Good Fortune - Tasting Collective Dinner

 

This will be a story about several people and places and how they came together for a very nice Winter dinner in Logan Square.  Several years ago, there was a restaurant called Honey's in the West Loop, located where Eleven Eleven is now located, which received a lot of critical acclaim.  Despite this acclaim, Chef Charles Welch wanted to run a place of his own,  so he left the restaurant.  In Logan Square, popular cocktail bar Scofflaw opened a Seafood Restaurant next door called Sink|Swim which started out as a higher end neighborhood seafood restaurant, but eventually scaled back and then closed.  Chef Charles set up a long term Pop Up in the Sink|Swim space called Good Fortune, which also featured seafood.  Good Fortune was in the space for almost a year, until they found a permanent space.  The new space, also in Logan Square, was formerly the space of Specialty Gourmet Grocer, Provenance Food and Wine, as well as most recently, Taqueria and General Store, The General.  It took a little while, but Chef Charles' restaurant, Good Fortune, opened last year, pivoting away from a complete seafood menu, and rotating toward a Midwest-Sourced Mediterranean Inspired menu with a live fire grill.  Tasting Collective dined here at the beginning of the year.  The building was always dark colored, but I don't know that it was predominantly black as it is know.  There is no sign sticking out from the building and there is only a stylized logo featuring and intertwined GF at the door.  Lights are on the wall and ceiling and, in the back dining room, also from the open kitchen, which was lighter colored than the rest of the space.  Despite the dark color, the space was welcoming and the staff was friendly.

 

Seated in the back dining room, I started things off with a classic Cocktail, a Tom Collins made with Gin, Soda, and Lemon.  It was crisp and gin forward, but they used good gin, so it tasted good and was refreshing.  Shortly after my cocktail arrived, we received our first course.  Unlike many other restaurants I have gone to with Tasting Collective which have served all of the savory courses Family-Style, at Good Fortune, our first course at least was served individually.  We were served a course that reminded me somewhat of a cross between Ceviche and a Chowder.  We were served Hamachi with Golden Squash Broth, Crispy Black Rice, and Plum Vinegar.  It was light with a full flavor and the crispy black rice added a nice crunch.  The Plum vinegar brought a fruity tartness that tied well with the hamachi and the broth and it made for a very good start.

Our next course was a spin on a Wedge Salad.  Using Little Gem Lettuce, it included Maytag Blue Cheese, Bacon, Tomatillos, Tomatoes, and Chives.  With the exception of Little Gem Lettuce being used instead of Iceberg, and the addition of Tomatillos for some tartness, this was a classic wedge salad.  The lettuce was crisp and slightly sweet, The cherry tomatoes were fresh and very juicy, and Maytag Blue Cheese is just excellent.  The Bacon came as bacon bits on top, and added a salty crunch.

After the salad came the pasta and this pasta was just excellent.  We were served a Porcini Mushroom Campanelle with Black Trumpet Mushrooms, Truffles, and Camembert Cheese.  The Campanelle was perfectly al dente and the mushrooms added a lot of savory and funky flavor which went well with the Camembert.  This was like a high end Mac and Cheese with a stronger flavor and really good.

For our first entree, we had some very good fish.  We were served Poached Cod with Smoked Paprika, Salsify (a root vegetable also known as Oyster Plant for its flavor when cooked), and Brandade Aioli (Brandade is an emulsion of Salt Cod, Olive Oil, and Potatoes).  Every element had flavors of the sea except the paprika which added some smoky heat.  The cod was tender and everything went very well with it.

For our final savory dish, we went extremely hearty.  We were essentially served a cassoulet, a stew of White Beans and Meats.  The kitchen mistakenly first served me a Vegetarian Cassoulet and while it did look really good, I did not order a vegetarian menu and I didn't want to be taking someone's vegetarian meal away from them.  I was then served Pork Sauerbraten with Cassoulet Beans, Celery Root, and Lyonnaise Salad, which was essentially the same thing as the vegetarian version, except with added pork.  The pork was flavorful, hearty, and slightly sweet. The beans added body and depth of flavor to the course, and the Lyonnaise Salad (Frisee, Bacon, Vinegar, and Mustard), added both some green and some tartness.  It was heavy, but it made for a good finish for the savory side of the menu.

I was unsure about dessert.  It was a Mochi Brownie with Cheesecake Puree, and Coconut Sorbet.  I was unsure about it, because I really don't get Mochi.  When it arrived, though I thought that it looked really good, so I pushed aside my apprehension and decided to try it.  It was really good.  The brownie tasted good and with the cheesecake and the coconut sorbet, I did not notice the unusual texture that is common with mochi, if it existed.  It made for a great finish to an eclectic and very good menu and I would be happy to return.