Rustle & Roux — Restaurant in Chicago

Located on the second floor of the Franklin Center, Rustle + Roux has multiple stations to satisfy any food craving. They open for breakfast at 7:00 am and proudly home the first and only illy café in Chicago offering Lezza treats and sweets. For lunch options there is the standard deli for sandwiches and fresh salad bar. One station called Create offers a new dish cuisine each week. On this visit they were whipping together Mac + Cheesyology with many noodle, cheese and add in options. There is more than enough seating to accommodate a large office team lunch or a party of 1. A mix of high tables with bar chairs and long tables make the dining area inviting.

I was very excited to find out that one of my favorite Chicago restaurants, Mercadito Taqueria is now a station at Rustle + Roux. They have the same savory flavors at a lunch price and quick! My friend Rita and I decided to try the offerings of Mercato and shared the Chianti Wine Poached Pear and Strawberry Salad, Slow Braised Bolognese Sauce and Parmesan Pasta, and Prosciutto Pizza. In the salad, the pieces of Chianti wine poached pear were morsels of sweetness that went well with the other ingredients. (I just paused a moment, stared off to lala food land and reminisced the flavors of that memory sigh) The other ingredients were strawberries, candied walnuts, sharp blue cheese crumbles and balsamic dressing. The dressing was too heavy and salty with the blue cheese and delicate poached pear pieces. I’ll stick to the practice of dipping salad into the dressing versus covering an entire salad only to find an unsatisfying mix. The slow braised Bolognese sauce and parmesan was not disappointing. The pasta is made fresh and is evident in the consistency in each bite. Cooked al dente and covered with Bolognese sauce it was memorable.

Our pizza was covered with 400 day aged prosciutto, grilled pears, fresh buffalo mozzarella, and shave parmigiano. This dish was a savory with hints of sweet pairing that I would recommend. Rita and I were too full to get dessert but I did sample the gelato being passed around; it would have been an insult not to. Pistachio, vanilla, and lemon were all delicious, if only I had more room in my stomach for scoops of each.

Having just returned from Italy the visit to Rustle + Roux brought my taste buds back to vacation. I look forward to returning for a lunch time getaway in the Loop!

The Best of Rustle+Roux: -location -variety at each station -fresh...

While convenient since it is in my office building, the service is pretty abysmal. I tried to order breakfast this morning but was roundly ignored for several minutes by workers with their backs to me. I understand they were busy preparing other orders, but a simple "We'll be with you soon" seems appropriate. They looked and saw me standing there. I ended up leaving without ordering because I couldn't wait any longer.

Additionally often during peak breakfast and lunch times, there is only one available cashier for check out, resulting in long wait times.

The food itself is usually good, but the long waits just make it not worth it because it is too...

Mediocre food with slow service

Food: I mostly go to the deli and get a sandwich; the sandwiches are pretty mediocre, but you have plenty to choose from (sandwich meats only). The burgers from the grill look ok; my coworkers get it, but it doesn't look like it'll blow you away. All of their sandwiches / burgers come with chips, which are a bit overly fried and a little thick for my taste

Service: Very slow; we don't usually go right at noon so it isn't super crowded (i.e., I would be the only person in the sandwich line), but even then it takes around 7-10 minutes for a sandwich /...