Chicago and suburbs

[Clayton_Wai-Poi]

@David K o l i n

Had a terrific experience at 160 Blue last night

1400 W Randolph St
Chicago, Illinois 60607
(312) 850-0303

http://www.onesixtyblue.com/

This restaurant has fallen off the radar over the last number of years, but their wine service is impeccable, and last night’s meal is one of the best I’ve had in Chicago over the last 6 months.

One terrific private room and one good private room.

Went with regular last night and they waived corkage, so you’d have to call for the per/bottle rate.

My wife and I love onesixtyblue, their food seems to be getting better and better. We’ve been 4 or 5 times and taken wine maybe 3 times. They’ve waived corkage a couple of times and charged us corkage once (i think it’s $25/bottle). I think the last Friday of every month is a free corkage day. I suspect with some negotiation they would probably waive free corkage on a Monday or Tuesday night offline (or at least go with a reduced rate).

[Jay_Carroll]

Just a quick FYI- little Italian place in Lemont, La Dolce Vita will allow corkage- but not really encouraged. $25 a bottle- and stems are iffy. But food is always good.

[Paul_Miller]

@John Danza

Hello all,

I added Glenn’s Diner to the master list at the top of this thread. I had a great dinner there about a month ago and will be there again on Saturday night. The seafood is excellent, which is their specialty. Stems are non-existant, so bring your own glasses. They have a small wine list but fully expect people to BYO. They state $5 per bottle corkage, but when we were there they only charged us a single $5 for the table. That seemed appropriate due to the lack of glassware.

Glenn’s Diner
1820 W. Montrose
Chicago, IL
773-506-1720
Glenn's Diner | Home

Love this place.

[Jay_Carroll]

Had dinner a couple weeks ago at Keefers. Always kinda forget about this place- they have a very good steak, sides were excellent, decent stems and $20 a bottle for corkage was quoted- but I do not think they charged for every bottle we had.

Keefers
20 W Kinzie St
Chicago, IL
(312) 467-9525

[John_Danza]

Jan and I had dinner last night at Triad Sushi Lounge in the South Loop. I was attracted to it because of a recent Groupon, and through that found that they are BYOB wine and beer, with no corkage fee. I found this pretty cool, since they have a full bar. The sushi was good, probably about average to above average. The pricing was about average for the city, which means a little higher than I usually pay in the western 'burbs. Stems were small tulips, so you might want to bring your own if you want decent aeration and swirling capabilities.

Triad Sushi Lounge
1933 S. Indiana Ave.
Chicago, IL 60616
312-225-8833

[Dan.Gord0n]

Fuel in Wilmette (located right near the train station) - went there a few weeks ago and very much enjoyed it - dinner only TH-SAT - stemware was good and corkage was only $14 - nice eclectic menu that we found very well executed - casual atmosphere with a menu more sophisticated than I would have otherwise expected. Brought an Aubert Chard and it worked very nicely. If I lived up north, I’d fit it into our normal rotation.

Fuel
1222 Washington Ct.
Wilmette, IL 60091
847-251-FUEL

[Dan.Gord0n]

Speaking of sushi after reading John’s post above, my go to sushi place is Macku - great fish and interesting creative alternatives - corkage friendly with good stemware - corkage of $15 if I recall correctly - I’ve brought Champagne and Rhone varietal whites - great place but particularly if you are looking for a more elaborate dinner.

Macku Sushi
2239 N Clybourn Ave
Chicago, IL 60614

[jordan_whitehead]

Mado is closed

[Mel_Hill]

@jordan whitehead

Mado is closed

Yep… But! The Chef is now a butcher and does private dinners
That are byob
http://thebutcherandlarder.com/

[John_Danza]

@Mel Hill

@jordan whitehead

Mado is closed

Yep… But! The Chef is now a butcher and does private dinners
That are byob
http://thebutcherandlarder.com/

Thanks for the reminder Jordan. I’ve pulled Mado and Eve (both closed) and Sweets & Savories (universal opinion lately is that it’s awful).

Mel, I didn’t add Butcher & Larder because they’re private events. Sound ok?

Any other adds anyone has?

[John_Danza]

I just added Sabor Saveur in Wicker Park. Check for details on LTH Forum.

[John_Danza]

I’ve just removed Terragusto, as I understand they’re now closed.

A new BYOB has opened in Highland Park, called 2nd Street Bistro. As soon as someone tries it and reports back, we can add it to the list.

[Nolan_E]

This weekend we found out that Joe’s allows BYOB, not sure if there is a limit, but we were charged $20 for one bottle (and then it was comped)

Joe’s Seafood, Prime Steak & Stone Crab
60 East Grand Avenue
Chicago
(312) 379-5637

[Robert_Pollard-Smith]

@John Danza

I’ve just removed Terragusto, as I understand they’re now closed.

A new BYOB has opened in Highland Park, called 2nd Street Bistro. As soon as someone tries it and reports back, we can add it to the list.

Also closed, per a drive-by yesterday, (sob), is Cotes-du-Rhone.

[jordan_whitehead]

@John Danza

A new BYOB has opened in Highland Park, called 2nd Street Bistro. As soon as someone tries it and reports back, we can add it to the list.

may give them a shot this friday

[Dan.Gord0n]

@Nolan E

This weekend we found out that Joe’s allows BYOB, not sure if there is a limit, but we were charged $20 for one bottle (and then it was comped)

Joe’s Seafood, Prime Steak & Stone Crab
60 East Grand Avenue
Chicago
(312) 379-5637

Good one to mention as a lot of people may not realize that you can BYO…though, can’t say I’ve BYO’d much when I’ve gone, but they have always seemed very nice about it and only have ended up charging the corkage now and then.

[John_Danza]

@Robert Pollard-Smith

@John Danza

I’ve just removed Terragusto, as I understand they’re now closed.

A new BYOB has opened in Highland Park, called 2nd Street Bistro. As soon as someone tries it and reports back, we can add it to the list.

Also closed, per a drive-by yesterday, (sob), is Cotes-du-Rhone.

There was an interesting exchange on the LTH Forum (great Chicago dining board) when the place closed in the summer. The chef/owner said something about his food not fitting for the neighborhood. I guess the heighborhood didn’t like crappy food. Who would have thunk it?

[Robert_Pollard-Smith]

@John Danza

@Robert Pollard-Smith

@John Danza

I’ve just removed Terragusto, as I understand they’re now closed.

A new BYOB has opened in Highland Park, called 2nd Street Bistro. As soon as someone tries it and reports back, we can add it to the list.

Also closed, per a drive-by yesterday, (sob), is Cotes-du-Rhone.

There was an interesting exchange on the LTH Forum (great Chicago dining board) when the place closed in the summer. The chef/owner said something about his food not fitting for the neighborhood. I guess the heighborhood didn’t like crappy food. Who would have thunk it?

[jordan_whitehead]

disappointed that Restaurant Michael in Wilmette only allows corkage on tuesdays. Their wine list doesn’t have much with some age. Other than the few $1,000+ bottles

[Corey_N]

@jordan whitehead

disappointed that Restaurant Michael in Wilmette only allows corkage on tuesdays. Their wine list doesn’t have much with some age. Other than the few $1,000+ bottles

I’m going there tonight and think I’m going to be meeting with Michael. I’ll ask if they make exceptions.

Ok – went there last night and had a tremendous meal. Though it may not seem like the most exciting thing on the menu, I think the smoked salmon is simply superb (they give a nice sized portion too).

Anyhow, they will allow “special” bottles, esp. for special occasions. The chef doesn’t want people to use this as an excuse to run to Jewel to pick up a bottle of Chateau Ste. Michelle, but 1970 Petrus is a-ok.

As an aside, our table chatted with Michael for probably an hour. He’s an incredibly charming man who takes great pride in his cooking.