Best Fun Restaurants in Avondale

Went for Santa Baby experience and it was AMAZING. I originally made reservations for the wrong date and it filled up- I was able to send a message and she changed the date for us (Thank you!!) When we checked in I was greeted with a birthday card signed by everyone (thank you!). All three stories were immersed in Christmas decoration. It wasn’t overly crowded, even for a Friday at 9pm. The drinks were good, service was 10/10. And as tiki bar lovers, we will be back next time we are in Chicago!

A wonderful evening with unique tastes and flavors, exciting choices. The menu is small but choices are plentiful. It was very hard choose from the selections. Everything had potential. We had four appetizers from the rolling cart brought to the table. The trout roe tart with creme freche was light, not too salty, and a great starter. The fried olives with lamb sausage made me, not an olive fan, very happy. The olive tastes came through nicely while the lamb stuffing balanced olive nicely. The marinated herring was perfect, very fresh and light. The eggplant rolls were also perfectly made and paired brilliantly with farmer cheese and dill. A selection of breads and crackers were a good addition, also from the cart. The second course was dumplings. Although our first choice-moksha, a layered pasta with farmers cheese and porcini mushrooms, was out, we were quite pleased with the halushki, filled with braised chicken and topped with a tasty chanterelle mushroom sauce. Next, the borsch- with plenty of duck and smoked pears, and potatoes. Great beet flavor and amazing duck! Then our meat course, the pork belly shashlik, not your traditional Ukrainian dish, but wonderfully flavored and perfectly roasted. As a side, we couldn’t say no to Banosh, grits with goat’s milk cheese and mushrooms. We couldn’t believe how light and airy the grits were how the cheese and mushrooms worked to add great flavor complementing the pork. We packed half of this dish to take home. We even shared a dessert— drunken sour cherry chocolate torte, which was delicate and delicious- reminding us a little of tiramisu with chocolate and cherries. We ordered more than necessary, but everything was exceptional and worth having. There was much more on the menu that we would want to try next time. Service was good. The background music was pleasant it seemed like a little techno Muzak, but it was not obtrusive at all. The portions were wellsized with everything shareable for two.

If you are a lover of true Roman cuisine, you'll feel right at home at il Carciofo. It (selfishly) pains me to write this as it is already a long line to get a reservation, but as a couple who truly loves spending time in Italy and have yet to find an American restaurant that holds its salt, Chef Joe Flamm and his team hit this one out of the park. Watching him work the kitchen was like watching a conductor at the Orchestra. The carbonara, carciofi and pistachio gelato transported us right back to our favorite spots in Rome. We originally booked back to back nights in case we had a last minute scheduling conflict, fortunately we did not. We enjoyed last night and we'll be back again tonight to take on the other half of the menu. Hats off, Chef!

First time here. Tremendous blend of tastes from start to finish ! We tried 3 unique cocktails and were not disappointed. The Fig Carré is my favorite. For starters the Potted Carrots and Shaved Butternut First timers & Squash were delicious! Of the pastas our favorite ended up being Stuffed Farfalle with Pappardelle coming in 2nd. The rainbow trout was excellent & light. We so enjoyed every taste! The butter cake was THE BOMB. Service was attentive and top notch . Was exceptional culinary experience.