Service review insights for Illinois, United States

$4500 for 4 people. I was not wrong for expecting perfection. First, we (and everyone else) arrived 15 minutes early - as requested by their staff. 20 people stuffed into their vestibule for 15 minutes not able to move or talk above a whisper. It was hot, awkward and uncomfortable. We were seated on time and led to the Gallery. There were 4 of us, so for the first part of the experience we were 10 feet away from our dinner companions. More awkwardness. The gentlemen next to me and my husband was the 3rd in a party of three, so here he is 10 feet away from his companions waving at them from across the restaurant. We had a laugh about it, but it's strange and we felt bad for him. Then the hostess arrives and gives a speech about the experience. It was overacted, like an irritating theatre kid trying too hard. The food was meh. Not one time the whole night did anyone say "Oh my god, this is amazing". Yes, they use cool ingredients and interesting combinations, but nothing was truly memorable - except for dessert. I opted for the Alinea wine pairing that was $400 extra per person. Again, I was expecting perfection and was disappointed. It was mostly white wines. Of the 3 reds, we really enjoyed one - the Hirsch Vineyards Block 8 Pinot Noir. It's $90 a bottle online. So yes, it was good but for the $400 up charge per person, serving a $90 bottle is unacceptable. You gave me a used Lexus and I paid for a new Rolls Royce. "The most exquisite and rare wine selections" - it wasn't. After the first service, they take you to the kitchen and give you seasoned popcorn. Again, for $4500 I was disappointed with popcorn. They took us back to the Gallery and the tables were set up normally, which was a nice relief. We could finally converse with our friends. The service is good, the servers are friendly, but they rotate all night - the only consistent server we had was the sommelier. The whole evening was more about the theater and less about the food and wine. Again, they use creative ingredients and diverse presentations. But nothing tasted amazing or was memorable aside from the cool dessert. I waited and thought for 2 months before writing this. Overall, I was disappointed with the whole experience based on the cost. It's maybe a $500 dinner per person, not $1150. Too many details are overlooked for this price. The Gallery @ Alinea x 4 $1,740 Alinea Pairing x4 $1,580 Subtotal $3,320 Service Charge (20%) $664 Taxes $468.12 Order Fee $5 TOTAL $4,457.12

1. book or reserve in advance, likely to be busy, during Lunch hrs/Evenings and Very Busy Weekends! 2. Decor is Just about it, with a Motif of Greek panels, in the main hall 3. Very simple seating, Main hall is rather tight with tables, prefer the smaller hall connected thru 4 stairs 4. Outdoor sitting is there, but check on phone if open or Not. 5. Drinks -- Ok, nothing so special, good for a Office Lunch... ask them to have less Ice. 6. Starters :: Order the Cheese starter, they light it up before up, a small slab of Greek Cheese, but unique and nice experience. Meat ball starters, Prawns starters are good. Quantity 2 starters for 3 diners is best! Starters taste : Semi Authentic Greek, Mild to Medium spicy, more authentic available in Chicago..... 7. Entrees: All are good, experience them over a few visits. Cooked generally Mild to Medium. Quantity : above average, better to have 2 for 3 diners, else you will need ToGo packs. 8. Service /Cleanliness : IN spite of packed restaurant, Service is FAst, and with courtesy ( the wait time for the 1st service visit is very less compared to other restaurant's in Fulton Area. After order preparation time:: Quite fast ( to me it looked like , the similar dishes are ordered, and may be the Kitchen prepares the basic or core items in bulk) 9. Not a place to while your time, more or less, Diners around you will be leaving table in about an hour.

20yrs ago, used to be plenty choice 'round the Chi of Cajun joints throwing a decent Fat Tuesday with an actual Zydeco band. No longer, in a world when everyone's Irish on 3/17 - a few beads & shrimp pass for Mardi Gras in every bar. Welcome to the new South Loop, where a FORMIDABLE effort was put forth by the Chicago Firehouse, making largely the right choices. Opting for a well curated & representative buffet, pans were kept full & the vittles HOT thru the evening. Purists may decry absence of a gumbo, spinach etouffee, or fish entree, but fresh warm beignets (smartly) served by roving waiters made up. Open seating, cash bar, plus automatic gratuity allowed for a plausible advertised entry of $55. Cloth tablecloths, napkins, & real cutlery proclaimed that the ample wait staff meant business. And then, there was the band.... traditional Preservation Hall style jazz (with a damn Sousaphone!) kept-em drankin'& dancing up front, with an occasional sashay around the dining hall! OUTRAGEOUS!! C'est une fait accompli!

1st time at this location and they really give the minimum on each item. When you start out with asking for more rice, you already know how the rest will go. It was actually closing time and this young girl working barely wanted to put a full portion in our chipotle bowl. Had to ask for more tomatoes and corn and she gave us a dab of sour cream. Then she had the nerve to act irritated when we asked for a little more corn and cheese which we don't have to do at other chipotles. She literally gave us like 9 pieces of lettuces on top. At this point after she huffed and puffed... i didn't want to ask for more lettuce and I didn't address her attitude . I just know not to go back to this location. Terrible service

2 months ago I had a great experience. Im always fair with my reviews. Don't dine HERE. I was ignored by the white staff at the bar who only acknowledged the 2 white women who came in about 20mns after me. Not only did I not get acknowledged while sitting at the bar, I also watched the staff try to give my food to the white guy sitting next to me. Opened my food and after specifically requesting no onions due to allergy, I get my sandwich and it has onions. Eat at your own risk!

A lot of people praise highly about this place but as a Chicagoan native. This is sub par at it’s best. From pizza, pasta, sides and drinks. It was all a let down. I was hoping the pasta would at least set the standards but everything was so disappointing. From the food, the drinks and the service. Disappointing all around. If you don’t believe what the bartenders think they deserve when it comes to tips, They will not be shy and confront you about it in front of everyone. Be aware. Luckily there is a lot of great and authentic pizza shops around the area.

Paid $105.00 for 3 people. Went to Willis Tower with the passes we purchased and we were told we could not use them because they were for something called 360. When I purchased them it clearly stated that they were for Willis Tower...how do I get a refund? Extremely disappointed

Review rating: 1.0

Never come back again. Kinda racist though. the 4th visit was so bad and it is the last one, we (2 people) didn't have reservation since there were still a plenty of empty seats. then the host led us to the table, which is a tiny narrow kinda like a flower stand or something set along the hallway and right beside the curtain of the entrance. Plus, this table doesn't have any place to put our coat or stuff, no extra chair and we only have bar stools, so we cannot even hang the coat behind ourselves. and it's very risky to sit there since almost everyone pass by through us. then I asked if we can move to other seats, by then, there was one besides the window and one behind us which was a coach seating. the host said he needs go back to frontdesk and check(he said he is new here later), but when he came back, he brought another 2 people group took the window seat, I tried to grab him but couldn't, the next time he showed off he gave the table behind us to the new 2 people group and finally he dropped by. I questioned why he didn't give those table to us since we came first. he said they were all reserved tables, which you cannot find any option of where you seat in the reservation system, because I reserved the seats for our first 2 visits. Food was good for the first 3 times' visit. service was not bad. even the ambiance is a little loud music. But we will never go back again. I feel sad because we went there since when they just opened to support their business, time by time now they are getting more people and they started treating us like trash.

Review rating: 1.0

$4500 for 4 people. I was not wrong for expecting perfection. First, we (and everyone else) arrived 15 minutes early - as requested by their staff. 20 people stuffed into their vestibule for 15 minutes not able to move or talk above a whisper. It was hot, awkward and uncomfortable. We were seated on time and led to the Gallery. There were 4 of us, so for the first part of the experience we were 10 feet away from our dinner companions. More awkwardness. The gentlemen next to me and my husband was the 3rd in a party of three, so here he is 10 feet away from his companions waving at them from across the restaurant. We had a laugh about it, but it's strange and we felt bad for him. Then the hostess arrives and gives a speech about the experience. It was overacted, like an irritating theatre kid trying too hard. The food was meh. Not one time the whole night did anyone say "Oh my god, this is amazing". Yes, they use cool ingredients and interesting combinations, but nothing was truly memorable - except for dessert. I opted for the Alinea wine pairing that was $400 extra per person. Again, I was expecting perfection and was disappointed. It was mostly white wines. Of the 3 reds, we really enjoyed one - the Hirsch Vineyards Block 8 Pinot Noir. It's $90 a bottle online. So yes, it was good but for the $400 up charge per person, serving a $90 bottle is unacceptable. You gave me a used Lexus and I paid for a new Rolls Royce. "The most exquisite and rare wine selections" - it wasn't. After the first service, they take you to the kitchen and give you seasoned popcorn. Again, for $4500 I was disappointed with popcorn. They took us back to the Gallery and the tables were set up normally, which was a nice relief. We could finally converse with our friends. The service is good, the servers are friendly, but they rotate all night - the only consistent server we had was the sommelier. The whole evening was more about the theater and less about the food and wine. Again, they use creative ingredients and diverse presentations. But nothing tasted amazing or was memorable aside from the cool dessert. I waited and thought for 2 months before writing this. Overall, I was disappointed with the whole experience based on the cost. It's maybe a $500 dinner per person, not $1150. Too many details are overlooked for this price. The Gallery @ Alinea x 4 $1,740 Alinea Pairing x4 $1,580 Subtotal $3,320 Service Charge (20%) $664 Taxes $468.12 Order Fee $5 TOTAL $4,457.12

Signal: 0.0%

1. book or reserve in advance, likely to be busy, during Lunch hrs/Evenings and Very Busy Weekends! 2. Decor is Just about it, with a Motif of Greek panels, in the main hall 3. Very simple seating, Main hall is rather tight with tables, prefer the smaller hall connected thru 4 stairs 4. Outdoor sitting is there, but check on phone if open or Not. 5. Drinks -- Ok, nothing so special, good for a Office Lunch... ask them to have less Ice. 6. Starters :: Order the Cheese starter, they light it up before up, a small slab of Greek Cheese, but unique and nice experience. Meat ball starters, Prawns starters are good. Quantity 2 starters for 3 diners is best! Starters taste : Semi Authentic Greek, Mild to Medium spicy, more authentic available in Chicago..... 7. Entrees: All are good, experience them over a few visits. Cooked generally Mild to Medium. Quantity : above average, better to have 2 for 3 diners, else you will need ToGo packs. 8. Service /Cleanliness : IN spite of packed restaurant, Service is FAst, and with courtesy ( the wait time for the 1st service visit is very less compared to other restaurant's in Fulton Area. After order preparation time:: Quite fast ( to me it looked like , the similar dishes are ordered, and may be the Kitchen prepares the basic or core items in bulk) 9. Not a place to while your time, more or less, Diners around you will be leaving table in about an hour.

Signal: 0.0%

20yrs ago, used to be plenty choice 'round the Chi of Cajun joints throwing a decent Fat Tuesday with an actual Zydeco band. No longer, in a world when everyone's Irish on 3/17 - a few beads & shrimp pass for Mardi Gras in every bar. Welcome to the new South Loop, where a FORMIDABLE effort was put forth by the Chicago Firehouse, making largely the right choices. Opting for a well curated & representative buffet, pans were kept full & the vittles HOT thru the evening. Purists may decry absence of a gumbo, spinach etouffee, or fish entree, but fresh warm beignets (smartly) served by roving waiters made up. Open seating, cash bar, plus automatic gratuity allowed for a plausible advertised entry of $55. Cloth tablecloths, napkins, & real cutlery proclaimed that the ample wait staff meant business. And then, there was the band.... traditional Preservation Hall style jazz (with a damn Sousaphone!) kept-em drankin'& dancing up front, with an occasional sashay around the dining hall! OUTRAGEOUS!! C'est une fait accompli!

Signal: 0.0%

1st time at this location and they really give the minimum on each item. When you start out with asking for more rice, you already know how the rest will go. It was actually closing time and this young girl working barely wanted to put a full portion in our chipotle bowl. Had to ask for more tomatoes and corn and she gave us a dab of sour cream. Then she had the nerve to act irritated when we asked for a little more corn and cheese which we don't have to do at other chipotles. She literally gave us like 9 pieces of lettuces on top. At this point after she huffed and puffed... i didn't want to ask for more lettuce and I didn't address her attitude . I just know not to go back to this location. Terrible service

Signal: 0.0%