WEBER GRILL RESTAURANT

[Simon Majumdar]

I have been looking with interest at the thread about Steakhouses in Chicago ( Magnums is one of my faves BTW) and thought I would mention the Weber place on State & Ohio (?)

I have to own up to having some prejudice as I am working with Weber on a new grilling book for the European market and was in town recently to meet with the good folks from Weber Stephens ( actually they are good folks, delightful people )

When they mentioned they were taking my colleague and I to dinner at their newly opened restaurant, I was a little nervous as it is on that drag of Chicago that houses some actively nast places ( ESPN anyone?) and I had placed it in that category when I had gone past it in a cab.

On arrival, I was very pleasantly surprised. THe room was packed. In fact they have about five rooms all named after grills, so, I think, we sat in the summit room. The bar ( Smokey Joe's, Ahem!) made one of the best Martini's I have ever had in the US and the service was very efficient.

The menu itself was relatively standard steakhouse food but very well done with a good choice. My "Summit" Steak was a 26ozer and cooked to perfection ( black and blue for the record ) as were the Fillet Mignons and Salmon that my companions ordered.

Every thing was cooked in an open kitchen on Industrial versions of Weber grills. Quite a sight.

We spoke with the executive chef for the company who also does recipes for books and shows and etc etc, Michael Chech, he seemed personable and knowledgeable. He was telling us that with Breakfast, lunch and dinner service they are dealing with over 700 covers a day.

My opinion may have been coloured by my realationship with the people at Weber, but this restaurant seems like a welcome addition to the Chicago scene. I know from my work with them that they never do anything without a great deal of research or thought and this place seems to reflect it.

Who knew?

[Fat Guy]

I'm having fun thinking of derivative restaurant concepts:

The Waring Blender restaurant, where everything is pureed.

The iSi restaurant, where everything in injected with NO2 and made into foam.

Oh, wait a second, they have that restaurant and it's called El Bulli. Sorry. Couldn't help myself.

[phaelon56]

I was on a business trip in the midwest several years ago (perhaps Omaha or Kansas City region? - can't recall) and had dinner in the original Weber's restaurant that predated the current one. I recall it having an excellent reputation in that area for grilled meats and my dinner was good (it's hazy memory but it'sa the bad ones I really remember). Looking into that kitchen really is a trip - giant kettle style Weber grills - worth a trip in just to look at the kitchen.

[mamster]

Has George Foreman opened a restaurant yet?

How about Ron Popeil? They could serve dehydrated food and fish caught by the Pocket Fisherman. "I'm sorry, sir, we don't allow bald people in the dining room, but we'd be happy to give you a spritz of this spray-on hair."

[hollywood]

I have to own up to having some prejudice as I am working with Weber on a new grilling book for the European market and was in town recently to meet with the good folks from Weber Stephens ( actually they are good folks, delightful people )

Weber does do good grilling books although I believe Williams Sonoma does better.

[Fat Guy]

That's the spirit, Mamster!

[Aurora]

Simon - thanks for the report. Like you, I have been turned off by the over marketing of the Weber Grille. Its placement in a somewhat cartoony section of dining establishments was not helping. That section of restaurants is designed to attract tourists, and it packs them in making sure that they all stop to buy T-shirts, shot glasses, and baseball caps on their way out.

How did your experience at Weber Grille compare to meals you have had at some of Chicago's more established steak and chophouses?

Have you been to Morton's?

[Simon Majumdar]

I have been to many ( if not most ) Chicago steakhouses, Ruth Chris's/Morton's/Magnums/Smith & Wollensky's(?) etc. I am a great lover of Steakhouses in the US as it is one thing we truly lack here in the UK

I think the Weber Grill place is aiming itself at a different market. Service is not quite as faux formal and the prices are not as high. It is a little like the downstairs bit of Smith & W's

That being said, I found their preparation of the Steak ( which is what they are all about ) to be of an equally high standard, in some cases better.

They are right in that hellish tourist trap area and the large Weber Grill on the front of the building made me wince as I thought that they were in the same T-shirt selling business that you hate. In fact, I don't think they have any retail. I was pleased but not shocked to see that they had not fallen into that trap. While they are sure to attract tourists in that part of town, they told me that they had already got very good notice from locals.

In the end I just liked it because the food was good, they made great drinks and the service ( all people trained at the Weber school of grilling or something ) was spot on.

I can only judge these things by one thing. Would I return if it was on my nickel and I was not a guest? Yes I would

[Sweet Willie]

Wife and I ate at the Weber Grill Restaurant, 920 N. Milwaukee (just north of Lake-Cook rd.), Wheeling phone: 847.215.0996

Yes it is THE weber grill maker who has opened this restaurant, they also have a location in Lombard at 2331 Fountain Square Drive, phone: 630.953.8880

Real charcoal on a real grill? I'm thinking great eats. Disappointment.

I tried the BBQ Sampler which has ribs (baby back), sausage link, pulled pork and 1/4 chicken.

The ribs were so-so, most people do better at home easily. The sausage link was something you'd buy in the grocery store (fine if I'm cooking, but not when I'm paying some decent $$). Pulled pork had ZERO flavor. The 1/4 chicken was good and very moist, cooked perfect, but then again most can cook chicken on the grill at home.

Wife had the BBQ shrimp/chicken platter. Shrimp were done right (not always easy to do) and again so was the chicken.

We each had one draft beer apiece, the meals and an ok fried calamari appetizer. Bill was $58!! Which was WAY TOO MUCH for food that I can cook much better at home.

[Eric_Malson]

I decided to try this place tonight on the strength of the recommendation of the fellow e-gulleteers above. Since it was Christmas eve, I thought it would be likely to be open when some other joints in the area would not. At 8:10, all signs were lit up....people inside, all doors wide open.

I walked in, only to be informed by a manager-type that they were closed. I must have looked extremely confused....it finally occurred to me to ask when they had closed, and I was told 8. Since that information apparently did not effectively dispel my look of confusion, manager-type then informed me, "It's Christmas." ("Well, duh!")

All well and good so far, although not exactly sparkling repartee.

I can only guess that I was not leaving fast enough for manager-type's taste, because he then said, a bit impatiently, "We were open all day."

That sentence positively guaranteed I will never be back. Perhaps I'm over-reacting--those who know me will be deeply shocked by this, but I have been known to do that from time to time. But I was incredibly annoyed by it.....just how IS the information that the establishment in question was "open all day" supposed to have any bearing whatsoever on the situation of a potential customer, reasonably taking the establishment to be open, being refused service at that moment?

Maybe someone should start a "stupidest/most offensive things said by restaurant employees" thread. It might be a good corrective for all those (admittedly amusing) disgruntled-waiter sites.

[Rachel Perlow]

Was there anything he could have said to you that you would have felt was appropriate, while at the same time refusing you service? Obviously they decided to stop seating people at 8 PM so as to allow the workers to get home at a decent hour. Closing the door at 8 means the earliest possible time they could leave would be 10 PM, but probably closer to 11. If they sat you at 8:10, then why shouldn't they seat the person walking in behind you at 8:15, etc.? When should it end?

[WHT]

I did not like how they treated smokers. I will not be back for that or the subpar food.

[Suzanne F]

I don't think Eric is saying that he should have been seated; just that he should have been treated like a human being.

I can only guess that I was not leaving fast enough for manager-type's taste, because he then said, a bit impatiently, "We were open all day."

THAT indeed sucks. As if he were saying, "You fool, if you wanted to eat here so much, you should have known when to come; it's your fault that you came too late, you stupid person." There are any number of things the manager-type could have said, such as "I'm sorry you're disappointed; we will be open xxxxxxxxx" or even simply, "Sorry." But it is unconscionable to make a statement that blames the customer (at least, in these circumstances).

[Eric_Malson]

That was exactly my point, Suzanne--thank you.

They can, of course, close whenever they want.

[JimInLoganSquare]

I was on a business trip in the midwest several years ago (perhaps Omaha or Kansas City region? - can't recall) and had dinner in the original Weber's restaurant that predated the current one.

Are you sure you weren't in Wheeling, Illinois (northwest suburb of Chicago)? The original Weber Grill restaurant (or at least the oldest surviving one of the three current locations) is located there. Much smaller and more traditional looking restaurant than the "expansion team" locations in River North and Lombard (western suburb of Chicago). The first time I ate in the Wheeling location was 1992, and it felt like it had been around a while before that. Anyway, I agree with the general opinion about the quality of the food; for a good steakhouse it's a real bargain that keeps me coming back. And the "novelty act" feature of cooking on Weber grills is completely invisible, if you want it to be (i.e., at least in Wheeling you are not forced to watch the kettles in action, but can if you want peek through a discretely located window).

[jglazer75]

I have to disagree. I have not had a single decent meal at any Weber Grille in or around the city. I have been to the one on State and it was terrible. The food was mediocre, the service was crappy, the drinks were terrible and it was over-priced. I also went to one out in the suburbs (in Lombard) and was thoroughly unimpressed. Again, the food was mediocre but the service was still bad and it was still over-priced. Sorry, but I will never visit another one of these again and I'll tell everyone I know to stay away from them.

[RBloom03]

I must agree with jglazer75. I went to the Wheeling location about a year and a half ago. I could grill steaks on my Weber and get better results for much less money. Not to mention the service was quite bad, so much so that I filled out a comment card (not something I typically do) and handed it to the hostess.

[JimInLoganSquare]

Looks like Weber Grill has become at best highly inconsistent and maybe has taken a serious slide in quality since it expanded into a three-store chain. Now that I think about it, I realize it's been at least a year since I went to Weber (the Wheeling location), and while my experience was good (both food and service) there were some signs of encroaching chain-ism ("slick" mass-produced menus, the addition of the "Smoky Joe Bar," etc.). I'll just say my good experiences and fond memories of the Wheeling location appear not to be representative now, particularly for the other stores. Looks like the many negative reports showing up here may, unfortunately, be more representative, which is sad, because this used to be a pretty good place.

[NVNVGirl]

Weber does do good grilling books although I believe Williams Sonoma does better.

[chengb02]

I've been to Weber in the 'burbs and in the city and both were very good. I agree with Simon, they're attempting to capture a different market and nobody will put them at the very top of Chicago steakhouses, but the steaks are very good. My only complaint is that service at the one in Lombard is often spotty. I just wonder how long we're going to have Weber to ourselves, before they go national.