05/31/08

Great food

by Iusamet

Wow!! the best food in chicago area, i'm from Mexico and i was for a year here, Chicago. As mexican i eat my food very seasoned and Custom House gave it to me, i had a great dinner, the wine list was a little limited but not too bad. The service is excellent here, especially the waitre Dario, he's bilingual (spanish english) and offered to me everything to my comfort. I recommend this place strongly... great food great service great ambience... is there something more?? i do not think so. Thank you Custom House. I`ll get back as soon as i can.

• Pros: Service!!
• Cons: wine list

11/21/07

Snazzy

by tomcat710

This place was really good. I didn't know what to expect but I wanted to go somewhere that was nice and not pretentious. This place had very nice waiters, one of them being a kind old man who offered us custom made candy bars (and no, he didn't ask us to follow him into his van). We were seated in our own area too, so It was private. It was a strange location for such a nice restaurant, right across the street from Taco Bell. Luckily this had nothing to do with the quality of this place.

• Pros: great service, great food, peaceful ambience
• Cons: nothing to complain about

11/04/07

salt and bitterness

by sorod

Coming from L.A. and spending months of the year in NYC and Tokyo, I was hoping for a great meal from Custom House, Chicago. The canned reviews are just that. The real reviews are quite different and this is one. Service was fine wsith a couple of set backs...Asking for wine after an order was placed...filling sparkling water glass with flat. I can let that go. The food was just ok and some was just not good. The butternut squash soup was over-seasond and swimming with garnish. Way too much blue cheese. Sweetbreads were soggy and the "House Made Bacon" was limp and flavorless. Seafood was ok. The steaks were done to perfection and quite tender, yet nothing special. All the sides, aside from the tortelli were way too salty, and the cauliflower gratin was just gross. Bitter and gritty. I finished with a trio of sorbet. The lemon had the best tuxture, yet the flavor was tangy and too sweet. The pear sorbot looked terrible. Greyish brown in color and not the right texture. Cranberry/orange was sweet and sour with the right flavor, but the texture was more like frozen yogurt. A limited wine list with some hard to find reds, yet nothing you can't get at any fine restaurant. In all, underwhelming and lots of hype. This place would have to step it up to last in Los Angeles or N.Y.

• Pros: Room to breath, not too noisey, attentive service
• Cons: Overrated food, views of a gas station, feels like a chain

06/03/07

Disappointment!!!

by bellaa2002

BIG DISAPPOINTMENT!!!!!!

After reading reviews I was looking forward to a great steak. Unfortunately, what I got could be described as mediocre, at best. My steak was undercooked relative to my request, was cold and not very flavorful. Service was below average. Wine list is limited and uninteresting. If you're looking for the best steak in Chicago, DO NOT GO HERE!!!! What a DISAPPOINTMENT!

• Pros: None
• Cons: Overrrated

01/22/07

Great Food in a Small Booth

by heyaj

The service here is excellent from the moment you give your keys to the valet. The food is delicious, but we thought that there was too much salt used in everything we tasted. The booths are cramped, so opt for a table if one is available.

• Pros: Great service & excellent food
• Cons: Small booths & a bit pricey

12/14/06

Very Highly Recommended

by autvan21

I recently had dinner at the Custom House, and all I can say is "WOW". The food was out-of-this-world, and the service was amazing. The atmosphere was lively and creative. This whole expirience left me knowing that this restaurant sets the bar for all of the other Chicago restaurants. If you are looking for a wonderful dining expirience, I would highly recommend the Custom House.

• Pros: Food, Service, Atmosphere
• Cons: A little noisy at times, but that is normal

10/03/06

Worst Service and Attitude in Town

by imuk

I had dinner last night with a good friend of mine. We have dined at some of the finest in Chicago, New York, San Francisco and London. I have never experienced such poor service then at Custom House. I ate there at lunch the first time and expected it to be busy, which it was but everything was prompt and very good. But I was also with a Manager of a very expensive hotel in Chicago. Everyone came up to us to ensure the Manager of this hotel was happy. What I realized when me and a friend came for dinner that unless you are "someone" they recognize, you will have to wait to get a peice of bread. I had asked for the wine director and they sent the bar manager because the wine director was too busy to talk to us. I had to specifically name the person who reccomended that I speak to her. And even then it was like she didn't want to speak to us. The worst part was probably when out diner plates and EMPTY wine glasses sat on the table in front of us for 30 mins. And this was when there were only 3 other tables in the place. It was pouring rain outside and we decieded to stay to wait for the rain to slow so we moved to the bar. And it was the same service. Like they just wanted us to leave or they just didn't want to be there. I would not recommend this any business clients or out of towners. I was embarrassed I had recommended it for our dinner.

• Pros: New Resturant in Printers Row
• Cons: Poor Service with a Bad Attitude

07/29/06

excellent illinois corn soup

by jude252

I was visting Chcago and went to many recommended resturants, this was where I had my best meal. Try the salad with fuji apple and goat cheese.

• Pros: great service
• Cons: view of gas station

03/24/06

Shawn McClain brings his culinary talent to the Printer's Row neighborhood with this upscale modern steakhouse.

by Robyn Galbos

The Scene
Taupe, chocolate and splashes of burgundy warm this contemporary South Loop restaurant. Separated from the front bar by a floating wine rack, the dining room is surrounded by floor-to-ceiling windows on three sides, anchored by a stacked-flagstone wall with a window to the busy kitchen. A raised center floor houses booths for two or four; tables around the perimeter afford sweeping street views. Service is prompt and mindful.

The Food
The seasonally inspired menu focuses on meat with several fish and seafood options. First courses include silky tuna tartare alongside Mediterranean olives; earthy roasted sweetbreads are cooked tender with glazed bacon. Main courses like melt-in-the-mouth Maine scallops pair with a la carte sides like leek and blue cheese gratin or creamy polenta. Rich, comforting braised lamb served in a miniature cast-iron crock is a hearty dish with cannelini, root vegetables and fennel sausage. Sweet finishes include milk chocolate cake with custard and sorbet.

03/22/06

A memorable experience

by lovelyeater

The atmosphere was fantastic and the salad portions were remarkable. Highly recommend the mint chocolate chip ice cream. Had the short ribs and would opt for a less fatty meat next time. The flavor was all fat, did not really taste any meat at all. Seems like an older crowd. Excellent wine list.

• Pros: Great Dinig Room, Excellent Service, Good Selection
• Cons: Pretty Pricey