Restaurant: Alinea
Location: 1723 N Halsted St, Chicago, IL 60614 | (312) 867-0110
Date: November 24, 2025
Cuisine: Modernist
Rating: Finally! A Bucket-List Meal
I’ve wanted to go to Alinea for years. Grant Achatz’s legendary temple of modernist cuisine has been on my list since he first started making waves with his boundary-pushing approach to food. But I hadn’t been to Chicago since 1994, and somehow the stars never aligned. Until now.
We were passing through Chicago on a college tour with our son, and my wife and I decided this was finally our chance. We booked the full experience — both a regular tasting menu and a “kosher-style” version (they accommodate dietary restrictions with impressive grace), plus the reserve wine pairings. If you’re going to do Alinea, you might as well go all in.
Grant Achatz is one of the most influential chefs of his generation. A protégé of Thomas Keller at The French Laundry, he opened Alinea in 2005 and immediately began redefining what fine dining could be. His story is legendary—diagnosed with stage 4 tongue cancer in 2007, he lost his sense of taste entirely during treatment but continued to lead the kitchen, eventually making a full recovery. The restaurant has held three Michelin stars since 2011 and has been ranked among the world’s best restaurants multiple times. His cooking is theatrical, emotional, and technically mind-bending.
The entrance to Alinea is deliberately understated—a door in a townhouse facade that gives nothing away, alas, so understated that I forgot to photograph, so you will have to make due with a photo of my wife at the table.
The regular menu and the kosher-style version. They run two parallel tracks through the evening, which is impressive kitchen choreography.
The evening began with Champagne, as all proper evenings should.
Krug 2008 – When they say “reserve wine pairings,” they mean it. Krug’s vintage Champagnes are legendary, and the 2008 is a stellar year. Toasty, complex, with that signature Krug depth and power. A statement of intent right out of the gate.
Chicago-Style Hot Dog – Tofu, neon relish, tomato, yellow mustard. A playful deconstructed take on the city’s iconic street food. This is Alinea in a nutshell: taking something familiar and completely reimagining it while keeping the essence intact. This takes gelatinous cube to the next level.
Parsnip – Roasted banana, white truffle, hazelnut milk. I was skeptical about the banana, but fortunately the banana flavor was mild. Mostly truffle. The hazelnut milk added a creamy, nutty backdrop that worked beautifully with the earthy parsnip and the heady funk of fresh white truffle.
Part of the Alinea experience is a tour of the kitchen with a snack and a drink.
The kitchen is a stainless-steel lab of precision—industrial, focused, and quietly theatrical.
They have a Control Freak! (Fellow cooking nerds will understand the excitement) I miss my Control Freak (stuck in the smoke house).
Our kitchen snack was hidden inside this contraption…
Fear Factor Tonka Toddy – Celery root, shallot, apple cider, smoldering oak. And voila, you pull out this fried thing. The theatricality is part of the fun.
The accompanying cocktail: Novo Gold cachaça and Macallan 12 sherry cask, tonka bean. Sweet and strong—exactly right for the moment.
Albert Boxler Pinot Gris Brand Grand Cru 2020 – A stunning Alsatian Pinot Gris from one of the region’s best producers. Rich and honeyed with that distinctive spice that Grand Cru vineyards deliver.
Peeled Grapes – Concord, roasted peanut, bronze fennel. Deconstructed PB&J. Another playful riff on a childhood classic, but elevated into something genuinely sophisticated. The grape provides sweetness, the peanut brings that familiar salty richness, and the fennel adds an anise note that ties it all together.
M. Chapoutier Chante-Alouette 2021 – White Hermitage from one of the Rhône’s most respected producers. Marsanne-based, rich and full-bodied with notes of white flowers and stone fruit. A serious wine.
Osetra – Roasted soybean, sake lees. So good! The caviar was pristine, and the umami from the soybean and sake lees created this incredible depth. One of those bites that makes you stop talking and just exist in the moment.
So good.
Aubert Sonoma Coast Chardonnay – California luxury Chardonnay at its finest. Rich, complex, with that signature Aubert opulence.
Charred – Arctic char, Blis maple syrup, smoke. Sweet and smoky. The char was cooked beautifully, and the Blis maple (a Michigan producer that ages their syrup in bourbon barrels) added this incredible depth of flavor.
Plume – Black cod. Delicate, buttery, perfectly executed.
Crisps – Ashed onion dip, mint. Chips in the bag—a whimsical presentation that made us smile.
Chips for the dip.
Hot Potato, Cold Potato – Black truffle, parmesan, chive. This is one of Alinea’s most famous dishes, and it delivers. A dish with varied textures and temps — you pull a pin and everything drops into the spoon at once. The contrast between hot and cold, the truffle, the parmesan… it’s a masterwork of engineering and flavor.
Clos du Mont-Olivet La Cuvée du Papet 2015 – Châteauneuf-du-Pape from a legendary producer. The 2015 vintage is drinking beautifully—Grenache-dominant with that classic southern Rhône warmth and spice.
Wax Strawberry – With endive. Very interesting. The wax coating melts as you eat, releasing the strawberry’s juices. Another moment of surprise and delight.
Squab – Thai long peppercorn. Beautifully roasted, with the long pepper adding an exotic, slightly floral heat.
Explosion – Black truffle, romaine, parmesan. Explodes in your mouth. This is another signature dish—a ravioli that bursts with truffle broth when you bite it. Pure umami bomb.
Château Pontet-Canet 2009 – A stellar Pauillac from a great vintage. Pontet-Canet has been one of Bordeaux’s most improved estates, now biodynamic, and the 2009 is rich, structured, and drinking beautifully.
Cooking in kombu under hot stones. Tableside theater at its finest.
Beet – Kombu, Asian pear, matsutake mushrooms. The kosher-style version of the main course, cooked under those hot stones.
Wagyu – Kombu, Asian pear, matsutake mushrooms. The regular version. Silky, rich, perfect.
A fish version as well.
Truffled potato purée — silky smooth and decadent.
Blandy’s 1976 Bual Madeira – To close with something truly special. A nearly 50-year-old Madeira from one of the island’s great houses. Bual is medium-rich, with that distinctive Madeira complexity—caramel, nuts, and a acidity that keeps it vibrant despite its age. Extraordinary.
Paint – Pumpkin, chai, chocolate. The famous dessert course where they paint directly on your table. It’s theatrical, messy, delicious, and Instagram-ready (not that we’re above that sort of thing).
The two of us enjoying the grand finale.
Balloon – Helium, green apple, taffy. Yes, you eat the balloon and then talk in a squeaky voice. It’s silly and wonderful. Definitely some fun stuff. Very playful.
Alinea lived up to every expectation I’d built over the years of waiting. Grant Achatz and his team have created something truly special—not just technically brilliant cooking, but an experience that engages all your senses and emotions. The playfulness (Chicago hot dog, balloon, PB&J) is balanced by moments of pure culinary refinement (the osetra, the wagyu, that extraordinary wine lineup). The reserve pairings were worth every penny—Krug 2008, Pontet-Canet 2009, 1976 Bual Madeira. That’s not a wine list, that’s a education.
Was it worth the years of anticipation? Absolutely. This was one of the best meals I’ve had in a very long time. If you find yourself in Chicago with the budget and the curiosity, do it. Go to Alinea. It’s a once-in-a-lifetime experience, though I suspect I’ll find a way to make it happen again.
