This is exactly the kind of mise-en-scène that keeps some cocktail-lovers from trying The Drawing Room:

It’s Tuesday, just after 6:00pm, on the block of Rush St. between Walton and Oak, and I am, for a change, early for an event--on this day, LTH Happy Hour. The street is abuzz with people leaving work, shopping, going to dinner. Bemused and content, I watch my surroundings. I think I’m standing well out of the way of foot traffic, leaning against a street post, practically at the curb until, that is, I’m approached by two men probably in their late 20s, one of whom asks me with a thick Italian accent if I could...move.

I might have been miffed, but something about the man and his request seem kindly apologetic and purposeful, so I smile and oblige. Then, like twin magicians, each of the two men suddenly appears with an iPhone, poised to photograph what I was blocking in my former spot. The subject of their gaze: a shimmering orange Lamborghini parked directly in front of The Drawing Room.

Over the next ten minutes, I watch as passersby gawk at and and take pictures of the car. One person even explains to me with zeal what is special about this Lamborghini (something about it being very light). All the while, the car’s driver and passenger coolly ignore the onlookers and, I suspect, revel in the attention. First, I’m not even sure they’re in a legal parking space; the Lamborghini is somehow the only car at that bustling hour on that prime city block. Driver and passenger also don’t seem to have anywhere to go. They’re dressed up but apparently without agenda. Maybe with an lightweight, orange Lamborghini, that would be my posture, too.

Finally, the driver starts the engine, revvs it perhaps four times more than necessary, and then turns it off. The driver, who looks like Karl Lagerfeld if he were dressed by Tom Ford, and the passenger, who looks like Tom Ford if dressed by Tom Ford, then exit the vehicle and vanish into the evening bustle.

My happy hour companions arrive, and we descend into The Drawing Room.

-----

Just down a flight of stairs, but Tuesday happy hour at the Drawing Room felt a universe removed from Rust St. and the orange Lamborghini. The space was how I’ve always experienced it: hushed but comfortable. With five people, we had respectable ordering power and tried, I think, nine different cocktails in addition to some gin and beer. These are the cocktails I remember:

TDR Manhattan
Templeton, Punt e Mes, aromatic bitters, housemade maraschino

Gloomlifter
Finian’s, Pierre Ferrand Ambre, raspberries, fresh lemon sour

The Twelve-Fifteen
Old Overholt, Navan Vanilla, maple syrup, fresh ginger, orange bitters

The Bukowski
Jepson’s Malört, Drambuie, honey syrup, lemon, basil

Lost Generation
RIGHT, Farigoule, Chartreuse-thyme smoke, lavender

Grand Theft Auto
Small’s, Cynar, Carpano Antica, Kübler, cherry bitters

To the Moon
Olmeca Blanco, Luxardo Maraschino, Aperol, grapefruit

Unfortunately, it was an off night for drinks at The Drawing Room. We were told they were understaffed when we requested cart service, which I didn’t mind, especially with a half-empty room and the bar and Christiana in easy view. I also didn’t mind when it became apparent that the bar was understocked. Our server kindly explained that there was no dill for the In the Pickle (also Hendrik’s, St. Germain, Velvet Falernum, cucumber) that AnotherMike ordered in the first round. I don’t think they should have offered to make the cocktail without the dill, but I appreciated the explanation and the fact that an alternative was offered.

We got a few duds. Poor, boudreaulicious. Her TDR Manhattan was extremely watery and served, without warning, without a cherry. I joked that we should have gone to Hot Chocolate, where last May I was served a Manhattan with plenty of crushed ice and five cherries. My To the Moon looked like candy and was overwhelmed by grapefruit.



The Grand Theft Auto, however, was excellent and my favorite drink of the night--bitter, medicinal and a deep, violet-burgundy hue. I also really enjoyed the Twelve-Fifteen, which was very whiskey-forward and not sweet. I have a Bukowski on almost every visit to The Drawing Room; by way of a taste, Tuesday was no exception. This cocktail is the way to love Malört. I also enjoyed our amuse, but maybe someone else can fill in the details. I remember El Dorado 5 yr., Fernet Branca, simple syrup...

The food, on our visit, was very good. Their “steak frites” included a very pristine beef tartare and piping hot blocks of potatoes served over lightly truffled mayo.





The Ox Melt was also delicious with red onion marmalade and aged cheddar, but what I loved most was the beet and shiitake relish. I liked the fine cut of the relish and how the mushroom cut the sweetness of the beets.





The Bacon2 was enjoyable, but it’s become redundant for me.

Despite the misses on Tuesday, I stand by The Drawing Room as a relaxed place for excellent cocktails and food. It also makes a fine prelude to a meal at Balsan.

Thanks to Sharon for arranging the evening for us. It was my first visit to the Drawing Room and I have to say, I have mixed emotions.

The good: the room is truly a sanctuary in a sea of pretension and yahoos. I rarely find myself in the Viagra triangle these days or the Gold Coast in general and there is no question that if I was planning to meet anyone in that neck of the woods, The Drawing Room is a better option than anything else in the area, other than, perhaps, the bar at the Four Seasons. I also enjoyed the food very much--my poor empty cherry skewer was put to good use spearing those perfectly puffed taters. The steak tartare was a great texture--rough chopped v. pureed smooth--and well-seasoned.

The not-so-good: Service was perky but inattentive. Asked for a recommendation between a few drinks and was steered towards the Manhattan. Took a while to flag our server gal down after the drinks were delivered and I realized that mine wasn't what I was expecting. Serving a watered down $12 Manhattan garnished with an empty skewer and informing the orderer only after inquiry that they were out of one of the key elements of the drink was kind of irritating--especially because she clearly knew about it--as soon as I asked her about it, she admitted they were out of the cherries. Did they think I wouldn't notice, so long as the skewer was there? After a brief but kind of annoying discussion (didn't really think there was much to discuss), she offered to comp the drink. Weird... Can't remember what the second drink was --also by her recommendation--thought it was pretty flat and one dimensional. Oh well. The cocktail with the malort and mint was fantastic--definitely what I will go with next time.

The great: the company as always! And the 5 follow up events that I think we planned in the short time we were there. Looking forward to wherever we end up next ladies and gent--I'll just know it's BYOC

Just received an e-mail saying that Le Passage is now closed. Not sure what this means -- if anything -- for The Drawing Room.

=R=

ronnie_suburban wrote:Just received an e-mail saying that Le Passage is now closed. Not sure what this means -- if anything -- for The Drawing Room.

=R=

A little more info here.

From the information I've gathered so far, along with the up thread assumption of TDR dropping the Le Passage from it's name, I don't think this means anything; the same ownership group is reopening in the LeP space this month.

SSDD

From The Drawing Room's Facebook page via their Twitter feed:

Today we bid a fond farewell to our neighbors in the nightclub. We have a ton of memories and ton of fun that we still can't quite remember! Le Passage we'll miss you! Drawing Room is still open and serving up drinks tonight! Come see us.

SSDD

headcase wrote:From The Drawing Room's Facebook page via their Twitter feed:

Today we bid a fond farewell to our neighbors in the nightclub. We have a ton of memories and ton of fun that we still can't quite remember! Le Passage we'll miss you! Drawing Room is still open and serving up drinks tonight! Come see us.

SSDD

Yeah, I just received an e-mail from them that basically said the same thing.

=R=

Disappointing experience at The Drawing Room last weekend. We arrived to find out the entire bar staff (!) had gone to New Orleans for Tales of the Cocktails awards. Delighted they got to go (a good friend of mine from NY won an award) but it caused a real problem in the cocktails. I wanted to order a gin and tonic with their homemade tonic syrup (which was on their menu that night) only to be told there was none, and all they could serve was generic tonic they get from the hotel. Knowing it can be made well in advance, I couldn't imagine why they didn't have any on hand for the substitute staff (the staff from a bar in St Louis came and made the drinks). Then I ordered an Old Raj martini. The server brought my martini and started to leave. It was only when I politely asked to speak to the manager that she "remembered" to mention they did not have Old Raj so they took the liberty of substituting North Shore gin.

What bar (or restaurant) allows its entire staff to go away, en masse, creating a lesser experience (at least in my view and take, having been there) without many of the standard components found on their own menu they gave me that night? Sure, many (even most) might leave but the entire team?

Food was mediocre, too.

IMHO this place is not close to the standards of other Chicago places such as Sable, Violet Hour, etc..

DutchMuse wrote:Disappointing experience at The Drawing Room last weekend. We arrived to find out the entire bar staff (!) had gone to New Orleans for Tales of the Cocktails awards. Delighted they got to go (a good friend of mine from NY won an award) but it caused a real problem in the cocktails. I wanted to order a gin and tonic with their homemade tonic syrup (which was on their menu that night) only to be told there was none, and all they could serve was generic tonic they get from the hotel. Knowing it can be made well in advance, I couldn't imagine why they didn't have any on hand for the substitute staff (the staff from a bar in St Louis came and made the drinks). Then I ordered an Old Raj martini. The server brought my martini and started to leave. It was only when I politely asked to speak to the manager that she "remembered" to mention they did not have Old Raj so they took the liberty of substituting North Shore gin.

What bar (or restaurant) allows its entire staff to go away, en masse, creating a lesser experience (at least in my view and take, having been there) without many of the standard components found on their own menu they gave me that night? Sure, many (even most) might leave but the entire team?

Food was mediocre, too.

IMHO this place is not close to the standards of other Chicago places such as Sable, Violet Hour, etc..

Tales (more a bar-industry convention than anything else) does seem to create a void in the local bar scene each July. I wouldn't hold it against The Drawing Room, though. Several local bars were in the same boat. It can definitely be frustrating trying to get a quality cocktail during the time that Tales takes place. And of course, none of this has anything to do with the food you didn't care for of the fact that a substitution was made without letting you know in advance. That in particular does seem entirely contrary to the elevated cockail culture that The Drawng Room aims to advance.

This year, Bar DeVille made a point of letting it be known that they'd be fully staffed during Tales. Similarly, Benjamin Schiller of Boka Group was in town and manning the bar during Tales.

=R=

All good points. Agreed on all fronts.

Had a really nice meal here last week. Food was simple but refreshing, cocktails complex but not overwhelming. I guess Cristiana, who Charles has been "mentoring" for five years (scare quotes just because I'm not sure working with is the same as mentoring, necessarily), is now head bartender, and supposedly new drinks will start to find their way to the menu imminently.

I, like many, hate the gauche nouveau (and I guess just plane vieux?) riche Gold Coast locale, particular Rush Street, but Drawing Room could not possibly be a more welcoming spot, removed from the street level scene (where on the night we dined we saw a stretch Corvette, which we did not know existed, en route from a wedding; Drawing Room, of course, is down the street from a Bentley dealership).