Speaking of downtown restaurants
 

I recently went to Pelago, a newly opened Italian restaurant at Hotel Raffaello at 201 E. Delaware Pl.

It's a small room, beautifully decorated. The food was great! Everything was very good, but stand-outs were caprese soup (tomato soup with basil and mozzarella), a fantastic duck wrapped in pork dish, really good pastas and a fantastic chocolate dessert.

Try it before it gets too popular :)

I agree about Boka. I've been twice, and won't go back.

Perennial is good, they have a nice Sunday brunch.

I like Toast, too, but if you want something that gives them a run for their money, try the Bongo Room.

excellent catch on portillos, lots of fans of high end food can overlook the obvious, quick, convenient and quality that select fast service restaurants can provide.

lawry's the prime rib. great food and really poor service based on multiple tries by my wife and me. in spite of loving the prime rib beyond belief we have finally given up on lawry's.

food: charlie trotters is the high end, written about by out of town mags and locals alike. the wife and i felt it was good but not great, a tad artsy for us. service is very good but not great. for $150 a plate plus drinks i really want "great" all the time not just one part of the meal or one part of the service experience. it is certainly a "production" and worth at least a look once, but not our cup of tea. plan on 2 hours from start to finish. formal.

if you like midwest food (ie lots of very good friendly homestyle cooking and good variety) go to ditka's, (the american football coach). excellent and surprisingly great prices, don't let the low prices put you off. this is very good stuff and good service. also the restaurant is only a few blocks from the drake hotel, just off michigan avenue. very nice. (yes, i know, celebrity diners usually suck, not so with ditka's.) casual but no one will throw you out if you wear a suit.

for good hotdogs and italian beef and burgers go to any of the 30 or so Portillos restaurants, one of the few regional chains in the united states that outsells mcdonalds and other chains on a per store location. top of the line ingrediants and superb order execution. also many have italian kitchens attached with pasta etc. located throughout the suburbs and some city locations. don't mistake the comparison to a national chain in this description for any similarity to mcdonald's etc. portillos is one of the most successfull regional restaurants in the world. eat there and you will see why. a very unique and successful business model. casual.

for seafood, bob chinns in wheeling (a suburb about 15 miles west of the loop). sells more seafood then any other restaurant in the united states on a regular basis, once again, don't think volume precludes excellence. they literally fly in fresh seafood daily. in the midwest you do volume because you are excellent not for snob appeal. they sell a lot because they provide a great product. great for lunch or dinner. very affordable and casual, suits are also welcome.

for a truly great chicago dish try some deep dish pizza, you can have excellent pizza at the following (make sure you order deep dish)
geno's east
pizzaria due's
pizzaria uno
connies
and there are several others all excellent and all different deep dish pizza in subtle ways. all pizza places are casual dress.

regards,
jsq

Just looked at their menu ...oreo cookie crumb pancakes with raspberry vanilla cream and chocolate creme anglaise :D ...will definitely try them. Thanks.

makes me think of oreo bars. would be nice if some chef figured out recipe.

Wheeling is more like 25-30 miles from the loop and it's mostly north, not that far west. Also, know that this place is also known for having cattle chute lines, which isn't for everyone.

Your first 3 are fine (I'd throw Malnati's on top, but whatever), but Connie's? That place sucks.

Being a Chicago native, I'll chime in with my $.02 later, but I have to say, the oreo cookie pancakes are one my girlfriend and my favorite dishes in Chicago. they are PERFECT! Not too sweet, not too rich, just awesomeness.

The only place that rivals Bongo Room for breakfast is Orange for their "fruishi". they just opened a bunch of new locations, but if you go to Orange, you have to go to the original at 3231 Clark (I used to live above it :)).

and
 

and while we are on the topic of Chicago restaurants, I have come to believe that, more than any other city anywhere, Chicagoans are willing to stand in line for food!

Sometimes I think a place can't be any good without a line :)

Some examples:

Hot Doug's
Garrett's Popcorn
Deep dish pizza at Uno's, Due, Gino's or Malnati's
Tempo breakfast fowntown

I'm sure I'm missing many more!

id imagine tokyo wins. :D

We were in a taxi when SO noticed a long line of people along the sidewalk. He assuming it must be for something very unusual or interesting. One glance and I knew: Garrett's Popcorn! (FT is so educational.:cool:) He wouldn't believe me - even after I rolled down my window to provide olfactory evidence.

We both find the queuing for restaurants phenomenon baffling, though.

There was a similarly long queue at Xoco -- those churros looked so good!!

New iPhone App w/ Chicago Deals
 

If you make it out to Chicago enough (or, better yet, live here) I'd recommend this new app:

http://www.nbcchicago.com/around-tow...-78311707.html

I usually don't like paying for Apps (and especially reservations), but if I use it even once or twice, I think it'll pay for itself. I can't speak as to how often it's updated; just DLed it on Wednesday and was travelling until last night. Will post any updates though!

Restaurant-related question:

My MIL, who is newly widowed, is coming to visit us in Chicago for the first time. She has rarely traveled over the last 25 years.

I'm going to show her the Mag Mile on a weekday and I'd like to take her somewhere pretty nice (but not too fancy) near there for lunch. We won't be dressed up, and I'm not looking for Trotter-type places. Fairly simple food wanted. I've lived here 15 years, but this sort of knowledge is way outside my ken.

Maybe the Drake? Or do any of the fancy department stores have decent restaurants? Any tips would be welcome. Thanks.

I'd recommend two places:

1) http://www.grandluxcafe.com/ - Grand Lux Cafe is really good and usually crowded. The place is pretty big though, so unless you go during a weekend lunch rush (which is sounds like you're not), you shouldn't have to wait more than 5-10 mts. for a table. And there's places to sit for your name to be called so your MIL should approve :)

The food is standard American and their desserts are great. Big portions, too! The address is misleading; enter on Ontario just west of Mich. IMO, this is EXACTLY what you're looking for

2) http://www.omnihotels.com/findahotel...go/dining.aspx - I believe 676 was recently remodeled. I've been here once for dinner a few years ago and it was better than I expected. Over the past few years, I'll pop in here for a drink if I'm downtown b/c it's rarely crowded, even on a weekend. Again, standard American food, probably slightly pricier than Grand Lux but also casual. At either place, you won't be out of place with jeans/tennis shoes.

Hope that helps!

...there's also The Signature Room at the top of the Hancock. Probably won't get much of a wait during the week. Plus, you get the view of the city w/o paying for the observatory. You could probably call ahead to get a window table, but don't quote me on that.

Personally, I've always enjoyed the food, but I've heard mixed reviews. My mgr. just went there last week and he wasn't impressed. It would probably be the most unique place to take her in that area, seeing as you can't get that view anywhere else :)