Obélix — Restaurant in Chicago

I was absolutely floored when I arrived to Obélix that afternoon; after a trip to Taqueria Chingon earlier that day, I was excited to try the Poilevey brothers new restaurant. By all accounts, it is a departure from the traditional Le Bouchon, which their family owned and is well reveered throughout Chicago but has trotted along a pretty well worn path. Obélix combines several different flavors while retaining a French based cuisine; it's this combination that sounds irrestible, like the foie gras taco and this incredible pastor hollandaise, rendered al pastor fat from the aforementioned taco joint they own.

I parked my vehicle nearby, payin the street parking, getting there at 4:40. I had spoke to Obélix staff just days before and was assured I didn't need a reservation and I could walk in especially during the opening hours. I couldn't make a resevration as I did not have my flight plans yet and had a meeting earlier that day; I figured walking in would be the best and most respectful way to approach. Fortunately, my flight was early, so early I would be able to try Taqueria Chingon earlier (as mentioned) and have a good amount of time before moving on to Obélix.

As 5:00 approached, I walked from Mr. Beef (pictures only as it was closed but how could I resist a couple poses next to The Bear's location, eh?) and noticed the restaurant action of tables being prepared, wait staff bustling, and wine glasses being wiped... missing. I walked along Huron St baffled but made my way to the entrance and pulled at the door at 5:01.

Closed.

I yanked again, like maybe it was a test to see if I was formidable enough to have their 10-Day Dry-Aged Duck Breast w/ Mole Veracruz. I guess not.

Closed.

I pulled up my phone and sure enough, it was listed as open on Google, no Facebook, and on their very active Instagram there no mention of the place being closed, not a post or an IG story. I was confused as when I first noticed their Instaram page they had announced a half off all champagne for lunch; I checked every so often and it was an active page. Just now, April 5th, they reposted natalia.vehera's story of a fine meal she had. It looks good but I can't eat phone.

I was pretty dissappointed as I flew in specifially to eat here on my way to eat at other places in Indianapolis and Cincinnati.

Suddenly, the door opened. Not the main door, but a side door next to what looks like a garage entrance. An employee came out and said "Oh hi, we're closed." to which I responded "Oh, that's odd, I thought-" and was cut off with "Oh, it's a Super Bowl party, yea, sorry." The employee scurried away and closed the door behind them (I'm not gonna identify them, even with pronouns, b/c it's not about this person, even if the interaction left something to be desired).

I was stunned. I'm not mad they had a Super Bowl party, hell, that sounds great, but surely this couldn't be a last minute thing, and even if so, there was no announcement on any of their social media accounts nor was I made aware of this when I called earlier. I was completely dissappointed, especially since I won't be able to come back in time to try them again.

I'll probably be back at some point, and I'll most likely love it very much, but this experience really soured my expectations from the operations team at Obélix, especially for someone who flew in from Texas to...

the one item that i would come back here for time and time again is the caviar sandwich. the macaron au foie gras, frites, and asparagus were contenders as well.

everything else? not quite as impressive. we tried a wide variety of items on the menu:

macaron au foie gras - great texture. i thought the flavor was nice however my partner found it to be too sweet.

sungold tomato tart - i did not like the tart (overcooked and dry) or filling but loved the preparation of the cherry tomatoes. my partner did like the filling a lot but he's partial to anything with cheese.

aubergine grillee - they were bringing these items out individually and this is definitely a side dish. strong flavor that reminded me of Moroccan cuisine but felt incomplete. would have been good with ground beef or served with a main.

foie gras and crispy rice - skip it. i love all of the elements in the dish but did not like this AT ALL. no foie gras or even tuna flavor -- you mainly taste the sweet sauce they put overtop.

the Obelix dog - was the most excited for this. a corn dog from the grocery store would be more satisfying i fear. served cold and the dog itself was giving vienna sausage.

beef wellington - SO sad to report this but it wasn't even average. i've made better beef wellingtons at home. served cold, the filet was overcooked, and the pastry was thick and soggy.

frites - SO GOOD. especially with the garlic aioli. would definitely order as a side if trying another one of their entrees in the future.

asparagus - perfectly cooked and seasoned. did not even need the sauce.

baked alaska - not really a baked alaska. more like a corn banana muffin, iced with meringue, with ice cream on the side. it was good but nothing that i would order again which is wild considering i'm a fiend for corn anything and baked alaskas.

chocolat epice - texture for the mousse was too dense. also did not get calamansi or thai chili notes. three different staff members said it was spicy and there wasn't even a kick.

they initially brought out chocolate ice cream and had it on our table in front of my partner's face. when our server passed by she was like "that's not the chocolate mousse" and took it from our table. never had that happen before! they usually let you keep it in those instances. i hope they didn't serve it to the next person who ordered it as that's a food safety issue. it did look really good though and i will try the ice cream when i come back for the caviar sandwich as it did look delicious.

as far as ambiance, i would have thought it would be a bit less casual given their menu and pricing. but it's a quaint place, small tables. we had to ask for a table for 4 to accommodate the food we ordered and it was still too tiny to bring more than one dish at a time.

overall will definitely be back for their one outstanding dish (the caviar sandwich) and to try other items on the menu that we haven't...

Came here with a Boston friend for my bday dinner because we both LOVE French food - she's based in Miami now & I'm in Minneapolis for the time being - I've also worked in a high end French restaurant when I was a younger for perspective.

Solid wine bar moment. Maybe start or end here after or before dinner. Would give it another shot when I'm back in town.

Service - solid 3. I've had a bad night before as a waiter, whatever - we're all people. I ordered a Tang or Hendricks gimlet to start - tasted like water and lime juice. I always order tang or hendricks to start because I can taste the gin in a gimlet - I said something to our server and they said something like "well you ordered a gimlet so it should be tart" - I was trying not to be rude and can't think of a time where I've ever sent a drink back. It was remade gracefully though. Appreciated that!

Bar Drinks - 1/5. My friends dirty martini tasted only of vermouth, no brine no dirt. My gimlet sucked. Would recommend trying their house cocktails (of which we had none).

Wine - 5/5. The manager or matire d helped us navigate the bottle list. They never formally introduced themselves to us - but WAS AMAZING. I literally picked this place for the wine selection, I was impressed by the wine menu a lot. Good options at various prices points. THANK YOU! Great bottle recommendation - my friend loved it.

Food - 2/5.Would come back to try entrees - skip the apps probably. I think we only order two or three starters and then I didn't want to eat anything else there. Worst tartare or carpaccio either of us have ever had. Minced isn't an awful thing, but then when we tasted it we couldn't get the horseradish or soy out of our mind (not described that way on the menu) I do have three allergies to soy/horseradish - though none are anaphylactic. I don't always mention it to the restaurants because I'm used to navigating, but I don't think we were asked about allergies. I was uncontrollably tearing unilaterally from my right eye immediately after the first bite. I didn't develop the normal perioral dermatitis & atpoic dermatitis, but I couldn't stop tearing up and I still can feel the under eyelid inflammation. Might have just been a little hint of soy in the horseradish or a different ingredient in the dish, or even just cross contamination can do that for some of my allergies (especially soy). No biggie, but I wouldn't have ordered the tartare if we knew it was all horseradish. For perspective, I'm Mexican American so I literally can eat a raw habanero or jalapeno and not cry or flinch. It wasn't the perception of "heat" and "spice" from the horseradish that was my issue...