Mei's — Restaurant in Chicago

My boyfriend and I went here for breakfast a few Sundays ago and we will not be coming back. We waited about 30 mins for a seat (which is understandable). Once we were seated our waiter (who never introduced himself) took our order and about 10 minutes later returned with my drink (lemonade) but no coffee for my boyfriend, he just gave me my drink and rushed off so we couldn't even ask about the coffee. THEN THE WAIT. My boyfriend and I both ordered omelets, mine was veggie and his had chorizo. We waited about 20 mins after our order was placed and while I was at the restroom the waiter brought out food to our table, he gave my boyfriend an egg dish but tried to serve me a bagel sandwich, which my boyfriend told the waiter was incorrect. So he took the bagel back, leaving only my boyfriend with food. I come back to the table to see that my food hasn't come yet, but my boyfriend is being polite and waiting to eat until I've been served. Five minutes goes by and the waiter returns to our table, grabs the plate away from my boyfriend and says "That's not yours" then WALKS AWAY AND DELIVERS IT TO ANOTHER TABLE. Another 18 mins goes by (I was keeping track- being petty), at this point we've been waiting almost 45 mins for our food since our order was taken and just as we were about to leave the food arrives. Remember at this point my boyfriend still hasn't received his coffee My boyfriend asks the waiter about the coffee and 15 mins later, when were more than half way done with the meal, the barista shows up and apologizes and explains that she forgot about the coffee. And after waiting all that time the coffee was just average and I make better omelets. ...

I had two different experiences at Mei's, two weeks apart, while staying at the Best Western at Grant Park. The first time, in Chicago just overnight before an Amtrak ride the next day, I ordered pork and scallion bao, bok choy, and wonton noodle soup. This was clearly too much food but I was so hungry after a flight from Mexico on which I didn't eat. The bao were undercooked and doughy, but thankfully the meat seemed cooked and they were edible. (See photos.) The bok choy was delicious and I loved the fried garlic. The wontons were tasty, but the broth was just okay (I'm picky about wonton soup broth, preferring pork/shrimp flavors to chicken broth) and the noodles were tough like ramen. The order was ready on time and completed perfectly.

On my second visit, I grabbed breakfast at Mei's before a flight back to Mexico. I ordered lox and a bagel, which was perfect, and three of the vegetable bao, which were cooked through and savory. The waiter was very personable, asking me about allergies and pulling away with the peanut sauce when I said I had a pine nut allergy. The unexpected laugh was enjoyable, and we had good camaraderie for the rest of my meal. It's a shame to live far away, or I'd come eat breakfast more often. 😄

Two small suggestions: why not set out salt and pepper for those who, like myself, add it to cucumber and tomato slices before eating? I also add them to eggs, so I'd say they belong on any breakfast table. Also, the tub of cream cheese seems impersonal on a plate that's been so artfully arranged--why not a scoop of cream cheese from a container instead?

Overall, very pleased. Wish you were in my...

Service was pretty bad. We walked in and was waiting for a table when there was hardly anyone in there. Was told by 3 people over the course of 5 minutes of standing there that someone would he right with us, and that "someone" never came. Whole bunch of staff just standing around talking to each other though. We finally asked a server if we could just seat ourselves and she said yes. Took a while for a server to come and when she finally did, she didn't know much about the menu. She forgot about my coffee and I had to ask someone else to get it. Silverware was dirty in that they had water spots on them. Food was surprisingly actually decent...had corn beef hash breakfast which was good. Breakfast potatoes were just frozen patties deep fried. Not hard to mess up eggs, they we're fine. Cappuccino was pretty good. The bill came out and asked for a tip amount before even giving our card...and then the server stood there and watched us calculate and fill out the tip. Very unprofessional and awkward! Overall kind of lousy experience, prices are good, but...