J and i decided to each get different dishes so that we could try as many different ones as possible, so prepare to scroll through an amazing collection of pictures! (:
welcome to one sixtyblue - it's right off Ashland / Lake!
3 types of carbs: white sourdough, whole grain seeded sourdough, and Asiago crispy flatbreads served with whipped butter. yum.
the appetizer that i chose was the pork belly carbonara, which is served with gnocchi & caramelised onion.
i thought that the flavours were delicious, but the overall dish wasn't mind-blowing. i appreciated how the pork was seasoned - very juicy and well cooked, except for some parts which were still kind of tough.
it reminded me an awful lot of this Chinese dish called 梅菜扣肉 (pork belly with preserved vegetables). the gnocchi was again very flavourful, but did not taste like gnocchi at all. it was incredibly soft and gummy, and i felt like it lacked a certain chewiness to it. however, it went well with the hard parts of the pork belly, so i guess it worked out okay. the onions made a delicious sauce though!
J tried the newest addition to the restaurant week menu: rice crusted shrimp with mango, pickled green papaya, young coconut, and tapioca.
i have to say that i really enjoyed the brightness of this dish - both in how it was presented and how it tasted! the rice made the texture of the shrimp much better, and i always love it when seafood is paired with a fruity, citrusy thing. i think the mango worked really well with it.
look at this delicious bite! (:
not sure how i felt about the pickled papaya though, and i think the coconut taste could be slightly stronger.
for my main dish, i chose the scottish salmon with chanterlle mashed potatoes, trumpet mushrooms, and huckleberry sauce.
the first plate that arrived was actually incredibly salty - it was so salt encrusted that i couldn't really taste the salmon, and the mushrooms felt like side dishes that would go well with porridge. i felt badly sending it back, but the waitress was incredibly understanding and management came over to apologise for the dish. talk about excellent customer service! even though i had dug through a good portion of my salmon, they remade the entire dish for me and served it within 10 minutes of sending it back. i was rather impressed (:
the trumpet mushrooms could've had some more garlic to them - it really made the flavours THAT much better when i had bites with more garlic sauce. the salmon crust (second time) was absolutely delicious! it was super crispy, but the inside was soft and melt-in-your-mouth tender. the potatoes were amazing too, and i'm not usually a big fan of them.
J ordered the free-range chicken (which somehow i forgot to take pictures of...) with a chestnut crust, sweet potato bread-pudding, maple syrup sweet potatoes, marshmallows, and a caramel-thyme sauce. she described it as a nice Thanksgiving meal, which was funny but so true. i personally wasn't blown away by the chicken or the bread-pudding, but she thought it was excellent.
finally, for dessert i had the chocolate peanut butter terrine with banana meringue, bacon, and peanut brittle.
the chocolate was so, so rich, and not overly sweet. it was a perfect pairing with the meringue, though i had absolutely no idea it was banana flavoured - it just tasted like...light fluffy whipped sweet cream. the peanut brittle was good but nothing special.
the bacon, though, was unique.
you definitely get your salty + sweet in this dish, and while i appreciated the fusion of flavours, i'm not sure how much i enjoy getting a chewy piece of meat while i'm letting the chocolate melt on my tongue...
J got the key lime panna cotta with graham streusel and coconut marshmallow.
she was in lime heaven, but i thought the presentation was better than the taste. it was a very refreshing dessert, and i think a great way to end the evening, but i'm not sure how much i liked the graham cracker streusel. i'm not sure as to what would've worked better, but i just didn't like that part. the marshmallow was incredibly chewy - i mean so sticky and chewy that you could barely cut it up. again, the coconut taste was kind of faint and could've been stronger. it reminded me of a Turkish delight - yum!!
before leaving, they apologized again with a tray of 2 fudge squares, as well as a parting gift - chocolate chip cookies! let me just say, this restaurant really knows how to work its customers (:
would i come back here to eat? definitely. when? i am not sure. while i don't necessarily see this as a place to frequent once a month or anything, i'd definitely recommend people to come visit for themselves. the deal for restaurant week (we spent about $42 each) was SO worth it, and i'm incredibly glad we got to check it out! really, the service here blows every other Chicago restaurant out of the water - MJ would be / should be proud. all in all, great meal, AMAZING service, and i walked away very happy (:
one sixtyblue
1400 W. Randolph Street
Chicago, IL 60607
