First Look and What to Eat at Acadia, Opening Dec. 21

Grid View

• Looking toward the private dining room in the corner
• Welcome to Acadia
• Chefs hard at work in the white-tiled kitchen
• The intimate private dining room
• Michael Simon will prepare creative cocktails at the sleek bar
• The 2,600 bottle wine room is stocked by Jason Prah
• The dining room has high ceilings and dramatic partitions
• A dramatic entryway to the kitchen
• Light floods the main dining room

[Photo: Tim Hiatt Photography]

Chicago's new restaurant onslaught continues this week with the opening of Acadia, Ryan McCaskey's highly anticipated new South Loop restaurant. Located on a somewhat quiet stretch of Wabash Avenue, Acadia will help bring new life to the area with its fine dining yet still approachable menu. Opening tomorrow, Acadia offers a warm 100-seat space with 14-foot ceilings, numerous windows letting in natural light to flood both the main dining room and elegant front bar (presided over by Michael Simon) and an embracing color palette of cream, gray, taupe and chocolate. But it's really McCaskey's food that will entice people down to the South Loop.

McCaskey has said that the room plays second fiddle to the food and service, saying he wants the focus to remain on the latter. His opening menu, much of which is inspired by summers spent in Maine, will feature plenty of seafood like Stonington lobster pie and Penobscot Bay scallops as well as hearty winter fare including decadent foie gras, a winter vegetable tagine and Wagyu beef.

And if you haven't made New Year's Eve plans, Acadia will host two seatings (6 p.m. and 9 p.m.) for a five-course dinner priced at $150 including wine pairings. A vegetarian menu is also available for $125, but diners must note that when making a reservation; the early menu is also $25 less for both. Call 312-360-9500 to reserve. But before you do that, check out the menus below.

Acadia Menu

Acadia NYE Menu

· Ryan McCaskey Reveals More Info About Acadia, Shooting to Open in Early December [~EChi~]