Esmé — Restaurant in Chicago

TLDNR: Save your $. I’ve had better meals & service at The Waffle House.

I initially wrote them via their reservation app, but they didn’t care enough to respond.

To start, the entryway was filthy, filled w/ salt & debris from outside. From there, a sloppily connected heater (trip hazard) blowing on the ground, and there’s no host stand. We’re just standing there for minutes not being acknowledged. We arrived on time for our reservation but were told they were still getting a table ready. I confirmed “excuse me, the reservation is just for the bar” (which has many open seats) and they confirmed. So, they bring us to wait behind a wall of torn up book spines disguised as “art”, but really it’s just a curtain of privilege blocking the rich people from seeing us. There’s nowhere to sit. There’s also no contact from anyone for 20 minutes, even though I see plenty of 6ft GQ catalog men and Barbies being given 5 star treatment, “oh you dining with us was simply wonderful, we can’t wait to see you again”, & with a glance at us, presumably peasant-looking pair, he walks away. Hah!

After 20 mins of standing & being ignored a runner takes us to a main restaurant table, to which I must have made a face since the guy said “oh or would you rather sit at the bar?”. Yes, that is what I reserved. Maybe he thought my friend and I were too fat and would break the uncomfortable, stiff bar chairs that have been empty the entire time. Anyway, no one offered to take our coats so we had to stuff them in a big clump on top of the bar.

We ordered 2 mezcal drinks from the down-to-earth, service with a smile bartender (a saving grace), after learning their house cocktails are batched. Her elixir was incredible, the highlight of the evening.

I haven’t even talked about the food yet. Let me tell you that Cheeto is not worth a dime. It’s a hollow air tube that tastes like a boring rice cracker. I only got straight ones, not even fun curved ones, and the cheese dust is just that dehydrated cheese powder with a dehydrated green chile Tabasco heat. The ones at the gas station taste better, so why even bother making a worse version of a Cheeto?

Moving on. I was told I needed to put my order all in at once. I added 6 oysters & a dessert to the coursed menu. The oysters tasted bitter & had an off putting salinity. I couldn’t understand why they were SO metallic, salty, and bitter all at once. There were big chunks of white pith on the lemon rinds they garnished with, so maybe that was part of it. It was only my dining partner’s 2nd experience with oysters (1st experience with a Michelin place) and even he was like “these are weird”.

Whoops. My napkin dropped on the floor and stayed there all service. Isn’t that nice? My friend dropped his too. That only got remedied when I picked them up myself after going to the bathroom.

Onward and downward. Meal was terrible. Courses were set down w/ no explanation from the runners. Fish was cold/raw in the middle & the greens tasted like old soggy dirty dishwater. Then there’s the wagyu—tough and mealy like it was ABC, but just plain cooked poorly. Gross greens again, and the pastry was burnt black in parts outside & the inside of the pastry was raw. Gordon Ramsay would have thrown it at the wall. Why didn’t I return it you say? Well I’ll tell ya why, because I can see into the open kitchen from the bar seats, and I can see the kitchen staff has already wrapped up and put away their supplies for the evening, so I just ate the cost there, literally.

Speaking of… our $59pp restaurant week menu ended up costing us a whopping $248, 22% service fee included. They also had the gall to add two more lines asking for you to tip even more on the bill and donate more money.

The popcorn brûlée was cool, but even that had problems. Sugar wasn’t evenly distributed over the custard so some parts were burnt inedible thick shards, and some of the custard had turned a weird texture.

Thank god this meal is finally over. $248 later. Let that sink in.

They’re trying to be Next. They are not....

I booked a reservation with friends at Esme during Chicago Restaurant Week 2025 after an incredible experience in 2024. This year, we were left incredibly disappointed, and we were essentially ushered out the door before our table time was up. I have dined at dozens of Michelin starred restaurants around the world, and I can honestly say I have not received worse service than I did at Esme.

We were greeted at the door by incredibly kind staff who quickly took our coats and brought us to our table. The poor service started soon after. Our waiter was not very helpful when we asked for drink recommendations, and he badgered one of my dining companions for her drink order multiple times within the first 5 minutes of our seating after she voiced that she was conflicted on her drink order. He also hastily asked us for our food order before she was able to order her beverage to which he seemed annoyed and rolled his eyes.

After we put in our food order, with the additional caviar supplement, the first course arrived at a good pace. The food was well flavored and rather inventive. We received no description of our dishes, but we proceeded to start eating. We were still picking at the first course when an entourage of waiters arrived at our table and started clearing the plates before we finished the first course. This seemed weird but we moved on.

The second course and caviar arrived soon after the table was cleared, and again, the food was delicious and flavorful. They brought some house made bread to accompany the second course, and it was strange that only three pieces were brought initially when we were a group of five. The additional pieces of bread were brought out part way through the second course. Again, were still eating our second course, including the caviar supplement when an ensemble of staff came to clear our dishes before we could voice that we were not finished. At this point it became clear that they were rushing our group to turn the table over for another.

The true sign of disrespect for my party occurred just before we received the check. Staff were constantly visiting our table to remove napkins and glasses. A few of us were still finishing our drinks when the waiter said “your coats will be available at the front when you leave.” We received the check and paid. One of our companions went to the bathroom while the others finished our wine, and to our utter shock, two members of the staff carried our jackets to our table and forced us to leave. This happened at 9:15pm which was 30 minutes before our table time was complete. None of us had ever been ushered out of a restaurant before, but they made it blatantly obvious what they were doing. Numerous parties around our table were seated before us, yet we were forced out before they were.

I would not recommend coming here simply due to the lack of respect and hospitality we were subjected to. A wonderful evening was simply ruined by rude,...

Not Worth the Hype or Price. A mom and pop restaurant with untrained staff and poor service. If you like warm champagne, flat champagne, clueless waiters and an irate chef, this is the place for you. Don't be fooled by the "reviews" on this site - ask why it's so easy to get a reservation here. When we visited, at $295 each for the premium tasting menu and an additional $250 each for the premium wine pairing, our expectations were understandably high. Contrary to the Michelin guide's description of "intriguing bites served at standing tables just inside," we were left standing for an extended period without any bites, intriguing or otherwise. The hostess seemed more occupied with her computer and chatting with colleagues than attending to guests. Eventually, we were offered a lukewarm “complimentary cocktail” of sparkling wine, honey, and tea, garnished with a flower. Undrinkable. After another ten minutes, we were seated but then left alone for several more minutes before water was served. A series of condescending waiters then approached us with patronizing questions such as, "How are we doing?" "Are we celebrating anything special?" and "Are we from Chicago?", designed to make us feel that visiting Esmé must be a monumental occasion. The first question was whether we would like an extra caviar course for another $200, but when we asked how this would fit in to the tasting menu the server could not describe it except to say there were several vegetable courses and two proteins. We passed on the upsell. The first course finally arrived, devoid of any accompanying wine. While it was artistically presented, it was disappointingly bland. No silverware was provided, making the large items difficult to eat without creating a mess, and no fingerbowl was offered. When the wine finally arrived, it was room-temperature champagne. Upon pointing this out to the server, she said she would inform the beverage manager, but no action was taken for quite some time. When a young man finally came with new glasses, I asked if he was the beverage manager, which he confirmed. I reiterated the issue with the warm champagne, to which he responded with a curt, "Thank you for telling me, sir," and left. After another long wait, I asked to speak to the manager. A young woman arrived, promising chilled champagne, but again we were left waiting. The beverage manager eventually returned with a nearly empty bottle of flat champagne, which had presumably been forgotten in the fridge. Upon questioning his qualifications, he admitted he had no sommelier training. It's outrageous that Esmé charges $250 per person for a wine pairing without having a trained sommelier on staff. When I requested to speak to the manager again, the chef-owner appeared, visibly angry and combative. By this point, we had completely lost confidence in the establishment and decided to leave. This is a mom and pop establishment with poorly...