Table Fifty-Two
52 W. Elm
312-573-4000

Chef Art Smith’s upscale Southern-inspired comfort classics and attentive service warm both heart and stomach. Dinner starts with a savory goat cheese biscuit baked in its own miniature cast iron skillet and ends with an array of decadent desserts to choose from. In between are hearty and familiar yet imaginative entrees such as ancho chile-crusted pork chops with pickled cherries and pear salad. Smith has been known to visit with each table in the dining room and graciously signs cookbooks for those who’ve clearly made a pilgrimage to the restaurant (and I’m sure he’d do the same for locals, too).

Vibe: Your posh Southern aunt’s country dining room
Cost: $8 to $30+. Lunch was considerably less expensive but has since been cut from service; it’s dinner only now.
Must-try: Hummingbird cake, a gigantic slice of moist banana cake studded with crushed pineapple and pecans, finished with rich cream cheese icing and a scoop of vanilla ice cream.
Avoid: The thin stretched wood-fired pizza was more like a salty flatbread.
Also: Thoughtful little touches like the small pitcher of simple syrup they give you to mix your own sweet tea linger long after the meal.