The Boarding House

Went with a group of four last night, and, overall, had a lovely evening (Please take any criticisms with an enormous grain of salt, as they've only been open two days and we fully realized and understood that.) Two of us arrived early and had a drink at the bar. The wine/drink/food list is, as one would expect at an operation headed by Alpana Singh, interesting and impressive, as is the actual space. The much ballyhooed wine glass chandelier is even more beautiful in person, the space physically comfortable (coat hooks thoughtfully provided) the noise level comfortable, and the crowd mellow. This is the only area of the restaurant where one can enjoy a bite or a drink without a reservation, and it was comfortably crowded by 6pm.

I had a chance to go downstairs (bathrooms for the bar are located in the Cellar), and found the (also, by reservation) space to be equally stunning. It reminds me of the sexier, more glamorous big sister of the Office at Next, just a slick, sophisticated and gorgeous space. I can easily imagine coming here with a group of friends or just hanging out at the bar snacking. The Cellar offers the same menu as the bar, but has special drinks in addition and is aiming for a more loungey vibe with dimmer lighting/louder music than the rest of the restaurant. Tony, the director of the Cellar, is very passionate about the Cellar and their plans for it, it was very much a pleasure to chat with him as he gave me the tour. By 8pm, the Cellar was packed with a very energetic young set. Also located in this area is the wine cellar, from where they have temperature controlled elevators deliver wine to the third floor where the actual dining room is located.

The dining room itself is incredible, easily, IMHO, the most stunning room in the city. Dramatic and elegant, it really sets the tone for what they are trying to achieve here. The noise level are by far the lowest here (they play the same music throughout the building, a very eclectic mix of rock/pop), and we had no trouble conversing at our table during the meal. I really liked the spacing of the tables as well, easy enough to maneuver around and distanced just far enough apart that you can't overhear conversations at other tables. Service was a bit hovering for my taste, but I think that will work itself out over time and it could have just been our waiter (who was very friendly and helpful despite the over-attentiveness.) The wine list - incredible. Unfortunately, I don't recall the wines we had (I deferred to the oenophiles at our table), but the sommelier was really fantastic with her suggestions and both bottles we had were big hits with everyone at the table. I particularly liked that she took the trouble to decant one of the bottles that she felt would really improve with a bit of breathing. Truly, a fantastic wine program.

The meal starts with complimentary rolls and butter, our group wide quibble was that the butter could have used a bit of salt. We moved on to a house cured charcuterie platter and a cheese platter, both of which came with some standout breads and accompaniments. The cheese platter was good, but a bit pedestrian, the charcuterie garnered much higher praise with the mortadella and jamon being group favorites. I look forward to seeing how these courses progress as time moves on, and would definitely order the charcuterie again for that mortadella, really wonderful.

The menu is divided into starters/medium/mains/shared courses/sides, and they have daily specials as well. One of our group opted for a medium plate after some guidance from our waiter, while three of us went for mains. If you haven't got a large appetite, appetizers and a medium plate make for a fine meal, particularly if you opt for one of the very, very generous and shareable sides. The medium plate ordered was the friend chicken, which came with a lovely, light honey coated biscuit and two pieces of chicken, which I was assured was crisp and delicious. I will definitely be ordering this in the future. For the mains, we had hazelnut encrusted shortrib, rack of lamb with roasted vegetables and a chickpea panelle, and a strip steak with a port reduction and garlic/mushroom confit ragout. We had biscuits, creamed kale and cheese curd mashed potatoes as our sides.

The one consistent quibble regarding everything was that everything needed just a touch of salt, or, in the case of my lamb, a bit of acidity, particularly as it was served with some very heavy roasted vegetables. I'm sure this will be worked out quickly, again, it was only the second night, so really not a serious complaint. My lamb was beautifully cooked to medium rare, the ragout on the strip steak was outstanding, as was the reduction and the steak itself, and although I was not able to sample it, the short rib received raves as well. The sides were fantastic, not a dud in the bunch.

The desert menu wasn't terribly moving and seemed to be an afterthought when compared with the rest of the menu, so we contented ourselves with digestifs. They have a nice selection, although they were temporarily out of my preferred Armagnac. Alpana was visible all over the entire space, and she came to our table herself to apologize, but assured me that they would have some back in soon (and that it was her favorite after dinner drink as well). I asked her to select something she would enjoy in the absence of Armagnac, and she returned to the table with a neat Woodford Reserve, which is a perennial favorite. When I asked her if they would have the Armagnac in stock in time for my next visit on Christmas Eve, she said she would speak with her suppliers to ensure it would be on hand. Truly above and beyond service. She stayed and chatted at our table for a bit, praising her female sommelier and discussing wine events she had attended with two of our party, she was a very charming hostess.

A wonderful evening in a restaurant that I plan on visiting regularly. My RDC and I will be back for Christmas Eve, and the other two people in our party actually cancelled their scheduled Christmas Eve reservations and re-booked at the Boarding House, so it's safe to say we all very much enjoyed our evening. I think this is going to be a very special place, and I'm looking forward to more detailed write ups and pics (ahem, Ronnie) from the rest of the community.

720 N Wells
Chicago, Illinois 60654
312 280-0720
http://boardinghousechicago.com/dine/

*edited to correct typos and add the website

Nice report...thanks for sharing.

Thanks for the review as I've been wanting to head there with a colleague - we'll reserve for post-holidays for sure.

thanks for the review.......question, does the building have an elevator ?

Hi Bee, it sure does. When they take you to your table, they escort you to it.

My wife and I enjoyed dinner here last evening and thought it was a positive experience overall. Service and atmosphere are both tremendous at The Boarding House, one of the nicest designed restaurants I have been in lately. Very sleek design, which starts with the wine glass chandelier above the bar that everyone posts on twitter/Facebook after eating here, but still maintains a comfortable and welcoming vibe. Service was attentive and efficient, enjoyed that wine by the glass was poured at the table (although I imagine this is a royal pain to the servers).

I cannot say that the food lived up to the expectations set by the room, but there were some highlights. We started with the hamachi crudo and Serrano Ham small plates. My wife and I were split on which dish we enjoyed more, she enjoyed the pomegranate and shaved fennel on the crudo and I particularly enjoyed the smoked ricotta served on the Serrano dish. Both were solid starters and supplied multiple punches of flavor to wake up the palette, would certainly order them again. We then moved on to the lobster poutine and the hazelnut crusted short rib entree. The poutine was an interesting dish, but thought the lobster was overwhelmed by the cheese curds in the dish. The fries were nicely cooked, but overall this didn't come together for me as much as I had hoped. I suspect we would have been better served with the linguine and sausage dish that we originally planned to order, maybe next time. The short rib was a disappointment that unfortunately ended the meal on a low note. The short rib was unevenly cooked, with one side very dried out and the other cooked Just ok. Beyond the dryness in texture, the meat lacked flavor and didn't do much for either of us. I generally love short rib and have made it at home a few times, but this version really fell flat. The five spice sweet potato was fine, but could not overcome the issues with short rib.

We would certainly return to the Boarding House but would be inclined to enjoy some of the bar menu and work my way around the extensive and impressive wine list next time.

Very nice first meal at The Boarding House tonight. I'm not in the near north hood much these days but this is truly a great addition to the neighborhood. Beautiful space--stunning actually. Wonderful acoustics, comfortable seating, well-spaced tables--if you're looking for a place to enjoy someone's company, this is a great choice. Service was also very good--as someone mentioned upthread, they pour by-the-glass wines at the table--and it is a very generous pour. Don't see that much these days. Was actually kind of surprising giving Ms. Singh's wine cred--but no complaining from me We chose sparkling (the Umberto Bortolotti, Lagrein Rosato) since we thought that would be a good match for what we were ordering and and it was perfect.

Food was excellent--I wasn't particularly hungry (see Katy's Noodles thread for the rest of that story!) but still managed to try a few things with my friend's help. I started with the kale Caesar salad with a delicious red-wine poached egg and white anchovies. Nicely balanced, underdressed (my preferred state for a salad with good ingredients) and the egg was terrific. My companion ordered the fried chicken with the honey lacquered biscuit which I got to taste. Good coating, biscuit was a bit sticky and a touch dry which was easily cured with a quick dunk in the maple honey sauce that accompanied the dish. For mains, I ordered the steak tartare appetizer and my friend had the short ribs. I only had the tiniest taste of the short ribs but I thought it was well seasoned and, with the broccoli rabe to cut the fat of the dish, very nicely balanced. My tartare was a bit creamier than I like--I prefer it with very little to no binder--but still very good. I loved the tiny pickle slivers they served with it.

We were too full for dessert but the ladies at the next table ordered a chocolate dipped oatmeal cookie sandwich served with ice cream and spun sugar that looked interesting, as did a few other things on the dessert menu. Next time.

My wife and I had a really nice meal at The Boarding House last night.

We split the following:

Cauliflower in cumin: this was a simple yet really enjoyable small dish. The cauliflower was cooked perfectly and had a really nice spice to it. It was served with three sauces: a yogurt (that was fairly uninteresting), a roasted red pepper sauce, and an herb sauce (which was especially nice).

Beef tartar - we're suckers for beef tartar. The BH version had a pretty noticeable mayo component.

Lobster poutine - This was the only dish that didn't do much for me.

Fried chicken - I loved this dish, especially the thick, crispy coating. (As boudreaulicious noted, the biscuit was quite dry.)

Sausage - this was a straightforward sausage topped with a fried egg, an onion puree and a mustard sauce.

The menu is divided into small, medium, and large plates. With the exception of the cauliflower, our other four dishes were from the medium section. All were pretty large and we ended up with far too much food (this isn't a complaint. We knew we over ordered a bit, but wanted to try a few different things). We saw some of the "large" dishes at other tables and they were huge.

I ate here recently and thought it was just ok. It wasn't that anything was awful, it's just that nothing I ate would have me rushing back. Kale Caesar Salad (Red Wine Poached Egg, White Anchovies, Pecorino), Berkshire Pork Belly (Grilled Maitake, Mushroom Puree, Pickled Haricots Verts), Crispy Cumin Cauliflower (Pesto, Mint Yogurt, Red Pepper Sauce) and Bavarian Sausage (Apple Braised Cabbage, Maple Onion Puree, Fried Egg, Mustard Sabayon) were all ok but didn't wow me. Of the 4, my favorite was probably the cauliflower but at $9 for a tiny portion, it seemed way overpriced (maybe not for the neighborhood but in general).

We also had the Seared Diver Scallops (Cauliflower Puree, Crispy Chicken Drumette, Caper Berries) and the Edith's Fried Chicken (BH Buttermilk Biscuits, Sesame Honey Sauce). The scallops were ok but nothing about them stood out. The fried chicken was my least favorite item. It was underseasoned, scorched-tasting and dry. A side of Bacon & Pine Nut Braised Brussels Sprouts were very hard (undercooked?) but the Cheese Curd Mashed Potatoes were really tasty.

2 desserts we tried were less than the sum of their parts. 4 of us didn't finish either the Chocolate Dipped Oatmeal Cookie Sandwich (Buttercream & Maple Bourbon Caramel Filling, Homer’s Cinnamon Ice Cream) or the S'Mores Bombe (Chocolate Hazelnut Mousse, Marshmallow Center, Graham Cracker Crust). I don't know. They sounded good on paper but didn't rise to the level of their descriptions, even though they were beautifully composed.

Wines were fine. We had 2 bottles: F.X. Pichler, Riesling, Loibner Steinertal, Smaragd, Wachau, Austria 2004, which seemed pretty well-priced at $75 and Au Bon Climat, Pinot Noir, Santa Barbara County 2010, which seemed overpriced at $60. Our server didn't seem to have much expertise on the wine front and with neither Alpana Singh nor Dan Pilkey in the house on this night, we were pretty much on our own. We did ok but would have benefitted from some more expert guidance in this area from someone who had more familiarity with the wines and the menu.

Overall, service was well-intentioned but it was also intrusive, hovery and somewhat overbearing. At the start, while we were chatting, our server kept coming back to see if we were ready to order anything, even as all our menus still sat unopened on the table. More than once she came to the table and abruptly interrupted our conversation. Throughout the meal, I felt she checked on us far more often than she should have, and it became disruptive. At one point, without prompting, she actually commented on our conversation. It was pretty uncomfortable from beginning to end.

I don't think BH will ever become a destination for me but if I lived in the neighborhood, I could see making it an occasional stop because everything (other than the chicken) was fine. But I can also say that for every item we ordered, there's a prep being done somewhere else in town that I enjoy more.

=R=

It would appear that Chef Gosselin is departing. http://chicagoist.com/2013/04/07/boardi ... _chris.php

Ursiform wrote:It would appear that Chef Gosselin is departing. http://chicagoist.com/2013/04/07/boardi ... _chris.php

I'm not surprised...the menu didn't seemed like a horrible fit for the concept. She's got such a huge following that she'll probably survive this, but this type of opening could have been catastrophic for a less popular restaurateur.

Has anyone been there since Bjorn Rasmussen came on board? We are thinking of taking out-of-town friends in August and they would like something spectacular but not super pricey.

Spectacular but not pricey sounds like Ruxbin, not Boarding House IMHO.

I visited Boarding House last weekend, but only for drinks. The wine by the glass options that we chose were quite good, but the oysters were almost criminally bad. I am certainly not qualified to comment on the full menu by any means, but I won't be going back.

The first impression, based on the space and chandelier, certainly qualifies as "spectactular". For your guests, I would consider a drink at the Boarding House and somewhere else for dinner. As previously referenced, there are other options altogether, but I don't want to thwart this page with suggestions on where else you might enjoy.

Thanks. I will look into Ruxbin since the Boarding House is getting underwhelming comments. Other suggestions would be more than welcome. Thanks again.

We greatly enjoyed our meal with friends at The Boarding House last night. The spectacular setting contributed to our overall mood of elation (three hours went by in a flash) but the food and drink more than made good on their end of the bargain. (I was quite happy with my lamb loin. And despite "plain mixed berries" not being among the listed dessert options, the kitchen accommodated me with a generous and perfectly balanced combination of strawberries, raspberries and pomegranate seeds.)

There is just one thing that aroused our curiosity.

When we made our Saturday night reservation a little more than two weeks ago, 5:15 was the only available time (other than way too late on the other side of the spectrum). We jumped on it. No problem so far--being "old," we've been known to eat early. The strange thing is, though, that even at 7:15, the big room was no more than 2/3 full. We wondered why a later reservation (say, more like 7, which we typically shoot for) wasn't possible when this was the case. (Even at 8:15, I'd say the room was no more than 3/4 full.) Perhaps someone here knows a good reason.

riddlemay wrote:We greatly enjoyed our meal with friends at The Boarding House last night. The spectacular setting contributed to our overall mood of elation (three hours went by in a flash) but the food and drink more than made good on their end of the bargain. (I was quite happy with my lamb loin. And despite "plain mixed berries" not being among the listed dessert options, the kitchen accommodated me with a generous and perfectly balanced combination of strawberries, raspberries and pomegranate seeds.)

There is just one thing that aroused our curiosity.

When we made our Saturday night reservation a little more than two weeks ago, 5:15 was the only available time (other than way too late on the other side of the spectrum). We jumped on it. No problem so far--being "old," we've been known to eat early. The strange thing is, though, that even at 7:15, the big room was no more than 2/3 full. We wondered why a later reservation (say, more like 7, which we typically shoot for) wasn't possible when this was the case. (Even at 8:15, I'd say the room was no more than 3/4 full.) Perhaps someone here knows a good reason.

Often it is more of a staffing issue than a space issue. Perhaps they prefer to give a lesser number of customers a stellar experience than more customers a good experience. No idea if it was the case here, just a guess.

jlodoglvr wrote:

riddlemay wrote:We greatly enjoyed our meal with friends at The Boarding House last night. The spectacular setting contributed to our overall mood of elation (three hours went by in a flash) but the food and drink more than made good on their end of the bargain. (I was quite happy with my lamb loin. And despite "plain mixed berries" not being among the listed dessert options, the kitchen accommodated me with a generous and perfectly balanced combination of strawberries, raspberries and pomegranate seeds.)

There is just one thing that aroused our curiosity.

When we made our Saturday night reservation a little more than two weeks ago, 5:15 was the only available time (other than way too late on the other side of the spectrum). We jumped on it. No problem so far--being "old," we've been known to eat early. The strange thing is, though, that even at 7:15, the big room was no more than 2/3 full. We wondered why a later reservation (say, more like 7, which we typically shoot for) wasn't possible when this was the case. (Even at 8:15, I'd say the room was no more than 3/4 full.) Perhaps someone here knows a good reason.

Often it is more of a staffing issue than a space issue. Perhaps they prefer to give a lesser number of customers a stellar experience than more customers a good experience. No idea if it was the case here, just a guess.

I cannot imagine the investors would be very happy with such an approach.

=R=

I would guess cancellations or changes in party sizes.

riddlemay wrote:We greatly enjoyed our meal with friends at The Boarding House last night. The spectacular setting contributed to our overall mood of elation (three hours went by in a flash) but the food and drink more than made good on their end of the bargain. (I was quite happy with my lamb loin. And despite "plain mixed berries" not being among the listed dessert options, the kitchen accommodated me with a generous and perfectly balanced combination of strawberries, raspberries and pomegranate seeds.)

There is just one thing that aroused our curiosity.

When we made our Saturday night reservation a little more than two weeks ago, 5:15 was the only available time (other than way too late on the other side of the spectrum). We jumped on it. No problem so far--being "old," we've been known to eat early. The strange thing is, though, that even at 7:15, the big room was no more than 2/3 full. We wondered why a later reservation (say, more like 7, which we typically shoot for) wasn't possible when this was the case. (Even at 8:15, I'd say the room was no more than 3/4 full.) Perhaps someone here knows a good reason.

Did you use OpenTable or call directly? Restaurants will frequently block out prime weekend dining hours on OpenTable so you'll only see the 5:15 or 9:15 PM options.

The GP wrote:Did you use OpenTable or call directly? Restaurants will frequently block out prime weekend dining hours on OpenTable so you'll only see the 5:15 or 9:15 PM options.

This is good to know - I never really thought of this. I will say, however, that whenever I call Bavette's and ask if they have anything available when nothing is showing on OpenTable, the answer is always "No" and they are always annoyed at me for calling when OpenTable says there is nothing! Harumph!

The GP wrote:Did you use OpenTable or call directly? Restaurants will frequently block out prime weekend dining hours on OpenTable so you'll only see the 5:15 or 9:15 PM options.

That could explain it. We used OpenTable.

Just like jordanhojo, I've assumed that for a normal-sized party, OpenTable and The Telephone would give identical results. And apparently that is true at restaurants like Bavette's, where they get huffy (according to jordan) if you assume the opposite. I say "for a normal-sized party," because I'm well acquainted with the possibility that for, say, a party of 8, The Telephone may produce a possibility that OpenTable doesn't. But that's because restaurants are transparent about this in their OpenTable results.

I think if restaurants have policies to say different things to different customers only because some of those customers use one form of communication rather than another, they should be transparent about that, as well.

I believe Bavette's operates as other restaurants; not ALL available tables are released via OpenTable.

DutchMuse wrote:I believe Bavette's operates as other restaurants; not ALL available tables are released via OpenTable.

Plus, they are not able to accommodate parties of larger than 6, regardless of the conduit.

=R=

DutchMuse wrote:I believe Bavette's operates as other restaurants; not ALL available tables are released via OpenTable.

I'm grateful to be learning this (not about Bavette's but about restaurants in general) because (unless I'm wrong) it contradicts the OpenTable-using public's default assumption that OpenTable can be trusted to give accurate information about table availabilities.

Opentable charges $1 for each reserved seat. A four person reservation costs a restaurant $4. If a restaurant has no trouble filling seats during prime dining hours, they'll just take reservations over the phone and save the buck per patron. For a large restaurant, this can save the business tens of thousands of dollars each year. Hot spots will almost always block prime time availability and just leave a few tables during the really early and late slots for Opentable.

I always just pick up the phone anyway. Like so many things these days, opentable solves a problem that doesn't exist.

I had heard very mixed things about Boarding House when it opened and that's mostly the reason I stayed away for so long. But a friend of mine chose it for his birthday dinner last night and we had an excellent meal. But I'd be remiss if I didn't mention how beautiful this restaurant is. The striking displays of wine glasses on the main floor, and the huge windows and display of wine bottles in the third floor dining room, make for one of the most beautiful dining rooms in the city (if not the most beautiful).

The better news is that the food measured up. But one negative to start, and that concerns the bread service. That service consists of flavorless, barely crusty bread that really has no place in a restaurant of this caliber. If I was served this at Olive Garden, I would understand.

Two appetizers really impressed. The hen egg with polenta fries was my favorite. An oozing yolk, set atop crispy yet souffle-like polenta fries, would have been an excellent combination on its own, but the accompanying bechamel, pecorino and burgundy truffles really made this a rich and even more delicious dish.

Braised octopus was another favorite of mine, slightly crisp exterior yet plenty tender, and served with a delicious combination of fingerling potatoes, grilled frisee, nicoise vierge and a squid ink vinaigrette. The squid ink and olives lent beautiful color to this dish. The flavors made you feel like you were only steps from the Mediterranean Sea.

Ahi tuna crudo was fine, but I'm a little over-crudoed these days and the tuna was rather lean and unremarkable. The other flavors in the dish were very nice, but I really couldn't recommend ordering this dish.

For my main course, I had the bone-in Berkshire pork chop and it was stunning. Perfectly cooked, just enough melting fat, and maybe the best pork chop I've ever had. It was served atop grits, haricots vert and an aigre-doux that provided great contrast. There was also a nice, little chunk of pork belly, not that I needed any more rich pork, but I wasn't complaining.

Two desserts I tried really stood out: the very dense flourless chocolate cake with chocolate crunch and chocolate-bourbon ice cream was plenty rich but also delivered fantastic chocolate flavor and nice texture. A warm sour cherry cobbler was everything you could ask for from a cobbler at this time of year.

Overall, a terrific dinner, with nice service, and in a stunning dining room. I found myself drinking several wines by the glass (very generous pours I'll add) as our table was sharply divided on wines. Based upon what I found at Boarding House last night, I would highly recommend a visit for a nice evening in the city.

Alpana Singh closes Boarding House
http://www.chicagotribune.com/dining/ct ... story.html

Dave148 wrote:Alpana Singh closes Boarding House
http://www.chicagotribune.com/dining/ct ... story.html

I don't know why this Tribune article refers to Alpana Singh closing the Boarding House, whereas the article on eater.com notes that she sold her interest in the restaurant last October.