⭐️⭐️⭐️ Michelin · My Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Plan to budget 3.5-4 hours and ~$2k to enjoy the tasting menu of 16 courses. Overall the experience was excellent, and we rate it in the middle of the 3-star experiences we’ve enjoyed over the years.
Special shout out to them for accommodating our guests references. I had read that this place is very ‘kelp forward’ and while I’m adventurous, I simply don’t like seaweed. After some back and forth texts a couple days before, I was surprised to find that the kitchen modified my dishes to remove it completely. I was stunned as I wasn’t expecting it, but it made everything so much more relaxed and nearly every dish hit the mark. It’s rare to see that.
As for wine pairings, they offered two. One at $350 and the other at $475. Opting for the later, I can’t say it was bad, but it wasn’t great nor memorable. A couple of the pairings seemed to conflict with the dishes along the way and the pours were measured- which is generally OK, but not when you’re asked to ration it over 2-3 courses. Compared to wine pairings at other 3-star Michelin restaurants, it fell considerably short. There was also not a non-alcoholic wine pairing, which is something I’ve come to expect at this level.
The service was impeccable and we enjoyed our side conversations with the number of servers. World class on this topic.
Lastly, the atmosphere started out great and was intimate and romantic- until a group of 5 showed up and seemed to think they could behave like it was an AppleBee’s. Tough to fault Smyth for this, but for something so controlled and majestic, you’d think there would be a polite way to ask them to simmer down.
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ · Location: 177 N Ada St #101, Chicago, IL 60607, United States