Fine-dining in a college town; French-American in Evanston: Oceanique

Cuisine: French-American, Seafood

Location: 505 Main Street, Evanston, IL

Price: $$$

Food: ****

Service: 3.5*

Overall: ****
Website: http://www.oceanique.com/

Evanston, for some reason, is home to a litany of fine dining destinations – from the now defunct Trio¹ to the trio of chefs behind Camapgnola², there is no shortage of places to eat, and eat well, when in Evanston. Of course, this hasn’t stopped students from slogging through four years of college at lovely Northwestern subsisting entirely on Rodeo Cheeseburgers and that banana pepper that comes with your weekly Friday 1 am order of Papa John’s large pizza³.

Of course, the budget of your average college student makes it difficult to eat out and eat well on a constant basis. That hasn’t stopped restaurants from making a name for themselves in Evanston, as locations where Evanston locals can get out and have a nice meal or for students to splurge every now and then.

Two of my favorite restaurants in Evanston to date have been Bistro Bordeaux, a traditional French place right off of Church St. that offers amazing French Onion Soup to go with delectable classic entrees⁴,  and Davis Street Fishmarket, which has been serving up fresh seafood of all shapes and forms to doting parents hoping to take their kids out for a nice meal for years now.

Which brings me to my newest find of Evanston – Oceanique, a French-American/ Seafood restaurant down on Main St., a combination of Davis Street Fish Market and Bistro Bordeaux that manages to outdo both by the virtue of being extremely attentive to detail in their dishes and by being creative and inventive with their menu.

Halibut ceviche

Dinner at Oceanique is not cheap – thanks to Groupon, I was able to enjoy a five-course meal for just $65, but the regular price would have run $105. Our meal started out with a “Chef’s Surprise” – a halibut ceviche plate. The ceviche was really fresh, and the plate was not only well composed, it had several components that played off of each other. Besides the ceviche, the star of the dish was probably the fava bean puree, the nuttieness adding a layer of complexity. The potato chip provided crunch, and the pickled vegetables the acid that completed the dish.

Maryland soft-shell crab tempura

The ceviche was followed by our starter course, with mine being the soft-shell crab. The tempura batter managed not to be overpowering while providing a sharp textural contrast to the plump, tender crab. The plate was sauced with lemongrass essence, giving it a punchy, acidic aftertaste.

Wild Alaskan Sockeye Salmon

Then, we were given an additional plate – essentially, a one-bite tasting portion of the wild Alaskan sockeye salmon entrée. I really appreciated it – it gave me a chance to taste a second entrée, and by condensing the entrée into one bite it guaranteed that I was able to get all the components in one go. The salmon was cooked perfectly, almost melting in my mouth, and the fava bean tied it back to the first course ceviche, giving the meal a sense of continuity.

Citrus-Sorrel Sorbet

Next up was our palate cleanser, a citrus-sorrel sorbet that was fresh and tangy, leaving me ready for the main course. The sorbet was so good that I could have ordered a second side of it for dessert – I love how light sorbets are, it’s practically like eating flavorful, cold air, if that makes sense (it probably doesn’t).

Chilean Turbot

The piece de resistance – Chilean turbot, atop a bed of basil mashed potatoes, eggplants, chanterelle mushrooms, and, of course, bacon, to enhance the dish, arrives shortly thereafter. I’ve never had Chilean turbot before – just seen it countless times on cooking shows, and it always looks amazing. The fish is, as every prior seafood dish has been, cooked to perfection. It’s a sizable portion, and the taste is far more delicate than, say, salmon. With the basil mashed potatoes and the sauce, the dish is full of flavor – from the tender turbot to the creamy mashed potatoes, accented by the smokiness of the bacon and the bite of the eggplant and mushrooms, it is a complete dish in every sense of the word.

Dishes like the turbot is what makes me love cooking so much – its all about adding elements to the plate that complement each other well and provide a complete gastronomic experience. This is the kind of meal I’d like to be able to make – a beautifully cooked piece of fish, a carb that doesn’t overwhelm, vegetables as accoutrements, and then a dynamic sauce that tops it off and ties it all together. This was absolutely the high point of our meal.

The turbot was followed by dessert – two chef’s choices, served to us separately. The idea is to eat half and share plates – the way Oceanique does it, not only do you get variety in dessert, but it maintains the plating aspect and allows the dish to be enjoyed visually as well.

Lemongrass infused creme brulee

The two desserts were a Pot de crème au chocolat (not pictured) and a lemongrass infused crème brulee (the lemongrass being a major theme in the tasting menu throughout, it provides a fitting end note to the meal). The chocolate is divine – smooth and creamy, not overly bitter, covering my taste buds in sweet sweet goodness. The crème brulee, on the other hand, is an innovative take on a French classic – it gives it a very Asian aftertaste, and is a hint too strong in my opinion, but I do like the idea. The crème brulee itself is done to perfection – a hint of burnt caramel that doesn’t overwhelm on the crunchy top, and a base that, aside from the strong lemongrass notes, is silky smooth in texture.

Final Thoughts: Overall, the meal has no weak points – which, after a few months of scrutinizing my meals dish by dish, comes as a surprise to me because very few meals meet that standard. The turbot is absolutely fantastic and totally worth coming back for, and the tasting menu is thoughtfully constructed with an eye out for visual presentation. Their beautiful plates earn them bonus points in my book – the bottom line is, if you’re a student at Northwestern, this is definitely a place worth splurging on, provided the occasion deems it worthy. Guaranteed to bowl your date over with your classiness and knowledge of fine dining in a city filled with 89 cent Taco Bell tacos and $4.99 entrees from Chicken Bar!

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^{1. Where famous Chicago mainstays such as Gale Gand, Rick Tramonto, and Grant Achatz all made stops on their way to greater fame. In its place now is Quince, a modern American restaurant focusing on sustainability.↩}

^{2. Owners Heather Behm, Vince DiBattista, and Steve Schwartz also run Union Pizzeria, a more casual dining experience, and Hummingbird Kitchen, a food truck that brings their culinary skills on the road in Evanston.↩}

^{3. Side of cheesy bread extra, but only if you’re up for feeling terrible about yourself the next day.↩}

^{4. Nine months after dining there, I still remember that I had some of the most tender braised short ribs ever to go with a sweet potato galette that provided a beautiful sweet punch to the juicy goodness of the meat. The dish was finished with a pink peppercorn gastrique, winter vegetables, and a short rib jus that I would have doused myself in if given the opportunity (but that’s not really considered acceptable behavior at a nice French restaurant… right?)↩}