Bag in business

From salt flights to salt decor, the revamped Trio remains a seasoned champ

By Chris LaMorte

September 9, 2004

 

Trio Atelier closed for good February, 2006, bringing an end to one of most storied culinary legacies in Chicago dining history. As Trio, it served as home to famed chefs Rick Tramanto, Gale Gand, Shawn McClain and Grant Achatz at various times .

Can serious dining also be seriously fun?

Trio owner Henry Adaniya thinks so. When his star chef Grant Achatz split at the end of July to start his own spot (Alinea, launching in 2005 in Lincoln Park), Adaniya decided to lighten up his restaurant.

So it was goodbye stuffy, boring dining room. Hello conceptual video art. See ya, chef-designed, three-hour, multicourse tasting menus of "deconstructed" cuisine. Welcome mix-and-match small, medium and large plates. Trio has now become Trio Atelier.

Still located on the first floor of that stately, slightly faded dowager of an Evanston hotel, the dining room now looks like the "Trading Spaces" team used it for a particularly shocking redesign episode. While vestiges of its previous incarnation remain--the formal, grand entry; black-tied servers; white tablecloths--the new space feels like an MCA exhibit plopped in the middle of the Art Institute. Flat-screen monitors display abstract "thought images," and sandbags (filled with salt) line the fireplace, mantle and walls.

We can't say we totally get this new interior. A three-paragraph "artistic vision" statement on the menu explains that salt bags represent the back-to-basics approach of an "atelier," which is French for an artist's workshop. But to our eye, all those sandbags looked like we were prepped for Hurricane Ivan should he take a Lake Michigan detour.

But we do understand the food: It's awesome.

Chef Dale Levitski, most recently at one of our favorite spots, Andersonville's La Tache, replaces Achatz. Levitski blends bistro street cred--lots of easy-to-recognize favorites from croque monsieur ($7) to flank steak ($20)--with haute-cuisine flair.

But at Atelier, instead of relying exclusively on the chef, you design your own tasting menu by combining the various plates. Servers help you with expertly matched by-the-glass wine pairing suggestions. Best yet: Wine's offered in sample-friendly, half-sized pours. (Afraid of getting cheated? It's served from official Erlenmeyer flasks.) Of course, Trio's extensive by-the-bottle wine list remains intact.

That means you control what you eat--and spend. Sans alcohol, the determinedly frugal can now squeak by under $25; but a full-on four-course with pairings will probably run closer to $75-$80. Still, it's much cheaper than Trio's average $170 tab.

Price isn't an issue for the menu's most intriguing option: the $4 salt flight. It matches four types of salt--from a weird pink variety to a smoky brown one--to tiny tastes of melon, fingerlings, heirloom tomatoes and a beet-dyed hard-boiled egg. Served with a 2002 Boutari Moschofilero ($4.50; $9), this super-sized amuse bouche makes a delicious conversation piece.

Other must-tries: The caraway-infused braised veal cheek served atop a delectable mound of celery root puree with mushrooms and lardon ($10) had the flavors of a hearty home cooking. The French gnocchi ($15) was simultaneously crispy and fluffy. Both dishes left us dreaming about them the next day.

But don't be mistaken: Despite efforts to enliven the ambience--and dampen the price points--the room still attracts what looks like old-school Evanstonian elite, more Art Institute than MCA. You won't feel underdressed with a suit and tie here. What really surprised us more, however, were families with children. (Our server said kids usually order the croque monsieur.)

Desserts from veteran pastry chef Mary McMahon, most recently at Vivere, include a tasting of creme brulee, featuring white chocolate, vanilla, lemongrass, candied corn (sweet corn, not the Halloween candy treat) and thyme-honey. At two bucks a pop, you could try the entire selection, but a couple will be plenty. Also wonderful: a plum galette topped with a savory pink peppercorn ice cream ($8).

Wait! Pink peppercorn? Perhaps they were just sick of all that salt.

Chris LaMorte is the metromix dining producer.

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