VERY disappointed with my year long anticipation to dine at this restaurant.
First we were greeted by a hostess who seemed to find it painful to offer more than a gloomy half smile. She wasn't polite or welcoming, just escorted us to our table and left. After a while we finally received menus and our server introduced himself. I placed my order and was pretty surprised at his rude questioning of my order (the chicken dinner which he claimed was tasty but claimed that you shouldn't come to a place like cit'e to order chicken) He was pretty forward, brash and rude with his delivery and recommendation as well. I stuck to my order and he shrugged. As he served the food I realized I was not enjoying my experience as much as I' had hoped. The view was nice but I didn't feel welcomed or respected. Upon paying for the meal my waiter seemed surprised that I opted to pay (instead of my boyfriend) and commented that he "liked that." I felt very disrespected by his assumptions and mannerisms. Not something I'd expect from an upscale restaurant, more like a bar. I will not be returning, nor will I recommend this restaurant to anyone else. Sad. =(
I'm reviewing the bar and the view because the  only thing we have eaten here is dessert, and it was a FANTASTIC Chocolate Macchiatto and a Rolled log of Gianduja Chocolate Mousse powdered with salted caramel and foamed sweet milk and a scoop of espresso gelatto.  (Just writing it now is making me want to go back!)  The circular 360 degree view of Chicago is amazing if you take the time to walk around a little and enjoy it.  The shoreline is so beautiful and peaceful to look at from up there as well as the city.  They do ask that you wear proper attire, but we are fairly casual people, and nobody ever made us feel unwelcome or out of place.  If we had sat at a table, my feelings of ease might have changed.  Once the dinner crowd starts coming in, dress is Oscar worthy.  Pete, our bartender was a lot of fun to talk to while we tried a couple of overpriced drinks ($14 cranberry and vodka in relatively small glass).   The restaurant does NOT spin so pay no mind to your realtor of the tour guide on the double decker tour busses, but it might have felt like it, had we stayed too much longer!  :-)  We have been there several times in the last few months with friends, and just the two of us, to sit at the bar, and it has been friendly and comfortable each time.  We always go at off hours, late afternoon, or early evening before the dinner crowd.  The wait staff is so well dressed and they are all very good looking.  Go for the view, inside and out.  :-)
Review Source:worst dinning experience I have ever had. Number one this isn't fine dining at all! How the f%$^ does lobster bisque have a tomato base? wait it doesn't! FAIL!!!!! How do you fuck up a Tomato salad? Wait they did! Mushroom risotto drenched in truffle oil doesn't make it a good risotto! I sent everything I had back except for a shrimp dish that came with one shrimp! Yes this place is expensive but that's not where lies the problem. i don't mind spending top dollar for top food. This food is a f$%^ing joke! Â we ordered the wagyu steak why the f%$^ did they send it out with A1 on it like thats a specialty sauce they make.... YES A F%^&ing 1!! If you go here don't expect to be happy. i wish i would have read all these reviews before we went to this s#%t hole of a restaurant.
Review Source:Listen to the reviews!! I wished I would've before spending the amount of money I did here on dinner alone! If you want to come for the view, grabs apps and drinks at the bar only!
The only reason Cite gained 2 stars was because of the view and the ok service! (Although the only time we saw our actual server was 3 times, once to take our order, once to offer desserts, and once to drop the bill) Although it wasn't too busy, the service definitely did not feel personal. Â There were many bussers and runners however, all of whom were very polite and knowledgeable to make up for it.
Environment - It seemed like it would be a very classy and romantic location, twenty years ago.. Definitely needs a renovation. Â Everything appears outdated and cheesy which ruins the atmosphere. Â However the location and view makes the trip worth it, if enjoyed with cocktails from the bar. Â The clientele was mixed though. Â It wasn't too busy for a Thursday night, a few 'really' young couples (with the group on deal maybe), a few 'really' old couples, and a couple business men at the bar.
Food -  NOT WORTH IT.  This was the biggest disappointment of the night.  Lobster bisque is my favorite soup and one bite made me wishing I was enjoying it elsewhere. Nothing special about any of the food at all.  We didn't even care to finish it, much less take it home, despite the high cost.  When paying that much for dinner, at  least one of the courses should result in somewhat of a 'mouth-gasm.'  The duck, risotto, and bisque left us sadly disappointed and not even desiring dessert.
This city is filled with many other fine dining restaurants that are much more worth the trip!
As much as I love this place for great drinks and INCREDIBLE views, I have a hard time being their customer sometimes. Â : / Â They earn 5 stars with drinks and service (I've only ever been for drinks, so I can't comment on the food...but it looks amazing when the server walks by with the plates!); they earn 3 stars on "letting people know when you're closed for private events - or at least let the doorman downstairs know so people don't make the long trek all the way up to the 70th floor realize they have to find another place". Â Please note: although this is at the base of navy pier, it's definitely NOT a touristy spot. Â There is a strict dress code, and if you don't make the cut, the doorman will not even let you past the main lobby onto the elevator; also note that this is in a condo building....a very nice, well-established condo building. Â You are in someone's home. Â This is not a place to go to be loud or rude or inappropriate in any manner; this IS a place to go if you want an "under-the-radar" bar/restaurant that is truly unique.
Review Source:Our dining experience at Cite Chicago on February 16th was the worst fine dining experience we've had in the 10+ years living in Chicago. Every year for our wedding anniversary we try to go to a different fine dining restaurant and we regret that we chose Cite Chicago. When we first entered the restaurant we weren't even greeted. The hostesses all had poor attitudes. When I gave my name and asked if any of them had read the notes that I wrote in the online reservation I was told by one of the hostesses "no, we're busy, we don't have time to read customers online reservations". We were moved 4 times, it was extremely hot in the restaurant (so hot I had no desire to drink my bourbon based drink), and water service was slow.
For our anniversary dinners, the wife and I have dined at Fogo de Chao (twice), Riva Navy Pier, Wildfire, Spiaggia, N9NE Steakhouse, Joe's Seafood, Prime Steak & Stone Crab. All which were great for fine dinning. Cite Chicago was not. I don't think we'll ever be back or recommend this place to anyone. If someone's looking for a fine dinning restaurant with a magnificent view go to the Signature Room.
Honestly, I was skeptical about going because of the mediocre reviews on Yelp.  However, when a Groupon was offered I went.  It was amazing.  EXCELLENT service  But above all, had the greatest scallops I've ever had.  Extremely tender and delicious.  Not to mention the view was excellent.  The restaurant is seated at the top of Lake Point Tower across the street from Navy Pier.  The restaurant is encircled by windows.  Definitely worth it!!! Very happy the visit changed my views.
Review Source:Went to CITE for this valentines day, had the special menu, 5 courses for $150.
We got there...only parking available costs $26. there wasnt a door man, so a few of us were kinda lost. looking for the TWO different elevators. We got to the 40-something floor and was offered a coat check, passed. then when we arrived at the 70th, my girl was greated with a long stem rose that was probably beautiful...3months ago.
I knew coming here wasnt going to be cheap, but i have no problem paying for great food OR service.
our well dressed server greated us quickly, asked if wed like drinks, gave us a wine list. offered no water, no additional info or anything. i dont drink wine so i asked for their whiskey list or something. they didnt have a list so he brought me a whiskey he thought was good.
DRINKS were good. My girl had passionfruit mojito that was very delicious. my whiskey neat was MAYBE almost a full shotglass worth
1st Course was a choice of scallops or something. i had the scallop...food came out eventually....with no napkins. scallop was on POINT. delicious. but was ONE scallop for me and about 3 tablespoons of soup for her.
2nd corse was salad or lobster bisque, both which were very good.
3rd corse was a pallet cleansing mango sorbet which was awesome.
4th was main entre which my server recommended  the filet, my girl ordered the Lobster Tail. Hers was fantastic, my steak was over cooked when ordered medium rare. was more medium well. side was some kind of uneventful potato. meh.
apparently they forgot to clear the sorbet dishes and after we finished our main course, there was about 25mins of waiting before the server came back. there was confusion, he thought that since the sorbet dishes were still on the table and that the main course dishes were gone, that we were waiting on the main course. well after 25mins he checks with us and apologizes and says the steak and lobster will be out quickly. we clarify that we were waiting on dessert and he got short and frustrated with us.
dessert was great tho creme brûlée and some sort of chocolate espresso cake (not tarimisu). after dessert, we waited another 15mins for the server to come back. asked for the bill and felt rushed to pay since he came back all the sudden after 3mins asking if he could take the bill.
anyway total was $360...for 2 of us....for dinner and 2 drinks.ive had better food and service at Wildfire...i was terribly disappointed because i was looking forward to coming here for a long time.
view was nice tho.
Went here this past Saturday for my 3 year Anniversary. Wanted something nice/ special. And boy was I wrong.
This place is definitely a once a year kind of place, unless you can afford it on the regular. I personally think it's not worth the money. You really just pay for the view and the view is great ONLY if you're sitting at a window. Otherwise you can't see much scenery. Especially at night.
Not really happy about my time here though. The portions were really really small. The service wasn't too bad though (the servers who helped our waiter that is). As far as our waiter goes (waiters name is Mike G. - 3025). He prejudged my girlfriend and I, because I presented our GROUPON deal. Started to change how he serviced us. On top of that, once we got our bill I was charged 20% gratuity, which states for parties 5-6 or more! Just thought that it was really UNNECESSARY for our waiter to think I wasn't going to tip him well and that he had to add that 20% gratuity to my bill. Which was a $44.40 tip! Which is pretty much our Groupon savings. I was a waiter once and I do respect them and know how to tip, but don't prejudge people! That's an automatic NO NO in my book! I love GROUPON, but some of these places they work with are not always the best ones.
My bf & I decided to try this out for a romantic date night and the reviews were right. Although they say the view is first come first serve they choose to seat you in the back first unless you say something. There was a couple that made a comment and was upset all they could see was the roof. At least we got some kind of view. The upside was our very nice waiter. Â
Food was okay - ordered Filet mignon, yellowfin tuna, lobster Mac & cheese
& spinach. Fort the price and portion, I'd rather go to Gibson's.
It's good to try ones but there are other places with great food and view.
Dined at Cite tonight using a Groupon. Â The restaurant is on the 70th floor of Lake Point Tower. Â The elevator is damn fast! Â Got to the 68th fl within seconds! Â The views are amazing.
First course was the Petite Steak Diane - the steak was prepared nicely, tender enough and the sauce was good - could have used a bit more seasoning. Â Second course - I was waffling between the French Onion Soup and the Lobster Bisque. Â The waiter highly recommended the FOS so I went with that. Â It was good but certainly not the best I ever had. Â The waiter sensed my disappointment and brought me a sample of the Bisque which was delicious. Â Next time I will go with my first mind. Â The sorbet is a nice palate-cleansing-treat. Â
Third course - seaed duck breast with a roasted (I think) duck leg, fennel salad, grilled pears and au gratin potatoes w/ truffle oil. Â The duck was wonderful! Â Loved the salad and the pears were a fantastic accompaniment! Â The potatoes were absolutely wonderful! Â I couldn't eat more than a few bites. Â The waiter, still trying to redeem himself apparently, told me to get too full because dessert was on him. Â
The dessert menu was basic - but basically excellent! Â I thought about the Meyer Lemon Tart because I love lemon anything. Â But the creme brulee seemed simple and appealing. Â There was also a Chocolate Macchiato that caught my eye. Â The waiter brought out the creme brulee and returned a short while later with the Macchiato! Â Glad I only took a couple of bites of the delicious creme brulee because I took the Macchiato down! Â It was awesome!!!
All in all a really good experience; incomparable service, glad I went and I will be going back!
Took my mother from Texas here for a nice view of the city and a good meal. Unfortunately, the view was the only remarkable part of our visit.
Our server (Brian S - 3009) was very unobservant. My boyfriend ran out of water and for ten minutes we were waiting to flag down the staff for a refill. Later during the evening, we had just ordered some more wine and I accidentally spilled some on my mother. Apparently this is a DIY restaurant. Although I was the one to spill the wine on my mothers silk shirt, I never expected that I would be the only one trying to help clean it up. For $75 plus a person, I expect a better sense of customer appreciation.
All in all the meal was okay, but the lack of customer service and attentiveness was abysmal. Why bother going to a 'fancy rooftop' restaurant if I can get better service on the ground?
If you are new to Chicago or visiting Chicago, this is a great place to experience the Chicago city skyline. The view is absolutely unreal. I highly recommend requesting a "city view". If you don't do this you may get stuck overlooking the lake (which is still pretty cool). Parking is trough, I would take a cab if possible. This is a place where you absolutely pay for the view. Food is incredible but without the view I would say it's over priced (good thing it has the view!!)
Review Source:Wow!!!
Besides the fact that they decided to sit me above the buildings heating and cooling units thus blocking my view, I must say that the scenery at this place is awesome. With that out of the way lets talk about the food.
This is your typical fancy smancy Chicago restaurant. I went here on a groupon by myself, so I could splurge. I had the escargot which was good. Its the first time I had it with puff pastry on top. Then I had the Caesar salad, which the chef was a little skimpy on the dressing, but whatever. For the entree I had the rib-eye steak. It had to be the the worst steak I've ever eaten. It just tasted old, when I bit into it, it made my very being, my very soul hurt. I could tell that whatever cow it came from suffered a horrible death. A lot of my friends told me I should've sent it back but having worked some years in the food service industry, I know better. The waiter asked me how it was and I just looked at him, but I'm sure he could see the pain in my face. I've eaten cheap, marked down, about to expire steaks from Dominick's that have tasted better. Anyways, enough of that.
Nice view, good place for a date, maitre d was a a little weird, nasty food for the price. I won't be returning.
Went here as a date night with my girlfriend. Place is on top of a building near the Navy Pier. Very nice place with a GREAT view; need to dress up nicely for this place.
Food was good, Onion Soup was the best dish I had there, very cheesy (way I like it on the onion soup) and delicious.
The waiter (who was very friendly and helpful) brought us a small sample of food, "compliments from the chef" to us. One was a shrimp on top of a zucchini. That was good; the other was a scoop of apple flavored ice cream; that was delicious.
I had a skirt steak (cooked medium)... juicy, not too flavory, it was o.k. The mashed potatoes was o.k, maybe needed a little more butter, but that's just me :-P. No beer :-( but their Grapefruit gin martini was strong but GOOD.
It is very pricey, lucky my gf got a groupon deal, but if you have the money, try it out. Not a bad place for a romantic date but be prepare to pay a lot.
You come here for great views and romantic atmosphere. Â It's so high up that with a little bit of distance perspective, the top of the sears tower seems almost eye level.
Anything else on top is just gravy. Â The food actually isn't bad. Â The duck was tender and juicy and the risotto was light so you could taste all the seafood. Â Decor isn't modern or unique, but it has an old school Chicago-style to it. Â Service was just right - there when you needed it and chatty if you wanted it.
It's smart of them to offer a Groupon, because you'd never find it (no flashy or exterior signage, located in a residential tower, meh yelp reviews), and it's really only worth it with the Groupon.
It was by far one of the best restaurants I've ever been to. Â The customer service is superb. Â I took my wife there for her birthday, and there was no doubt that she was pleased. Â The food is terrific, I ordered the steak and my wife the pork chop, the food was so delicious and authentic. Â The view and ambiance is great, they give so complimentary samples, your are stuffed before you receive the main entree. Â I would recommend this place to anybody. Â Hands down best New York strip steak I've ever eaten. Â Very elegant, very romantic, it is truly fine dinning.
Review Source:Great place for a couple or family to celebrate a special occasion. Â One of the few restaurants that's 70 stories or higher in the city, providing incredible views of Chicago.
I enjoyed dinner with two friends, and we thoroughly dined. Â Our choices are below:
First Course: Tuna Salmon Tartare, Truffle Risotto, Parisian Gnocchi
Main Course: Filet Mignon, Diver Scallops, Duo of Lamb
Dessert: Creme Brulee
The meal was decadent, the service was impeccable. Â Add it to your list.
You should have an idea of the menu prices simply because of the location on LSD. Â High prices but definitely a better deal than The Signature Room @ the Hancock.
Best tip: Go early for the best service and the best seating as the host took us to the best view in the restaurant without us even asking. Â He even took our coats to coat check.
Food was very good. Â The risotto was skimpy but delicious - even the salad was delicately flavored but just right.
The main courses were plentiful as we ordered the pork chop and the salmon. Â All the complimentds from the quiche to the sorvet and the finale with the gelato dessert were great. Â The view was awesome and the price was just right for that type of atmosphere. Â Highly recommended.
We were a couple minutes late as we had made a reservation but the hostess seated us very quickly and we noticed that it wasn't crowded at all. Â The waiter was very nice, they brought complimentary tortilla soup which a little different but tasty. Â
The main waiter (idk his name) was a bit pushy and seemed annoyed (idk if that was because he saw we were a young couple or because I ordered a glass of wine instead of a bottle). Â We finally ordered the crab souffle which was good, nothing special. Â We also ordered the crab mac n cheese and it had a weird aftertaste so we only ate half of it. Â My boyfriend and I ordered the filet mignon and that was done very well. Dessert was very good as well.
The overall experience was OK.
5-View (Sunset and panoramic view was exceptional)
3-Food ( We liked our main course but the others were just OK)
3- Service (one of the waiters and the hostess were very nice, the main waiter made us uncomfortable).
We probably won't be back again and that's unfortunate but the view might make us reconsider in the future.
Absolutely wonderful food, presentation and service.
The sauces were light and flavorful. Veal,Sea Bass done to perfection. Lobster bisque with generous pieces of lobster yet gentle broth which did not hide the balance of either texture or taste. The prix fixe menu is a steal.
I highly recommend  this restaurant with or without the enchanting view.
Before I get started on reviewing, let me first say that I look at dozens of restaurants in downtown Chicago to have dinner at. I had looked at MANY reviews for Cite and saw some very good review and some not so good. I decided I was going to take a chance and give Cite a try... My girlfriend and I went on a saturday night for a 9:00pm reservation. We live out in the suburbs and was spending the weekend in the city, so this was a special weekend splurge.
First off, yes this place can be very expensive. For a once in a while thing, I did not mind blowing a bit for a real nice experience. The view was absolutely amazing! I would return just for the view alone. However, my dining experience warrants a return based on that too!
I read many reviews and decided to ask for Simon as my server. Sure glad I did!... He was awesome! He was very upfront and honest, which is nice to see. He acknowledged that I did my reviews and took a chance, so he wanted to thank me and my girlfriend for doing so by giving us each a glass of champagne on the house. Very nice. Also, when I placed my reservation, I requested a window seat by Navy Pier so that we could see the fireworks from the best seat. Not only did we get Simon as our server, but we had the best fireworks seat in the house. Everyone else in the restaurant had to come over by our table to get a good view of the fireworks.
My girlfriend ordered the filet cooked medium with the potatoes au gratin. I tried it... delicious. I ordered the strip cooked medium with the crab mac n cheese. We also split the asparagus. My meal was cooked perfectly and tasted spectacular.
Right around 10:15 came the fireworks. Like I said... we had amazing seats. Since we were watching the fireworks and weren't eating at the time during the fireworks, our food had gotten chilly. Simon went out of his way to bring ALL of our food back to the kitchen to replate it and heat it back up in the oven. The food we barely touched he even gave us new portions for. THAT was spectacular service.
For dessert we split the creme brûlée. WOW was that tasty. Definitely save room for that. Overall, I feel Simon was very helpful and knowledgeable. He certainly made our dining experience perfect (and even gave us a coupon for next time). I would definitely return on another trip to the city.
**Side note-- I read a lot of reviews about people complaining about the interior decorations. Yes, there are mirrors on the wall and might be perceived as "old" or "stuck in the 80's". However, having mirrors on the wall is a brilliant idea. For a view that is as breath taking as this place has, you want to reflect that image around the dining room for all to see. Me personally, I was facing Navy Pier, with my back to the skyline. All I had to do was glance over in the mirrors and see the beautiful skyline at night. Perfect Idea!
***Another side note-- I do not typically write reviews. I signed up on Yelp JUST to write a review about this place. I liked it THAT much. Simon definitely is doing a great just to turn this place around for the better. Keep up the good work Simon.
-- Kyle
It was our 12th wedding anniversary weekend.... I had no clue where dinner was ...my hubby was surprising....I Â me was very pleased and excited to eat at Cite!!
We had the pleasure of having Simon as our waiter!!! He was AWESOME!!! Very warm , knowledgeable and patient ... Because I had a ton of questions. He brought us 2 glasses Champagne on  house for our celebration. The chef sent us two Chile Bisque ... very good and appreciated.
I loved the dining experience here from the cloth table cloths to the table near the Navy Pier Ferris Wheel ... Which over looks a rooftop but was fabulous spot for the Saturday fireworks!! Â All seats in the restaurant are great sit back and enjoy a grand meal!!!
Hubby and I both had the New York Strip well done .. this was a request that was easily granted. Â Simon was very good at answering my menu questions a checked on us often. My side was the Truffle Potato Gratin ... It was very good and a portion size that two can easily share .... If so desired. My hubby had the Pork Fat Frites { fancy word for French fries @ the Cite} lol lol !!! They also were very good!!! The steak was so good ... We were commenting to each other at how easy it was to cut with the knife that was not very serrated { tender meat}!!! Â The food was cooked very well!!!!
Dessert was another story all together .... Chocolate Macchiato was so good!!! Hubby ate most of the Gianduja Chocolate Mousse with Salted Carmel while I enjoyed the Espresso Gelato { I am coffee lover}!
I loved how the areas could easily be sectioned off for a small private party { thinking about my 15th anniversary! } ... Hey don't judge my early planning!! Lol lol
I can't wait to visit Cite again and sit near the bar, view is fab!!! It was such a memorable night and I will be asking for Simon if I were you when making reservations !!
Pricey but so worth it to me !! Food was great ! We will visit again and soon !! Maybe this time I can one up my hubby for Sweetest Day in October!!!! Lol lol
Enjoy!!!
P S.... Take a cab or get there very early parking in the garage was full that night and there was no way of knowing till you at sitting in the position to enter the doors !!! Â I was so glad that this was not a turn off of the restaurant ... Because the food Soooooo made up for that perplexing incident with the parking!!! :-D
Cite is an awkward place to review. Most reviews are tainted because of their shock at the price. If you go here you need to know that is expensive, PERIOD.
Took a small group here because they wanted a higher end restaurant with a view of the city. Enter Cite.
Cite offers one of the best restaurant views you will find in the city. It's 360 degrees of skyline and lakefront. At night the setting provides an intimate backdrop to a nice evening.
Our table tried a little of everything. We had Foie Gras, Lobster Mac'n'Cheese, Steak, and Chicken. All of the food was delicious and brought in a timely manner. The Mac'n"Cheese in particular was delicious.
Now for the negatives. The restaurant itself does feel a little dated... it sort of has a Scarface mansion feel to it that was hard to shake. The view, while amazing, could prove mediocre if you didn't reserve a table next to the window.
The last negative is the price. Don't go here if you are pinching pennies. Don't buy a Groupon and complain that it was still expensive. Don't run up a large bar tab and complain how overpriced the drinks are. It is an expensive establishment and while there are definitely cheaper places that doesn't diminish that Cite is a nice restaurant.
Go to Cite knowing you will spend a lot and enjoy yourself. The food is very good and the views are amazing.
I guess I had a different experience than some of the more recent reviewers...
First off, our waiter Brain and the manager Simon were great. Very nice and very accommodating.
The food was great. we tried the escargot, amazing! The sauce is just as good as the snails! My fiance tried the Fruit De Mer Risotto, tasty dish, she liked it a lot. I personally liked my meal more, the Duo of Lamb. I highly recommend dipping the meat in the yogurt each time for a perfect treat. And for dessert, we shared the Banana Fosters - wow! It is prepared in front of you with a huge flame to top off the presentation and then you get to taste the deliciousness.
The wine that Brian and Simon recommended (Meiomi, Pinot Noir, 2010) was absolutely delicious. Wish I had a bottle to take home!
The prices - this place is not for everyone. Know what you're getting yourself into and the prices should not come as shock. But if you are leaving Navy Pier and decide to just try this place out without knowing much about it, you may leave unhappy because you didn't want to spend that much. But if you know what to expect, you'll be less surprised and most likely very happy you came here. For a beautiful night on the town, this place provides a great view and a very romantic feel.
Definitely recommend this place. Great people working there, great food, great view.
It's crazy how spot on some of these reviews are. Â As I was reading Nikki D's review, I laughed to myself:)! This place was stuck in the 80's, just as she said! Â And, as we rode the elevator up, I asked a man who lived on the 54th floor if he had ever eaten at Cite, and he said "NO!" Â Huh? Â You lived in this building for how long and never went up for a drink or dinner? Â But once you get up there and see the place, and the prices, you understand why. Â The view is nice, but we were sat by a table overlooking a rooftop that was dilapidated. Â
I had the Lobster Bisque. it was $15 and it was very bland. Â Here is the presentation: 1st, they bring out a HUGE, empty bowl and place it in front of you. Â 2nd they drop in a "PEA" size piece of crab (no joke/why bother), a dinky little biscuit, Â and proceed to pour the soup into the HUGE bowl with the crab and biscuit. Â The little amount of soup looks TOO small for this HUGE bowl, and the taste is average. Â I wouldn't say it was bad; I would say average. Â
NOTE: Soprano's (on Sheffield @ George) has the best Lobster Bisque I have tasted. Â It's super rich, with big chunks of Lobster, and about half the price! Â
For my drink I had the "GIGI," which was a $13 mixed Vodka/St Germain specialty. Â It wasn't bad, but I would NEVER pay that much for it anywhere else.
Entrees... Â Well, I had the Diver Scallops (braised belgium endive, citrus-$34.00) and they were good, tender with a nice sauce on top. Â Jen had the Berkshire Pork Chop (roasted apple, mustard apple cider jus-$32.00) and that was good as well. Â "A little dry" was her only complaint, but I thought it was good. These dishes were both pricey, so I would expect nothing less.
Overall, I would give the dining experience  a "C," and I would never go back.  When I asked to move to a table with a better view than the roof, the hostess came over and said that "the other views had a roof in the way too."  Whatever, "we will just stay here then," I said.  No desert, we had enough with the $120 bill we just paid!
It's unbelievable how much I did not enjoy this restaurant.
First off the decor is terrible. Rotting old carpet and drab browns, the entire place has the feel of 70-80's.
The cocktail menu - $16-25 for a drink and they are nothing more than alcohol and a mixer in a glass nothing elaborate or artfully presented.
The food - was again very over priced and although it didn't taste bad it wasn't anything special. They have little sliced of bread, not fresh either, that are served to you off a small platter. There are three different loaves. Don't bother asking for each they'll just roll their eyes at you.
The view was great but at 70 floors up how could it not be. So if you have lots of money and just want to impress someone I'd go here. I couldn't imagine ever going back to this restaurant.
I have to start off by saying I kinda feel bad for this place. It really has potential, I would remake the place to be a speakeasy in the sky. The views are great. The food, not so much. The decor, even worse. I was here 20 yrs ago, and it appears to remain the same.
If I was the owner, I would invest in a remodel. Make the kitchen smaller, add more tables, remove the mirrored walls, take out the neon lighting at the windows and remove the marble from the floor to ceiling in the bathroom. This place is so stuck in the 80's it hurts, and I loved the 80's!!! Â
We were welcomed into the building by paying $24 for parking. Come on, the owner of the place hasnt worked out a deal for cheaper parking??? If you're overcharging for food, maybe you should cover some of the parking expense. I'm just saying.
While in the elevator, that leads to a small elevator (that is falling apart and fixed with duct tape), we talked to a women that lives in the bldg, she said she wouldn't be caught dead there. If the residents say that, how will you get repeat business? Image is everything and this place needs a PR makeover.
The food...the steak diane was awful, the sauce tasted like it was out of a jar and was not correct at all. No sardine, no garlic, no taste. Our filet came out well done when it was ordered rare. Our side dish didnt appear till after we were already eating. The best part was the ginger sorbet. I should have had that for an entree.
It wasn't like the place was busy, the service was inadequate and the food overpriced. The chef appears to not care about what he serves and all I could do was hope that Chef Ramsey would appear to tell me to come back for the makeover. Oh the money this place is missing out on!!!
This place was better that what I thought it would be!
I heard mild/mixed reviews from a few people about the food so I was a little skeptical. When I saw what the view looked like, I had to make the trip high up.
Me & my lady put on our semi-formal garments since I heard jeans and polos are sort of frowned upon..lol
The place was definitely nice as we were treated like royalty in taking the elevator way up to the top of the building. Once we got off, we were welcomed by a doorman. Once inside, I saw the view and new this place would be awesome! Even though I am a Chicagoan, I still get excited about different views of the city and this one was dope!
Once we were seated our server started us out with a couple of martinis (I always go with the French)...he made my girl a special martini and named it after her.
He asked if we wanted appetizers and we figured we would go straight for the entree. I was in a steak state of mind and the waiter told me that the New York Strip (medium rare) was the best route to go....boy was he right! Seasoned to perfection and very tender. I broke that piece of meat off something proper-like! As a side I got the glazed asparagus which was delicious. Before I came here I read my buddy Nick M's review and he said the creme brûlée(my favorite dessert) was great here. I usually don't like to tell him when he is right, but this was a helluva creme brûlée! Not sure if it was the best I ever had, but its near the top.
Cite is an awesome place! Great food, good service and a kick ass view...sounds like a winner to me!
Decided to try this place because of a Groupon deal, but it was a terrible experience. Probably never going to come back - I'd definitely recommend the Signature Room at John Hancock over this place.
Problem #1:
We ordered the special of the day - a wagyu steak that the waiter said was the best out of everything on the menu. When it came, the meat was so tough that it was impossible to cut through with a knife. We complained and the waiter didn't even give us a sincere apology. He then offered to exchange the dish for a filet mignon instead. The filet was much better, but it wasn't great.
Problem #2:
When the bill came, thank goodness we checked the receipt before mindlessly handing our credit card over. The waiter charged us for BOTH the Wagyu beef ($68) AND the filet (~$48). We pointed that out to the waiter, and again without an apology, he went to adjust the bill. Not a smart move, because if he actually wanted us to come back, then he should take both entrees off the bill - Fleming's would do that. If not, then give us at least a sincere apology.
Problem #3:
Our waiter came back 5 minutes later with the adjusted bill and when we checked it again, we found that he didn't adjust the 20% tip after taking off the $68 for the Wagyu beef, earning himself an extra $14 for gratuity. We didn't know if he did that purposefully or if his math is really just horrendous. We had to wait for him to come back to our table, about 10 minutes later, and explain the miscalculations. He looked at us and said, "The 20% gratuity is calculated from the original total." Yes, obviously we knew that, but 20% of the bill WITH the Wagyu beef and WITHOUT the Wagyu beef should not be the same! He took another 5 minutes to adjust the bill and it FINALLY it came out right.
The experience was just terrible. Service was slow, the meal was mediocre, and is definitely not worth the amount we paid even after the Groupon. We paid a total of about $300 after the Groupon for 5 people without wine. They really should either upgrade the food or change its waiting staff.
Three of us dined at Cite on 05/04/2012. Â It was a foggy day and not much to see out the window, which is the one of the only reasons to visit this restaurant. Â After reading several negative reviews on Yelp I was apprehensive about dining here, but I happened to have a Groupon, which made my visit worthwhile. Â
To begin, I do not have anything negative to say about the service.  Everyone we dealt with here was very attentive, but I do want to note, we were only one of about eight tables in the restaurant, strange for a Friday night.  The French onion soup was very good and the complimentary amuse-bouche of a cold cucumber soup was a nice touch.  However, the problem came when our entrées arrived. Â
They really fell short for me here. Â I had the duck a l'orange, which I had asked for medium rare and came back to me almost completely well done, lacking in flavor and the texture on the top was a bit slimy rather than a good crispy crust that one craves from a well cooked duck breast. Â Another person in our party had the filet. Â On sight it looked appetizing, and was cooked well, but it was clear they were not using a quality meat because the beefiness and flavor were missing. Â This is disappointing given that Chicago it known for its steaks. In addition for the price they are charging they would not have any problem getting a good cut of meat to the customer and turning a profit. Â
I was very grateful for our side of pork fat fries, which were yummy, and the dissipating clouds to make up for the disappointing meal. Â The summation of our experience it that the menu here is extremely pricey for what it is. Â It has the look and feel of a fine dining establishment, and you can't beat the view, but the food is really subpar. You are truly only paying a couple hundred dollars to look out the window here.
I don't know what the deal is but my experience was nothing short of spectacular. That's with a capital S, which also starts off the spelling of our super server's name, Simon. The view is stunning , the food was superb, and the decor is... zany?? Sounds like it starts with an "S", right?! I'll admit I wasn't expecting to be blown away but I'm always happy to be proven wrong with such a experience.
It does feel a little bit like a Mad Men episode. The door is opened by a doorman, you take a private elevator to the restaurant and hostess ladies in very short and tight skirts walk you to your table. I have a sneaky suspicion that part of their job is to walk around from time to time. Sure they look busy but every guy's (and a few women) head turned to catch a glance, maybe adding to the ambiance. The decor even matches that era. I guess I'm confused as to what is considered high-end or classy decor these days. But really, you're not looking at the decor anyways. You're looking at the beautiful 360 degree view of our skyline and Lake Michigan. It's awesome. Add a setting sun, even better.
Now let's talk about Simon our server. Probably one of the most attentive, charming, relatable waiters I've ever had. He gave spot-on recommendations and plainly was an overall joy to speak with. He knows the food, he knows the wine, he was very hard to say no to, and I'm glad I didn't.
So I don't want to get into all this stuff about how I know food, study it even, and that I cook almost everyday, or that I'm extremely picky and will spot out the slightest imperfection in how something is cooked or seasoned, or even the freshness. I'm just going to say Bravo, Bravo Cite! When you see prices like these you have a certain expectation when it comes to creativeness, freshness, and most importantly flavor. Cite meets that and excels past it. This is not one of those gastro yatta yatta, with things that taste like other things and foam of whatever, this is high-end dining. Regular ingredients cooked and seasoned like top chefs would. I think I swore a lot at my food. I won't say anymore then that nor do I think I have to.
Also, for the record, I don't care for desserts so much (give me a nice cocktail for the evening). Cite has hands down BEST Creme Brulee I've ever eaten. It's, It's, mind numbingly good.
The food was cold, uninventive, and just disappointing overall. The service matched. It's not that they didn't try or someone made us mad - its just not worth the money. For the same money you can get better everything at Signature Room if you are going to Cite just for the view or ambience. In fact I don't know why you would go to Cite (even if you have a Groupon, just count it at a load because you will still spend another $100 you wish you had spent somewhere else.
I just feel bad for Cite. They are like the unwanted step child of Signature Room in every way.
Cite (Si-TAY), you are in need of an intervention.
The first sign that we were in trouble? Â A picture of the owner Evangeline Gouletas, dressed in white, lounging on a chaise/chair near the bar. Â Maybe it's just me, but it seems odd. . . and vain.
So, how do you go from 5 stars to 1?
- 3 for terrible food
- 3 for paying a premium price for terrible food.
- Â 1 Â inattentive wait-staff service (not bussers)
-.5 for awful decor
+ 8.5 for the view (I think - it was foggy)
The details...
Visited on a Thursday night for dinner with 3-friends. Â Yes, the Yelp reviews are all over the place. Yes, parking is a pain which is to be expected given the location. Â And yes, the decor is a little1980's Miami beach with an odd picture of the owner dressed in all white by the bar, but I wasn't deterred (hindsight is 20/20).
(-) Â Bread Service . . . . complimentary. Â The presentation is nice until you taste the very average and ordinary bread and realize the meticulously groomed butter in the fancy little tureen is cold, hard, plain, nothing special butter. Â How hard is it to make a flavored butter? Â With the lame bread choices I think a honey butter would be a small effort and huge improvement.
(-) Colores del Sol Malbec . . . $13/glass. Â At a store you'll pay $8 for a bottle. Â Seemed over priced. Â My friend ordered a Stella Artois for $8, that's about right.
(-)  Scallops with avocado purée. . . . complimentary.  Yes, everyone gets this.  It's not something special from the chef just for you.  It's a slimey, tiny scallop with a side of guacamole.
(+/-) Escargot . . . Â .. . . . . . Â . $14. Â This was so-so. Â Very heavy garlic and a lot of butter/oil. Â The pastry on the top was odd, didn't complement the dish and made it annoying to eat. Â No real complaint, with a little tweaks this would be good.
(-)  Sorbet  . . .  . . . complimentary.  No clue what type of sorbet it was.  The waiter didn't tell us and I couldn't identify the flavor.
(-) Prime Ribeye . . . . . . . . Â $46. Â Size? Â Who knows. The menu is completely uninformative in the steak section. Â What I know is this was not a characteristic ribeye. Â It was dry, tough, dull and flavorless. I ordered it medium rare, it came out medium. Â Apparently Cite thinks otherwise because I was only given a butter knife to cut it. Â This was far too tough of a steak to cut with a butter knife. Â I'm no cook and I've tasted better in my kitchen with a steak from Dominik's. Â In Chicago there's a plethora of amazing places to feed your inner carnivore, it's a crime to waste your time on Cite.
So, you're probably wondering why I stayed for dessert. Â No, I'm no a glutton for punishment. Â I had no choice, my friends had ordered a prix fixe menu that included dessert.
(+) Creme Brulee . . . . . . . . $9. Â Probably my favorite thing of the night (expectations were extremely low)
Service? Â Our sever was completely off. Â Couldn't remember the menu or our order, forgot things, never checked back after courses were delivered. Â Normally if a server is attentive I'll have 2-3 glasses of wine. Â Finished my one and only glass of wine during the appetizer and was never offered another. Our food was luke-warm. He forgot to credit the Groupon and didn't ask why food was unfinished at our table. Â
By the end of this "experience" I was ready to run, not walk out of this place as something I ate was beginning to make me feel ill. Â In another review I saw advice about bringing antacids if you're brave enough to try this place, I'd have to agree. Â
The General Manager Sami Mikhail has a quote on their website: "Give your guests excellent food and service and they will remember. Give them a memorable experience and they will never forget...!" Â - - Cite has a long way and a lot of work to live up to this statement. Â Without the view, no doubt this place would be out of business.
Restaurant week and the view brought me to Cite. Â Not sure if anything could ever bring me back.
The view is amazing, but the food is overpriced.
Go here and enjoy a drink or two in their lounge and take in the wonderful and unique view of the Chicago Skyline. Â
As far as the meal, it was a very drug out experience with good food that had nice flavors, but nothing that was amazing. Â Expect to spend a lot of money on your meal. This is fine dine with respect to how much you'll spend, but in all honestly I think you can find just as good food at much more modestly prices elsewhere in the city.
I'll return, but just for drinks at the bar.
I've waited a while to post this review, but the time has come. I had my wedding dinner at Cite on October 1st. Before I go on, I must say that I did not book the restaurant based on their reputation for stellar food, instead, I was looking for a quiet, chic setting with a great view of the city. I considered the Signature Room as well, but since that's where we have celebrated other occasions (mainly birthdays), I wanted to try something different. I made a terrible, terrible error in judgement in booking Cite.
First of all, there were only 11 guests at my dinner, including me and my husband. We only invited our immediate families to make things more intimate. I communicated with Susie, the catering manager, for a few weeks prior to the wedding and she informed me that we would have a dedicated server and a view of the fireworks at 9 (part of the reason I booked them in the first place). Well, we had a partial view of the fireworks, but since the entire restaurant got up from their tables and came to crowd around our area during the show, we really didn't get to enjoy it. I'll break down our evening:
We were seated at 7:30 and received no food until 9:00pm, despite having ordered appetizers and entrees simultaneously.
Our waiter was so absent that my brother had to get up to refill our wine glasses.
My niece spilled some juice on the table and the waiter didn't even bother to look twice at it.
The food wasn't just average, it was inedible, cold and undercooked. We barely touched it. How can you mess up roasted chicken? My sister-in-law's halibut was completely cold in the middle and hadn't been cooked all the way through.
It took until 10:00pm for us to receive our entrees in the first place. Yes, that's right, a full hour after we were served appetizers. At about 9:30, I walked over to the manager to express my concerns over how our dinner was playing out. He was initially condescending telling me that I was getting too "heated" (actually, I was very calm given the circumstances) and he even offered me a glass of ice water so that I could "cool off." Might I remind you that this was my WEDDING. Eventually, he apologized and told me that our food was on the way out.
We had planned an after party at 10:00 that we were forced to cancel because we couldn't imagine making it there before 11:30 and didn't want to make everyone wait forever. In hindsight, we should have just walked out mid-meal.
By the end of the night, my niece had fallen asleep at the table, everyone was in a bad mood, and we didn't even get a chance to cut our cake because it had gotten so late.
The manager came and dropped off the check, telling me that he took a clean 30% off the top, at which point my husband talked to him and we ended up with a total of 50% off the bill. Great.
The next day, I e-mailed Susie to tell her what happened, she apologized and offered me a comped dinner and said that the waiter was fired. I declined the dinner and instead asked for a full refund of our bill, which, after 3 weeks and 3 follow-ups, she finally declined and offered us a comped dinner. She didn't e-mail me back until nearly a month after our wedding. While I do appreciate the initial discount, the final dollar amount was WAY to much to pay for food we didn't eat. Obviously, we won't be taking her up on her offer of comped dinner.
I'm taking some responsibility for this because I most certainly should have known better, however, it wouldn't have taken much too make me happy, just edible food, good service and a killer view was all I needed. Instead, our wedding dinner was a nightmare. Luckily, thanks to my brothers, we did get to go out afterward to Fireside Lounge in Andersonville where we all ordered food because we were famished. Unfortunately, none of our friends were able to celebrate our wedding with us. At least we have a good story now.
Learn from my mistakes. Don't eat here... or if you do, lower your expectations significantly.
Really bad decor/atmosphere for Chicago, an insult to the view!
I don't know why they cannot get the food right.  The salad is like something out of a bag from Dominick's.  For  a restaurant in this location, it should be packed and it is dead empty.  Such a shame.  I hope management reads the reviews and makes some broad-scale changes.  Start from scratch, think fresh, new and high quality.
I loved this place. Â I loved the entire experience. Â I loved the view (despite fogginess) and service.
Having purchased a Groupon from Cite a while ago, I had always put off using it until this past December. Â With a visiting friend, we ventured up to the 70th floor; I wasn't expecting much, except to experience the world of extreme classiness, given the low Yelp reviews. Â However, I was pleasantly surprised, perhaps because of the recent change in chef.
Our waiter was extremely attentive and explained the dishes very well. Â Because we only had an hour and half, he hurried the dishes for us. Â He even split the seafood risotto for us into two plates without charging any extra money.
The food was special.  The lobster gnocchi in brown butter sauce was rich and delightful.  The roasted beet salad was just so good: perfect ingredients put together.  Of course, the seafood risotto was deliciously creamy; the risotto chewy, fresh, and organic; the seafood plump and perfectly cooked.  Even something simple like the garlic sauteed spinach was the best I ever had.  With two complimentary items from the chef  (shrimp cocktail and not-so-great sorbet) plus bread, we had a wonderful night.
Too bad we weren't too hungry. Â Or we would have ordered a lot more. Â One thing that bothered me was the size of the dishes: the portions were quite large. Â For such a nice restaurant, serving a lot of food in a dish actually hinders its delicacy.
I really wanted to like this place more. The views are fabulous and the people working there were wonderful. The service was warm, friendly and knowledgeable. Â I can even overlook the decor - the place is in desperate need of an upgrade to the 21st century -but the food, unfortunately, was just not very good.
There is an elaborate bread service that offered a choice of three very ordinary breads. A beautiful butter tureen with meticulously groomed supermarket butter.
A Steak Tartare with an emulsified (?) egg yolk. This ball of yolk looked as if it had been plucked from inside a hard boiled egg but the waiter insisted it was intentional. So we basically tried to spread it on a toast point and then spread the way too coarse Tartare (would have made a fine burger) over that. Just bad all over.
Duck entree looked nice but the duck was overcooked and not crisp. The scrappled confit of duck leg was very nice however. Â The "heritage' pork chop was thick and well cooked but really unremarkable. All in all not good.
By the end of our entree we had just had enough and wanted to get out of the place. Then came the check.
I'm not prone to sticker shock. I eat in a nice place I expect to pay. But this did catch me by surprise - those pre dinner cocktails certainly add up here! I should have started paying more attention when I ordered the wine. Â The wine we picked - a simple '07 Chateau St George - was $20 more than I've seen it on any list around town. But I shrugged it off. Big mistake. Â Everything here is just a few dollars more than it should be but those dollars add up. Â I'm sure it's an expensive lease but buyer beware!
Again nice people but just an extremely dated kind of place in such a contemporary marketplace as Chicago.
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