FEATURED RESTAURANT

Russian Tea Time

The Commissars Meet The Aldermen

Mother Russia inspires great loyalty, even among the sons and daughters who choose to leave her behind. Such a one is my friend Vadim, who owns and operates Russian Tea Time at 77 East Adams in downtown Chicago.

The first thing you will say is that Vadim, being my friend, is bound to get a good review from me. Maybe so, but that doesn't even begin to explain the lines out the door every day at lunch or the band of loyal patrons who have eaten their way through every dish on the menu. That kind of loyalty only comes when you offer good food, good value and good service. (Actually, Vadim is mostly busy with his catering business, Voyazh, so he is only in the restaurant a few nights a month. Doesn't matter. The place runs like clockwork thanks to Clara, who is simultaneously greeter, executive chef and Vadim's mother.)

Russian Tea Time is perfectly located for patrons of the Art Institute of Chicago and the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, both of which are less than a block away, and for the Shubert Theatre, only about two blocks away. And, as we've noted, many office workers make it the place to go when the boss is out of town and a little extra time is available for lunch.

Even though the restaurant occupies a narrow space, you never feel cramped. Tables are comfortable and booths are close to opulent. Of course, maybe it's the wonderful service and the catering to your needs and whims that adds to the feeling of comfort in the lush, red-toned room.

The wine list and the selection of liquors are as broad as you would expect. In the case of wines, even more broad than you would expect. But this is a Russian place, so I recommend going for the vodka. You can get an order of iced vodka (I favor the Stoli) served with pickles and heavenly pumpernickel bread. You'll be tempted to keep these coming and not order dinner.

On the other hand, just for a change of pace (and I'm not known as a teetotaler), you could skip the alcohol and just have the eponymous tea. Brewed in a samovar and poured into classic glass mugs by, seemingly, every person who walks by your table, this special house blend seems to be fragrant of currants and of a collection of spices that Vadim will only smile and hint at. Served with lumps of refined or raw sugar, it will take you back to the days at the Winter Palace before that unpleasantness in 1917.

Whatever you're sipping, now it's time to ease into reading the menu. Start early, because it's going to take a while. There is page after page of Russian dishes that are described as lovingly as they will be prepared and served. Whether your heart belongs to fish or fowl or meat or dough or vegetables (or some combination thereof), you will find a section of the menu that will call out to you.

The Chicken Paprikash (okay; Hungary is not part of Russia; get over it) is as good as you will find in town and has more tender boneless meat than I have ever been served in any restaurant in Chicago.

The Chicken Kiev is delicious and dangerous. Fountains of butter will gush from it as your knife goes through the sauteed rolled breast.

The selection of dumplings will gloss over all the terrible parts of the peasants' lives and give you a hint of some of the things that made their existences bearable.

If you want a real gorge, you can choose the Czarist Sausage platter, with three different sausages (including duck), the Mixed Grill, including duck breast, lamb chop and more sausage, or the combination plate for two, which contains at least enough good food for three.

The starches that come with many entrees are not run of the mill either. Rice and potatoes are only the beginning. you will also be treated to kasha and to cornmeal. Salads of beets and carrots lurk nearby to complement and accentuate the flavors in the entrees.

If you can get through all this without bursting a button, the dessert menu has strudels and bombes and things almost too sinfully rich to write about, let alone eat.

This is a place that is worth a couple hours of your time and the full attention of your appetite, so if you're coming before the symphony or before a play, don't stint yourself on time.

I consider Russian Tea Time, as good as it is on any day of the year, to be the near-perfect cold weather restaurant. If you leave here without the caloric fuel to face Chicago's winter, you have only yourself to blame.