A couple of weeks ago my hubby and I went out and celebrated our 3rd wedding anniversary. We wanted to go somewhere that we had never been to together and somewhere special and nicer than usual. We chose to go to The Capital Grille in Lombard, which I have been to and he had not. We could not have asked for a better dinner or a better experience. We truly felt like we got out and went back in time to when we were dating before marriage and kids and real responsibilities! We got to just enjoy each others company with amazing food and incredible service.
When we arrived they had a “Happy Anniversary” card for us, which I thought was such a sweet little extra touch. Then from the time we sat down until the time we left, we just felt very taken care of and very special. We started with some delicious cocktails, which were ordered from an iPad, yes an iPad. My husband had a Blackberry Bourbon sidecar and I enjoyed a French 75. Both classic choices, but I really enjoyed The Capital Grille twist on these classics. The blackberry was so great with the bourbon, not too sweet or over powering. My French 75 was garnished with star anise, which just gave it this beautiful, warm, spiced note at the finish. Then on to the dinner.
We started with the Jumbo Lump Crab Cocktail, which was not only so light and fresh, but the potion size was surprising. Surprising in a good way. I could not believe how generous they were with the amount of lump crab. Such a great way to wet our palates and get us ready for the rest of the meal.
We then each enjoyed a salad. Of course, our go to choices for both of us. My husband keeps it simple with a classic Caesar and I always go for the beet and goat cheese if it is available; it was! Again though, I truly enjoy their take on these two classic salads. The Caesar had these wonderfully salty and crunchy Grana Padano croutons that really added a great spin. While my beet and goat cheese salad was almost deconstructed. It has this light whipped goat cheese, perfectly roasted beets and then hints of crunch with toasted pistachios and a great zest from the citrus vinaigrette to cut through it all. We were off to an amazing start.
 
Then of course at The Capital Grille you have to get steak, right! So, we both did. I stepped outside of my usual comfort zone, even surprised my husband a bit. I usually always order a ribeye, but they had an unusual, interesting preparation for their NY Strip that I had to try. I ordered the Bone-In Kona crusted NY strip with shallot butter and it was to die for. The bitter, boldness of the coffee with the sweetness of the caramelized shallots and the creamy butter sauce. Wow, this was worth having the NY versus the ribeye this time. My husband enjoyed a perfectly cooked, amazingly tender, juicy 24oz dry aged Porterhouse. We shared side orders of grilled asparagus and truffle fries. The fries were awesome, not drenched in truffle oil, but a very nice scent of it dusting the crispy fries and topped with parmesan and chopped parsley. The asparagus did come out over cooked, but was quickly fixed and the new order was crisp, fresh and yummy!
Last, but certainly not least they brought us out a dessert platter that was marked with “Happy Anniversary” writing and contained a mouthwatering Flourless Chocolate Espresso cake and a light and fluffy Ricotta Cheesecake with a brulee` top. A lovely way to finish such a wonderful meal. Our server, Alex was just the sweetest and made us feel welcome and special and made our whole experience one to remember. We will definitely be going back and I would recommend this restaurant to anyone we know. Especially if you are looking for a special occasions restaurant.
Happy Anniversary my love and cheers to many more happy years together and many, many more amazing meals together!!
