Drinks- very good, creative, strong and definitely unique. 4 stars, I'd come back for a drink. Intimate and romantic vibe.
Food- very meh, unimpressed. I was really disappointed. My friend and I split the sweet potato gnocchi and arctic char. The gnocchi wasn't firm like gnocchi usually is. The arctic char was fine, but don't think it was worth the money at all.
I wish I didn't get food, I would have liked this place way more.
This is a great place for happy hour, dinner and drinks, or late night. I've done all of the above. The food and cocktails here are excellent, far better than they have to be given the location.
I have many fond memories here. Met my girlfriend here to kick off our very first date. Walking in and seeing her waiting there for me at the end of the bar, looking absolutely stunning, is an image forever burned in my mind. Also, late nights here with my industry friends. A bowl of punch on the table, a cocktail each, and then ordering shots. Our concerned server nervously asking us to, "drink some of this down so I don't get fired for over serving you." No worries here friend, we're professionals.
We went there during restaurant week for a friend's birthday. The atmosphere was really nice. We ordered the punch to share. The restaurant week manu wasn't that impressive though. Overall, nice service and drinks and a really cool place to hang out. I will definitely go back to try the regular menu.
Review Source:This place is awesome. Super cool.
Small and intimate atmosphere. We did not eat as we came here for after dinner drinks. However, the meals we saw being delivered to tables looked delicious. We sat at the bar on a Friday night and received immaculate service. The bartenders were great, and man, do they make some tasty concoctions.
I'll be going back for dinner next time without a doubt!
I'm leaning towards a 3.5 star-review, but I really can't bring myself to round it up a notch.
The Drawing Room is an intimate lounge appearing to have located in the basement of a restaurant. It's contrary to the typical dim and enigmatic lounge as you would find in the Hancock. Their bright setting catches one off-guard leading one to believe the plush couches would do the ultimate catch and save. Not quite. We mostly sat in hunchback style on the low seats. Â
Our party of seven shared the Guild punch bowl, steak tartare, coulette steak, and vanilla custard with chocolate chip cookie as well as two glasses of Riesling. The portions were generously served. The punch bowl sufficiently allowed each of us to have 3-4 small servings. Be aware, it is not the typical punch bowl your aunt makes at a family gathering. The Riesling was also surprising in its own sense. It was alarmingly and eye-wincing sour. The steak tartare was a butterfly kiss to the cheeks but not enough to leave a strong impression. It was served with homemade potato chips which were healthily greaseless. The flavors were very subtle. The steak on the other hand was perfectly completed in a peppered and medium-rare fashion. Just the way I like it! The vanilla custard didn't seem too lively but the fresh-baked, homemade chocolate chip cookie brought it to life - crisp on the outside but warm and melting on the interior. Scrumptious!
Service was charmless in the presence of the bright lights. Our waitress was very attentive and constantly checked in on our table. BUT she succumbed to slippery hands and clumsiness. She was knocking off plates as she brought in the coulette steak and she even allowed the potato to roll off the plate and sit abandoned on the table. In another incident, she dropped the knife and fork as she cleared the table. My friend caught the knife before it stabbed me and the fork landed on my dress. The waitress ended that with a quip, "Ooh, nice catch!" I'm reluctant to say the same for her.
Girls night, what! We came here on Saturday for Restaurant Week and had a blast. There is something fun about getting all dressed up, going somewhere nice and sipping fancy cocktails and thats just what we did! We started with the Punch, and it was ample for 3 people. I would highly recommend getting it. For our starters, I had the steak tartare, which was superb and the other 2 girls had the grilled octopus served in a tasty broth with chick peas. I snuck a bite and really liked it. For our mains, I had the artic char and the other two had the steak. My fish was cooked to perfection, and I seriously ate every last bit. The dessert sealed the meal perfectly. A soft baked cookie with a cream custard that tasted JUST like vanilla ice cream. A little scoop of the custard a bite of the cookie and it was wonderful.
Check them out for sure!
This was the place for this year's Restaurant week after Blackbird, Topolobampo went out of the picture. Â We made a reservation on Saturday night, luckily, since I reserved the table way earlier. Â Looks like it is more of a bar place which opens well into the early morning, so there was an ID check at the door which is rare for a dining place.
The place was pretty dark, but overall had a hip vibe and nice ambience. Â The server was nice. Â I ordered a non alcoholic drink because I am very sensitive to alcohol, but I guess they used the same shaker that they usually use of alcoholic cocktail for my drink. Â They should have been a little more considerate. Â Also they didn't serve bread. Â I don't know if it is just the restaurant week thing or they don't serve bread at all, but it was a little odd to start my appetizer at a fancy place like that without amuse bouche and/or bread.
Anyhow, the course dishes were pretty good considering it was a restaurant week food. Â I had steak tartar, arctic char and sweetbread, and my wife had farro, sirloin and whiskey gelato. Â Especially I loved arctic char. Â It was so tender and perfectly cooked without the unique fish smell. Â Recommendation for this restaurant week (which ends in 24 hrs anyway).
I think this is a cool place hang out. Â Might stop by once in a while. Â Will recommend this place to friends for a date or a night out.
I'm so disappointed by this place that I'm compelled to write my first review on Yelp. Let me first preface this by saying that my rating is based on my expectations for a trendy place in the Gold Coast that I've actually heard good things about. Like Sierra G. below, I might have ordered the wrong things, but they were mediocre to downright bad.
I went here for restaurant week, and the first course I got was a grilled octopus soup (that I was somehow expected to eat with a fork) with chickpeas and pickled onions. I've eaten octopus dozens of times, prepared in many different ways, so I don't think I'm being disingenuous in saying that the octopus was hardly cooked, and had zero flavor. My first bite was so undercooked that it was like chewing on a rubber bouncy ball, and I actually had to go to the restroom to spit it out. Aside from that, the entire dish tasted like chickpeas (I don't dislike chickpeas, but I didn't expect for that to be the dominating flavor).
My main course was the arctic char, which wasn't nearly as awful as the octopus soup, but wasn't really anything special. There was some sort of slaw with bacon and mushrooms underneath it that was actually very good, but when paired with the fish, that's all I tasted. The fish was bland, and tasted and looked just like a frozen salmon steak I could buy from the grocery store, but without the seasonings I'd put on it at home.
My dessert was an absolute joke. Whiskey-flavored gelato sounds pretty awesome, right? Well, I'm sure it would have been, had they not served me something that looked and tasted identical to vanilla ice cream. The mini cookies that came with it were great, though.
The other dishes at the table were better than mine, to be sure, but nothing stood out or justified the reputation or price of this place. My girlfriend's steak was good, not great. If you're going to go for restaurant week (which I'd recommend against), the "Crespella" (which is really just a pretentious word for a crepe) was easily the best entree. Even the pork belly--which I find nearly impossible to screw up--had little flavor, and was paired with cannellini beans that were hardly cooked.
The only reason I'm giving this place two stars is the service and the cocktails. Both were great. I would not come back here unless I was coming just for a drink, and even then, I'd rather go to Violet Hour (I know, different neighborhood) or another specialty cocktail bar.
I went for Restaurant Week, so I'm not sure if that is indicative of how it is normally. I loved the look of the menu and the variety of options they offered, so I put together a little girls night with some friends. When we arrived, it was packed, but we we were seated at a table near the bar. The tables are low and some of the seating is on couches...FYI.
The cocktail list is pretty creative and I had heard good things, but I needed a translator for the ingredients. I'm pretty sure one of the cocktails included "shrubs"...is that a real thing? I thought that was like a small bush?
My first course was the steak tartar and it was incredible. I've only had steak tartar a couple times, but this was prepared beautifully with lots of flavor and crispy homemade potato chips.
They were out of the fish option for the main course and didn't offer any alternative fish options, for several of our diners, this was an issue. Considering it was a set menu, they should of offered another fish main course. I was planning on having the fish and ended up getting the pork....bad decision. Very fatty and no flavor...tasted like very gamey meat.
Dessert was also weird. Black Dog gelato is supposed to be this magical experience, but I'm 95% sure something was wrong with the batch we got. It was whiskey flavored, but had a weird fruity flavor and the only taste was sweet, sweet, sweet. No whiskey, spice, or bite to it. I thought it was a personal preference, but everyone that ordered it agreed. The mini shortbread cookies on the side? delectable.
So....it was ups and downs. I think I ordered the wrong thing, but the wrong things shouldn't be horrible, right?
Run, don't walk away from the drawing room. This restaurant cannot handle large crowds. We had the unfortunate experience of bringing a friend here for her birthday on a night (1/26) that Groupons were apparently being redeemed. Our waitress only apologized for the abhorrent service after a complaint was made and the bill was paid. The terribly slow food presentation, uncomfortable seating, "forgotten drink orders," and poor attempt by the manager to apologize as we were leaving far outweighed what was somewhat decent food. What was supposed to be a night of celebration turned into a 4 hour nightmare dining experience. This restaurant is probably really great on a quiet night, but I would NOT recommend going here when any other deals are being offered.
Review Source:I'm in love with the Oaxacan Old Fashioned....basically the Mexican take on a typical Old Fashioned ***Disclaimer I love bourbon Old Fashioneds and Tequila so it works for me. Â
My girlfriend took me to this place about a year ago as a surprise just to grab cocktails. Â We sat at the bar and had a blast chatting it up with the bartender and watching him make perfect drinks every time. Â Probably one of my favorite spots to grab a cocktail in an intimate setting in Chicago. Â
So last night (about a year later) my girlfriend surprised me and took me here for restaurant week. Â
-We had the steak tartar to start which was awesome....salty and fresh and we ate every last bite. Â I feel like steak tartar is becoming this trendy hip food....which frankly is fine by me...because I love it. Â They served it with homemade chips that were not overly greasy (also i feel like homemade chips are become trendy...not sure if that's a good thing). Â
-2nd starter was the octopus....I asked the server if it was served cold like an antipasta and she responded yes...it was served warm which was fine however I got the impression that she wasn't really well versed in the restaurant week menu. Â It was light and delicious and a nice compliment to the steak tartare that we shoveled down first. Â
For dinner we had the char and steak. Â The char was really good and fresh with a nice lemon cream sauce (or something like that). Â The bacon probably was my favorite party favor to accompany the char. Â The steak was good but I was somewhat jealous that I didn't order the pork belly and shoulder dish...(the server told me to go with the steak so I was secretly mad at her). Â Either way I loved the steak and the fingerling potatoes but the sauteed kale was probably my favorite part. Â
Drawing Room I will see you soon!
Excellent. I will be going back. I've been recommending this place to people all day.
Their Manhattan is my new favorite drink. I want to go back for it today. And they have the most extensive whiskey/hard alcohol list I've ever seen.
Impeccable, personable service with great suggestions.
Best duck I've ever had for the entree. As appetizers, we had the gnocchi and the octopus  - excellent. Desserts were just as good. I had the "milk and cookies", which was a warm, homemade chocolate chip cookie paired with vanilla custard on top of dark chocolate. It was 'to die for' while putting an inventive spin on a classic favorite for a very cold night.
I was sold on the ambiance the minute I sat in the comfy lounge chairs, which are at each table. It also doesn't hurt that when you walk in the door, the secret-service  gentleman guarding the door radios your reservation to the host before you walk down the stairs to the restaurant in the basement. It's in a basement.
*Side note: Yes, we made references to the movie Inglorious Bastards all night. . . Â
Aldo Raine: You didn't say the goddamn rendezvous was in a fuckin' basement.
Archie Hicox: I didn't know.
Aldo Raine: You said it was in a tavern.
Archie Hicox: It is a tavern.
Aldo Raine: Yeah, in a basement. You know, fightin' in a basement offers a lot of difficulties. Number one being, you're fightin' in a basement!
I'd go back and try this place again. Dinner came out piping hot as requested. Could not see the steam. Regret the pork chop did not rest well. Juices left the meat while cutting. So meat became dry. Best for drinks, dessert and lounging. Paired a well aged rum with bread pudding. It was an upscale Cinnabon experience!
Review Source:Simply fantastic.
My boyfriend and I came here a month ago to redeem our Groupon (4 course meal for 2, with samples of 3 cocktails). I had no expectations going into the evening, and I walked away really pleased.
We were expecting to be offered a limited, pre fixe menu. To our surprise, we were able to each order 2 items from the Plates section of their menu, in addition to one entree and one dessert each. Portions are good, so we were quite full at the end of the night!
Here's what we ordered:
- Ricotta gnocchi
- Risotto
- Steak tartare
- Pork belly
- Duck breast (me)
- Steak (the guy)
- Milk and cookies dessert (both of us)
Everything was amazing. The risotto was super creamy and flavorful, and the steak tartare was the best I've ever had. Our server described every course (something I appreciate) as it was brought to our table.
The cocktails were awesome! We were given two gin based cocktails and a manhattan. I am not a huge cocktail drinker, but I do like gin and these cocktails were amazing. They also have a great wine list, and I enjoyed a glass of prosecco with my dessert.
The chairs are a little different, but I was pretty comfortable - and I was in a dress. The whole vibe of the place is great, and I felt like I was a VIP in a speakeasy. We will definitely be coming back!
amazing service and ambience. perfect for a date night or a relaxing night with friends. more of a keep to your group spot than mingling with others. place isnt too large, the seating is incredibly comfortable. classy, but doesnt require you to be too dressed up. & our waitress was wonderful.
the drinks were great and the waitress was wonderful with suggestions. i loved The Old Man, The Monk, and The Sea. & the other other drinks we tried. my only issue was that the hush puppies bites were a bit of a disappointment, almost subpar; a bit too dry and the sauce didnt compliment too well. admittedly, the plates of food i glimpsed did look scrumptious. so, as i enjoyed everything else, im simply hoping we ordered the wrong item!
I've been here twice and both times had an exceptional experience.
My husband and I came here for the first time over the summer with a Groupon. Â I loved the atmosphere, and the mixologist spent a lot of time with us, the food was very good and the music is great.
Came back again last weekend with a group of friends (5 of us total) to celebrate a friends divorce (long story). Â We got there around midnight, were immediately seated at a nice table. Â It felt like we were in someone's dining room in the best possible way. Â You don't have to shout at each other, it's quiet, comfortable, again the music is great, and the service was absolutely incredible. Â Our server, Ryan, went above and beyond for us. Â The palette of one of the guests in our party doesn't go beyond PBR, and Ryan was incredible at helping her find a drink she would like. Â If she didn't love it, he took it back and tried again. Â So patient and accomodating.
We closed the place down and finally left 4:05am only because they were closing. Â The time flew by - no one was standing, no one jostling you or knocking you around, great service. Â Especially loved that they served water all night. Â I'm sure it kept all of us from being much more hungover than we should have been.
Definitely worth going to. I was the only member of our party who had been there before, and after the first drink everyone decided that they didn't want to leave. Â I'm sure everyone will be back.
Ok so I had not been here in way too long, came in with the groupon, but this did not stop them from giving us wonderful drinks and amazing food, with top shelf service...
Read my last review it all still stands true, but what is even better is somehow this spot has withstood the test of time!
Kudos!
This is a great place for a first date or double date. It is small and intimate, with a sexy vibe. The seating is all plush velvet couches with small tables. The whole place probably seats around 50 people.
The drinks are very good - I appreciated the fact that they had an "On the Wagon" section of nonalcoholic mocktails as well. If you are a whiskey drinker, they have a large selection to choose from.
The only negative is that you pretty much need a reservation (because its so small) and the drinks are a bit pricey at $13 a pop.
I was extremely impressed with the level of attention we received in every detail here. Â I took my best friend here to celebrate her end of school season and it was the last night of a Groupon, so I expected it to be a bit of a cluster (aka Groupocalipse). However, It was very well managed and smooth. Â We had late reservations and it was still very busy, but we took a seat at the bar no problem and the bartender made us custom cocktails while we waited. Â The table was great, our server friendly, and the head bartender came over to deliver our drink flights with explanations. Â The food was terrific, and the waiter even made a pointed suggestion on how to eat my favorite course, the Foie Gras. Â The rest of the food was wonderful and overall a very high class evening.
This was my second time at the Drawing Room. Â I love the decor and atmosphere here as well and would definitely recommend it to someone looking to experience that special, hip night in the city.
Loved...loved....loved....
This restaurant is on the top of my list for sure... My husband read reviews and decided to bring me here for my birthday. Â I have been to a number of restaurants for my birthday, and this is definitely one to remember. Â Every time I visit a new restaurant I always think about what the customer service will be like and then I think about how good the food will be. Â Typically, the initial customer service sets the tone. Â Immediately upon entering, we received a warm welcome by the hostess and she took our coats. Â We were then escorted to our table. Â The place was lovely. Â The dim lighting (always a favorite), the modern decor, and the comfortable seating. Â I knew right away this was going to be a pleasant dining experience. Â We started off with a few drinks.. I tried one of the citrus beverages and it was delicious (but of course I can't recall the name -- but if it has grapefruit try it! ) Â We ordered the calamari to warm up our palate. Â I was so content with the calamari and the delightful pieces of chick peas. Â For our entree, I had the duck breast and the spouse had the Pork Chop. We were both very pleased with our order. Â I absolutely enjoyed every bite of the duck breast. I swirled every piece through the sweet and savory sauce on the plate before every bite-- magnificent! Â After our very much filling meal, we decided to continue our evening at the Back Room (literally in the back of the restaurant). Â I would recommend making a reservation in order to find seating closer to the stage or the center of the room. However, although we did not have any reservations, we were able to find a nice comfy spot on the side by the bar and we enjoyed the sounds of the blues. Â The place got pretty jam packed by 10pm. Â
Overall, a great dining experience followed by great music!
Classy, intimate atmosphere. Â Make sure you make a reservation! Â It's a small place and fills up very quickly.
All cocktails are $13 and they have a expansive collection of liquors. Â If you don't something off their creative menu, then the mixologists can make a custom drink for you based on flavors you enjoy.
The desserts here are also quite tasty. Â You should try the bread pudding, you wont be disappointed.
I really appreciated the attentive service and I loved that our waiter gave us thoughtful recommendations.
While visiting Chicago for the weekend to see some friends, we had planned on visiting the Signature Lounge (my wife loves any bar with a view), but there was a really long line. A quick search on yelp led us to the Drawing Room and we were very pleasantly surprised.
The door leads downstairs to the lounge - when we were there on a Saturday at 6pm, the place had almost no one there, and it seemed to be more of a lounge than a restaurant. As noted elsewhere in the reviews, the seats at the tables are very unique. Not good if you want to get close and comfy with someone, but kind of neat for leaning back with your drink and talking to friends.
We started with the Old Old Fashioned and the Cooperstown Sour, as well as an order of the calamari. Food was very average, but, we were there for the cocktails so I wasn't expecting much. The Cooperstown Sour was a very enjoyable drink - not flooded with cheap flavoring like at an average bar, but a sour made the right way. The Old Old Fashioned though? Not so much - I wonder what their regular Old Fashioned would have been like. Not wanting to risk that, I changed directions and ordered the Kessinger's Kiss which was a great drink. Perfectly balanced.
Overall, the drinks were balanced, made well with good ingredients, sufficiently boozy (but not that much), and in a good atmosphere.
MAKE A RESERVATION!!
Now that you read that, let it be known that I LOVE this place!!!!! The atmosphere is super chill with low lighting, funky music (I actually knew some of it though...nothing too obscure or techo sounding), AMAZING comfy chairs, and intimate seating. Perfect for a night with friends or a significant other.
Service was awesome. Drinks were great! The mixologist made me a custom drink for the same price as a menu drink (all cocktails are $13) which was awesome.
Definitely need to go here if you are in Chicago.
This place is legit. Â Another punch on the 'foodie' card.
I went here with a friend; and I thoroughly enjoyed everything I ate. Â First off the atmosphere at this place is real slick. Â The chairs are quite low to the ground, but fairly cozy. Â The drinks are reminiscent of Violet Hour (and if you haven't been there, definitely try it out) in that most of the ingredients aren't name brand and/or unique. Â So if you want an Old Fashioned, they won't break out Jim Beam; they'll use some other type of bourbon for the drink. Â Anyhow, the drinks are good.
As for the meal: I had steak tartar for a starter, a shrimp and avocado dish followed that, and Wagyu beef for the main course. Â All of it was tasty. Â They don't have a ton of options; so don't let that shock you. Â Also the price tag rose quite quickly (but I was prepared for that.)
One word on the service: Â FANTASTIC. Â Our waitress was attentive and I didn't see the bottom of my glass unless I wanted to.
Overall, I can honestly say I enjoyed myself and will be back. Â
P.S. Â Don't forget to make a reservation!
We did some sort of Groupon/LivingSocial deal which included a cocktail flight and a full course meal. Â Got to sit down with a mixologist and discuss the history of the drinks we were sampling, and hear the passion that the people working the bar have for mixing long-lost gems.
I loved this place. Â Food was outstanding. Â Drinks were better. Â My wife and I discovered that we love gin because of this place. Â Who knew?
Recommended drinks which are easy and tasty: Aviation, Clover Club.
Move over Charles Joly and make way for Cristiana Delucca at the helm!
This roll-out-of-bed into dressy "breakfast" weekday girls' night... say what? wouldn't be complete without some cocktails to start the evening. For all of the cushy chairs in the lounge area, the best seats were at the bar. Upon first glance, nothing struck out as much as their past drink menu. For this lightweight, their shrub-a-dub-dub and bubbs seemed like obivous choices. But then came the Ode to Aud with jasmine tea. Tasted super shrubbery, minty, with a fragrant tea essence. We had none other than Cristiana, artfully preparing the cocktails of our choosing, answering all of our noobish questions. We conversed while watching them cracking eggs, burning zest, immersing aromatics.
Sniff, sip, savor. Repeat.
Enjoy!
We had a Groupon for a four course meal and a flight of drinks. Â Every part of the meal was great. Â I won't go into too much detail about the food because they change the menu by season, but everything we had from the first course to the pumpkin gelato for dessert was absolutely delicious. Â Portions are not huge, and I did not leave feeling overly stuffed, but definitely satisfied.
The drinks were also very tasty. Â The bartender came over and gave us a short explanation of each drink and was very knowledgeable about the different types of liquor they had and was able to recommend other drinks off the menu.
The rest of the service was also great! Â The waiter was friendly, our waters were alway being refilled and were taken care of very well. Â My only complaint is the seating...they are very squishy chairs and low to the ground. Â But if that's the only complaint, you know this place is worth a try.
My husband and I are what you'd call "diners" - we eat out 4 times eat thanks to my culinary skills and our work schedules.
We had a wonderful Friday evening reservation with friends to try the FOOD at Drawing Room - in one word, disappointing.
Drinks aside.
1. Seating - uncomfortable - 1 star
2. Appetizers - Steak Tartare - bland (toss in a little spice chef)
3. Second Course - Ricotta Gnocchi - bland, toasted outside + mushy inside, that's never a good combination
4. Main Entree - Barramundi - for a fish only gal, the shock came when it was served with sausage (not mentioned on the menu). No big deal - passed it to my husband.
The real test of a 2 star restaurant - my husband passes on finishing an entree - what? It was bland (a triple bland wamme) and even his love of sausage doesn't add any appeal to this dish.
If you want a great dinner for triple digits in the Gold Coast, go next door to LeColonial or down the street to Hugo's.
Taking a chance on my beloved Esquire, I found a place in Chicago off the 2011 Best Bars List.
Best decision ever.
After dinner across the street we were literally a hop, skip and a jump away. Behind a non-descript door flanked by guard/check-in, down a sleek stair well, and you are home. Soft lighting, intimate seating arrangements, beautiful and subtle decorations; I kept having to remind myself I was in a basement.
Doorman, hostess, and waiter alike were friendly and helpful, and wonderfully did not judge me or my man, a welcomed change from earlier debacles.
We shared a chocolate creme brulee with blood orange. Honestly, I had stuffed my face full at dinner and was only planning on getting drinks, but the name alone piqued my interest. When it arrived at the table, it looked so freaking delicious that my stomach made itself bigger to accomodate at least a bite. It was so light and delicious, not too sweet, but not tart at all. I'm drooling thinking about it....
For my drinks I got an old-old fashioned-pirate style and a long island iced tea. The first was a specialty order. I can understand now what my grandma is perpetually looking for when she orders this. Usually a susbstantial mix with a swift kick on the intial drink, this old fashioned rocked my socks. Still substantial, way more subtle, and intoxicating, both literally and figuratively. The long island was also delicious and held its own against our other cocktails, a good sign.
All in the all, the ambience was amazing, and it was the best part of my night.
I will return.
This place is about as froo froo as it gets. Its dark, the velvet chairs are low and really not meant for eating a meal or for people taller than 5 ft.
The cocktail menu is soooooo overly complex and requires a 10 min explanation/ education even for experienced drinkers. The waitress was very nice, however, began to get short as the place got busy and we had questions about the menu. The food was good the cocktails were unique but nothing to write home about......my suggestion, when in Chicago, find a crowded bar with great pizza, get a beer, save $250.
What a gorgeous room. Â The back room, down the alley feel is cool and the dark loungy setting is super sexy. Â This is the perfect date night place.
We had a Groupon for $95 for a four course meal for two including drink sampling. Â I believe the fixed price menu is $175.
Let me first say, I have never really had gnocchi before this meal. Â I've had leaden doughy balls of blandness a number of times, but nothing like this. Â In fact, I could never really understand why anyone would ever order gnocchi. Â Until I ate here. Â The gnocchi was amazing. Â I could have eaten ten servings. Â Yummy pillows of goodness.
But my favorite part of the meal was the three half serving cocktails and the history lesson from the friendly mixologist at the beginnng of the meal. Â We sampled the Clover Club, Manhattan and Aviation. Even though I don't like gin which the first and third were made with, they were mixed beautifully so I didn't get that strong juniper taste. Â But, the Manhattan was my favorite. Â My husband later ordered a scotch citrus thing that was pretty awful, I thought.
Our service was excellent and not slow as others have mentioned. Â Just right. Â I was surprised that at 8pm on Friday night they were not very full.
I was a little disappointed in the sweaty twenty two year olds just down from the Cubs game, wearing flip flops and short shorts who were seated next to us. Â What's wrong with instituting a dress code? Â Everyone else was dressed in dry clean only. Â This place warrants a little effort. Â Keep your sports attire for Dubliner's or one of the other thousands of sports bars in this City.
But all and all a great experience.
The Drawing Room is like the bar equivalent of the perfect Christmas morning. Â You get the wonderful feeling of excitement and anticipation while you await your beautifully crafted drink to be brought to you. And when you receive it and taste it, it is better than you could have ever imagined and you are just so grateful for all the thought and attention that was put into something so small.
I showed up with two friends around 9pm on a Friday night, with no reservations. Â We were told that there was standing room only at the bar, which is what I was expecting with no reservations, but once we were in we saw quite a few open tables, so we asked if we could be seated and without a problem we had a nice cozy little table with extremely comfortable lounge chairs. Â
We were quickly greeted by Brandon who was one of the talented men working behind the bar for the night, and he explained the concept of the Drawing Room and spent a good 5 minutes talking with us about what we like in a drink and what we were looking for that evening. Â He created unique cocktails for each of us, which genuinely were suited to our tastes, and were all different than anything that was listed on the menu. Â This level of attention and service from Brandon alone made me want to go back immediately, and that's before even trying the drinks!
My first drink was THE BEST COCKTAIL I HAVE EVER HAD. Â Brandon came over, presented our drinks, and explained what were in each of them. Â There were so many wonderful things within my drink I can't even remember all of them, but I do recall there was some thyme, cinnamon, fruity herbal tea, egg whites and of course various types of liquor, none of which I can remember. Â We were originally only planning to do one drink there, but I was so impressed with the drink I got, I wanted to see what else Brandon could craft up. Â The second cocktail definitely did not disappoint. Â It was a little simpler, but still kept my tastes in mind, and was a little stronger than the first (which was a nice contrast).
I am not a drink snob, nor one who likes to spend very much money when I go out, but I LOVED my experience here. Â I had high expectations based on the reviews and pricetag, and I was still blown away.
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