Our son’s 18th birthday warranted a special celebration. I tried last minute reservations at Indienne to no avail. Why do I always forget that his birthday is on the one day when everyone and I mean EVERYONE wants to eat out – Valentine’s bloody day! All frustrated I put my name on the waitlist knowing well it was all in vain. We were just about done with the Chicago Auto show (my son wanted to spend the day there) when I get a text from Indienne about being able to accommodate us at 5 pm. We jumped at the opportunity. Even though we had three whole hours to kill, we waited to go back and eat at Indienne as our first experience was superb. Read on to find out if our second matched our first…

Let’s start at the beginning. The fact that we got a call from them in spite of it being the busiest day of the year, was impressive. I did not expect a Michelin star restaurant to actually call us. They’re definitely less snooty than most Michelin star places in a big city like Chicago.

We were doing the five course Valentine’s Day meal.

I didn’t care for the oyster though the husband and son loved it. They said it was fresh and the Soul Kadi flavors enhanced the oyster. We could not taste the coconut. The soul kadi complimented the oyster well.

This was my favorite!!!! More like a chaat but so much better. The meringue’s crunch and toasty flavor was diametrically opposite to the rest of the dish which was soft yet sumptuous. I can still taste all of the yuminess.

Ros Omlette or Omlette with gravy (Goan dish) was served next. This too was a burst of different textures and flavors all at once. The Omlette was coated with a crunchy crust which when had with the gravy was the perfect combo. The gravy had a beautiful smokiness to it which went perfectly with the kaluga (caviar). Ive not had khambir which is a traditional roti made in Ladakh but this tasted very close to a naan. The butter, served with the roti, was mixed in with Garamond masala and Katsura methi – quite distinctive.

The next course was Lobster malai. A different take on the Bengali malaikari (The chef’s Bengali roots were showing here). It was very very good. Sorry, in our hurry to consume (more like inhale it) we forgot to take a pic.

The sweet dish didn’t appeal to my husband. Both my son and I enjoyed it. We are the sweet aficionados in the family. Although I must point out, I could not taste the Nolan gur in the ice cream. Nolan gur is a very special gur (jaggery) available only in the month of January in Bengal. Its distinct taste and aroma are unbeatable and cannot be replicated. The Nolan gur flavor was underwhelming.

This was more like a truffle chocolate filled with liquid filter coffee. Delish!

The final offering was a mukhwas/pan type thingy. How appropriate.

On the whole, the food was way above and beyond any Indian restaurant in and around Chicago. We did do the wine pairing which added $75.00 per person to the cost. Total cost $1000/- but oh! So worth it and not as high as some other Michelin star restaurants in the US.

If you like Indian food and want an absolutely unique experience – this place is a MUST!

If you want to read about our first time in the restaurant- click here.