Although it's the food that brings people to Everest, there's plenty there for your eyes to snack on, too -- starting with the gorgeous 40th-floor views of the Chicago cityscape. When Chef Jean Joho designed the restaurant in 1986, he deliberately located it on the west side of the building. Although the east side offers views of Lake Michigan during the day, those views at night are nothing but empty black space. Chicago's west and south sides, however, are brightly aglow with lights during Everest's dinner service, perfectly visible through the floor-to-ceiling bay windows in the lower level dining room and in the private dining rooms. Inside, though, the view is even better, as Chef Joho is an avid art enthusiast who's turned the Everest interior into a veritable art gallery. In fact, the dining room is brimming with both paintings and sculptures from four featured artists: sculptor Ivo Soldini, painter Adam Seigel, sculptor Cavalier Virginio L. Ferrari and painter Tim Anderson. Perhaps the most dramatic piece in the restaurant is Ferrari's golden sculpture, a man-sized series of upright rectilinear bars that resembles an abstract grouping of people, standing and conversing in front of a column on the staircase that separates the atrium from the lower level. In the lower level you'll find two large paintings by Seigel that feature abstract floral designs against a blue and amber background. Near the restrooms, meanwhile, you'll find a signature painting by Anderson that looks like an abstract boat that's been cut into a series of small, swirly squares. Finally, the art follows you right to your tabletop, where small bronze sculptures -- human figures by Soldini -- serve as both attractive centerpieces and dramatic conversation pieces. Long after you're full, your eyes will be busy binging on Everest's museum-like atmosphere.

Because he's so interested in art, it should come as no surprise that Chef Joho approaches his preparations as a painter would a painting. That is to say, deliberately and artfully. His palette isn't just food, however. It's also wine, as Chef Joho sees the interplay between food and wine as an integral part of the fine-dining experience. That's why he's assembled an award-winning collection of 1,700 hand-selected wines in Everest's temperature- and humidity-controlled wine cellar, which is located on the 39th floor of One Financial Place, below the restaurant. The collection includes bottles from classic French regions such as Bordeaux, Rhone Valley and Burgundy; from countries such as Spain, Australia, Italy and Argentina; and from American states like California, Oregon and Washington. The highlight, however, is the list of more than 350 wines from Chef Joho's native Alsace, France, which is known for its white wines, particularly its sweet Rieslings. It's said to be the world's largest collection of Alsatian wines and therefore represents a unique opportunity to sample your chef's roots alongside his most delicious culinary fruits.