Chef’s Special Cocktail Bar
Denise · 167 Google reviewsChef’s Special Cocktail Bar — high-caliber chinese in Bucktown. Order the Almond Cookies. Contemporary look with thoughtful details, and vegetarian-friendly. Mike Goldberg: "A mix of sweet, spicy, and savory between the mustard wasabi, sweet n sour and chili oil" [$$]
What 790 diners keep saying
What 790 diners keep saying
verbatim, from Google
“Chef's Special is Americanized Chinese food elevated while remaining incredibly approachable. This is a special place - perfect for a Saturday date night. If you're a millennial, you're LOVE the music and overall ambiance. Everything we ordered was fantastic. One of my new favorite restaurants in Chicago.”
“Been a while since I waited in line for a restaurant. By 5 pm opening time the line was 30 people deep. We grabbed seats at the bar and three different people helped us out during the meal, good team effort. We way way over ordered - portions are generous - and probably had two more meals worth of food boxed up. The noodle dishes were both very good. My wife claimed dibs on the cashew chicken leftovers, no sharing. The carrots were good but I wasn’t real clear how they fit with the rest of the menu. Cocktails were great, more savory than I expected which went well with the food. Friendly people around us mostly, except the person hovering for our seats once we paid the bill.”
“all the food was so delightful! pleaaase get the string beans!!”
“Chef’s Special Cocktail Bar is a highly delectable experience that every Chicagoan must try. My friend and I went in hungry and left utterly mind-blown. We started off with Cocktails (and Old Fashioned) and a wonderful N/A THC option (Choom - Solar Lite) both were reasonably priced and exceedingly delicious. Our server Jen was wildly attentive and knowledgeable about the ins and outs of the menu. We started with their Smashed Cumbers and worked our way into the special which was the Dry Rub Lamb Ribs. The Smashed Cucumbers were zingy and fresh - the Lamb Ribs were out of this world. For our Entree we split the Rolled Noodles which came with spiced short ribs as the protein and it was dense and highly incredible. For desert we enjoyed the Hong Kong Spice Cake (pictured) and our bartender Nora had us set up and ready for desert before we could even blink. All in all. Chef’s Special Cocktail Bar is an exemplary dining experiences with a robust and delicious menu, a friendly and knowledgeable staff, and lastly a highly impactful playlist of some of the best music I’ve heard in a while. Everyone should enjoy a cozy night in at this establishment. I assure you - you will leave satiated and ready for your next visit.”
“Outstanding in every way. Excellent food, attentive service and a fun crowd.”
“We took a chance walking in on a busy Thursday night with no reservations, hoping the chef’s special reputation would hold up and it did! We found seats at the bar and ordered the crab Rangoon’s, string beans, and spicy dry chili chicken. Every dish was fantastic, and the portions were impressively large. Such a great place for Chinese food.”
“Such a cute place with amazing food. Came here for a drink and a bite to eat with a friend and it was perfect. The food was delicious, the drinks were great, and the bartenders were very nice and always available. I got the potstickers and Mongolia beef and I was very pleased. Definitely coming back”
“Food was great, the service was better. Plus you gotta love the $12 Hamm's, whiskey shot, and egg roll happy hour special.”
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