The Savoy - Absinthe and Seafood in Wicker Park

Has anyone dined at The Savoy? I believe it opened a few months ago in Wicker Park and markets itself as a seafood / raw bar / absinthe joint. Looks pretty interesting but haven't had the chance to make it over yet. Sula seems to have mixed feelings on the place.

The Savoy
1408 N Milwaukee
773.698.6925
Website

We dined there back in August and really enjoyed it (sorry I didn't write it up). We had a good crudo, a very lush summer veg salad, a simple grilled fish prep, and a couple of other dishes I don't recall. Our impressions were very favorable, though my husband thought the crudo was overpriced for the quantity (he liked the quality).

My post back from August, after having cocktails at The Violet Hour:

Then we walked through Wicker Park over to Milwaukee Ave, to the month-old The Savoy. I found out later that head chef Brian Greene previously plied his trade at The Purple Pig, and his sensibilities were all over this. In a loud but vibrant room, for apps we enjoyed a sashimi-grade tuna tartare with basil viniagrette & yuzu emulsion, and coconut red curry mussels with lemongrass, ginger and kaffir lime. Both were unqualified successes. Then we split the special of the night--a baked Maine lobster infused with mild vanilla, stuffed with rosemary & slices of orange, lemon & lime, accompanied by wilted kale & arugula, and tiny sweet potato nibs flecked with bacon. Never had I experienced a dish like this, and disparate tastes that worked this well. Out-of-the-park great, and one could tell much thought went into stretching the envelope. Finished with a coffee and a cocoa con leche lava cake thingie with coffee ice cream. Another wow.

Not really but I just wanted to write that.

We had dinner at the Savoy on a recent Saturday night. The place was packed and turning away others. For Chef Brian Charles Greene, this must be quite a shift from his last outpost at "M" here in Highland Park. There isn't much threaded between those experiences, other than the peanut butter pie on the dessert menu, which I still haven't had in either place but it looks great.

The room is loud and packed, with the of-the-moment Edison bulbs everywhere, accentuated by tabletop and wall sconce candles. Some textile and art to break it up, a nice setup. There is an interesting mix of seating - bar/hi-tops, tight tables, and even a few clubby armchair setups. The open kitchen is in the front of house, with the hostess stand and waiting tables across.

The cocktail program is extensive, with a focus on absinthe both as a stand-alone beverage and as a mix ingredient. Some classics, some modern. Easily 30 different kinds of absinthe on the menu. One small touch we loved - the beers and wines are listed by two letter country of origin; "DE" for Deutschland. We had two modern cocktails, one great one not quite as successful, and a nice glass of wine.

The menu seems to not quite make up its mind if it is small plates or more traditional. More than half the menu is raw bar, appetizers, and salads. There are five fish and four meat main courses, along with a few roasted fish as "lighter fare." Oddly, as we realized driving home, there are no side dishes - and almost no starch on the menu. A side of roasted potatoes would have done us really well as an addition, or even a vegetable side.

From the raw bar, we had oysters and snow crab. I had been told that the oysters are shucked prior to service; never checked this out. They didn't come to the table too quickly, so maybe maybe not. They had one west and one east coast style that night, but I forget what they were; we had the west coast, which were quite tasty, though one of mine had a little grit to it. Mrs. EdB polished off four of them in about a minute, using the wasabi mignonette over the smoky tomato cocktail sauce. The snow crab was quite an adventure - a huge amount of crab legs/claws, stuck upright in a bed of ice, with some aioli, more smoky tomato cocktail sauce, and lemon. They had been cut open to expose most of the meat, though still we had our hands full in eating them - yet no wet wipes or finger bowl were provided. Snow crab is not quite as rich a flavor as king, but with the aioli it was very nice; the smokiness of the cocktail sauce overpowered it a bit.

We then moved on to an autumn salad, with squash, endive, haricot verts, wheat berries, and a few other ingredients. This was surprisingly good. The waiter described it as a "warm hug," and indeed it was served warm. It disappeared quickly. In short order, our appetizer of the seared scallops arrived, and they were maybe just a hair too wet but seared perfectly. The salad served along with them had a little too much sweetness, but likewise the scallops were gone in a flash.

As a main, we shared the roasted sturgeon. A thick piece of fish arrived grilled, atop some oxtail stew, squash puree, and some other ingredient. This combo was surprisingly good - maybe a bit too salty at first bite, but the subsequent mix of the oxtail and fish was wonderful. A real surprise, in a good way.

No dessert for us - a few choices sounded good including a flan and housemade ice cream - but we were on our way. We entertained ourselves watching the men at the next table drink absinthe, which they clearly had never done before, as they were mesmerized by the ice water through sugar pour (too fast, said Mrs. EdB), but they put 'em down to prove their manhood.

Savoy looks to have a great Sunday brunch menu as well.

We enjoyed dinner, and if we were in the area, we would certainly go back. I think with the addition of a few careful side dishes, the menu will be complete. Chef Greene is going places, will be good to watch him grow here.