Chicago restaurant review: smyth.
smyth
LOCATION: 177 N Ada St #101, Chicago, IL 60607
WEBSITE:www.smythandtheloyalist.com/smyth/
❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ 5/5
$$$$$$!
To describe Smyth as “Amazing + Fabulous” was would be an understatement at Smyth. This was a tasting menu that truly surprised us with every dish. No course tasted familiar. There was no delicious but too predictable black truffle + uni (sea urchin) combo or butter-heavy sauce paired with fish filet finished with some citrus. This tasting menu (we tried the classic priced at $285 per person) was anything but a reinvention of the wheels (e.g., like trying to modernize/deconstruct an already existing dish that’s perfectly fine the way they areit is)—unlike some Michelin-starred restaurants that play with tech-heavy, micro-gastronomified dishes decorated in interesting (or even beautiful) shapes and colors but disappointing in flavors like something out of a mediocre Asian restaurant (e.g. Alinea)..
Smyth’s “lobster- seaweed” soup benefited from a heavy use of seaweed oil in with its bright green color , which was truly pleasant in every way too, enhancing the briny + umami-rich nature of their the star ingredients such as baby oysters and sweet lobster flesh in Smyth’s “lobster- seaweed” soup. In the midst of heavy militarized-sounding chants of chefs in between courses, the fear of meeting the same tragic end as the guests eating at Hawthorn in the movie, the Menu, creeped up in the back of my mind but they melted away as soon as the next course arrived.
Smyth’s “lobster- seaweed” soup. You can see the bright green seaweed oil in this photo.
For example, their beeswax bergamot parfait softly disappeared in my mouth in a cloud-like fashion that I couldn’t help but rush to scoop for anther bite even before the last bite still remaining in my mouth hasn’t fully disintegrated.
Truffle & bone marrow doughnut served on a beautiful French-chic grey fabric napkin passionately spilled out its super fragrant black truffle cream guts when I bit into it. Huge and sparkly chunks of fleur de sal and caramel glaze made with bone marrow added gorgeous perfect crisps to the doughnuts that smelled like freshly fried Mexican sopapillas.
Everyone’s favorite at my table was the “Dungeness crab & almond” dish that required us to mix in sweet Dungeness crab meats with the in-house made almond fudge butter. The almond fudge butter tasted nutty, buttery (duh!), and slightly sweet— the sweetness was that is slightly complex, similar to the sweetness coming from caramelized brown sugar (think of Tiger Black Sugar Boba Tea flavor.)… anyone here a boba fan?)
Yes, while the price tag per person at Smyth is INDEED a great amount of money to cough up (the classic tasting menu is $285 per person, NOT including the 20% up-charge for service), yet the experience was SO exhilarating , like a true treat-your-self food therapy. And yes, Smyth, is known for their seafood-heavy menu, so it’s recommended that you have a penchant for fresh, raw seafood in all shapes and forms in order to appreciate the level of effort.
key takeways:
1) Just enjoy!
2) Do check out the bathroom — it’s very beautiful with lovely wallpapers.
