Hortex Restaurant

Okay, I used to LOVE this place. My Polish is sub-​par, but I still always managed to order some homecooked food that made my think my Mother-​in-​Law lived in Chicago, and it was cheap. But the last few times I’ve been here I feel like the prices have totally gone up. That’s fine, except the food didn’t get any better. Although, the service has (which is why they get an extra star). The staff was always friendly (except for one woman who always refused to talk to me, and only spoke to my husband, a Poland native), but recently they’re even more friendly with more people accepting of me butchering the language. The pork is okay, the barszcz is great, and I’ll go back, but not too often. Also, sometimes they accept credit cards, and sometimes they don’t. That’s crazy annoying.

There are two Hortex Restaurants– this one is NOT the fancy one on west Irving with waiters in bow ties. This one’s more like a typical Polish Bar/​Restaurant with super skinny cute Polish girls working behind the bar and serving the food while flirtingly invading your personal space. The food is really good Polish food, but they don’t always have everything on the menu. So be aware that your choices may be limited, but what they do have will be very good.
You don’t exactly come to this place for fancy ambiance. I think of this Hortex as a boxing bar/​restaurant. With the success of a number of their countrymen, a good part of the Polish community is really into boxing. Hortex caters to these folks with a large screen showing all the pay-​per-​view, HBO fights. You can sometimes buy tickets to local fights here and it’s a lively place to watch a match when one’s on TV. On off nights, it’s basically a bar that tends to draw guys who are involved in boxing– last time I was there I enjoyed listening to a boastful younger guy brag about what a great boxer he used to be to a retired Chicago cop (who was wearing a jacket from the gym he obviously was hooked up with). At one point they went into the other room so the drunk kid could show him how hard he could punch the wall!
So this place is great if you want good Polish food in an interesting, if not exactly fancy, bar atmosphere. If you want a fancier dining experience, other places (including the other Hortex) might be better for you!

If you’re looking for some good contemporary Polish food in a nice atmosphere, Hortex is the place to go. This is the original location with a lot more room indoors but no outside patios. The food is good and freshly made on site. My food recommendations are the barszcz (beet) soup, the sauerkraut and mushroom croquettes, and the stuffed mushroom. They have an extensive drink list that includes lots of mixed drinks and imported beers, although they do not have wine. Hortex is a restaurant/​café in Poland known for their ice cream desserts. They do try to imitate the desserts here as well, and although they are not as extensive or tasty as in Poland, I am willing to bet that it’ll be the best dessert you’ve had in a while if not ever. And you don’t feel as guilty eating dessert because of all the fruit. Make sure you get the cappuccino as well. They can alsmost rival some of the ones from Italian restaurants. One more thing that I absolutely love about this place is that you can sit here with your friends for hours. They will not bother you except to check up on you once in while. It is truly like being in Europe.