10/12/09

Very Very Good

by olsonmd

Service attentive - diners name given to waitstaff - service is good and prompt without being oppressive. Servers answer questions - do not upsell or oversell. Steaks (hers- special Filet; mine 14 oz Sirloin} were just outstanding and cooked to perfection. A "small" side of au gratin potatoes ($5) easily enough for two. Drawback is wines by the glass list - seriously overpriced. Hard for diners, in this day, to pay $11-12/glass (Chateau St. Michelle Merlot) for something you pay less than $20 for @ Sam's or Binny's. Avoid the cheaper wines on the wine by the Glass list (the Alderbrook Zin @ $8 is really mediocre).

• Pros: Steaks perfect - food quality excellent - great service
• Cons: Wines grossly overpriced

01/24/09

Yeah, it rocks.

by danm900

I took a fairly large and boisterous group here on a Friday night without a reservation and they were happy to see us. They took care of everything without missing a beat. The food and service is at the top level of Chicago steakhouses. I have been to the Captial Grille in Houston (fantastic) and Minneapolis (very nice) and I'm glad we finally have one here. The wine list is extensive, our wine turned out to be excellent, and I had the bigger filet which was a challenge to finish. While leaving our group was looking for a nice local bar and while the receptionist didn't know of any, she went out of her way to find another staff member who was more up on the area. Very helpful.

• Pros: Top notch steakhouse and great service
• Cons: Parking, price

12/13/08

Just go already!

by KBBBB

#1) Make sure you ask the bartender for a shot of the vodka concoction that's seated on top of the bar.

#2) After you're relaxed getting that buzz from the vodka, sit yourself down and eat some great food.

#3) Go home and sleep like a champ!

11/30/08

Great service!

by kim69nc

I booked a Saturday night dinner at this restaurant about 4 weeks in advance, and the best dinner time that I could get was 6:45. Needless to mention, i was really expecting a lot from this restaurant since it's so hard to get a reservation for a decent dinner time on Fraturdays. So, we went, and what can I say? Everything about this restaurant was great! The wait staff were extremely courteous, knowledgeable, and attentive. The food was excellent, and the meat dishes that we ordered were cooked perfectly to temperature. They really went out of their ways to show us that our business was appreciated. This restaurant really has its act together, down to every little detail. For example, the waiters learn all of the customers' names from the reservations book, so that they can be greeted and addressed properly. The waiters even have their own business cards, which they enclose with the bill. It's really a statement of professionalism and thoughtfulness when the restaurant gives their waiters their own business cards. The cost of our meal for two came out to be about $200 before tip (we had appetizers, entrees, shared a dessert, and a bottle of wine). It might seem a little bit pricey, but we didn't feel ripped off at all because the service and food were well worth it (I've spent more for less in the past, and this definitely isn't one of those restaurants where you end up feeling like you've just been robbed). I look forward to my future meals at Capital Grille, and you should check it out too!

• Pros: Excellent service, perfectly cooked food, valet parking
• Cons: may be hard to make reservations for busy nights of the week

08/02/08

great pick!

by iknosteak

well my friends and I each get to pick any restaurant of one's choice for their birthday, and I choose Capital Grille, everything we had was very good including the lobster, it was my first time having it and it was delicious kinda expensive but very good. I had the porterhouse and i love it! Nice place, great atmosphere, very cool time.. try it

• Pros: great food good service
• Cons: parking if u dont like to valet

07/04/08

Flo's Filet at the Outback would have been way better

by shalko

I went there with a few other people to celebrate a birthday and the food was AWFUL!!!!! 4 of us got filet's, it tasted like a piece of meet thrown on a grill and then served....not to mention it wasn't even cooked properly. The other 4 at our table that got different steaks lucked out, there's were great! So if you go there don't go with the filet....for being a steak place I don't think they know what they're doing. The manager wasextremely rude as well, I feel bad for his employees! My friends and I have all worked in the restaurant business, from managers to servers, my one friend went and talked to the manager about the 4 crappy steaks we were served. The manager immediately got rude with my friend and said he couldn't comp 4 filet's. My friend told him that he never asked that they were comped, just to make his guests at the table happy, he said we all paid good money...which we did...over $900 so everyone at the table should be happy leaving. So he brought us out like 8 desserts...which were all good, how do you screw up a dessert. But, I'm still not happy....I'll NEVER go back....I'll go to Morton's or Ruth's Chris instead.

• Pros: The name makes it sound like it will be good
• Cons: It's really awful

04/30/08

Remarkable dining experience

by 084430

Having had a wonderful time at the sister resaurant in Dallas, my wife and I decided to entertain some old friends while at a meeting in Chicago recently. True to form, the service was impeccable, the food perfect, the wine list superb and the overall experience simply great. Being somewhat of a harsh critic, every potential area of weakness was examined as we discussed our dining experience that evening. I don't know how they do it, but I am looking forward to my next trip to a city with this standout restaurant group. Simply marvelous.

• Pros: remarkable food and wine dining experience
• Cons: somewhat expensive

01/03/08

Host Staff is superior!!

by delyco

We dropped into Chicago at the last minute for New Year's Eve (ie we didn't make reservations). The hostess, Erin, immediately gave us napkins to dry ourselves from walking in the snow. Despite the crowded dining room due to the holiday, we were able to relax in the bar until Erin and her staff found a table for us in the state room (less than an hour wait!) At first we took it as a sign that the food wouldn't be great, but that was a wrong assumption. My sweetheart had the Filet Oscar and I had the tenderloin with lobster--both were perfection!

The decor has a feel similar to classic US government buildings (hence the name) and the main dining room is not what I'd call romantic. However, the state room had a very intimate feel--if you're looking for something more of that nature, I would certainly ask.

• Pros: friendly staff, superb food, both filtered and FIJI water available

10/02/07

Great Anniversary Dinner!

by ericottarted

I took my girlfriend here for our 2 year anniversary and I wasn't sure what to expect from the other comments on this site, but I soon realized that I made a great choice. Although it isn't cheap by any means, it's worth the dinning experience. We showed up for our reservations an hour early expecting we could sit at the bar for a while, but they seated us promptly as it was still early and we were one of the first there @ 5:45pm on a Sat. The greeters were extra friendly and happy to seat us, which left a good starting impression on my girlfriend and I. They seated us in the wine room which was semi-private. Our waiter (Mr. Potter) was awesomely friendly, attentive and patient..

They don?t have draft beers, but they do have a good selection of bottled beer and a huge selection of wines. They even have desert wines, but we didn?t try any. For an appetizer we ordered smoked salmon. It came with Capers, some type of pita chip and a creamy spread?very good. Then, I ordered some clam chowder soup which was awesome. My girlfriend, for her entree, ordered beef tenderloin which came with large chunks of Lobster. I ordered the filet Oscar, which is a fillet steak with a type of light cream sauce and chunks of crab meat on top. It came with asparagus too. We also ordered some type of broccoli medley which was decent

I mentioned to our waiter that we were celebrating our anniversary. He surprised us at the end of our meal with a flourless chocolate cake that was really good. Then, he offered to take our photo, and he came back a few minutes later with the photo framed on a card. He didn?t charge us for the cake or pic either! We were too full to have anything else.

Our total bill for all of the above was $160 w/o tip, but this restaurant left a great lasting impression on us.

• Pros: Friendly staff, good food, large wine list
• Cons: Expect to vallet park

08/25/07

Best Engagement Dinner

by nsk97

My fiance and I just ate at there last night an hour after we had just become engaged. We told the host that we had just gotten engaged and from that point on we were treated like royalty. The wait staff was incredible, we were given the best table in the restaurant, and treated to complimentary champagne, dessert, and a small appetizer. A waiter came to the table took our picture with the restaurant's camera and printed a picture for us before we left. Above all the food was absolutely outstanding, and the service was above and beyond our expectations for this special occasion.

• Pros: Wait Staff, Food, Special Occasion Dining
• Cons: None