Latest Chicago restaurant reviews

If you ask an honest-to-god Chicagoan to name their favorite deep dish pizza, chances are they'll point you to Pequod's, where the signature pan pies are ringed with caramelized cheese and the slices are massive—one piece makes a meal. The vibe: With exposed brick and plasma-screen TVs, Pequod's is firmly a neighborhood bar. The food: The signature pan pizza is ringed with caramelized cheese, and slices are massive—one piece makes a meal. The drinks: Add veggies to lighten it up a bit, or go all in, with the sausage pie, dotted with perfectly spiced, Ping-Pong ball–sized pieces of seasoned ground pork. Time Out tip: Pequod's is always busy (for good reason), so we recommend making a reservation if you plan on dining in. Updated with reporting by Lauren Brocato

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...

Chef-owner Jason Hammel's inventive restaurant has become a Logan Square staple since it opened in 1999. Lula Cafe's farm-to-table fare has earned it national acclaim, and the Michelin Bib Gourmand restaurant is known for serving one of Chicago's best breakfast dishes: the classic Lula breakfast burrito.  The vibe: Located in the heart of Logan Square on Kedzie Boulevard, the dining room at Lula Cafe is warm, inviting and usually always filled with diners. During the warmer months, the intimate front patio is the perfect place to people-watch over brunch. The food: Fresh, seasonal ingredients are key to Lula's menu. Breakfast plates like the smoked trout scramble and the flavorful nut and date granola complement dinner offerings like baked French feta with jalapeno basil, and the chickpea and fennel tagine with green harissa, golden raisin, lemon and arugula. And, of course, if you're here for brunch, the breakfast burrito is a must-try. The drinks: During the day, tea, coffee and soft drinks (or a Bloody Mary) pair well with brunch dishes. At night, seasonal cocktails like Possessed by the Proper Spirit (scotch, honey and thyme-infused olive oil) and Northern Exposure (Aalbord aquavit, L’ermitage St. Valbert yellow, lime juice and pineapple juice) are delightfully refreshing. Time Out tip: On days when the wait for brunch is long (they don't take brunch reservations), the online-exclusive (and aptly named) The Line is Too Long bundle always comes through. 

Beyond the whole eating-for-survival thing, what endears so many of us to food on a deeper level is its ability to tell a story. In Tzuco’s quenching ceviche verde, for example, you can almost taste pure, cold Pacific Ocean in pearlescent slivers of hamachi, which are paired with three expressions of cactus, a plant that thrives in the most unforgiving locales. The prickly flora is served cured, iced and juiced with mint, lime and a whisper of serrano chile. Together, the elements sing of Mexico’s varied bounty. Each bite I savored at Tzuco seemed to smack of deeper meaning, sparking curiosity about the storied place that inspired this restaurant and its name, along with its famed chef/owner who has roared back into Chicago’s dining scene following an 18-month hiatus. Chef Carlos Gaytán hails from Huitzuco, a town in southwestern Mexico aptly named for the Nahuatl word “huixochin,” meaning plants with abundant thorns. When he was 20 years old, he came to the U.S. on a borrowed passport and worked his way up from dishwasher and cook to eventual chef/owner of Mexique, his French-infused Mexican restaurant that helped make him the first Mexican-born chef to receive a Michelin star. Vowing he’d be back again one day, Gaytán closed the award-winning destination in 2018 and left town to open a restaurant in Playa del Carmen. He made his triumphant return late last year with three eateries that showcase the breadth of Mexican gastronomy. Commanding the entire southwest corner of...

Taking up residence in the former Winchester space, the Michelin-starred modern Filipino-American concept is from husband-and-wife team Tim Flores and Genie Kwon (Oriole).  The vibe: An intimate, ultra-popular spot in the Ukrainian Village that always has a long line during the daytime. The food: During the daytime, Kwon’s pastries and options like chicken adobo and a killer breakfast sandwich cause lines to form down the block. But at night, Kasama transforms into a 13-course fine dining experience full of bold and exciting flavors. The drinks: The daytime drinks like an ube latte are balanced and fresh, and for dinner, a $195 beverage pairing is well worth the splurge. Time Out tip: If you're coming during the day, order ahead online. This way, you'll skip the long line and walk right inside to pick up your order. When the weather permits, head to one of the nearby parks to eat outside. 

The core of Mott St.'s menu is Korean, but influences from other Asian cuisines are littered throughout. You’ll sit down to options such as jumbo everything wings, pork-shoulder-stuffed cabbage and udon noodles with marinated cod roe and kimchi. The ballyhooed Mott Burger is also as good as advertised—an East-meets-West creation packing double patties, sweet potato shoestrings, miso butter onions, American cheese, dill pickles, pickled jalapenos and hoisin aioli. The following review was published in 2013. If you sit in the back half of Mott St, you’ll be dining next to shelves stocked with Cholula hot sauce, jars of beans, tea…and a box of Peanut Butter Cap'n Crunch. Is that a dessert ingredient? Nope, it’s breakfast for “the early crew,” our server told us. With little storage space in the kitchen, Mott St has constructed a pantry within the dining room. The front half of the restaurant features a bar and two- and four-top tables, and there’s a communal table in back. Add in huge windows, materials sourced from Craigslist and pulsing music, and the room has an energy that makes you want to stay all night. Everyone—the enthusiastic and knowledgeable servers, the kitchen staff, the twenty- and thirtysomething diners, apparently even that early crew—is having a ball at chef Edward Kim’s playful new Asian restaurant, which opened a month ago not far from his much-lauded Ruxbin. But while the vibe may be relaxed, the level of cooking is anything but casual.  The Asian night...

There’s no place like New Orleans. The never-ending nightlife awash in Big Gulp-sized cocktails. The ebullient, spontaneous live music. The mosaic of cultural influences housed in single, flavorful dishes. Pioneer Tavern Group executive chef Brian Jupiter, a New Orleans native, occasionally references Bayou flavors at his whole-beast mainstay Frontier. But at breezy younger sibling Ina Mae Tavern (named after Jupiter’s great-grandmother), he dives headfirst into the home cooking of his childhood. The results are joyful, indulgent and refreshingly relaxed—traits that lure me back time and again to the Big Easy, and will surely make Ina Mae part of my regular dining rotation. The vibe in this airy, brick- and wood-accented space is casual and amenable to families—not least because of a vintage mechanical horse named Fanny, whose efficacy was repeatedly tested by our three-year-old dining companion. The bar’s checkered-tile floor and an old beer fridge in the dining room nod to the space’s former resident: beloved Wicker Park dive the Beachwood Inn. Dry goods and house hot sauce bottles adorn the back bar next to a Sno Ball machine that churns out shaved ice, which is then doused in flavored syrup with the option to add a shot of booze. A small bowl of Gumbo Ya-Ya arrived first, with soft okra, chicken, sausage, crabmeat, shrimp and rice—all wrapped in roasty, brown gumbo deepened by bell pepper, celery and onion. We fought over choice bits of boiled potato...

“Is there a rule that at a certain hour every River North restaurant has to change their soundtrack?” my dining companion asked me as club-like beats started playing in the background at Tanta right at 9pm. At first glance, the new Peruvian restaurant feels like just another River North restaurant—a huge colorful mural on the wall lends a festive vibe, there’s a long bar where guys in suits are drinking vodka on the rocks and the restrooms are located downstairs. But once you move away from the bar and start eating and ordering off the cocktail menu, things at Tanta feel different. It’s more serious, more delicious, and the crowd skews older, with most tables filled with several generations. Tanta is the third American restaurant from Peruvian celebrity chef Gastón Acurio and his first in Chicago. Acurio has more than 30 restaurants around the world, including La Mar in San Francisco (a New York location of La Mar closed last month). He also has Lima’s Astrid y Gaston, which is on the World’s 50 Best Restaurants List. It’s also his third Tanta—there are already outposts in Lima and Barcelona. It may be because of this that Tanta is strong right out of the gate—service is prompt and knowledgeable and despite a few minor quibbles, chef Jesus Delgado’s kitchen is turning out dishes that are nuanced and thoughtful. Peruvian cuisine draws on influences from cultures that emigrated to the country, especially Japan and China, and Tanta’s menu reflects flavors and techniques from...

Translating to "my namesake" in Spanish, Mi Tocaya is a term of endearment that chef Diana Dávila has bestowed upon her Michelin Bib Gourmand Mexican restaurant in Logan Square.  The vibe: Davila makes this place feel like home with an extra special twist of controlled chaos and color in her vibrant Mexican kitchen. The food: Dávila recreates childhood memories through her food, offering guests a lineup of soul-warming dishes like pork belly carnitas and grilled Spanish octopus. The guac, which is dusted with chile ash and served with a generous helping of warm tortilla chips, is a great way to kick things off. The drinks: The cocktails spotlight Mexican flavors through sips like the Chicana with Oaxacan rum and the sangria. Time Out tip: On a warm day, the patio is perfect, but you can’t beat the hustle and bustle happening inside. Updated with reporting by Lauren Brocato

One Off Hospitality Group’s shrine to beer, pork and seafood hasn’t skipped a beat since debuting back in 2008. Boisterous crowds pack the long communal tables and booths that resemble pig pens for a taste of everything from oysters and charcuterie to veggie-forward plates. The selection changes often to highlight what’s in season, but mainstays like bread service courtesy of Publican Quality Bread are musts. A good chunk of the ingredients on the menu are also sourced from local farms. On weekends, the brunch is among the city's best and offers goodies like thick-cut maple-braised bacon.

A tasty homage to the streetside eateries of Mexico City, Taqueria Chingón brings pozole, ceviche and tortilla-wrapped meats to Bucktown. The venture is a partnership between Sotero Gallegos (La Sardine), Oliver Poilevey (Le Bouchon) and Marcos Ascencio (Bar Lupo)—three men with a shared passion for the classics. The tacos al pastor are a must, with tender bits of pork finding their match in creamy avocado salsa, sweet pineapple and flecks of cilantro. Vegetarians aren't left out of the fun: There's a veg-based version of the dish that subs in portobello mushrooms and celery root to create a spot-on rendition that's anything but boring. A bowl of chile-laced pozole warms the belly in the winter months, while the zesty octopus and shrimp ceviche is the perfect refresher come summer.

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...

Chef-owner Jason Hammel's inventive restaurant has become a Logan Square staple since it opened in 1999. Lula Cafe's farm-to-table fare has earned it national acclaim, and the Michelin Bib Gourmand restaurant is known for serving one of Chicago's best breakfast dishes: the classic Lula breakfast burrito.  The vibe: Located in the heart of Logan Square on Kedzie Boulevard, the dining room at Lula Cafe is warm, inviting and usually always filled with diners. During the warmer months, the intimate front patio is the perfect place to people-watch over brunch. The food: Fresh, seasonal ingredients are key to Lula's menu. Breakfast plates like the smoked trout scramble and the flavorful nut and date granola complement dinner offerings like baked French feta with jalapeno basil, and the chickpea and fennel tagine with green harissa, golden raisin, lemon and arugula. And, of course, if you're here for brunch, the breakfast burrito is a must-try. The drinks: During the day, tea, coffee and soft drinks (or a Bloody Mary) pair well with brunch dishes. At night, seasonal cocktails like Possessed by the Proper Spirit (scotch, honey and thyme-infused olive oil) and Northern Exposure (Aalbord aquavit, L’ermitage St. Valbert yellow, lime juice and pineapple juice) are delightfully refreshing. Time Out tip: On days when the wait for brunch is long (they don't take brunch reservations), the online-exclusive (and aptly named) The Line is Too Long bundle always comes through. 

If you ask an honest-to-god Chicagoan to name their favorite deep dish pizza, chances are they'll point you to Pequod's, where the signature pan pies are ringed with caramelized cheese and the slices are massive—one piece makes a meal. The vibe: With exposed brick and plasma-screen TVs, Pequod's is firmly a neighborhood bar. The food: The signature pan pizza is ringed with caramelized cheese, and slices are massive—one piece makes a meal. The drinks: Add veggies to lighten it up a bit, or go all in, with the sausage pie, dotted with perfectly spiced, Ping-Pong ball–sized pieces of seasoned ground pork. Time Out tip: Pequod's is always busy (for good reason), so we recommend making a reservation if you plan on dining in. Updated with reporting by Lauren Brocato

Like its name suggests, Bloom Plant Based Kitchen is 100 percent vegan, and gluten-free to boot. Chef Rodolfo Cuadros, who heads the nearby pan-Latin restaurant Amaru, initially launched Bloom as a ghost kitchen before opening the airy brick-and-mortar location with an express goal of bringing health-conscious, plant-based food to the Chicago dining scene. The vibe: Sleek and casual with upscale sensibilities, including sculptural light fixtures and so many potted plants. When the weather’s nice, ask for a table near the garage door windows, which roll up to create an indoor-outdoor feel.  The food: Vegan and impeccably plated, with wide-reaching influences that draw from Latin America (stone fruit ceviche, tacos) to pan-Asian (papaya salad, Chinese eggplant) to modern American (buffalo cauliflower). Menu items are demarcated with symbols to flag for nut allergies and indicate raw (i.e. uncooked) preparation.  The drink: BYOB, with a modest list of soft drinks and CBD sodas for the 21+ crowd, though a cocktail menu is reportedly forthcoming. Time Out tip: The restaurant’s massive windows and warm lighting might make for a nice date night, but we recommend bringing a group of friends—vegan or otherwise—to maximize the amount of shareable plates to try. Updated with reporting by Lauren Brocato

The core of Mott St.'s menu is Korean, but influences from other Asian cuisines are littered throughout. You’ll sit down to options such as jumbo everything wings, pork-shoulder-stuffed cabbage and udon noodles with marinated cod roe and kimchi. The ballyhooed Mott Burger is also as good as advertised—an East-meets-West creation packing double patties, sweet potato shoestrings, miso butter onions, American cheese, dill pickles, pickled jalapenos and hoisin aioli. The following review was published in 2013. If you sit in the back half of Mott St, you’ll be dining next to shelves stocked with Cholula hot sauce, jars of beans, tea…and a box of Peanut Butter Cap'n Crunch. Is that a dessert ingredient? Nope, it’s breakfast for “the early crew,” our server told us. With little storage space in the kitchen, Mott St has constructed a pantry within the dining room. The front half of the restaurant features a bar and two- and four-top tables, and there’s a communal table in back. Add in huge windows, materials sourced from Craigslist and pulsing music, and the room has an energy that makes you want to stay all night. Everyone—the enthusiastic and knowledgeable servers, the kitchen staff, the twenty- and thirtysomething diners, apparently even that early crew—is having a ball at chef Edward Kim’s playful new Asian restaurant, which opened a month ago not far from his much-lauded Ruxbin. But while the vibe may be relaxed, the level of cooking is anything but casual.  The Asian night...

Taking up residence in the former Winchester space, the Michelin-starred modern Filipino-American concept is from husband-and-wife team Tim Flores and Genie Kwon (Oriole).  The vibe: An intimate, ultra-popular spot in the Ukrainian Village that always has a long line during the daytime. The food: During the daytime, Kwon’s pastries and options like chicken adobo and a killer breakfast sandwich cause lines to form down the block. But at night, Kasama transforms into a 13-course fine dining experience full of bold and exciting flavors. The drinks: The daytime drinks like an ube latte are balanced and fresh, and for dinner, a $195 beverage pairing is well worth the splurge. Time Out tip: If you're coming during the day, order ahead online. This way, you'll skip the long line and walk right inside to pick up your order. When the weather permits, head to one of the nearby parks to eat outside. 

All-day cafes are having their moment in Chicago and we’re quite ok with that, especially if there’s a wine component involved. Pompette, a new spot from a trio of industry vets, shines the spotlight on Old World natural wines from small producers across France, Italy, Spain and Germany. Complementing them are European-influenced small plates and pastries, such as crab croquettes and beet falafel.

There’s no place like New Orleans. The never-ending nightlife awash in Big Gulp-sized cocktails. The ebullient, spontaneous live music. The mosaic of cultural influences housed in single, flavorful dishes. Pioneer Tavern Group executive chef Brian Jupiter, a New Orleans native, occasionally references Bayou flavors at his whole-beast mainstay Frontier. But at breezy younger sibling Ina Mae Tavern (named after Jupiter’s great-grandmother), he dives headfirst into the home cooking of his childhood. The results are joyful, indulgent and refreshingly relaxed—traits that lure me back time and again to the Big Easy, and will surely make Ina Mae part of my regular dining rotation. The vibe in this airy, brick- and wood-accented space is casual and amenable to families—not least because of a vintage mechanical horse named Fanny, whose efficacy was repeatedly tested by our three-year-old dining companion. The bar’s checkered-tile floor and an old beer fridge in the dining room nod to the space’s former resident: beloved Wicker Park dive the Beachwood Inn. Dry goods and house hot sauce bottles adorn the back bar next to a Sno Ball machine that churns out shaved ice, which is then doused in flavored syrup with the option to add a shot of booze. A small bowl of Gumbo Ya-Ya arrived first, with soft okra, chicken, sausage, crabmeat, shrimp and rice—all wrapped in roasty, brown gumbo deepened by bell pepper, celery and onion. We fought over choice bits of boiled potato...

You may recognize chef Doug Psaltis as the "P" in RPM (Steak, Italian, Seafood, etc.), the glitzy collection of restaurants operated by Lettuce Entertain You. After leaving the hospitality group in 2019, Psaltis is striking out on his own with his first solo project: Andros Taverna, a contemporary Greek restaurant in the heart of Logan Square. Working alongside his wife and pastry chef, Hsing Chen, Psaltis cranks out a lineup of fresh, feel-good fare that's rife with vegetables, seafood and addictive dips.