Crystal Lake 1776 Restaurant awarded for ‘excellence’ in wine

At the 1776 Restaurant in Crystal Lake, there are more than 2,000 bottles of wine. Many are displayed on a wine rack under dramatically lit spotlights that take up almost the entire wall by the entrance.

The selection is always changing, but there are typically around over 500 wine types in the collection, said wine and spirits director Erik Nordstrom.

With the large wine selection and the staff’s extensive wine knowledge, the Crystal Lake restaurant was awarded the 2023 “Best of Award of Excellence” by Wine Spectator Magazine.

I never thought we’d actually get the ‘best of’ award, so to actually see that come across is pretty amazing.”

—  Erik Nordstrom, 1776 Restaurant's wine and spirits director

Over 1,400 restaurants won in the worldwide category. It is the only restaurant in McHenry County in the winning category. The award list is featured in the August issue of Wine Spectator Magazine.

“I think it’s pretty phenomenal, a little emotional and super exciting,” Nordstrom said.

This is the first time the 1776 Restaurant, located at 397 Virginia St., won this award by the magazine. Previously, the restaurant consistently won the “Award of Excellence” since 1995, which is a tier below the award they won this year.

“I never thought we’d actually get the ‘best of’ award, so to actually see that come across is pretty amazing,” Nordstrom said.

1776 Restaurant features a farm-to-table menu of American eats and is reservation-recommended. Some of their most popular dishes are the gluten-free cheese curds and a mushroom soup.

The menu completely changes three to four times a year to keep things fresh and match with the seasons. The menu will be changed this Wednesday, owner Rhienna McClain said.

Cabernet wine from Napa Valley is their most popular request, Nordstrom said. Nordstrom specializes in finding smaller farmers, so he can “shift people’s pallets” and introduce new wines.

“They trust us,” McClain said. “A lot of people say they don’t know a lot of the items on our list.”

At the bar, a collection of crystal glassware is on display. Everything is hand-polished and sanitized, McClain said.

“We have glassware specific to pinot noir, cabernet, chardonnay, to show that wine in the best way possible,” Nordstrom said.

Nordstrom has been at the restaurant for six years. He said he found his “a-ha” moment to work in the wine industry when he was studying abroad in Australia as a college student. It was when he tasted Hunter Valley cabernet when he fell in love with wine.

An Airstream bar will be coming to the restaurant in the near future, McClain said. It will be an outdoor garden area where people can enjoy drinks and small plates.

The new area will better serve a wide-range of customers, from celebrating a special occasion to grabbing a few drinks after mowing the lawn, Nordstrom said.

“We have an eclectic mix of customer base but I think that’s cool because it creates this community,” McClain said. “Everybody deserves good food.”