A Hit and a Miss Wrap Up Restaurant Week

Strolling down memory lane during Restaurant Week (RW) can reap big rewards.  It’s been decades since last dining at Topolobampo.  Finally that experience and curiosity about how Rick Bayless rocks the yearly food fest became two incentives that drew us into this year’s campaign to fill the towns dining chairs.  2019’s winter vortex threatened to make the festival a bust and caused organizers to extend the “week” to 21 days.  Topolobampo was on our hit list well before that happened. 

Named after a small Mexican fishing village because of its spiffy name, the restaurant has become a well-regarded fixture on the city’s restaurant scene and sits at the pinnacle of Bayless’s dining empire.  Noted not only for the authenticity of its dishes, Topolobampo is just as meticulous about using the best ingredients possible to make them.  It’s this double fisted commitment that earned its Michelin rating and that keeps diners’ palettes dancing.

The restaurant’s stature could withstand a mediocre showing during RW.  Smaller portions of reasonably good food would likely do little harm to the restaurant’s reputation.  Bayless doesn’t take that approach and provides instead one of the best values to be found during the annual celebration. 

The dining room may be even more beautiful than last remembered.   Lights hang like stars over a beautifully stylized bar and add to the room’s feeling of shelter, privacy and casual posh.  The lunch crowd on yet another glacial day in February is a mixed bag of sophistication and utility.  The wait staff, lopsided.  When asked for recommendations, the woman handling our table said, a bit dismissively, that we didn’t want her opinion. She remained taciturn and cautiously condescending throughout the meal. Her comrade taking care of tables just beyond ours was nothing but sunshine and graciousness.  Sometimes it’s just the luck of the draw that determines what kind of service you get.  Fortunately, the menu; not the service, lured us to Clark St. that Thursday afternoon.

Soup, quesadillas and tapioca don’t sound terribly groundbreaking.  But just like anything else; in the right hands, even the mundane can “poof”, become marvelous.  The sopa azteca’s pasilla chili-based broth certainly proved a subtle knockout with its thin homemade masa crisp lid.  The quartet of shrimp filled tacos wowed the eyes first.  Then got all gratifying with the tongue.  As an appetizer, they were a hearty well appreciated roll out to a wonderful lunch.   Fresh and premium quality ingredients turned out to be the hallmarks of the opening courses and everything that followed; especially the carne asada.  The $12 additional charge was well worth the investment.  Drizzled with an Oaxacan black mole, creamy braise of heirloom mushrooms and mezcal infused radishes, indulgences rarely come so delectable or bountiful.

Delicious as they were, the pork quesadillas did disappoint.  The quality of the tortillas, salsas, cheese and pork were unassailable.  Unfortunately, the protein was not evenly distributed throughout the four wedges.  A regrettable surprise but one that only slightly dented the pleasure quotient. 

Offering both the novel and the classic for dessert, diners could choose between innovative uses of fruit or chocolate. Door number one held layers of small coconut flavored pearls resting under a sweet ball of lime sorbet.  The two distinct tastes made them both bold and distinctive.  Door number two opened with two scoops of ice cream and a rich Mexican brownie that would make any sweet tooth feel pampered. 

If only Bellemore the following day had proved as rewarding. Just a year old, the restaurant’s something of a media darling.  Chef Jimmy Papadopoulous caviar-topped oyster pie received glowing coverage during the latter part of last year and remains a highlighted feature on the menu.  During restaurant week it was the Icelandic Cod with harissa charred eggplant that caught our attention.    We were counting on the restaurant’s reputation for boldness and innovation to make the dish memorable.  It turned out that the first course’s vegetable soup; with its radishes, carrots, kale and beans made a more lasting impression.  Another first course option, sweet potato tater tots with parmesan aioli delivered on taste but was meager. 

Regrettably, Bellemore’s RW menu was more appealing on paper. 

In a merry mood and remembering an outstanding cocktail prepared at the restaurant in November, we decided to ask for the bar’s rendition of an old fashioned; a cocktail called To the Point.  At $18, its sticker price was just $6 under the cost of the three-course fixed rate lunch.  But past knowledge and the competent reputation of Bellemore’s mixologists proved strong motivators. Neither as complex or as intriguing as hoped for, the highest praise you could give it is competent. 

But that’s what makes restaurant week so pleasing, you’re never quite sure what going to happen when you slip into one of those dining chairs organizers are so anxious for you to occupy.  And a home run three out of four times at bat will keep you swingin’ every time Restaurant Week rolls around.