Blackbird is foodie heaven, if there ever was one. Named in most places as a foodie destination, and recognized in several awards across the county, I felt like the last person on earth to make my way here. It's safe to say my expectations we're high, and sadly, disappointing.
First Course: garbanzo bean soup with falafel, pickled asian pear, caramelized egg yolk and sumac
AND seared diver scallops with pears, brussels sprouts and powdered sauerkraut
Review: The garbanzo bean soup with falafel was amazing, with the deeply rich soup and heavy falafel contrasted with the pickled asian pear and caramelized egg yolk. I'm biased though, because I consider falafel one of my favorite foods (is it bad to admit my favorite falafel is the $2 one from Taste of Lebanon... still?). The soup was one of the best parts of this meal. The scallops we're decent, but definitely not my first choice. What the heck is powdered sauerkraut?
Second Course: atlantic cod with flageolets, pink lady apple, fried pumpernickel and winter herbs AND butternut and ricotta tart with black trumpet mushrooms, quinoa and wakame
Review: My personal choice was the butternut squash and ricotta tart. Anything with a tart is usually fine by me, with this tart's crust made with what appears to be the wakame. So creative! The rest of the dish was so-so, with the butternut and ricotta flavors too mild to enjoy, although the toasted wakame made for some interesting saltiness. The atlantic cod was a better choice, with the crisp skin with the pumpernickel making for a delightful texture and taste.
Third Course: vanilla parfait with satsuma, campari and almond AND chocolate ganache with tahitian vanilla gastrique and parsnip ice cream
Review: The chocolate ganache was pretty standard. That is all. The vanilla parfait, was vanilla.
The Service: The whole night, I kept asking my dinner date, "do you think the waiter hates us?" Our waiter was only at our table to take our order and hardly returned for anything else. It also appeared to be some sort of hierarchy/seniority between the waiters and busboys. More than once I saw a waiter push a busboy in the back shoving them forward while they were waiting for patrons to clear the space. I get that there are hierarchical "ladders" everywhere, but that doesn't mean one person shouldn't be treated as an equal. UGH, annoyed.
The Atmosphere: This is probably going to put me in the "old person" category but why the hell is it so loud in there? Either due to the music, pour acoustic space planning, or the obnoxiously loud cat lady seated next to us, it was near impossible to share a conversation with my dinner date. Half way through our meal, we just gave up and either mouthed the words or just remained silent. By the time I left Blackbird, I was craving conversation so much, my friend and I ended up talking non-stop for the next 30 minutes.
Chicago Restaurant Week runs from Feb. 18 - 27. Blackbird is located in the West Loop at 619 W. Randolph.
