Portsmith - Seafood in River North

Portsmith is a lovely seafood-focused restaurant in the new Dana Hotel. We ate dinner there with friends on Saturday and thought it was very good - perhaps not as unusual and creative as some other new places, but everything there was tasty and properly prepared. Better yet, everything went very smoothly, thereby enabling us to enjoy our friends' company. It was a wonderful evening and a thoroughly enjoyable experience. Thanks, Portsmith!

We arrived at 5:30 when the restaurant was empty. The contemporary space is gorgeous, and full of light from the 20+ feet tall windows facing the street.

Since we were sharing the appetizers, they brought them one or two at a time, which was perfect. Our server, Amber, was very helpful. The pacing was perfect as well - not so fast as to make us feel rushed, and not so slow as to make us feel neglected. I think we hit dessert around 7:30 or so, but stayed another hour past that point, just socializing. The restaurant was not quite full (maybe three fourths full by that point) so they didn't need the table for anyone waiting. The noise level at that point was lively but still conversation-friendly.

AMUSE BOUCHE - Sweet Onion Soup

ROLLS - This was the only off-kilter note of the entire meal. Two rolls for four people???

FRIED OYSTER - Squid Ink Panko, Oyster Basil Aioli, Trout Roe - I liked the fact that these are priced individually, so we didn't have to worry about how to split an odd number of them among those who were eating them. As you can see in the photo, the oysters were served with the shells placed on top of piles of decorative salt.

KING CRAB BUN - Brown Butter, Herbed Mayonnaise

CRISPY OCTOPUS - Kalamansi Mayonnaise, Sweet Chili Jam

SCALLOP RUMAKI - Georges Banks Scallops, Nuoc Chom Pork Belly, Green Papaya, Lemongrass Carrot Puree, Ginger Confit - This was a very good dish, but I would rename it after the pork belly, since there was way more pork belly than scallop to it. Also, this was one of the meatiest pieces of pork belly I've ever had, with lots of meat and only a bit of easily-trimmable fat.

Next were the entrees.

AHI TUNA AND SEARED FOIE GRAS - Luxardo Bordelaise

YELLOWTAIL SNAPPER - XO Sauce, Thai Basil, Baby Shiitake Mushrooms

SEAFOOD AND SHELLS - Shrimp, Scallops, Mussels, Clams, Squid, White Wine Reduction - The shells are small black (squid ink) pasta shells, not visible in the photo.

"1987" HADDOCK - Black Truffle Sauce - This was a special for James Beard Week.

We ordered two of the sharable vegetable dishes from the "Middle of the Table" section of the menu.

BROCCOLI RABE STIR-FRIED WITH CHILI JAM

WILD MUSHROOM PIE - This was my favorite dish in the entire meal. Between the sauce and the filling, there was plenty of mushroom flavor, and I loved the slightly-sweet brioche crust


And for dessert...

HAZELNUT MOUSSE CAKE - Almond Cake, Hazelnut Crunch, Hazelnut Mousse, Chocolate Glaze, Cocoa Nib Ice Cream

STRAWBERRY "SHORTCAKE" CREME BRULEE - Basil Compressed Strawberries, Strawberry Almond Rocks, Pink Peppercorn Shortbread Cookie, Strawberry Basil Sorbet

MIGNARDISES


660 N State St
Chicago, IL 60654
(312) 202-6050

Excellent review and great pictures. But:

Also, this was one of the meatiest pieces of pork belly I've ever had, with lots of meat and only a bit of easily-trimmable fat.

"easily-trimmable fat"