Alinea

I fell in love last night. My brief love affair was with Alinea, the super expensive restaurant in Chicago that I learned about from Mr. James Song (see I give credit!) when it opened about four years ago.

I already did a brief write-up on yelp but for my fellow obsessed foodies, I'm sure additional photos and details are appreciated so here I go: (It's a long one.)



Amuse Bouche (Course 0, not pictured): Vanilla bean wrapped with coconut and steelhead roe encased in a cilantro sugar shell. Wine pairing was a Brut champagne blended with a spiced mead and curacao. The sugar shell was like the topping on a creme brulee and cracked as you bit into it. After getting past that, the super fresh steelhead roe popped in your mouth. The saltiness of the roe contrasted perfectly with the sweetness of the sugar. An awesome start.

Course 1: Tomato salad (both fresh, jello and powdery 'rock' form) with a basil jello and mozzerella foam. Wine pairing was a white from Santorini, Greece which was picked for its earthy qualities because of the volcanic earth it was grown from. The foam started off solid but as you broke into the dish, it melted and none of us could taste the mozzerella flavors. I loved the tomato rock since it reminded me of polvoron.

Course 2: Cubed, creamed cauliflower with five coatings (almonds, parmesean and three others I can't recall), three gels and an apple soup Wine pairing was another white. Probably one of my top three dishes of the night, and also one of the Chef's newer dishes. The course had some fried pieces of cauliflower that were rich and delicious. Our only gripe was that we wished there was more soup.

Course 3: Lobster with popcorn cream, clarified butter balloon and a hint of curry Wine pairing was a dessert Muscadet. This was my favorite. I didn't even know there was curry until I looked at the menu. The interaction of having to pop the balloon was a lot of fun and hiding in the middle section of the platter was another jello-like substance that tasted like mango pudding.

Course 4: Raw wagyu beef laid over a roasted maitake mushroom laid over a smoked date and drizzled with Blis Elixir (custom sherry vinegarette) Wine pairing was a hardly distributed Littorai Pinot Noir from CA. They brought the Wagyu beef out after the first course and it just stood at the center of our table, thawing as it was suspended from chopsticks. Another tableside presentation as they laid it over the mushroom and then drizzled the sauce.

Course 5: Lamb on a potato puree with sunflower seeds and sweet spice Wine pairing was a delicious French red called Priorat. This was the least memorable but still delicious.

Course 6: Hot potato suspended on a needle with a block of parmesean cheese, butter and topped with a black truffle. You pull the needle and the whole thing falls into a small wax bowl filled with a cold potato soup that you drink like a shot. This was like another amuse bouche, but interactive this time. My mouth first tasted the cheese, then the potato then finished with the truffle.

Course 7: Duck in a mole sauce topped with foie gras. Wine pairing was a dessert wine from Spain called an Oloroso. Probably somewhere on the bottom of our list, it was difficult to eat and the foie gras was hard to distinguish from the strong spices in the dish. The presentation dish (not supporsed to be eaten) had all the whole spices used in the mole.

Course 8: Concord grape ball filled with a yogurt water, mint and long pepper. Taken like a shot, the ball was a thin shell that popped in your mouth to spill its watery contents. Interesting.

Course 9: Watermelon cube suspended on a steel rod, topped with fresh coriander, tamari and bonito flakes. The coriander flavor was strong and the bonito flakes was a perfect saltiness to play off the sweet watermelon.

Course 10: Crisp bacon suspended from a clothing-line like contraption, topped with butterscotch, apple and thyme. It tasted like a uber-thin slice of crispy bacon with bbq sauce.

Course 11: Pumpkin custard stuffed with gruyere cheese, topped with Blis maple syrup (same barrels as the sherry vinegar we had with the beef) presented on a pillow of smoke, literally. Wine pairing is a dessert one from South Africa. This was probably the most unexpected presentation. When they bring pillows out, you wonder what its all about. But then the plate releases the pillows odor, and it makes you feel like thanksgiving.

Course 12: Chocolate with a fresh fig, olive sprinkles and pine ice cream. Wine pairing is from France. A light but decadent way to close the meal.

Course 13: Dry caramel salt. Presented in a shot glass, when you put this in your mouth it turns into the caramel you can get at a candy store.

Some dishes also had their own unique bread accompaniment. And there were two butters -- one regular cows milk with volcanic black salt and the other was made from goats milk.

Whew. Writing this made me want to go there again. Anyone down to drop another $300+ on a meal? Haha.