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The open kitchen anchors a lounge-like room in Chicago's West Loop, and what comes out of it has earned Smyth three Michelin stars and the top spot on North America's 50 Best list. The tasting menu leans on Midwest seasons and a farm garden, but the cooking is genuinely strange in the best way: foie gras doughnuts, kelp tarts, lobster custard with raspberry butter. Strange enough that you stop second-guessing the kitchen about halfway through.
Nine honors, in evidence:
The record strongest first
- Michelin Guide 3 Stars
- AAA Five Diamonds
- 50 Best #1 · North America's 50 Best Restaurants
- World Culinary Awards 2025 · Nominee · United States' Best Restaurant
- James Beard Awards 2022 · Nominee · Best Chef: Great Lakes · John Shields and Karen Urie Shields
- James Beard Awards 2023 · Semifinalist · Outstanding Restaurant
- James Beard Awards 2024 · Semifinalist · Outstanding Chef · John Shields and Karen Urie Shields
- Time Out #18 · The 25 best restaurants in Chicago
- Eater The 38 Essential Restaurants in Chicago
One number, weighted & current 98
How we scoreThe dishes from the writeups
- Trout belly doughnut with kumquat 50 Best
Nearby in the record closest first
- The Loyalist French Eat · 79
- Elske Danish-influenced New American Eat · 93
- Creepies French Eat · 70
- Ever New American Eat · 95
- After Drink · 77
- Drip Collective Eat · 78
- The Press Room Chicago Eat · 77
- The Publishing House Bed and Breakfast Stay · 74
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