Restaurant Week Review: BOKA

Restaurant Week Chicago has begun!

I'm all smiles, even though I'll be 10 pounds heavier and wallets cheaper by the end of the week. Restaurant Week began for me on Monday night with an early dinner w/ a good friend and colleague JP at BOKA of Lincoln Park.

Restaurant Week Menu Review

Pre-Course Teaser: Truffled Edamame Mac and Cheese
Review: I can't even type this without drooling a little.

First Course: Maine Diver Scallop, Broccoli Sauce, Sweet & Sour Onions AND Crispy Chicken Thigh, Potato Puree, Pickled Celery Root
Review: Both dishes we're decent, with more flair for presentation and style than for taste and texture. The Scallop was cooked relatively well (Personally, I'm really picky about how scallops are cooked as the texture can be off-putting sometimes, depending on the way they were prepared), but the flavors of the broccoli and onions was mild if not absent. The crispy chicken thigh was an interesting dish, again with the focus more on presentation and plating than on the flavors. Full of home-style flavors, this dish had an interesting glamour to a normally uninteresting combination (chicken and potatoes).

Second Course: Angus Tenderloin with wild mushroom croquette and parsnip sauce AND Braised Pork Belly with Fried Oyster, Spicy Bok Choy and Green Tea Soba Noodle
Review: I'm a huge fan of croquettes, so I opted for the Angus dish. The beef was cooked medium rare, but lacked a certain ompf of any flavor. The mushroom croquette was mildly lukewarm, and was mushy, for a lack of a better word. Wild mushrooms should have been packed with bold, earthy flavors that were sadly absent in this dish.The Braised Pork Belly dish was tasty, but lacked any class in presentation. Presented like a traffic jam of lego-sized squares, this dish, while not appealing as such, was the highlight of the menu with bold flavors that made up for the lack of pizzazz elsewhere.

Third Course: Ginger Kulfi, Toasted Marshmallow, Espresso, Tangerine, Chocolate
Review: Insanely rich and decadent only to be sharpy contrasted with tangy ginger kulfi, this dessert was a promise fulfilled in flavor and zing. Boring alone, all the ingredients combined made for a delicious bite of balanced sweetness.

The Service: Attentive to an overwhelming degree, with a busser/bread provider/waiter breathing down our necks at every second. Yes, it was nice not to have to linger over messy plates, or to have to raise a hand for a request, but asking me how it tastes the second after the plates have come to the table... isn't very welcoming. I wanted to enjoy the conversation I was sharing, not be rushed through each course. While very nice people, I must say you all must have been bored, seeing how the four people apparently assigned to our table hovered above us our entire meal.

The Room: I like the classy touches of this space, with the illuminated drapes enveloping diners in this large space. Great wine list with interesting selections.



Chicago Restaurant Week runs from Feb. 18 - 27. BOKA is located in Lincoln Park at 1729 N. Halsted Ave.