In an effort to keep you informed about the coolest things across the country, we’ll be highlighting favorite places of local bloggers in some of the top cities. Our friend Rebecca from A Concrete Safari recently had a delicious dinner at The Gage in Chicago: here’s what she had to say about her night out. If you haven’t already, add A Concrete Safari to your weekly reading list for some fun insights on city life, including fashion, beauty and (our favorite) FOOD!
In a town full of celebrity chefs you think it would be easy finding a restaurant inside the heart of downtown Chicago. If you are familiar with the Chicago area, the loop is the area where the El makes a loop around the downtown epicenter. This is where you can find the common tourist attraction from the Sears…now Willis Tower to the famous bean sculpture in Millennium Park to many corporate offices. Although there are many lunch places, a truly good restaurant is hard to come by.
The Gage is a diamond in the rough in the Chicago loop area. The gastro-tavern is directly across from Millennium Park, and has a cozy yet lively atmosphere. The space used was converted from an old hat warehouse to an industrial-chic restaurant that is known for their seafood and game meats. When in Rome…
Oysters are never a bad choice to start off a meal, but these oysters took it to another level. Each oyster was topped with one pomegranate seed and in the center was a mimosa vinaigrette to top it off.
The second appetizer came highly recommended by the waiter – House Poutine. Inside you find cider braised pork shoulder, pickled red onion, Wisconsin cheese curds, jalapeños and roasted Pork Gravy. The braised pork, gravy and jalapeños made this dish. The pork melted in your mouth while the gravy and jalapeños gave it a sweet yet spicy kick finish.
It was so hard to pick the main course from the amazing options. It was between the harissa braised lamb shank and the 16oz slagel farm pork porterhouse, and we ended up going with the lamb. This was probably one of the best decisions made all night, because the lamb was falling off the bone. The shank was on top of a bed of pearled faro and topped with pickled fall squash and feta that brightened up the dish. Overall, it really was a perfect plate.
The night isn’t complete without dessert. The Gage is known for some of their desserts, however, you can never go wrong with homemade ice cream and gelato. The red velvet cream cheese, salted caramel and vanilla was the perfect end to a delicious dinner.
Rebecca Ross is the creator of A Concrete Safari, and lives in downtown Chicago. To see more Chicago restaurant reviews and more visit aconcretesafari.com.