If you want to dine at Tru, Chicago's high house of haute cuisine, you better have two things: time and money.
Prix-fixe meals start at $90. Ordering wine? (Of course you are.) You're now well over $200 for table of two. Chef Rick Tramonto's signature multicourse extravaganzas cost substantially more. Tru's not exactly a pre-theater destination, either--here, food is theater. In other words, it takes time to serve all of all those courses--and when it's over, you may want to applaud.
Until recently, however, Tru's lounge was simply a place to enjoy a cocktail while you waited for the main event: the dining room. Yes, those in the know always sipped champagne, and nibbled caviar and dessert (after 9:30 p.m.) here. But the newly made-over lounge and the introduction of a lounge-only a la carte menu from chef de cuisine Joel Dennis now lets you tailor a Tru dining experience to your time and budget--provided you're not too stingy with either.
Gone are the lounge's old towering glass bar and banquette seating, replaced by black granite-topped tables and sensual charcoal-gray mohair chairs. When we arrived, we were escorted to a pre-set corner table accented by a white vase of black calla lilies (quite sexy!). The contemporary art collection still includes that strange Yves Klein's sculpture "Venus Bleue," but the walls boast two new pieces, including conceptual artist Ivan Navarro's neon-lit infinity mirror, "Stay." Appropriate, since that's what we wanted to do after we finished our meal.
Sure, the lounge isn't the over-the-top experience you'll find in the dining room, but it's not grab-'n'-gulp either. Reservations are a must, and gentleman: jackets, please! As in the dining room, lounge service operates with drill squad precision, the synchronized servers whisking away each plate as seamlessly as they present the next.
The lounge menu may be small, but it's amazing. One half is dedicated to caviar, which Tru serves by the half-ounce ($70-$168) or by the signature Staircase ($42-$91). There are also two more composed--and less expensive--caviar dishes; my friend and I split the heavenly caviar spaetzle ($35). Our server kept the peace between us by carefully spooning caviar over each of our tea-mushroom foams as if counting each individual fish egg.
The Savory side of the menu includes Faux Gras ($16), a delicious, cocoa-dusted retort to the city's foie gras ban. This small delight of whipped chicken liver mouse came wrapped in a delicate skin of sauternes gelee. But the star of the night was the Clear Gazpacho ($12), presented with a mosaic of tomato gelee, watermelon and cucumber cubes at the bottom of the dish. The artistry rivaled anything on the walls, with a brilliant flavor to match.
Between us, we ate a total of five courses, drank two glasses of champagne and two glasses of wine. "Dessert" was free; a small tray of chocolate and cookies came with the bill, but we could have ordered from the restaurant's dessert menu ($15-24). Total: $181.92 before tip.
Not truly cheap--but for Tru, cheap.
Chris LaMorte is the metromix dining producer.
Prix-fixe meals start at $90. Ordering wine? (Of course you are.) You're now well over $200 for table of two. Chef Rick Tramonto's signature multicourse extravaganzas cost substantially more. Tru's not exactly a pre-theater destination, either--here, food is theater. In other words, it takes time to serve all of all those courses--and when it's over, you may want to applaud.
Until recently, however, Tru's lounge was simply a place to enjoy a cocktail while you waited for the main event: the dining room. Yes, those in the know always sipped champagne, and nibbled caviar and dessert (after 9:30 p.m.) here. But the newly made-over lounge and the introduction of a lounge-only a la carte menu from chef de cuisine Joel Dennis now lets you tailor a Tru dining experience to your time and budget--provided you're not too stingy with either.
Gone are the lounge's old towering glass bar and banquette seating, replaced by black granite-topped tables and sensual charcoal-gray mohair chairs. When we arrived, we were escorted to a pre-set corner table accented by a white vase of black calla lilies (quite sexy!). The contemporary art collection still includes that strange Yves Klein's sculpture "Venus Bleue," but the walls boast two new pieces, including conceptual artist Ivan Navarro's neon-lit infinity mirror, "Stay." Appropriate, since that's what we wanted to do after we finished our meal.
Sure, the lounge isn't the over-the-top experience you'll find in the dining room, but it's not grab-'n'-gulp either. Reservations are a must, and gentleman: jackets, please! As in the dining room, lounge service operates with drill squad precision, the synchronized servers whisking away each plate as seamlessly as they present the next.
The lounge menu may be small, but it's amazing. One half is dedicated to caviar, which Tru serves by the half-ounce ($70-$168) or by the signature Staircase ($42-$91). There are also two more composed--and less expensive--caviar dishes; my friend and I split the heavenly caviar spaetzle ($35). Our server kept the peace between us by carefully spooning caviar over each of our tea-mushroom foams as if counting each individual fish egg.
The Savory side of the menu includes Faux Gras ($16), a delicious, cocoa-dusted retort to the city's foie gras ban. This small delight of whipped chicken liver mouse came wrapped in a delicate skin of sauternes gelee. But the star of the night was the Clear Gazpacho ($12), presented with a mosaic of tomato gelee, watermelon and cucumber cubes at the bottom of the dish. The artistry rivaled anything on the walls, with a brilliant flavor to match.
Between us, we ate a total of five courses, drank two glasses of champagne and two glasses of wine. "Dessert" was free; a small tray of chocolate and cookies came with the bill, but we could have ordered from the restaurant's dessert menu ($15-24). Total: $181.92 before tip.
Not truly cheap--but for Tru, cheap.
Chris LaMorte is the metromix dining producer.
