nsxtasy wrote:Although I've never ordered it when dining there, I've heard people say that Pete Miller's serves an awesome burger.

Yes it's made from trimmings from their beef they use for the steaks.

rehorn wrote:Assuming it's the same Water, I believe I saw a post of his on City Data indicating that his trip was slightly postponed due to the forecast over the past few days here.

You're right--that's me and our trip was postponed.

We dined at Oceanique, walking there from the Orrington Hotel. The walk down Chicago Av was a bit lonely after dark.

The food was very good, but at Manhattan prices, that is what I expected. We received an amuse bouche to start and then two bite-size samples of their Dover sole (? I think--I can't recall what it was) between courses later. Those were excellent. We had scallops and a beet/goat cheese salad to start. The scallops were fresh and excellent. The salad was fine and a very standard beet/goat cheese salad that can be found anywhere. We were served a grapefruit sorbet pallet cleanse before the mains arrived. For our main courses, my wife had the duck confit and I tried the bouillabaisse. The duck was a very large portion (even too much of a good thing) and was very good, and the bouillabaisse was also really good, with an excellent broth. We got dessert to go.

The service was generally good and the waiter was knowledgeable, making some good recommendations. There were a few other tables but the restaurant was largely empty through the course of our dinner--not a big surprise for a Monday night. I was just glad they weren't closed on Monday.

The atmosphere, however, was lacking. The restaurant looks as though it started at 505 Main Street and then expanded into the open space next door (to the left of the 505). We sat in that space. It was a sparely decorated dining room and seemed as though they just moved the previous tenant's racks or furniture or wall hangings out and put their tables in and started serving food. The floors were some of that old 1970s shiny reddish-brown faux stone that just looked tired.

Overall I thought it was a good experience though not great value. But I didn't fool myself into thinking that I was going to Oceanique seeking an economical dinner anyway. With two appetizers, two main courses, one dessert, two bottles of water and three total drinks between the two of us, the bill was $190 (before I added tip).

That said, if we move to Evanston I'll likely return there. The staff was friendly and the chef paid us a visit with the second "bite", which was a nice touch. Regarding the ambiance, I get it--it's expensive to build out a new space, but at those prices and if they do a brisk enough business, it shouldn't be too long before he renovates that dining room.

Cheers!

There's some sort of "deal" at Oceanique, the Northwestern Special or something like that. It comes in under whatever the reimbursement cost is for taking out faculty recruits who are visiting NU. You have to ask for the menu, though.

Kuni's on that block has excellent sushi.

We tended to walk up and back on Hinman, one block East, as it is much more scenic and has far fewer cars than Chicago ave. You can even walk over to the lake, walk along there, then back over - it's not far.

This is not Evanston but close enough and it's an oddball restaurant but the food will (pleasantly) surprise you. Charcoal Oven on Golf in Skokie. Not at all walkable and from a quick drive-by it will likely look abandoned. It's been there for decades and its easy to overlook. We used to frequent it about 15-20 years ago and then it fell off our radar. We started going back recently (the original owner died a few years ago after running the place since 1950-ish and his daughter and son-in-law have taken the helm) and have had some really great meals. Very old school inside, has no windows and is somewhat disorienting as a result. They have a Greek influenced menu that could have easily been printed in the 1950's or 60's (if you ignored the contemporary pricing). My wife pushes me in that direction now whenever she has a craving for rack of lamb - it's pretty fantastic.

spinynorman99 wrote:Charcoal Oven on Golf in Skokie.

I think it's seen way better days. My last few meals here have been very sub-par. It was actually kind of sad.

=R=

ronnie_suburban wrote:

spinynorman99 wrote:Charcoal Oven on Golf in Skokie.

I think it's seen way better days. My last few meals here have been very sub-par. It was actually kind of sad.

=R=

I'd chalk it up to inconsistency maybe. Just there with a group of 6 including a couple who had never eaten there. Every single dish was great and the first-timers were really impressed.

Also on that block, just a couple of doors over from Oceanique, is a food shop worth visiting:

Belgian Chocolatier Piron
509-A Main Street
Evanston, IL 60202
847-864-5504
www.belgchocpiron.com

They have some of the best artisanal Belgian chocolates you'll find anywhere in the country.

Hi- There is a Groupon special going on at Oceanique right now. You can get the tasting menu for $40. I know that Oceanique has a lot of fans here.

Hi- There is a Groupon special going on at Oceanique right now. You can get the tasting menu for $40. I know that Oceanique has a lot of fans here.

But Groupon? Not so much.