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    Post #1 - December 13th, 2017, 11:16 pm
    Post #1 - December 13th, 2017, 11:16 pm Post #1 - December 13th, 2017, 11:16 pm
    Bellemore bills itself as "New American Classic," which appears to describe the shared ethos and aspirations of its pursuing-one-Michelin-star neighbors Sepia and Blackbird as much as what's on the plate at this new Boka Group restaurant. The menu organization and pricing here is comparable to its competitors; the difference is largely in atmosphere, as Bellemore embraces post-barnyard maximalism: think big airy spaces, mismatched tile and wall prints, semi-bemusing object fetishism (here, peacocks). Unlike Proxi across the street, here the inspiration appears to be a 1930s Hollywood restaurant--or, at least, Woody Allen's idea of one.

    The food shows a lot of promise--so much so, in fact, that if Chef Papadoulos keeps improving and refining he should have no problem garnering a star of his own next year. There is the same level of refinement found here as at Blackbird, but the emphasis on bright flavors exceeded the latter's often muted precision. The Fall Salad, a mix of radicchio and brussel sprout leaves, came to life thanks to generously salted quinoa and pepitas; the champagne vinegar and honey dressing added the sweetness and acid that tied together what had to have been a 10+ ingredient salad. A suckling pig entree came with some surprise meat treats--chicharrones and a part that was something like the pig equivalent of roasted foie gras--but was sharpened by salted plums, milk custard, and the addition of vinegar to the jus.

    The novelty/vanity headliner is the Oyster Pie, $65 for two three-bite wedges of oyster custard, a modest shit ton of caviar, and tweezer things. It's a lovely bite--luxurious mouthfeel, just the right amount of brine--but I couldn't help but think this would be best as an opening salvo to a tasting menu with many more courses to come, rather than as a super expensive amuse bouche. (The glass(es) of champagne that comes with it is/are a nice touch, though.)

    Dessert felt like an afterthought; we passed. They do serve a few token petit fours, but they're overly sweet without any nuance.

    564 W Randolph St
    Chicago, IL 60661
    (312) 667-0104
  • Post #2 - December 14th, 2017, 2:12 pm
    Post #2 - December 14th, 2017, 2:12 pm Post #2 - December 14th, 2017, 2:12 pm
    chezbrad wrote:a modest shit ton

    Oxymoron alert! :lol:
  • Post #3 - January 3rd, 2019, 2:58 pm
    Post #3 - January 3rd, 2019, 2:58 pm Post #3 - January 3rd, 2019, 2:58 pm
    I went in pretty skeptically, primarily because I've all but burnt out on fine-dining over the past couple of years, but I think this place easily rises above the ever-growing sprawl of fine-dining mundaneness and homogeneity. With the exception of a couple desserts that didn't come close to equaling the level of the savory food, our meal was excellent.

    Now priced at $95/slice, the Oyster Pie is a bit of a sucker play but hey, I've been called worse. 4 of us split a slice, which the kitchen very intuitively cut into 2 slices (one for each couple) without us even requesting it. It was as delicious as it sounds . . .

    Image
    Oyster Pie
    (oyster custard topped with an ounce of osetra caviar, crème fraîche, green apple, dill)

    Other highlights included . . .

    Image
    Venison Tartare
    (cave-aged cheddar, pickled asian pears, seeded rye, spicy tokyo turnips, black lime)

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    Kona Kanpachi
    (horseradish, fermented tomato, lime)

    Image
    Hand-Cut Spaghetti
    (winter black truffles, egg yolk, parmesan + $15 white Alba truffle supplement)

    Image
    Icelandic Cod
    (Baja shrimp, cauliflower, beurre blanc, vin jaune)

    Image
    Maine Lobster
    (local farm carrots, yuzu, miso beurre)

    I only got a taste of the lobster but I really enjoyed it. Ditto for a few others I wasn't able to get shots of like the Fried Black Rice (Maine lobster, Baja shrimp, dried squid X/O, meyer lemon, smoked scallop), the 40-day-aged Angus Strip (crispy veal sweetbreads, brassicas, sauce perigourdine) and the Green Circle Chicken (hen of the woods mushrooms, red wine hollandaise, smoked egg yolk, crispy chicken skin).

    As I mentioned above, a couple of unimpressive desserts marred the finish of the meal. One, a Banana Chai Pot de Creme (glazed black walnuts, crispy strudel, pomegranate), was a virtually flavorless and visually unappealing mess. Another, a visually appealing Triple Chocolate Mousse Cake (chocolate streusel, candied butternut squash, calamansi), managed to combine "triple chocolate" into a net result that barely delivered any chocolate flavor. Who knows? Maybe the three chocolates all cancelled each other out.

    Service was competent enough, though absolutely robotic throughout our meal. Try as we might, it was damned near impossible to knock our server off his scripted routine. So, in the end, there was nothing between us that came even close to resembling human interaction. It's a real shame when you're made to feel like you're visiting from another planet when in actuality, you're sitting in a half-empty dining room on a Wednesday night, only 5.1 miles from home.

    But even with the negatives, the non-dessert food prevailed enough to leave me with positive feelings about the place. Would I recommend it unconditionally? No, but I've no doubt that Bellemore will fit the bill for some inquiry (or inquiries) that will come my way in the future. Hell, I'm likely to return in the future. And maybe next time, if I open by asking the server to "take me to your leader," it'll all go better from there. :wink:

    =R=
    Same planet, different world
  • Post #4 - January 5th, 2019, 10:33 am
    Post #4 - January 5th, 2019, 10:33 am Post #4 - January 5th, 2019, 10:33 am
    Have eaten here a few times since my OP and can concur with Ronnie: really thoughtful mains, middling desserts, weak service.
  • Post #5 - January 5th, 2019, 2:37 pm
    Post #5 - January 5th, 2019, 2:37 pm Post #5 - January 5th, 2019, 2:37 pm
    I thought the Wood-Grilled Foie Gras and the Icelandic Cod were spectacular. We had no complaints about the service.
    Pithy quote here.
  • Post #6 - January 5th, 2019, 4:54 pm
    Post #6 - January 5th, 2019, 4:54 pm Post #6 - January 5th, 2019, 4:54 pm
    The Kona and the venison tartare were both quite nice, but the cod and the oyster pie were the standouts for me. Didn't care for my 40 day aged meat and sweetbreads, which I found both too lean and bland for my taste. Lobster skewed sweet (even for me). Pastas were simple (and w/truffles) so tough not to fuck up. While I liked most of it very much, didn't rock my world though.
    "In pursuit of joys untasted"
    from Giuseppe Verdi's La Traviata
  • Post #7 - February 16th, 2019, 4:03 pm
    Post #7 - February 16th, 2019, 4:03 pm Post #7 - February 16th, 2019, 4:03 pm
    Four of us enjoyed a stunning celebratory meal at Bellemore, highlight Oyster Pie, delicious, beautiful. Wonderful company, gorgeous room, overall tip-top dining experience.

    Had a chance to chat with chef Jimmy Papadopoulos, an engaging talented fellow, and our nephew who is on the line in the beautiful open kitchen. Tip of the hat to our server Fernando, his good humored professionalism contributing wonderfully to the experience.
    Bellemore, Count me a Fan!

    Bellemore1.jpg Oyster pie, Bellemore

    Bellemore2.jpg Michael Pfeiffer, Bellemore
    Hold my beer . . .

    Low & Slow
  • Post #8 - March 19th, 2019, 7:35 pm
    Post #8 - March 19th, 2019, 7:35 pm Post #8 - March 19th, 2019, 7:35 pm
    Five of us ate at Bellemore on Sunday night. To summarize, we loved loved LOVED it!!! Everything was so very delicious, with amazingly delicious flavors and textures perfectly balanced in each dish. The flavors were right there where they should be, not as in your face (or spicy or bold) as in some places, but just right - the endive salad tasted like endive, the scallops like scallops, etc. The desserts from pastry chef extraordinaire Leigh Omilinsky (L2O, Nico Osteria) were a bit more subtle but they worked, as a whole together, without any one ingredient distracting from the whole. (For example, the "licorice and coconut sorbet" on the pavlova was a scoop of creamy, mild coconut sorbet, with a few small bits of mild licorice sorbet placed around the outside of that scoop, just a wonderful composition overall. Same thing for the canelé, another great composition.)

    The menu is structured as "first course", "second course", and "third course", all savory courses as a prelude to dessert. The first and second courses on the menu are both appetizer-size portions, while the third course are entrée-size. We had a double portion of a couple of the second courses in place of entrees... excuse me, in place of third courses.

    The décor of Bellemore is exquisite - a great combination of classic, traditional elements along with contemporary touches that don't overwhelm. And an open kitchen in the corner. This is also a perfect place for those looking to for a place with a conversation-friendly noise level; the tables are spaced further apart than any other Chicago restaurant I can think of.

    I see a few negative comments in previous posts about the service; to the contrary, our service (from Kara as lead server) was just fine, friendly, and professional (e.g. checking with us after we had tried each course, not clearing too early, etc). Not at all scripted! It was very good indeed, with no issues whatsoever.

    For the five of us, we had the rolls for five, five appetizer courses, five third courses, and five desserts, for a food total of $299, along with a $110 bottle of wine, before tax/tip.

    This will end up being one of my very best meals of the year, when the time comes to list those.

    Okay, roll the tape! :mrgreen:

    Image
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    Hawaiian BRIOCHE ROLLS (not on the menu, not complimentary, and unfortunately not photographed)

    Roasted SUNCHOKES with green apples, spicy kale, toasted sunflower seeds & meyer lemon
    Image
    A WINTER SALAD OF ENDIVES with red wine poached pears, blue cheese, toasted walnuts & calamansi vinegar
    Image
    Grilled VEGETABLE SOUP with flageolet beans, parmesan & sourdough croutons (not photographed)

    DAY-BOAT SCALLOPS with anson mills white grits, popped hominy, grapefruit & smoked scallop (double portion served as a third course)
    Image
    VEAL SWEETBREADS glazed with molasses, charred onions, dried persimmons & sherry vinegar (double portion served as a third course)
    Image
    WILD ARCTIC CHAR with brussels sprouts, smoked trout roe, crispy buckwheat & walnuts
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    BERKSHIRE PORK LOIN with anson mills farro verde, stinging nettles, smoked beets, creamed horseradish & cherry vinegar
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    ROASTED VANILLA PAVLOVA butter braised pineapple, honey cream, licorice & coconut sorbet
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    CANELÉ DE BORDEAUX with banana mousse, maple ice cream, tamarind caramel & peanuts
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    CASHEW CARAMEL TART with farro verde ice cream, sorghum aigre doux, bergamont & puffed grains
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    MIGNARDISES macarons, peanut butter chocolates
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  • Post #9 - March 24th, 2019, 4:06 pm
    Post #9 - March 24th, 2019, 4:06 pm Post #9 - March 24th, 2019, 4:06 pm
    nsxtasy wrote: Five of us ate at Bellemore on Sunday night. To summarize, we loved loved LOVED it!!!
    {massive edit to conserve bandwidth} Well. :shock:
    Why don't you tell us how you really felt? :lol:
    Valuable links for survival, without the monetization attempt: https://pqrs-ltd.xyz/bookmark4.html
  • Post #10 - November 4th, 2020, 9:03 am
    Post #10 - November 4th, 2020, 9:03 am Post #10 - November 4th, 2020, 9:03 am
    Bellemore, the luxurious Boka Group restaurant on Randolph Restaurant Row helmed by chef Jimmy Papadopoulos, has temporarily closed due to Chicago’s restrictions on indoor dining

    https://chicago.eater.com/2020/5/12/212 ... oronavirus
    Never order barbecue in a place that also serves quiche - Lewis Grizzard
  • Post #11 - May 3rd, 2021, 2:09 pm
    Post #11 - May 3rd, 2021, 2:09 pm Post #11 - May 3rd, 2021, 2:09 pm
    Bellemore, the West Loop restaurant on the corner of Randolph and Jefferson streets, where chef Jimmy Papadopoulos wowed diners with decadent dishes such as oyster pie topped with caviar is no more.

    https://chicago.eater.com/2021/5/3/2241 ... -bellemore
    Never order barbecue in a place that also serves quiche - Lewis Grizzard

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