Located next door to the famous Alinea restaurant in the trendy Lincoln Park neighborhood of Chicago is Boka. Run by Chef Giuseppe Tentori, a former chef de cuisine at Charlie Trotters for a couple of years, he said his goal is to make, "simple and light food." So far he is doing a very good job based on the meal I enjoyed there.
After placing my order I mentioned to my server that I was a culinary student. Chef Giuseppe then came out to talk to me and see how I was liking my culinary trip of Chicago. He then sent out several courses that I hadn't ordered, all of them being a full portion (not tasting size.) It was much appreciated but I was incredibly full at the end of the meal!
I started off, by recommendation of my server, with a Passion Fruit Margarita made with Don Julio Bianco, Cointreau, Passion fruit puree and Habanero peppers. It had just the right ammount of sweetness from the passion fruit and great habanero flavor but without any of the heat. Very refreshing.
I was then served an amuse of two oysters. East - Hillsborough oyster, Mango gelee and horseradish. West - Kumamoto oyster, black radish mignonette. the Hillsborough oyster was smaller and sweeter then the Kumamoto. I particularly enjoyed the sweetness of the mango with the oyster. The Kumamoto was meatier but not as flavorful as its counterpart but both were very fresh, good quality.
Next, Grilled White Asparagus Terrine wrapped in Prosciutto, Quail eggs, Marcona Almond puree. This dish was great! A lot going on but the flavors all went very well together. The Terrine was wrapped in seared prosciutto and bound by a truffle jelly. There were also slices of green and white asparagus, thin bread crisps, a lavender powder sprinkled on the plate, and a balsamic reduction. The entire dish speaks strongly to his Italian background.
I was then brought one of the few dishes that I actually ordered, Crispy Veal Sweetbreads, Maitake Mushrooms, Fava Beans, Oregano Mole. But the Chef decided to add a very nicely seared piece of Foie Gras just to toy with me. Delicious!
At this time, I was brought two dishes that I hadn't ordered that the Chef wanted me to taste. The first one: Grilled Baby Octopus with pickled Celery and Apple, Prince Edward Isle Muscles and horseradish sauce. I am not a huge fan of Octopus because I don't like the super chewy texture and this one was quite chewy but It had gotten a really nice char flavor from the grill.
The other one: Maine Diver Scallop, Pea Wasabi sauce, Lotus Root, Hijiki and Grapefruit. Each component of this great dish played a role. The Scallop was very nicely seared and cooked, the velvety smooth Pea sauce was sweet and meshed well with the scallop, the lotus root added nice bitter/spice. the grapefruit, some needed acid to balance the richness and the Hijiki added a little crunch.
Finally to my main plate, Grilled Mahi Mahi, Vidalia Onion-Caper sauce, Red wine braised Fennel, Veal Tongue, Fiddlehead Ferns. The Veal Tongue, I was told was braised and then cut to a very small diced and put over the fish. It added a nice meatiness to the Mahi Mahi in one of the more unusual surf and turf dishes that I've tasted but delicious nonetheless.
The fish was also served with a side of their "Mac and Cheese" with Edamame. the Edamame was really al dente and along with some truffle breadcrumbs added some great texture to the Mac and Cheese.
I was way too stuffed to order dessert by this point but they thought I could handle just a little bit more. Three different ice creams. I forgot to write them down!! but I believe the first was Campari and grapefruit, then Meyer Lemon and the other was Dark Chocolate.
Boka
1729 N Halstead St.
Chicago, IL 60614
(312)337-6070
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