Bacchanalia: Little to Celebrate

During my recent lunch at Casa de Samuel, I remarked to pdaane how I rarely post negative reviews or say anything particularly bad about restaurants that I don't like unless I'm specifically asked "What do you think?". I am generally hard-pressed to sit down and write about a place that I didn't enjoy. These places inspire nothing more than blank thoughts and general malaise.

"The opposite of love is not hate, it's indifference"
--Elie Wiesel

Little did I know that a few hours after discussing this that I would have a meal which inspired a deeper level of dislike. Perhaps it is due to the fact that I had high expectations, but my dinner at Bacchanalia disappointed me just enough to write about it. What follows is my latest post from eatchicago.net.

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Since I first visited Bruna's, it has been my "go-to" place for simple, fresh, Italian/Italian-American cuisine. I've been there a couple times with guests and I've sent quite a few people there with excellent results every time. The neighborhood is a bit of a throwback, and has always left me wondering about the other restaurants on the block: Ignotz, La Fontanella, and Bacchanalia. If Bruna's delivers such fresh, delicious food, then surely the other restaurants on the block must be in the same league. They have to compete, don't they?

During a recent trip down to the Heart of Italy, four of us turned our back on Bruna's for the evening and decided to give Bacchanalia a try. I am disappointed that we did. The service was just fine, the atmosphere was full and festive, but the food just didn't cut it. Bacchanalia is not in Bruna's league by a long shot.

I was able to try a couple appetizers and three different entrees, thanks to my wandering fork. The appetizers included an unremarkable artichoke and some stuffed mushrooms. The mushrooms were as tough as a well-done steak and stuffed with a mushroom-mush that wasn't particularly palatable. I cook with mushrooms often, and I really have no idea how you turn a white button mushroom so tough that it requires sawing with a knife to cut it. I suspect the process involves cooking, cooling, and reheating.

For an entree, I chose one of the daily specials: cannelloni stuffed with porcini, portabella, and asparagus. I envisioned a fresh mixture of diced and minced mushrooms and asparagus. What I received was the cannelloni filled with the same unpleasant mush from the stuffed mushrooms and a few limp spears of asparagus. Finally, the entire concoction was covered in way too much cheese.

I also tasted the chicken vesuvio which was basically just dry chicken covered in garlic. It lacked the blending and depth of a variety of flavors that you find in a good vesuvio. There were quite a few "vesuvio" items on the menu (including one of the daily specials), and I imagined a big tub of "vesuvio-sauce" in the back that gets slapped on whatever meat is around.

We also had a plate of gnocchi for the table to share. As far as I'm concerned, even the best gnocchi I've ever tasted was just OK, and not much more than a pillowy vehicle for sauce (I've never understood the appeal). These particular gnocchi were fine, smothered in a pretty bland vodka sauce, and elicited palpable indifference from my taste buds.

I wanted to like Bacchanalia. I wanted them to echo the qualities that Bruna's has, but with their own flavor and flare. I wanted to taste homemade flavors, made with pride, just like at Bruna's. What I tasted was food that seemed like it was selected and thrown together without care or interest. Perhaps I caught it on a bad night or simply ordered wrong, but I don't think I'll be going back.

Bacchanalia Ristorante
2413 S. Oakley Ave.
773-254-6555
Cash only

Bruna's Ristorante
2424 S Oakley Ave
773-254-5550

Best,
Michael / EC

Quite unfortunate, as I've always had good experiences at Bacchanalia. That being said, my last visit was about 2 years ago. I don't make it down to that stretch of oakley often.

I was at Bruna's more recently, though, maybe 6 months ago, and it was fine, but not great. Some of the dishes were wonderfully executed, others were just blah, and my mom's chicken ravioli was inedible. Dry and flavorless and with a sauce that tasted solely of cream. Incredibly disappointing. The dishes ran the whole spectrum in quality, and because of that I'm not likely to return soon.

It sounds like Bacchanalia is having trouble in the kitchen. Very sad.

"my mom's chicken ravioli was inedible"

Chicken ravioli w/ cream sauce? Sounds like Olive Garden. I'm concerned that that even had such a thing on the menu at Bruna's, well-executed or not. That the sauce was that bad is especially troubling, as Bruna's has had some of the best versions of creamy sauces (Alfredo especially) that I usually despise.

It's been several months for me. Any recent visits out there?

PS, I don't blame anyone for ordering something that's on the menu. If it's there, the chef should make an effort.

JeffB wrote:Chicken ravioli w/ cream sauce? Sounds like Olive Garden. I'm concerned that that even had such a thing on the menu at Bruna's, well-executed or not. That the sauce was that bad is especially troubling, as Bruna's has had some of the best versions of creamy sauces (Alfredo especially) that I usually despise.
PS, I don't blame anyone for ordering something that's on the menu. If it's there, the chef should make an effort.

Yeah, it was one of the chef's specials. Really horrible. She tried to "forget" the leftovers they kindly brought her, but they caught up to her before she got out the door. She then "forgot" them in the trash can out front.

I must reiterate, though, that some of the food was quite good.

I was at Bruna's a couple months ago, but unfortunately I have nothing more recent to report.

Actually, I'm more interested in EC's opinion that gnocci is merely "a pillowy vehicle for sauce." Couldn't something similar be said of most pasta in general (excluding stuffed varieties, that is)? That its just a starchy vehicle for sauce? If not, I'm curious what EC and others would argue to differentiate the two.

That said, Bruna's gnocci is some of the best in the city -- if you go for that kind of thing.

hot tamale wrote:Actually, I'm more interested in EC's opinion that gnocci is merely "a pillowy vehicle for sauce." Couldn't something similar be said of most pasta in general (excluding stuffed varieties, that is)?

I suppose this is a matter of taste. I enjoy the taste of wheat-based pasta in all shapes: noodles, tubes, whatever. I enjoy simple buttered noodles with salt and pepper just as much as I enjoy a carbonara.

Personally, I don't have a very high appreciation for the taste, texture, or flavor of gnocchi. It's not that I dislike the dish in general, it's just that I don't prefer it. I've never had a gnocchi (sauced or not), that made me say, "More, please!". When they're bad they're gluey, chewy, or sticky. When they're good, they're, as I said, just OK, by my taste. I just don't get it.

My intention was not in any way to disparage anyone else's taste.

Best,
Michael / EC

JeffB wrote:Chicken ravioli w/ cream sauce?

I think that you're thinking of the Bologna Alfredo.

So if the chicken ravioli in cream sauce seemed like an Olive Garden dish, and it was on the menu as a special, and if it kind of blew, doesn't that all suggest the depressing prospect that Bruna's is seeking to offer the kind of dish that customers are asking for because they've had it at Olive Garden?

Mike G wrote:So if the chicken ravioli in cream sauce seemed like an Olive Garden dish, and it was on the menu as a special, and if it kind of blew, doesn't that all suggest the depressing prospect that Bruna's is seeking to offer the kind of dish that customers are asking for because they've had it at Olive Garden?

Then rather than produce quotidian crap that's "[d]ry and flavorless and with a sauce that tasted solely of cream," here's a chance for them to show Olive Garden what for, and turn that oddball dish into something truly special. Instead, they "blew it", which of course just "sucks." What a lost opportunity to train or re-train palettes.

eatchicago wrote:... how I rarely post negative reviews or say anything particularly bad about restaurants that I don't like unless I'm specifically asked "What do you think?". I am generally hard-pressed to sit down and write about a place that I didn't enjoy. These places inspire nothing more than blank thoughts and general malaise.
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Little did I know that a few hours after discussing this that I would have a meal which inspired a deeper level of dislike. Perhaps it is due to the fact that I had high expectations, but my dinner at Bacchanalia disappointed me just enough to write about it.

I assume your lunch conversation was perhaps influenced by my post of the Waukegan location of the Casa de Samuel chain. I cannot just stay mum and allow people to think they will get the same exact experience the original poster wrote about. Different location, different management and different crew are important variables. I suspect strongly the experience you had at the mothership Saturday was far different than what I encountered in Waukegan. I probably will enjoy my meal at the mothership, whenever time allows. As a parallel example, Tacos el Norte in the northern suburbs is famously erratic from location to location. I patronize the Waukegan and Highwood branches with no complaints. I have heard disappointing reports of some of the other locations.

Experiences in restaurants can vary from day to day. If you walk in with great expectations and are presented a disapointing meal, then do you need to spend your money, time and body again just to prove it was an anomaly? If others have visited, then their posts will provide ample information whether or not a second visit is warranted.

Too bad there isn't a sliding scale payment offered by restaurants:
- We're off our game today, so we discount your meal by 25%.
- We are fulfilling your checklist of expectations, so you pay 100%.
- Ding, ding, ding we are one exceptional crew working like greased lightening, so you pay a 25% premium for the honor of sitting in our chair.

JeffB wrote:I don't blame anyone for ordering something that's on the menu. If it's there, the chef should make an effort.

If it is on the menu, there should be a best effort each and every time. Agreed.

An aside: There is a restaurant which is going through a menu change. Some menu options offered will not always be available due to ingredient availability. I suggested removing those sporadically available items from the menu completely and treat them as specials of the day. I think it is off-putting to request a menu item and be declined. It just has the potential of being a source of ill-will rather than an honest assessment of the dishes availability.

Cathy2 wrote:

eatchicago wrote:... how I rarely post negative reviews or say anything particularly bad about restaurants that I don't like unless I'm specifically asked "What do you think?". I am generally hard-pressed to sit down and write about a place that I didn't enjoy. These places inspire nothing more than blank thoughts and general malaise.
...
Little did I know that a few hours after discussing this that I would have a meal which inspired a deeper level of dislike. Perhaps it is due to the fact that I had high expectations, but my dinner at Bacchanalia disappointed me just enough to write about it.

I assume your lunch conversation was perhaps influenced by my post of the Waukegan location of the Casa de Samuel chain. I cannot just stay mum and allow people to think they will get the same exact experience the original poster wrote about.

Actually, no, Cathy. I think the topic came up with regards to a different thread entirely (I'll keep mum on that so as not to flame-bait).

I should also be clear that I wasn't crticising others for making their opinions known, I was just discussing my own habits / personality / whatever. I certainly have no expectation that people should ever edit themselves if they feel the need to post a negative experience. I was glad that you did share your feelings about CdS. It stimulated some interesting discussion.

Best,
Michael / EC

I'm going to disagree with the title of this thread and post about the great dinner I had last night at Bacchanlia.

A friend and I were heading toward Chinatown last night when he mentioned Bacchanalia, which both of us have previously enjoyed. On the spur of the moment, we decided to skip Chinatown and head to Bacchanalia instead. We got there at about 7:30 on a Saturday. There was one table free in the front (bar) area, but we opted to wait about 15 minutes until a table opened up in the main (back) dining room. Although Bacchanalia has a very neighborhoody feel (where everyone seems to know everyone else), the people in the Heart of Italy neighborhood are friendly, and everyone smiles and says hello.

We started with an order of fried calamari, which was a heaping platter (more suitable as a starter for 4 diners rather than the 2 of us). We ate more than we should have, and there was plenty left over. Very good, crispy and not a hint of an oil...not greasy at all.

My friend had the veal scallopini with a side order of sauteed spinach. He only gave me a bite of his veal--it was excellent--and cleaned his plate. I helped a little with the spinach, which was delicious, garlicy, and probably cooked with a good serving of butter and/or olive oil, though by no means was it greasy.

Before we even walked in the door of Bacchanalia, I knew what I was ordering: the lobster ravioli with vodka sauce. I've had this before, and it's amazing. First, the term "ravioli" is probably misleading. Picture a tortelli on steroid. Picture the biggest wonton you've eaten, then double or triple the size. There are six to a serving (at about $16), and these things are huge. (I cut each one into six bites.) I ate two last night for dinner, two for lunch today and two for dinner tonight. I'd eat these every day if I could. (At the risk of blasphemy, I think they're almost even better reheated in the microwave. Zapping them for about 3 minutes intensifies the lobster flavor and makes the pasta dough just a little extra chewy in a good way.) These are generously filled with a lobster (and ricotta?), and the vodka sauce is terrific. I've often had vodka sauces that were very smooth, but this has some tomatoey chunks and a hint of something green--maybe chopped parsley?

I regret to report that there was one negative point to our meal. We were stuffed, so we got an order of tiramisu to go. I don't know if I'd had it before, but my friend had, and raved about it. An hour later, once we'd gotten back to my house, we dug into it. Two bites each and we threw it away. Bacchanalia makes their tiramisu differently than a lot of places. Most recipes seem to simply sprinkle cocoa powder over the top. Theirs has a chocolate layer on top that's hard to describe. I think we got an old piece because the chocolate almost seemed gummy (imagine an old pudding or soggy icing that stretches a little as you take a bite). Ugh. I took a second bite without the chocolate, and it was blah. There wasn't enough of the rum-soaked ladyfingers and mascapone goodness that you look for.

So there's my Bacchanalia experience. I love this place, and every time I go there (not frequently enough...less than once a year) I ask myself, "Why don't I go here more often?" Quite simply, it rocks.