Talk about off the beaten path: North Pond is situated in the middle of a pastoral setting in Lincoln Park, surrounded by trees and blocks away from the neighborhood’s occasionally lunkheaded bar scene. The restaurant’s gorgeous Prairie-style building—originally built in 1912 as a lodge for ice-skaters—overlooks a small pond and provides a stunning view of the Chicago skyline. Almost as impeccable is chef Bruce Sherman’s sustainable-minded fare, which emphasizes seasonal local items in specialties such as oil-poached Alaskan halibut with smoked caviar, and Dijoncrusted rib eye with roasted farro. Sherman puts the Web sites of local nonprofits on his menu, but with a meal this delicious—capped by the chocolate-cherry dessert that boasts a decadent chocolate panna cotta with bing cherries and red beet sorbet—you’ll put up with a little political grandstanding.

North Pond Information:

• Contemporary American menu. Lunch (June-September Tuesday-Friday), Dinner (closed Monday-Tuesday from January-April), Sunday brunch.