par with the exquisite wine and cuisine offered by Chef Joho.</p>
<p>Also, enjoying comments by JHS and others regarding the food as entertainment level dining- Molecular gastronomy.</p>
<p>I’m in the camp who have only read about this “movement”- never actually experienced this level of dining. But I have seen amazing You tube clips of restaurants like The FAT DUCK in London.</p>
<p>I wonder, after paying $200- $300 are people hungry after dining on tiny portions ?</p>
<p>I don’t want to give the impression that I do this all the time, because I don’t, but I have been to a few of the 18-course type restaurants over the past decade and, no, you don’t go away hungry. (And if you knew me you would know that portion control is not how I roll.) You get a lot of food, just a little at a time. But it’s a different experience of eating. You only get 1-3 bites of anything (well, sometimes a few more), so you really have to pay attention, and if you love something a lot it’s still gone almost immediately. That’s very much unlike my normal experience, which is cooking (or ordering) something I really love, and then settling into it for a nice, long visit, nyum-nyum-nyum.</p>
<p>Alexandre is right about Alinea – it’s not overpriced for what it is. But you can get really wonderful food in a lovely setting for much less than that, and most of the time (maybe all of it now) that’s the choice I make.</p>
<p>(By the way, I am sooooo pleased with myself for describing food as “elbullimic” upthread, after the famous, now former, Catalan restaurant El Bulli that started this trend. I am shortening it to “bullimic” and plan to use that adjective a lot in the near future!)</p>
<p>^I don’t know that “bullimic” looks sooo much like “bulimic”. :eek:</p>
<p>We only eat at Alinea type restaurants once every few years. I recommend doing it once. Never gone away hungry.</p>
<p>If you just want a nice meal but not the over the top, and more reasonable prices, I’ve enjoyed Quartino. And I still am fond of Bistro 110 which is near Water Tower (I believe on Pearson).</p>
<p>So JHS, and others, did you see the El Bulli the movie ? It’s on my to see list, but missed it in Philly theaters</p>
<p>. Any chance JHS, you are the Philly lawyer who also writes an interesting Philly food blog?</p>
<p>There must be 30 such Philly lawyers, at least, but I’m not one of them.</p>
<p>My husband and I really enjoyed North Pond, which specializes in farm to table. Gorgeous setting in Lincoln Park.</p>
<p>Thanks for all the suggestions. I’ve been to two El Bulli-type restaurants and they were enjoyable, but not something I’d want to do on a regular basis. Went to La Broche in Madrid (Michelin one star?)–chef at the time was Sergi Arola, who worked at El Buli. The other restaurant was L’Atelier Joel Robuchon in NYC. </p>
<p>I know my cousin and her husband have been to Rick Bayless’ restaurants. Since they took us to Charlie Trotter, I don’t want to go back there. </p>
<p>I’d like to make this a really special dinner and would like great food/wine at a restaurant that has a special occasion feel–doesn’t have to be molecular gastronomy. Looking through the suggestions here, I thought Ria or Tru would fit the bill, if we were looking for something other than Alinea. There were two other restaurants that folks mentioned (Lula and its sister restaurant)–both sounded like places with excellent food/wine. Question–couldn’t tell from the website about the ambience? Would you put either one of them in the special-occasion category?</p>
<p>Restaurants that I’d put in the special occasion category: Per Se (NY), Daniel (NY), L’Espalier (Boston), LaCroix (Philadelphia), Inn at Little Washington (VA). All of which we’ve gone to for special occasions–graduation, anniversary, big birthday, i.e.,40, 50, etc.</p>
<p>No, though I love Lula and Nightwood I would put neither in the “special occasion” category.</p>
<p>Hate me for posting this, but I just saw a statistic that up to 40% of people in some Chicago neighborhoods are going hungry. Instead of spending obscene amounts of money on a single meal, how about going someplace less expensive and donating the balance to a food pantry?</p>
<p>Based on what you’ve said, I’d recommend Tru. The food is not molecular gastronomy, but it is always known for high quality and excellent service and atmosphere. It’s not the newest, hotest thing, but it has long been one of the premier dining destinations in Chicago. The founding chef, Rick Tramonto (and his ex Gale Gand) are no longer associated, but from what I hear, it is as good as ever.</p>
<h1>33 How do you know we don’t???</h1>
<p>Why should all the chefs and restaurant workers be out of jobs?</p>
<p>I agree that Tru would be a nice complement to Charlie Trotter if Alinea is too “molecular” for your tastes. You really cannot go wrong with any of the choices mentioned. Chicago dining is spectacular. If you really want to live it up and take a chance, the bar Aviary is next door to the restaurant Next and is said to maybe have some pull in getting a dinner reservation there. The bar is affiliated with the restaurant and is said to be just as cool.</p>
<h1>35 Yeah, I knew I’d ruffle some feathers with my post. I’m happy to know (you’ve implied) you already do as I suggested.</h1>
<p>In any case, carry on with your lovely plans, wealthy gourmands. By all means, keep the chefs and restaurant workers employed. I just thought it might also be nice to keep the hungry children of Chicago fed, as well.</p>
<p>You’ll have to let us know where you decided to go and how it was.</p>
<p>je-ne-se</p>
<p>Most of the chefs and owners of the above mentioned restaurants are heavily involved in the Chicago area hunger projects. Statements like that are completely absurd.</p>
<p>Pizzagirl, we love Quartino. I was just reading this thread hoping to find something more like that and in the same area (staying a few blocks from Navy Pier). We are going to Chicago in a few weeks for college visits :D, and while we have plans already for Quartino and Fox & Obel’s cafe, we need another place for one more dinner. Not wanting to hijack the thread, though…</p>
<p>I tried to look up Bistro 110, but the web site is confusing… is it closed?</p>