Latest Chicago restaurant reviews

I was a little startled to find, on entering Alinea Group’s remake of Roister into the bro-y, all-caps FIRE, that the room felt dark and serene, awash in gray and black like the remains of a fire that burned out hours before. Then again, what was I expecting—licking flames climbing toward the ceiling to match machismo decor with all the subtlety of Guy Fieri?  Even Fire’s hearth, aglow with live flame and framed with suspended leeks and juniper branches, exuded a controlled kind of softness, crackling gently as half a dozen chefs milled around it wielding fans, blowtorches, branches, brushes, stones, misters and cast iron … irons. It’s an important metaphor for how fire is deployed at Grant Achatz’s first new restaurant in eight years—as much precise seasoning as multifaceted and elemental cooking method. A glowing log slowly diffuses its smokiness into an ice cream base, and hot stones and damp branches gently steam shellfish. When it works, it is revelatory. Take the opening course, which conveyed three miniature expressions of hearth-“seasoned” Spanish prawns atop a charred wood box heavy with stones and seaweed. A tiny shiso leaf “taco” packed an umami bomb of cold-smoked prawn meat seasoned with crunchy garlic and chocolatey barrel-aged soy sauce, like oceanic forcemeat. Grilled prawn shells infused a prescriptively decadent bisque shooter with toasty depth. A technicolor prawn tail, steamed till tacky-soft like crudo, was shellacked with raw honey and garnished with...

Located inside the ultra-luxe St. Regis hotel, this authentic Tuscan restaurant from celebrated chef Evan Funke offers an exceptional experience inside one of the city's most beautiful dining rooms. The vibe: A high-end Italian restaurant and bar that makes you feel like you might run into Kendall Roy at any time. The food: Handmade pastas anchor the menu, with highlights including the rigatoncini all'arrabbiata and the trofie al pesto. The menu is designed to share, so go all in and order a few things. We recommend starting with the fluffy focaccia and pillowy gnocchi fritti. The drinks: Signature and classic cocktails complement an extensive selection of bottles, some of which are priced at over $1,500. Time Out tip: Request a table by the soaring window to take advantage of the sweeping city views, and, if you come on a Wednesday or Saturday night during the summer, the fireworks across the street at Navy Pier. 

The vibe: This dark, 50-seater leans decidedly cozier than its bright predecessor Wherewithall, with green walls and homey accents like vintage trinket plates and colorful Ukrainian fabric upholstery. Walk-ins can post up at the sultry bar amid the candlelight and leafy plants.  The food: Modern meets traditional Ukrainian—fulfilling, heavy on root vegetables, oily fish and grains, and often sporting a sour edge from naturally fermented ingredients. Try to order at least one item from every section, broken into zakusky (small plates), broth, dumplings and noodles, vegetables, fish and meat, sides and desserts.  The drink: Spirit-forward cocktails are seasoned with infusions, bitter aperitifs and house-fermented kefir. Knowledgeable staff will guide you through the all-Eastern European wine list. A few favorites by the glass include the mineral, salty Črnko "Jareninčan” Welschriesling from Slovenia and lush, Chardonnay-like Bodrog Bormühely from Hungary. Spirit-free drinkers can opt for kvass, a traditional house-fermented beverage resembling kombucha.    Time Out tips: In the bar, the four stools overlooking the kitchen are all available for walk-ins, like an unofficial chef’s table. Anelya also sees the most reservation cancellations on Saturdays, meaning walk-ins have a good chance at scoring a table. For reservations, we suggest booking two weeks out.  Updated with reporting by Lauren Brocato

What happens when a chef trained at Carbone opens an Italian restaurant in Lincoln Park? I went to the recently debuted Dimmi Dimmi to find out. This intimate spot on the corner of Armitage and Seminary Avenues took over the former Tarantino’s space. (Word is that a handful of former Tarantino’s employees are now on staff at Dimmi Dimmi.) There are very few reservations available over the next few weeks, but I managed to get one of the two high-tops at the window by walking in just before 5pm on a Tuesday. The bar was already filling up with singles and groups of no more than three. Light chatter and easygoing, nondescript music bounced around the space, which became increasingly louder as the evening went on.  Dimmi Dimmi, from Cornerstone Restaurant Group (Urbanbelly, Michael Jordan’s Steakhouse), is helmed by chef Matt Eckfeld, whose culinary career began here in Chicago. Eckfeld worked under Bill Kim at Urbanbelly and cut his teeth at high-end spots like Carbone and ZZ’s Club in New York. It’s no surprise that for this homecoming, he tackles Italian-American fare from a Chicago perspective. The menu is robust with all the expected classics: salads, pastas, pizzas, fish and meat dishes. Portions are not massive, but they’re enough for a family-style meal, which seems like the protocol here. Thankfully, the dining tables are spacious enough for this type of dining. I’m immediately impressed by the Caesar salad, which is crunchy, creamy and delightfully lemon-forward. The...

We’ve seen plenty of modern Greek restaurants pop up across the city over the past few years, and most of them have garnered major buzz. On the surface, it seems like Chicago’s Greek scene is alive and well, right? Not quite. I’ll be the first to say it: Chicago doesn't really need new Greek restaurants right now. Greektown, on the other hand, certainly does. If you head to the West Loop neighborhood, you’ll see far too many vacant storefronts and the bones of what were once buzzing culinary hubs. Today, Chicago’s Greektown—one of the last of its kind in the country—is in dire need of a serious revival, and Ithako Estiatorio may be just what it needs. The opening of Ithaki, located inside the former Parthenon space, marks the return of founder Kosti Demos, whose family ran the beloved institution Costa’s Greek Dining and Bar (a favorite of Barack Obama, Vince Vaughn and Jennifer Aniston) before a fire destroyed the space in 2015, and it was later sold and replaced with a high-rise.  From the moment I walked into the new eatery on Halsted Street, it was clear that this was exactly what the neighborhood needed. Exposed brick walls, wooden beams and light-washed flooring frame the sprawling bar that wraps 15 feet around the front of the 180-seat restaurant. Delicate pink bougainvillea flowers and greenery throughout evoke the breeziness of the Mediterranean coast, and an open kitchen peels back the curtain on the wood-fired hearth and grill in the back. Greek transplant and...

Soak in riverfront and skyline views from three different levels at this West Loop steakhouse. The second and third floors of the restaurant feature tables spread across on spacious patios, while the fourth rooftop is available for private events. The vibe: A modern Italian steakhouse with exceptional views. The food: Gibsons Italia serves house-made pastas, high-quality cuts of meat and other Italian delicacies.  The drinks: A massive wine list offers something for everyone, plus a selection of beer, wine, spirits and low- and no-alcohol drinks. Time Out tip: Gibsons Italia offers one of the most unique views of the city, right where the river splits north and south.  

Lettuce Entertain You's ultra-popular spot below RPM Seafood serves lunch and dinner, with a menu centered around hand-stretched pizzas, artisanal pastas and grilled seafood. There's always someone celebrating a birthday, out-of-towners looking for a bite along the water and workers from nearby office buildings meeting for a power lunch or after-work drinks. The vibe: A lively riverfront restaurant with one of the best outdoor dining patios in the city. The service is good, the food is average and the views are unbeatable. The food: You can't go wrong with the cult-favorite charred pepperoni pizza and rigatoni vodka pasta for the table. The Caesar salad and crispy Parmesan fries are also standouts. The drinks: The drink menu always features a selection of quirky cocktails, like River North With A View (vodka, raspberry and Pimm's liqueur) and multiple variations of a spritz. If you're here with a group, you might want to opt for the Portofino Purse, a cocktail of your choice served in a glass handbag (yes, really).  Time Out tip: The whole point of coming here (usually) is to sit on the patio, so be sure to make a reservation in advance to secure one of the most coveted waterfront tables in Chicago.

Restaurant review by Amy Cavanaugh While we were driving to dinner at Boka last weekend, my dinner date confessed: “All I want to eat for dinner is chicken.”  “You’re in luck,” I said. “Lee Wolen is a god of chicken.” When the Boka Group overhauled its ten-year old flagship restaurant earlier this winter, it made a few key changes. It revamped the space so it’s unrecognizable from its previous, staid incarnation—now, there’s a huge moss- and plant-covered wall (designed by former Time Out dining editor Heather Shouse’s Bottle and Branch horticulture company) with paintings of elegantly dressed-up animals; a bar area that feels like a boisterous brasserie, with dark leather, brick walls and dim lighting; and portraits of Bill Murray and Dave Grohl as generals. Bartender Ben Schiller had already departed for the Berkshire Room, and he was replaced with Tim Stanczykiewicz (GT Fish & Oyster, Balena), who handles the list of crowd-pleasing cocktails that don’t overpower the food, like a bee’s knees. And it brought in chicken god Lee Wolen, formerly chef de cuisine at the Lobby, to take over for GT Fish & Oyster’s Giueseppe Tentori. At the Lobby, Wolen’s star dish was a roasted chicken for two, a dish brought to Chicago from New York’s NoMad (the sister restaurant to Eleven Madison Park, where Wolen was a sous chef). It’s a different dish at Boka, but it’s still a knockout—lemon and thyme brioche is stuffed under the skin, then the breasts are roasted and the legs confited,...

I often find myself the minority in conversations where people argue that pasta is meant for home cooking. “Why go out and pay $18 for something I can make myself?” they ask. Maybe because I love delicate handmade tagliatelle as much as red sauce-drowned, bottomless pasta bowls at Olive Garden. No matter what side of the argument you fall on, Joe Frillman’s noodle-centric Logan Square spot makes a compelling argument for going out for pasta—if only for a single, beguiling bowl of tajarin. But let me back up. Earlyish on a weeknight, the mister and I were seated without a wait at one of the low wood tables lining a built-in bench opposite a long, minimalist bar. The space (which formerly hosted dearly departed Analogue) has a narrow, crowded front dining room. The still-intimate back room offers a bit more space and overlooks a serene patio. The vibe here is casual and relaxed, with lots of brick and wood accentuated by cheerful veggie watercolors by Frillman’s sister Carrie. I started with the cucumber spritz, a bright, easy-drinking, tequila-spiked salve to Chicago’s 105 percent humidity. The sweet-meets-earthy beet old-fashioned was a clever, more direct route to washing away the day’s woes, especially when sipped alongside fried shiitakes and cheese curds, which oozed just enough inside. We dunked them in tangy tarragon ranch, basking in churched-up taste memories of our Upper Midwestern college days. Our second starter, silky duck fat-cooked carrot rillettes, was...

You can practically feel the soul oozing from the menu at this Hyde Park restaurant. It's because chef Erick Williams cooks with his heart, whether he's plating fried green tomatoes with tender shrimp and creamy rémoulade or he's fixing his famous collards, which arrive studded with hunks of smoked turkey meat. Second only to the food is the ambiance, which is sexy without trying too hard—perfect for a cozy date night. The following review was published in 2019. Erick Williams’ ambitious solo venture captures the depth and scope of Southern cooking with soul-satisfying results. When I ask Erick Williams, the chef/owner of Virtue, to describe the inspiration behind his effusively warm, broad-spectrum Southern restaurant in Hyde Park, he heaves a long sigh. “I want to be thorough,” he says, pausing again. “The food is inspired by the Southern experience of cooking.” That sentiment encompasses centuries of chosen and forced migration, strife and survival, and the collision of myriad regions and ethnicities—which Williams channels into satiating, elevated fare at his solo debut. The menu’s boiled-down dish descriptions (pork chop, salmon, shrimp) all but hide the intense attention to detail that he devotes to techniques and sourcing methods. It's a reminder that we're here to be fed, first and foremost. “What’s with this place? I keep dropping people off here,” our Lyft driver commented as we pulled up to the Hyde Park storefront that formerly housed A10. Inside, the soaring...

I was a little startled to find, on entering Alinea Group’s remake of Roister into the bro-y, all-caps FIRE, that the room felt dark and serene, awash in gray and black like the remains of a fire that burned out hours before. Then again, what was I expecting—licking flames climbing toward the ceiling to match machismo decor with all the subtlety of Guy Fieri?  Even Fire’s hearth, aglow with live flame and framed with suspended leeks and juniper branches, exuded a controlled kind of softness, crackling gently as half a dozen chefs milled around it wielding fans, blowtorches, branches, brushes, stones, misters and cast iron … irons. It’s an important metaphor for how fire is deployed at Grant Achatz’s first new restaurant in eight years—as much precise seasoning as multifaceted and elemental cooking method. A glowing log slowly diffuses its smokiness into an ice cream base, and hot stones and damp branches gently steam shellfish. When it works, it is revelatory. Take the opening course, which conveyed three miniature expressions of hearth-“seasoned” Spanish prawns atop a charred wood box heavy with stones and seaweed. A tiny shiso leaf “taco” packed an umami bomb of cold-smoked prawn meat seasoned with crunchy garlic and chocolatey barrel-aged soy sauce, like oceanic forcemeat. Grilled prawn shells infused a prescriptively decadent bisque shooter with toasty depth. A technicolor prawn tail, steamed till tacky-soft like crudo, was shellacked with raw honey and garnished with...

Of all things, it was a fried corn silk garnish that made me well up during the fourth “Ravioli” course at Cariño, Uptown’s spectacular Latin American tasting menu restaurant from co-owner/executive chef Norman Fenton.  What’s maybe more noteworthy about this dish, in which al dente ravioli stuffed with puréed huitlacoche laze in truffle beurre blanc beneath a wave of corn foam, is that truffle isn’t rained on top like dollar bills. Rather it’s deployed subtly to enhance the corn smut’s woodsy, fermented qualities. Adorning the bowl’s edge with dehydrated corn and “popped” sorghum, the corn silk looked like little singed hairs. It tasted grassy and toasty, unlocking a childhood taste memory of eating ineptly shucked, grilled corn on the cob with butter. This stuck with me as I unearthed the grain’s diverse expressions one by one, then in a chorus—buttery, minerally, toasty, earthy like mushrooms, gently acidic, sweet as if sun dried. And I cried, just a little.  This was one of countless moments that solidified my sense that Cariño might be the best dining experience in Chicago right now, and a redemption of the tasting menu, which too often feels like it’s reaching for Michelin stars to the point of wanton tedium. Yes, you’ll find some fine-dining hallmarks: molecular gastronomy, occasional Wagyu and a truffle or two. Yes, there’s a hint of chef-bro one upmanship, namely a dessert in which a perfectly fried churro is doubly overpowered by foie gras mousse and a spiced...

We've rounded up the best chefs in the city to join us at Time Out Market Chicago, a culinary and cultural destination in the heart of Fulton Market. The 50,000-square-foot space houses more than 15 kitchens, three bars and one drop-dead gorgeous rooftop terrace—all spread across three floors. Our mission is simple: Bring Time Out Chicago to life with the help of our favorite chefs, the ones who wow us again and again. You'll find delicious dumplings from Qing Xiang Yuan, mouthwatering burgers at Gutenburg, fried chicken from Art Smith's Sporty Bird and extravagant milkshakes from JoJo's shakeBAR. If you're thirsty, sit down at one of the Market's bars to enjoy a menu of local beer, a robust wine list or a creative seasonal cocktail. And keep an eye out for events, concerts and artwork within the Market throughout the year—we're keeping our calendar packed with things to do.

The team behind Meadowlark, Lardon and Union strikes again with Little Lark. The indoor/outdoor spot is part of the social club and coworking space Guild Row in Avondale. Serving Neapolitan-style pizzas, shared apps and interesting drinks, Little Lark is equal parts restaurant and neighborhood hangout. The menu by chef Will Conner (Elina's) is small but mighty, and the vibes are superb. Tunes ranging from Jack Johnson's "Banana Pancakes" to "Superstition" by Stevie Wonder mingle with the scent of the fire pit burning at the front of the patio. Inside, the massive wood-fired oven, sourced from Italy, is on display as pizza dough is tossed behind the bar. As for the food, the Neapolitan pizzas are the star of the show. We recommend ordering anything with meat, as the toppings are sourced from the restaurant group's other spot, Lardon. 

The Brewed is every horror lover's dream—and perhaps everyone else's nightmare. More museum than coffee shop, it's filled with giant movie posters, curio cabinets brimming with memorabilia and walls painted in homage to Suspiria (1977). The menu features themed drinks like the “Leland Palmer” and “Firestarter,” along with grab-and-go bites and macarons from local confectioner Bad Channel Co. 

Located inside the ultra-luxe St. Regis hotel, this authentic Tuscan restaurant from celebrated chef Evan Funke offers an exceptional experience inside one of the city's most beautiful dining rooms. The vibe: A high-end Italian restaurant and bar that makes you feel like you might run into Kendall Roy at any time. The food: Handmade pastas anchor the menu, with highlights including the rigatoncini all'arrabbiata and the trofie al pesto. The menu is designed to share, so go all in and order a few things. We recommend starting with the fluffy focaccia and pillowy gnocchi fritti. The drinks: Signature and classic cocktails complement an extensive selection of bottles, some of which are priced at over $1,500. Time Out tip: Request a table by the soaring window to take advantage of the sweeping city views, and, if you come on a Wednesday or Saturday night during the summer, the fireworks across the street at Navy Pier. 

What happens when a chef trained at Carbone opens an Italian restaurant in Lincoln Park? I went to the recently debuted Dimmi Dimmi to find out. This intimate spot on the corner of Armitage and Seminary Avenues took over the former Tarantino’s space. (Word is that a handful of former Tarantino’s employees are now on staff at Dimmi Dimmi.) There are very few reservations available over the next few weeks, but I managed to get one of the two high-tops at the window by walking in just before 5pm on a Tuesday. The bar was already filling up with singles and groups of no more than three. Light chatter and easygoing, nondescript music bounced around the space, which became increasingly louder as the evening went on.  Dimmi Dimmi, from Cornerstone Restaurant Group (Urbanbelly, Michael Jordan’s Steakhouse), is helmed by chef Matt Eckfeld, whose culinary career began here in Chicago. Eckfeld worked under Bill Kim at Urbanbelly and cut his teeth at high-end spots like Carbone and ZZ’s Club in New York. It’s no surprise that for this homecoming, he tackles Italian-American fare from a Chicago perspective. The menu is robust with all the expected classics: salads, pastas, pizzas, fish and meat dishes. Portions are not massive, but they’re enough for a family-style meal, which seems like the protocol here. Thankfully, the dining tables are spacious enough for this type of dining. I’m immediately impressed by the Caesar salad, which is crunchy, creamy and delightfully lemon-forward. The...

The vibe: This dark, 50-seater leans decidedly cozier than its bright predecessor Wherewithall, with green walls and homey accents like vintage trinket plates and colorful Ukrainian fabric upholstery. Walk-ins can post up at the sultry bar amid the candlelight and leafy plants.  The food: Modern meets traditional Ukrainian—fulfilling, heavy on root vegetables, oily fish and grains, and often sporting a sour edge from naturally fermented ingredients. Try to order at least one item from every section, broken into zakusky (small plates), broth, dumplings and noodles, vegetables, fish and meat, sides and desserts.  The drink: Spirit-forward cocktails are seasoned with infusions, bitter aperitifs and house-fermented kefir. Knowledgeable staff will guide you through the all-Eastern European wine list. A few favorites by the glass include the mineral, salty Črnko "Jareninčan” Welschriesling from Slovenia and lush, Chardonnay-like Bodrog Bormühely from Hungary. Spirit-free drinkers can opt for kvass, a traditional house-fermented beverage resembling kombucha.    Time Out tips: In the bar, the four stools overlooking the kitchen are all available for walk-ins, like an unofficial chef’s table. Anelya also sees the most reservation cancellations on Saturdays, meaning walk-ins have a good chance at scoring a table. For reservations, we suggest booking two weeks out.  Updated with reporting by Lauren Brocato

Boka Restaurant Group’s dimly lit new pizza joint, located inside the former GT Fish & Oyster space on the corner of Grand Avenue and Wells Street, attracts the cool kids of River North. The vibe: The lively spot is impeccably designed, with modern checkered tiled floors and walls, moody green hues and exposed brick. The crowd ranges from folks bellied up to the bar during a sporting event to couples out for date night, all of whom can appreciate the vibey playlist that includes flavors of everything from the `80s to current hits. The food: Chefs and partners Chris Pandel (Swift & Sons, Cira, Swift & Son’s Tavern) and Lee Wolen (Boka, Alla Vita, GG’s Chicken Shop) serve a simple—but packed—menu. Specialty pizzas, which can be made half-and-half and with one of three dips (Calabrian chili oil, hot honey and garlic ranch), are the main draw, but the salads and pastas are not to be overlooked. The ricotta gnocchi is rich, pillowy and practically melts in your mouth. The drinks: The drink menu is very bubbly, as is en vogue right now, with standouts like the crisp Cucumber Spritz (Vodka, Cocchi Americano, St. Germain, lemon and cucumber soda) and Soda Rossa (Matchbook Strawberry, lemon and cola), plus zero-proof sips like Green River soda and Sprecher root beer. Time Out tip: I would never let a loved one dine at Zarella without ordering the vanilla malt soft serve. Undoubtedly my favorite item on the entire menu, the soft serve ice cream is lightly sprinkled with cookie...

There’s a reason Lula has been a Chicago staple for more than two decades. Chef-owner Jason Hammel and his team present dishes made with the freshest seasonal ingredients, and it shows—from pastries to turkey sandwiches to roast chicken, everything you'll eat here tastes like it's been thoroughly iterated and perfected. The following review was published in 2011. There are a million steaks in this world, and not one quite like Lula's. Slices of flat-iron pattern a plate, semolina gnocchi tucked here and there. It is not steakhouse food. And it is definitely not that strange genre of Italian steakhouse food. This is a steak strewn with kimchi whose heat and crunch is compulsive. Specks of fried sardine pop with brininess, riffing on the fermented cabbage’s funk. It sounds strange, doesn’t it? It’s anything but. Aesthetically, it’s striking. Technically, it’s accomplished. It’s a dish that is very much of its parts: the high quality, consciously sourced, thoughtfully prepared beef; the rustic housemade pasta; the commitment to canning (kimchi); the penchant for small, sustainable fish (sardines). These are the traits that, for more than a decade, one has come to describe as being soLula. But this steak is more than that. It’s a dish that, in its inspired flavor combinations, is greater even than the sum of its very great parts. And it’s not just the steak. On recent visits to Lula, dish after dish pushed the envelope from interesting to exciting. I had a bite that combined...