Restaurant review
Being 2.5 hours away from Chicago, I am still looking for a great modern America cuisine restaurant that is not simply a steak house. Silvercreek is likely the best that Champaign has to offer, but it still falls short of a 4 or 5 star dining experience in Chicago. As soon as you step into the restaurant, the all brick wall and wood ceiling interior adds a bit of class to your meal. We went in the summer time, but I can imagine how rustic it would feel in the winter with the large fireplaces that are along the adjacent wall. The server was quick to take our orders and get the kids meals out first with the appetizer. We went with the appetizer sampler which had the shrimp cocktail served with blue cheese mousse with cocktail sauce (FYI they serve it in such a weird shot glass that I thought it was an oyster in cocktail sauce....), calamari fried exceptionally well, marinated olives with a sweet zest, and duck prosciutto wrapped dates. It was nice trying a bunch of apps on plate. My duck entree is where it losses some stars as only 3/4 of this was cooked well, the other 1/4 was too well done on the chewy side. The cauliflower and parsnip puree along with the shiitake mushroom roasted cauliflower complemented the dish well especially the freshness of the vegetables. I am also very concern why there was a dark blue discoloration in the duck breast as noted in my picture. The redeeming quality is the extensive options on the menu and some farm to table elements.
Pros: refined menu that utilizes many components to the dish, special dinner menu, Sunday brunch
Cons: What is up with the blue discoloration in the duck breast and 1/4 of it was way over done
Hidden deals:
1. Sunday brunch buffet- I need to come back and give this a try
2. Pre-fixe menu- not advertised on the website 3 course meal for 29.99
3. Global Wednesday- unique foods from around the world
4. Live music Friday night