Free Rein

"This Loop brasserie in the St. Jane Hotel features chef Kristine Subido’s Thanksgiving menu from 12 p.m. to 8 p.m. Diners can expect an herb-roasted turkey, a selection of three sides, and a dessert for $45. Accompaniment options include French green beans (roasted mushroom ragout, crispy onions), three-cheese macaroni and cheese (herb gratin), and warm apple crostata with brown butter gelato." - Naomi Waxman

"Free Rein is a ground-floor restaurant inside the St. Jane Hotel in Downtown Chicago. The venue has a new chef, Kristine Subido, who is rolling out changes inspired by the city’s immigrant neighborhoods. The menu will include vegetable dishes, seafood, and a signature Filipino-style chicken marinated in calamansi juice with soy glaze." - Ashok Selvam

"Free Rein is a ground-floor restaurant inside the St. Jane Chicago Hotel that debuted last summer. It offers a venue for the talents of acclaimed chef Aaron Lirette, previously of Michelin-starred GreenRiver." - Ashok Selvam

"Ariel Cheung, CS Magazine: The buzziest ones—Pacific Standard Time, Passerotto and S.K.Y.—fully deserve the recognition they’re getting, but I also was really impressed by Le Sud, Funkenhausen and Free Rein." - Elizabeth Atkinson

"Chef Aaron Lirette’s return at Free Rein is a mixed bag according to Michael Nagrant. Beef tartare is 'original, adorned with scallion kimchi and carrot dressing,' but foie gras torchon is 'overpowered' by a green curry. Halibut fares poorly as well, a 'dry bark adrift on trumpet mushrooms.' The meal recovers with 'one of the best pasta dishes [Nagrant’s] had this year, plump ricotta cavatelli tossed with blood sausage ragu, Asian pear, and black truffle.' Desserts are similarly up and down; marjolaine is a 'touch dry' and 'overwhelmed by the richness of hazelnut and ganache,' but a carrot layer cake is a 'satisfying antidote to the usual cream cheese-frosted spiced-crumb classic.' Overall, though there are some 'shortcomings in execution,' Nagrant still thinks the kitchen’s ideas and techniques are 'advanced and exciting.' [Michael Nagrant]" - Jeffy Mai