The Terrace at Conrad

Went here for our anniversary.  I arrived about 4:45pm on Monday and it wasn't crowded.  I picked a table by the edge.  The table had not been wiped down from the previous customers and there were some spills that had dried and should have been wiped down,  even though a waiter and the hostess wiped down several tables around me, they never cleaned mine.  

I had a martini that was acceptable, but nothing special.  I prefer Bombay Sapphire and asked for it, but I'm not sure they didn't substitute.  When my wife arrived she had a fresh squeezed lemonade which she said was excellent.

Since our table was never cleaned, we stopped with the drinks and decided to dine elsewhere.  

Some other reviewers mentioned the great views.  I was thinking they wouldn't be that great on the fifth floor, and my hunch was right.   But I live in a high rise in the city, so maybe my perspective is skewed as to what a good city view is.  

Won't be back.  Good for tourists only.

My friend's coworker recommended this place, so three of us decided to check it out for happy hour. We were surprised that such a pretty rooftop in such a prime location wasn't slammed on a beautiful night. The usual girls night protocol is a couple drinks and a few appetizers to share. At most places, we're stuffed with two or three apps. But here, although they were all quite tasty (particularly the truffle mac n cheese and lobster corn dogs), we had to order a fourth appetizer and a dessert to call it a meal since the portions were pretty small.

The two main downfalls are the prices and the service. $14-$16 for a cocktail is pretty spendy, even for downtown Chicago, and all of the apps were in the $15-$20 range. It seemed like our server was also bartending, so we had to flag her down multiple times and have the food runner get her for us so we could order another round.

This space definitely has potential, but for now it's just your standard hotel rooftop.

It's like being in the SoHo area of NYC. Everyone looks like a model and is fashionable and you are treated like Derrick Rose up at the Terrace. Low key, very upscale type of rooftop. For a Saturday afternoon, it was not crowded at all. I was shocked, maybe everyone was at the beach. But an older crowd was enjoying a meal at the bar and a few other people were sippin' down their martini's. Inside the hotel there was a private brunch ceremony going on but either way, nice stop. It's one of Chicago's hidden gems but if you miss it, that's okay. I guess it all depends on the type of environment you are looking for. For me, it was a great cool down to get a drink and enjoy the view.