Where is the Best Wine Bar in Chicago, Illinois?
We have been seeing editorials for this place all over, so I had to go check it out! The place was interesting. It is a retail wine area and a deli counter, yet you can eat and drink in or take out. I didn’t care for the cheesy aroma as the first thing you encounter when you walk in. It was a definite turn off. But, we browsed and then sat. We went on a Sunday night and were the only people. The seating area reminded me of a cafeteria. We ordered a glass of wine and I had some lamb prosciutto which was quite awesome. The wine list was quirky and fun, the owner definitley has a “fun” side to wine! The service was attentive and cordial. I liked it enough, but the place kinda lacked a “wow” factor. Even though they have some hard to find boutique wines, I don’t think I’m driving out to pick any of them up when I got an awesome wine shoppe in my neighborhood of Andersonville. Overall, check it out, but bring your own party and plug your nose!Pros + Good selection of cured meats, Attenti
I went here for dinner because it was convenient to my location, was suggested to be reasonably priced, and had outdoor seating. They also accepted opentable.com reservations.The wine selection was good, and even wines by the glass were good. My friend said his meal was delicious, as was the amuse, but my “Kobe” beef was simply fatty beef. Also, the “reasonably priced” part was a joke. This site says average $15-25/entree. The cheapest thing was $22, and most were $28+. 2 entrees and 4 glasses of wine = $100+ before tip! The quality of food (at least mine) did not demand this price. Also, we were late (but called), and were the only ones in the place. The reataurant marked us as late, reducing my opentable points. Outdoor seating is nice, and the chef obviously has the ability, but the cost suggests you wait until they figure it out.
The chiorzo stuffed dates wrapped in bacon were great and the red pasta with pancetta and capers was really good. We had a bad moment when the lady bartender got in a snit when we chuckled at her asking us if she could review the wine list with us. It was at least 25 pages – so we chuckled and must have hurt her feelings because she ignored us from that point on and someone else kindly took our $58 dollar bottle order. Same thing happended with the waiter when he asked us if we wanted dessert. We asked him what it was. He had to make an extra trip to find out and when we didn’t order, he abruptly walked off. So I would go for the good food and not expect much from the wait staff.Pros + foodCons – wait staff
