Chef-owner Michael Tsonton

Chef de cuisine Victor Newgren

Inspired by the Mediterranean, Chef-owner Michael Tsonton and Victor Newgren have launched an intimate 50-seat restaurant that converges the past, present and playful.

“Chefs are not artists – we’re cooks,” says Tsonton, who earned a 3-star review as the executive chef at Courtright’s in Willow Springs and has worked with Newgren at Tizi Melloul and the Lakeview Supper Club. “But there is an artful and fun way of presenting each dish so that it conveys excitement for your eyes and your mouth.”

Tsonton and Newgren create menu items to achieve texture, contrast and depth of flavor. “Cured” fluke is pounded thin, placed on chermoula (Moroccan fish marinade) and sprinkled with lemon and aromatic salt-n-pepper. This first course is partnered with a salad of cucumber and radish sprouts and house-made cumin crackers.

Contrast is also the key with Duck 2-ways, which could be three-way duck considering that the foie gras component is the bird’s liver. The leg is confit, seasoned with a house blend of spices known as ras el hanout. It is served with roasted duck breast, apple, turnip and foie gras-black pepper espuma.

Scallops in a “sea of foam” feature an equally provocative pairing. Diver scallops are briefly steamed in sesame seed, seaweed and sel de gris (sea salt) and placed atop braised sweet lettuce. The sea of foam served over the scallops is a frothy emulsion of fish stock, ham-hock stock, bone marrow, butter and sea urchin.

Desserts support and reflect the main menu. Pastry Chef James Martin, formerly of the Peninsula Hotel, executes dessert with a deft hand, turning out combinations that are ethereal and satisfying. A rich chocolate ganache is swirled onto a spongy round of chocolate cake, allowing the rich to play off of the light. Accompanied by house-made passion fruit ice cream, the tartness provides just the right contrast. Other seasonal desserts include blood orange parfait with rosemary macaroons, and warm date torta with cardamom ice cream and orange gastrique.

For Tsonton, 43, copperblue is the realization of a dream and business plan he wrote 20 years ago. He studied at the Columbus College of Art & Design in Columbus, Ohio, and pursued interests in fine art and print making. But while working in restaurants to pay for his education, he fell for the excitement of the kitchen. He later honed his skills in Cleveland under French Chef Claude Rodier, who worked with Roger Verge and other Michelin star chefs.

Tsonton, who moved to Chicago seven years ago as the opening chef of the contemporary Spanish restaurant, Brio, hired Newgren, 33, as a cook after he graduated from the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, NY. The two have worked together over the years. Finally, the time was right for a venture that would execute their vision.

“Our goal is to create a true dining experience, one that will evoke memories of great food and personalized service,” says Tsonton.