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Chicago Al Fresco

guajolote

By guajolote
in The Heartland: Dining

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ronnie_suburban

ronnie_suburban

Posted
Posted

I had a very pleasant experience at the new, outdoor-seating area at Kiki's Bistro last week. The seating was quite comfy and the Duck Terrine and Lamb Sausage were both delicious.

Kiki's Bistro

900 N. Franklin

Chicago, IL 60610

312 335-5454

Also, I wanted to mention that The Reader's 2006 Guide to Al Fresco dining appears in their June 2nd edition.

=R=

"Hey, hey, careful man! There's a beverage here!" --The Dude, The Big Lebowski

LTHForum.com -- The definitive Chicago-based culinary chat site

ronnie_suburban 'at' yahoo.com

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jenn37

jenn37

Posted
Posted

for al fresco, del Toro www.deltorocafe.com has a nice sidewalk patio; boka in lincoln park has a pretty patio out back and limited seating in front; North Pond has al fresco, but not oudoor seating - but you can't beat the location. Las Palmas in Bucktown has a pation in back. Mia Francesca on Clark is a good option as well.

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smorris291

smorris291

Posted
Posted
Any good al fresco dining near the Cass Hotel?

There's quite a bit in this area. Quartino is right around the corner at State & Ontario, as is Osteria Via Stato (I prefer Quartino). And if you're lucky/early, you might get into Frontera Grill on Clark between Hubbard and Illinois.

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ulterior epicure

ulterior epicure

Posted
Posted (edited)

I know it's not the most picturesque, but given the cramped and often LOUD interior, I have had very lovely dining experiences sitting outside at blackbird - not to say that I haven't inside, it's just that the other factors are, well, aggravating sometimes.

Edited by ulterior epicure (log)

“Watermelon - it’s a good fruit. You eat, you drink, you wash your face.”

Italian tenor Enrico Caruso (1873-1921)

ulteriorepicure.com

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  • 2 weeks later...
saltylj

saltylj

Posted
Posted

I was curious if anyone could suggest good Chicago summer places. Preferably those with outside eating and downtown, wicker park, or nearby. Not really looking for something expensive, but just something for really nice weather, good food (although the food, I know sacrilege, doesn't have to be fantastic) and a place to hang out. This is actually more for my brother, he's in late twenties, so that may give you an idea of what he is looking for. I really wasn't sure, so was hoping to see if you guys could help me out.

Thanks for reading,

saltz

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moosnsqrl

moosnsqrl

Posted
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Summer usually finds us at Mambo Grill or Frontera in River North. Small-ish patios but great refreshing mojitos/margaritas in a festive atmosphere.

Judy Jones aka "moosnsqrl"

Sharing food with another human being is an intimate act that should not be indulged in lightly.

M.F.K. Fisher

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Alex

Alex

Posted
Posted (edited)
Metromix's outdoor dining guide. Edited by Alex (log)

"There is no sincerer love than the love of food."  -George Bernard Shaw, Man and Superman, Act 1

 

"Imagine all the food you have eaten in your life and consider that you are simply some of that food, rearranged."  -Max Tegmark, physicist

 

Gene Weingarten, writing in the Washington Post about online news stories and the accompanying readers' comments: "I basically like 'comments,' though they can seem a little jarring: spit-flecked rants that are appended to a product that at least tries for a measure of objectivity and dignity. It's as though when you order a sirloin steak, it comes with a side of maggots."

 

"...in the mid-’90s when the internet was coming...there was a tendency to assume that when all the world’s knowledge comes online, everyone will flock to it. It turns out that if you give everyone access to the Library of Congress, what they do is watch videos on TikTok."  -Neil Stephenson, author, in The Atlantic

 

"In questions of science, the authority of a thousand is not worth the humble reasoning of a single individual." -Galileo Galilei, physicist and astronomer

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LAZ

LAZ

Posted
Posted

I'm not enamored of sidewalk cafes on busy streets where you get bus fumes with your dinner and bums sidling up to beg for spare change. I have a very narrow comfort range when it comes to temperature, 68-72 degrees, and I dislike high humidity, so I mostly think there are about six weeks of weather -- three in the spring and three in the fall -- when it's pleasant to dine outdoors in Chicago.

Here a few of my favorite private garden spaces for those all-too-brief days for al fresco dining. Alas, another favorite, Lutz's, is apparently closed for remodeling (though the bakery is still open).

Timo

312/226-4300

464 N. Halsted St., Chicago

Newly Italian-slanted version of Thyme with the same lovely enclosed garden. Now the wood-grilled rotisserie Amish chicken comes with porcini sauce.

Carmichael's Chicago Steak House

312/433-0025

www.carmichaelsteakhouse.com

1052 W. Monroe St., Chicago

Casual steakhouse has a great outdoor courtyard and a menu of Choice-grade Certified Angus steaks. Also potent martinis and excellent shrimp de Jonghe.

Cerise

312/645-1500

www.levyrestaurants.com

Le Méridien Chicago

520 N. Michigan Ave. (entrance on Rush), Chicago

Undersung French spot with a walled veranda hidden away on the fifth floor of a Mag Mile hotel.

Don Roth's Blackhawk

847/537-5800

www.donroths.com

61 N. Milwaukee Ave., Wheeling

Spinning salad, steaks, prime rib, Boston scrod and creamed spinach on a rear patio where a metal fire pit, taken from the original Blackhawk in Chicago, hangs suspended from wood beams.

LAZ

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ronnie_suburban

ronnie_suburban

Posted
Posted
I'm not enamored of sidewalk cafes on busy streets where you get bus fumes with your dinner and bums sidling up to beg for spare change. I have a very narrow comfort range when it comes to temperature, 68-72 degrees, and I dislike high humidity, so I mostly think there are about six weeks of weather -- three in the spring and three in the fall -- when it's pleasant to dine outdoors in Chicago. . .

LAZ, you crack me up. Finally, someone who feels about the same as I do regarding outdoor dining! :biggrin:

Thanks for the additional tips, too.

=R=

"Hey, hey, careful man! There's a beverage here!" --The Dude, The Big Lebowski

LTHForum.com -- The definitive Chicago-based culinary chat site

ronnie_suburban 'at' yahoo.com

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Alex

Alex

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Cerise

312/645-1500

www.levyrestaurants.com

Le Méridien Chicago

520 N. Michigan Ave. (entrance on Rush), Chicago

Undersung French spot with a walled veranda hidden away on the fifth floor of a Mag Mile hotel.

Le Méridien was sold to the Hilton organization. Cerise is now "The Restaurant at Conrad," although a name change supposedly is in the works.

"There is no sincerer love than the love of food."  -George Bernard Shaw, Man and Superman, Act 1

 

"Imagine all the food you have eaten in your life and consider that you are simply some of that food, rearranged."  -Max Tegmark, physicist

 

Gene Weingarten, writing in the Washington Post about online news stories and the accompanying readers' comments: "I basically like 'comments,' though they can seem a little jarring: spit-flecked rants that are appended to a product that at least tries for a measure of objectivity and dignity. It's as though when you order a sirloin steak, it comes with a side of maggots."

 

"...in the mid-’90s when the internet was coming...there was a tendency to assume that when all the world’s knowledge comes online, everyone will flock to it. It turns out that if you give everyone access to the Library of Congress, what they do is watch videos on TikTok."  -Neil Stephenson, author, in The Atlantic

 

"In questions of science, the authority of a thousand is not worth the humble reasoning of a single individual." -Galileo Galilei, physicist and astronomer

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LAZ

LAZ

Posted
Posted
Le Méridien was sold to the Hilton organization. Cerise is now "The Restaurant at Conrad," although a name change supposedly is in the works.

They've been pretty quiet about that! Well, I expect it's still nice on the veranda, whatever it's called.

LAZ

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