C-House, Marcus Samuelsson’s A-Rate Chicago Restaurant – 9.4 – James Meléndez / Jaime Patricio Meléndez
July 25, 2008 Leave a comment
C-House, chef Marcus Samuelsson’s new restaurant is a hit parade for the palette. Just barely a month old and flavors and scents from the kitchen are delightful. This eatery has all the sensibilities of a ready for prime time restaurant; beautiful dark woods that hone each guest to both relax and transport them to enjoy the journey of food. C-House’s focus is foods of the sea; raw bar and seafood abounds; but don’t worry if you are not a fan of seafood; C-House offers a beef, chicken or lamb option. I am seafood fan and looked forward to this cuisine in a landlocked state. Rest assured everything is fresh, very fresh. My first plate was the raw bar specialty of shrimp, mussels, clams and oysters served; the house made cocktail sauce was my favourite and gently coated each seafood bite with this gorgeous sauce; a delightful first plate; gave a wonderful briny experience and did not impede with other plates to come. The mussel soup was innovative; mussel soup? The mussels were fried, served with squash and the server placed the light cream into the bowl. Easily one of the most flavorful and enjoyable soups that I have had in a very long time. Highly recommend this soup. The beat salad was wondrously earthy and a nice refreshingly sweet against the savory and spiciness of the soup.
We received an amuse bouche of micro shrimp taco’s—one of my dinner mates said that it was the best taco he had ever enjoyed. For my second plate, I could not resist the lobster club and fries; easily the best lobster club I have eaten. The club are two small squares (cocktail sized bread) delicately composed of fresh and delightful and sweet lobster; a thin coating of avocado and bacon in the bread; each flavor comes together flawlessly; this sandwich is evidence that they not be overpowered or over tall with too many ingredients; there was complete confidence in the construction of this sandwich that all ingredients would be noted and superbly enjoyed. The fries were perfectly crisped with a moist interior, well salted and served with a spicy-sweet house made ketchup. I ate everything on the plate and did so because each morsel was gorgeous. I ordered the grits and the mushrooms as a side; the grits were sweet, smooth and creamy; the king trumpet mushrooms were a harmonious complement to the grits; and the corn flavors were nice homage to a Midwest favorite.
The wine menu was nicely edited; I liked the wines by the bottle offering slightly more than by the glass; but the wines by the glass were well chosen; some well known and others quite thoughtful.
I had to have the candy bar.
Lots of options for dessert; I had the chocolate cake with chocolate sauce and fresh marshmallow—a delight; the cherry tart—cherries from Michigan so appropriate for the time of year; and for me an enjoyable treat to have cherries from somewhere other than California; but before you are done for the evening the Candy Bar is a must. I adored the lavender chocolate—a slight hint of lavender that is the first lavender chocolate that has not been overpowered but how it should be made.
Each dish was presented and plated with innovation and worked well with the wooden dishes that seemed to not be focal point but harmonious blend with interior design from plate to table to wall.
We began our service with one waiter and ended up with another. Not sure how that happened; I was watching the waiters and noticed our original waiter had a larger table to attend to; the successor waiter was superb and made the experience exceptional; he was attentive, friendly and food passionate.
C-House offers it’s diners with a complete and satisfying and delightful culinary experience, an ambiance of up-to-date music and excellent service that is on equally pairing of food and environs.
****
Read more of my restaurant reviews: jamestherestaurantguy.wordpress.com
Read more of my wine reviews: jamesthewineguy.wordpress.com
© 2007 James Meléndez / Jaime Patricio Meléndez
jamesthewineguy.wordpress.com
jamesthefoodguy.wordpress.com
jamesthespiritsguy.wordpress.com
jamestherestaurantguy.wordpress.com
jamesthetravelguy.wordpress.com
jamesthedesignguy.wordpress.com
jamesandthecity.wordpress.com
jamesthemusicguy.wordpress.com
jamesthetechguy.wordpress.com
jamesthecustomerexperienceguy.wordpress.com
northamericanfoodproject.wordpress.com
jamesthemarketingguy.wordpress.com
jamesthebeerguy.wordpress.com
