What a delight! A perfect location to eat before a show at the Paramount Theater. Ample free parking is available in the lots behind the restaurant and it is within walking distance to the theater. We had the 5 course meal which was fabulous – every course! – and well spaced. The staff was knowledgeable and did a wonderful job making us feel welcome. Will return!
Lindsey G.
Évaluation du lieu : 5 North Hills, NC
Wonderful, unpretentious experience. Our server was phenomenal, not to mention the food was absolutely perfect. We had the 3 course Paramount Theater special, which was plenty of food, especially for $ 42/person. The braised short ribs were spectacular! I’m 9 months pregnant so was unable to have any alcohol, but my husband loved his(two) old fashioneds. We will definitely be back.
Chris M.
Évaluation du lieu : 1 Montgomery, IL
Went here with my Wife for Valentine’s day and it was very bad. Place was not put together for a nice restaurant! Was more like a hack job where we had to wait for table service even though there was no one in the restaurant, and they set up our table with us waiting right next to it! They also had a special menu that was not good. We didn’t finish our food. Also we ordered some martinis and I had to get a different one because the Gin tasted old and sour. Thought they made it wrong so got another one, and it was bad as well. Said to waitress that I didn’t like it could I get another, they didn’t take it off my check made me pay for it. Didn’t bitch or anything because was more about my Wife having a good time but wouldn’t go there again. Could hear them yelling at each other in the back kitchen from the front of the restaurant. Also when we left they where all hanging out up front having cocktails, well 3 of the staff that is. Had a bad experience there for such an expensive place. Was more like going to a dive bar or something. Even the desert tasted dried out like the made it the day before and left it to get a little stale. Shoulda went to Two Brothers instead if we wanted to stay in Aurora. If not go to Napervile! Check out Charles W. review below me… this is how it was in better detail!
Ozzie T.
Évaluation du lieu : 1 Aurora, IL
Chef Amaury is quite delusional about his food quality & food operation execution. The meals & food are way overpriced & I finds Chef Amaury’s justifications, explanations, excuses & oversharing a bit troubling & to try & gain credibility. I met with Chef Amaury for a group dinner which he priced insanely ridiculous for fruit, cheese & meats & wine?!? Ridiculous!!! I booked my event at a local owners restaurant & got a full course meal for half of what Chef Amaury proposed. I give him one star for providing an possibility to experience something beyond a 2 – 3 start experience in Aurora, but this place is hit & miss bipolar. The establishment has a bit of a pretentious following that thinks they know a thing or two about fine wine, fine dining & food snobbery, but that’s it. Stop in for a glass of wine & gamble on on some food, but I’ve given this place 3 times to hit the mark and it just doesn’t happen in all areas. If I’m totally sick of the lack of the restaurant & bar scene in Aurora, I’ll stop in for a glass of their adequate wine selection & questionable appetizers & cuisine for the night. Good luck with the unicorn search for fine dining in Aurora.
Anne E.
Évaluation du lieu : 5 Naperville, IL
Chef Amaury is not only a great, innovative chef, he’s a delight too. At his restaurant, he personally greets and chats with the patrons. The man can work the room. And he LOVES to talk food. Speaking of food… We have eaten at this restaurant five or more times. It is consistently well done. The menu changes and farm to table ingredients are common. Pre fixe menu is typical. Salad, soup(always a highlight for us), fish(always good), meat course, and of course — dessert! The vegan cheesecake is exceptional(and we’re not vegan). The Venezuelan chocolate lava cake seems to be his specialty for dessert and it is very good. Ambiance is exceptional here. It’s cozy and inviting. This is the perfect date restaurant. Local artists’ creations adorn the walls and the bar area is lovely. The bartenders know what they’re doing and they’re supremely attentive. This restaurant is a BARGAIN. $ 65 for a pre fixe menu of this caliber is outstandingly affordable. The wine list isn’t over priced and there are great selections. This restaurant is walking distance to the Paramount theater. Go here for dinner before or after a show. Or, just to enjoy a cocktail. Amaury, if he’s there, will surely chat you up. We love this place.
Kelly W.
Évaluation du lieu : 1 Palo Alto, CA
After a very disappointing first visit here, I went with a local friend who insisted I should give it another shot. I thought the food was okay(I’m being generous, my friend liked it far better than me), not great and not terrible but average for what you should expect for such high prices. I was surprised by the décor and ambiance… very poor in my opinion. It surprised me because the restaurant is located in a blighted downtown Aurora so one would think you should have to overcome the area with an incredible ambiance inside. Service was very poor the first time, better the second time, but it seems there are customers who have low expectations because they are so desperate to say they have fine dining in downtown Aurora. For those not familiar, Aurora is run by a very corrupt mayor who has repeatedly failed with economic development and rewards contributors with contracts. It’s a small town even though the population is second largest in Illinois. So, I thought about giving Chef Amaury 2 stars to be nice but then I heard him trashing people who criticize him and other bizarre statements. This was all before I read the reviews on Unilocal where it’s clear there is a massive ego problem. I don’t wish the guy bad but when you locate in an area like downtown Aurora under the current business climate, it means you are likely trying to cut costs and corners. That’s great for fast food, not fine dining. He should try locating in a competitive area and see if he can survive. If not, maybe he’s an okay chef but not so good businessman.
Charles W.
Évaluation du lieu : 1 St Charles, IL
Bitter. That is one word describing our most recent experience here. We received an email announcing a truffle-themed dinner a few nights later and organized a group of eight. Five courses for $ 75. One of our group has a dairy allergy, and when the reservation was made we asked if they could accommodate. They said yes they could accommodate and went so far as to explain the substitution for each course. No dairy is no problem… excellent. We arrived and ordered cocktails, which were very good. Craft cocktails take time, so I will not knock the score here for the wait on our drinks. However, the restaurant was sold out for this dinner with 35 reservations(and a wait list for the event), and you have only one bartender who fell behind quickly. For failing to staff correctly, you FAIL. We ordered two additional drinks and received only one… i guess I wasn’t thirsty after all… but in the end we did not get charged for the drink so no real harm. After the 35 were seated, Chef came out and talked about the courses we would be served. During his speech, he spoke of some tragic events in his life, which while very sad, were just out of place and seemed very odd. Chef also mentioned that he envisioned a maximum of 20 patrons for this event, but stretched portions and changed things to accommodate 35. Very odd that he even said this as it seems like a money grab in plain terms. Why even say that!!! First course arrives… salmon. Nice presentation. To this point it has been 20 minutes or so since we had been seated, and we have nothing but water in front of us(and salmon). At no point did either server think to offer us the wine list or another cocktail! We finally had to track her down and get some wine glasses. Luckily I brought a bottle and intended to pay corkage, otherwise we may well have gone thirsty. Sadly, we had to remind the staff of the dairy allergy, as they never asked which person in our party required substitutions. Fail. On every level except the salmon itself. Second course– soup. The staff could not decide whether they would give us soup spoons or if we would be fine using our dessert spoons– yes, this was contemplated in front of us. Fail. We needed to remind the servers of the dairy problem, and they had to exchange the soup. Fail. Soup was good though, but nothing special. Third course– fish. We felt the need to ask the servers again about the dairy issue. They disappeared and came back out and removed the fish presented– sure enough, it contained dairy. Seriously? We need to remind you after each course is presented? It took almost ten minutes for a new dairy-free dish to be made. I will remind you that we asked about this when the reservation was made, and it wasn’t going to be a problem. Wrong. EPICFAILUREONEVERYLEVEL for a restaurant holding itself out to be a fine dining establishment. Fourth course– steak. Excellent course, though some plates were medium rare and others very rare. Again we had to ask and be certain there was no dairy. Fifth course, a dessert– berry and truffle crème brûlée, and we were told our dairy-free friend would be served fresh berries. Problem– they have no berries. What??? Okay, they can make a vegan cheesecake… um, okay. And what of the blueberry and truffle crème brûlée? Soup– for half of us. Thin and watery– epic failure. When the servers finally cleared dessert, i waited until they took all four UNEATEN desserts, at which point I had to tell our server the deserts were bad. He clearly should have noticed and asked. Failure. Their credit card machine was broken so we had to pay via check or cash, obtained from the ATM in the bar across the street. As i walked to the ATM, our friend spoke to Chef, who was now sitting on a sofa in the lounge, chef coat removed. Our friend told chef of the multitude of issues, and not once did chef offer an apology. The sous chef came out as our friend discussed the awful crème brûlée, and the sous explained that they knew some were off because they ran out of yolks. How the hell do you run out of eggs? Truffles yes, but freaking eggs??? And to then knowingly serve a flawed dish??? Unforgivable. I was informed that Chef’s feelings were hurt because he received a not-so-favorable review from a Check Please diner. I can see why the review was not good. This was an awful experience. In Chef’s «pity speech» he mentioned the recent loss of his father and also the loss of a valued employee… terrible things, but if you are not emotionally stable enough to give an event your best effort, then DON’T DOIT! Those events, while tragic, are no excuse. The Wednesday event was announced on Monday, so you knew damn well that perhaps you weren’t ready for this. It felt like it was hastily thrown together and poorly planned. You order ingredients for 20, and then accept 35. Your sous sent flawed plates out of the kitchen, which is on you. Chef Amaury, you failed. Your team failed.
Marc F.
Évaluation du lieu : 5 Aurora, IL
The place is the definition of dining perfection. Its cozy, everyone is sticky/sweet polite, and the service was over the top perfect. The food was awesome, that was the tasiest and most tender new york strip I ever had. Unique and incredible dessert and coffee topped off the evening. Once again, this was dining perfection in downtown Aurora.
Holly L.
Évaluation du lieu : 5 Aurora, IL
Amazing food and cocktails. You need to try one of their beer or wine dinners! Can’t wait for the Blood Orange season because the Blood Orange Martini is my fav!
Misty S.
Évaluation du lieu : 3 Aurora, IL
Fine dining in Aurora? I HAD to come try with my own taste buds. **spoiler alert** They, and my bum, left a bit disappointed. The 8 course tasting menu is $ 95 and the 4 course is $ 55. They also offer a 3 course meal between 5p-630p for $ 42. The décor was cozy and inviting. It was like dining at someone’s house. Looking around the restaurant, most of the diners were well dressed, but I spotted a few in jeans. Has the cost of fine dining gone up so high that this restaurant was just a casual place for some? Boy, I need a raise. Then I sat down and noticed it was a wicker chair, not because I’m a chair snob or anything, but because it gave me a splinter! For some reason, I was looking forward to checking out the bathroom, so this seemed like as good a reason as any to go. Disappointment #1 — it was quite ordinary. Or maybe it was #2 since I was expecting a nice comfy soft non-biting chair. Back to the bathroom… the hallway to the bathroom actually reminded me of a scene from The Shining. No fancy sink. No fancy napkins. There was a creepy chair in there. Luckily, I found the splinter lodged in my dress and was able to remove it without further incident. Anyway, who cares about the bathroom, I came for the food. The waiter, I found out, was the son of Chef Amaury himself. He was super nice and helpful. Midway through my meal, I saw the chef talking to a talk of either regulars or friends that he knew. As he walked by our table, it was like a last minute decision that he swung around and stopped to asked how we were doing and how we heard of the restaurant. He was very nice and pleasant. Ok, on to the food. Great craft beer and wine menu. I went with the 4 course tasting menu, which was a wise choice because I was so stuffed I couldn’t even finish my meal. The 4 course menu gave the following options: 1st Course –Potato Soup –Baby Greens 2nd Course –Duck –Escolar 3rd Course –Berkshire pork –Beef short rib 4th Course –Chocolate cake –Artisanal cheese –Vegan cheesecake –Vanilla panna cotta The potato soup with cured egg yolk, salmon roe, sour cream, red onion was the most creative and my favorite of the evening. The duck was just ok. The short ribs were good, but not spectacular. The vanilla panna cotta was excellent. It started and ended well, but it lacked that«fine dining» feel.
Suburban M.
Évaluation du lieu : 1 Oswego, IL
Went there for my birthday, it was pretty disappointing. Their AC wasn’t working properly(or they cheaped out and kept it at 78), it was uncomfortably warm sitting there, which made me not hungry. I ordered wine from a list of only 12 sold by the glass, they didn’t have it. I chose a different one, they came back 5 min later and said they only had ½ glass of that! By now, it was 20+ min since we were seated. We got passed off to a different server and nothing was communicated in the transfer. Terrible service! They were out of the only soup listed in the menu, and ran out of scallops –1 of only 4 dinner options that weren’t an appetizer or dessert. I don’t like grouper, so it was either beef stew(not a seasonal dish), their premium steak dish or I could pay $ 20 for chicken and beans. Bad service, food was good but nothing special, not going back.
John G.
Évaluation du lieu : 2 Big Rock, IL
I have been dining at Chef Amaury’s since it was at it’s old location, so it’s been over 5 years. I loved this place and visited several times a year for special occasions such as birthday and anniversary dinners. However the last two times it has been a terrible experience enough that I will not return. On my 2nd to last visit: My steak dish was okay however the pork dish my girlfriend ordered was 50% fat. The chef should have never allowed this out of the kitchen. The chocolate cake for desert was something I would expect to unwrap out of a vending machine… totally ridiculous to even serve such an abomination! I expected much better for a meal for two that was around $ 150. On my last visit:(8÷30÷14): I called the day before to talk to Amaury to let him know about my last sub-par dinning experience, inquire about the menu for the next evening and to make reservations for my girlfriend’s birthday dinner. He assured me everything would be wonderful and I was excited that they had scallops on the menu. Here’s where it all went downhill. 1) It was around 80 degrees and we were sweating just sitting there. 2) Our female server that we had last time as well was not knowledgeable about the menu and slightly annoying. 3) We ordered drinks… 10 minutes later(no joke) she brought out my wine and said they were out of the wine my girlfriend ordered. 4) She pawned us off to another server after a table of 4 was seated.(Not bad, because the guy was very knowledgeable and good at his job, the only positive of the evening! We felt bad for him… he was covered in sweat beads the entire night!)) 5) In the transfer of servers our soup order was never placed… 20 minutes later we inquired about that… oops! They were out of the soup on the menu and offered another one in it’s place. Not a huge deal. The alternative soup was great when we finally received it. 6) Finally we were served water! Isn’t this supposed to happen right away? Even cheap chain restaurants knows this! Since it was so warm in there, we drank our waters very quickly… and then my glass was empty for about 15 minutes until Amaury’s wife came around and refilled it. Nice attention to your customers!!! 7) At this point we should have just left, however, there aren’t that many choices for upscale dinning in this area, so we decided we would stick it out and make the best of our sauna dinning experience. 8) When ordering, they were out of the scallops!!! Really? There were around three other filled tables there, about 10 people total. There were way more empty tables than filled ones. How are you out of this too??? 9) We ordered the sirloin and the stew. The sirloin was okay, I’ve made much better myself. The potatoes were very dry and the sauce was just mediocre. This was what I would expect for around $ 12 at a chain restaurant. The stew was decent and had a great taste… but it’s a stew, not our first choice for a birthday dinner. 10) Not a single thing was done for my girlfriend’s birthday! Nothing was even offered to make this disastrous experience more tolerable… like dessert on the house. Heck, I was at Monterra Grill in Algonquin last night and the waitress came and said she screwed up and placed a fillet order instead of my rib-eye and offered to buy our desserts… a $ 16 peace offering. This is what a real restaurant does for its customers! I know Amaury is going to try and defend his restaurant and comment on this review, but there is truly no excusing this experience at a pricey establishment. In summary: I really liked this restaurant and it’s a shame I will be taking it off of my list of places to frequent. Hopefully when this place closes something new and exciting will take it’s place.
Patrick H.
Évaluation du lieu : 3 Aurora, IL
I want to preface this review with, I’ve only ever been here for events. So, I don’t know what happens normally. I found this place to be very hot in the summer. I don’t know if they have AC. It’s so hot. The bar is very cool looking, but the menu was very limited. The food seemed extremely over priced, and they cut off the kitchen at some point at night. So, if you get there after that you’ll just be getting drinks. The server didn’t seem like he even wanted to talk to me. Let alone take my order. There are literally only 2 other businesses on their side of the street. Every other business has up and left. Leaving downtown Aurora looking almost deserted, minus BallyDoyle’s and the Casino. I think this place has it’s fans… and they frequent the place enought to keep it going. But unless there is something going on it never looks lively. And the seating is horrible.
Elizabeth W.
Évaluation du lieu : 5 Aurora, IL
After reading several reviews we decided to give this place a try before attending a production at Paramount Theatre. I was hesitant at first, based on the location, but I’m so glad we went. We had the 4 course meal and it was outstanding. I won’t go into all of the food details since the menu changes frequently, but the flavors and presentation were amazing. Service was almost impeccable. The only issues we encountered were: 1. My husband’s plate was cleared before I finished the first course. 2. They did not have the first beer my husband ordered in stock(previous posters lamented about drinks not being available). 3. My husband had to ask for his water to be refilled after nearly 20 minutes with an empty glass. These are obviously very minor issues and should not dissuade anyone from dining here. Plus, the food was OUTSTANDING. I have dined all over, including Michelin-starred restaurants, and this place is truly a gem. If for nothing else, go for the food.
John B.
Évaluation du lieu : 5 Oswego, IL
I have never thought about a Unilocal review as much as I have thought about this one. I should say that I will splurge on a meal, however with three kids, my wife and two jobs, we rarely have time alone to enjoy an establishment like this and tend to be cautious with how much we spend as we prefer to do something for/with our kids, rather than ourselves. Our visit here was a rare celebration of 2 things, one was a late Valentine’s Day gift to my wife(this is more of an excuse really) and the other was spending time with each other while not worrying about the kids for a night, something that had not happened in a very long time. My expectations were rather high, as I wanted something special for the both of us. Let me start by saying that despite some items that I will be critical over, I have wholeheartedly given a five star rating. Nothing in the immediate area can even come close. The Chef takes great care in the preparation of his craft and every bite will remind you of this. We chose to have an 8 course meal with wine. I won’t go into great detail over every dish as they change and I do not want to set a specific expectation. All I will say is that you will not be disappointed. Your expectations should be for perfectly prepared selections, with flavorful accompaniments. The dishes are not overly complicated or attempting to break new ground such as MOTO does. They are focused on rich flavors and perfect execution. Anyone would be comfortable with the flavors and enjoy the experience. My rating is based on the food, with less focus on following, since I do not wish for it to dissuade anyone from going. I am a service oriented person, the Chef has said himself in a Chicago Tribune article«I don’t believe in ninja service, they come up to the table and disappear so quick you don’t even know who was there. I’d rather go up and talk to you, make sure you’re comfortable.» I could not agree more. That said, I cannot help but feel that the front of the house training is not a priority here. The staff was very friendly/non-pretentious and I do want to feel like family, but keep in mind we are paying to get away from normal life and day to day challenges. I am here to experience something I cannot readily do everyday, it would not be special otherwise. I simply do not want a running dialog on everything the staff is thinking, every problem they have, every action they take and why they are doing it, because in the end, I am not your family, I am a Guest that is there to forget about life if only for a moment and focus on in my case, the love of my life who is sitting across from me and whom rarely ever I get to connect with properly. In my opinion, great staff will talk with you and are very much a huge part of the experience, by talking about the food, recommending good wine, giving insights to the sourcing of food and the cooking process, as well as answering questions. But it needs to stop there. Throughout the night we learned more about the problems of the servers, all be it one more than the other, than I really cared to. In looking around the room, I got the impression that others felt the same way. Given the overall acoustics, it is rather easy to hear nearby conversation(not in an obtrusive way, but you can hear people talk). If there is a challenge, the solution should come without the guest knowing there was a challenge to begin with. I do not require an explanation, if I never know an issue existed in the first place. This is not an issue with the staff themselves, they are very friendly and nice folks, I feel they have just never been trained on high level service standards. I’m having a moment of sounding like a snob and let me tell you I am far from it, so I apologize for that, I just enjoy being made to feel special when the occasion is special and think that spending around $ 300 on a nice dinner is sufficient regardless of you knowing/not knowing why I’m there. We just felt more like house guests rather than a high end restaurant guests. Here are a few front of the house items that made us feel that it needs some attention. Paper covers on every table. Not lighting the table candles in advance of the guests, the constant clicking of the lighter all night was really annoying. Not changing the silverware throughout the 8 course meal(maybe once would be nice even). Missing paint on the ceiling where a light used to be. A dirty clipboard/A clipboard for the wine list. No beer/cocktail list provided. Stacking dirty dishes on the table before clearing. Removing one guests plate before both guests were finished with the dish. That said, there were very good moments and our main server was very attentive. Ultimately, Go! Just read what I have said and expect that. To be clear, no one was rude, the staff was nice, the food superb and we very much enjoyed our night!
Misty A.
Évaluation du lieu : 1 Wheaton, IL
Our experience at this restaurant was, let’s say, one of a kind but not in a good way. I came in alone while my husband parked the car. It took a long time to get a drink at the bar. I also let the owner know that we were going to the theatre and may be in a bit of a hurry. It took a LONG time to get our food– before it came, I told our waitress that if the food couldn’t be there at a given time we’d have to leave to be able to make the theatre. Well, the owner came over and stood over our table and told us that we were rude to his waitress and wouldn’t allow that– And he went on and on about it. So, if you eat here, make sure that you sit there like a little robot and don’t complain, because you will get chastised for it.
Kath M.
Évaluation du lieu : 3 Aurora, IL
First off, let me say that the food was AWESOME. But before we even ordered any, our server experience was not good. We had a reservation for 4, but the staff seemed surprised that we were there and scrambled to set up our table. Then, our waiter came to the table, did not introduce himself, and when my husband attempted to small talk and asked how he was doing(he didnt ask us), he said, «fine I guess, just too busy»! WHAT? We’d heard so much about this place, the level of service, the food, and THESE were the first words we were greeted with? Not to mention that the place wasnt even busy, at 7:30. That was the tone of the whole meal… we ordered the cheese plate to start, he set it down and started to walk away, and we asked if he could tell us what was on the board, and he was put out. THEN we got no bread, and had to ask twice. Took 10 minutes, while we sat and looked at the cheese. Finally, when we complimented th fish I’d ordered and asked where it had come from, he did give us the story. We were just sort of taken aback. Seemed more like the service you’d get at Applebees from an emo teenager, not a fine dining experience. Again, the food was really good. Everyone liked everything they ordered. Wine list is great with lots of inexpensive options. Sadly, the waiter(we found out his name was Jon, or at least thats what it said on our check) made a 4 – 5 star experience more of a 3. Will probably give it a second chance, based on all of the good reviews, AND the really good food.
Hayley H.
Évaluation du lieu : 5 Oswego, IL
I went with Hilary, see the review below back in January, though regretfully have not yet been back! She hit it on the head when she wrote it was WORTH it! THe tasting menu was fun and delish and the service was elevated. Truly a nice, white tablecloth kind of dinner. The room, with its exposed brick, lends to a past time in downtown Aurora. When fancy was the norm…
Robert D.
Évaluation du lieu : 4 Lombard, IL
Great Meal! The Chef here is big on using local produce and meats. The fish fresh here. We started off the meal with a bottle of Rombauer Chardonnay for $ 55. Great wine list reasonably priced. The butternut squash soup that was finished with a chive olive oil and crispy chorizo bits. Silky smooth and made by someone that knows what he is doing. We split an order of the seared scallops that were done nicely as well. The entrees were wonderful. I had the Acorn Fed Berkshire Pork Chop from southern IL with a Vanilla Bean Rutabaga purée, Kale, with an Apple compote. Wish I had more of the purée! It was great. The wife had the Risotto with shrimp, mushrooms kale bell peppers. The vegetables were cut so not to overpower the rice. Great flavor on the risotto nice. Desserts were good I liked the Earl Gray infused Crème Brulee with white chocolate and the Peanut butter ice cream with a Concord Grape filled soft pastry. Not a big fan of that one. Caught Larry the Cable Guy @ the Paramount. Great meal after the show. We will come for the wine and the food, The menu changes so give it a shot. The bill was $ 112 for dinner and $ 55 of that was the wine. If you don’t like what is put in front of you than say something to them! If you don’t and post a rant then your penny wise and pound foolish..
Hilary H.
Évaluation du lieu : 5 Plano, IL
Incredible. Fantastic. Radical, DUDE! Really, I have no idea what else to say. This place is GOOD. DAMN good. ohemgee. My sister took me here for my birthday, we’ve both been wanting to go for quite awhile. We decided on the tasting menu — the $ 65.00 per may seem daunting if you’re not an amateur foodie as the two of us, but let me assure you, it is WORTHIT. Each and every penny. The first course was a baby arugula salad, buttery & yummy as all salads of this variety should be. Great palate cleanser to start. Course #2 was a beet soup — something I would never dream of ordering normally, but tasting menus don’t always give choice, so to the table it came. It was neon red, and I was nervous. BUTTHEN, I put it in my mouth(haha). And OH man, wonderful. It was carroty, earthy, buttery, yumminess. The bacon at the bottom was a great treat, too. Halfway for our Third course, we were served Escolar. Honestly, I didn’t know WTF that was until I googled at the table. Deerrrr. Anyway, shoulda known, fish course. Now, I cannot stand/hate/despise/eeeew seafood. It’s either rubbery, or dry, or tastes/smells like rotten crotch. This fish? To. DIE. for. Light crunch outside, tender inside. Had the RIGHT kind of fish taste, clean yet salty. If I was told I had to each fish every day for the rest of my life, THIS dish is it. On to #4 — braised short rib over goat cheese truffle mash. I was not intrigued at the menu listing, seemed ho-hum, but now I will remember to never overlook the traditional done well. The meat was melty, smooth, tender, beauty. Paired with the mash, I almost cried at the flavor profile. No, really. I NEARLYCRIED. Over food, yes. But trust you, there is a chance you will do the same at this place. Final course, dessert, has 3 options– molten cake(been there, done that), vegan cake wtih berries(kthnx no bye), and S’more Crème brûlée with homemade graham cracker. Do I even NEED to review this one? Didn’t think so. I will say courses 2 – 4 were my FAVES, not that 1&5 weren’t also great, but because the level of cuisine was SO high. This joint is going to be TOUGH to top, both on my palette and most others. GOHERENOW.