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Update: Sopa reopened July 1 with a new dinner menu by new general manager and chef William Alexander. Click here for details. When it comes to dessert, comfort means just one thing to me: chocolate. Luckily, there are two choices here: sun-dried cherry-chocolate pavé and chocolate hazelnut cake (both $9). As rich as a fudge brownie but with the texture of a thick, silky mousse, the pavé was studded with dried cherries and layered with crispy, whisper-thin almond Florentine wafers. The hazelnut cake may be nice enough on its own, but couldn’t rise above “just OK” next to this knock-out. By the night’s end, it was clear that Sopa’s young servers are as eager as they are green, and, expectedly, still figuring things out; we witnessed a spilled glass, a few dropped forks and an awful lot of awkward milling around. These minor kinks, though, are sure to be ironed out by the experienced duo running the place. Whether you're a gourmand or far from it, this place will be one to watch when the staff hits their stride.
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Driving down Sheridan Road in Highwood, chances are you won’t notice brand-new Mediterranean comfort food spot Sopa. For one, the sign from its previous occupant (contemporary bistro Erik’s) still remains on the facade, with a temporary banner on the window below the only hint of what's inside.
But following a quiet Nov. 4 debut, locals have still managed to find their way to this polished eatery, located in a strip mall space that has been struggling for the right formula (before Erik's, open for less than a year, it was Olives). The opening weekend crowd was oh-so-North Shore, with twenty-somethings and their well-appointed parents eating across the room from a table of white-haired locals leisurely dining over bottles of wine. With Sopa, we think they've got a winner this time.
This newbie comes from two familiar faces in these parts: general manager Marcello Cancelli and chef Joe Wojchiechowski both defected from upscale French Restaurant Michael in Winnetka, and Cancelli also spent years at nearby Carlos’ in Highland Park. They’ve traded white tablecloths for sleek gold placemats on jet black tables, aiming for fine dining with an upbeat, unpretentious atmosphere. If this is what they’re going for, though, I have to admit that upon entering, some of the trappings of fine dining—like handing my coat-check stub to my boyfriend instead of me—seemed a bit outdated and out of place.
True to the name (sopa means "soup" in Spanish and Portuguese; Cancelli is Brazilian), the menu includes the ultimate in comfort food: soup. We’ve heard that customers’ input will inspire future recipes, so if tomato soup with grilled cheese was your ultimate comfort as a kid, speak up and you just might seen it on the menu named after you. Right now, the kitchen is stirring up Marguerite’s potato and fennel soup, and though this creamy concoction—spiked with Pernod, a French licorice-flavored liqueur and named after co-owner Marguerite Bernardi—was definitely heart-warming, the $8 price for the teacup size gave us a bit of a chill.
Appetizers riff on different French and Italian flavors, like the trio of tasty bruschetta we tried: one grilled baguette slice was topped with steak, portabella mushroom and blue cheese; another with prosciutto, fresh mozzarella and sun-dried tomato, drizzled with balsamic vinegar; and the third with marinated cucumber, shrimp and red onion ($11).
By the time we got to the entrees, though, I realized exactly what Sopa was to me: A meeting ground for the foodie craving an artfully presented meal and their practical pal who complains that gourmet spots never serve enough food. You can order hearty bowls of pasta for under $20, or go for more epicurean plates such as beef tenderloin with crispy sweetbreads and port wine-truffle sauce ($29). My hardly-ever-full date took home half of his spicy rigatoni with sausage, sweet peas, garbanzos and mascarpone marinara ($16), while I savored the exquisitely plated duck breast with asparagus, pumpkin orzo and apricot gastrique ($24).
Lisa Arnett is the metromix suburbs and shopping producer. lmarnett@tribune.com All Metromix reviews are based on anonymous visits. Meals are paid for by Metromix.
