| THE WALKTHROUGH 05.29.08 1:09 PM |
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| Belden-Stratford Gets a Luxe Prix Fixe Seafood Spot |
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In mid-May, Lettuce Entertain You Enterprises opened L2O in the lobby of Lincoln Park's Belden-Stratford Hotel. Created by French chef Laurent Gras, the restaurant's seafood-based menu (which features everything from lobster with Tahitian vanilla, chanterelle, and watermelon radishes to codfish with green olive, lemon, and white grits) is prix fixe only, offering four- to 12-course tastings; private dining options can expand to include any number of courses.
A separate entrance for the restaurant's private dining rooms takes guests past a portion of the kitchen (providing a peek at rows of Viking champagne and wine coolers) and into a space that can seat around 55 guests; the room can also divide into two smaller spaces with 20- or 30-guest capacities. The private room's decor highlights include Sen wood paneling, Spanish-leather-swathed chairs, chocolate-hued drapes, and frosted glass columns with built-in display cases that can showcase floral arrangements. Drop-down screens and projection systems (which can flank the big room or be put to individual use when it's divided into smaller rooms) can be hooked up to laptops, DVD and CD players, and iPods. |
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PHOTO GALLERY |
 | The main dining room seats around 70 guests.
Photo: Katherine Bryant |
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 | Local florist Bukiety continually provides oversize arrangements for the space.
Photo: Katherine Bryant |
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 | A crushed-velvet-lined alcove along one wall of the main dining room houses a white onyx table for two.
Photo: Katherine Bryant |
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The 70-seat main dining room features tables made of Macassar ebony, brown leather banquettes, and a central space enclosed with a stainless steel wire screen. Adjacent is a lounge filled with round white resin tables that reflect light and give off a moonlike glow at night, as well as a semiprivate dining space with seating for 10 at a table made from the wood of the fallen tree.
Three steps at the side of the dining room lead up to two Japanese-style tatami rooms wrapped in frosted glass walls made to look like rice paper. The rooms can fit two and six guests individually, or they can be combined to fit eight. Guests swap their shoes for house slippers before they enter, then sit on cushions set atop grass mats. Special 20-course chef's tastings served within the tatami rooms feature Japanese-influenced fare. The tables, made of yellow cedar, are sanded daily to give off a fresh, woodsy aroma.
—Jenny Berg
RELATED TOPICS
Lettuce Entertain You Enterprises
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