Beatrix

It's been a while since we've been on a Bib Gourmand restaurant, and we could think of no better time to go than during Chicago's Restaurant Week. 

Chicago Neighborhood: River North

River North is a neighborhood included in the Near North Side community area, which is the oldest part of Chicago, dating back to the 1780s. Originally called Smokey Hollow due to high concentrations of factory smoke, the River North of today owes a lot to Albert Friedman, a real estate developer. Besides giving the neighborhood its name, Friedman founded the prolific gallery district, which features and abundance of photography and art galleries. In addition to the art district, River North also includes luxury interior design stores, many cathedrals, and touristy dining areas.

The Atmosphere:

There's not much to say about the restaurant's decor. Once again, the exposed pipes in the ceiling, the minimalist light fixtures, and black steel bars all scream industrial chic, which is apparently a trend among the "hip" restaurants. Nothing bad about that, but it's also not very memorable. The place really started hop around 6 pm, but it's hard to say if that's common seeing as how we were there during restaurant week. The dim lights and cozy seating make it a great place for a date, but we also saw a surprising number of families with babies, so basically anything goes. 

The Food:

Beatrix prides itself in creating health-conscious dishes while still remaining flavorful. Our waitress actually offered to explain to us any unfamiliar ingredients on the menu. I mean, I suppose there might be some people who might not recognize what kale or quinoa are. 

Anyways, the top of the menu features a fresh-squeezed juice section. Normally, we'd just drink water in order to improve our chances of meeting the budget goal, but I'm a huge sucker for fresh fruit juice, so we splurge on a blueberry and basil smash. It was fragrant and delicious, but for a whopping $6.50, I was hoping for a taller glass.

For the appetizers, we tried the "enlightened caesar" salad and the tomato soup. Both were tasty, but nothing out of the ordinary.

I chose the chili and chocolate glaze salmon for the entree, which came with almond slaw and corn tortillas. Again, everything tasted fine, but nothing really stood out to me.

My husband decided to be a bit more adventurous and got the "neatloaf." And no, this was not vegetarian -- it was made out of turkey, sweet potatoes, and greens. So...why did they call it a "neatloaf?" It's meatloaf, isn't it? What is "neatloaf?" Kind of deceptive, if you ask me. As for the taste, the only flavor we could really pick out was "salty," so, eh.

I had to get the chia pudding for dessert. It sounded like just the kind of thing a vegan hipster would eat, and I needed to see if it could successfully satisfy a sweet tooth. The verdict? Well, it would certainly make a fantastic breakfast! The coconut milk made the pudding creamy without any of the heavy richness that comes with real cream, and the chia seeds added delightful texture. The flavors were mild and pleasant, and certainly made me feel like a healthy person. But as a dessert, there is nothing that really piques your palate, no bold rush of sweetness that makes dessert something to look forward to. I imagine the pomegranate seeds were thrown on top in order to provide sharp acidity, but they really just blend into the overall mush of neutral tones. I wager that if they had only added bits of dark chocolate pieces, the pudding would really be something special.

The tall, dark, and chocolate cake, on the other hand, was extremely rich and sweet. It's a bit confusing to see a layer of brownie-like cake mounded with a heap of ganache offered on a menu next to chia seed pudding. If Beatrix really is trying to revolutionize healthy gourmet cuisine, there are better ways to do it besides offering a bland but healthy breakfast item and a decadent and sinfully sweet chocolate cake. 

The Price: $80

It's restaurant week, so each person's three course meal was $33, which should have made the total $66, but since we splurged on fruit juice, the price went a bit higher. Looking at the menu, if we had come on a regular weekday, the actual total would have been right around $80 as well. So, overall Beatrix is a bit pricey, although keep in mind the two dessert and juice. Although nothing tasted bad necessarily, I was disappointed in the lack of creativity seen in the dishes, and truly believe that there is a way to make healthy dishes without sacrificing artistry and flavor. Unfortunately, Beatrix hasn't found that way just yet.

The List

1. The Angry Crab
2. Arami
3. A10
4. Au Cheval
5. Avec
6. Balena
7. Beatrix
8. BellyQ
9. Belly Shack
10. Bohemian House
11. Carriage House
12. Ceres' Table
13. Chilam Balam
14. County Barbeque
15. Cumin
16. The Dawson 
17. DeCOLORES
18. Dove's Luncheonette
19. The Duck Inn
20. Fat Rice
21. Frontera Grill
22. Gilt Bar
23. Girl and the Goat
24. Green Zebra
25. GT Fish and Oyster
26. Han 202
27. Herb
28. Hopleaf 
29. Jaipur 
30. Jam
31. Jin Thai Cuisine
32. Kai Zan
33. Lao Sze Chuan
34. Luella's Southern Kitchen
35. Lula Cafe
36. Mana Food Bar
37. Maude's Liquor Bar
38. mfk.
39. MingHin
40. Mott Street
41. Nana
42. The Publican 
43. The Pump Room
44. The Purple Pig 
45. Riccardo Trattoria
46. Sabri Nihari
47. Slurping Turtle
48. Smoque 
49. Sol de Mexico 
50. Spacca Napoli
51. Sushi Dokku
52. Table, Donkey and Stick
53. TAC Quick
54. Two
55. Untitled 
56. Via Lima
57. Wood
58. Yusho