Ten-year-old River North restaurant Vermilion ( 10 W. Hubbard St.; www.thevermilionrestaurant.com/ ) started at a time when fusion was particularly popular.
Owner Rohini Dey ( who's also opened a Vermilion in New York City since ) decided to have a Chicago eatery with a mix of bold flavors: Indian and Latin American ( with some Portuguese influence as well ). The decor is similarly bold, as the color vermilion ( a striking shade of red ) is throughout the restaurant, even decorating the semi-private room in the main dining area.
However, when a restaurant refreshingly strikes out on its own and takes chances, there are usually hits and misses. Fortunately, Vermilion has more of the former. ( By the way, the staff can turn down the heat on most of the dishes if your tolerance is limited, like mine. )
Even the drinks started off with a bang. After perusing the intriguing offerings, I settled on a Lake Michigana refreshing cocktail in a glass that was festooned with more foliage than a forest. I tried to think which part of the lake this drink reflected, but it did taste nice, nonetheless.
The menu is divided into tapas, "street," signature preparations and heat. ( The last one doesn't necessarily mean spicy, by the way. ) Regarding the tapas, the blue corn-crusted scallops ( with chipotle sauce and goat cheese ) turned out very tasty. Other items include mysore lamb chops, toasted coconut-coated shrimp and cilantro tamarind paneer.
My dining companion and I were then treated to a degustation plate of four appetizers: chicken kabab, duck vindaloo arepas, malabar crab empanadas and artichoke heart fritters. The kabab ( coupled with chili mint chutney ) was a standout, as were the fritters and arepas. However, my friend and I agreed that the empanadas were something of a conundrum, as they were deliciousbut were lacking in crab meat.
As for signature preparations and "heat," we got plantain-crusted whitefish from the first list and tiffin "pindi" butter chicken from the second. While both were satisfying, they actually both took a back seat to a side that came with the fish: a moist, tasty grits cake that I could have dined on alone. ( Vermilion, incidentally, has other options like lobster portuguese, lamb shank gassi, goat mutton, shrimp curry and blackened tamarind ribs ).
If you happen to save room for dessert, you cannot go wrong with the dark chocolate or the nut cake. The mango flan was delicious as wellbut like the crab empanadas, the main ingredient seemed to be lacking, making it taste like something different.
The name of the game is adventure. With the colorful restaurant Vermilion, any diner will certainly go a culinary one.