Sink|Swim

It's nearly impossible to keep up with restaurant openings in Chicago. You blink and :POOF: five new restaurants have popped up. One of those is Sink|Swim, the first food-focused restaurant from the Scofflaw Group (Scofflaw, Slippery Slope). I stopped by the Logan Square spot for a weeknight dinner with my friend Lauren to check out the menu.

While I skipped the cocktails, Lauren tried the Splash Ghost with Death's Door gin and black berry basil shrub. A shrub is typically made by combining fruit, sugar and vinegar, though the cocktail was definitely on the tart side.

Splash Ghost

Chef Matt Danko's menu is divided into several sections including snacks, cold, warm, and entrees. We ordered  and shared a few items from each section which turned out to be a great approach. The first dish was the gin cured salmon with sliced radish, parsnip ketchup, sumac and watercress. The dish was beautifully plated and had a wonderfully light flavor.

Gin Cured Salmon

Next up was the shrimp toast from the snacks portion of the menu with n'duja (a spicy sausage spread), radish, avocado, aioli, greens and lemon. While this was tasty, I didn't think it was special enough to order again. We did enjoy the strips of pickled fennel on the side though.

Shrimp Toast

A dish that came highly recommended from our server was the monkfish liver torchon with salted plum, carrot, black sesame and toasted brioche points. This was another artfully plated course with a variety of textures and flavors.

Monkfish Liver Torchon

Moving along to the larger entrees section of the menu, we tried the smoked parsnip with squid ink puree, lemon and bitter greens. The smoky flavor came through very strongly which we both appreciated, but the squid ink puree was too salty. The rich black color was striking on the plate but unfortunately turned our teeth temporarily black! I appreciated the uniqueness of this dish, but the salt factor turned me off.

Smoked Parsnip

My second favorite dish of the night was the beef and broccoli with fermented black beans, soy and cabbage. The sauce was fantastic and I found myself sopping up every last drop of it with the tender slices of rare beef. On a menu that is very seafood focused, I didn't expect to love this non-seafood dish so much.

Beef & Broccoli

Some dishes (gin cured salmon, and beef and broccoli) were hits, while others were misses. I loved the laid back vibe of the restaurant and how affordable the food menu is but beware, those small plates can add up to big tabs! I'm giving Sink|Swim 3.5 ghosts out of 5.

Sink|Swim
www.sinkswimchicago.com
3213 W. Armitage Ave.
Chicago, IL 60647
773.486.7465