Kennyz wrote:

Spring Carrot Soup of "Freshly Squeezed" Carrot Juice...

Tartare of Hawaiian "Yellowfin" Tuna,...

Gulf of Maine Scallops roasted with ... "Sustainable" Greens

Mediterranean "Greek Salad" of Mt. Vikos Feta, Kalamata Olives, Plum Tomatoes, Cucumbers, Torn Mint and Oregano, Warm Feta Cheese "Turnover"

Lake Ontario Spring "Smelts", Lightly Fried with Lemon, Parsley and "Salted" Capers

"First of the Season" Wild Copper River "Sockeye" Salmon...

I like Naha a lot, but it really is hard to defend this comical use of quotation marks. The above is a mere sampling of dozens of silly usages on the website menu. I know this isn't what's happening, but when I see quotation marks around the term freshly-squeezed, I picture a devious line cook winking as he pours from the Minute Maid container.

Ha Ha. I would think the same thing.

Having said that I think the intent is to make it easier for diners to verbally intimate the order. BTW, the food looks amazing! I would have no hesitation taking my NYC guests here.

sr1329 wrote:BTW, the food looks amazing! I would have no hesitation taking my NYC guests here.

I happen to love NaHa and the pictures do look great but you really should eat there first, then decide who you might take there.

=R=

ronnie_suburban wrote:

sr1329 wrote:BTW, the food looks amazing! I would have no hesitation taking my NYC guests here.

I happen to love NaHa and the pictures do look great but you really should eat there first, then decide who you might take there.

=R=

Going this week for sure.

Hurdler4eva wrote:Do you just ask your waiter for it if there's no mention of it on the regular menu? Did you need to specify that you wanted the tasting menu when you made your reservation?

The first time we had the tasting menu, I asked in advance and the host asked if we were still considering it when we arrived. This visit we just asked the waiter when we sat down. If we had the tasting menu in advance, I'd probably call first and see if we could request different dishes for each diner (not sure if that is hard to accommodate especially with more than 2 diners).

Naha said that they offer a six course tasting menu and that the people at a table can pick different menus.

Hard to believe that I started this thread four years ago. Naha continues to be a favorite. We went again last night.

We arrived a bit after 7:00 and found the place pretty packed. They also have outside tables which might be nice if the temps ever dip into the 70s. We've been there often enough now that we have a regular waiter, Jude. By luck or otherwise, he's been our waiter for probably the last four times we've gone. He's really a pleasure to work with. We've come to rely on his recommendations to the point where on a prior trip I simply asked him to make the choices for us.

We started with a glass of Henriot Brut. They had about four champagnes/sparkling wines by the glass. For food, my wife went with a small order of the soft shell crab main course. Very good. I went with scallops. Naha often has scallops on the menu and the preparation of course changes over time. This version was exceptional.

For the main course, she went with a pork belly with duck fat potatoes among other things. Beautiful. I went with a whitefish which was amazing. The fish itself was very light but the preparation was such that it paired very well with a Rioja. I can't describe it more without looking at the menu.

This is the rare place where I was compelled to use bread to soak up any sauce left on my plates. I simply could not let it go to waste. It was just exceptional.

Desserts were very good. Overall, the experience from start to finish was wonderful. Other than perhaps Alinea, this is our favorite Chicago place for dinner. To be that consisently good for so long is really amazing.

Hi -- Any recent experiences at Naha? Looking into a couple of restaurants for my parents and another couple (I have another thread going re: Les Nomades). In any event, would love any update on Naha's food... or would welcome suggestions for other nice, even elegant restaurants with great food -- but nothing in the more "over-the-top" (L20, Tru) category and nothing crazy glitzy, please. Thanks!

rehorn wrote:Hi -- Any recent experiences at Naha? Looking into a couple of restaurants for my parents and another couple (I have another thread going re: Les Nomades). In any event, would love any update on Naha's food... or would welcome suggestions for other nice, even elegant restaurants with great food -- but nothing in the more "over-the-top" (L20, Tru) category and nothing crazy glitzy, please. Thanks!

I had dinner at Naha one year ago and I thought it was thoroughly excellent and elegant in every way - food, service, etc. As for additional recommendations, in the city, I'd put only Alinea as "over the top", with the best places in the next tier including Naha as well as TRU and Acadia. For a nice, elegant restaurant with great food, any of these three - Naha, TRU, and Acadia - is a great choice. (So is Alinea but that's clearly not what you're looking for.) By way of comparison, I would say my dinners at these three were significantly better than dinners at Sixteen, Goosefoot, Next/Childhood, and Sprout, all of which were pretty good but not at quite the same high level as Naha, TRU, and Acadia. All of these dinners were within the past year or so.

And I'm not sure what kind of distinction you're trying to make with "over the top" and "crazy glitzy". Regarding differences among these six places (excluding Alinea), per-person prices including moderate alcohol and tax/tip were around $200 at TRU, Sixteen, and Next, and around $100 at Naha, Acadia, and Goosefoot (although Goosefoot was BYO so that figure does not include alcohol). Of these, only TRU requires business attire (jackets for gentlemen).

HTH

Thank you so much. This is extremely helpful. I'll also look into Acadia, but I think Naha will be a perfect fit. Thanks again.

Met a visiting attorney from FL there last summer. I rode my bike on a perfect end of summer night.
I can't believe I didn't post that meal, but it was stellar. The service was also fantastic, as usual.
It continues to be on of my favorite places for a special meal, but I love how accessible the place makes me feel. Quietly sophisticated, relaxed, and yet amazing without being garrish.

Precisely right - Naha is stellar yet so comfortable and accommodating.

In the last 6 months I've taken several out of town family members there and all have been very happy with the choice. One English cousin who is a fan of Heston Blumenthal's the Fat Duck decided he wanted to try a tasting menu in Chicago. I had already booked Naha and found out they'll do, a tasting from their regular menu. There were three of us and our excellent waiter managed to give us each different items and wine pairings that were well matched. Even my very fussy cousin came away impressed.

Michael Nahabedian also has an impressive wine cellar it's a thoughtful, well curated list. I was at the bar last winter waiting for a friend and met an Italian wine maker who was there to visit Michael, he was eating at the bar and said he loved eating at Naha when in Chicago, the care they put into their food reminded him of the thoughtfulness that Italians have for food. High praise indeed.

Miss restaurant week? Naha has often been one of my favorite venues during that time, and currently you can take advantage of that exceptional value off-season with their $22 prix fixe lunch. There's a healthy selection of appetizers, entrees, and desserts from the regular menu, and the lobster bisque, spinach canelloni, loup de mer, and pork shank risotto we shared all delivered the deep, variegated flavors we've learned to expect from that talented kitchen.

Gee...nothing in three years! I guess I've contributed to the delinquency and so although I am very late posting, I want to note--however overbriefly--this excellent meal. The Lovely Dining Companion, hawk-eyed coupon-clipper and otherwise excellent all-around deal sniffer-outer, found a Gilt City deal for dinner here. We were early for dinner one Wednesday evening—around 6 pm, if memory serves. There were a few tables occupied but we were quite early. Service was excellent and attentive without hovering. The terms of the Gilt City deal leave the choice of dishes to the house. App, entrée, and dessert plus wine pairings for each course for $106 for two. The LDC had very distinct preferences from the menu, however, and pushed to see if they would allow her to have her way. (In fairness, she doesn’t drink alcohol, so they were saving on her three glasses.) Our server could not have been more gracious, particularly since her choices happened to be about the most expensive items on the menu. Since her “request” made me a little uncomfortable—the server’s agreeableness and kindness notwithstanding—I chose to let the house choose my app and my entrée, no restrictions. Suffice to say, dinner was outstanding. We were both quite happy with our meals. Frankly, we’d visit more often were it not in large part for the priciness of the menu in general. (Pricing it out, we saved somewhere between 40% and 50% on our meal.) I would never have chosen the pork belly for myself, not out of a lack of interest but merely because so much on the menu is so temptingly attractive. Likewise, I love duck but am not a fan of lentils. We have absolutely nothing to complain about and every reason to sing their praises.

LDC had sea scallops with vanilla bean and citrus, pea shoots and wild Alaskan salmon and red prawns, white beech mushrooms. I had crisp pork belly and fregola sarda (a Sardinian cousin to couscous) and aged Moulard duck breast with braised Beluga lentils. The Naha menu continues to be hilarious, both for its inclusion of virtually every item that ever came near the dish as well as its overuse of italics and quotation marks. Thus, our desserts: “Bittersweet Chocolate Semifreddo and Chocolate Bread Pudding, Salted Caramel Cream, Tahini and Sesame Seed Arabasque” and “‘Sbrisolona’ Ricotta Cake, Olive Oil Ice Cream, Sweet Polenta, Lemoncello and Marcona Almonds.” But you know, who cares? It’s about the atmosphere, the service, and the food. And there we had no quibbles at all.



Sea scallops


Salmon


Pork belly


Duck breast


Chocolate semifreddo etc.


Ricotta cake etc.

Naha leaving its 18-year home

http://www.chicagotribune.com/dining/ct ... y,amp.html