In a city that features such renowned chefs as Charlie Trotter and Grant Achatz, it’s telling that Suzy Crofton’s eponymous River North restaurant has survived—thrived, actually—since 1997. By leaving the foam and other tricks to others, Crofton has earned a truckload of awards for her elegant contemporary cuisine. The restaurant’s muted gray-and-white décor mirrors Crofton’s French-tinged cooking: elegant and thoughtful, without pretense. She puts as much thought into her appetizers—including the crab cake and sautée of wild mushrooms with bacon, cracked peppercorn and brioche—as she does on her Amish chicken and smoked pork belly topped with her famous smoked-apple chutney. And vegetarians aren’t relegated to a cursory dish at the corner of the menu—Crofton puts out a separate vegetarian menu, as well as several vegan options.

Crofton on Wells Information:

• Contemporary American menu. Dinner. Closed Sunday.