Chicago Offers Restaurant-Goers Plenty of Options

Chicago Offers Restaurant-Goers Plenty of Options

By Kerry Pianoforte

From local favorites like the Italian beef sandwich and deep-dish pizza to the finest global cuisine, the Windy City has something to please all palettes.

American/Steakhouse

The Capital Grille
633 N. St. Clair
(312) 337-9400
www.thecapitalgrille.com

This high-end steakhouse boasts a locker packed with dry-aged beef, an extensive wine cellar and clubby ambiance of polished leather and dark wood.


Crofton on Wells
535 N. Wells Street
(312) 755-1790
www.croftononwells.com

A minimalist, 70-seat storefront serving delicious seasonal American cuisine prepared with a French flair.


Harry Caray’s
33 W Kinzie St.
(312) 828-0966
www.harrycarays.com

This classy sports-fan favorite wraps up steak, Italian food and baseball into one handsome Chicago-loving package. Expect hearty, classic interpretations of Italian specialties.



Heaven on Seven on Rush
600 N. Michigan Ave, 2nd floor
http://heavenonseven.com/

A taste of the Big Easy right here in the Windy City. Specialties include jumbo, jambalaya and po-boy sandwiches.


Jake Melnick’s Corner Tap
41 E. Superior Street
(312) 266-0400
www.jakemelnicks.com

This lively sports bar/restaurant serves a number of mouth-watering entrees from tender baby back ribs with tangy-sweet barbecue sauce to a grilled nine-ounce hamburger patties custom-served with toppings ranging from mushrooms and bacon to blue cheese and peppercorns.


Lawry’s the Prime Rib
100 E Ontario Street
(312) 787-5000
www.lawrysonline.com/lawrys-primerib/chicago

It’s more American than British, but it does serve the best roast beef with Yorkshire pudding and its prime rib is served tableside with mashed or baked potato and creamed horseradish.


Mike Ditka’s Restaurant
Tremont Hotel, 100 E Chestnut Street
(312) 587-8989
www.ditkasrestaurants.com

Features the juicy ‘Fridge’ burger, which stuffs a half-pound, hand-formed patty of Angus beef into a brioche bun. Stand out items are steaks and chops, especially Ditka’s legendary ‘Da Pork Chop’.


Morton’s
1470 McConnor Parkway
(847) 413-8771
www.mortons.com

With its dark wood details, celebrity photos and tuxedo-clad waiters, this upscale steakhouse chain has the air of a posh men’s club. Dinners begin with a waiter-driven cart laden with fresh vegetables, live lobster and cuts of steak; customers choose from porterhouse, rib eye, bone-in prime rib and more. Side dishes are traditional and enormous, from baked potatoes and creamed spinach to steamed broccoli with hollandaise.


Sullivan’s Steakhouse
415 N. Dearborn Street
(312) 527-3510
http://sullivanssteakhouse.com/

This retro 1940s chophouse is decorated with prizefight photos and a replica of John L Sullivan’s championship belt. Prime beef is seared at high heat with a salt-and-pepper crust sealing in the juices and offers sides, big enough to share, include creamed spinach, mushroom caps and horseradish mashed potatoes.


Asian & Pan-Asian


Japonais
600 W Chicago Avenue
(312) 822-9600
www.japonaischicago.com/

Serving Kobe prime rib, maki rolls, lobster, sushi and sashimi in a stunning space alongside the Chicago River.


Ben Pao
52 W Illinois Street
(312) 222-1888
www.benpao.com

This sleek restaurant combines harmony and balance with appealing food: a satay bar offers grilled-to-order skewered meats with sauces, while house specialties include shrimp dumplings and black pepper scallops.


Italian



La Scarola
721 W. Grand Ave
(312) 243-1740
http://lascarola.com

With unpretentious atmosphere and service, La Scarola is a local favorite for good Italian food at reasonable prices



Latin, Mexican & Spanish


Frontera Grill/Topolobampo
445 N Clark Street
(312) 661-1434
www.rickbayless.com/restaurants/grill.htm

These two adjoining restaurants serve authentic regional Mexican dishes created from recipes gathered south of the border by owners Rick and Deanne Bayless. Upscale Topo accepts reservations, but its sister restaurant does not.


Mambo Grill
412 N Clark Street
(312) 467-9797
http://mambogrill.com/

Vibrant colors, a dark postmodern interior and hot South and Central American specialties make this a River North favorite. Unexpected twists and unusual sauces offset traditional Latin dishes.


Lunch/Pizza


Luke’s Italian Beef
215 W Jackson Blvd
(312) 939-4204
http://lukesofchicago.com/

Lunchtime Loop favorite serves up a delicious rendition of one of Chicago’s most famous eats.


Carm’s Beef & Snack Shop
1057 W Polk St
(312) 738-1046
www.carms.com

The menu features burgers, Italian sausage, and sub sandwiches packed with mortadella, capricola and salami–but most people come to Carm’s for the Italian beef sandwich.


Pizzeria Uno
29 E. Ohio St.
(312) 321-1000
www.unos.com

The pizza is excellent, dripping with cheese and not too much sauce, and featuring a flaky, crunchy, almost pie-like crust.


Pubs


The Billy Goat Tavern
430 N. Michigan Ave.
(312) 222-1525
www.billygoattavern.com

This bar/lunch counter was immortalized on SNL for its “cheezborger, cheezborger, cheezborger.”


Seafood


Riva
Navy Pier, 700 E Grand Avenue
(312) 644-7482
www.rivanavypier.com

This stylish seafood restaurant boasts views through large picture windows of Lake Michigan and a 40-foot long showcase kitchen offers meaty crab cakes and steamer pots of clams and mussels with drawn butter or tangy garlic sauce.


Shaw’s Crab House & Blue Crab Lounge
21 E. Hubbard St.
(312) 527-2722
www.shawscrabhouse.com

Crab dishes deservedly so get top billing, but there are plenty of other reasons to visit from creamy New England clam chowder and cool, shucked-to-order raw oysters to entrees like ruby-red sesame-glazed tuna and a seafood platter with garlic shrimp and sea scallops with lump crab cake.