One of a kind restaurant. The meal was delicious from beginning to end. The artistry of the plates is unmatched. Very good food.
One of a kind restaurant. The meal was delicious from beginning to end. The artistry of the plates is unmatched. Very good food.
Alinea is one of the best restaurants. The food is creative. It is like art. The wines and cocktails are great too. Everything was tasty.
An incredible experience from start to finish. Fun and adventurous, the food was delicious, approachable and thoughtfully presented. Touring the kitchen was memorable and the staff were knowledgeable and engaging.
Booked Alinea for our Anniversary and unfortunately only had the option of early dining that truly felt rushed despite in fairness being informed in advance of the time limitation. The cuisine was excellent and somewhat brilliant, but not incomparable, as was the accompanying service, but...regrettably did not live up to either the hype or resultant expectations. Having dined in many a Michelin star restaurant throughout the world, Alinea somehow lacked the sophistication of the others both in respect to ambiance and servicing culture seemingly somewhat "raw". Having experienced the full tasting menu accompanied by the reserve wine pairing, the writer deemed both to be overvalued given the aforementioned lack of diminished and exceptional distinctiveness. In our minds eye, this establishment certainly doesn't equivocate to the likes of Eleven Madison Park, Azurmendi, Joel Robuchon, Den, Kyoto Kitcho Arashiyama to name but a few competitive institutions. There is simply something special that sets these others up and above Alinea infusing a desire for many return engagements that Alinea did not present.More
The Alinea is a superb restaurant in the Lincoln Park neighborhood of Chicago. It has garnered numerous accolades including a string of Michelin 3-star ratings. It prides itself on an innovative approach to modern cuisine using on-demand ingredient building-blocks for culinary courses. Within the restaurant...are 3 different dining experiences: the Kitchen Table, the Galley Menu and the Salon Menu that are home to such inventive food fare as Lamb with caper leaf, grapes & olive to proscuitto with passion fruit & zath lavana. My party, under reservation, opted for the Kitchen Table seating. A cutting edge multi-course culinary experience was had where I should have taken notes to remember what I eat. I did remember; however, the Octopus with the Asian Sauce ..........delicious, tangy ...........crying for more. One of Chicago's best restaurants..........a bucket list spot to eat in.More
First Michelin 3-star restaurant experience, over a celebratory weekend in Chicago. Staff excellent, food creative, ambiance perfect. Except for the filo layered biscuits with foie gras, none of the 6 courses blew us away, but the food and the wine pairings were perfectly balanced. Price...somewhat reasonable, but we are validated that equally lovely and less expensive eats are in our own hometown SF Bay Area.More
Alinea has been a bucket list restaurant for my husband and I for quite some time so we were thrilled to be able to secure a reservation for the Salon on our recent trip to Chicago. Our favorite courses were the hot potato, truffle explosion,...smoked black cod, and, of course, the absolute artwork that was the dessert course. The staff were engaging, funny, and extremely attentive. Overall it was a truly memorable experience and a great way to celebrate our anniversary.More
We were really looking forward to celebrating our 40th wedding anniversary at Alinea. I will say the ambience is very nice. That's where the compliments end. Our meal was OK. We purchased the wine pairing, and the pours were like small tastings at a vinyard....The food was very salty. The dessert was just down right icky. I don't enjoy eating directly off of the table. When I asked for a touch more sherry, I was told, "I'll have to check." Really? They were in a rush to get us out the door, as the 2nd seatings were starting. Absolutely not worth the $1500 price tag.More
Great celebration for my birthday, 16 courses everything so creative and memorable! Our reason for visiting Chicago!
Very good food? Was served ON the table and very small portions. If my grandpa was her he'd say- this is a scam/ ripoff for notoriety.
Worst three star dining experience EVER. My partner and I had a super disappointing meal here. First off, with a 3* meal, I would expect flawless execution in both service and food. The staff was condescending, dismissive & outright hostile / rude. The food, uninspired...and messily executed. I've had the privilege to dine at multiple 3*'s around the world, and sadly, this doesn't even compare. I feel this place is resting on their reputation, but is failing to maintain what made it great.More
It's been less than two weeks since we had dinner here and I have no recollection of what was served,,,,besides the "paint" dessert and that course only because of its presentation; the dessert itself was ordinary. This sums up Alinea - long on showmanship, but...short on substance. The ambience is nice, the service is good, the food is fine, but three stars this place is NOT. You are going to drop nearly a thousand dollars for this "experience." I would definitely not add insult to injury by dropping a few hundred more on the wine pairing; get a reasonably priced bottle, enjoy the show and tasty morsels, realize that you have been duped and seek out Chicago's finer restaurants.More
Almost every dish was too salty. It felt like Alinea is more about the forms much less about flavor. The last dessert “show”, which I think tried to be Jackson Pollock splashing different ingredients on a piece of frozen plastic board, was very messy with...mediocre flavor and not very artfully performed. It was a strange evening with so many things going on during, but without a single dish standing out. Very surprised it’s still a three star.More
It was a great experience for sure, quite dramatic in all aspects. I enjoyed it, but I have to say I have eaten better food in NY and Paris. We did the wine paring, which I would recommend. One of the parings was a beer,...which , if you are doing a wine paring, that doesn't fit it, or you should make sure the guests do drink beer, or offer an alternate, as I don't drink beer at all. The biscuit (bread) had too much baking powder. I could taste it in my mouth. The response was " We will let the kitchen know." Staff wanted to know your comments after every course, but it was a little bit of overkill, as if you didn't love it, what were they going to do about it? I would not go back, something to try once ,but save your money and look for the upcoming chefs instead, who need to work hard to prove what they are doing on a daily basis. The wine list was well curated and very impressive. We went for my birthday celebration. They have a Betty Crocker cake that is liquified, white impressive, but too sweet and gross for me.More
Expect excellent, professional service with carefully curated courses and (optional) wine pairings. This is food as performance art so pay attention to the descriptions and directions of the staff who will take you on a journey through haute cuisine that has both substance and whimsy....The courses and wines proceed from first bite to the last lick of the dessert spoon in a manner designed to engage all the senses. I won’t mention details as that would spoil the fun and detract from the overall experience. Yes, it’s pricey, so highly recommended with the caveat, “this is for foodies; don’t take a ‘meat & potato’ guest—they may not get it.”More