Photo: Maggie Faircloth
Photo: Maggie Faircloth
Meritage Café in Bucktown was a longtime favorite of mine. I always used it as a staple response for friends asking, “Where should I go for a first date? … What’s a good place for weekend brunch? … Where should I take my in-laws while they’re visiting?” My answer was most always, “Meritage Café!” The food was fantastic, the service was comfortable and the atmosphere was communal but with easy formalities of low lighting, candles and exposed brick walls that gave it a home-away-from home feeling. So when it closed a few months ago, I was dispirited. My favorite spot for all occasions was no longer.
When I found out recently that Troy Graves, the chef from Meritage Café, popped up at a restaurant in Andersonville, I immediately had hopes that it would be “Meritage Café II,” a little further north but close enough for a monthly visit. The name of this new restaurant, Tallulah, made it sound quaint, familial and cozy, so I decided I’d take my mother for her birthday and do some due diligence for a review. She would be candid dining companion and would be agreeable to try just about any dish.
The menu at Tallulah is impressive. The website states, “An affinity for ethnic cuisines inspires every dish Chef Graves creates, resulting in the contemporary American bistro that is Tallulah,” which means Chef Graves’ signature melding of eclectic flavors is in many of the dishes. The menu is comprised of appetizers like the Spicy Maine Lobster Deviled Eggs, which the waiter explained was a customer favorite — we thought it was … well, it was fine. Also on the menu was Woodland Mushrooms, Prune & Bleu Cheese Tart Watercress & Sherry Vinaigrette; and Buffalo Tartar Red Onions, Capers and Horseradish-Maple Aioli, which we tried — and found bland, lacking seasoning, similar to the deviled eggs. The Bulgogi-Style Pork Belly and Kimchee is a dish Chef Graves most likely brought with him from Meritage and was a favorite of many customers. The Artisan Cheeses and Cured Meats with Grilled Bread and Mission Fig Compote is certainly a safe bet for many diners. We ordered the Green Garlic & Potato Soup Asparagus & Brie Crostini and the Lobster Bisque Rosemary-Vanilla Flan, which by the sound of the ingredients propped themselves up to have the potential to be incredibly flavorful and unique dishes. These were, yet again … fine. So far, everything was just fine.
The atmosphere was nice — white table clothes, a wall of windows out to Lincoln Avenue where we watched a spring rainstorm roll in, candles on the tables, a faux-marble underlit bar and an Eastern, minimalist approach to the décor. The service, however, was full of holes up to this point: my wine glass showed up with a still-moist bright red lipstick smudge newly planted on the rim. Before we arrived, I called to let the reservationist know we would be a few minutes late, and she informed me that if we couldn’t make it for our original 6:30 p.m. reservation, we would most likely have to wait until 9 p.m. When we arrived, the restaurant was about 20 percent full and most tables remained clear for an hour or longer, which made it annoying that we raced to get there. The space is small, and the tables are so close together that at peak hours, talking at a casual volume to dinner companions becomes challenging. Also, due to the tightness of the space, if you want to get up from the table during the meal, it’s as easy as trying to exit from a window seat in an airplane — in other words, it turns into a group event.
For entrees, we tried the Braised Oxtail Stinging Nettle Gnocchi, Woodland Mushrooms and Asparagus and the Braised Short Ribs Bacon-Brie Mashed Potatoes and Roasted Root Vegetables. Again, both dishes didn’t meet the expectations that the ingredients had us hoping for. Other entrees on the current menu include: East-Meets-West Steak Frites Peppercorn Crusted Steak; Garlic-Soy Jus & Yuzu-Togarashi Frites; Artichoke Confit Napoleon Country Olives, Rapini, Pearl Onions and Rouille; Alaskan Halibut Fava Beans, Strawberries, Pancetta and Balsamic Gastrique.
The dessert menu is small, but creative and included Chai Creme Brulee; Chocolate Peanut Butter Pots de Creme Peanut Brittle; and Ancho Chile and Chocolate Mousse Roasted Banana Bisque. The flavor combinations are reminiscent of the dishes Chef Graves created at Meritage, and end up being a great topping to the meal.
Tallulah is also open for Sunday brunch, which may be its saving grace as it works to get things together. The overall menu is fantastic, unfortunately the delivery is lacking right now. Knowing Chef Graves work, I’m confident the dining experience at Tallulah will improve, and I’m still holding out hope that it will become another Chicago standby. However I don’t suspect that will happen for a few more months, so give the team a while to get the necessary choreography between menu, service and ambience down, and then try it out later this summer.
Tallulah, 4539 N. Lincoln Ave., Chicago, IL; 773-942-7585, tallulahchicago.com.
Tanya Fritz is a professionally trained chef, oenophile, slow-food fanatic and yoga enthusiast.