Mado

Maybe I don’t get this BYO-​Bistro thing. But this place is nothing special. I love the move to use local, fresh ingredients; but how about you make the food taste good too?
Service here was great, but I confess that my girl friend and I were frustrated at the flavors and uninspired dishes which at times were constructed poorly. The food is fresh so no complaints there, but you did nothing special with anything.
I’ll go back because I feel when the food is handled with such care they may have something good going somewhere and we just missed it. I just hope when we return they show me something better than what I can get anywhere else in their area… right now I’d rather walk to Hot Chocolate or The Bristol.

Well, I tried not to give any stars because, while I was excited to go there, the restaurant failed to serve me. I was forced to give one star though.
I made the reservation on a Monday for a Friday reservation. I did it in person bc I live very close. When I made the reservation, the manager (owner?) asked for my phone number and a credit card number in case of a «no show, no call» (his words).
When Friday arrived, I found out that my party had decreased in number. I started calling around 3pm and continued all the way until 6 (I didn’t have time to run over) but there was no answer. At 7:30, my wife and I headed over there to meet our friends. When we arrived at the front door there was a sign that read– «we are closed tonight, sorry.» Now, we had to try to find a restaurant to serve 6 people on a Friday night at 7:45, awesome.
Whatever the reason for their closing, my question remains: If I have to give a credit card and phone number so they can follow up with me for not showing up and failing to call. What is their excuse for not calling me? It’s not the largest or busiest restaurant in town. Calling all of their reservations to excuse their closing would have taken 10 minutes tops. Anyone could have done it. This shows a fundamental lack of respect for people, not just customers. I would never be so rude and am appalled by their lack of conscience.
Fortunately, we were able to get a table at Café Absinthe, located 1 block away. I wont give a full review here but I will say that the service was friendly and welcoming (they didn’t even blink when we showed up with all of our own wine) and the food was amazing. If you’re looking for a great meal in this area: that’s the place to go. I can say that because I actually was able to eat there.

I’ve been to Mado three times.
The first time, I went with a friend when the restaurant was completely empty. We were the first diners to arrive and our dining experience was moderated by the chef and his talented wife (the pastry chef). The second time, I went with two friends who were recently engaged. The last time I went, I went for coffee and dessert. Of all the Wicker Park restaurants, I love to come back to this place over and over again. The menu changes frequently, the service is impeccable, and the vibe is warm and friendly.
Wait Time:
With or without reservations, I have never had to wait. I’ve come to the restaurant at 6:00 PM (in its early days), 9:00 PM (five months after it opened), and 7:00 PM (on my last visit). On all three occasions, I was seated promptly even though the dining room looked full from the street.
Ambience:
A small dining room with a warm and modern feel, Mado is a place to relax and have a conversation. The noise isn’t overwhelming. The tables are spaced far apart enough to make conversations possible without the fear of eavesdropping.
Service:
Great! Admittedly, I am a little spoiled. I visited Mado only days after it opened and was walked through the menu by the chef and his wife (the pastry chef). I was told exactly what dishes to order and which ones to hold off on. Later, when I returned, I found this same level of personalized service from the hostess and the server, both of whom were friendly and knowledgeable about the menu.
Food:
You have to be careful. I have had very HIGH highs and very LOW lows here. Some highs: sunchokes and shaved Parmesan tossed in olive oil and lemon juice, the shortbread, the chocolate brittle, a duck terrine, and the charcuterie platter. Some lows: a chicken liver pâté, a rabbit dish we couldn’t quite figure out, and a pork dish that was supposed to be juicy but ended up being tough. One recommendation: come to Mado and have coffee and desserts to test the restaurant out. If you like it, then venture on to the rest of the menu. The dessert here is really the highlight.

Before heading to Mado, le bf checked the Twitter feed and found a comment for the restaurant that, let’s just say, didn’t seem too supportive of Groupon use for small businesses. Since we had a crinckled Groupon in our pocket to use, we kept it there and le bf wrote the owner an email.
When it was all said and done, the response we received was professional and welcoming; he kindly explained the need for small businesses to evaluate the use of Groupon for their businesses and the need for them to prepare accordingly after a Groupon has been offered, as there is generally a rush of patrons.
Feeling welcomed to to use the crinckly paper in our pockets we headed down to Mado a couple of days later – without our BYOB (our mistake) :-(Needless to day. Mado completely lived up to the hype and our dinners were delightful! I had a very well-​prepared beef neck penne pasta entrée that put an entirely new spin on pasta dishes! And for dessert, we inquired on the interesting «migas bark»!? «Migas?» we asked. Already having our own idea of what migas are (Tex-​Mex egg and tortilla dish). We were taught that the migas at Mado were masterful pieces of dark chocolate.
Our dinner experience included hours of incessant conversation on the incredible, innovate, culinary skill that is behind this restaurant that supports local-​only suppliers. In my book, Mado is now synonymous with appreciation for culinary innovation.

I was at Mado not long after they opened with a Groupon in hand. They are exactly what they claim to be: Midwestern Farmers, Mediterranean Flavors.
I ate…
— Brandade (an emulsion of salt cod and olive oil) with grilled bread — see photo
— Organic spit-​roasted chicken with spinach and potatoes
I’ve never had brandade before I went to Mado and now I have a strong urge to make up for the last 30 years. I could eat Mado’s brandade for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Yum…
The chicken was pretty standard, but well-​cooked (crispy on the outside, juicy on the inside). I could have gone for a more exciting side dish (other than spinach and potatoes), but it was truly a familiar and comforting dinner as is.
Mado reminds me a lot of The Bristol — another one of my favorite Chicago restaurants. They both use organic meats and produce and food source locally.
Tip: They’re BYOB

After a long break from Unilocaling (I got married in July, and the planning/​wedding/​honeymoon didn’t give me a chance to update all the fantastic places we’ve been!), I’m back! And off we go…
Mado: Locally grown farm fresh foods… simple and delightful!
Here’s the breakdown of our meal:
Appetizer: Roasted Beets, Pickled Sliced Beets, Goat Cheese, Basil
I don’t know if my wife and I have been on a beet kick lately, but roasted beets served cold are currently are favorite dish! Wonderfully sweet, nice mix of flavors, melt in your mouth goat cheese… this dish was excellent!
Main Course: Hangar Steak with Gorgonzola Polenta
The steak was delicious, even though my wife requested medium instead of medium rare. Flavors were excellent, tenderness in the center was good, however she had some issues with the edges of the steak being burnt. There was also a significant amount of «grease» that came out of the steak which was somewhat of a turnoff. The polenta texture was excellent, but the gorgonzola, while great for the first few bites, become overpowering very quickly… you have to really like gorgonzola to enjoy this.
Main Course: Beef Heart with Roasted Peppers
Having never eaten heart before, I was curious but wary at the same time. The thinly sliced pieces of heart were tender and tasty! Roasted peppers were fairly standard and a nice compliment. Good dish, but mentally, it was tough for me to fully accept that I was eating heart… which threw me off during the meal. Granted, I’ve had chicken feet, cow’s tongue, and pig ears no problem… but I think I’m just used to eating heart yet. Nonetheless, tasty!
Dessert: Vanilla rice pudding with fresh blueberries and toasted/​sliced almonds
What a way to end the meal… this was simple yet excellent dessert! The vanilla flavor was perfect, fresh blueberries succulently sweet, and toasted almonds not only added crunch, but a great flavor element as well! I’ve never been a rice pudding fan, but if all rice pudding I ate tasted like this, I would be likely going way over my carb limits. =p
So all in all, the appetizer and dessert were outstanding, and the main course was average… Worth checking out, and we’ll likely be going back just to enjoy apps and dessert from here on out!

Very small restaurant… there’s only about 10 tables. The décor is cute. The entrees are pretty pricey. Average price for an entrée is $ 25 and it’s a la carte. The nice thing is they do offer BYOB. The menu also changes from time to time and they have interesting menu items. For instance, beef HEART (yes, that is correct. beef heart!!) sandwich. It was tasty but you’ll definitely have to get used to the texture. We also ordered a steak dish (delicious), trout (also delicious), and 2 pasta dishes. The pasta dishes were below par. I ordered a small size pasta (for $ 9) and I still couldn’t even finish it.
The service was good however. The waitress walked us through the entire menu and explained the ingredients in great detail.

I wanted to like this place!
I like BYOB. Ok.
This place is what I would call meats-​r-​us. Not a flaw per se, but usually farm fresh/​daily printed menu places are much more flexible.
Yes we went in a little «hangry» but c’mon! Who wouldn’t serve just bread and cheese (bacon on the side)? I love just cheese and bread. Apparently the chef does not b/​c he wouldn’t serve us the starter w/​o the bacon or the bacon on the side.
I happened to like the roasted beets w/​some mint but my boyfriend was offended. He thought it was like toothpaste on a salad. I happen to break for beets.
The olives were ok. Some were good, some were great, some were mushy and bitter.
I had the penne — can you guess by now who doesn’t eat pig?
It was ok. Not bad but not anything I couldn’t have done at home. I had the small plate and I was glad. It was generous.
My boyfriend had the pork shoulder. It was gone in 60 seconds so must be good. He loves pig.
Then we got what we thought was the signature dessert. So sad! I love sweet and salty but this was awful. It was SOOOOOOOOOO salty and bitter. No sweet. I am a fan of dark chocolate too. We had a few bites and then told the woman it was not for us. She said — yeah its not for everyone — and took it away. Oh well!
The service was good. Cute space. I really wanted it to work.
But we won’t be back. Its not for pescetarians like me!

I’m not sure I have the words to describe what a positive experience mado was. I can’t speak highly enough about it.
We had a 9:00 reservation for 2 and they were running behind. They apologized profusely and opened our drinks at the ‘bar’ area. They then asked us if we’d like an appetizer on the house. After we chose the brandade, they brought us both that and the roasted carrots. While it is poor to be 30 minutes late on reservations, we couldn’t have been treated nicer. It was an excellent experience. For those who have complained about the roasted carrots on Unilocal,you clearly should turn in your Unilocal card. You, honestly, have no idea what you’re talking about.
After we were seated, we were borderline full from the appetizers, but ordered the full meat platter, as well as the hanger steak with gorgonzola polenta. The meat platter was incredibly gratifying: the pork shoulder ham was the best ham I’ve ever tasted and the chicken liver pâté was probably a tad too rich to eat much of, but an incredible taste. On the steak side, the steak was cooked wonderfully and the polenta had this beautifully earthy, gritty, real taste that made it the perfect accompaniment.
I honestly have no complaints. If I was to critique, I’d say that the brandade was a little bland, although still very good and the country pâté on the meat platter wasn’t that exciting.
Selfishly, I’d like it to continue to be possible to get a table at mado, but those folks deserve to be packed every night of the week. Go. Now.

I realized only after going to Mado that the whole snout-​to-​tail, haute-​offal trend is more appealing in principal than in practice. I read a lot about the chefs here, watched the Sky Full of Bacon video podcast about it, and was generally quite excited. I thought, dang it, if we’re going to eat animals we should at least eat ALL of them. The fact that it was a BYO (and one of the few that abides by the Chicago law against corkage fees for restaurants without a liquor license) sealed the deal.
I ordered the «scrapple,» which according to the waitress is a loaf of pig miscellany sliced, fried and served on a pile of lentils cooked with jowl bacon. This place is famous for its treatment of pork, so I though I’d take a dive into the deep end of the meat pool. Wow. It was a salty, squishy, extremely fatty rectangle of fried. Tasted vaguely of breakfast too. After a few bites I was done, and then proceeded to polish off a delicious salad of arugula, fennel and cocoa nibs we had ordered earlier. Even then I felt like I’d need a week of nothing but leafy greens to balance out those gooey pork-​wads.
It seems from the other reviews that the hanger steak is the thing to get. But… steak is kind of awesome no matter what, as long as you don’t screw it up. Especially a restaurant-​only cut like a hanger. Shouldn’t some exotic pork-​jowl concoction be the star here?
Service was great, the small dining room is inviting, and the prices weren’t outrageous for fancy-​dinner. I’m sure that for pork-​fat connoisseurs it’s hog heaven. But count me among the majority of Chicagoans who like their lard ground into indistinguishable morsels, mixed with fennel, peppers and oregano, stuffed in casings, and served hot-​dipped with a giant pile of Italian beef on top. We call it a «combo sandwich.»

Everything from the service to the food was exceptional. This is a top notch place without the pretentiousness.
My husband made reservations on the Saturday before Valentine’s and we were seated promptly and enjoying our BYO wine and brandade on crusty bread within ten minutes. We didn’t know what brandade was but our informative server explained that theirs is a salty cod cooked with potatoes and milk. Absolutely creamy, salty and heavenly on their smoky house baked bread.
For dinner we split the Valentine’s special, a pork shank cooked in its own juices and fat with a base of lentils, carrots and pork drippings. Amazing. Fell off the bone, perfect size for the two of us to self serve and still bring some home. We had it with a side of their creamy polenta and it was the perfect accompaniment to the pork since it wasn’t overly seasoned. The broth however, was full flavor with the legumes and cubes of fat.
For dessert we ordered the chocolate coconut flan and the vanilla rice pudding with golden raisins and almonds. Both were delicious. The flan was actually a thin layer caramelized with brown sugar on top of a dense chocolate mousse-​like cake. The rice pudding was my favorite. Lots of warm, creamy flavor with the texture of almonds and hints of vanilla, then honey and raisins. Really layered flavors made this an interesting dessert.
Overall, a really wonderful experience. I can’t wait to go back again.

While I am a sucker for exposed brick, and the service was lovely and very helpful, the food is the real story from my dinner at Mado. I loved everything they put in front of us.
First off were two antipasti from their list of compelling choices. The beets (of course) with walnuts and gorgonzola: this is kind of a trite composition, but the beets themselves were great enough to carry it. I don’t even like walnuts or gorgonzola that much but I enjoyed the beets. Roasted carrots with pistachios and cumin honey: intriguing! I loved the complementary flavors in this plate, although I would have preferred a bit more cumin and less honey. It was still a delightful little dish.
How about a pork meatball and lentil casuela to anchor the meal? Sounds good on a sleety December evening, doesn’t it? Hell yes it does. Besides the lentils there were a few chopped vegetables, and chunks of pork assisted the somewhat spicy pork meatballs. The whole thing was baked in this shallow crock and added up to a fantastically hearty, savory, and satisfying dish.
And dessert? Did you say rice pudding? Sold. Theirs was an excellent rice pudding, with chopped almonds and golden raisins. This rivals Café Laguardia for the best restaurant rice pudding I’ve eaten. I also enjoyed several bites of my friend’s dessert – the chocolate-​peppermint marshmallow pie. Yes, it was as good as it sounds, or possibly even better.

Wow, what a good meal and a pleasant space. I agree with everyone, the food is good and the place and atmosphere feel great, plus it’s a byob. We walked in without wine and they gave us directions for a 2 minute walk to a wine store. We came back and was seated right away.
The meat platter has a great chicken liver pâté with grain mustard and pickled beets, yum. The beet salad-​we didn’t like it. Crunchy beets do not taste good. I realize it’s meant to be that way, like a raw papaya salad, but this didn’t do it for me. The arugula salad with cous cous, taste like a fresh orange, really refreshing. The porchetta (pork belly, pork loin with white beans and greens)-truly delicious and the greens were essential because it soaked up all the pork juices. Migas Bark for dessert-​sounds weird, get it. It’s home made venezuelan dark chocolate with crunchies and hints of smokey paprika.
Let me be the bad guy and just poke on a small thing… the menu is a little limited. We had a great meal today and could go back and have another meal. But beyond that, i would need something different.

Two huge and very enthusiastic thumbs up for Mado, this place is freaking Madolicious! Adored my dinner, the service, the laid back ambiance and, of course, the BYOB factor here. In a multiple choice test we’re looking at filling in the ‘all of the above’ bubble. Get out your #2 pencils, Kids, Mado packs an all encompassing wallop.
Definitely plan on making reservations as popping in (yes, even late) on Friday night yielded a 2 hour wait time (see my Plan B review if you’re looking for an effective way on how to pass said time). Fortunately Miss Mado was well worth the wait… what a fantastically tasty and adventurous dinner! Ever sampled a pork heart? How ’bout a pig’s head? Well for those daring folks, here you can, go nuts. Me? I must’ve left my exploratory pants at home that night because I went with a more demure menu, but one that didn’t fail to impress in the slightest.
Allow me to break it down would ya?
Apps /​/​The Meat Platter. Seriously, you can’t go wrong with meaty goodness served up on a tray. pork rilette, chicken paté and country paté. Rich, indulgent, house butchered and totally satisfying. Buck up for the ‘accompaniments’ at an add’l $ 4… the bread, mustards and pickles are oh-​so-​necessary.
Apps /​/​Roasted Eggplant with Rosemary Honey. I die! Such a winning combo of sweet and savory, and that rosemary honey? Best new condiment ’09 award. I’d put it on my cereal. For reals.
Salad /​/​Mixed Greens with Pine Nut Vinaigrette. So simple, but utterly delectable. Loved the clean palate and unfussed with straightforwardness of this dish. Great transitional plate, and although a few of my fellow diners found the greens a bit too salty, I totally dug it.
Main /​/​Hanger Steak with Gorgonzola Polenta & Moroccan Spiced Roasted Chicken. Both = Delish. I loved that crispy, roasted chix skin but was definitely leaning toward the perfectly cooked steak (medium rare, thank you) and orgasmo, cheesy polenta as my fav… can polenta really be a showstopper? If it’s Mado’s, then hells bells yes.
Dessert /​/​Almond and Cornmeal Cake with Sour Cherry Jam, Goat Cheese, Mascarpone Cream, Candied Almonds. Dude. Dessert Utopia. Plentiful in portion and in flavor, the cake is moist and luscious, the garnishes the right bite of refreshing and decadent.
Thanks Mado for the BYO
You’re my new favorite place to go
The eats are good
You’re near my hood
Pork Hearts are just misunderstood.

I went to Mado for a very special second date. Allison was more than accommodating, knowing that this was a special night for us. The service, despite other reviews here, was outstanding. I brought a 17YO wine, a «special» bottle as it were — the server took extra care of it, esp. as the cork was «dead» — professionally decanted and not an iota of sediment! And, the food… what more can be said about the food. Robert is a master in the kitchen… and, he was very grateful that we shared our wine with him! But, back to the food… masterful. Very well done, seasoned nicely, good proportions, great value, great people the Levitts.
Don’t go to Mado because I told you to. Go to Mado because you want to experience good food done great at a great value… and, you’re curious about what it «good food» means. There is no pretention here, contrary to other reviews. Make a reservation because you want to, and bring and extra bottle of wine (just in case!). And, don’t skimp on dessert. It will be worth it. Unfortunately, that date didn’t go as well as I would’ve liked. However, we had a fantastic dinner. That much I can tell you.

My friend had been talking about Mado for some time and I was lucky enough to experience this eatery with them. I think for the fact it is a BYOB and serves really great and unique dishes makes it all the more better.
They are constantly rotating specials and the server was on top of the situation answering all questions as well as elaborating on some items we may not have known about.
The beginners were seafood and a tart that was just great.
The entrees were a hangar steak and grilled chicken. Both meats were good, though I think my friend would have rather had the steak than the chicken, but we shared as we always do, so no one was disappointed.
Dessert was a cake and shortbread and something called migas bark which deserves the write ups it has received recently.
Park is a bi**h, so you’ve been warned. Sexy, simple and creative, Mado should be on future eating horizon.

Mado has been on my list to try for awhile and I finally had a chance to get there the other night. While I knew they were BYOB– I did appreciate the fact that when I made our reservation– they reminded me of that fact.
So with a couple bottles of my favorite reds in hand we pushed open the door on Saturday night. We were quickly seated and our server Ben came by to open our wine and to help us navigate the menu (which is also posted on a large chalkboard in the room)
There were certainly some things I had never heard of before on the menu (can you say «rolled pigs head»?) but since I had heard that they use all the parts of the pig and butcher it on site– while it didn’t entice me to order it– the way it was described almost had me. Almost.
Instead– we opted for the grilled octopus with giant beans and a lovely herb and ricotta tart that were both delicious! I also ordered the potato bacon soup (had to get some of that butchered pig in some form!) The soup was amazing! Creamy and rich with big chunks of bacon.
As for our entrees– we split the hangar steak with polenta and the grilled chicken with pea sprouts and almonds. The chicken was crispy on the outside and juicy on the inside– and the steak was so tender you could cut it with a fork!
Hard to believe we had room for dessert after all of that but we did. And since indecision kicked in– we ordered three of them– the poppy seed cake with cream cheese frosting, the shortbread (this has been written up in various publications) and migas bark.
What? You’ve never heard of migas bark? Well, neither had I, but I know I will never forget it now. Tasting like a high end Nestle’s crunch bar, migas bar is bitter dark chocolate poured over toasted bread crumbs and then served hardened in pieces. Perfect accompaniment to your after dinner espresso!
Service was spot on– this is a place that knows what customer service is. We even made some new friends (given the close proximity of the tables) as we shared one of our bottles of wine with the couple at the table next to us while we shared desserts.
Metered street parking is available but with all the bars in the area– is a bit of a challenge after 9 and there is no valet service.
Not sure I will be eating «rolled pigs head» any time soon but Mado’s innovative menu, tasty desserts and great service will certainly bring me back again.

I’m still keeping 3 stars, but I was informed by a trusted source (Jamie K) that they in fact use filtered water and reuse the bottles on the table…
I stand corrected!

Did not have a reservation so was asked to sit at bar area, I didn’t mind, but word to your mother– make a reservation for dinner! Loved the chilled Asparagus soup with crème fraîche, partner in crime had so-​so pesto noodles for appetizer, her hanger steak was amazing! My chicken with pistachios and arugula was good, but kind of reminded me of similar dishes I’ve had before. All in all everything was fresh and tasty.
The star of the night was the shortbread cookies, light and sugary, they must butter every layer they almost melt in your mouth! Tip to the restaurant: just give away the triple filtered water and sparkling water! Make it your «thing». You’ll be paid back in Smiles!

Nice space. They did a good job with making this spot look and feel bigger than it is. Wood floors and bare brick walls give it a fresh look. On an opposite wall is a chalkboard menu which doesn’t steal away from their theme. I could see stopping in here with friends for a bottle of wine and enjoying the time with food. On the other hand, I may have my dinner elsewhere, portions were too tiny for me. why does fine dining have to mean less? Five slivers of lamb on a plate of cous cous. (one thing that bothered me, they served the lamb as they wanted it served. Medium rare, which is what the server recommended. I and another asked for medium well. Both of us were served, medium rare. WTf?) The appy’s didn’t wow me as much as the dessert’s had.
Hype: They buy their stuff from «green roof» markets.
I read that they get their animals whole and cut’em up in their kitchen. And monthly they host a family style pig roast. Now that’s a reason for me to venture back!
Average entrée is $ 20+. BYOB.