Disney Fantasia concert@CSO

This Disney Fantasia concert turned out to be such a pleasant surprise, I had to write it up. I’m pretty sure I’ve been to at least one other before, but never have I been this close and personal. This time, I was right in the middle of the 2^nd row. It took a little getting used to in the beginning: the seats were lower than the stage, kind of like sitting in the orchestra pit, so I couldn’t see all of the musicians. I was right up against the strings so they were particularly prominent acoustically.

Sprout: pretty to look at...

Oh Sprout, I really wanted to like you. I was a big fan of chef Levitski on Top Chef, and had been dying to check out his restaurant. So I pounced when I saw a Bloomspot voucher of $79 dinner-for-two. Things started out alright. I was a bit disappointed there’s a special 3 course menu of two choices for each course for voucher holders, but I should have confirmed that before purchasing, so no big deal. My friend and I made it easy for the kitchen: we got the same appetizers and entrees, but order one of each of the two dessert choices.

Moto - respectable post-Alinea meal

After tackling Alinea, I had hoped to stay home for the rest of the month and reminisce about the most expensive dinner I’ve had so far. But my aunt called me and mentioned she’ll be visiting Chicago a week after my Alinea reservation. So, off to Moto I go. I had my reservations about Moto. I had previously tried their sister restaurant iNG and thought it was entertaining but not quite as sophisticated as other fine dining establishments in town. Was it a good idea to attempt a place like Moto so soon after my dream meal?

It was a rainy day, and traffic was horrendous, so I arrived late for the dinner. Fortunately I was able to find a free spot nearby, though I’m sure those evil parking meters will eventually eat up this little slice of heaven too. In that regard, perhaps it is wise to visit all the fancy, 4 hour-long tasting menu places while there’s still free parking.

Alinea - meal of a lifetime

Alinea. Michelin 3 stars. Best restaurant in US according to Gourmet magazine. 7^th best restaurant worldwide according to UK’s Restaurant magazine. Grant Achatz, the 38 year old chef-owner, has worked with numerous famous chefs, including my idol Thomas Keller. Achatz is also the recipient of many major culinary awards. With so many accolades, of course I had to put Alinea on my bucket list. Though I have to admit: it’s pretty far down the list because I didn’t think I’d find an occasion special enough to justify such a big (read: expensive) meal this soon.

But ever since Alinea announced they are starting to adopt the same ticketing system as their sister restaurant Next, I started panicking. For those that don’t know, the ticketing system allows patrons to buy prepaid tickets to tables of 2, 4 or 6 online, which includes price of the dinner, tax and 20% gratuity. This replaces the traditional reservation system and according to the Alinea team, allows more people to grab that elusive reservation (rather than the lucky few who not only are rich enough to eat at Alinea, but are apparently free enough to get through the ever-busy phone line). It also means less last minute cancellations because most people wouldn’t just throw couple hundred dollars down the drain. Win win, right? Well, not so much. I’ve been trying to get Next tickets ever since they opened last year. So far, nilch, nada, none. The problem is, tickets are so popular they sell out within minutes of announcing on Facebook. And since I have a real job and can’t be on FB 24/7, I never find out until it’s too late. So when it just so happens I was on FB when they announced they are starting to offer Alinea tickets for Oct/Nov, I pounced. So this year, I have an early birthday present for myself.      

Allium: good splurge if you have a small appetite

Ever since reading Vettel's review of the new Allium, it has been added to my Yelp bookmark list, but I didn't expect to make it there so soon. However, no complaints since I'm always excited to try out new restaurants. 

Allium is the reinvented, more casual and "approachable" restaurant at the Four Seasons, which opened in February 2012. "Approachable" was not quite the word I'd use to describe my first attempt, as I was unable to find the restaurant. Upon walking through the revolving doors of the Four Seasons, I couldn't find a sign anywhere that might provide a clue where the restaurant is located. A kind valet attendant pointed me to the 7th floor. Even then, I had to walk right up to the host stand in order to see the understated sign (or maybe I just need to update my contact lenses prescription). 

iNG: an exciting adventure for tastebuds

After a long hiatus from fancy meals, I completely lost self-control when I saw the $99 deal for 10 courses at iNG on Travelzoo, even though I wasn't all that interested in this restaurant. iNG, which stands for "Imagining new gastronomy", is the cheaper sister restaurant of Moto, owned by chef Homaro Cantu. Just as the famous Grant Achatz, Cantu is part of the molecular gastronomy camp, so I knew there would be lots of gadgets and liquid nitrogen involved. My lack of interest in the restaurant stems from the most recent season of Top Chef, where two of the contestants were chefs from Moto. They didn't perform very well throughout, the most common critique from the judges being that they focus too much on looks and not so much on flavor. Naturally, they were eliminated quite early in the season. So I had pretty low expectations for this meal.

 

Chicago chef's week 2012: North Pond

I'm embarrassed to admit that I did not know about North Pond prior to Chef's week. But after hearing my boss rave about this place, I decided to add it to my ever-growing list of restaurants to check out.