Flights of Fancy at The Distinctive Cork

If you didn’t know to look for , you might miss it—and that would be a shame. The restaurant and wine bar is tucked into a mall of sorts, sharing the vicinity with stores and a couple of other restaurants. Adjacent to a quiet neighborhood and just south of the bustling downtown Naperville scene, it offers a delightfully different dining experience. Warm, rich colors fill the space, and a great, hip vibe greets all who enter.

Diners can choose from a more traditional dining experience, selecting from soups, salads and dinner entrees. Those who are looking for variety are encouraged to select from their Sharing Plates—an option that lends itself to a more tapas-style dining experience. And, with a nice variety of red and white wine flights that pair with any of the selections, guests seemingly can make only good choices when deciding what to order.

The “Whites that Wow” flight (a 2 oz. tasting of three wines) and a generous portion of marinated mixed imported olives was a nice way to start the meal. Next up, the perfectly seared ahi tuna on crispy won tons accented with a ginger wasabi aioli was a definite palate pleaser. The next stop on the menu was the Chesapeake Bay crab cakes served with sautéed spinach and beurre blanc sauce, which made the spinach that much more delicious and an incentive to finish every last bite. Wanting to try one last culinary delight, the mini tenderloin burgers sounded too tempting to pass up. Served on lightly toasted mini herb rolls with sweet caramelized onions and blue cheese – and tenderloin cooked between medium and medium well – those  little morsels were polished off in no time.

So, what was the inspiration for a restaurant and wine bar—the likes of which can’t be found elsewhere in Naperville?

Jason Anderson, certified sommelier simply said, “The suburbs had a need for a place like this.”

He and owner-chef Scott Taylor wanted to bring a taste of Lincoln Park’s casual elegance to Naperville. With nearly four years under their belts, it seems that their concept has caught on nicely.

Perhaps the most unique aspect of The Distinctive Cork is the fact that it’s a bit of chameleon from one night to the next.

“It’s whatever you want to make your experience—formal or casual, mellow or loud,” Anderson said. “Some nights we host book clubs and it can get a little lively, while other nights it’s more on the quiet side with couples dining.”

Dining in a restaurant that has wine as a primary focus of its menu might seem intimidating to those who don’t consider themselves wine connoisseurs. However, Anderson gives his assurance there’s no need for that. “We work hard at making wine not pretentious because it doesn’t need to be. We just want to give our guests the best time.”