Chi-town Dish - Custom House

So, at long last, we have found an apartment in Chicago...it was sort of quick and sort of painful, the band-aid of my life right now. Luckily, it's over and I was a big girl and now I have a place to call home.

C and I started the weekend on a rainy Thursday, nearly electrocuted and drenched in the South Loop, but we made it to the Custom House. This delightfully un-trendy eatery boasts luxe booths, leather, low lighting and a menu fit for carnivores. C and I were surprised to find several braised dishes and heavy game selections on the menu, this is July, right? There were only 3 seafood dishes...one of which I had and it was delicious. Before we go there though, let's talk about how fabulous and under-rated octopus is as a dish? Octopus for me is like a little taste of heaven, I have not had any I do not like...this meal was no different as we ordered this wonderful octopus caponata with fresh roasted veggies, pine nuts, golden raisins and tasty grilled octopus. This was a great way to start off the meal, very light and delicious and made me want another 4 plates of it.

For my entree, I went w/ the Wisconsin White Perch with a crusty panko topping served with room temperature gnocchi/bacon/shallots. The smokiness of the bacon and the light, white fish were great. I would order the gnocchi as a side again and the fish made me excited to explore the world of lake trout.

C ordered from the braised meat list and went with our perennial favorite: the short rib. These short ribs were like butter-fall-off-the-bone goodness - served with two horseradish cream-filled beignets. Different. I'll leave it at that. To share we ordered the pea, pea pod, bacon, and turnip salad. It's cold, mixed with creme fraiche for a summer barbeque salad type consistency - absolutely delicious. Loved it a lot. Their other sides consisted of whole grains like quinoa and farro, to fun starches like gratin and whipped Yukon gold potatoes. If there was a vegetarian option of sides, I would have definitely gone for that. It was very tough to pick just one.

We skipped dessert, though there were some interested options. I would recommend the Custom House to anyone looking for superior service, great food, and a quiet but beautiful dining room.