Anyone been to Tru lately?

(Hello, first thread I've ever made)

My birthday's coming up in a couple weeks and I've been thinking about going here. Just wondering if anyone here had been here recently and would kindly share their experience.

I was there recently, I can say the meal was excellent and the service is top notch. Is there anything specific you want to know. I was there for the foodbuzz event, so what I had was a selection of their best dishes from their menu. I think you will have a great experience either way. If you want, you can see pictures of our meal on my blog.

Tim Graham is one of the most talented chefs de cuisine Tramonto has had in that kitchen. There should be no worries. Chad Ellegood is also an excellent sommelier.

jlanevo8,

Great pictures!

Basically, I'm undecided whether I should do a tasting menu or the prix fixe. I'd really like to do the dessert tasting, so I'm not sure which way to go.

I've been lurking around here for several months after getting some advice earlier in the summer. I may not be the best person to ask, seeing as how I am from pretty far away from Chicago and I don't have too much experience at fine dining establishments, but I went to Tru a couple of months ago. In fact, I believe I was there 9 weeks ago today. My friends and I had the more modest version of the tasting menu along with the dessert tasting. We left completely and utterly stuffed, but it was (mostly) doable. I absolutely loved the chance to sample a wide variety of what the kitchen decides to put out. I wouldn't trade that for a more "traditional" app-main-dessert setup, although I'm sure Tru must find plenty of ways to make that their own as well. I suppose it really comes down to what kind of dining experience you prefer.

I haven't mastered the art of the description like many on here, but I wrote about my experience here:
viewtopic.php?f=14&t=24821&st=0&sk=t&sd=a&start=30

OutOfTownVisitor,

That is actually extremely helpful! I think I may try to follow that very model if I can get my less adventurous dining companions to go along with the tasting menu.

Do you (or does anyone else) know if the tasting menu is required for the entire table?

The very thought of a dessert tasting menu is getting me very excited for this dinner.

I'm very glad you found my post helpful! I don't personally know whether the whole table is required to order the tasting menu, but I will say that my two moderately-picky dining companions, one of whom orders chicken fingers whenever they are available, enjoyed the vast majority of dishes that made up the tasting menu.

Your dessert excitement is certainly warranted. As fabulous as the dinner proper was, the dessert was really the crowning glory for me. A few weeks after we got home from Chicago, one of my dining companions was excited to hear one of the Food Network stars describe one of the desserts we had experienced as the best dessert she had ever eaten. Enjoy your upcoming evening!

The wife and I had a very enjoyable anniversary dinner this past Saturday night at Tru. Ordinarily Tru wouldn't have been our first choice for a celebratory meal, but we had some gift certificates that were about to expire so we decided to give it a shot.

I've never been the biggest fan of Tru. The room is nice, but I've always found it a bit cold. I've always thought the food has been good enough, but have never really been blown away. The only thing I've been consistently impressed by has been the service. I have to say though, Saturday night's dinner was by far the most memorable meal I've had there. It almost seemed like new life had been breathed into the place following Rick Tramonto's departure.

We did the Chef's Collection. The menu, emailed to me by the restaurant after dinner, was as follows:

comté cheese gougère
▪▪▪
fennel panna cotta, bonito (amuse)
▪▪▪
white sturgeon “caviar”, avocado, hazelnut
▪▪▪
red ace, candystripe + golden beet collage, horseradish
▪▪▪
heirloom tomato salad, white tomato mousse
▪▪▪
braised duroc pork belly, illuminated vegetables (for me)
▪
langoustine, lobster quenelles, saffron potato, boulliabaisse (for the wife)
▪▪▪
farm ricotta + corn agnolotti, summer truffle consommé
▪▪▪
alaskan halibut, young carrot, ginger
▪▪▪
glazed veal ribeye, spring garlic, asparagus, wild mushroom
▪▪▪
a selection of cow, goat + sheep’s milk cheeses
▪▪▪
strawberry consommé , rhubarb foam
▪▪▪
grand marnier poaced peach, honey, vanilla ice cream
▪▪▪
mignardises

Honestly, there wasn't a single clunker among the courses.

High points were:
The "caviar" - Little balls of something infused with sturgeon (clearly a riff on El Bulli's fake caviar) and served in a tin on top of smooth avocado puree. Wonderful flavor combination

The pork belly - Everything pork belly should be, with the perfect balance of meat and fat. I could have drank a glass of the pork jus that the dish was finished with at the table.

The halibut - An absolutely perfectly poached piece of fish that was beautiful to look at as well as to eat.

This was a meal that I wish I had a camera for, because most of the presentations were just gorgeous.

Service was at it's usual high level.

I'm definitely putting Tru back on my list of special occasion restaurants and I wish them well under Anthony Martin's leadership.

I'm no Phil Vettel fan, but I'm in complete agreement with him on his review of Tru under Anthony Martin. Congratulations to the entire Tru team on a well deserved four stars.

Josh,

Like you I was never a great fan of Tramonto's Tru. How does the new Tru (under Chef Martin) compare, not with the old Tru, but with the top Chicago restaurants - L20, Avenues, Blackbird, Trotters (an Alinea or Schwa comparison might not be appropriate).

GAF wrote:Josh,

Like you I was never a great fan of Tramonto's Tru. How does the new Tru (under Chef Martin) compare, not with the old Tru, but with the top Chicago restaurants - L20, Avenues, Blackbird, Trotters (an Alinea or Schwa comparison might not be appropriate).

I would put it pretty much on par with Avenues and maybe half a step up from L2O (and clearly a tier above Blackbird). I'm not a Trotters fan, so I'll avoid that comparison.

I'm headed to Tru next month and really looking forward to it now.

Good news. I loved true when it opened and for a few years after. The space is great. The food got old under Tramanto; it's nice to have a reason to go back.

^^ what JeffB said. I'm stoked that it's gotten better, it really seemed to be coasting for several years.

The wife and I had another amazing anniversary dinner at Tru last night, probably even better than last year's meal. The wife declared it one of the best meals she's ever had and I'd be hard pressed to argue with her.

I won't do a blow by blow of what we ate but I would like to call out one course in particular, the "suspension" of foie gras. This was foie gras mousse which had been aerated giving it an impossibly light texture. Stuck into the foie were bits of pecan tuile. The foie was on top of some diced pineapple, and the plate was dotted with mango and little pools of aged balsamic. So you had this rich, but light, foie gras that had an incredible texture paired with the tartness of the pineapple and the saltiness of the tuile. Then it all gets balanced out by both the mango and the balsamic. Just a brilliant, complex, perfectly executed dish. It left me completely speechless at the table.

The rest of the meal was almost as perfect, with a menu that perfectly expressed late summer. Sweet corn paired with pork belly, perfectly cooked Alaskan halibut, a dessert of pressed melons.

There are some seriously brilliant things happening at Tru right now under Anthony Martin. This restaurant should be getting more attention.

Hoping by bumping this, it sparks some interest......Im a little confused why TRU gets no love

Gocubs, tell us why you love the new Tru. Is there a new style? New dishes? Great service. The more you tell us, the more enthusiasm there might be.

GAF wrote:Gocubs, tell us why you love the new Tru. Is there a new style? New dishes? Great service. The more you tell us, the more enthusiasm there might be.

For one thing, they seem to be morphing Tramonto's old dishes:

http://twitter.com/#!/grahamelliot/status/112231705598898176


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FmXKBKVN650

Nicer "plating" than what I serve at home, but will the caviar and blini taste differently?

GAF wrote:Nicer "plating" than what I serve at home, but will the caviar and blini taste differently?

in that case, puree it in a blender. It'll taste the same, right? I feel that more that 50% off the reason to go out to a restaurant is the atmosphere, service, and presentation

gocubs88 wrote:in that case, puree it in a blender. It'll taste the same, right? I feel that more that 50% off the reason to go out to a restaurant is the atmosphere, service, and presentation

A beluga shake. Had I thought of it, I would have made it for the picnic.

If the primary justification (over 50%) for the new Tru is atmosphere, service, and presentation, that will encourage some and discourage others. I always thought that the old Tru did just fine on those dimensions, it was the creativity of the dishes that I found lacked the brilliance of some of our best restaurants. But I haven't been to the new Tru, so my comments shouldn't reflect on what Chef Martin does in the kitchen. Thus, I am interested to hear about and see his most exciting dishes.

GAF wrote:

gocubs88 wrote:in that case, puree it in a blender. It'll taste the same, right? I feel that more that 50% off the reason to go out to a restaurant is the atmosphere, service, and presentation

A beluga shake. Had I thought of it, I would have made it for the picnic.

If the primary justification (over 50%) for the new Tru is atmosphere, service, and presentation, that will encourage some and discourage others. I always thought that the old Tru did just fine on those dimensions, it was the creativity of the dishes that I found lacked the brilliance of some of our best restaurants. But I haven't been to the new Tru, so my comments shouldn't reflect on what Chef Martin does in the kitchen. Thus, I am interested to hear about and see his most exciting dishes.

Nor have I, that is why I wanted to see if anyone had any opinions. I do like how Chef Martin has managed to stay out of the spotlight.....

Although I haven't been to TRU in years, I have starting hearing a lot of buzz about how good it is now. I had viewed it as a bit stale but those who have been recently have told me I'm very wrong.

When we were there last month the dining room was full for most of the night. People are certainly going, it's just not getting a lot of hype. I don't know, maybe they should start running a food truck.

I think the reason that I've ignored it is because when I check out the menu (I live in the neighborhood) it seems very similar to what they were doing in 2002. I had about four amazing meals there the first few years, but it just did not seem to progress. For the money, I want something new and interesting.

I made it to Tru a couple weeks ago for the first time in four years. There is a very good chance that under chef Martin that Tru has become the best restaurant in Chicago other than Alinea (maybe until Grace opens). I realize that may be a bold statement so I'd like to go back once more so I can say that more confidently. I would not be surprised if they earn another Michelin star next year (and am not sure why they didn't this year).

My wife and I didn't like our previous visit partially because the service seemed too stiff and orchestrated and the food seemed (over)contrived. Two servers filling our water glasses at the simultaneously did not add to my enjoyment of the meal, it took away from it because it reminded me of the fact that I was in such a formal environment (same with the 1..2..3..bs at the now closed Carlos'...BFD). Eager to make the experience more relaxing (perhaps similar to the service style at Ria), I was able to opt-out of the synchronized water dance (otherwise I was going to share only one water with my wife). We we off to a good start...now for some caviar.

Although we realized the caviar and blini would not taste differently that it would at GAF's, we've grown impatient waiting for an invite to his home for a caviar tasting. So we opted to try the caviar service at Tru. In the past, caviar service was an ~ounce of various caviar & roe selected by the restaurant served in a "starcase" (~$280). Since chef Martin has taken over, it is now served in small polished shells placed upon a large coral sculpture called "Image of the sea". Simply beautiful. A nice way for the chef to show that this Tru is not still manned by chef Graham (or Tramonto). Another difference in the caviar service now is that the selections are made by the guest. Pehaps this was chef Graham's idea once he started his new position at Paris Club. He probably thought "shit, if we can people to spend $275 on a bottle of Absolut, we've got to be able to sell this caviar for more". So now guests of Tru are presented with a caviar menu and asked to put together their "image of the sea". There are 7 different caviar ranging from wild golden iranian ossetra ($200/10g) to italian royal ossetra ($40/10g). There are also a few roe choices ($12/10g). You are able to order any or all of the selections in 10 or 25 gram increments. We put together an order with a few of the mid-range caviar and added a roe. It was comparable in quantity and cost of the staircase. This new format could be both exciting and dangerous to a caviar enthusiast. Although you are not pressured to, you could easily spend 4 figures just on this course. It is brilliant from a business perspective.

We found the caviar presentation to be beautiful. It is served with usual accompaniments of creme fraiche, egg, blini, etc (side note...caviar on potato chips is great though). In a place where you're not allowed to take off your jacket if you're hot, I wonder what their reaction would be if you pulled out a bag of Lay's when they presented the caviar. The California white sturgeon was one of the lower cost ($44/10g) options, but was our favorite. A more seasoned caviar enthusiast would probably disagree though.

After the caviar, we placed our order. The menu format is much more flexible than last time I visited where there was a set ~12 course menu. Guests now can choose from a 3 course (app, entree, dessert - $98), 6 course grand collection ($110) or the 9 course chef's tasting ($145). Guests need not order the same format, although they don't recommend a guest ordering the 3 course while their partner orders the 9 course. You also can supplement your menu by adding anything off any of the other menus (subject to availability). Still unsure if we'd like this visit more than our previous visit, we chose the three course with a supplemental course. (Side note: is there a worse feeling in a restaurant being part way through a long tasting menu that is bad?)

First we were presented with a snowman amuse. I can't recall what the snowman was made of (some white mousse IIRC), but I do remember the presentation was stunning. The snowman was 3 small white balls with herb arms. It was suspended over a small fishbowl of white powder that looked like snow. The server poured water into the bowl and the powder reacted which looked like a snowfall. It was the most involved amuse I'd seen.

I started with the foie torchon. It was amazing. The torchon was a long, rectangular strip and had a layer of poached pear gelee upon it. It was served with some kumquats and pecan. Because the foie and gelee were attached, each bite had the perfect amount of sweet and salty accompanying the foie flavor. The kumquats on the side added additional sweetness and the pecans added some texture. At this point I knew chef was not only creative, but could cook. Each additional dish we had was equally as tasty. I had the wagyu braised short rib with an apple and jalapeno puree as an entree. My wife started with an heirloom beet salad that had a little caviar and horseradish sauce. Her favorite was the truffled lobster with a romanesco and cauliflower puree. She opted for the supplemental truffle shavings on this dish. Lobster is very delicate and truffles are so bold, but it really worked.

I thoroughly enjoyed the evening and will be back soon. I know I gave GAF a jab earlier about the caviar at home vs. the restaurant. He has a point though. I'm glad we did it this time, however next time we'll enjoy the caviar at home (with some potato chips). I will try the chef's collection next time. I felt Tru was very overrated for a long time and LEYE has such a collection of restaurants that are so popular for reasons I can't explain. It is amusing to me that this restaurant is so under the radar now.

Tru has recently undergone some significant changes (perhaps a push towards achieving multiple Michelin stars). While I think that in the long run the changes will prove to be for the better, there are some growing pains to be worked out; tonight's dinner was still extremely good overall, but some tweaking is in order. Tru no longer offers an a la carte option but has two tasting menus (which they have dubbed the "experience"); a seven course menu (for $115 with optional $75 wine pairings) and a thirteen course (for $158 with optional $115 pairings). All of the items on the seven course menu are also on the thirteen course.

Also gone is the bread service, though small pieces of bread are served alongside three of the courses (on the thirteen course menu) similar to what Grace is doing. The mignardises cart is also no longer in play (there are still mignardises, but scaled down). The cheese cart is still available (as a supplement) as is the coral caviar service. One knock on Tru was that the menu tended to be slow to shift over but they are now planning on a seasonal menu that will completely change every three months. The ambiance is quite nice with large tables and ample spacing between them providing an intimate vibe; soft classical music plays in the background - perhaps the only knock is the decor is just a tad old fashioned.

Presentations were stunning for many of the courses and most of the food was really good; the biggest issue was portioning. We opted for the thirteen course menu and actually ended up with less food than when we dined at Tru last year and did the three course prix fixe plus cheese cart (as the portions were much larger then, there were several gifts from the chef between courses, we went through lots of bread and the mignardises were endless). On the current menu the first five courses are (while extremely tasty) not much larger than a typical amuse bouche.

Service was polished, warm and attentive and certainly among the best several venues in the city, but not quite at the very top (Grace and Boka would be my choices for best in Chicago in this category). Tru seemed very open to making adjustment to the menu for allergies and aversions (always a big plus for restaurants that are tasting menu centric). We opted for a shared beverage pairing and many of the wines were wonderful and there was a really nice variety (two sakes, a couple sparkling wines, a rose aged underground in cement, a hard cider, a couple of reds and whites and dessert wines). While they initially brought us one glass to share, upon request they provided smaller pours in our own glasses. With it being a Tuesday the dining room was not all that crowded (less than a third full) and as such pacing was likely a bit faster than normal, though we never felt rushed (the thirteen courses took about two and one half hours).

The amuse bouche consisted of a beet with ossetra caviar, horseradish and chervil:


The first course was titled Day Boat Scallop served with hon shimeki, cilantro, ginger and lime. I loved this course, but was tiny portion. Was similar to a ceviche. The serving piece glowed and drew attention as it was walked to the table (it reminded me presentation wise of a dish called Disco Shrimp served at a restaurant called Qsine):


This was followed by some scrumptious but miniscule ancho cured duck with an elegant presentation: The duck sat atop a dark stone and underneath was down feathers encased in glass. The duck was sliced extremely thin (like a carpaccio) and was sweet and sour flavored with tangerine and sour cherrys served with a mini salad with a vinaigrette:


Next up was peeky toe crab with lemon vanilla gelee and frosted parsley; also delicious but small. This had a pleasant granita like texture:


The sunchoke dish with sorrel and artic char roe was nice, but not quite up there with the prior dishes; I did really enjoy the roe as my favorite component of this dish which left a nice salty aftertaste:


The truffle royal with celery root was probably my least favorite of the savories. I love truffles but with this dish the flavor did not pop and the texture was not all that pleasant:


The best of the three "bread pairings" however was the served here; a fantastic miniature croissant with truffle butter; I would have loved a half dozen of these to-go for breakfast tomorrow:


This was followed by an amazing (but again small) light sunchoke soup with white truffle cream. The smell was so mesmerizing as the dish approached the table I could not wait to dig in (and it tasted as great as the aroma). The bread pairing here was quite nice as well; some Parmesan crisps:


The first of the protein courses was a squab; squab has really been growing on me and this was outstanding (though again so small that I was left craving more). The skin was nice and crispy and was coated with hazelnuts which really worked. There was a date sauce and carrots. Fantastic dish, but would have loved if it was at least double the size. There was a nice presentation too; a nest if first delivered to the table and moments later the serving piece with the squab is placed over the nest:


The fish course consisted of golden tilefish with shiitake mushrooms, yuzu and togarashi. Lots of Asian flavors on this dish and overall it was very good, but not great (though I have to admit the sauce was sufficiently tasty that I spooned out what was left):


The "entree" was authentic Japanese Kobe beef two ways (ribeye and short rib) was outstanding (though admittedly not quite on par with the Wagyu beef I recently enjoyed at Grace). This was served with a potato tuile and a wasabi mustard sauce. There was another beautiful presentation with the dish served on a split open log reminiscent of the salad course at Next Childhood (though minus the aromatics):


The cheese course was epoisses with an herb salad and a red wine pear. Nice transition to desserts:


Tru's famous cheese cart is still available for a supplement and is one of the best in Chicago:


My cheese plate; I chose a goat cheese coated in paprika (provided a nice mild kick), a sheep's milk cheese with thyme, juniper berries and other spices and an earthy soft cow's milk cheese and this was served with honey and some fruit poached in port (fruit bread was also available as well as several other cheeses to choose from):


The first dessert course was more of a palate cleanser; a cider sorbet served inside an apple with black walnuts; tasty but nothing memorable:


By far my favorite dessert was the vanilla parfait with orange confit; this tasted like a gourmet dreamsicle. One of the best courses of the night:


The final dessert (before a couple of bonus items) consisted of Valrhona chocolate variations; nice but just a tad too rich for me (but that is probably a personal preference rather than an issue with the dish):


After dessert a couple of bites of meringue shaped like Hershey Kisses sitting in a giant pine cone were delivered:


A filled chocolate truffle was brought with a smoky presentation courtesy of liquid nitrogen:


The mignardises were decent, but underwhelming compared to my prior visit to Tru and nowhere near as good as Sixteen (which I feel currently has the best mignardises):


We were delivered a personalized menu tableside and you are provided with some goodies on the way out. All in all a really enjoyable evening and although this is a bit of a transition period for Tru they really seem motivated to make the new format a success and an improvement over what was already stellar and one of Chicago's best venues. It was nice how receptive they were to feedback (we had a really nice chat with the dining room manager on the way out). I will definitely be back sooner rather than later and look forward to seeing them ascend to an even higher level.

Gonzo70 wrote:Tru has recently undergone some significant changes (perhaps a push towards achieving multiple Michelin stars).

. . . .

The best of the three "bread pairings" however was the served here; a fantastic miniature croissant with truffle butter; I would have loved a half dozen of these to-go for breakfast tomorrow:

I don't doubt the taste of this croissant and I had a fantastic meal at Tru last year, but you're certainly not going to achieve status with Michelin offering a croissant that looks like it was made in a Sara Lee bakery.

I'm not sure we can blame the restaurant entirely on the croissant

Anyway, surprised to hear that portions were an issue. I feel like I've had just about every permutation of Tru's menu and I've always left satisfied.

jesteinf wrote:I'm not sure we can blame the restaurant entirely on the croissant

Anyway, surprised to hear that portions were an issue. I feel like I've had just about every permutation of Tru's menu and I've always left satisfied.

I left pleasantly stuffed during my prior visit. I think in significantly increasing the number of courses they simply made a temporary error in decreasing portion sizes too dramatically (most of the courses were just 2-3 bites). I imagine it will be a pretty quick fix for them to tweak the meal so that it is satisfying even for those with hearty appetites.