This is a pretty happening place. It's got a hipness to it that feels, from my perspective, very Brooklyn. Not that any of this really matters, but when one thinks of comparable establishments around Chicago, Nightwood has a cool, youthful energy. If you're into that kind of thing, it's a plus. The space is generally quite attractive too, but it feels a bit too new. That will surely change over time, as the bar, floors, and ceiling garner a bit of worn-in patina.
I thought the food was quite tasty across the board. I liked this place, quite a bit in fact. Before getting into specifics, it did feel just a little too safe. This isn't a slight against the restaurant--the place was packed last night and seemed to be putting out consistent food at a good clip--but I'd want to see a couple more adventurous dishes on the menu. A chicken liver pate and matsutake-foie dish were about as out-there as the menu ventured.
There will probably be pictures posted by others for those interested, but I actually appreciated what I considered a pretty wide breadth of cooking demonstrated by the kitchen. The appetizers were nicely composed, a bit precious even given my preconceptions of the restaurant's cuisine. The mains were more what I expected. Roasted and grilled proteins with simple but generally thoughtfully chosen and prepared accompaniments. More rustic than the starters to be sure.
Among starters we selected the goat cheese gnocchi, short rib pierogies, and matsutake-foie dishes. My biggest issue among these dishes were that the pierogies weren't really pierogies at all. They were more like ravioli with a vaguely Eastern European flavor profile. Semantics aside, I thought it was a pretty tasty dish. Nothing groundbreaking though. The gnocchi were sufficiently delicate, yet the small portion managed to be quite rich. I would've liked more goat cheesy tang, however. The matsutake-foie dish was quite interesting. I'm a big fan of matsutakes; love the piney flavor and meaty texture. These were solid specimens, served with a foie gras hash. I think the foie should've been cut in larger pieces to better contrast the unctuous liver and chewy mushroom. This dish also seemed to be seasoned in some way with dashi or some kind of dried fish product. Maybe I'm going crazy, but I couldn't shake that impression. Was kind of weird at first, but I grew to appreciate the somewhat (bastardized) Japanese flavor profile.
The mains included the pork loin with brussels sprouts, grilled trout with braised cabbage, Gunthorp duck breast with celery root and baked apples, and the hamburger. All of these dishes were solid, tasty, satisfying, but the only one that I was really obsessed with was the pork. I'm willing to concede that the trout was perhaps the better dish--very nicely seasoned, great hint of acid, unassuming but delicious braised green cabbage--but the pork resonated with me. The cut served is what, on a cow, would be called the standing rib roast. The deckle/cap was fully intact and I totally dug this. For the vast majority of the dining public this cap would be much, much too fatty. We're not talking marbling here, more large pockets of fat. I ate it up. Literally. I love pork fat, this was delicious. The brussels sprouts, while not revolutionary, brought enough bitterness to offset all the fat.
Both the duck and hamburger were competently prepared, but I found them to be a half-step down from the other mains. We had some discussion over the seasoning level of the food, and generally came to the consensus that it was quite light. This didn't really bother me in any of the dishes, but was most apparent in the burger. It was very nicely cooked, very juicy, but lacked a bit of punch in the flavor department. Whatever horseradish condiment they use seemed to overpower the meat in some bites. The fries, however, were excellent. I'd definitely order the burger again for the $13 tariff.
As is often the case in restaurants like this the desserts were a bit uninspiring. They were fine, but I expected more, especially after seeing two Pacojets just chilling in the back of the kitchen. That's some pretty serious investment in the pastry department, but both the gelato and sorbet we tried were a bit icy, and I felt they lacked some punch in the flavor department. I preferred the caramel over the concorde grape. The cookie plate was competent, but I'm not a huge cookie guy, so I just kind of nibbled without much thought. My favorite dessert was the pear tarte tatin--it was competently executed--but in the future I'd probably skip dessert altogether. Or drink some bourbon. Probably that.
Our server was a cool young lady. Pretty easy going in general and cool about our picture taking and all that. We were comped some sparkling wine before dessert. Nice touch, can't complain.
Again, this is a cool place. It didn't change my life by any means, but I get the buzz. It's fashionable, tasty, in a trendy neighborhood. Made for a fun night out.