Dinner and a play!- thank you Amy Morton

Stolp Island! What the heck is a Stolp Island? It is a small island on the Fox River in Aurora that contains some 40 or so buildings on 19 acres and is right in what we will now call “The Theatre District of Aurora”. Recently, Amy Morton’s newest eatery Stolp Island Social came to the community, then was sidelined due to the pandemic, but is now back! Back with a great menu, a wonderful atmosphere and a staff that is welcoming and attentive to your every need. Being an Amy Morton restaurant means you can enjoy the best of steaks, but they also have food for all and being in the theatre area, pre-fix theatre specials.

Last night, the new Copley Theatre opened “Sweat” ( see my review at theater reviews) and Jane and I along with our friend Susan enjoyed a dinner sampling of this menu so we could share it with you.

To start they have a glorious beverage list with some great wines and beers and of course some signature cocktails. Many have cute names like the Mortini ( a martini with vodka)and Front Row Center (sparkling wine, gin, bitters and lemon) and the one that I loved, Clockwork Orange (bourbon, bitters, orange swath- an old fashioned, for sure), which I enjoyed.

We started our dinner with three “starters”: the Deviled Eggs ( tarragon, pickled shallots and delicious. There are three in an order and these are different than the usual. They have a taste of bacon taking them to another level. We also shared the Crunchy Chicken Thighs ( a delightful honey sesame sauce screams flavor) and the roasted carrot Hummus ( a unique flavor and a wonderful home made pita bread to spread it on. The menu for starters is full and will make any diner happy. Being next door to the Paramount and across the street from the Copley, this is a perfect stop before the theater for a drink and appetizer when not up for a dinner.

The dinner choices are mostly steaks, both house and RESERVE. Knowing Morton’s love of high quality steaks, we selected the reserve 8 ounce filet mignon with the Marrow smashed potatoes- a true delight to the palette ( they have strips and rib-eyes as well as a bone-in-Heritage Pork Chop ( it looked great going to another table). For our fish, we selected the seared salmon ( we chose glazed, but they offer blackened as well) and then the half roasted chicken served on fava beans, cippolini onions and spring garlic- juicy and delicious. They also have some great looking pasta dishes- a reason to return for another outing and from what I hear, if you are a burger person, a Smash Burger that will take your breath away. By the way, I loved the man n’ cheese side !

Chef John came out to bring us our meals and as you can see the presentations are beautiful. Each dish was prepared for us and he explained it as he served it. Our server, Stevie , knew the menu from top to bottom and was very attentive. She made sure that our schedule to make opening night was met with a few minutes to spare still allowing us to enjoy a cup of coffee to end our dinner. Maybe next time we will try the desserts.

Stolp Island Social  is a place to go just for dinner when you are not going to the theater and for those that love a brunch, their Sunday brunch is a live-jazz delight. They even have a special just for kids menu ages 10 and under- crispy chicken, pasta and an ice cream sundae- sounds good!

reservations 630-340-4980 or visit www.stolpislandsocial.com

The hours are: Wednesday and Thursday from 4:30 p.m.

Friday and Saturday from 5 p.m.

Sunday from 3 p.m.

Sunday Brunch 10:30 am- 2 p.m. call for information

Theatre night or special occasion, Stolp Island Social is an experience you will savor for the dinner and the experience.