Moody Tongue

Moody Tongue has been a 2-star stalwart of the Chicago area for quite some time. As the world's first 2-star brewery, it is quite a unique spot which includes a beer pairing for the dinner. The property features a bar restaurant with upscale food, and the fine dining establishment as well. They recently opened an outpost in New York City.

I had heard everything from "This place will blow your mind!" to "Totally overrated and skippable". So I really had no idea what to expect.

The restaurant is part of the brewery so it's appropriately found in a warehouse district on the South side of Chicago. The entire place has an elevated feel - even the bar area. The menu there looks phenomenal.

On the fine dining side, the food was fine. Save for one 3-star level dish (the lamb borek) and their signature fois gras dipping dots (a solid, creative and delicious 2-star plate), the rest of the food was good. Solid 1-star, elevated, but without anything compelling enough to discuss or make you come back for it. This splay of quality combined with a $285 price point explains the nearly empty dining room for our 8:30pm Saturday night seating. (3 tables, 7 people total.)

A top-notch 2-star restaurant should be packed Friday and Saturday evenings. If I was involved in this business, this empty dining room would really be an enormous concern.

What should NOT be a concern is their service team, which was out of this world. Shocking how good they were, to be honest.

We were met by an able hostess who passed us to greeter. I'm not sure her role but we were early and she offered us a tour of the brewery. She could not have been more friendly, engaging and - to Moody Tongue's credit - passionate about this organization. She shared their vision, how long she had been there and answered all of our questions fully and deeply. Sure, she was selling the place. Sure, that's her job. But she was doing a DAMN fine job of it.

Once sat, our server and the rest of the team did not miss a single thing. They were friendly, easy and funny. While pacing was on the quicker side, their team was on top of everything including timing. My friend got the beer pairing and, while there were a few times the food arrived while the beer was still being explained, for the most part, everything happened in proper order and with full passion and engagement.

Their wine list wasn't great (and they admitted it) but when I didn't like the first splash of what I ordered, they quickly and easily brought me another. (Napa cabernets never fail.) I should also note their stemware, which was exquisite. This isn't something I typically notice but each glass with the beer pairing was unique and beautiful, as was the dishware they used. Paying attention to even these small details is impressive.

Other examples: My friend was chilly so they brought her a pashmina they have for just such an occasion. At the end, as I was joking that I didn't know what a pashmina was and would likely have figured it to be a dish ("Oooh! I haven't had pashmina before. Is it spicy?"), the server comically draped one over my shoulders as well. This type of relaxed engagement that reads the table - not just the "script" for the restaurant - is always so welcome and impressive.

My friend went to the restroom. When it was my turn, they pointed where to go. I got up and found the server waiting for me so she could show me the way. I still have no idea how she anticipated that one.

The contrast between the 3-star service perfection supporting a near-empty dining room and "1.5" star food was a bit perplexing. Since COVID, it's typically the other way around, if anything. But it speaks to a terrific team high up at Moody Tongue who hires extremely well.

I wish the food had been more compelling. It was good enough, but that was all. The menu shows and finale of duck, lamb and wagyu. It sounded super generous, but none felt like full, complete dishes, with the wagyu the most offensive with a tiny 2oz square of meat dominated (visually and flavor-wise) by its accompaniments.

I'm a huge fan of hospitality though. Fine dining is less about the food on the plate than most people think. It's about the entirety of the experience and message. It's about how much a restaurant is able to put the guest at the center of the experience. Moody Tongue did that. I wouldn't be sad to return, though the menu itself, while sufficient, is not what calls me back.