Cloud Red — Restaurant in Shorewood

Last night was my grandmother’s 86th birthday, and for two years she’s talked about wanting to take me to Cloud Red. We finally made it happen (that was my fault for having been in graduate school for The past two years), even though it’s about a 40-minute drive in traffic. When we arrived, we found a table easily enough and ordered the cauliflower (which was amazing), her curry tacos (delicious), and my steak sandwich (which was fine). Up until then, everything was great.

Unfortunately, what happened at the end completely ruined the evening. While I was waiting in line to pay, a family approached me and asked if we were done with our table. I told them politely that we’d be finishing up in about 5–10 minutes. When I turned around moments later, my 84-year-old grandmother was standing beside our table holding both of our jackets and her purse—which she had dropped—while that same family was already sitting down. They had the staff wiping the table and bringing extra chairs, and my belongings had been moved.

My grandmother was left standing, waiting for me to finish paying on her birthday. I didn’t even get a chance to thank her properly for our evening out. It was shocking and uncomfortable to watch another group essentially evict us from our table before we had even left.

While I don’t place full blame on the staff, this “first come, first served” policy has clearly created an environment where basic decency and respect get lost. What should have been a special night became stressful and upsetting.

I won’t be recommending Cloud Red or returning. The food was good—but no meal is worth that kind...

The drinks were amazing and the food was obviously very fresh and high quality. The experience is odd and frustrating since you're pretty much on your own when you step inside. It was our first time there so we had no idea you have to go to one side of the restaurants to look at the menu on the wall, then go stand in line to order, grab your own water and hopefully find a seat.

But the gimmick aside, it's really good.

Pulled pork nachose: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ These are SO good. The ingredients were layered instead of just being stacked on top, everything tasted amazing, and the pork was so good

Artichoke dip: ⭐⭐⭐⭐ These are good but a little heavy on the garlic. You lose some of the other flavors to it

Spring roll: ⭐ This was made with fresh ingredients but it's an absurd size. My wife actually didn't eat it because it was bigger than a burrito and there was absolutely no way she was able to get all the ingredients in a single bite. Spring rolls aren't meant to be tasted 1 ingredient at a time, you need to be able to get them all in a single bite. This was definitely a gimmick item, albeit fresh, because the only way to taste all the ingredients at once is to cut it up and use a fork to eat...

This place is pretty hoppin'!

Find your seats first, since it will get full! Seat yourself, then order at the bar. Menus are hanging on the wall... so you'll see some people standing gin the middle of the room looking at the wall. It's a bad setup, considering how crowded it gets in here. A QR code on the table with an online menu might be a better option? Or come in to yelp and check out their menu! I've added pictures below.

Bartenders were superb and the food was quite amazing.

Crispy Brussel Sprouts: If you hate Brussel sprouts, skip it, but if you want to give it a chance, I'd say this is the place to do it.

1/2 LB Burger is actually cheaper than the Brussel sprouts. They complement each other quite well.

It can get quite loud inside, so not your romantic spot (go down the street to Buttermint for that), but if you're looking for a fun, loud, delicious spot, this is it.

UPDATE 3/2024 The steak salad is absolutely gorgeous to look at and delicious to the tastebuds. Dressing is probably not keto friendly, but I love it so much!! Maybe try to ask for the dressing on the side next time.. UPDATE - 6/2025 - no longer on the menu SAD.

Steak Sandwich is flavorful...