A tantalizing slice of Chicago’s beaux arts architectural history (a former West Loop railroad generator station occupying a full city block with a towering smokestack) has been transformed into Powerhouse Restaurant & Bar, a sophisticated, upscale New American dining destination featuring steaks, game and seafood from chef John Peters (ex Naha, Alinea); the decor is simply handsome with white tablecloths, warm lighting and lush red drapery semi-dividing the space; N.B. there’s a separate bar area with its own light menu.

215 N. Clinton St.; 312-928-0800

Courtesy: Zagat

AND…from First Bite

Posted by Carol Mighton Haddix at 2:35 p.m. CDT

This just-opened restaurant is located in one of the more dramatic buildings west of the Loop. The landmark Beaux Arts-style building was once the coal-fired power plant for the Chicago Northwestern Railroad, thus the restaurant’s name, Powerhouse. Completely restored, the building’s exterior is artistically lighted, including the huge smokestack, now visible when looking straight west along the Chicago River.

As you enter the main door, a sleek bar is down a hall to your right. With plenty of small tables and a separate bar menu (including takeout), it is bound to be a convenient spot for quick meals and drinks for commuters and residents of this growing Fulton River District.

To the left, the dining room stretches to the other end of the building, but despite the size, it is pleasantly clubby, with dark olive green booths, white linens, ochre walls and sets of creative red curtains that help divide the long space. Two private dining rooms also are available. The rumbling of the Metra trains overhead as they depart nearby Ogilvie Transportation Center lends a not-too-intrusive atmospheric note.

Owners Jimmy Alexander and Mitchell Schmieding have put together an appetizing menu with chef John Peters that leans toward American, with steaks and seafood predominating. Good starters include a romaine hearts salad ($11) with Nueske’s bacon, quail eggs and Alexander’s strong, but addictive garlic dressing and the Nantucket bay scallops ($15) with Serrano ham, bitter orange puree, sweet, roasted parsnips and a sprinkling of baby mache leaves. Red wine braised short ribs ($30) are fall-apart tender and rest over soft polenta, maitake mushrooms and kale. Arctic char ($25) arrives with crispy skin and a rich caper sabayon on the side.

Dessert choices include the fun sweet potato doughnuts with brown butter and a cinnamon sabayon, and the decadent chocolate pecan pie, which comes in a small cast iron pot with a rich, chicory ice cream and a coffee reduction on the side. Yum! Like the building it is in, Powerhouse restaurant makes an impressive addition to the Fulton River District.

  Mom’s roasted nuts specialty, gooey treats from the school bake sale, the bad boy from Amsterdam that made you feel like you could fly.Whatever the flavor, you go gaga for brownies.

Fudge fairy godmother Bertha Palmer (as in the historic Palmer House Hilton) created the dessert in the 1800s when she charged her pastry chef with making treats for a picnic.

So imagine the delights that should emerge from Lockwood, the hotel’s new restaurant. Here’s a hint: The menu from chef Phillip Foss (Le Cirque) includes Faux Gras (foie gras-less duck liver terrine) and Surf, Turf, and Turf (filet mignon, short ribs, and lobster).

Not to mention shiraz-chocolate ice cream and mini caramel-filled doughnuts, which sound like a fitting adaptation of Palmer’s legacy.

Choc another one up to the Palmer name.

Lockwood, 17 East Monroe Street, between State Street and Wabash Avenue, (312-917-3404 or lockwoodrestaurant.com).  Courtesy: Daily Candy

 

By: Laura Hansen  LHansen99@comcast.net

“The only time to eat diet food is while you are waiting for the steak to cook.”
Julia Child (1912-2004)

My friend JP was in town from Los Angeles, and I feared that living there squelched his opportunity to partake of a good steak.  As he was staying in Schaumburg, it was a natural to try Sam & Harry’s Steakhouse in the new Renaissance Hotel (www.samandharrys.com/chicago/index.html).  By the way, Sam & Harry’s is a “franchise” steakhouse – their flagship restaurant is located in Washington, DC. 

First, I’d like to say a word about the hotel. It is really something out of the movie “Catch Me If You Can.” The entire space has a really sleek, open and bold design.  There is an abundance of glass, pillars, and a plethora of modern art sculptures and installations.  This is taking a page out of Twiggy’s 1960’s modern, visual motif..

In the restaurant, lining the glass that encloses the space, they have incorporated their version of “intimate” booths.  There are bench pads, and pillows in light blues and yellows.  It feels like you are either posing for a Pottery Barn spring catalog or have landed inside I Dream of Jeannie’s bottle.  At one point, I removed a small roller pillow and placed it on the floor because it was fighting for my attention.  Too much.  The rest of the décor is very impressive, however.

On this particular Sunday night, we were only one of three diners in the restaurant.  That makes me assume we would get attention from our waiter.  We did.  I ordered a nice glass of red wine and they have a decent selection to choose from.  JP started with the “Jumbo Lump Crab Cakes” They were oversold on the menu.  They were not “jumbo” – but two petite “shooter” size stacked cakes.  I did not taste these, but he said they were underwhelming.  I ordered the Lobster Bisque – which was flavorful, but served luke warm.  We split the “Steakhouse Salad” described as “baby iceberg with bleu cheese dressing, heirloom tomato, crispy onion strings and applewood smoked bacon.  Heirloom tomatoes are out of season – so this part of our salad did not deliver.  It was interesting to have those onion strings on the salad.  At some level, I felt like they were stolen from my mom’s thanksgiving green bean casserole.  The piece of bacon was served whole – and little bits would have made the salad better.  The blue cheese dressing was very nice.  I will divulge here that I am, in fact, a blue cheese dressing snob – and am very discriminating when it comes to good blue cheese dressing.  Jim McMahon (the ex-Chicago Bear quarterback) had a large sports bar/eatery in Glenview a few years back and the blue cheese dressing was outstanding.  I tend to compare most against theirs.  Why do some people who write menus say bleu vs. blue?  Is it like theater and theatre?  Okay, my friend Gail has clarified this for me. She said that bleu is the French way to write this.  Thank you Gail!  When we were in college together, she would speak French, I would speak Spanish. I think I am going to do a story on great blue cheese dressing.

A word about the menu.  It is very simple. To sum it up: seafood and steak with a few choices on the side.  There are five “starters”: calamari, oysters, tenderloin, crab cakes or shrimp cocktail.  There are a total of three salad choices, and the bisque is a staple on the menu.  No specials (at least this evening).

The entrée menu covers the same type of seafood choices, eight beef/steak preparations, one lamb and one chicken choice.  The greatest diversity was in the “sharable sides: three types of potatoes, spinach, asparagus, and “steakhouse mushrooms”  The limited choices are reminiscent of a steakhouse of the 1960’s – as are the actual way’s in which the food is prepared.  For example – they offer a Prime Delmonico, or creamed spinach. Very retro. I was waiting for Dean Martin to appear with a Rob Roy in his hand.  Or, perhaps Leonardo DiCaprio with those stewardesses!

For our main entrée – both JP and I ordered steaks.  He went for the New York Strip; I choose the “prime boneless rib eye.”  Everything in this course is “a lat carte.”  Wait, I am confused! Am I at Sam & Harry’s or Morton’s?  On the recommendation of our waiter, from the “sharable sides” selections, I chose the Au Gratin Potatoes, and JP ordered the lemon steamed broccolini.  These au gratins were a departure – integrating thin slices of both russet and sweet potatoes.  Being a savory gal, I was initially frightened to order this dish.  However, he was right to recommend it.  The thinly sliced potatoes were generously covered with tangy melted cheddar.  The potatoes were actually cooked well (neither crunchy nor mushy). 

My steak was well seasoned; a good cut of meat, and cooked exactly right.  JP felt that his NY strip was not butchered properly – leaving more fat than a strip should have. 

On to dessert.  The waiter oversold us on the “Vanilla Bean Crème Brulee” …bragging about the amazing vanilla flavor. The custard was bland, and they actually burnt the sugar on top. We also tried the “Seasonal fruit crumble” …the fruit happened to be apple.  This was also served in a small tube like vessel (the kind one see’s on Iron Chef all the time), with a scoop of ice cream on the side.  The apples were neither cooked nor raw.   They were somewhere in between, which was unsatisfying.  When I tried to dig my spoon in, the “also not cooked” crumbles spilled all over the plate.  So this dish was simply undesirable.  Okay, I will admit to eating the Hagen Das vanilla ice cream served on the side.

So, on this particular evening, I am pretty sure that neither Sam nor Harry were in the kitchen overseeing the culinary festivities.  I have a feeling that this place kicks up the food a notch when the hotel is packed with conventioneers.

CLASSIC AU GRATIN POTATOES

INGREDIENTS

• 4 russet potatoes, sliced into 1/4 inch slices
• 1 onion, sliced into rings
• salt and pepper to taste
• 3 tablespoons butter
• 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 cups milk
• 1 1/2 cups shredded Cheddar cheese

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Butter a 1 quart casserole dish.
2. Layer 1/2 of the potatoes into bottom of the prepared casserole dish. Top with the onion slices, and add the remaining potatoes. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
3. In a medium-size saucepan, melt butter over medium heat. Mix in the flour and salt, and stir constantly with a whisk for one minute. Stir in milk. Cook until mixture has thickened. Stir in cheese all at once, and continue stirring until melted, about 30 to 60 seconds. Pour cheese over the potatoes, and cover the dish with aluminum foil.
4. Bake 1 1/2 hours in the preheated oven.

Recipe courtesy: www.allrecipes.com

 

Inspired by the autumnal change in the weather, Executive Chef Andre Christopher announces a new fall menu at Pops For Champagne, Chicago’s landmark nightlife destination.

In addition to offering one of the largest selections of Champagne and sparkling wine in the country, guests can enjoy a broad range of seasonal shared plates, artisinal cheeses and desserts that literally melt in your mouth.

Highlights from the shared plates menu, which is available until 1 a.m. seven days a week, includes:

Pumpkin Ravioli with sage beurre blanc, cranberries and pecans (pictured left)

Scallop Risotto with parsley, roasted garlic and truffle pesto

Steak and Frites with ribeye, hollandaise and truffle aioli

Diners can also enjoy cheeses accompanied by toasted bread, apples, grapes, fig jam and toasted walnuts. For those diners who need something sweet, Pops is also offering desserts that are perfect to share, including Apple Bread Pudding with cinnamon gelato, caramel and cherries (pictured left).

See more special offers and events from Pops for Champagne.

Visit Pops for Champagne’s Web site for more information

 

Who says you can’t gamble on dry land? Set to open by December, River North’s Stretch Run Sporting Club & Grille is hoping to do the average sports bar one better.

The upscale spot will offer not only dinner but dinner-and-a-bet with live race wagering thanks to an on-site OTB license – not to mention worldwide satellite coverage, the obligatory Jumbotron and 200-plus TVs (Ohio & LaSalle Streets).

Courtest: Zagat