Feb. 02--Table Fifty-Two (52 W. Elm St., 312-573-4000) is one of the prettiest, most charming restaurants in Chicago.
Much like its chef/partner, the famed Art Smith, Table Fifty-Two exudes Southern charm and hospitality. And from the bustling main dining room to the relaxed and genteel upstairs room, there is an undeniable warmth throughout. You feel as if you're dining in an antebellum mansion.
The opportunity to experience all this during Restaurant Week, when dinner is just $44 for three courses, is nearly irresistible.
Dinner begins, as it always does here, with spoon-drop biscuits, cooked in a tiny cast-iron skillet and delivered so hot they'll burn your fingers. Topped with wisps of Parmesan cheese and fortified within by goat cheese, these biscuits will put anybody in a happy mood.
Chef Rey Villalobos' RW menu offers two choices in each course, so a table of two can experience everything.
Start with the sweet-salty interplay of the she-crab soup, perked up with a little tobiko seasoning, or go for the satisfying textures of the crunchy wheat berry salad, with bits of roasted cauliflower, tangerine and lardons.
You would think that a Southern lad like Smith would make a darn good catfish, and you'd be right. The wide fillet, curved a bit to add height, sits on grits, crispy fried okra and bits of tasso ham. Two innocent-looking puddles of pepper sauce provide considerable heat, if you let them. In the same way, a smear of scorpion-pepper jelly adds spicy potential to braised short rib with amaranth (more finely ground than the grain in the salad).
Desserts are small but rich; choose between the chocolate brownie with passion fruit curd and fudge sauce, or the white-chocolate blondie, with macadamia nuts and salted caramel (take the blondie).
Service was flawless, giving the meal a comfortable pace. My waitress did me the kindness of warning me away from the cocktail I was contemplating ("Just know it's very sweet," she said) and finding me one much more to my taste.
The only downside, and it was a shocking one, was the $30 wine pairing option. My friend and I ordered these, and what arrived with the first course was a stemless wine glass with the barest splash of vino at the bottom. Seriously, I've gotten better pours from a sommelier offering me a sample taste of a bottle I'd ordered.
The second pairing was no larger. I gently inquired, and our server merely said, "Well, it's an ounce."
Well, two 1-ounce pours of wine for $30 is a burn.
You'll be happy with the food at Table Fifty-Two, but steer clear of those pairings.
Chicago Restaurant Week runs through Feb. 12. For participating restaurants, menus and online reservations, go to choosechicago.
pvettel@tribpub.com
Twitter @philvettel
