I'm a pure blooded dumb-ass American. Â I was extremely out of place at Zhivago and stuck out . Â When you come here you are entering an underground Eastern European club. Â You'll see well dressed men walking in with cases of vodka. Â You'll see blonde and red headed women dressed to the nines. Â When you come here it's for an occasion. Having said, I came here for a birthday party. Â The food is never ending and delicious. Â The dancing starts after appetizers, which I thought was the main course, and goes all night. Â I only lasted till 2AM and the musicians were still playing. Â When you come to Zhivago you're paying for the whole experience. Â Be prepared to dance, eat, and drink. Â I don't care what ethnicity you are, if you're feeding me, getting me buzzed, and then letting me bust a move - I'm in.
Review Source:I wouldn't call it a stereotypical Russian restaurant at all. Being European myself, I have seen the real Russian restaurants and this one is nothing to write home about. The food is what I would describe as meh, salty, overcooked and small portioned. The place was empty, only 2 tables for the waitstaff to take care of, yet they were moving like molasses. Their alcoholic mixed drinks were heavily watered down! If you want liquor, stick with the hard kind. Overall I will not be coming back. There are better places like the Livingroom & etc.
Review Source:This is a sort of stereotypical old school banquet hall type Russian restaurant where large parties of people go to celebrate something or other. I tried Muscovy Duck, it was pretty good. I visited Russia for a month, this reminds me of the expensive looking places I was afraid to step into in Russia for fear of financial humiliation. Â Most customers were speaking Russian when a Russian friend and I came for dinner. Â I was here on a Thursday, I understand the lively nightlife feeling is on Fridays and Saturdays. Kinda fabct feeling place.
Review Source:We have had pretty good food here in the past, but our last visit was a disaster:
- one of our appetizers was never delivered
- the other appetizer was tasty (trio of spreads), but before we could enjoy it, our main meal arrived not even 5 minutes after our appetizer had arrived
- the angel hair pasta was completely overcooked and the sauce was something a frat boy would whip late at night
- my wife ordered a salad with grilled vegetables (asparagus, zucchini, eggplant); she received a salad 10 minutes after the other food arrived, and the salad had grilled peppers, bean and celery ... celery! we sent it back and 20 minutes later, a worse salad showed up with uncooked zucchini
- their wine list was not extensive but looked fine until we found that they were out of the first five types of wine that we asked out
Finally, when we complained to the manager about the salad, she could not even manage an apology and I needed to track her down to get the bill (they did take the salad off of the bill)
holy shit! how do you describe a 6 hour eating, drinking and dancing extravaganza with no brides or girls entering womanhood?!?!? This is what every Saturday night at Zhivago is like?!?!
We came with my bf's Ukranian boss who wanted to show us a good time and a good time we all had! Â First of all, when we arrived at 8, the place was already packed with people and GIANT bouquets of flowers. The four of us ate no less than a dozen different cold apps, about half a dozen hot apps, 4 bottles of wine and a bottle of makers mark...and that was all before our entrees were even served!
We danced the night away to a live Russian band singing songs dedicated to vodka, drinking and based on the music videos playing on the TVs in the background...dude ranches?!
Seriously, I actually had to take a nap at around 1am...I was exhausted. I felt like such a wimp compared to the 60 year old babushkas still dancing next to our table when we left at 2:30am.
Seriously an awesome experience but definitely not something I have the energy to do more than once a year!
To be fair there are some common themes to all Russian restaurants and I know, having grown up around the corner from Astoria (one of the first 3 Russian restaurants opened in Chicago). Â Many have come and gone over the years, but the following key elements apply to all (except for Maestro in Northbrook, which is a REAL fusion restaurant) for a typical Sat night party.
- Most of the food is cooked in bulk throughout the day
- Most of the salads and apps are cooked on Friday(if you are lucky or before)
- There will be pushing and shoving on the dance floor
- There will be a fight or two breaking out at some point; either inside or outside. Â Odds increase if you are still there post midnight.
- Now with smoking outlawed, you can at least breath indoors, but just outside the door there will be at least 20 people smoking at all times during the eve/night. Â
The reason I bring all this up, is that the Russian restaurants in Chicago are somewhat "incestuous". Â By that I mean that most current owners/partners could trace their start in the industry as a musician, waiter, part owner, cook,etc to one of the original trifecta of restaurants. Â Think 7 degrees of Kevin Bacon.
Zhivago has gone through its ups and downs. Â I ate here during their opening weekend many years ago and was fucking starving after wards! Â That is saying a lot, as usually the tables in a Russian restaurant are overflowing. Â They wanted to get "cute" and served small portions on huge plates. That is not fusion, that is BS!
They quickly corrected and service and food improved over time.
A 'hidden' cost/issue is that the standard meal here(prixe-fixe) is the usual standard for 90% of the dinners on a weekend, it includes very little of good food, by that I mean proteins and shellfish. Â Almost all are add ons and run up the bill quite a bit.
I can keep going forever, but to summarize:
Good place to hang out, eat some mediocre food, drink like a fish and dance your ass off.
If you go ala-carte, your meal flow will be screwed up: they are not designed to do that on a Sat night. Â
Week nights and week days they run great lunch specials: mostly geared towards older clientele or post funeral service functions(they get a A LOT of business from the cemetery across the street)
If you came here for a dining experience, you will be disappointed.
The brunch here is a joke, mostly consisting of left overs from service on Fri and Sat. Â Trust me, I am not making this up! Â I had to go several times due to family obligation, but I did not eat a thing besides some potatoes and Caesar salad. Â The shared "main entree" platter consisted of several skewers of pork and lamb, a few pieces of chicken and some sides. Â It came out cold, as I assume they forgot to fully reheat it before service.
To a Muscovite like me, Zhivago is probably the epitome of stereotypical Russian restaurant/banquet hall/obnoxious place in Cook County.
I was reading the reviews before and was slightly taken aback by how little attention the atmosphere got. Â People do not come here for the food. Â Honestly, I couldn't tell you what the food was like and I've been going here since I was 7. Â Most of the time I'm here, I see a couple nice Russians, a couple heavily drunk ones, and the rest are simply loud and rude. Â I remember the drunken fistfights I saw as a kid; everyone gets in your face.
Stuff like this obviously puts people off. Â It's clique-y when you go to Zhivago. Â But as a member of the clique, I gotta say that in the end, it's really entertaining.
I was very excited to go to Zhivago, since I've heard pretty good things. Unfortunately, they did not deliver and I would definitely not recommend this place.
1. Not enough parking space
2. After ordering appetizers, we waited over an hour to get them, main course followed almost right after
3. When placing orders we requested to have separate checks (10-person group), only to have the waiter figure out who ordered what at the end (another 45 min wait)
4. We ordered 2 bottles of vodka - 3 different people got charged for them...
The decor is amusing- mismatched in style and theme cheap paintings with some kind of short curtains hanging above; feels cluttered. They were still sweeping floors when we walked in at 6:30pm on Fri. night and while at least 4 other tables were already eating. Â
Appetizers were excellent, all 3 main courses were mediocre. The host was terribly rude. He actually came up to a regular patron of the restaurant and asked him when he was leaving because there were people waiting for his table. Ouch. I think he wasn't asking, I think he was telling him to leave. Wait staff was friendly but very slow service.
Overall, the ambiance was nice and entertaining. They have open space planning and next door banquet with live music, terrible singers, and a disco ball were for everyone to enjoy, or not. 3 of us ordered appetizers, meals, desert, alcohol, coffee and the total bill was only $71 with a $25 <a href="/redir?url=http%3A%2F%2Frestaurants.com&s=8b83bf0ff8b716aae84527dc95577a310f201b166dcca25c8ca3824b15703869" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">http://restaurants.com</a> coupon. Was worth the visit but wouldn't return. Oh yes, you get to see a parade of Russian wanna-bees in outrageous outfits, can be entertaining.
weirdest experience ever!! we pulled into the lot full of cars yet we were the only people in a 2000 sq ft odd restaurant space...one waitress...the appetizer was cold, entree colder and the pasta sauce tasted like it was out of a jar...yet people passed us by to enter into some mysterious area which seemed way more inviting than our cold entrees...we tried using our <a href="/redir?url=http%3A%2F%2Frestaurant.com&s=c5fe485af4df376130bee54f875814d79c4d7913e1258123b1206d2bdbf4873b" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">http://restaurant.com</a> coupon but they refused to take it including the wine and sadly we didnt make the threshold value on the food (thank god, $50 which would have killed us).
that being said, the decor was fine and so was the china...it has promise unfortunately we didn't see it
3 things you'll be impressed with at Zhivago and/or that will make your trip worthwhile:
1) the value. Â A plate of risotto for only $10? Â Half a roasted duck with cherry sauce for $14? Â Um, yes please!
2) the decor. Â Though it may feel like you're walking around in a life-sized antique chest to some, to others, it will feel exotic, European, and lavish. Â Bold colors, extravagant paintings, and old style curtains all around.
3) the amount of space available for banquets or special occasions.
Overall, the food is not the best you'll have. Â The gourmet sampler platter, for instance, offers plenty of meat eggrolls, bbq chicken, fried calamari, and bruschetta for $20, but this is where quantity overrides quality. Â The veal medallions and risotto were okay, but nothing to write home about.
Best Russian restaurant in Chicago and I've been to a lot of Russian restaurants. The variety and quality of food is excellent. The ambience and service get FIVE STARS! If you ever happen to attend a banquet function, it will be a lifetime experience, especially if you are non Russian (you probably haven't seen anything like that before). Very classy.
Review Source:Ugh. Ick. Blech. Bad.
Went to dinner with my parents here on a Sunday night. We were shown into a dining room area, not the main dining area though, I don't think? There was a room off to the side of us that seemed cooler than the one we were in. The dining room we were seated in was straight up tacky, with all sorts of weird, yet unmemorable stuff strewn about. We had a table/booth, and both seats were uncomfortable. Boo.
Our waitress was brisk and uninterested. My mom got the tilapia, my dad the stuffed cabbage, and I the fettucine alfredo with chicken added. I tasted my dad's dish, and it was pleasant, but my meal was almost inedible. The alfredo was thick, goopy, not even rich, it was just inedible. The chicken was rubbery and overdone. I'd say the only semi-decent aspect of the meal was my small caesar salad--lots of dressing, romaine, and cheese--even though I had to remove scoops of parmesan to make it palatable.
Ick! Meck! Bleck! Still bad. Won't go back. Sorry Mom 'n Dad, you're gonna have to up your standards while I'm around.
This is one of my favorite restaurants. Â It is a Russian "fusion" restaurant that incorporates some french, Italian and Asian influences. Â The consistent quality of the food and service is what keeps me coming back time after time. Â This is a huge restaurant and is great for dates, small or large parties, weddings and everything in between. Â The prices are also extremely reasonable.
So onto the food. Â Some of my favorite appetizers include the smoked salmon and sturgeon (they smoke it themselves) and the Mediterranean seafood salad. Â The Mediterranean seafood salad has fresh greens, calamari, shrimp, and a wonderful sesame dressing. Â It can be eaten as an entree but I usually share it with others as an appetizer. Â
The entrees are spectacular. Â They have some of the best lamb chops usually 3 or four double chops with potatoes and vegetables for about $20. Â They also have fantastic duck with cherry sauce and the same sides. Â Today they had Chilean sea bass with risotto. Â It was the best fish that I have eaten at any restaurant. Â I should point out that I hate risotto, yet I have had it twice here and it is fantastic... the Italian restaurants could learn how to make risotto from this place. Â For drinks I would recommend the Russian or Ukrainian beers and the Russian dream (a coffee drink with liquor (I would take a pass on the martinis though). Â
The deserts are fantastic too, particularly the tiramisu and ice cream with tart cherry sauce. Â They sometimes have good specials like carrot cake or the chocolate napoleons they had tonight. Â They even make a good cappuccino.
I've been invited to this place a few times, and all the occasions took place at the banquet side. To be honest, I dislike Zhivago so much that every time I have to go back there I dread it.
The setting is all tacky, starting with Â
kitsch wall painting, the decor that's hanging from the ceiling and on the walls, and finishing with the curtains, drapes, table cloths and chair  covers.
The food is over the top as well. It's processed, overcooked, over fried, salty, greasy. The live music is loud and the song selection is terrible.
I can see people coming back to Zhivago just for this particular "thrill". Â I just get an upset stomach after each visit.
I was here for a big party with a Russian family and it was one of the most memorable banquet meals I've ever been to, the entire restaurant is beautiful! I'm talking "WOW are you sure this is a restaurants and not a straight banquet hall?" kind of beautiful. Well maybe just a step under that, Â but it seems like such a high class place to eat you won't feel right coming in shorts and sneakers even though nobody will throw you out if you do.
The two entrees I tried were Chicken Breast Florentine and the Bowtie pasta Gardinera. HOLY CRAP if there are a better pair of chicken and pasta dishes at this restaurant I would be surprised because these are such mind blowing flavors and fantastic portions. They have a group bar setup if you're interested in planning an event there and you want dessert? The Pesca Ripiena's are a must have. They're this nice creamy, chocolaty mass covered with peanuts and cocoa powder.
Oh, and everyone's on the same page here including myself. The service is fantastic. I'd love to come here for a casual dinner, because having a party here is a blast.
let me clarify. last time i was there was in 2002. BUT - it was my absolutely fav place to go to for lunch with colleagues, for dinner with my boyfriend, for big b-day parties with friends, or for a few drinks with the bartender))))))))
always super quality, super service, super great. we just don't have places like this in san francisco
The banquet side - Â you pay one flat fee per person and get a ton of food. There's also a band with live music and dancing. The food keeps coming and coming, make sure you tell them to pack the leftovers, otherwise they'll just throw it out.
The restaurant, on the other side of the restaurant, has fresh authentic Russian food. the service is good and courteous. The prices are average, and the portions are average as well.
If you're not Russian, go with Russians or you just won't get it. Massive portions of fabulous comort food, along with copious amounts of semi sweet Georgian wines (others are available) and top shelf hooch for shooting during toasts. The dinner and dancing combo is great but depends a lot on which band is playing.
You don't go here for a meal before a movie, you go here to spend your entire evening to eat until your buttons pop and drink until you think you can dance like a superstar. Go with a big group and just overindulge. That's what it's all about.
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