University Club of Chicago

Despite cool casual attire befitting hedgie Bobby Axelrod of «Billions», I am told, politely, in my first 20 minutes here that I am in violation of multiple club rules (no jeans, no collared shirt, using a cell phone, using a lap top) and if my present behavior continues apace I will be in violation of all 492 rules by dinner. Then I am told I may prefer to use the service entrance. I feel like I am back at the Times.

Great place to host an event.
I came here twice in the past week. Once for a non-​profit gala and the other for a school conference. Great environment both times. It has an antique vibe that feels like it has a lot of history behind it (though i don’t know what it is: P). The environment feels pretty grande with the old wood. Great for classy events.
Initially I wasn’t going to write a review but the second event I went to had pretty good food.
Breakfast was eggs, bacon, sausage, roasted potatoes. All really well done. The eggs were soft and moist — not the dry powder you’d usually expect. Roasted potatoes were especially on point.
Lunch had a great salad. Heirloom tomatoes plus mozzarella with a spring mix and some vinegar based sauce. Great opener.
The main was a short rib, with spinach and a potatoe purée. Short rib was done really well. Because they had to serve so many though, they had to cover it so it lost the crust. Regardless, it had great texture (i assume sous vided).
Would definitely recommend if anyone is looking to host a snazzy event.

I came as a guest, and was blown away by the super high ceilings. We ate in the cathedral room. It was a beautiful view overlooking the water and Millennium Park. The service staff is super attentive and friendly!
In order to become a member here, they require University or a college degree from four year institution. A completion of nomination form (Nomination forms may be requested by members only), and three letters of recommendation from existing members of the Club (One from proposer, one from seconder and one additional letter of support.) Needless to say, I was amongst scholars. lol. I was of course here discussing pastry opportunities.
Starting with the bone marrow, they present two large sized bones with a delicate rich spongy buttery and slightly sweet center. Texture of broken gelatin, spreads nicely on toast points and a serving of whole blueberry jam. Set on a wooden round.
I also had the grilled salmon which had a nice char on the inside but beautiful cooked with moist fleshy inside, accompanied by a roasted small tomato.
For dessert, the cherry cobbler. Sort of disappointing. A lots of cake in it, not as many cherries as I’d hoped. Sweet enough, and not enough streusel crunch topping. The ice cream onto was fair at best, and the anglaise just made the dish soggy.
It is something different to experience if given the opportunity, I saw families as well as business men, and small groups of two. Plenty of room to have a conversation and not be overwhelmed by noise.

The hotel is nice don’t get me wrong, but, it is outdated and the rooms are disappointing I had higher expectations. The staff is very friendly the amenities could use some updates. The rooms need a little more light and and heating/​ac need a tune up.

Great place for drinks and food after a long day of meetings. I love the no telephone and no jeans rules. The 12^th floor has an awesome view on the balcony within the restaurant. If you are fortunate to be a member or a guest, it is definitely a great place to go.

Great venue for work events. Worth exploring– the 12^th floor has an awesome view on the balcony within the restaurant. Only members can buy drinks at the bar though. There’s a hogwarts-​like library and gallery on the 7^th floor. Other features include a gym, squash room, men’s and women’s locker rooms ;)

Groucho Marx is said to have said, «I don’t want to belong to any club that would have me as a member.» Perhaps this is a club that I would want to belong to; since I wear jeans pretty much every day, and they aren’t allowed here.
Yes, there is a place for this grand club, and I have enjoyed coming here the times when I haven’t looked as ruffian. It’s old school. The architecture, both inside and out, is from a time of pride in craftsmanship; when building owners were willing to spend a little money to show respect for the community. Like they dressed for dinner, they dressed-​up their buildings, rather than focusing only on themselves and the keeping money in their pockets without regard to the city. The people, too, are old school. As in, it’s been a long while since they left their universities and amassed enough cash to afford the membership to this place.
A friend of mine, whose husband and her have no problems belonging to the club, brought me here for my lunch on my birthday. What a sweetie. We met in the lobby: fancy, with gorgeous wooden details. In fact, the whole place is like that. We made our way into the fancy elevator, up to the dining room with a small terrace. It overlooks Millennium Park and beyond from about a dozen floors up.
We were lucky to snag a seat there (or I was lucky that my friend reserved it?). For a summer that started very slowly, that day was fantastic: the perfect temperature in the low eighties, and all sorts of activity below. I couldn’t think of a better place to have lunch that day, especially because I’m not a big fan of my birthday.
We started out with a couple glasses of wine – who said the days of the alcohol-​fueled business lunch are over? We each had the burger. While it tasted good, medium-​rare had turned into well-​done by the time we received them. I did like appreciate the crispy edges of the burger.
I’ve been a couple times to the bar here as well, once was before Christmas, when they had a wonderful jazz singer named Spider Saloff, who was fantastic in the especially-​intimate room. The room is just as cozy without live music.
It’s a nice place to visit, though I wouldn’t want to live here. It certainly wouldn’t hurt me to dress up a little once in a while.

I was very fortunate and invited to a CFMA (Construction Financial) lunch at the University Club. Delightfully old school. Professional and polished staff. Beautiful views of Millennium Park, Maggie Daley Park, LSD, the lakefront, the Art Institute. I just could not get enough.
The room for the lunch was tasteful and acoustically correct, which is my fancy way of saying the speakers could be heard equally well at any place in the hall. Food was great.
Hope to make it back to the University Club again soon.

I’ve only been here as a guest to the bar on the second-​floor, which was chummy and quiet despite having one or two dozen folks there. But I was particularly tickled by the small stack of reference guides and dictionaries they had, presumably to settle bets between folks whose smartphones had broken — and even more tickled to see one of my favorite texts, Miss Manners’ Guide to Excruciatingly Correct Behavior, in the stack.
Expensive parking.

Nice building but no internet. It was very loud at night and don’t get a room next to an elevator.

Just had my wedding reception at the University Club a couple of weeks ago. I cannot say enough good things about the venue, the food, and the staff. Gail was our event coordinator and she was so easy to work with throughout the wedding planning process, and made our event so beautiful. Javier was in charge of our event the night of, and did an incredible job making sure everything went smoothly. Our 200 guests absolutely loved the Christmas décor that was up all around the club, especially the gorgeous tree in Cathedral Hall and all the twinkly lights. That, combined with all the candles we brought in for centerpieces made for a very cozy, romantic winter wedding. The food was AMAZING and completely surpassed my expectations for food in general, let alone a meal at a large wedding. The mushroom ravioli was the hands down favorite dish that night. Wait staff was so nice and really on top of their game — my husband and my champagne glasses were refilled the instant we took a sip. At one point the room got really warm since all our guests were on the dance floor, so we asked if they could cool the room off. They did so almost instantly. Bartenders were awesome, cocktail hour appetizers were delicious, and the after-​party in the library with a Chicago-​style hotdog bar was amazing. I could go on and on.
So so impressed with everything about the club and its staff. They did everything in their power to make our wedding absolutely perfect, and boy did they succeed! Thank you!!!

Great service, perfect location opposite the Art Institute. Cathedral Hall is stunning and service was first class. The quality of the food is spectacular, as is the view overlooking the lake and Millennium Park. The Front Grill reminds me of a dining room from decades back — they do enjoy the atmosphere from some time ago.

One of the nicest dining rooms in all of Chicago with service to match. Just being in this venue is inspirational.

So imagine a country club in the middle of the city. Yup. That’s the University Club of Chicago. I’ve lived in Chicago and the north-​shore suburbs for the majority of my life, but I guess I screwed up somewhere because I’ve just never been attracted to the bourgeoisie lifestyle that the UCC caters to. I literally had someone point out to me that the waitress most likely has no idea what Louboutins are; without actually saying it, the implication was that she’s just not really at the much more sophisticated level of the patrons. Gross. I came here because someone was kind enough to invite me (it’s members only) and that’s the only way I’d come back, to convenience someone else’s life.

Was super fortunate for some appetizers and drinks at the University Club of Chicago’s rooftop restaurant. It has an amazing view of Millennium Park, Grant Park and Michigan Ave. The appetizers were divine and the drinks were superb but strong! As far as I know, in order to dine there you must be a member (aka pay member dues).
Also they have a ballroom that hosts events and it is gorgeous! It holds about 200 guests.

Do you like eating at nice venues? What about a nice venue from up high? What about a nice venue from up high and overlooking Millennium Park and the Bean and the fountains? Then this is your place. There is not another establishment in Chicago with such a perfect combination of view, air, location, etc.
Yes, you could try the Terrace at Conrad Hilton (and be surrounded by concrete) and yes, you could try the Signature Room (with all the tourists from Bayonne NJ and Toledo Ohio)…or, you could become a member of the University Club, and eat outside on the 12^th floor balcony which overlooks Millennium, The Bean, Grant Park, the Art Institute, and the lake.
The food and service are top notch and if you are lucky, there will be a concert at Pritzker Pavillion and you’ll be able to hear the music while you dine.
If you are looking at Standard, or Union League (or for that matter, the second tier places like Metropolitan Club) then you must come check out the University Club and eat at the best venue in Chicago.

I had a very pleasant stay here, the location is great, service is awesome. You have a 5 stars hotel treatment here with luxury boutique hotel accommodation.
They have a good pastry chef who makes very good cinnamon rolls. And did I mention the views just breath taking.

I’m a member. This is as good as club food gets. In the summer, eat outside on the balcony overlooking the park. Cathedral Hall is great. They have a fantastic bar on the second floor. College Hall is fantastic for a casual lunch.
Service is extraordinary. Hotel rooms are fantastic. The reciprocal club feature is great. I stayed in NYC on Central Park far cheaper than I could have at the JW Marriot.
If you like to play Squash, or want to learn this is the club for you. They have nice workout facilites on the 12^th floor-​but no basketball court and the pool is in the basement.
Of note. Dinner in the evening requires a jacket. No jeans are allowed, except on Saturday, and Sunday brunch. Cell phones should be turned to buzz, and don’t talk or use them at tables. Seems stuffy, but the club values in person communication. Sometimes it’s good to have old values.
It is a members only club. Contact me if you would like to join. You need to have a college degree to be a member of the club.

Probably one of my favorite clubs compared to Met, MAC, Union League — the food here is really good, service very polite and understanding that you’re in a meeting, and the old-​world charm is nice too. Did I mention the food here is really good?

I had a work meeting here: and I have to confess I did not go to it for the content of the meeting, but for the opportunity to explore this building! The meeting was ok too, but they were a little bit freaked out by the fact that I came with my photo gear and took pictures the whole time :) The crowning jewel of the building is the top of the building’s gorgeous high ceilinged, elaborately carved Cathedral Hall, with stained glass windows by Bartlett which represent different Ivy League universities and disciplines of thought. A secular temple of sorts.
A long history, a society for educated folks since 1887, the Club is in a 1909 building designed by Roche, called «the first gothic skyscraper» and is one of the more interesting buildings facing Millennium Park.
Other club opportunities include sports (squash is a huge thing here), restaurants, a library with amazing views, and a hotel. I guess intellectuals like squash.