Review: Japonais

3 stars (out of four)

Rating key:
4: Outstanding
3: Excellent
2: Very good
1: Good
Satisfactory
Unsatisfactory

It's relatively quiet on this night at Japonais, the newest trendoid-magnet to open in Chicago, because elsewhere in town, the Cubs are pounding lumps on the Florida Marlins (sorry to dredge up that memory). But there's still a good-sized crowd at this Japanese-French hybrid restaurant, including a tall woman in a sheer blouse with a vaguely Asian design on the front; complimented on the shirt by some friends, she beams and says, "It's the most Japonais thing I own."

I'm dressed much more modestly. For one thing, I don't own a single Japonais anything, and for another, I'm dining yet again with the Two Lauras, colleagues by day and sharp-tongued people-watchers by night, and the safest look when hanging with the Two Lauras is Nondescript Modern.

But sartorial shortcomings are taking a back seat tonight, because, as one Laura says, "I can't believe the amount of plastic surgery I'm seeing here."

They scan the room, naming procedures as though filling out a surgical checklist. Nose job, check. Extreme facelift, check. The Lauras spot two tucks and a bob, and I don't know what those things are.

But soon talk of our neighbors ceases and all attention is focused on the food, and the Two Lauras are noticeably shy on complaints. That's because Japonais is a rarity among restaurant-cum-nightclub concepts: a hybrid restaurant in which the cuisine is not subordinate to the scene.

Partner Miae Lim owns Mirai Sushi and Ohba restaurants, and anyone who's dined at those places will find Japonais' menu very familiar. Indeed, the chefs of those two restaurants--Jun Ichikawa of Mirai and Gene Kato of Ohba--run Japonais' dual kitchen, Jun handling sushi and sashimi, Gene overseeing the "hot" dishes.

From Jun, you get imaginative maki rolls, such as a terrific octopus and spicy tuna combination, or delicious King crabmeat, served nigiri-style with a smear of spicy aioli. One Laura, who had never tried unagi (eel), became an instant convert by way of Jun's triple-unagi roll (unagi inside and out, topped with a sweet unagi sauce). And both Lauras sportingly downed octopus rolls stuffed with bits of sweet monkfish foie gras, though neither expressed an interest in seconds.

Bin Cho is a superlative salad of sashimi-cut white tuna on a bed of arugula and shaved daikon with a citrus vinaigrette, the citrus and greens offering sharp flavors to contrast the tuna's buttery mouthfeel. Yukke toro is a sort of Japanese tuna tartare, the fatty tuna seasoned with a complex soy sauce; the dish is presented elegantly over ice and topped with pieces of edible gold leaf. And way in the back of the four-page menu are Japonais' sashimi selections, which are too good (the whitefish assortment is particularly tasty) to overlook.

From the "cooked" side come treats such as pachinko, which are panko-breaded oysters topped with a creamy bacon gratin with bits of chopped shrimp, and yaki yaki, a saute of shrimp and squid in a sake-soy sauce with garlic and a bit of pepper. More familiar fare includes pillow-shaped gyoza dumplings, stuffed with ginger-scented minced shrimp, set in a sweet-sour sauce.

The fun entree is called Le Quack Japonais, and despite its French name and Japanese reference, is really just Peking duck. You get a platter of thick-cut boneless duck breast and a side plate of pancakes, hoisin sauce and mango chutney that you use to create hand-held wraps. This dish is available as a half-order, which is plenty for most tables.

Other entrees include excellent steamed grouper and shrimp shumai in a light sake broth, and chunks of teriyaki-glazed lobster in a slightly peppery sauce with rice porridge (think Japanese grits). And Japonais offers a slice of American-raised Kobe-style prime rib, sprinkled with togarashi spice mix and topped with a rich uni (sea urchin) hollandaise sauce. At $60, it's a pricey ride on the Kobe bandwagon, but it's there if you want it.

Though the menu is divided into the customary appetizer-entree-dessert categories, that's not the best approach here. I recommend picking a couple of appealing dishes off the bat, regardless of category, and contemplating more as you finish the first round. It sounds like a time-consuming way to dine, but the lightning-fast kitchen gets food to the table in a hurry.

And do save room for desserts, which are surprisingly good. The dark chocolate mascarpone cake with coconut ice cream has enough intensity for any chocoholic, and the creme brulee gives a nod to the East with an undercurrent of yuzu (a Japanese citrus) and almond. The whimsical "coffee and doughnuts" combines a smooth green-tea semifreddo with a quartet of chestnut-filled beignets.

Somebody had a lot of fun putting together Japonais' wine list, which groups its bottles under cutesy headings such as "les blancs aerodynamiques" for its crisp, sleek whites and "les enfants de Lafite" for anything containing merlot, malbec or cabernet sauvignon, whatever the country of origin. It's clever, but clearer descriptions of the wine might be a better use of the space. By contrast, the list of 17 or so sakes is very descriptive.

The twin dining rooms have enough eye-candy to rot your teeth, from the red patent-leather chairs in the Red Room to the soothing triple fireplace in the Green Room. Both areas are dark, romantic spaces. So too is the downstairs Riverwalk lounge, a sensual little spot full of intimate niches and fabric-canopied loveseats, ending with an outdoor deck overlooking the Chicago River. The Two Lauras loved the lounge and deck, but they and I cringed at the sight of the glowing "Chicago Tribune" sign on the printing plant across the river. It's not that we were ungrateful to the company that had paid that night's tab, but the sign was an unwelcome reminder that we had to go to work the next morning.

Phil Vettel is the Tribune restaurant critic.

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