L2O, Lincoln Park, Chicago

L2O in Chicago opened with a very interesting set of amuse bouches. Looking like small fruits for decoration a set of tremendously tasty tibits (Foie gras with cantaloupe, oyster-stuff honeydew, salmon mousse-stuffed cucumber) are served. The menu continues to be an exciting mix of tasty courses and elaborate plating techniques. Literally some of the plates seem as if they were created for the sole purpose of a single dish. While this might seem slightly gimmicky, it works at the L2O.

Often bread in the US is dubious to say the least. Here the fresh, homemade baked goods are simply to die for. Especially the croissants deserve more than an honorable mention and again, the butter is served in a special raised block – cool.

One of the best components where the turnip quarters, served with lobster and lobster stuffing. The saltiness and crunchiness were delightful, and shows the great worksmanship of the kitchen. Obviously a lone diner doing the large menu incl. wine seems slighlty suspicious, so the chef sent out a spot prawn with a bit of truffle butter. Like other dishes this shows one of the challenges of the kitchen, where it’s trying slightly too hard. Spot Prawn was so beautiful, why pour another layer of luxury over it by using truffle butter ? Same goes for the excellent quail which was stuffed with foie gras. The gastrique consisting of 20+ ingredients gave it a lovely balance, but the dish was on the rich side. Also it was the third time foie gras was used in the same menu.

Generally I like the savoury courses better than the sweet ones. But one of the desserts using tarragon, avocado and lime was so beautiful I am inclined to call it my favourite component of the menu. L2O is another example of a great dining experience in Chicago. Overall the menu is slightly too large and would benefit from a more concentrated (less is more) approach on some of the dishes.

So what do you do after a meal like this ? On a whim I asked my favourite swiss blues musician (whom I do not know personally) Phil Fankhauser for help:

@therealpickygou Checkerboard Lounge, Buddy Guy's Legends, Kingston Mines. Enjoy 🙂

— Philipp Fankhauser (@PhFankhauser) April 8, 2013

I checked out Buddy Guy’s Legends and Kingston Mines. Now Buddy Guy’s is more for the middle-aged visitor wanting to stay in the center of town, clean, good music and souvenir shop… But Kingston Mines was off the hook! Two stages playing in rotation, forcing you to walk from one room to the other every hour or so was perfect. You never had to endure a break since you got non-stop music until the wee-wee hours. Kingston Mines also sports that level of grime I choose to call patina. Mr. Fankhauser – you made my day! Not sure how the music industry is treating you, but there’s another career option as a music & entertainment venue consultant waiting just around the corner.