RH Chicago | The Gallery at the Three Arts Club — Attraction in Chicago

(This review contrasts Restoration Hardware to Room & Board)

After saving for 5 years my wife and I knew we wanted a "Restoration Hardware" master suite. It has a look!

We visited the store with a good idea of what we were looking for from previous visits. We were down to the bedding to finalize before placing our master makeover. After walking around the design atelier for about 10 minutes we saw many designers on their macs working away. We specifically came in on a Sunday morning to beat the "brunch" crowd at the $$$ furniture store. It's a shame... we were so excited to get everything ordered! We started to leave, saying we will just order it on-line. THEN.... a manager stopped us, asked us if we needed help and then went directly over and pulled one of these "designers" off their computer. "Here, please help these folks". We were refreshed by the oversight and were back on track.

We ordered! Claire was great with her communication throughout the process. Always responding quickly to our questions as we added more and more merchandise to our order. This is the only reason there is one star in this review, also because you can't leave less.

Okay... We are starting to ship. We paid for their delivery service but for some reason we were told that some of our items would be coming ups. We said, "ok" but we were concerned to leave large cardboard boxes with $1k items in them on our front porch with large RH logos on them. None the less we get an email that we can schedule a delivery with UPS if we pay $5 a box to change. Seriously.... So on UPS delivery day we are watching our Ring Door bell... sure enough it all comes and it sitting on my front porch.

Ok. So now I have dragged the large boxes into my house... Mind you at this point there is thousands of dollars sitting on my front porch and now in my entry. Excited to see something from our investment I decide to start opening boxes and putting together my new lamps and bedding. At some point I stop and ask my wife... did we order this stuff from WAYFAIR? 1. It's all from China and 2. I'm putting it together. I can't believe I find myself putting together my $700 lamps... Mind you they are missing a screw that is vital to assembling them. Oh yah, those large boxes... Now I have those in my house. Any one in Chicago tried to get rid of ridiculous amounts of trash...? It's not easy. Surely this isn't the RH experience...

Ok. Delivery time. The paid service. Granted it was only $199 I only had higher expectations because Room & Board does it for $85. Much better which I will detail out soon. We were given a window. We were called when they were on their way. Off to a pretty good start. They arrived on time and proceeded to start unloading our new custom furniture onto the street. No introduction. Just two nice guys in a un marked truck that was tired, in basic black clothes.

Fast forward... they bring everything in. Pleasant & efficient. Only a couple marks on the wall. Easily removed with a magic eraser. A couple items were still in boxes and were left that way. No unpacking. The bed was "assembled", We still had to take it all apart to lower the box springs after calling to find out that was even an option.

We are unpacked now. All assembled, broken and missing parts accounted for. Still disappointed. Being the small business owners we are - let's call and give them the opportunity to fix this. Find if this is a normal experience. I leave a message as Mondays the "leads" are in meanings. Around 2:15 the same day Tripp calls. Guess what... This is their experience. It's a show. The showroom and magazines and great design is where their experience ends.

Room & Board: Made In the USA! Not China like RH. Employee delivery drivers. Clean trucks. Guys in name polos. Unpacked. Felt feet installed. Packaging removed... Room staged in a general setting and inspected.

Long story short... yes RH has the look but Room & Board has the complete package. Get American Made Furniture for less, with a...

We love the look and style of RH, and when we set out to redo our bedroom in a new home, wanted to buy the furniture there. The first salesperson we worked with asked for a floor plan, which we had, with measurements. He then selected so much furniture, it would not have actually fit in the space. He failed to consider the drapery we'd picked out and how much space it would take up when selecting furniture. I contacted RH, asking to be connected with someone who had a lot of experience with spatial issues, hoping that someone more experienced with the software would be able to help us more effectively. The second person corrected the issue that alarmed me with the first layout, but did not take into account the way a corner of the closet jutted into the room, and also tried to sell us furniture that would not actually fit into the room. At this point, there is no way I could confidently shop there. So many other stores have more experienced and thoughtful people working there who will work with customers to make sure the layout is right for the needs of the people who will use it and the realities of the space. I wanted to make it work with RH, and hope it's evident that I voiced my concerns and asked for help, but the outcome has made me decide to not even attempt to shop there...

A small of group of friends and I came to RH over the weekend and had an amazing dining experience from start to finish! We had a reservation for 6 of us at at 1. We had to wait about 15-20 min because the party before us had paid and were sitting at the table still. It didn't bother us much but it was a little annoying to wait when we had a reservation. We got to our table and our server, Nick kindly greeted us. Next thing we know, he treated the table to 3 appetizer plates on the house for the inconvenience of our wait. We were absolutely SHOCKED! We all ordered our meals and everything was delicious. Nick made rounds on our table again and brought back new bacon for my friend because he felt the first side was overcooked without my friend even asking, then he completely took the bacon off our bill. Nick's service was absolutely outstanding. I've truly never had a dining experience quite like this one. Nick was kind, patient and offered great suggestions. He attentive and detailed and our entire party truly appreciated it! In a time where restaurants are short staffed and people are often impatient, Nick shined like a diamond....