Rosebud Restaurants has expanded its empire with the relatively tony Joe Fish ( 445 N. Dearborn St.; www.rosebudrestaurants.com/ )and you will be hooked.
The service at this restaurant is second to none, and the server has extremely knowledgeable ( although he needed to learn to smile ). I'm not a huge fan of oysters, but my dining companion stuck with West Coast itemsand loved them.
One of the top choices for both of us was the poached lobster salad, which came with avocado, heirloom tomatoes, Russian dressing and chives. Somehow, the ingredients came together to achieve a tasty balance.
As for entrees, the Chilean sea bass was definitely a high point. However, I thought I'd see how a place with Joe Fish fared with red meat, and ordered the lamb chopsand the restaurant did not disappoint with the sizeable rack.
Also, be sure to try the cocktails. The blood orange mojito was more than refreshing, as was the Citizen Kane ( Double Cross Vodka, St. Germain, Poli Pear, lemon and pineapple ).
By the way, the website is a bit difficult to navigate, as I couldn't even preview the entire menu before going to the restaurant. Let's hope that difficulty changes.
Porkchop has had an interesting history for this restaurant profiler. The first time I went to the West Loop location, I was definitely less than impressedbut follow-ups revealed a place with potential, especially brunch. However, the new branch in Hyde Park ( 1516 E. Harper Ct.; chicagoporkchop.com ) also has some work to do.
Located in a mini-mall in gorgeous Hyde Park, this Porkchop is like its fellow restaurant in serving mostly fried items.
For lunch, my friend and I tried pulled pork tacos ( with salsa verde, onions and cilantro ), which were probably the best part of the meal. As for the fried ribs, they were disappointing, as the hickory BBQ sauce pretty much overwhelmed the meat.
My friend only said that the ribs/chicken platter he ordered was OK. The so-called "One and Only Fried Chicken and Waffle Sandwich" elicited a better reaction from mepossibly because I wasn't sure what to expect, as the food thus far had been a crapshoot.
There are some other intriguing-sounding dishes on the menu ( sausage lollipops and the black-bean Hippie burger, for example ). However, judging by my experience ( as well as those of people I subsequently talked with, including those who were dissatisfied with the service ), you may be taking a gamble with those novel items.