Duck Duck Goat — Restaurant in West Chicago Township

Duck Duck Goat is one of my favorite meals in Chicago. The food is incredible, the service is excellent, and the atmosphere is really fun. I brought my parents here, and despite the fact they are not adventurous eaters, they tried and loved everything we ordered. I have not one single negative thing to say about my experience, and it pains me that there are negative reviews here that focus on how it’s hard to get in here. It’s busy because it’s amazing!! Definitely make reservations well in advance of when you’d like to go. __

Here’s what I ordered:

1 - The Fox & The Goat Pale Ale I do not normally make comments about drinks, but this beer is seriously great. It’s their house beer, and it’s a very flavorful pale ale… not one of those that has a generic hop zing and nothing else. I really wish I could pick this up at the liquor store.

2 - CHAR SIU BAO (Steamed barbecue pork buns) These buns were perfect. Pillowy outside, super tender and flavorful pork inside. The meat to bun ratio was good, the bun was not too thick. We had a party of 4, and got one order of these which comes with 2. They were big enough that even half of one is 3 or 4 bites.

3 - JIAOZI (Beef short rib and bone marrow potstickers) Again, perfect. I don’t need to be verbose on these. Just imagine the potential of short rib and bone marrow potstickers, and that is what you will get when you order these. They have an excellent sear on one side to make the texture great as well.

4 - XIAO LONG BAO (Shrimp and goat soup dumplings) These were really good soup dumplings, but if you are only getting one order of dumplings I would go for the Jiaozi. My ULTIMATE recommendation though would be to order both. You can never have too many dumplings…

5 - GOAT AND DUCK SPRINGROLL These were very basic, but tasty. They are skinny roles, fried, with two dipping sauces. There’s probably not much inside the rolls besides the goat and duck.

6 - XI'AN GOAT SLAP NOODLES This was the showstopper, the dish I have dreamed about since my visit. My wife and I were practically stabbing each other with our chopsticks over the second helping of this dish. If you like sichuan flavors you MUST order this. It’s not super numbing, but it is spicy. The meat was tender and perfect, and the cumin spice + sichuan peppercorn was heavenly. The noodles were slathered in all of that flavor and were cooked perfectly.

7 - TWICE COOKED PORK I enjoyed eating this, but it won’t be at the top of my list to reorder. The pork is very delicious… fatty with a nice char… but the portion wasn’t huge. It was mostly a pile of veggies on top of a couple small pork pieces. It all worked really well together, there were just other things I would repeat over this.

8 - GREEN BEANS IN BLACK BEAN SAUCE The waiter recommended we get these to supplement all of our meat dishes. Vegetables… what a radical idea. If you don’t generally like green beans don’t let that prevent you from getting these. They are fried up with some crispy shallots and nuts, and are thoroughly delicious.

9 - PEKAN CHICKEN The portion on this guy was huge. It was a platter full of crispy chicken, just topped with a few green onions and peppers. A lot of times sweet and sour sauce can be too sweet for me, but this one walked the line well. This is a great dish to order if you’re sharing, because everyone will like it regardless of how picky they are, and again you get a lot of chicken.

10 - DUCK FRIED RICE Before you start judging the amount of food we got, we didn’t technically order this. We kept it in the single digits people!! The kitchen made an extra by accident, and we ended up with this as a little bonus. I’m not mad about it. I finished it off even though we had PLENTY of food between the four of us between the first 9 things we ordered. I may have rolled out of there but I...

The atmosphere is really great. It's fun. The lighting is charming, and the volume of things around us was just at the level where it's easy to chat around the table but it still creates a social fun.

They did forget about one of our dishes for a while (until we asked about it), but once we mentioned it the dish came out fresh and pretty quickly. Otherwise, the service was efficient and came with smiles and helpful recommendations.

Last but most definitely not least — The food! The food was so delicious! We were a table of four, celebrating a birthday, with a healthy appetite and ready to enjoy. We didn't mention the birthday to the waiter, so I cannot say what they would do to celebrate with us, but I can attest that the attitude (at least once we were already seated) was happy & helpful, so I wouldn't be surprised if they do have some "birthday protocol" 👍 We ordered six dishes, four of them vegetarian. And I have to say, they were all delicious. So very delicious.

The vegetarian dishes were so good. The meat ones were too, but it's just that I am used to restaurants serving at least one meh vegetarian dish, but here they were ALL so tasty!

We ordered the: ▫️Crab Ragoon (so creamy) ▫️Xiao Long Bao (an unexpected delight. Highly recommended for people who eat duck & goat) ▫️Veggie fried rice (really good. Mixing the glass noodles with the rice was a powerful move) ▫️Scallion pancakes (those are easy to make yummy, but here you also get a sauce that I insisted stays on the table when the empty plate was cleared. It was so good) ▫️Pekan Cauliflower (very well made. I half expected it to be soggy or maybe to oily, but it was neither of those things. It had a good bite, a delicious sauce covering, and those pecans were just the right level of crunchy) ▫️Green Beans (Cooked so nicely, and the garlic itself was wonderful. Sometimes garlic dishes are... You know, too pungent? This one wasn't. The garlic was more like a candy, but in a savory way. We all loved...

The restaurant's vibrant atmosphere and eclectic decor set the stage for a memorable dining experience with colorful accents and 80’s pop music serenading you. These little nuances and typical “goat” twists can be found throughout the menu, and they are ultimately what make Duck Duck Goat such an interesting place. However, be prepared for smaller Chinese servings or even tapa-style portions that may leave you wanting more, especially for the prices you will pay. While not all dishes lived up to the hype, the ambiance and vibe of the restaurant make it worth a visit at least once in Downtown Chicago.

🍲 What I Tasted: Did not quite live up to the hype. Many dishes had me wanting more spice or layers with flavors or textures.  The journey began with beef short rib & bone marrow potstickers, a brilliant blend of Chinese and Midwestern flavors. However, some dishes like the hot and sour soup lacked neither hot or sour and tasted more like a bone marrow broth, while the duck fried rice leaned heavily on cumin but lacked duck or depth. The Moo Shu with shrimp and bacon was flavorful but needed a little more bite, and the pancakes I found were light and needed more pancake.

💡 Standout Feature: Chef Izard's creativity shines in dishes like the potstickers, which blend Chinese and American Midwestern flavors seamlessly. The atmosphere and vibe of the restaurant transport you to a unique blend of cultures and sensory experiences.

⚠️ What Was Mid: While the food was good, some dishes may cater more to the Midwestern palate, leaving those craving bold flavors wanting more. Overall, Duck Duck Goat delivers a good meal in an awesome location, but expectations should be tempered for those seeking an extraordinary...