Chicago Restaurants: Trenchermen and Arami Kyuoucho Dinner

What happens when two feverishly popular restaurants team up for a collaborative dinner? If you're thinking they form one super restaurant à la Transformers, you're correct, and that's precisely what's going down on July 22 when Trenchermen and Arami join forces for a collaborative dinner to end all collaborative dinners. I'm calling it Trencherami. The two restaurants are drastically different in terms of their menus, but they're both cultishly adored for their unique chef-driven cuisine and creativity. Where they're alike is in their approach to food and service, so the two culinary dynamos saw an opportunity to play outside their safety sandboxes for an evening and conjoin.


Trenchermen Arami


The theme for the evening skews Japanese, which is Arami's repertoire, but the event takes place at Trenchermen, so both restaurants are venturing down their own rabbit holes. It's being dubbed a kyuoucho, the Japanese term for collaboration, with each restaurant serving up three Japanese courses. It all starts at 6:30 p.m. with welcome cocktails and passed small bites, followed by a six-course dinner at 7:00 p.m. The menu is yet to be announced, but teasers such as smoked and pickled mackerel with tomato dashi gelee and a crispy crêpe accented with blueberries and sake should twist some arms. And speaking of sake, it will flow as freely as beer in Aspen. Arami's own proprietary sake is due to make an appearance, along with other sake libations and some Japanese whiskey.


Can't commit to the six-course degustation? Starting around 8:30 p.m., Trenchermen's bar will be stocked with collaborative dishes as well, featuring snacks priced between $5-ish and $13-ish. All the while, Japanese surf rock will trumpet through the soundsystem.


The cost for the tasting menu is $75 per person. Reservations can be made by calling Trenchermen at 773-661-1540.

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