Custom House Tavern

500 South Dearborn Street

Chicago, IL 

(312) 523-0200

Type of cuisine: Bistro

Date of Review: June, 2012

Description:  When I think of a tavern, I sometimes think about a dark place with a few glass brick windows, lots of old wood, and mediocre food.  Well, this ain't that.  This is a yummy, upscale establishment which aims to create fresh American cuisine.  The menu is neither short nor epic, but there is a good selection for both the GF eater or the gluten-inclined.  The exception would have to be dessert, where the options on this particular evening were ice cream or cheese.

The waiters are helpful and the fresh nature of the menu seems to lend itself to a comfortable gluten-free meal.  This was my second occasion to visit, the previous experience also being great.  To their credit, the restaurant had a small, warm gluten-free corn muffin in lieu of bread.  With salted butter, it was a real treat.  As an appetizer, I started with grilled octopus with fresh orange and an aioli, which was a surprisingly fresh combination.  For a main, I had the duck with a rhubarb compote.  It was cooked perfectly and was simple enough to enjoy the duck flavour, although the non-GF version typically comes with a peppercorn and breadcrumb crust.  I think I  preferred it as I received it.  As a side--one orders vegetables separately here--I had a scrumptious pistachio-topped asparagus in a garlicky oil.  No kissing after this dish!  Dessert, as noted, was ice cream, in this case a single fennel cardamom scoop which was quite interesting (and expensive).  I had a pinot noir followed by a Cote de Rhone, both reasonably suited to the duck with fresh fruit.

The service was excellent and nicely paced (for a North American).  Water refills were plentiful and the gluten issue was handled adroitly.  The decor is clean and bright, and the little booths are both comfortable and noise dampening, so that conversation was easy.

The Custom House makes great food.  They are arguably a five out of five egg institution, being knocked down only for the dessert limitation.

Green's Amber Ale

It takes a trip south of the border to meet a new friend.  Well, a fermented friend in a little brown bottle, at least.  Hello, Green's Amber Ale.  This little number is a blend of millet, buckwheat, rice, sorghum, hops, and yeast.  It is smooth, substantial, and has a pleasantly short bitter ending.  I might just be feeling expansive, but I wonder if there is a note of honey in there--though I should be clear it isn't sweet.  This GF beer is very good.  So would I drink another?  Yes.  Then another?  No, but only because I'm a lightweight.

Redbridge Beer

While rice has long served as the obvious gluten-free grain, Redbridge is another reminder of why rice should play a subordinate role in prepared foods.  A mixture of sorghum, corn syrup, hops, and yeast, Redbridge is very similar to New Grist, although the latter also uses rice.  Redbridge is clean and easy to drink, having subtle complexity but none of the unpleasant aftertaste that a rice-only product can produce.  It is surprising that Redbridge is made by Anheuser-Busch, who also brought us Budweiser, an unquestionably vile product.  (We once made beer-bread with Budweiser, thinking cheap was fine.  Wrong. Very wrong.)  Redbridge is a very respectable GF beer.  It is available in the USA, but presently not in Ontario.