Red Door

So nice, I had to review it twice. So I don’t typically double review but I was so impressed with red doors brunch that I had to! First off, the bottomless mimosas (no time limit) are 11 $ and 1 glass is 7 $, so if your planning on more than one and a half, you’ve already got your money’s worth! And let me tell you about the fried chicken on buttermilk biscuit. Oh BABY it was good, hot, perfectly cooked chicken on top of a flakey, buttery biscuit and bacon maple syrup. The chicken has some spice to it, but I promise if I can handle it and enjoy every last bite, anyone can. Our food took a little long, and people who came in after us were eating before us, so there definitely was a slight logistical error between us ordering and the kitchen receiving. However, I won’t dock them because the bartender brought over 2 tequila shots on the house. 4 mimosas, and 1 tequila shot later, I can forgive.

Solid food and nice atmosphere but service wasn’t great. It took over an hour to get our food at brunch, and we got there right when it opened.

The brunch is amazing food and amazing atmosphere. Really puts the fun in Sunday Funday!

So after searching for bottomless mimosas brunch I found red door. I had a lot of expectations since I’m not familiarize with the area but the review were good. Usually when it comes for bottomless mimosas I go to boystown/​lake view but decided to try a different place. I have to say that first impression was that place look very small, but because of How packed it was the restaurant I figured that it was good. After seen menu we were so exited because food of menu seems good and the plate next to us too. Our very COLD waiter took «drinks order» which it was the bottomless package and literally took him
More than 15 min for him to bring the mimosas. I had to stand up and ask manager why it was taking so long to bring the mimosas if the tables next to us they were coming pretty fast. Then after finally get the mimosas we told them
To right away bring us the next one because we knew it would go right away and the guy gave us a look like whatever. Waited left and still didn’t take our order, It was about 45 min since we got to rest and nothing, no order taken and drinks coming slow. Finally guy we bad attitude took our order and finally drinks started to come more often. I must say after taking order food came very fast and it was very DELICIOUS. Is not going to be my last time here I will give them a try. I feel that it was just or waiter that was not doing his job correctly, because the others you can tell they were brining food and drinks very fast. I will give it a try for sure again because the mimosas and food were very good.

Since I almost never give ratings this low, let me explain.
I came here for dinner with some friends. We had a reservation for 8PM but still had to wait about fifteen minutes after arrival for our table to be ready. It was a bit perplexing because the restaurant wasn’t even that full, but fifteen minutes is not that terrible.
The restaurant itself is not that big, and in addition to the bar there are just a few tables indoors. However, there are lots of long picnic-​table style seats outside, and that is where our party was seated. It was fine when we sat down but got colder after the sun set, especially since most of the heat lamps were not turned on.
I don’t believe our waitress ever introduced her name. She took a while to get to us, and rarely came by to check on us; it was a struggle just to flag down anyone for service. Overall, she wasn’t unfriendly by any means but just didn’t really seem to care that much about us.
One of the water people spilled water all over the table/​one of my friends when pouring water. Hey, that’s forgivable too, at least it was just water and we all have our clumsy moments.
So the real reason for my low rating? The wait for our food was ridiculous. We waited over one hour for our food, and we didn’t even order that much (one person in my party only ordered chips and guacamole). But to top it off, they ran out of a lot of dishes. Some were not available when we ordered, which we were told about, and that’s understandable. But after waiting over 70 minutes for our food, the entrée I had ordered was simply replaced with two other dishes. That’s right, not once did anyone come by during the at least SEVENTY-​MINUTE wait (the cooks must have known that they could not make my dish way before that) to ask if I would rather order something else, they just went ahead and substituted food for me. I can understand a restaurant feeling bad and giving a few dishes on the house as a courtesy, but I have NEVER encountered a restaurant that simply replaced your food with random other things. What if they replaced your dish with something you didn’t eat (e.g. you are vegetarian) or were allergic to? Are you supposed to wait another 70+ minutes after placing a new order? Granted, they did not end up charging me for my original entrée, but I still feel like this gross negligence deserved a little more acknowledgement by staff that they made an error, plus a sincere apology.
The menu may be cute with its Illinois silhouette and red star where Chicago is located, but a fun menu doesn’t make up for poor food. The food that did come was just mediocre too, certainly not worth such a long wait (but edible enough that I still give this establishment two stars instead of just one). Perhaps part of the problem is that the kitchen just cannot accommodate such a large volume of orders, since I’m sure most of the year it is too cold for outside dining. Still, this would be a problem that should be accounted for before opting to expand dining to OVER HALF of your total capacity outdoors.
Sorry that I didn’t take more photos of the food, we were so starving by the time our food came that we devoured most of the dishes and I forgot to take a picture of the first set that arrived.
Overall, I could not believe the experience I had at Red Door. Average service, an unreasonably long wait, and substituting food without warning or eliciting our input made for one of my worst meals ever.
I usually Unilocal places beforehand, and granted, my friend picked this place, not me, but the average rating is still three stars! Some other reviews have mentioned a great brunch, so perhaps they serve up a food-​orgasmic brunch here, but for me, this is one of the very, very few places I say NEVER AGAIN.
P. S. The check-​in offer of 1 free truffled kale chips? I was already suspicious when I noticed kale chips were not even on the menu, but I still asked about it. The waitress checked on it for me and said it was not available. She didn’t offer anything else in its place, but just said «I don’t know why it says that on Unilocal.» I suggested they update/​remove the check-​in offer, but as I am writing this review about one week after dining at the Red Door, the check-​in offer of kale chips is still there…
P. P. S. On a lighter note, I found the restroom signs amusing. The men’s restroom has picture of a rooster, and the female a cat. If you look carefully (it is a bit dark in that area), there is also a letter «M» on the men’s room and «W» on the women’s room, but otherwise, I guess you are just supposed to associate rooster = «cock» with men and felines are somehow feminine?

Everything that brunch should be — savory, buttery, and unlimited mimosas.
Must get: Pastrami Melt & Hot Fried Chicken Breast
The pastrami melt comes on an everything bagel with a side of homefries that is to die for. I can’t remember a time when I’ve had a more satisfying bagel breakfast sandwich. The fried chicken on the other hand had perfectly seasoned batter that came crispy on the outside and moist and flavorful on the inside. They did a great job with cooking the chicken breast to the perfect temperature.
Tip: Sitting at the bar gets you better service and drinks are refilled way faster than when you’re sitting at a table.
Worth an über ride out of downtown area to get here for a brunch.

Bottom line, the food is absolutely terrible, the worst brunch i have ever had. Only plus was bottomless mimosas. The staff is not attentive at all, we had to ask multiple times for refills and condiments. Also the first plate was delivered to the table and 20 mins later we finally got the last plate. Would not reccomend or revisit.

Why 1 star? Though I’ve only been here once, the bland (yet overly salty), gamey burger and dazed/​confused service was not worth my time/​money.
I should preface, that I came here based on a recommendation from Thrillist. Their recommendations having missed the mark ⁴⁄₅ times recently has convinced me to take their recommendations with a grain of salt. That said…
Got the burger, and it was both bland — or maybe lacking depth would be more appropriate — and overly salted. The meat was also quite gamey. The kale chips your get for checking in with Unilocal are broken up into such tiny pieces that you feel like a bird pecking at seeds; it’s almost comical. The beer list is solid though.
Our server was dazed and confused and forgot part of our order.
The atmosphere was like that of a pub. Dark. Wood. Nothing to write home about.
Won’t be visiting again.

This was a terrible, really terrible experience! I bought a Gilt City deal for 59 $ for a 4 course dinner with a wine pairing for each course for 2. On paper it seemed a very good deal, but in reality it was just a waste of money and time…
I saw their menu before going there and I saw also what was written on the deal. It was written nowhere that we could not choose our dishes but when we arrived, our waiter immediately told us that it was a tasting menu. We were fine with that although it was not expected.
According to Gilt City description, we were going to get «Start your chef’s dinner for two with a „snack,“ like bacon-​wrapped artichokes with bleu cheese and romesco.
Dishes like chicken confit poutine and wild mushroom quinoa are perfect for sharing, while pastas like spaghetti carbonara make for an indulgent third course.
Round out your meal with entrees like hanger steak with grilled knob onions, and ricotta gnocchi with Brussels sprouts.»
The reality was veeery different… the only thing that we got same as what Gilt City described was the bacon rapped artichokes. It was ok, I think it would be ²⁄₅. The bacon was so overpowering that if it was artichoke or gym shoes, it would have been the same.
Then, we got a kale salad with nuts and apples. Again, ok… maybe it was the best dish of the night and I said it all because, let’s be honest, as good as you can do kale, it is still kale…
Then, we got a jambalaya. I am not a jambalaya expert, but definitely I can tell you that it was a very poorly executed jambalaya. Plus, the rice was totally undercooked…
And, then, to conclude the «amazing» experience, they brought us dessert… you would expect that it must be a very good dessert to substitute a hunger steak but it was a little french toast… seriously??? A french toast for dinner? And it was also a bad french toast… I never went to a restaurant before where I had a poorly executed french toast for dinner.
Besides the food being bad, they didn’t respect the deal. I look at the deal and I had some expectations. The reality was way different from the expectations. I thought that when a restaurant prepares deals with Groupon or Gilt City is to enlarge their number of customers, not to shrink it! And this is definitely going in the wrong way…
My advice is: stay away from this GiltCity deal… seriously!!! And if you already bought it, try to get your money back.

Stopped in last night quickly for a drink with a decent sized party. We were immediately seated by a friendly gentleman. I ordered a Paloma (love tequila. Until the next day) the drink was good, wasn’t anything crazy. Service was a little slow but not terrible. I’m looking forward to stopping back in and trying more drinks and some apps.

I ended up at Red Door on a date with the rudest guy ever… but, Elise (the bartender) made my night so much better by keeping my drink full, laughing with me, and making light of the situation. Such friendly and cool woman, thanks Elise!
p. s. the Avacado Toast is awesome! Get it!

My food was pretty good (chilaquiles) and the Bloody Mary was balanced with heavy pours. Not a bad wait for the brunch rush either. So go if you want, but DON’T sit at the bar. Please.
The service we received from the bartender was some of the most disrespectful and flippant I think I’ve ever received. Highlights are the following:
— In under two hours, he took at least 4 shots (that I saw) either with staff or with customers
— Forgot to put in our order until we had ordered our second drink 30 minutes later, then passed it off that he had «just checked on our food and it was coming soon». Problem with that is we were seated directly in front of the POS system and saw it get entered. Pretty sure instead of checking on the food, he asked the kitchen to hurry because what came out was undercooked eggs and a very rare burger (order was medium rare), both dangerous ways to cut corners
— Most of the time was spent shooting the shit with a customer in the industry, trading war stories and loudly putting down customers in general (lamenting bottomless mimosas for the inevitable vomit in the bathroom, bragging that he could drink more than any person in the restaurant and regularly blacks out, stating that industry people have more work nightmares «than anyone else in here» (points to patrons), and sighing «oh thank god» when his buddy said no bloody mary garnish when I had just ordered my second)
I’m really hoping management sees this post, because if I were the owner I would find this behavior embarrassing and unacceptable.

The perfect neighborhood bar. I might move closer just to be near red door! To keep it simple red door is just a great place to grab a couple drinks and hangout with a friend and meet a few new ones. It’s a cool spot with a great staff. Great cocktails and beer and although i did not try the food it looked amazing. I can’t wait to go back!

This is going to be an unconventional review.
I have only been to Red Door for a Riot Fest After-​party in 2013. Mark from the Glamour Kills clothing line hosted/​DJed. I spent half my time there begging him to play The 1975.
Other highlights (or lowlights, rather) that I can somewhat remember:
I spilled the expensive long island I had just bought all over myself at one point.
A friend and I cried in the bathroom. No clue why.
Another friend tripped and fell on the sidewalk outside.
Band members from All Time Low and Pierce the Veil crowd surfed. Yeah, it got weird.
The drinks were good (and flowing mightily) — from the reviews it doesn’t sound like Red Door is the type of bar where people rage too often, but I guess when you get a bunch of punk kids at heart together in a small space, that’s what happens.
I had a blast — I’d go again for that kind of atmosphere. Might pass for food or otherwise though.

Red door a quaint walk-​up with tasty gastropub fare. For me, it’s much like the restaurant that occupied this same space before it. (Duchamp) (RW2016 review below)
Small kitchen with small plates which pack a great bite of flavor. Finely crafted cocktails with a fanciful mixture of boozy ingredients which aim to put you in a happy place before that first plate arrives. (This all dependant on how busy they’re stocked) Their cocktails aren’t quite «Billy Sunday» good but at $ 10 dollars apiece are worth the expenditure. I mean that’s all that is needed for any patron to truly enjoy their meal, right? Especially in an neighborhood where fancy cocktails could go as high as $ 12 or $ 14, just mere blocks away.
Back to their plates which it’s all about. From time to time it would seem that their flavor and brilliance seem to change much alike their «ticket times». On one occasion you may have your first drink in hand and be able to nosh on your Whitefish toast. Then on a different day, you might have a second drink in hand and wonder how much longer it could take before a plate actually arrived ?
I like enjoying that first drink for a time (Sazerac or an Old Fashioned). then tasting a few plates and then having a post-​meal cocktail. If I imbibe more than one, I’m bar-​hopping the hood skipping around Bucktown /​WP till daylight. But if I’m good, then it’s definitely a two drink maximum.
Some plates are fantastic and may cause you to order a second. This has happened to me a few times. Then there’s other stuff which causes you to wonder. Should I send this back?
The venue hasn’t (seemed to) change much from the previous proprietors. For instance I’m glad they left the austere experience felt in their Men’s room. The Stucco walls seem to keep the space warm in the colder seasons, definitely a good feeling which unfortunately isn’t always the case in restaurant restrooms.
Now about RW2016. The menu looked interesting so we were eager. We three dined the previous weekend. All three bought into the restaurant week menu and ordered DIFFERENT items for sharing. Seriously look at all these threes. I didn’t realize how much that could play into our dinner experience. Like bad luck I tell ya.
Whenever I read or watch a TV show detailing a grim experience of waiting 3 hours for dinner I always think «Not me. I’d bounce the F – K out!» Good thing they liquored us up first. Dinner took slightly over 3 hours. In their defense, there was a bridal shower which took up about 60% of their business, the rest of the area was filled with diners wanting to partake of their RW menu. When we were seated we were told we were the last that could eat. Because food stocks were running low and that would be it for the night.
What was good? Smoked Whitefish toast was surprisingly yummy and the pan seared Foie gras with maple-​sausage gravy was seriously killer. I had to order a second. I may have to stop by one more time and have it again before RW ends. And the baby octopus was dry. Second course will go quick since the star was the Slagel farms burger with bacon onion jam. (Bacon onion jam a condiment making its circles currently in NYC’s food scene. A condiment which seems to meander time) And third. well the Pot of Caramel was already gone despite putting our order in from the get go. So, we were left with ancho-​chili sorbet with large berries and a plate of artisanal cheese and preserves. Both desserts were perfect enders. Unfortunately since the burger was the only winning 2^nd course which we split 3 ways, we were left hungry. My buddy had a burrito at the crib and I stopped for a fish sandwich elsewhere. NO BS.
Foodies tend to (often) say that RW can suck ass. It can be a trying time for restaurants because of how busy it gets, as well as a plethora of other reasons. For the most part I agree. However, there are some occasions when a restaurant is running a tight game and the overall feeling of it is wonderful. This is why I’ll keep hitting Restaurant week and hoping.

What a great restaurant week choice! My friend organized a Sunday dinner here (about 14 people) and it was fantastic. The attention to detail and the food here were superb! The chef also came out to greet us which was also an added bonus.
I had been to the restaurant/​bar on one other occasion to celebrate a friends engagement. That time though I only had drinks. I was excited to finally get to try the food. I ordered off of the restaurant week menu. Here are the courses I got:
First Course: Grilled Baby Octopus and Fingerling Potatoes — I’m not eating octopus all the time, but I totally wasn’t disgusted by the texture. The presentation was beautiful and the potatoes were a great combination. As a side note the other three appetizer choices for restaurant tasting menu were fantastic as well. If I had to do it all over again the Eggplant Parmesan was my favorite. Warning though the portion sizes are big enough to be an entrée!
Second Course: I went with the Lobster Papprdelle — Really good, but a little on the luke warm side. Again the flavor was great and the smoked bacon pieces made by day!
Dessert: Salted Caramel Pot De Crème — This was just okay. I’m not really into creamy desserts, but this one looked the best out of the other two choices.
I have to mention they treated us to Foie Gras biscuits with gravy and seriously that had to of been my favorite part of the meal! I’m still thinking about it. Also I was very grateful for the round of prosecco and shots we were treated too. I had such an enjoyable evening and I will be visiting Red Door again soon. :)

Red Door is a neighborhood spot that is excellent for brunch. We went with a larger group and stayed past the rush. The $ 11 bottomless mimosas certainly blurred my experience, but I think for the better lol. I had the Steak and Eggs, and it was almost more food than I could eat. The steak was cooked perfectly medium rare and tender filet type cut. Eggs moist and ample portion. The kimchee type side was «oh my god call the fire department spice hot» but I’m a bit of a wuss on heat. My friends liked it just fine, but 1 bite was too much for me. My wife got the Shrimp Benedict and it was very very good. Mushroom Omlette, Chilaquiles and a Prime Rib bagel were also enjoyed by our group.

The patio at Red Door is my favorite part. It is so large and casual, but for some reason, it is never full. I guess that’s great for us and our dog since we never have to wait, but I always worry that the place is a day away from closing.
Anyway, the staff is always super nice, they’re dog friendly, the drinks are always good (and strong!) and they change seasonally, and the small plates are definitely worth trying. On a recent visit, they were having a half off cocktail special (I think it was on a Thursday) and the dorielotes (elotes atop doritos) was SOOOOOOOOO good. Honestly, I would go back just for an order of that. Their poutine is also a favorite and dessert comes from Bang Bang Pie just a few blocks away.

Gotta update my review based on some really good experiences I’ve had here lately. Whether late at night, early afternoon, having a big meal or only drinking, Red Door has been there for me in the best way. One Saturday afternoon my boyfriend and I were here for a drink or two and they were giving out free shot sized samples of a new cocktail they were trying out. If the bottom of your cup had a black dot on it, you got a full sized cocktail for free! I can’t remember exactly what the cocktail was, but it was great. It is kind of a shame that they don’t have any beers on draft here because it sucks paying almost as much for one beer ($ 6-​$ 9 generally) as you would for a 6 pack, but their bottles and cans list is long. And good. And arranged roughly by type/​style of beer. So that’s a real plus.
Some great dishes we’ve had lately include the always delicious kale chips (free for checking in) and the kale salad, which has avocado, strawberries and feta and is a perfect size for a lighter meal. The bacon wrapped artichokes are good if served hot… It’s just a shame you only get two because I could eat a lottttt of these. The fried green tomato BLT is my favorite dish I’ve had of late. Get it. It’s huge. The Red Door burger will be ordered by my boyfriend every single time without hesitation; he doesn’t even need a menu. The fact that the menu changes so often is both a blessing and a frustration, as its fun to try new dishes but many are so good that I want to get them again, and come here specifically hoping they will have them! The outdoor patio is also THE best place to enjoy a meal on a summer evening in Bucktown. I have really grown to love you, Red Door.

I met a friend at Red Door for brunch this past Saturday and was pleasantly surprised! I really liked Duchamp, the restaurant that was there before Red Door, so I was a bit leery of Red Door already. But my hater ways were quickly checked when greeted by the friendly staff and a mimosa or two.
I had the Carnitas Scramble and it was delicious! There were so many great sounding options on the menu that I genuinely had difficulty deciding what to order. Next time I will be getting the Chicken and Waffle with crawfish gravy. Ermagerd!