Outstanding service by Rachel C. Her service made our night. The food was great. The floor…read moremanager came by and spent some time with us and he enlightened us on Shaw's Crab House. We enjoyed the ambiance of the main dinning area. Great night.

My husband and I returned back to Shaw's Crab House a year later, and it was still just as fabulous…read moreas it was before. We were lucky enough to get the same amazing waiter. He'd been there 32 years. Hope to get him next time we're back. Honestly, it's the freshest seafood around. They know how to shuck oysters and prepare them perfectly anytime of the year. The oysters were absolutely amazing. And then the crab legs....oh my goodness..delish. Everything was just so delicious. And I have to give a shout out to their sweet, creamy butter. Lastly, we love sitting in the thick of it where you get to see them preparing the oysters and all the seafood. Love this place. Thank you Shaws!

Crazy on a Monday night at 630 pm the place was packed!!…read more Classic Chicago steakhouse. It's lively and fun & the food is great! So is the service, excellent without being overbearing. We had a big party and most orders were a bit different. Everyone lived the apps, drinks and their dishes! Everyone was too stuffed to have desert. I had a perfectly cooked strip steak. It was delicious and the flavor was great! Shared a baked potato and the wonderful Mac & cheese. Mrs A liked it better than Swift and Sons - but that is still #1 for me - although it's in the west loop and not walkable if staying on MI Ave. Don't like the 3.5% for "rising" costs...seems like that has been around since COvID. I always catch it after I pay the bill...

Joe's Seafood in Chicago has an unusual amount of personal history for me. It opened as a…read morepartnership between Miami Beach's iconic Joe's Stone Crab and Lettuce Entertain You, bringing South Florida to Grand and Rush. I first went when it was still a huge, buzzy Chicago spot, and one of my most memorable dinners came after my high school graduation in 2003. I even got a speeding ticket on Lake Shore Drive with my grandmother in the back seat on the way to dinner, which still makes me laugh. Chicago was an especially fun place for Joe's to arrive. Open outcry trading was still a force, and the wealth creation around it was wild: people who had dropped out of high school could become millionaires in their twenties, while math PhDs from the University of Chicago could make fortunes in the same ecosystem. It was a golden era for hustle culture, when commerce idolized Tony Montana in a way that today is more likely to idolize Jamie Dimon or David Solomon. Death Row and Bad Boy ruled the airwaves, while Michael, Shaq, Kobe, and Allen Iverson defined the NBA. Basketball was so dominant in Chicago culture during my coming of age that I still map other things, including restaurants, to NBA teams. Joe's felt like the Miami Heat coming to Chicago in much the same way Smith & Wollensky represented the New York Knicks: each brought a recognizable piece of its hometown culture into another major city. Joe's brought real South Florida sizzle to Chicago, and it landed at exactly the right moment. Going there felt like an occasion. Florida took longer for me to understand in full. My family has roots in the state going back decades, farther north along the Atlantic coast, and I didn't visit Miami until March 2007, when my sister started graduate school in Coral Gables. That trip began my love affair with Miami and helped me understand why the original Joe's was such an institution. A close family friend's father spent time around Miami in the 1960s and 1970s. He knew local fishermen who caught stone crabs, which gave me an appreciation for the older South Florida culture around the food, separate from Joe's own history. Another Joe's memory captures an entirely different moment. Looking through my OpenTable history, my July 31, 2008 reservation at Joe's in Chicago is the earliest reservation I can find at a restaurant that is still open today. I was 23, working at UBS, preparing to move to New York while the firm was already on fire from its mortgage losses, and Lehman would file for bankruptcy just weeks later. I was broke but wildly aspirational, dreaming about dinners at Balthazar, begging my way past the doors at Cain and Tenjune, hoping to drink for free, and trying to meet women comically far out of my league. Through all of those memories, the restaurant itself has been remarkably consistent. The stone crab claws are incredible, the seafood is excellent, and Joe's holds its own among Chicago's serious steakhouses. The room has traditionally felt a little more formal than Miami, with bow ties, polished service, and a darker old-school steakhouse rhythm, while still being genuinely welcoming. Finish with the key lime pie. Years later, my wife and I held our wedding reception at RPM Seafood, another Lettuce restaurant, then ate at the original Joe's during our honeymoon in Miami during COVID days later, which felt like a fitting circle back. In sheer range of venues, repeatability of quality and atmosphere, and consistency of hits, Lettuce is the gold standard in Chicago, with some of that same reach in Vegas and DC. I've been extraordinarily privileged in my exposure to hospitality, and I still repeatedly admire Rich Melman's model, taste, and execution, now carried forward by the next generation of the family. Joe's is a prime example: world-class, durable, unmistakably Chicago, and absolutely somewhere I want to return next time I'm in town with some dough to spend. While Joe's may not be French, this place still earns my highest marks: très bien!

great service the workers help out a-lot good music nice prices the well recommended best in townread more

A fun place to get some seafood after work…read more Tuna ceviche, Asian taco, Salmon, Sea Bass. It was all good. The salmon was some of the best I've had, not overcooked at all. The taco in the Asian taco is seaweed. Its a small dish, but tasty. The ceviche was also excellent. The wine list is pricey but there are some values off the beaten path - the Bibei Lapola white from Spain pairs well with seafood. We passed on dessert but were generously comped the Key Lime Pie. It was deconstructed into piles of crust, merengue kisses, and foam. It was good. Service is friendly and professional, the space has an upbeat energy without being too loud, and the two story glass walls make for great viewing of the River and skyscrapers. Extensive outdoor space, but our visit corresponded with one of this summer's many heat waves, so we ate indoors.

This was my second visit to The Dearborn, and the food and service were both on point. We ordered…read morethe salmon tataki, fish and chips, Wellington burger, and Midwest fried chicken. Everything was well prepared, but the fried chicken was the standout, especially with the hot sauce adding another level of flavor. The staff stayed attentive throughout dinner and even replaced our plates between rounds, which was a level of service I wasn't expecting. I also respected seeing the owner personally making the rounds, stopping at every table to check on the guests and the food. Calm atmosphere, solid hospitality, and a kitchen that delivers.

Had a reservation with two friends from out of town and had the pleasure of being with Vivian…read more Amazing service, so sweet and funny, very thoughtful. and we got free cookies! we got sat in a little private booth in the back, so quiet. will def come back again and again :)

Wow! The first time…read morewe came to the Chicago location of Hugo's Frog Bar, we had the Jumbo Lump Crab Cake and it was amazing - best I'd ever had. That was 12 years ago. Since then, I've had crab cakes all over the U.S. and Hugo's remained my gold standard. Tonight, 12 years later, we returned to Hugo's on Rush Street downtown Chicago. We had a 6 pm reservation on a Monday night. We were given the option to eat in the special Elevator Car, so we chose it. It was a bit tight getting into the bench seating but once in, we were quite comfortable and it was really quaint. I'm glad we chose it. Our server tonight was Stephanie O and she was amazing. So knowledgeable, so pleasant and very accommodating. We told Stephanie we planned to take it a bit slow, starting with cocktails. She took our cocktail orders and we took our time enjoying them, admiring our special Elevator Car and pondering dinner options. Of course, a Crab Cake was definitely happening! Stephanie checked in with us from time to time and when we were ready, we asked her to drop a Crab Cake order. Oh my - it was amazing, just like the last time! Just enough breadcrumbs in it to hold it together. Baked, then seared on both sides on the flat top and served with their house made remoulade. For us, this menu item and a service as great as it was from Stephanie and the rest of the team was enough of a reason to come to Hugo's. After we'd finished sharing the Crab Cake, Stephanie stopped by with the fresh fish options platter to explain each one to us, how it would be prepared and what it would be like. We nearly went for the Snapper but dropped back to our original thought of trying their Shrimp De Jonghe along with a dinner salad. So glad we did as the Shrimp De Jonghe was really tasty and just enough food. The salad and shrimp meal were both kitchen-split for us. Nice touch - thanks team! I have to add that we've had Shrimp De Jonghe somewhere else and we recall it as not being as good as Hugo's. I like how their breadcrumb on the shrimp here was less a breading and more of a dusting. I'd like to mention the rest of the staff we saw in action. The hostesses were quite pleasant, found our reservation and seated us with pleasure. The table team from the water guy, to him and others clearing completed items was excellent. The chef or one of the cooks brought out our split Shrimp De Jonghe. That was a nice touch. And of course our server Stephanie - amazing. Great meal tonight at Hugo's and over the top service from everyone. We will be back - maybe even this week.

I really enjoyed my meal. I ordered the white fish with mashed potatoes, and everything was…read moreincredibly delicious and perfectly prepared. I really loved it and will definitely be coming back! The only thing that was a little disappointing was that there were quite a few flies flying around inside, and they would occasionally try to land on the food, which was not very pleasant.

"There aint nothing like a good lobster roll"! Luke's Lobster Chicago gets it right…read more Had a craving and got my fill. Went for the lobster roll flight. Three half sized lobster rolls with different butters; lemon butter, spicy honey butter and truffle butter. My favorite, all of them. Lol. It comes with a soft drink and a bag of chips. I will never know how the blueberry soda tastes. The condensation caused a hole in the bag. It slid out onto the sidewalk just minutes from my destination. Guess I needed to drink water. My lobster flight and chips were amazing.

Overall experience was great. I took my oldest and she loved it.The rolls and the drinks were…read moredelish but I walked away with my wallet crying. $70ish to feed us both! This would be a special treat and it will take a very long time to fill out the punch card.

Delicious! And the service is the best in the city! Always ask for Hernan, Dario and/or Jovanny for…read morethe greatest experience. My friends and I love the place for the ambiance and the vibes.

We came in from Portland Oregon to see a concert and do Chicago things. A coworker recommended…read moreMaple and Ash to me and I made my reservations! From the moment we stepped out of the Uber, we were met with the kindest and friendliest staff we have come across in a long time! There's an elevator guy too?! Holy cow the food was outstanding, the drinks were on point and our server was top tier! She gave us the low down on the IDGAF which we would have ordered if we didn't have to fly back home the next morning because we knew there would be A LOT of leftovers. We had a plan B in place and that was the filet mignon and we shared sides of roasted mushrooms and potatoes au gratin. Definitely recommending Maple and Ash to friends if they ever visit Chicago!

I started with the Verdant Vices, which uses an Aguasol Reposado for the base. An aged reposado…read morebrings that nice, subtle oakiness and warmth, which probably balanced out the sweetness of the guava and the sharp kick from the jalapeño perfectly--definitely a much richer flavor profile for a cocktail like that than if they had just used a blanco. The crab cake was phenomenal, definitely better than what I had expected since this isn't exactly Baltimore. The glaze on top is absolutely perfect, and it is so thick and packed with fresh blue crab and minimal binder, finished with a bright lime-soy glaze. Excellent service too.

First stop on a trip to Chicago was here for happy hour. The drinks were good and the bites were…read moretoo. Really liked the crispy rice. Also had some decent views of the river from the bar. Wanted to sit outside but sadly was closed because of storms going through that day.

Food was okay but a bit overpriced for the portion size. We tried the uni pasta and sesame tuna…read moresalad. Not sure if I would come again since there's so many good options nearby. Restaurant was not that busy and pretty quiet, service was good.

My husband and I were looking for fish and didn't want to go too far. Lure came up with good…read morereviews and a short walk from our hotel. I ordered the house favorite: Branzino. My husband got the special. We can't recall what kind of fish it was, but it was from Lake Michigan and FRESH! Mine was served with whipped potatoes, while his came with risotto. Both were delightful. Our server, Jake, was knowledgeable and funny. We appreciated his willingness to allow us to try a few wines before making a decision. I wish we had room to try the cookie skillet he recommended. I loved the ambiance: dimly lit, no televisions, cozy booths. Romantic and calm -- exactly what I was looking for after a long, touristy day!

Happy hour is totally worth it! Fun drinks and even yummier food. Staff is excellent and the…read morelocation is very nice!!

In Chicago for a few days and relying on Yelp to take us to new places…read more Nora was 2 blocks from our hotel. This place is all about service. From the moment we walked in, we were greeted and escorted quickly to our table outside. Mirco was our server and we asked him for recommendations. He was so spot on it was amazing! We started with 1/2 dozed oysters and Tuna tartare. The tartare melted in your mouth and had a mild flavor. You could taste everything from the capers to the lemon in each bite. I'm not a huge oyster fan but my fiancé seemed to love them. Mirco recommended the Sardinian style ravioli filled with melt in your mouth short rib smothered in a rich mushroom and truffle sauce. Heaven!! She ordered the beet salad with salmon and gigantic grilled shrimp added. She just raved about it all. I appreciated great food but great service is what makes it a memorable experience. This checked all the boxes. 5 stars!