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Arts & Entertainment Dining

Restaurant review: Boltwood, in Evanston ★★

Ex-Publican chef is killing it at Boltwood in Evanston
Boltwood is the coolest restaurant in Evanston

Brian Huston had no idea that his 2-month-old Evanston restaurant, Boltwood, would be so popular. Or so noisy.

The popularity he loves. Huston had made a name for himself as the opening chef de cuisine at The Publican, where he worked for six years, but the locals here have been treating the Evanston-born and -raised chef as a conquering hero.

"I guess you'd call it a dream come true," Huston says. "All cooks love to cook for friends and family as much as anything, and literally every night, there's somebody here that I know and care about. Every night I'm cooking for my mom, or cousin or high school teacher or friend."

(Insider's tip: Boltwood used to be the name of the freshman wing of Evanston Township High School; the restaurant represents a homecoming on a couple of levels.)

As to the noise issue, it's something Huston and partner John Kim (of Brothers K Coffeehouse, also in Evanston) worked quickly to address. Boltwood occupies the space that was home to Lulu's, which was divided into several small dining spaces. Turning that into a single-room restaurant with an open kitchen amped up the noise level.

"We had no idea it would get this loud," Huston says, "and pretty much since the opening party (in mid-June), we went into full-emergency mode to put in sound paneling. It's a party (in the dining room), and I love the vibe at Avec and Publican, but I want people to be able to talk."

Huston and Kim knew they had to move quickly, says Huston, "I joke that word of mouth in Evanston is bigger than Yelp."

Boltwood will never be a quiet restaurant, but with sound paneling now installed, it's more than tolerable. My first visit I had to raise my voice to be heard; on my return, my colleague and I could have a normal conversation with each other and the couple at the next table.

Boltwood's menu has a few echoes from Huston's work at The Publican, but they're faint ones, and Boltwood's menu is necessarily more focused. You'll find a couple of oyster varieties here, as opposed to Publican's half-dozen or so, and mussels, when available, are more likely to swim in a tomato and white-wine broth rather than the lambic bath the beef-focused Publican likes.

But Huston's cooking still evinces that comfort-food rusticity that turns even the simplest-sounding dishes into treasures. One of my favorites consists of grilled brun-uusto cheese (a Wisconsin product that tastes and chews like elongated cheese curds) with cooked treviso (a mild radicchio), and, yes, I realize I'm raving about toasted cheese and greens. But, matched to La Quercia prosciutto from Iowa and splashed with a blackberry-aigre doux, it's a little plate of Midwest perfection.

The closest thing to a signature dish on the menu is the crispy potatoes, an overflowing bowl of golden-brown potato nuggets, thrice cooked and finished with garlic schmaltz (chicken fat).

Crispy outside and creamy within, these potatoes are virtually intoxicating.

"Funny thing is, that's the one dish I cook," Huston says. "I intended to work saute, but the way the (kitchen) layout worked, all I do all night is fry potatoes; I have become a glorified fry cook."

(Another thing that Huston loves about Evanston, he says, is that his servers never have to explain what schmaltz is.)

There are other mainstays, but Huston likes to "flop" them (switch up the ingredients) so they're never quite the same. There's always a toast topped with some spread; for instance, one time it was a very fava bean spread, with feta and a hint of mint, but a few weeks later, the thick bread was piled high with oxtail marmalade and some slightly spicy pickled veggies (when those meat juices soaked into the bread ... heaven).

I'd make room at the table for the crunchy salt-cod croquettas with nicoise olives and fresh tomato sauce (a very satisfying sweet-salty experience), and the eggplant, served in garlicky grilled strips with a just-spicy-enough chili-anchovy vinaigrette.

Among larger dishes, the whole fish, perhaps roasted loup de mer with a mustard-laced pancetta vinaigrette, is never a bad choice, and the Korean-style short ribs — cut thin on the bone, marinated and grilled, and piled high with fresh arugula, cooked plums and kissed with macerated-plum vinaigrette — is terrific. Soft, lengthy gnudi pillows, dusted with microplaned Wisconsin parmesan and plated with braised artichokes, is a terrific dish, but Huston changes his pastas with some frequency.

There's a small bar near the entrance, easily overlooked, but don't ignore its output, which includes some fine cocktails; I'm particularly fond of the barrel-aged Manhattan, but there's also a very good version of the sazerac cocktail (a splash of malort gives it an edge), and the tri-color, rum-based Queen's Park Swizzle is a nice summer refresher. The wine list offers a couple of dozen bottles, and it's a food-friendly, price-sensitive collection, and there are four dessert wines for those so inclined.

Desserts are still developing; Huston lost his pastry chef a couple of weeks after Boltwood opened, and he's made do with house-made ice creams (his mint chocolate chip is quite good) and seasonal fruit pies made by friends of his mother. The recent addition of pastry chef Christina Morrone, returning to her North Shore roots after working at Eleven Madison Park and Blue Hill, both in New York, should amp up the sweet selection in a hurry.


Twitter @philvettel



804 Davis St., Evanston


Tribune rating: Two stars

Open: Dinner Tuesday-Sunday

Prices: Large plates $18-$36

Credit cards: A, DC, DS, M. V

Reservations: Strongly recommended

Noise: Conversation-friendly

Other. Wheelchair accessible

Ratings key. Four stars, outstanding; three stars, excellent; two stars, very good; one star, good; no stars: unsatisfactory. The reviewer makes every effort to remain anonymous. Meals are paid for by the Tribune.

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