When I wrote this item, I knew in Chicago I was surrounded by so many amazing restaurants with Michelin stars (and even more without them). I almost managed to cross it off last year when I made a reservation at Entente (1 star, no longer open) for my birthday... before realizing that year it fell on the Wednesday before Thanksgiving, when I'd be driving from Chicago to Michigan for my birthday instead. For 2020, I figured I'd find my way to Band and Bohemia (1 star), just a couple miles from me.
Never did I ever think I'd get to eat at the only 3-STAR restaurant in the city: Alinea.
I mean, I guess I still haven't eaten AT Alinea, but I have eaten an Alinea meal in my own home, so I'm counting it. When the pandemic shut down all of the restaurants in Chicago, a few spots got creative. Alinea has always been known for their creativity, but I never expected that would extend into take-and-prepare-at-home, seven course meals.
I was so excited when I heard Alinea was offering 7-course meals for $49. They did add on a 20% service fee, but there was no trick to the pricing. Because it was so reasonable, I opted for the cheapest drink pairing option: $20.
Step 1 was just unpacking the whole thing. There were SO many containers, mostly reusable. I was pleasantly surprised to see the $20 drink add on bought me a full, decent bottle of white wine to pair with the meal.
As I unpacked, I found one medium-sized container that I wasn't allowed to eat, which made me really want to eat it, esp since it all looked organic. And also, was I really going to just sniff it? Is that something that happens at Alinea? I'd have to wait to find out.
The meal came with stories about the dishes and instructions on how and when to prepare and plate them.
First course was a chilled carrot soup. I completely forgot to take a picture of the finished dish, but the prettiest part was the plating prior to the pouring of the soup anyways. The pouring was just part of the show, and wow, was it brightly colored. The bright color matched the bright flavors of the soup, gelees, and other things. So. Damn, Good.
Then: Oops. The first course was supposed to be this simply gorgeous mousse with roe and champagne gelee. It was meant to be a few bites of a high-end party of caviar and champagne, and that's exactly what it was.It was salty, sweet, and as balanced as the colors in the presentation.
While I was enjoying the first two courses, I got to pop that DO NOT EAT container into the oven with the scallops. This photo doesn't quote do it justice due to the white sauce and that I only have white dishes, but damn, it was good. I'm not a huge fan of scallops nor ham, yet the sauce brought it all together. It was warming and rich, which balanced the lightness of the scallops.
Next came the prime rib. The potatoes were just okay, but the beef was tender and the sauce complemented it perfectly. Just a lovely few bites.
Then, I took a break. It might not look like it, but this was a lot of food. I wanted to enjoy the last 3 courses, rather than just shoveling down, so I moved to the living room and hung out for a few hours, until I was hungry and ready to enjoy some more.
Next came this creamy, corny rice. It just needed some slight warming in a pan, and I couldn't believe how creamy and flavorful each bite was.
The zucchini and mushroom dish might have been my favorite. Maybe. The sauce and combination of veggies were creamy and delicious.
Then, I took another break. The creamy rice and veggie dishes were filling on their own. I also had to spend some time trying to decide if I could save the last few drips of sauce to use for something else.
Then I jumped into the dessert, which was meant for two. It's this unique thing that Alinea actually serves so that the entire table is the plate. The photo below basically takes up my entire table. I didn't take the time to watch the video about how to plate it they way they do and just went for a sloppy, experimental mess.
The white, pink, and yellow are actually types of pudding that almost had a light yogurt texture. I thought the vanilla and strawberry were just okay. They honestly just tasted like pudding. But the banana was awesome, especially when combined with the granola and some of the pastries. A few of the cake/cookie/pastry bites were really, really good. The chocolate mousse cake buried under that mountain of little chocolate balls that popped with crispiness was decadent yet not too heavy.
