FatDuck Tavern & Grill

This place has arguably the best burgers in the city and beyond. My favorite by far is the duckfat burger. It includes melted Brie cheese, bacon, and the meat is tender and always cooked as ordered in my experience. Perhaps the best part of the meal are the fries, fried in duck fat (hence the name!) and served with three insanely delicious dipping sauces (fave is the green one). Just great food and a nice relaxed ambiance. Service could be a little faster at times, but the food makes it worthwhile. Great salads too

Wife, son, a friend and I ate at FDT before the Friday night rush and had alright meals. Nice to find a place outside of Oak Park. The waitress shared that the pitcher of white Margaritas are made on the premises vs. the red batch. So, we got a pitcher of the stuff, which we enjoyed through the meal. The grilled calamari for appetizers was slightly too vinegary but we managed through it. My salmon salad was tasty although the piece of salmon was sardine size. Still a good salad but for $ 14.95 I expected a in-​kind piece of salmon. The pork sandwiches on the other side of the table were devoured.
Will return and try other choices on the menu soon. Rib eaters around me looked like they were in meat heaven.

I can add anything more than the guy right below me. I just had to rate because the rating was way too low. Love this place.

Well, not sure if the pulled pork supply was low yesterday or not, but the implication of pulled pork nachos means there would be an identifiable amount of pulled pork on or near the nacho chips, etc.
2 maybe 3 ounces of pork on the entire order.
Epic fail…
Epic
And, the beer cooler being broken didn’t help either.
Ugh.
Funds, wasted.
There are other places to dine in and around Forest Park, we’re all noticing the surmounting shortcomings.
Please do better…

Great place! Love the atmosphere, even though the food is not the best, it is great for going out at night watching the game with your friends

The duck fat fries (and the dipping sauces, too) are to go back for, over and over again. Other stuff is good too. We tried a couple of other appetizers and the brisket platter and they were all pretty tasty. A good Friday evening hang out spot, for when the occasion is not that special and you still want to splurge.

I have been in DuckFat 2 more times since I wrote the review below. Fries seemed less greasy and burgers were great. Super friendly staff and accommodating to my toddler. I only wish there were better salad options on the menu.

This is my boyfriends and I favorite late spot for beer, wings, ribs. We love the late menu but sometimes we get lucky and still get to eat from the dinner menu.

These guys can throw down on the grill. The Duckfat Burger and Pot Roast Sandwich are both killers, the Duck Confit quesadillas are otherwordly, and all the food comes out quick. The beer menu is possibly the greater treasure here, as the regular taps are always serving elite choices, while a few whales can be purchased if you’re in the mood (I celebrated my birthday with a Parabola there).
This is a prime stop in our restaurant rotation.

This is a steady eddy. You can always count on Fat Duck to be good. I’ve been here 10 or more times, and it’s always good.
I think I’ve tried just about everything on the menu: pot roast nachos, fish and chips, beet and goat cheese salad, duck fat fries with the three dipping sauces, shrimp tempura salad. The stand out for me is the pork belly burger. That’s right: pork belly ground into a burger, then topped with bacon. Not for the faint of heart. Literally. Served with the famous fries. Between me, my husband and our teen daughter, we’ve definitely eaten our way through the menu. Nobody ever has any complaints.
I’ve been here with the family, I’ve been here with my husband for date night, I’ve been here with girlfriends for drinks. My husband has gone out with the guys here. Our work is having an event here. In warm weather, the patio is a nice addition. This is an easy go to spot in the suburbs. They have a great beer list. If you haven’t been, go. There is something for everyone, and the food is good.

I went here a couple of weeks ago when my parents were visiting out of town. The food was absolutely delicious. We had a party of 5 and every single person really enjoyed their meal. Our server was attentive and friendly and created a very welcoming experience for us. I’ll definitely be back in the future.

My friend and I wanted a juicy burger. We went to FatDuck and the menu indicated it was Kobe beef. My friend ordered it medium & it came cooked well. The server was super nice & apologetic and even offered to bring her another one. We took her up on it. Stll, bad burger. had 2 bites & went down the street to Scratch Kitchen. m, best burger in town! Cooked perfectly & delicious!

At FatDuck a 16oz draft actually means a 12oz pour. They advertise 16oz drafts but use a 12+ oz glass, what’s up with that? Unfortunately it seems to be a trend these days.

This place is nice and awesome people that work here they always had a smile on there faces and I loved that.
The food was so so good I truly loved the food especially the truffle fries I never had them before but it was amazing the person I had with me was not worth my time or any thing she didn’t even order any thing even though she picked the place. The bar and grill was amazing I will definitely come back and eat here again.

To simply put it, the food here is amazing. Definitely recommend the burgers. The Chef definitely knows what he’s doing when it comes to properly cooking/​seasoning food. Great beer selection too. Only down side is that their taps seem to run out fast. Must not keep a large stock of beer on hand. Nevertheless, a great find in Forest park.
Almost forgot, the Duckfat fries and Truffle fries are dangerous! Hard keeping any left on your plate.

When I first moved to the near west ‘burbs, I was amazed at the number of people who told me Madison St was the place to be. My Forest Park experience was limited to that shady Wal-​Mart on Roosevelt and so I was a tad hesitant to ever take their advice. One day, I bit the bullet and went to FatDuck for dinner and some Monday Night Football.
We got there around six and the place was nearly empty. Outside of us, there were maybe two other tables. I ordered a margarita flatbread and the boyfriend had ribs. He loved the ribs. The flatbread was very good. It was a bit garlicky so be prepared for that.
The most amazing part of the experience came with our dessert. That night their dessert special was homemade donuts. It was six little donuts hot out of the fryer covered with powdered sugar, hot caramel, and hot chocolate syrup. These warm little delicacies were absolutely delicious!
The service was absolutely fantastic. They have a pretty exhaustive menu but our server was happy to provide us recommendations throughout the evening.
Tip: There isn’t parking dedicated for Fatduck. Try parking on Madison or a nearby street.

We tried again for the third time. It’s just… not awesome. We weren’t thrilled with anything at our table, and everyone had ideas about what would work better. We want the restaurant to make a better dish than we would, so we were disappointed. The service was good though, so it’s a place that’s great for drinking when you don’t care about the food so much. This kind of stinks, because cooking with duck and duck fat should be an obvious win.

My girlfriend and I love coming to Duckfat. The food is great, the wait staff is great, and the outdoor patio area is our favorite in Forest Park. Keep up the good work. The truffle sliders are my go to.

Dynamic Bar
Great food!!! Excellent bartender
Make sure you sit at Linsey’s bar. She’s the best

I came here with friends on Wednesday night, $ 5 Margarita night. My friend chose this place. The food was better than average for barfood. The burgers were cooked well. They said the fries were cooked in duckfat. I couldn’t tell the difference but they were good and plentiful. It’s a good place to come with family, close friends, or a high school date.

I went here with a friend. I thought there would be a huge difference since the fries were cooked in duck fat but they actually just tasted the same. The food was good but not great. It was ordinary bar food nothing special.

I walk past this place every morning on my way to Starbucks but had yet to try it. Came here last Thursday after here such great things. Unfortunately the whole experience was underwhelming
Positives:
–great patio (ill be back for this alone)
–apps were amazing… Parmesan fries And the baked goat cheese dip (LOVE)
— the margarita was good and strong
Negatives:
–the entire entrée menu left a lot to be desired as far as options
–I got the duck fat burger… first complaint overlooked when I order something medium I don’t want it well done. The burger says it has Caramelized onions but they tasted like they were almost pickled
— the duck fat fries weren’t anything special
–service was a little slow but it was busy they appeared to be understaffed.
Overall I’d return for drinks and apps on the patio but with all the restaurants in the area in not exactly rushing back

If I ever become president, one of my first orders of business would be to outlaw iceberg lettuce– the white, flavorless, wilty crap that ends up sitting in my stomach like a brick much more than ever expected. I never use it at home.
I love ordering salads when I go out, and am sometimes tricked by the «mixed greens» line that some salads boast, noting it to be all ice berg with two shreds of Romaine… UGH. JUST STOP.
I came to FatDuck for a Monday Funday and was super impressed with the beautiful summer mango salad I ordered– look at all that dark green! Also, please note the mass amount of toppings that came with it. There was a healthy portion of grilled chicken, mango, avocado, fennel, tomato, all sprinkled with a light mango dressing– DELICIOUS. I would highly recommend it.
My guy ordered their chicken giardinera sandwich and paid the extra to get the DuckFat fries, which I HAD to try. He loved his sandwich, although I thought it was a little small. The fries were plentiful, crispy, with a more mild flavor (I’m guessing due to the duck fat used). I liked them, and all the dipping options that came with them, but did not experience a life changing moment like some of my other Unilocalers.
The bar itself is large, with ample indoor and outdoor seating, a decent beer and cocktail list, but service was a smidge slow. It wouldn’t prevent me from coming back, by anymeans, especially after that rockstar salad!

Duckfat? Fatduck? I think the banners out front are drunk and/​or confused.
I certainly was towards the conclusion of my bar crawl that ended here last summer. From what I can recall, it was a decent time, although I was fairly sh*thoused, so who knows. All I know is, they had tons of solid beers on tap and a distinctly pub-​like atmosphere.
A second trip here involved a food order with drinks. I was hoppy (hah!) to see Bell’s Oberon drafts, a personal favorite of mine. I got an order of the calamari and pepperoni pizza, neither of which was particularly noteworthy. Calamari is pretty standard at most places, and while the ‘za tasted pretty good, it had a bitter aftertaste since they had burnt the cracker-​thin crust. Service was fine, value was acceptable. I’d come back to sample more foodstuffs.
+ Begin tangent +
Ever notice how weird, unappealing food items have a snazzy or innocuous name to make them more palatable? Because really, who in their right mind would eat deep-​fried bull testicles? Crazy people, that’s who. Or ranchers. But I might be willing to try a «Rocky Mountain Oyster». ‘Escargot’ has a nice, eloquent French connotation to it, since ‘snails in butter sauce’ is a hard pass. Not a single person would want to indulge in fried squid rings, but calamari? Sure, put me down for an order.
+ End tangent +

This place is great. I’ve lived merely 3 blocks from it for more than 3 years but I’ve never stopped in. Silly me! My boyfriend and I dropped in Saturday evening during the St. Patrick’s Day celebration. It was packed but we were easily able to get drinks while we waited. And the drinks were quite strong and reasonably priced. The shots though seemed very small to me. Maybe they were regular shot but they just seemed tiny, and for $ 6/​shot I kinda was like, really? That said, everything else was great! I had a burger and fries and loved it. And it was $ 12 which seemed very good for the quality/​size. The garlic sauce that came with the fries was addicting. Will be back! Our server/​waitress was very good and nice.

Very happy with this place.
first went with my mom and as she’s old– we can’t sit at those high tables in the bar so glad they had a quieter area with low tables.
Wanted to order a side of duck fat fries so my mom could try which my mom was like «why, they;re just fries».
I insisted that ALL urban hipster posers eat this stuff and its very hip.
Waitress came by– SUPER nice– talked me out of the fries, saying if you get a burger you can get them with it and my mom can try them without you guys having a huge mound of them. I agree.
I get the burger– super good and so big I make 2 meals out of it. My mom gets the french onion soup, which shes says was great.
Waitress comes back and says «i got you more fries cause I decided there wasn’t enough for you 2 to really enjoy just from that burger side» and she gives us a huge plate of fries for free. Well– OK! And the fries were quite good and my mom can say she’s a fake urban hipster now.
In re to beer, yea, there’s a craft list, but I really would have liked a bigger list… it was heavy on IPA… I actually know beers– unlike some urban hipsters posers and I had trouble deciding– not many ambers, wheat, just a ok saison, too hot for imperial stout.
I guess its to be expected cause
HIPSTERS LOVE HOP!

The outdoor patio is really nice. It was the perfect atmosphere for a nice chill Tuesday night. It was colorful, nicely lit with the roped lighting and made me long for Florida with the key west signage. I guess the patio colors are very Florida esque as well.
The plan was to meet at Doc Ryans, but I saw the patio and lights and was like noooope, let’s go here! So glad we did.
They have a nice craft beer list. I’m a beer kinda girl for the most part so I enjoyed it. We tried 4 new beers between us.
1. A pumpkin ale. It was tasty. Just like pumpkin pie.
2. Lemon ginger radler best thing since sliced bread! Get it you won’t regret it.
3. Lagunitas a lil sumptin sumptin. Not for me it was a lil bitter
4. Honey, you’re a blonde. Was a light refreshing taste.
Had we not ventured in we would’ve been drinking the standard Heineken and bud light.

This’ll be a short review, since I only came to FatDuck for beers. The bar (and restaurant, I guess) was handsomely nondescript, or nondescriptly handsome, if either of those phrases makes sense. There was wood, there were stools, maybe there was a TV. The atmosphere was uninteresting but unobtrusive, and service was pleasant enough.
My husband and I met a friend for a casual drink when we were staying in Elmwod Park, and it was a suitable venue for that purpose. The bar was pretty quiet on a Tuesday night, if not entirely dead. The beer list was solid. I think I had some kind of Goose Island beer, probably an IPA.
I’d probably come back to FatDuck if I lived in the neighborhood. I have a place just like it back home that I don’t love but visit constantly out of convenience. Serviceable bar, good beer and laid-​back vibe. The kind of spot you’d forget right away if it weren’t always showing up in your corner. Where you can always sit down without planning ahead and have a reliably good time.

I ordered take-​out from FatDuck to bring to my mom and step-​dad during a long say at nearby Loyola University hospital. It’s not exactly right around the corner from there, but it was close enough that I could pick it up and it was still hot by the time I got to the room.
We ordered the black bean chili which was really delicious, two of the grilled chopped chicken salads and the grilled chicken wrap. Everything traveled well, the fries with the wrap were good, and everything tasted fresh. Portions were large, and I would return here if I’m in the neighborhood.

I’m totally confused as to whether this place is called Fat Duck or Duck Fat, because signage at the restaurant says both. Confusion aside, however, this place is awesome.
Have eaten inside in the dining room and outside on the patio. Both were nice but definitely prefer the patio when Chicagoland weather cooperates! Enough about ambiance. Which is good. Let’s get to the food.
Have tried a few things here now and loved all of them. The duck fat fries with dipping sauces are pretty damn awesome. Some are crispy, some are softer (I prefer softer fries myself) but all were freaking GOOD. The aioli they serve with it is my favorite of the three — there’s also a spicy ketchup that’s fab.
Ok, so, what really compelled me to write this review was the Duck Fat burger. Bacon, brie and caramelized onions on a pretzel bun. Oh HELL. YES. And it comes with duck fat fries!
My friend had the confit sandwich, which he loved — and he got smart and chose the truffled parm fries with his sandwich, which — next time — I am ALL OVER. They were so good I had a hard time keeping my hands out of his plate. (Um, I didn’t try hard.) They offer several fry options — including sweet potato — which is pretty cool.
The cocktails were good (we had mojitos on the first trip here) and the servers are fantastic. I love this place; can totally see myself becoming a regular.