I had dinner at Inovasi the night before last, and I fell in love with it all over again.

Several of the dishes designated on the menu as "medium plates" caught my eye. I asked my helpful server, Manuel, about the portion sizes, and he said they were roughly entrée sized, so I ordered two. It turned out to be perfect for my ample appetite.

Texas Style Brisket - smoked for 14 hours, served with grilled cucumbers, baby tomato salad, natural jus, house pickled ginger ($17)

This was outstanding, a non-traditional preparation. The smoke taste was pleasantly subtle. The brisket had almost no fat on it. I suspect they put it on the grill or under the broiler before serving, as the top crust had a bit more chew to it with a slight char. The accompaniments were interesting and delicious additions, particularly the ginger. This was OMG good.

Spanish Mussels - rustic tomato sauce, red wine, house chorizo, cream, asiago, grilled focaccia ($15)

This was also outstanding and again, for non-traditional reasons. The mussels themselves were somewhat small, but what really made this dish was the sauce and bread, which made it very much a full meal all by itself. That sauce was very thick with lots of the above ingredients in it, and the accompanying grilled focaccia was just perfect, either by itself or dipped in the sauce. This too was OMG good.

Banana Bread Pudding - made with roasted bananas, pecans, and white chocolate chunks then bruleed on top and served with spiced banana ice cream ($9)

This was a great dessert. What I loved about it was that all the flavors were subtle and blended together. Sometimes banana can be a strong flavor that overwhelms the rest of the dish, but not here - not in the bread pudding, and not in the ice cream either. Very nice.

There was a concern expressed in posts above regarding the value at Inovasi. I have no such concern; I thought it was an excellent value in terms of the amount of food for the money, even before you consider the awesome quality of the food. $41 for three ample courses at a lovely restaurant is an excellent deal.

In all my visits to Inovasi, this was the first time I took public transit (Metra) there, and it was incredibly easy, just one short block from the train station. I ate there on my way to a show at the Genessee Theater in Waukegan, and it worked out perfectly. It's worth the train trip or drive from the city!

Inovasi is still firing on all cylinders, with amazing food at a favorable price point. I have enjoyed it, and this latest visit confirms that it is as wonderful as ever. Bravo, Chef Des Rosiers, bravo!

I eat at Inovasi fairly often but havent posted in ages. John has been back in the kitchen pretty much full time for the last couple of months and the food reflects this. Everything seems to be coming out spot on. Joel mentioned that there is no tasting offered on the menu but I suspect that they might be willing to do one if requested. We were there a week ago and had some of the same things described in the 2 recent posts.

The calamari was delicious, perfectly crisped and the pepperoncini added an interesting flavor twist, blending perfectly with the richness from the frying.
The mussels were great and at the end I wanted to drink all the sauce but it was very rich so I only finished half of it.
The brisket was cooked perfectly and the crispy veges with it contrasted nicely.
I love the roasted cauliflower which is served over a rich cauliflower puree.
We had the "out of the sea" fish of the day selection, and while not cheap, it was a massive portion served over stuffed peppers. It was a very interesting combination that worked surprisingly well. I cant remember the type of fish.

Overall it was another great meal.

I also want to mention The Otherdoor, which is John's fast casual place adjacent to inovasi. It was originally called Sidedoor and had a thread here a couple of years ago. Otherdoor is one of my favorite lunch spots around here. It is sort of a better version of Chipotle. You can choose from 8 different fillings for your tacos (soft or hard), burrito, or bowl. I love that you have 10 different salsa's to choose from, a few of which are very spicy. Everything is always very fresh and flavorful.

-Will

Hi,

I visited the OtherDoor recently after a local paper mentioned there is now seating in an adjacent storefront.

I like the ordering method: pick a starch, meat, sauce and toppings. The guy who assembled my duck and potato torta was very informative. When I was ordering a wimpy level sauce, he asked about my heat preferences. He then gave me two chips with sauces he thought complimented my meat choice better. Both were at tolerable heat levels, so I just let him assemble my torta with sides he approved. It was a terrific torta.

It is a bit pricier than a Mexican taco joint. All sauces are unique with gradient heat levels and made on the premises. The assortment of meat choices was broad. If anything, it was hard to select meats and sauces, because all sound interesting.

In the same article, John commented this food was not faithfully Mexican food. It had many American, shall I suggest John's, influences. Clearly there were thoughtful choices favoring great flavor.

I liked it quite a bit. I will be back.

Regards,
Cathy2

Cathy2 wrote:When I was ordering a wimpy level sauce, he asked about my heat preferences. He then gave me two chips with sauces he thought complimented my meat choice better. Both were at tolerable heat levels, so I just let him assemble my torta with sides he approved. It was a terrific torta.

What a wonderful, customer-focused way of presenting more information about the salsa choices to you!

Hi,

You are right, the interaction with the counter crew really made the experience worthy of a return.

Regards,
Cathy2

Cathy2 wrote:Hi,

You are right, the interaction with the counter crew really made the experience worthy of a return.

Regards,
Cathy2

A one-two punch possibly tomorrow?