“Difficult to find, but worth finding- The Franklin Room”.

***** Many of us use Wells Street and Franklin to scurry about the West Loop on our way to Ontario to grab the Kennedy heading North. The street is seldom busy and most evenings parking on the street is a breeze. Imagine our surprise when we were invited to try The Franklin Room, where you enter a door, walk down a flight of stairs, and find just a little bit of heaven on earth! This dining space has been around for a decade and I may have driven past it several dozen times, not noticing the signage or even thinking there would or could be a restaurant of this quality there.

The stairway to “heaven” leads one to a semi-dark room with backlit glass cabinets with every type of liquor one can think of- bourbon, rye, vodka, gin, wines and a collection that I doubt can be matched anywhere in Chicago. After a decade, Chef Namo Chowcharoen has introduced a new menu that he refers to as New American with global influences. This petite menu has something for every taste and yet is simple, allowing for perfection from the kitchen to the table.

I began the evening with their FR Old Fashioned, made with the finest ingredients- a very sweet blend of same to make the drink perfect. As our appetizer, Jane and I ordered the Lamb Chops- 4 tender and juicy lamb chops cooked to our specifications.

We opted to do two entrees: the Branzino ( whole) served with house-roasted rice, tajin, scallion soy, and lemon caper. The side for this was the charred broccolini ( delicious and served just right). The second entree was the coconut-marinated steak “Bavette” ( taking its cue from Thailand) , a flap steak soaked in coconut milk and finished with a bright tomato salsa . The side for the steak, which by the way was done to perfection ( medium was, in fact, medium), was Taro Fries. I must tell you that these were absolutely worth the drive all by themselves. The taro is a long potato that is sliced very thin, making them shoestring potatoes, and they are fried to a perfect crispiness and need nothing else to enhance the flavor. In fact, I could easily go in for a happy hour beverage and an order to these and be well sated and satisfied.

We finished the meal with a salted caramel gelato and a cup of coffee (in my case, decaf). It was in fact, worth the trip and then some, and as we drove home, Jane expressed a desire to go back as there are some other items that she knows she will love. Things like Bacon-wrapped scallops, Truffle Cream Tortellini,,Chilean Sea Bass, spicy tuna tacos, and the roasted chicken Roulade. They have sides, shareables, snacks, and meals, and a staff that is a-1 ready to serve and make sure that everyone is happy.

The Franklin Room is located at 675 N. Franklin in Chicago

the phone: 312-445-4686    website:  www.franklinroom.com

Hours:

SUNDAY and MONDAY-CLOSED                                                         Private parties available

Tuesday thru Thursday  5 p.m. until 10 p.m.

Friday & Saturday            5 p.m.- 11 p.m.    facebook: www.facebook.com/drinkatfranklin