Yes, Claudia is open in its forever home: 1952 N. Damen Ave., Chicago, IL 60647.
And I am genuinely shocked that no one has recently reviewed one of the most creative, dare I say it, whimsical restaurants I have ever experienced in over 40 years of fine dining.
To say it deserves its Michelin star is an understatement. I honestly wonder why it hasn't earned its second star. The entire experience was that outstanding.
Every course of 9 courses was an interpretation of what would normally be prosaic; for example, a Bento box, tomato soup and grilled cheese, lobster, lamb, or a Caprese salad. But the ideas and flavors contained in each standard were transformed in ways that approached the outer boundary of creativity:
This Bento box contained squid ink madelines, a perfect piece of ahi tuna filled with astonishingly rich foie gras, a shrimp cracker, and a potato galette with a dollop of oestra caviar... not your usual Bento.
Imagine a perfect green tomato gazpacho, with a bite of crab claw, compressed watermelon, an assortment of herbs, served with a cheese gougère... not your everyday tomato soup and a grilled cheese sandwich.
Imagine a dessert based on a Caprese salad... tomato, used as a fruit infusing a parfait, olive oil, both in ice cream and in cake, basil as well... mind blowing, and certainly not your routine Caprese.
I could describe each other course, but that would be beside the point. The whimsy, the creativity, the imagination in the construction of every course of this pinnacle dining experience was outstanding!
Other points of note... I usually opt for wine flights, but chose the non-alcoholic beverage pairings instead. These were terrific! I would happily go back to Claudia for no other reason than to simply drink my way through the series of mocktails, they were that good. One member of our party did opt for wine, and based on my tastings, the pairings were all on point, and the wine selections were a broad cross-section of the best the world has to offer. A steely, crisp, almost chalky Austrian chardonnay would have absolutely fooled me in a blind tasting.
As great as the kitchen was, the front of the house was equally adept at preserving the sense of whimsy. Service was textbook perfect, but also charming. Our servers were willing to explain ingredient combinations, how the wines and mocktails were chosen to match each course, and anything else we wanted to know.
Claudia is a cutting edge fine dining experience, but one that dispenses with pretense and stuffiness. Not only is the food outstanding, but there is none of the intimidation that usually comes with this kind of degustation presentation.
Claudia ranks in the top echelon of Chicago fine dining... no doubt!