Upscale Ethnic this Monday Night

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Hi everyone. Two of us will be in Chicago just for this Monday night and would like to find an upscale ethnic restaurant for dinner. I've searched this board and found http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/602985. Wow, nsxtasy! What an incredible amount of info! Thank you for taking the time to put that together.

First we thought Topolobampo would be perfect, with their unusual tasting menu. Then we saw they're closed on Mondays. :-(

Next, Vermilion seemed like what we're looking for -- out of the ordinary food, nice ambience and service, moderately priced, in or close to downtown.

The drawback here is they have a restaurant in NYC, too, which is where we live. I went ahead and made a reservation anyway, because it looked so good.

But, thought I would ask the question -- would you recommend that we stick with Vermilion or is there someplace else you think we should consider?

Thanks!

[Saguaro]

I don't know how a Rick Bayless restaurant qualifies as "ethnic," but maybe its just me. For a real ethnic meal you need a real ethnic neighborhood. Try a place like Greek Islands or Costas (my favorite) down in Greektown. Chicago is not as ethnic as it once was, but it really was a Eastern European town. Very German in its early days (the Berghoff comes to mind), I would look for maybe a Polish, Bohemian, or Lithuanian restaurant. I wish I could make a recommendation in that regard, but Greek is the best I can do.

[BRB]

B/C he's cooking traditional Mexican food.

[Saguaro]

And is Mon Ami Gabi (A Lettuce Entertain You restaurant) in Oak Brook an ethnic restaurant because it cooks traditional French food? I think for most people ethnic encompasses more than the selections on the menu. It includes the neighborhood, the staff, the owners, the history, the traditions, the decor, the cooks, the everything. Bayless does an interesting job, but Topo is not a ethnic restaurant IMHO.

[BRB]

I understand your point (although I would probably disagree some as to the authenticity of Mon Ami Gabi as a French restaurant). But come on, Greektown? I like Greek Islands quite a bit, but the neighborhood is in no way Greek other than a slab of restaurants lining Halsted serving similar food. And some of the staples at these restaurants are more American/Mediterranean than real Greek food. For example, gyros and saganaki (on every menu in Greektown) are dishes which were invented at Parthenon Restaurant in Chicago. And next time you're in some of these restaurants, take a look at who's cooking in the kitchens . . . many who are definitely not Greek.

[Saguaro]

Your point is well taken. Greektown isn't as Greek as it once was. But it does have 50 years of tradition, some non-restaurant Greek businesses, and the culture in the businesses and restaurants is Greek. You can still hear Greek being spoken. A better example of an ethnic restaurant would have been something like the Hang-An tea room in Chinatown in San Francisco, but that is getting pretty far afield from the post and all I wanted to do was offer a truer ethnic restaurant experience than Topo which is a hang out for the well to do in a very upscale neighborhood. (see Ms Chow's comment, $200 for dinner disqualifies any Mexican restaurant from being ethnic, but I wouldn't want to re-ignite anything either.)

[chicgail]

The trick here is to find "upscale" ethnic. I read that as the cuisine of a particular ethic group (Mexican, Vietnamese, Thai, Greek, Polish, etc.) Where it gets interesting is to find an authentic example of an ethic cuisine -- that is upscale in presentation and nature. So often the authenticity gets watered down for a mass high-rolling audience.

Chicago has some extraordinary examples of really fine and authentic ethnic (Vietnamese, Indian/Pakistani, Mexican come first to mind). Somehow, we no longer consider Italian and French as "ethnic."

Other Mexican restaurants with a more upscale twist are Salpicon and Adobo. Also there's Mundial Cocina Mestiza in a neighborhood on the near southwest side. Mundial is not in the same upscale catagory as Vermillion or Topo, but it's more refined than most.

There's also a wonderful Spanish tapas restaurant in the Blackstone hotel on south Michigan Avenue called Mercat a La Planxa that I highly recommend.

Topo is a great example of upscale ethic (Mexican) as is Arun, which is Thai. You'll see a difference of opinion about Arun on this board, not whether its food is good, but whether it is worth the difference in price from places like Spoon and TAC, which are awesome Thai and dirt-cheap.

I believe there are some upscale Indian restaurants, but I can't vouch for how good they are. The best stuff are the joints along Devon in a neighborhood pretty far north.

Again, while Chicago did (and does) have a big Eastern European population, I can't think of a single example of an "upscale" Polish or German restaurant here.

I haven't checked if any of these options are open on Monday, but hopefully this will help.

[pace]

Thanks for your quick replies! I'll go on-line now and check out the restaurants you suggested. Mercat sounds especially good. I've been to Greek Islands, so will look at Costas.

Chicgail, I can see your point -- "upscale ethnic" could be very different from "authentic ethnic."

Saguaro, I found Vermilion on this board under "Best Upscale Ethnic Eats" http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/502320. Your mention of looking for a Bohemian restaurant intrigues -- what is it??

Thanks again!

[Saguaro]

Bohemia is a part of Southern Germany or the Northern Balkans depending on which war just got over. There is a large Bohemian community in Chicago. There is a Bohemian Restaurant named The Westchester Inn at 31st & Wolf Rd. The cooking is Eastern European, and not my favorite, but it clearly is "ethnic." Its a shame that the old German restaurants have gone away. The Red Star was a delight as was the Black Forest. I hope that some locals in Chicago will fill in the blanks for you. I find that Chicago has a lot of good upscale restaurants but is losing its ethnic ones. For example I am unable to find a worthy Chinese restaurant in town comparable to SF or Vancouver. But one of the pleasures of this board is the opportunity to learn

The Taylor Street neighborhood is old Italian, now gentrified, but there are some good pure ethnic Italian restaurants there. Tuscany was the last one I was to.

[jbw]

A couple of modifications Saguaro:

I think our Czech friends would be very upset to find that they are once again considered to be part of southern Germany:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bohemia

You're dead on about SF and Vancouver but I don't think we've "lost" many Chinese restaurants here in Chicago. This was a group that was never strong in upscale settings here, and as far as regional Chinese cuisine is concerned, I think we're much stronger now than 10 years ago. (Read Lao Sze Chuan, Double Li, and a few others).

Taylor Street is the home of a lot of good eating, but I find it to be an exemplar of "Americanized-Little-Italy" Italian cuisine. Think Al's italian Beef, something you'd never find in Italy, or anywhere else for that matter. To recreate the kinds of restaurant eating you'd find in Italy, you usually have to go a little upscale here--Follia, Merlo, Coco Pazzo, and the like.

[mountsac]

i'm assuming ethnic is anything other than american, italian, and french? by that assumption, the first upscale, downtown restaurant that comes to my mind is "shanghai terrace." it's a pretty upscale chinese restaurant in the peninsula hotel.

[pace]

Saguaro, I just figured out who Rick Bayless is. Pardon my ignorance! :-)

Thanks, mountsac, I'll check that out, too.

[BRB]

I'm a big fan of Vermilion so I think it's a great choice. I think they do a great job with Indian-Latin fusion. One of my favorite ways of dining there is to order several appetizers and share. I know they recently expanded and opened up a NY location (and I heard a third is possible) but I have no idea if the NY location is as good as here.

Salpicon would be a great substitution for Topolobampo - I actually prefer it to Topo. Chef Priscila Satkoff used to be at Topo before opening up Salpicon. It's a beautiful space in Old Town and the food is excellent. http://salpicon.com/

Although not particularly upscale (although there are some nice decorations and the restaurant is cozy), Spoon Thai is outstanding for Thai food and better than anywhere in NY. If you like Thai food, this would be my first recommendation. The specialties here are those listed on the translated Thai language menu, including banana blossom salad, one bite salad, catfish curry custard, house made Isaan-style sausage, shrimp paste rice w/ pork, eggs and green apple . . . I could go on and on.

[ms. chow]

Here's my suggestions. Also assuming you are staying in the downtown area, and how accessible these places are. Have also not verified if these places are open on Mondays.

Mexique. Currently my favorite Mexican restaurant. It's Mexican with French influences. Perfect place for when i don't want to spend $200 at Topolobampo on a weeknight. The food i would say is a notch below Topo. I'm skeptical about Salpicon these days mainly because there are places with comparable food in a lower price point (e.g. Zocalo). Mexique is a short cab ride from downtown.

Tango Sur. Not much Argentine options in the city. But Tango Sur consistently delivers. It's BYOB and accessible by cab or the Brown line.

Cafe 28. Excellent Cuban/Mexican. Brown line.

Mercat a la Planxa. There's enough writeups on this forum about it. I would go to Barcelona in a heartbeat. In the downtown area.

Veerasway. Great modern Indian. I prefer Veerasway than Vermillion, which is Indian/Latin fusion. It is more casual and relaxed, and i don't have to wear my Manolos or Jimmys. Not on a weeknight anyway, LOL. In the west loop, short cab ride from downtown or other CTA options.

Meiji. In my mind, often ignored but definitely a hidden gem. Pristine sushi. In the west loop, a short cab ride from downtown.

Le Colonial. For those nights when bright white florescent lights just doesn't cut it. Although there is one in NYC, so perhaps it's not as favorable for you. In the downtown area.

Russian Tea Time. We're having unusually cold weather, although vodka flights and blinis are good in any weather in my book. In the downtown area.

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Thanks all for taking the time to come up with so many suggestions.

After looking at all the web sites, I'm leaning toward:
1. Veerasway
2. Salpicon
3. Russian Tea Time (altho this one looks a little kitchy in its web site photos -- is it? -- not that the Russian Tea Room wasn't, yet it was always fun)
4. And Vermilion is still in the running.

Mexique looked good, too, but is closed on Mon.

The dining room of Spoon Thai is not as upscale as we would like for our only night in Chicago.

I can't get past that annoying pecking chicken on Mercat's home page to see what the place is about.

Shanghai Terrace looks beautiful, but a little too you-can-be-anywhere-ritzy-hotel-ish for those of us who live in business hotels.

Not to reignite the "what is an ethnic restaurant" debate, but we just meant not American and, as I mentioned in my original post, we hoped for something more on the unusual side of ethnic -- which is why Vermilion caught our eye in the first place -- and which for us, would not include French or Italian restaurants, since it seems like there's one on every block in Manhattan.

And yeah, given the choice, I like to leave old Jimmy Choo home during the week, too. lol

So, any preferences among the places on our top 4 list -- Veerasway, Salpicon, Russian Tea Time, Vermilion?

[BRB]

Tough choices - I like Salpicon and Vermilion the most, but I also had a pretty good meal at Veerasway so I'd say that's a pretty good choice too. I've only been to Russian Tea Time once, and I thought it was decent but nothing special. To some extent, this will depend on the flavors that interest you . . . even if only that particular evening.

[masha]

You asked us to help narrow down the choices, but let me add one anyway: If Shanghai Terrace looked to hotelish, but upscale Chinese-inspired cuisine is of interest, you might consider Opera in the South Loop.

I like Russian Tea Time but more as a source of dependable, interesting, mid-priced food when I'm in the Loop. If I was only eating one meal in Chicago, it's not where I'd go.

[pace]

We've decided to go to Veerasway. The more we look at their menu, the more we drool. We're at the point of wishing we can order one of everything!

Thanks to all of you for your generosity of time, suggestions, direction, and opinions.