Not known for: Caramelized lobster at The Gage

 

Two separate NRA parties had me hanging at the Gage quite a bit this past weekend, and I was only reminded of how much I love the contemporary American/Irish restaurant with a killer whiskey selection across from Millennium Park. Chef Dirk Flanigan’s menu offers up hearty pub grub from a scotch egg to a Guinness-battered fish and chips. But he also gets creative and complex with contemporary dishes like roasted saddle of elk, a melt in your mouth seared pole-caught Big Eye tuna with pancetta, Tuscan kale and salted Madeira ponzu, and braised rabbit salad. He’s a master of sauces, sides, game meat preparation and has perfected a Camembert-smothered USDA burger. But the one dish I am hooked on here is the caramelized lobster, not too unexpected, I guess, but still not well-known. I would’ve totally overlooked it on the menu (listed under third courses), but Gage owner Billy Lawless suggested it during a past visit. First off, I’m drawn to quinoa the second I see it on a menu, not only because it’s incredibly healthy, but the texture of the hearty granules take so beautifully to other ingredients like butter and lemon. OK, suddenly not so healthy, but delicious nonetheless. Tender chunks of lobster over lemon quinoa aren’t overly sweetened or ruined by the caramelizing, there’s just the right flavor of sweet while the salty succulent fresh lobster flavor still comes through. Chopped basil brings out the lemon in the quinoa while brightening up the dish with a bright, herbal fragrance and touches of green. Served as a mid-sized dish, it’s great to share but I’d rather devour a couple on my own. The Gage, 24 S. Michigan Ave., 312.372.4243