Canal Street Eatery and Market — Restaurant in West Chicago Township

Canal Street Bistro is now open. Their menu is Italian inspired with classic pizza and pasta favorites executed in divine fashion. The pasta is freshly made and paired with traditional Italian sauce preparations that really highlight the flavors of the ingredients. This is also shown through their Neapolitan style pizzas, right out of their wood fired oven. These all pair perfectly with their selection of wines and curated cocktail list!

Highly recommend starting your meal with the Bread Service. The rolls are soft and warm, and come with an array of different spreads/butters. They have a variety of other antipasti to choose from as well, including a simple but delicious Caesar salad. Be sure to save room for dessert as well! Check out what’s featured below:

ANTIPASTI

Bread Service: Parker House rolls with wild onion, marrow and Calabrian chili butter, tomatoes, EVOO, balsamic reduction

Lil Gem Caesar: Parmesan, anchovies, pangrattato, Meyer lemon, black pepper, vegan Caesar dressing

Grilled Octopus: Fried potatoes, frisee, smoky paprika aioli

Burrata: Macerated strawberries, frisee, candied walnuts, raisin mostarda, grilled focaccia

PIZZA

Spicy Soppressata: Pepperoni, fresh mozzarella, Fresno honey, oregano

Truffle: Wild mushrooms, onion jam, bianca

Margherita: Pomodoro, fresh mozzarella, basil

Bismark: Prosciutto, edd, arugula, Parmesan

PASTA

English Pea and Goat Cheese Ravioli: Carrot puree, chervil, almonds

Casarecce Bolognese: Parmesan, basil

ENTREE

8 oz NY Strip and Marrow Butter: Roasted garlic marrow butter, arugula, confit tomatoes, sea salt

SIDES

Fingerling Potatoes: butter, herbs

DESSERT

Brownie Sundae: Vanilla ice cream, hot fudge, strawberries

COCKTAILS

Second City Manhattan: Rye, averna, campari, twist

Canal Cooler: St. Germaine, prosecco, lemon twist

Canal Old Fashioned: Bourbon, demerara,...

All Hype, No Flavor — If you’re coming for the food definitely skip it!

We were visiting Chicago and stopped by Canal Street Eatery for dinner before heading home. The restaurant looked nice, and the vibe was promising. When we arrived, we were told they were fully committed for reservations, fair enough, but we were welcome to sit at the bar, so we waited until two spots opened up.

The bartender was kind but understandably busy. We ordered a lemonade, a watermelon drink, and the highly talked-about pasta flight along with some fries. The drinks were decent, but the fries never came likely missed due to the bar being slammed, so we didn’t make a fuss.

Unfortunately, the real disappointment was the food. The pasta flight ($50) sounded exciting, but the execution missed the mark. A couple of the pastas were undercooked to the point of being unpleasantly chewy, and none of them had any flavor. Each bite was bland, unseasoned, and honestly felt rushed not something you’d expect from a place that markets itself around pasta.

For $50, I don’t mind paying for quality, but this wasn’t it. I truly don’t understand the hype. The experience felt underwhelming across the board, especially for a city like Chicago with so many incredible food spots.

Service was fine, and the atmosphere is okay. But if you’re coming here for the food, I’d say skip it. There are far better pasta spots in the city that are worth your...

I went to Canal Street Market & Eatery for the first time with high hopes, but I was quickly turned off by the vibes. The space is way too crowded, with tables crammed so close together that there’s no sense of privacy at all. •Food: The pizzas were small but tasty, but the pastas were a complete disappointment—cold, bland, and totally lacking in flavor. •Service Issues: We specifically requested no meat on both a salad and a pasta dish, yet both arrived with meat. When we sent them back, the server was rude and dismissive, and it honestly seemed like they just picked the meat off the salad rather than remaking it. Instead of being apologetic, the server acted bothered and annoyed, even saying it was “ridiculous” that we didn’t want to eat the meat. Completely unprofessional. •Atmosphere: The ambiance itself was nice, but the place was way too loud, busy, and overcrowded to actually enjoy the experience.

They do get extra brownie points for the parking situation. You can park in the union station parking lot and they notarize your parking ticket so you don’t have to pay for the covered parking at all! Very convenient

I loved the location, but unfortunately, that’s about it. With the poor service and underwhelming food, I won’t be returning.

⭐ 2.5/5 – Not...