“Pay It Forward” at Bavette’s!

While visiting Chicago over the holidays, one of the items on my to-do list was to dine at a true Chicago Steakhouse. I perused many of the well known restaurants while deciding where to dine, but one thing caught my eye when I read about Bavette’s. It was their “Pay It Forward” policy regarding corkage fees. You are allowed to bring in two of your own bottles of wine for no corkage fee as long as you are willing to share a glass from each bottle with someone else in the restaurant. I found this to be a thoughtful, creative idea and I loved it! That clinched the deal for me on what restaurant to try, so we went to “Pay It Forward” at Bavette’s! Additionally I read wonderful accolades about their delicious food, of course. As that is certainly of primary concern to me.

Upon entering the restaurant, I was delighted as the setting and ambiance was exactly what I was hoping for in a traditional steakhouse. It was perfect! Our waiter was terrific and fortunately came equipped with a nice sense of humor which helped make our experience more enjoyable.

The menu was not overwhelming and had a few interesting surprises. Our meal began with steaming warm, crusty bread alongside soft spreadable butter and a dish of a house-made mixture of fresh seasoned salt. (It’s the little things that make a difference!)

For starters we selected a Baked Crab Cake with blue crab (the best), with preserved lemon and remoulade, the Bacon Roasted Tomato Salad with watercress, olive oil and herb salt, and their Roasted Bone Marrow with caramelized red onion jam and parsley salad. They were all really wonderful! The tomato salad was amazing with the thick slab bacon & sweet tomatoes and the bone marrow, although a bit difficult to eat, was also fantastic. You don’t get a lot from the bone, but what you get is succulent and supremely decadent. 

For entree’s we went beef all the way! Two Classic Ribeyes – Chicago Cut, (I ordered mine with the maitre’d butter – not counting calories over the holiday) a Traditional Fillet Mignon and Bolognese with hand cut pappardelle, parmesan and bread crumbs. Everything was delicious and my steak was one of the best I have ever had!

For sides, we ordered Creamed Spinach with bleu cheese and caramelized onions and a Baked Sweet Potato with butter and brown sugar. The spinach was the only item that didn’t thrill me. However, the sweet potato was a piece of heaven – no holding back on the butter! Simple, but well done and absolutely scrumptious!

No room for dessert, but who can say no to a little sweet after such a wonderful meal? Anyway, a little ice cream just melts all the food away, doesn’t it? Not sure what part the chocolate sauce plays, other then it’s luscious goodness! Oh well, there is always January for dieting…

Being a true steakhouse, the lights were dimmed so my photo’s don’t show as much detail as usual. I apologize for that, but my family decided that using a flash might not be the most appropriate thing for me to do. You’ll just have to go to Bavette’s yourself to get a better look at their amazing food!