“I grew those sunchokes,” our waiter said, referring to the puree under my son’s grass-fed, espresso-cured hanger steak. Then he grabbed his phone to show my daughter pictures of a mushroom he had foraged.
“There it is now,” he said, pointing to a frilly orb resting on her black garlic gnocchi. “See, that’s love, right there!”
It was not exactly what I expected when I first visited Arbor, on the second floor of the Green Exchange — an early-20th-century factory in Logan Square converted to a sustainable business hub in 2008. It was for a climate-change event in September, just three months after the all-day industrial kitchen, coffeehouse and bar had opened.
But when co-owners Chad Little, 32, and Leonard Hollander, 37, offered to show us their urban farm, I realized Arbor wasn’t just another office building coffee shop. (The space is popular for after-work events hosted by groups with a green bent.) Crickets chirped above the whiz of nearby expressway traffic as we headed outside in the twilight, through the building’s second-floor courtyard garden and down to the former back alley where scores of crops flourished by the Metra tracks.
Hollander, the chef, pointed out dozens of plants, telling us how he was “obsessed by coriander berries.” Little was equally enthusiastic. “Everything we serve, from breakfast to lunch to cocktails, is met with the same criteria,” he said. “Is it responsibly produced? Are we excited about it? Is it delicious?” When he mentioned they offered an evening tasting menu two nights a week called Midwestern Omakase, I knew I would be back.
A few Fridays later, our party of five perched around one of the ash tables. Little took his time asking what we liked to eat. Then, like a modern-day Willy Wonka, he said: “Let’s get started. We’re going to have fun tonight.”
After three hours and four courses, we were still having fun, delighted by the transparent flavors. Surprise treats, like pickled green blueberries on the appetizer board or a sweet-tart nibble of black currant-strawberry pâté de fruit, paced the meal. Our favorite course was the salmon “PB&J” — mild Scottish salmon in a Concord grape verjus caramel, with marcona almond-dusted braised collard greens and Illinois sweet corn grits.
My daughter put it best, “I can taste the love.”
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Arbor, 2545 W. Diversey Ave., Chicago; 312-866-0795; arborprojects.com. The Midwestern Omakase is $35 to $100 per person, depending on number of courses, Thursday and Friday only.
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