I'm going to be in Chicago next weekend and as usual, I'm solo. I'm curious if anyone has Saturday night dinner suggestions for one single guy - perhaps a place where I can eat at the bar? I've been to Bin 36 a couple of times and while it was good; I'm interested in trying something new. I'm pretty open on cuisine - as long as it's good, thoughtfully prepared and served with a smile. [If I were in New York, I'd probably have dinner at Gotham Tavern - as an example of what I'm looking for...]

Thanks.

What area of the city will you be staying? If you're close to Bin 36, you might want to try Frontera Grill, home of Mexican Chef Extraordinaire Rick Bayliss. Even on a busy Saturday night, you should find seating at the bar, and the bartenders there are very friendly. Another good spot in the area is Naha, and they have ample bar seating as well.

http://www.fronterakitchens.com/rest...staurants.html

www.naha-chicago.com

Your tastes may not be the same as mine, but when I dine alone I prefer to do it at the bar at Miller's Pub on south Wabash in the loop. The bartenders are very friendly and you can usually find some good conversation at the bar.

http://millerspub.com/

Steve

One of my favorite places where you can eat alone and have great food at a reasonable price is Yoshi's on Halsted St. Several people are usually eating at the bar, which is not isolated from the restaurant.

http://metromix.chicagotribune.com/d..._lakeview_heds

On the other hand, Chicago has a lot of Flyertalkers and a lot of Flyertalkers coming through. If you don't want to eat alone, I would suggest posting something in the Community forum. Often you can get a dining partner or several who would be happy to join you.

Frontera and Yoshi's are the two that first came to my mind. I have had good experiences at both when dining solo.

Another vote for Frontera Grill - I don't always like having to eat at the bar as a solo diner, but it's OK at Frontera (order off the full menu, chairs not crowded too close together).

I've also been seated at a small table in the bar at Gibson's on Rush Street - full menu, very good service.

Check out Craigslist...you might not have to spend the evening alone.

West Town Tavern has a nice bar where they offer a full menu. It's a casual, neighborhood place...but food is contemporary American.

If you want to take a cab over to Wicker Park area, there are some cool "loungey" restaurants like Rodan and People Lounge. The restaurant Feast also has a bar that serves food.

Pretty much all restaurants in the city will serve food at the bar.

I'm wondering where dinner was.

...I have to laugh when I look back at last Saturday because it was quite a disaster of a day. I decided to book a room at The James Hotel - which seems to be getting a lot of positive press as one of the new interesting places to stay. And I'm one interested in trying new places. Face it, the Sofitel is $235 and while the views are nice - it's definitely one of those 'been there; done it' places. I booked the James for $199 and flew in Saturday morning at 735am on UA. Once on the plane - having almost fallen asleep driving to the airport - I checked my pocket and located my Blackberry. It was going off like a rocket - yet I hadn't heard it or been awake enough to pay attention.

Then my boss called after the door was closed. He needed me to come in to work right away - Saturday morning at 730am...which while was unusual - it wasn't out of the realm of reality for me. I explained my situation and then sulked in my seat. A work emergency was important and I'm well enough compensated to deal with these things. So, as soon as I arrived at ORD, I went to get my luggage and decided to re-book and return on the next flight - leaving in 45 minutes.

The luggage wasn't coming; so I asked the agent where it was. He checked my stub and told me it didn't make the flight - it would be arriving at 10:30am. Ok, I wasn't going home without my luggage. I headed upstairs, explained my situation to the capable P1 counter staff, was rebooked [with $100 fee] and got on the next flight home. I arrived at work at 1:45pm - and spent the next seven hours there. I was able, however, to pick up a copy of the Tribune and Sun Times so not all was wasted.

My luggage was hand delivered Sunday evening at 8:30pm at my downtown loft - and the service was actually quite good. The baggage rep called from the airport, said he'd be there in 45 minutes; and then about 45 minutes later - said he'd be outside in one minute. I went down, tipped him, signed for my luggage [properly re-tagged with Star Gold Priority!] and went back upstairs to watch the Amazing Race - my personal version finally finished for the weekend.

The newest Bayless "street food" restaurant, Xoco, is actually more comfortable dining solo than in a group -- many of the seats face walls.

A few restaurants around town have communal-dining tables, if that semi-social experience is your thing. The Bristol and Belly Shack come to mind in Bucktown.

Avec & The Publican are two others

Yoshi's has great food and is a nice place to dine solo or otherwise.