Category Archives: Bars

Honey’s

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Exterior

Bar

Dining Room

Cauliflower

Caesar salad

Squid ink cavatelli

Satsuma mandarin

*** (3 stars)

While this meal had its ups and downs, let me start by saying that the service was superb. It seemed as if everyone in the restaurant, from the hostess to the bussing staff, the kitchen staff, my waiter Alexis and the manager all personally greeted me and wished me a good meal. And this was before it became evident that I’d been “outed” (the manager stopped by to compliment me on my photos, and I hadn’t yet posted and from Honey’s.)

And it was a good meal, just not a great one. The restaurant certainly is aspiring to greatness, and the classy dining room and chic bar are a good start. The food is just a bit uneven.

The meal begins with complimentary bread service, and the bread was hot, crusty and excellent.

I started with the spit roasted cauliflower, which was an interesting consistency because of the accompanying puree and bread crumbs.

The Caesar salad is a bizarre take on a classic. Grilled romaine is chopped, and tossed with a good Caesar dressing. I’ve enjoyed grilled romaine before, but this seemed more like it was wilted rather than charred. But it was the additional ingredients that went off the rails. Sliced cheese is a trend I can live with, but the pickled shallots and crackers took it too far afield to be called a Caesar. and three large dollops of egg yolk sabayon were about as appetizing as if someone had dumped a jar of mayonnaise on it. In short, don’t order this.

Things got back on track with the squid ink cavatelli. Although the pasta was a bit overcooked, the braised octopus, calamari and shrimp were tender and flavorful, and the mint pesto had a wonderful acidity that elevated the whole dish.

I finished with the satsuma mandarin, a nice light dessert with earl grey cake and mandarin orange sorbet. The double decaf espresso I had was noteworthy only in that it was the single most bitter espresso I’ve every been served!

Prices are okay, but be aware that portions are on the small side, so you will want several courses.

There is an extensive list of eclectic wines, including some thoughtful by-the-glass selections. The rosés go particularly well with most of this menu.

Honey’s
1111 W Lake St
Chicago, IL 60607
(312) 877-5929
http://www.yelp.com/biz/honeys-chicago

Gibsons Bar & Steakhouse

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Exterior

Dining room

Porch

Bread service

Crab avocado

House salad (included)

T-bone

1/2 creamed spinach

**** (4 stars)

I’ve tried nearly all the independent steakhouses in River North so that you don’t have to. This is the one you’re looking for.

Gibsons is a very old school steakhouse. The classic starters and sides are here, without any pretensions. And Gibson’s is all about the meat. Their meat isn’t just prime, it is their own designation of Gibsons USDA Prime, the only restaurant in the US to have one. So of course the meat is very flavorful and tender. As you would expect, the sirloins and the sirloin sides of the T-bone and Porterhouse have all the flavor, while the filet sides are very tender but comparatively bland. My steak was beautifully seasoned and seared, but cooked a bit beyond the requested medium rare. Of course, my server would have been delighted to replace it, but I can’t stand to waste a perfectly good $52 steak. By the way, I had the T-bone, which is essentially a baby porterhouse.

But what about the other dishes? My favorite item was actually the crab and avocado appetizer. The very generous serving of delicious crab was lightly dressed and served with creamy avocado slices. Really nice.

I was going to order a half salad, but my waiter suggested I go with the complementary house salad that comes with all the steaks, and it was a great suggestion. Crisp lettuce and tomatoes were topped with an excellent creamy blue cheese dressing.

I did have a half order of creamed spinach with my steak. I liked the fact that it emphasized the spinach, with just enough cream to give it a smooth consistency, but allowing the focus to be on the flavor of the spinach.

Service was both friendly and professional, a delicate balance. Pricing is fairly reasonable considering the inclusion of a salad, and wine prices aren’t unreasonable either.

The place is very, very popular and therefore packed at all hours, so be sure to make reservations. Ask to sit in the “porch”, a side room with windows looking out on the park; it’s much quieter than the main dining room or deafening bar.

Gibsons Bar & Steakhouse
1028 N Rush St
Chicago, IL 60611
(312) 266-8999
http://www.yelp.com/biz/gibsons-bar-and-steakhouse-chicago

Jellyfish

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Interior

Tuna tartare

Spicy crab mini tacos

Banging sweet Thai chili chicken

Spicy salmon, kiss of fire, black diamond

*** (3 stars)

Jellyfish is divided into two distinct spaces. The inside is a long bar with facing booths. The bar is backlit with a spectacular wall of sliced geodes, and the blue lightning is very cool. Then there’s a sort of outside space that is like a solarium, with a glass ceiling that lets in the sun. It’s like sidewalk dining, but indoors.

The highlights here are the small plates, both cold and hot.

Our favorite was the tuna tartare, which was served on very tasty guacamole, accompanied by wonton chips.

The mini crab tacos were also very good.

We also tried the “bangin'” chicken with a sweet Thai chili sauce, which was fine but not remarkable.

Much of the menu consists of sushi, of course. Prices seem very high, with each individual piece of fish costing about $5. There was nothing we observed about the quality of the fish that seemed to justify the premium.

We opted for three rolls: spicy tuna, kiss of fire, and black diamond. All were fine, but none were that magic combination of flavors that would qualify them as “signature” rolls, as listed.

Service was good, as it should have been, since we were alone during Sunday at lunch. I suppose this is due to the second floor location, which makes it a bit non-obvious to the casual traffic on the busy street below.

Jellyfish
1009 N Rush St
Chicago, IL 60611
(312) 660-3111
https://www.yelp.com/biz/jellyfish-chicago-2

Petterino’s

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Almond encrusted white fish

Grilled trout

Cannelloni

Interior

**** (4 stars)

This restaurant is connected to the Goodman Theatre and just a few steps from the Oriental, so it’s a great place for a pre-show meal.

The interior is decorated like Sardi’s in New York, with red velvet booths and walls covered with caricatures of famous personalities.

The menu offers pastas, fish and meats. The food is better than one might expect for a restaurant that is capitalizing on its location. I particularly like the Caesar salad, which is a classical style without any of the odd deconstruction that is in vogue. My grilled trout was excellent, as was my companion’s almond-crusted whitefish.

Service is friendly and extremely efficient, because the place is geared to filling up and getting patrons out in time for their show.

This is a Lettuce Entertain You restaurant, and participates in their rewards program, which is a nice perk.

Petterino’s
150 N Dearborn St
Chicago, IL 60601
(312) 422-0150
https://www.yelp.com/biz/petterinos-chicago

Moe’s Cantina- River North

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Ceviche

Chicken Mole tacos

Interior

Nachos

**** (4 stars)

I went a long time without trying this place because the name is similar to a chain I despise, but there’s no relationship.

The cavernous space is neat looking, and has pretty good acoustics from what I could tell, although I was there during a fairly quiet lunch hour. The are several long bars and some tables big enough for large groups.

We really enjoyed the nachos we started with. They are definitely non-standard, almost more like a salad in some ways, with lots of pickled onions, lettuce and jalapeno. We got them without the beans, which I think would have just made them messy.

The menu is mostly tacos, and I enjoyed the chicken mole variety I tried, although I would have liked a variety rather than four all the same. My companion liked her ceviche.

Service was friendly and attentive.

Moe’s Cantina- River North
155 W Kinzie St
Chicago, IL 60654
(312) 245-2000
https://www.yelp.com/biz/moes-cantina-river-north-chicago

Bijan’s Bistro

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**** (4 stars)

It’s hard to categorize Bihan’s because of the incredibly diverse menu, which offers something for nearly every taste, from French and Mediterranean food to Burgers and sandwiches, Italian, and even bar food.

We liked everything we had, but in particular the spinach artichoke dip with lavash was really excellent.

There’s an extensive bar, and all the standard cocktails as well as wine and beer. Service was friendly and attentive.

In addition to all-day dining they server really late (4am).

Bijan’s Bistro
663 N State St
Chicago, IL 60654
(312) 202-1904
http://www.yelp.com/biz/bijans-bistro-chicago

Beacon Tavern

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***** (5 stars)

It’s hard to believe this restaurant had only been open a week or two when we visited, as it was running like a well-practiced operation indeed. In fact, the exterior of the building was not even finished! But certainy the staff training was.

The remodeled space is beautiful, with a boisterous bar area near the entry, and a more sedate dining area on the other side of the wall.

The short but very interesting menu focuses on small plates, mainly seafood, although heartier dishes such as fish and chips and even a burger are available.

We began with two crudos, one hamachi, the other fluke. Both combined sauces and other ingredients with exemplary slices of raw fish, but the fluke was the better of the two, because of the trout roe accompaniment and surprising combination of fruity flavors. The crudos are not cheap, and the serving size lives up to its “small plate” billing.

We also tried the king salmon entree, and while it was a delicious piece of salmon, the orange foam dotting the accompanying zucchini balls was the real standout, and would make a great vegetarian dish.

Ironically, the largest serving we had was the clam dish listed under small plates. A generous helping of clams was topped with a fried egg and bits of what were, essentially, lardons, plus some thin slices of peppers. The combination of the ingredients was surprising and superb. It was the best thing we tried.

The wine selections are limited, but there is an extensive list of interesting cocktails and spirits, tending towards bitter drinks like negronis and amaros, which suit my palate well, and go nicely with the various seafood offerings.

Our server, Layla, was extremely knowledgeable and engaging, and made our meal a delight. In all, a very auspicious start.

Beacon Tavern
405 N Wabash Ave
Chicago, IL 60611
(312) 955-4226
http://www.yelp.com/biz/beacon-tavern-chicago

Berghoff Restaurant

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**** (4 stars)

Great ambiance and great root beer have been bringing people back here for a very long time. In fact, the history goes back to the 1893 world’s exhibition (where the Berghoffs had to set up shop outside the fairgrounds, but did very well, thank you). The decor is amazing, particularly the murals and photos of the world’s fair. The German food is quite good, and there are also unusual items such as chili con carne made using a recipe from 1893. Look for Chicago’s first post-prohibition liquor license, Number 1, in one of the glass cabinets in the bar.

Berghoff Restaurant
17 W Adams St
Chicago, IL 60603
(312) 427-3170
http://www.yelp.com/biz/berghoff-restaurant-chicago-3

Tanta

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**** (4 stars)

Tanta provides a modern take on traditional Peruvian cuisine in an upscale, trendy environment.

We went for brunch, but mostly ordered non-brunch items.

The causa is a deconstructed version of the Peruvian classic, with the ingredients arrayed along a plate rather than stacked, but the flavors adhere closely to the classic dish.

There are several varieties of ceviche, depending upon the type of fish and whether you want a lime or creamier base.

All three empanadas were excellent, and each person in our party had a different favorite, so it’s worth trying them all.

The quinoa salad was refreshing, but not a show-stopper.

One of my favorite items was from the brunch menu, it was chicken on top of an egg “tortilla.” The accompanying sauce was reminiscent of a sweet Thai chili sauce.

There’s an interesting list of cocktails, topped by a fragrant take on the classic pisco sour.

Pricing is reasonable, and service is attentive, even when they are bustling (which seems to be all of the time).

Tanta
118 W Grand Ave
Chicago, IL 60654
(312) 222-9700
http://www.yelp.com/biz/tanta-chicago

DB Bistro Moderne

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**** (4 stars)

We really like db Bistro for late night dinner after the theatre. It’s a short walk from Broadway, and an 11pm reservation is no problem.

The interior  is stylish and well lit, and quite late in the evening, although I’m sure it can get loud earlier.

Service is friendly and efficient, and the menu offers a limited but interesting range of choices. The burger is famous, but because it is stuffed with short ribs and topped with foie gras, it is very rich, and should only be attempted if you are very hungry.

On this visit we started with some seared shishito peppers, these were smaller than usual and nicely seared, served with a soy dipping sauce.

My peekytoe crab appetizer was pretty, but didn’t have a lot of flavor. However the sunchoke soup was rich and full of flavor.

Amish chicken is tender and succulent, and served with an interesting pickled cabbage slaw that complements it well.

An nice variety of wines are available in 5 or 8 ounce servings.

DB Bistro Moderne
55 W 44th St
#1
New York, NY 10036
(212) 391-2400
http://www.yelp.com/biz/db-bistro-moderne-new-york-3