Restaurant Review: Baccaro - Simple Sophistication

Baccaro is a relatively new (maybe 3 years old?) wine bar and restaurant in the heart of downtown Champaign. It's located on Walnut, between Cafe Kopi and Radio Maria. The decor is pretty modern, but relatively understated. Which is nice when compared to some attempts at being hip. It's usually dark inside, a little too much for my tastes, but I'm not as much into the romantic settings as the rest of the clientele may be. And I hear that it's a great place to take a date, though I'm not so sure that I want my dates to be into wine and fine dining. I think that I prefer my dates to be into fake ID's, cheap beer, and grinding to hip-hop music. But that's just me, and I'm a scumbag.

The wine list is largely from Italy (if not entirely - wasn't positive), and broken down by region. If you're not a wine connoisseur, your best bet is to ask the very helpful servers or bartenders. They'll point you in a good direction, and you'll get to try some good wines. But, really, I'm not a big wine guy. So, while the wines are a fun way to spend a few hours, I'll talk more about the food.

The food is solid. The portions are a little small, but the quality is high. Many local and/or organic ingredients. The menu changes probably every 2 months or so, as different items come into season. Overall, the food is lighter. You won't find many thick, heavy dishes, even as the seasons change from summer to winter.

There will always be a handful of appetizers, or small plates that run between $6 and $10. These are often small salads that would be great to split at the start of a meal. One of the highlights (which I believe is now off the menu ) is cured salmon, served with some potato crackers and poached quail eggs. The cured salmon was a little salty and a little smoky, but not overpowering. The potato crackers were really more like really thick cut chips, dried out, and then fried to a real crunch. The whole dish was a fun mix of flavors and textures, as the egg yolks ran over the salmon and potato. Another highlight was a duck confit salad, served with some fresh sweetcorn and tossed greens. Nothing transcendent, but just a mix of some nice ingredients, and a nice vinagrette.

There are also a few different soups that are served. You get a small bowl that runs about $5 or so. Last time around was an almond soup that was a bit of a miss. They just ground up almonds, rather than use almond flour to thicken the soup. The texture just didn't do it for me, nor did the flavor, which ran just a little plain. I was expecting aromatic, a little thick and smooth, and slightly sweet. Instead, I got something of a broth that had bits of almond, and was pretty plain in taste. Now, the previous time, I got a great green apple soup, so maybe it's hit and miss with the soups. Another regular item is the risotto of the day, which costs around $12. The last time I was there it was a great sausage and artichoke risotto. From my times there, the dish is always creamy, the rice cooked just right, and the seasonings are spot on.

The entrees also change quite a bit, but generally focus on fresh, in-season ingredients. They'll run somewhere between $17 and $25. The portions are small, but the food is generally of high quality. Last time, there was a wonderful pork shank dish served over smashed potatoes and some veggies. Incredibly tender meat, seasoned appropriately, was the highlight of the dish. I think that too many people focus on the "easy" cuts of meat - the loin and tenderloin. Large, lean, boneless cuts are easy to cook, but really lack the flavor of the fatter, more sinewy cuts that have those wonderful bones still in there.

Dessert also change frequently. Generally, you'll find a few relatively simple, light desserts like fruit tarts or a mascarpone cream with fresh fruit. The last time we went with a nice creme caramel as well as a pot de creme. Both were nicely done, though could have stood to be a bit richer, in contrast to the rest of the meal.

All in all, expect to spend in the area of $85 for a dinner for 2, which includes an appetizer, 2 entrees, a dessert, and 2 glasses of wine. I think that Baccaro is a place that would be nice to take a date who may know the difference. From what I've seen, the food is meant to be subtle. It would be sad to waste the experience on someone who may not catch the innuendo. A lot of the experience depends on the ambience. The place can become a little too noisy when the tables are filled up. I'd suggest that you go during the week, when it isn't as busy, and you're more likely to get some advice/conversation about the food and wine from the servers.

1.5 stars

-foodgeek.