My pad is an adult version of a college dorm room so I can appreciate a place like Urban Market. It's got all the essential food groups. Chips, Hot Pockets, and energy drinks. Very neatly organized and convenient if you live in the neighborhood.
Only problem is they don't sell any booze. Definitely would be a smart thing to put in stock seeing as how there's tons of students near by. Just my two cents.
Working in the building now, I will be here many times through the work week. They are a giant food emporium featuring in a food court style mini restaurant floorplan. Theres Frontera, a salad bar, pizza/calzone place, Indian food, a grill, cajun, american, asian, deli, full coffee and tea spread, amazing cakes and cookies, desserts, pastas, daily specials, and half a grocery store! Even the soda fountain features BOTH Pepsi and Coke products.. Everything from bottle of water, many many beverage options.. (naked fruit juices, coconut water, sports and energy drinks. etc..) They have everything except my preferred brand of Greek yogurt with the fruit in a separate cup.. but they have 3 brands of Greek yogurt! This place is worth checking out! For frequenters like myself theres a rewards card program! At the Monroe Blue Line Stop inside Chase Tower! Prices are fair especially if you stick to the daily specials. check website for their weekly menu.
Review Source:This food court has a lot of options. So my rating only applies to the Frontera Fresco. I've been to the Frontera in Macy's building, as well as Frontera Grill. Both are wayyyy better and more efficient than this place.
When I ordered the food, there was only one person in front of me (I got there really early in anticipation of long wait). Then after I ordered, I was told I had to wait for 10min. So I stood there, waited and waited. The person in front of me had a salad, so she got hers right away. The problem is there were about four cooks (I assume they are cooks because they all wore the white uniform), all were standing in the end of the counter, chatting, standing, staring, and waiting for the person in the beginning of the line to pass the food along. In the beginning of the counter, where the operational line of making food starts, only one person was there working, and he looked very busy. This is the most stupid division of workload I've seen at a busy lunch spot, and it's under Rick Bayless's banner--if you have four people idle, and one person is busy and being the bottleneck, get more idle people to the front of the line to help the poor guy! OR for the idle people, at least act busy!!
So after the most painful 10min wait, I got the sandwich. I don't remember the name because it was long and hard to say. But it's basically pulled pork with pickled onions. It's one of the worse sandwiches I've had at any Frontera place--the pork was dry, the bread was burned, the pickled onions were too overpowering. After eating it, I had the worst sour after-taste in my mouth.
Never will I be back to this place, ever.
I like this place. It's a good one stop shop to get everything you'd need and want for lunch. The prices were good before this new company took over. And they're not horrible now, the good thing about the renovation and new management is that we have better choices now, although some changes I could've done without...
Review Source:5 stars for the baked potato bar, 3 for everything else.
The old Chase cafeteria, as many have mentioned, was the perfect lunch spot. Reasonable prices, a large variety of food in good sized portions, and yummy desserts. I'm not sure if the new owners were trying to class up the joint or what, but it's just not as good. I'm not looking for popular, flashy food at a cafeteria. I want something that is quick, tasty and worth the price.
As I mentioned before, the only reason I'm giving this place 3 stars is because of the potato bar. When ownership changed hands they did not have the bar, but I'm assuming after many complaints they brought it back....with potatoes about half the size of its previous counterparts. The toppings are still good and the lady that makes them is still doing a great job. The price is around the same as before: $5.50 for a potato and any size drink. You really can't beat the value.
Service is friendly but this place can get busy during the lunch hour rush. Lately we've been going and they have been out of large cups or lids, half of the soda machines don't have ice, etc. When you only have so long for lunch this can get annoying. They cheapened out on the cutlery as well. I don't like to break my fork halfway through eating, and I especially don't want to find the broken piece later.
All in all, I still go here for the potato bar and that's it.
I'm a fan of this cafeteria in all of its incarnations. The new Frontera section is tasty, as is the new cajun that is available. The selection here is good so basically you'll find something to satisfy everyone. Seating is ample so you can bring a big group and all sit together. The prices are a tad higher than maybe some other places in the loop but nothing is outrageous. The lines can get bad for certain food stations so get here early to be the rush. This cafeteria is a solid standby in my lunch rotation and I am never disappointed with the meal I get here.
Review Source:Granted, I haven't had the pleasure of the previous Chase basement offerings, but overall, this place offers a pretty solid range of different flavors for a fairly reasonable* price. Â A random sampling of options: turkey burger, sweet potato fries, cajun creole (jambalaya, cajun macaroni and cheese?), hot pastrami, corned beef, and brisket sandwiches, Chicken Tikka and an Asian stir-fry station. Â Plus soups, salads, pizza, pasta, and really expensive Frontera options - which may be disappointing to hardcore Frontera/Bayless/Mexican food aficionados since 1) they only serve variations of sandwiches/tortas - no traditional, dinner plate style Frontera offerings, 2) it's probably more expensive than the actual Frontera by mass, and 3) this area replaced a different Mexican food station that actually served tacos, burritos, no-nonsense quesadillas, and other more predictably crowd-pleasing staples.
Oh by the way.... Urban Market is cafeteria style. Â But this ain't no Golden Corral. Â The turkey burgers are all natural (whatever that means, apparently unlike the supernatural turkeys they're serving up elsewhere), prices range (on the spectrum of light lunch to I'm-pregnant-get-out-of-my-way-before-I-eat-you lunch) from $6-$12, and you can get both Coke and Pepsi products. There are no refills on carbonated beverages but then again here in Chicago we can still purchase absurdly large cups of soda in this city so I don't think anyone is complaining.
I really like this place. Â It offers a pretty wide range of decent food for decent prices and if you get in before 11:30 the lines are bearable.
*reasonable = Loop lunch-reasonable, not to be confused with cheap.
Went to the newly opened Frontera spotin the Chase Basement. Love all the other Rick Bayless spots, but do not go to this one. The people working here do not have the slightest clue of what they are doing. With just myself and one other person ordering, it took over 20 minutes to get a sandwich, way too long. Macy's Frontera Fresco is much quicker. Additionally, in the Chase food court, you have to stand in line to order, stand in line to get food, and then stand in a third line to pay. By the time you get out of there your food is no longer hot. Stick to Macy's or the restaurants on Clark.
Review Source:The Chasement used to be a place of wonder. Â A place of quality food choices for a reasonable fee in the middle of the Loop. Â But all good things must come to an end, I suppose.
So I won't dwell on them taking away their delightful $6 Taco Salads only to replace them with Rick Bayless' fairly one-dimensional selection of Mexican fare -- you can get a Torta, or a different Torta, or a couple of other different Tortas. Â (this alone lost them 2 stars)
Or I won't dwell on the Indian selection, which is frankly just bad. (another star gone)
What I will do is say that despite the new setup's shortcomings, their Cajun setup hidden in the back is pretty legit. Â Just go past all of the other stations, and find your way here if you dig on some Down on the Bayou cooking. Â A warning: there really isn't any entree at this particular station that I have tried that is a safe option for the non-spice inclined.
So R.I.P. awesome Chasement selection. Â I'll rifle through the remains from time to time, but it won't be the same.
I'm quite bummed about the new management of this formerly stellar food court. They used to have some really good eats when managed by Aramark; now, it's less great. Indian food in particular disappoints. The old Indian station was my favorite loop lunch. Marigold's tastes fine, but is more like Thai than Indian. American classics station is also less awesome -- no more mac and cheese, no more good rolls. I miss the old plaza food court. Grumble grumble.
Review Source:Today I had the awful experience of going to the revamped urban market!! This was truly the worst experience Ive ever had. I hv been here b4 the revamp and the Asian Stir Fry is usually awesome. I guess because they hv brought Rick Bayless food in they hv slacked up on everything else. I ordered vege stir fry, it was bland! It used to be more veges to choose from now it's about 10. The sauce they hv now is watered down, the veges barely got warm , the paper container they now put ur food in soaks up the LITTLE bit of sauce they give u!! I WILL NEVER GO BACK!!!
Review Source:Went over to try Bayless' new Torta spot in Urban Market twice in the last week. I tried the Choriqueso(Chorizo Torta) and a Taqueria Salad with chicken. and they were both declious. This spot has 3-4 more Tortas than the Macy's location.
They have quite a few new offerings that sound good. Prices may be a bit higher than standard but its a great place to go with a group since there's something for everyone and a lot of seating.
This place was very good when it was Plaza Market and now it has undergone management changes and they're are trying too many things and too many changes. What happened to the nice simple deli sandwich set up? It is all walled in now and you can barely see the guys who prepare the sandwiches. Before I could order a half sandwich and a side of fruit. Now you can only order the half sandwich WITH soup. I had to pay for both even though I only ordered the half sandwich. The food is different and not like it was before. It is not that great. :( Â Very disappointing to say the least. Also what happened to the environmentally good paper bags? Now there are plastic bags and you can't open them. People are waiting to bag up their food and you're standing there trying to get the plastic bag open! Find a new place, Plaza Market was soooooo much better!
Review Source:Oh the Cafeteria at the Chase Building... Â I try not to come here, but every once and a while I forget to bring my lunch and the cafeteria is the only quick option. Â Not only are prices a bit over the top for what it is, but the food varies widely in quality. Â
I had the "Whole + sum" bar today... I didn't actually want that, but the vendor sort of tricked me. Â I had asked what the food was and wanted to try the Quinoa Zucchini patties, but thought it was part of the Mediterranean bar. Â He didn't tell me until AFTER putting it a box that I had to eat the other sides he chose - 4 bites of lettuce with a sun-dried tomato and garbanzo beans and some grain dish with red cabbage. Â I hadn't planned to eat that nor did I enjoy paying $6.99 + tax for such a small meal... more like an appetizer.
On other occasions I've had the sushi (outside vendor)... good but pricey...
The stirfry - huge but I never get the flavor right... plus this guy that makes it is rude...
As for the taste, I can cook 100x better for 95% less cost at home...
Went to the revamp urban market today - long line at Frontera - prob for a reason as their food at the Macys location is pretty good.
Ordered food at another station - overcooked, dry grilled chicken, on a non-toasted roll, shoved into a box with half warm fries. No love to the food at all.
They dont accept American Express - sucks as that's my corporate card.
Way too expensive for what it was - so 1st time and last time today.
Since I am a glutton for punishment kind of person, I went back to the plaza yesterday with a friend of mine. Unfortunately for me, I decided on the healthy choices section, and got an empty box with 6 watery shrimps in it, 7 asparagus skinny sticks ( don't let your imagination run wild and think they where the fat asparagus ones) one spoon of corn and a spoon of a salad of some kind. Needless to say, there was room in my box for six more entrees. The parts of my meal were so separated by big distances in between as if going through a Mormon divorce  (if there is such a thing). My point is...for $6.99 +tax, unless you like the cook....walk away ....
Oh...and don't get me started on the Mexican-I-Want-To-Be-Indian-Food section....there is nothing Indian about it. For anyone familiar with the old Indian food supplier, let me just say that the food currently being sold as "Indian" is a cultural and culinary insult to anyone who tasted Indian food before.
I too was a long-time customer of the former food court at Chase, usually the American Classic counter. I've been very disappointed so far. Today I had turkey which was dry, tasteless and cut against the grain. The steamed vegetables were basically raw and the baked potato was luke warm (even the sour cream was tasteless). The freshly-baked raised roll they used to include has been replaced by a day-old roll. All this for a price that's 20% higher. Â I hate changing my routine but it's DelMonico's or Macy's Cellar for me going forward
Review Source:They just changed the vendor at the Chasement and it's HORRIBLE now. Â They increased all of the prices by about 15% and they reduced the offerings. Â For example: Â you used to able to get 2 sushi rolls, edamame, ginger, and miso for $8.86 out the door. Â Now it's $9.36 and you no longer get the soup... and they stopped making the spicy tuna spicy? Â Um, don't get it. Â
They also stopped selling huaraches and no longer have shirmp at the mexican counter. Â Horrible choice to switch to Compass from Aramark. Â They messed with my lunch and I am not pleased. Â
P.S. It is the concensus in my office that it now sucks so I'm not the only one!!
I happened upon this place last year based on a review that stating this food court was better than the cellar market I frequent when I want diner food for lunch. Â It was unfortunate that I didn't get the opportunity to try it in a head to head of which was better based on Suzanne's statement found here.
Well, here I find myself gawking across the floor to see if anything strikes my fancy or inspires me enough to get in line and try it out. Â Not many places seemed all that inspirational or daring enough to stand out with the beef brisket, friday's special at the meat station, providing just enough to merit a try. Â Having watched the beef brisket cut and served, it seemed worth the 6.45 for it and queued up for it. Â
The service was really great with the people working the counter being kind, courteous, and rather quick to move the plates. Â The people tending the registers were exceptional with the way they had handled the customers informing them of what they can get with their meals. Â Given this, the ratings given for this place was largely for the service.
The food... well, the same can't exactly be said since calling it exceptional would be an overstatement. Â
The variety of the sides looked phenomenal at the station tempting me to change my mind towards the vegetables rather than the mac and cheese, and sweet potatoes. Â The loaded baked potato station was even better in presentation offering so much to load it with.
However, once served, it was rather abysmal given the size of the tray and how little it looked once combined. Â If it was plated, it may have looked much better but in a tray... not so much. Â The sweet potatoes were served in a fair quantity that made the amount of mac and cheese served look even smaller. Â Â The meat while served up looked like it was fair for the price but it was rather fatty consisting of 20% of the slices.
Moving on to the loaded potato station, it was shocking to see them pad my baked potato with broccoli... It almost feels like they were cheating presentation to make it look more bountiful when it wasn't really.
With all this said, the taste was... fair to say the least with the loaded potato being the saving grace despite the cheating factor of broccoli in it. Â Seriously, who puts broccoli in a potato? Â The mushrooms were a bit on the dry side but were still pretty tasty, the meat loaded on top was nicely seasons while standing up to the other toppings, and the bacon could've been done a bit better but was very nice overall. Â All this combined, it was the most enjoyable part of the meal.
The sweet potato side would've been the only redeamable part of the entree had I not ordered the loaded potato. Â It was very nicely cooked having a sweetness that is all too familiar to it as the texture was right on. Â
Mac and cheese was on a much lower part of the meal with so little given and the cheese being a bit... off(?) in texture and taste. Â It worked with each other neither adding or subtracting from the experience. Â In the end, the quantity really hurt this part of the entree.
As for the meat? Â The best way I can express it: Beef Brisket with an identity crisis. Â Think of a Christmas Ham that had a sweet honey red glaze. Â This maybe alarming to some or a turn on with the way this is already going, I won't ask. Â Now, think of that sweet honey red glaze on a brisket with the same texture of the glaze applied as well. Â This is what seriously hurt the entire entree almost mocking me for having paid for it. Â I will say though, the silver lining would be the fat was actually pretty nice and I've actually liked eating it.
Having said this, I won't say I won't return right now, but I MAY return in six months to a year to allow them to work out the glitches. Â In closing, it has that feel of a restaurant that is undergoing a severe overhaul similiar to those makeover programs you see on TV. Â It almost feels like a restaurant in need of one at this time.
Till then, Cellar Market is the go to place for Diner Food. Â It maybe cash only, but I will gladly pay given that I have visited there three times in a month which is an achievement in itself!
The old food court in the basement of the Chase Bank Building was very popular. Â Beware! Â It went under new management, Urban Market, sometime in Dec. 2011. Â The extremely popular stir fry section is now lousy -- cold food, much smaller portions, not very good tasting. Â The former selection of sauces is much diminished. Â I would not go back and am only giving it 2 stars (as opposed to 1) because the new staff (the old guys apparently have been reassigned) seemed very nice and could be trained, if anyone would bother. Â I would have commented to the company instead of here, but couldn't find a corproate web site or phone number.
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