chicago chophouse

Chicago Chophouse overall score: 88

My wife and I came here for our second steakhouse meal of the night on our last night in Chicago. While this was steakhouse dinner number two for the day, it was number four for the trip. Four steakhouses in three nights is aggressive. But that’s what I do.

Flavor: 8

We had the pleasure of going on a little tour of the kitchen and upstairs floors in the restaurant before we ate. I even had a chance to see my steak before it was cooked. Dry-aged rib eye:

1500 degree broilers!

This is how it came out:

Nice crust:

It reminded me a bit of my last visit to Delmonico’s. I liked it, but it was slightly over-salted. However, I love that all of their steaks get finished in rendered wagyu beef fat.

Choice of Cuts & Quality Available: 10

You have a wide variety of steaks from both the dry-aged and wet-aged factions, as well as domestic wagyu and other selections. Below you can see some pics from their walk-in, showing wet-aged and dry-aged cuts.

Portion Size & Plating: 9

Portions here are pretty good, and there are multiple sizes of each cut on the menu available to suit your appetite. Plating is in the standard steakhouse style.

Price: 7

The dry aged rib eye was a bit pricey at $69. This is more than NYC pricing, but then again dry-aged steaks are more of a rare thing here in Chicago, I have learned. The pricing on the seafood platter was fair though.

Bar: 10

This ground floor level drinking den is gorgeous, and it reminded me of Keen’s. I would hang out here any day.

They mixed a nice negroni and old fashioned too.

They are even opening a speakeasy on the second floor. I saw some of the pre-construction and it looks like it’ll be awesome.

Specials and Other Meats: 8

There’s a healthy selection of alternative proteins here as well as some daily specials. I didn’t wade into that stuff on this visit though. I was streamlined for the rib eye.

Apps, Sides & Desserts: 8

We only tried the bacon and a dessert, since this was steakhouse dinner number two of the night. The bacon was thick cut Nueskes and glazed with maple syrup. So good.

How does one choose a dessert?

Go with the waiter’s suggestion: creme brûlée cheesecake. Very nice.

Seafood Selection: 8

My wife had a seafood platter for one. They ran out of oysters on the half, so they made up for it with that nice log king crab. This could have used one or two more items to round it out, but $25 is a nice price regardless.

Service: 10

Our waiter George was awesome. Super friendly, knowledgeable and attentive. The house even comped that bacon app for us, which I thought was very kind. The bread selection was nice and warm with spreadable butter too.

Ambiance: 10

I love this place. It’s set in an old townhouse that is rumored to be haunted, but the decor inside is in line with places like Keen’s, where it almost has an urban museum feel for the city of Chicago. When you come here, I definitely urge you to explore and check out everything on the walls.