On Level Two

August 11, 2013

I recently had the opportunity of checking out a new restaurant located in the Hyatt Chicago Magnificent Mile hotel. Level Two is located on, you guessed it, the second floor of the hotel. The restaurant features a menu of modern American cuisine, as well as a variety of specialty cocktails and celebrated its grand opening in June.

My friend and I started off our Saturday evening dinner with a suggestion from our server. We tried some cheesy pork croquettes which featured a light and crispy coating. I liked that these were not too greasy and enjoyed dipping them in the accompanying sauces.

Pork Croquettes
Next up, we tried the pan fried salmon which was topped with almond butter. I really enjoyed the texture of the salmon because it was nice and crispy from the pan fried method but the inside was flaky and moist. The salmon was served with spring onions which were an interesting and less-common accompaniment to salmon. Though I found them to be slightly too oily from the pan fried method.

Pan Fried Salmon with Spring Onion & Almond Butter
We also shared the Level Two Burger which came with cheddar and a fried egg. The burger was flavorful, juicy, and cooked to our specification; however, we both agreed it was nothing more special than a hotel burger. Would I come back for the burger? Probably not. Was it tasty. Yes.

Level Two Burger
We couldn't skip out on dessert so we ordered two items from the dessert menu. Level Two features changing flavors of housemade ice creams and on the evening we dined, we tried strawberry, chocolate, and vanilla, all topped with fresh berries. I loved the strong, fresh flavor of the strawberry ice cream and appreciated having the nice topping of blackberries and blueberries on top.

Homemade Ice Creams with Berries
We also demolished a flourless chocolate cake dome which came with a side of homemade caramel. The cake was more like a mousse than a cake but had a nice, dense, chocolaty flavor. I loved the saltiness of the sea salt and caramel to help offset that richness.

Flourless Chocolate Cake with Walnuts, Caramel & Sea Salt
Level Two also has a wide variety of specialty cocktails, many of which feature housemade bitters. We tried a few different drinks with a wide spectrum of flavors from fruity to smoky to refreshing.

Overall, it's clear there are some high quality ingredients that go into each dish at Level Two. The menu is varied enough to please any palate, and the atmosphere is clean, modern, and classy. However, it's clear they still have some service kinks to work out since they are fairly new, and the cocktail menu could use a little less sugar, and a lot more creativity.

I will not be giving a star rating as Level Two covered the cost of our meal.

Level Two
Hyatt Chicago Magnificent Mile
633 N. St. Clair
Chicago, IL 60611
312.787.1234
Level Two on Urbanspoon

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