Best Historic Restaurants in West Loop

As fans of Rose Mary we were eager to try El Carciofi and willing to take a 4:45 reservation. This is as fun and as delicious as Rose Mary and shares the same approach to dining—shareable small plates. Interesting craft cocktails, sufficient wines by the glass, exceptionally well trained wait staff and very flavorful food. Gus menu was all Rome inspired so it was a little less diverse than Rose Mary. The artichokes were spectacular crisply Rome style. Every inch was edible. Two to an order but they bring you a serrated knife if you want to have them. We had one other appetizer (calamari), one pasta and one seafood main. The portions are great for two to share but if three or four order another something or two and expect to get just a couple bites not full servings. They have $8 servings of gelato and sorbet and a couple amazing deserts they offered to checkout coats.a nice touch in Chicago’s winter. It’s easy to spend $100 per person if you gave two drinks each and desert. We found street parking but forgot to feed the meter since the sign wasn’t obvious so double check

Having experienced High Tea at different locations, including overseas, I had expected an elevated experience for the price. The ambience was a lot more casual than I expected. The modern music was loud and our seating was in a heavy foot traffic area and directly sandwiched between the hotel bar and the window. The curtains next to us were dirty with food and grease stains. The menu for High Tea was on the same page with their standard bar menu with daily specials, not a separate menu. The tea selection was limited to standard teas, and were allowed only one serving. Since we weren’t shown a sampling of the teas, it could be assumed that the teas were from commercial brands, not higher end. When the food tray was brought to our table, it was dropped off with no explanation of what was served.

One of the best dinners I’ve ever had. Jess was the sweetest and most knowledgeable server, who made us feel relaxed and comfortable, and suggested an amazing bottle of wine to pair perfectly with our dishes. Everything was fantastic and it was a great experience!

Terrific meal all around. Had 6 courses I think. Unfortunately did not get our server’s name but she was outstanding. Knew the wine well, super friendly, and attentive without being overbearing. Great job all

A unique dinning experience. It was our first time and the staff did an excellent job of guiding us to a wonderful experience. We got to enjoy several different types of seafood and tried two different steak types. Everything was prepared well and tasted fantastic. The sommelier was helpful and paired our meal with very nice wine.