Tru Restaurant

02/21/07

Management isn't hungry any more.

by sedler948 at Citysearch

My husband always treats me to an extraordinary restaurant for our anniversary and my birthday. After experiencing Charlie Trotters, Everest, Trio, and Avenues, I looked forward to Tru.

After we were into the first course, another patron wearing far too much scent was seated near me. I could no longer taste my food due to the perfume. I saw no open tables, so I just dealt with it.

When I got home, I emailed customer service suggesting that the staff be trained to seat people wearing obvious scent in a designated area as I was sure that the staff had been trained not to wear scent. I did not ask for anything but acknowledgement of my idea.

I have yet to hear from anyone at Tru. This was nearly a year ago. Tru will not see me again.

We had the tasting menu. The courses that I could taste were good. The staff is a bit pompous. The atmosphere is a proper setting.

Spend your money with Charlie Trotter or Avenues. Those establishments care about their patrons.

• Pros: ambiance
• Cons: staff is overtrained in some areas and oblivious in others

12/20/06

Art food with a sense of humor.

by nostromo53 at Citysearch

In two words: Utterly delightful.

Briefly, Tru is not for those whose idea of food is narrowly defined, or for those who are not adventurous - both with flavors, textures AND appearances. If you have issues with eating something you don't recognize, Tru may not be for you.

Service was, at first, a bit stiff, but my wife and I enjoy getting wait staff to loosen up. There were several attending us who played along quite nicely.

On to the food. After a couple of "amuse bouche" items, we selected the "Chef's Collection" degustation. It's about 9-11 small plates.

Each course was amazing. In many of the courses, textures and flavors changed from bite to bite. There were no sharp, intrusive flavors - just subtle and elegant ones. There were flavors and textures that I experienced for the first time. There were some outrageous combinations, like venison and ginger snaps, which I ended up giggling about - and loving! One of the descriptions of Tru includes the idea of whimsey. While many of the presentations are indeed whimsical, the description applies far more to the flavors you experience. With some of the courses, the flavors were just insane. High art [food] with a wry, subtle sense of humor.

We ordered two wines - one half bottle of Champaign for the first part, and a full bottle of a Chateauneuf du Pape for the second part.

Our dinner lasted from 6:15pm-11:00pm. The bill? A LOT.

Was it worth it? Yep.

Three small minor nits:

1. If you're going to outfit your wait staff in suits - please make sure the suits all fit. One of the attendants' jacket had the sleeves up over his knuckles.

2. The use of emulsions/foam is becoming a little overdone at high end restaurants, and I certainly wouldn't mind it going away - or being used a lot more sparingly.

3. The menu that was mailed to us several days later was full of spelling errors. Spellchecker anyone?

10/22/06

A wonderfully memorable experience!

by amyyount at Citysearch

Everything about this restaurant was fabulous! The food was so good, we didn't mind the price at all. It was worth it! We got the Chef's tasting-amazing! The service is amazing! This is a great place to go for a special occasion such as a wedding anniversary.

• Pros: FOOD, service, atmosphere
• Cons: absolutely none

10/21/06

Excellent atmosphere and food

by dondattabiggy at Citysearch

Order the Black Truffle Lobster Risoto, order the Australian Lamb. This place has incredible service, definitely the best place in Chicago.

08/09/06

Tru without the commitment

by starchyarchy at Citysearch

A new 9-table Salon lets you sample the ambiance, coordinated service, and ingenious creations without dropping $110-$135 a person on three hours of degustation antics.

Its five caviar offerings and five savory ones start at $12. Theyre tiny in size but huge in creativity and quality. Four tiny sandwiches--maybe 2 inches across--included one of butter-poached lobster with mango on a tiny brioche; another was filled with chile-spiced peeky-toe crab. They came with a salad of lambs-tongue lettuce, each tiny but flavorful leaf seemingly brushed individually with a few molecules of dressing. I dont know if its the superior ingredients or the ingenious combinations and gifted cookery, but an eye dropper of food here seems to pack as much flavor and more pure pleasure than a ladleful elsewhere.

Its obviously not the amount of food that makes this place so special, but the careful hunting out of extraordinary ingredients and the specialized talent that delivers so much pleasure. Nowhere is that more obvious than in the $36 slow-poached egg. Its cooked for 90 minutes to develop a unique consistency, then added to a cream-and-Champagne sauce with 1/8-inch croutons that crunch and simplicity to contrast with the smooth, rich sauce and delicate osetra caviar. The salty roe, sinfully-rich cream, unctuous egg, and elemental bread each makes its own statement to the delight of your taste buds.

• Pros: Superlative service, ingredients, cooking techniques
• Cons: Not for those looking for a conventional "classy" dining experience

06/23/06

That special evening

by bravokb at Citysearch

This is a very special place. I have dined in MANY highly rated expensive places in Chicago and elsewhere--and this is really an event. The dining room is austere, but beautiful-the focus is clearly on the food, and the service--RIDICULOUS.

If you can afford this-make it your night out. My date and I had the chef's market--a seven course extravangnza with wine--WOW!!!

06/09/06

Kitchen staff needs lots of training

by deubler at Citysearch

After my one and only dinner experience at Tru, I'm baffled how it managed to receive so many positive reviews. My wife and I both had the three course menu which offers about 8 choices per course. On paper, many dishes sounded tempting.

The amuse bouche was a selection of small tasters, e.g. a little braised beef or a soup in shooter glass. Nothing was bad but nothing was good either, I certainly wouldn't have wanted more of anything from the selection. All in all a very, very average greeting from the kitchen.

From then on things only got worse. The black truffle and lobster risotto was a nightmare, the rice kernels were completely overcooked and mushy and had the size of a small pea. I've had black truffles many times in the past and I can guarantee that as hard as I tried to find it, there was absolutely no taste of of them in this mush. The lobster part of the dish consisted of a few slivers of very overcooked meat. Overall it tasted like a very bad tomato risotto.

Main course was black-striped seabass with foie gras. Again, the fish was completely overcooked and bone dry as was the foie gras which should be crisp on the outside and moist and tender in the inside.

Desserts were OK, not great. Service was fine if a little pretensious, the synchronized water pouring is simply ridiculous. The wine list is impressive if you're a label drinker, just buy anything which has a high Parker rating and in as many vintages as possible. With that method, my teetoller spinster aunt could do the same job as the sommeliers.

The couple running Tru must have some talent to have gained their excellent reputation but apparently they weren't working on the day of my dinner. In any case their chefs are completely incapable of producing anything even close to a decent meal. I was expecting a 2 Michelin star/18 Gault Millau points experience. In reality, for the meal we were served, they'd be lucky to get 11 points from GM.

I've been to many one, two and three Michelin star restaurants in Europe, many which were less expensive than Tru and the level of cooking skills displayed in all of them was universes away from what Tru had to offer. I wouldn't return to Tru, if dinner were free, it was that bad.

• Pros: Central location, nice bar
• Cons: food cooked by incompetent chefs

08/15/05

The Best of Chicago

by chicagocouple at Citysearch

This dining experience is absolutely outstanding. Chef Tramonto's Collection is definitely recommended. From the Crenshaw Melon-Basil juice to the Osetra Caviar staircase - this is just the beginning of an evening to remember. The Poached Maine Lobster Risotto is definitely a must have. The service is impectable - very attentive - present for every request before one even thinks to ask. Each course is perfectly orchestrated...every morsel a work of art. Excutive Pastry Chef Gale Gand's dessert The art collection brings even more to the atmosphere from Andy Warhol's Marilyn to Yves Klein's Venus Bleuse - Tru brings together an experience that is delectable , unique, and worth every penny.

• Pros: Excellent Service, Quiet, Romantic

07/06/05

TRU- Truly remarkable!

by edskupien at Citysearch

Perhaps the best overall restaurant experience I had ever imagined. Having been to the finest restaurants in 52 countries TRU is unequivocally the best! TRUS impeccable service, perfect presentation, extensive, well rounded wine list brought a tear to my eye.

I could wax on about each delightful course, the staff etc. But alas, it is something that can only be fully appreciated if in fact it is experienced in totality. Please plan to arrive early and spend the entire evening.

My 88 year old Grand mother quipped; This is better than the nice restaurant that you took me to in San Francisco, therefore Chicago is better than San Francisco

My grandmother could find no fault. Neither could I. Our party of five left the restaurant with the feeling of amazement and wonder. We surrendered to the passion which is TRU.

Thankful for the experience.

Edward Skupien

Frank Family Vineyards

• Pros: Service, Wine List, Food
• Cons: None, None, None

05/21/05

decent, but inconsistent

by farazj at Citysearch

We went for my fiance's birthday. The service, while a bit stiff, was impeccable. The food however, was hit or miss. We went with the Chef's tasting. The soups were amazing, and creatively presented. The main course(s) of venison and steak were delicious. The fish courses were unremarkable, and a foie gras on french toast, competes as one of the worst things we've ever eaten - soggy, slimy and unbearably rich. Overall, the food was pretty good, but at the prices hardly inspiring. I can't imagine we'd go back.

• Pros: service
• Cons: expensive, uptight