Balena wins a spot on Bon Appétit's list of the Top 50 Best New Restaurants!

Inside Balena

Searching for a Thursday night Italian spot for myself and two of my girlfriends led me to many options, but Balena had been near the top of my list since its inception, and it was recently named to Bon Appétit's list of the Top 50 Best New Restaurants - woo hoo!

Occupying the former Landmark space on Halsted, (also conveniently in my neighborhood) the space is huge, yet feels warm, rustic and homey.  We waited a bit long to be seated for our 8:30 reservation (we weren't seated until a little after 9), but we ordered a glass of wine from the friendly bartenders to keep us occupied.  They also made sure we were compensated for our wait by sending over a complimentary order of the Burrata and Roasted Beet salad.  Seeing that burrata is one of my favorite cheeses (similar-tasting to mozzarella but much creamier and seriously amazing), I had my eye on that dish from the start so it was a welcome surprise.

Tagliolini Nero, Crab, Sea Urchin, Chili

Our server was very knowledgeable about the wines and she recommended a great blend to go with my  entrée: the Tagliolini Nero, Crab, Sea Urchin, Chili - a perfect portion of squid ink, linguine-like pasta with an amazingly rich (but not too rich) flavor and tender hunks of crab - was one of the best pasta dishes I've ever had.  The other girls got the Mozzarella, Tomato & Basil pizza - the sauce was tangy and the crust crisp, overall a great version of classic Margherita pizza.

My only regret is that we were too full for dessert - I've read that Amanda Rockman's desserts are not to be missed, and Dessert Classics, Composed Sundae's and Sorbetti I won't be skipping dessert again!

A big congrats to the Balena and BOKA group teams and props to Chicago food culture!