EJ’s Place

Had a great time, ate like a king and the short Joe Pesci waiter just blew us away. We loved him. This is my spot.

Waited 45 minutes for our «reservation» and one meal was so poorly cooked the waiter refused to serve it… Dover Soul. The lamb chops were tasty as was the skirt steak.
Expensive for what it is.

This remains my favorite steakhouse in Chicago, a steakhouse I so revere that I drive out to Skokie, from the city, to eat there as I did last night.
I almost always get the same thing – their grilled calamari and their porterhouse.
I am fussy about both grilled calamari and the t-​bone. Their grilled calamari is my favorite grilled calamari, ever, and when I say that I’m even including places I’ve had grilled calamari in France and Italy. Sure, different preparations are possible, so it isn’t really fair to say one is the best, period, but to my tastes EJ’s is the best, period. I also like the creamed spinach when I’m in the mood.
I like a big t-​bone, but only if it’s charred/​carmelized on the outside while totally rare on the inside. Over the years, at various locations, I’ve tried to get there by describing what I want and saying «rare,» «very rare,» «Pittsburgh rare,» and «charred rare.» Even at EJ’s, I have not always been totally successful. Two times ago, my waiter said I wanted «Pittsburgh rare» and so I went with that, and the steak wasn’t quite charred/​carmelized on the outside, and it was too cooked on the inside – but, as a rule, I don’t send steaks back. Or at least I didn’t, never have, and wouldn’t unless, for example, I asked for a rare steak and got one that was well-​done.
Last night, at my waiter’s urging, I went with «charred rare,» and it was sublime. Maybe the best steak I’ve ever had other than the (very different, and puny, compared to EJ’s) steak at Bavette’s.
So I’m still thinking EJ’s is a 5-​star place.
My gripes are minimal. My gripes are, first, that the steak has gone way, way up in price. The t-​bone is now $ 58.50, which seems like an awful lot, even for that steak. Also, the calamari is $ 20.50. Granted, even if two of us always split it, it’s enough for more than two, and maybe for four.
Second, I like to get my steak with EJ’s cottage fries, but the last two times at least half of what they gave us looked like stuff from the bottom of a fry basket, little dark brown, too crispy potato bits. They could and should do better. How hard is it to quality control cottage fries – especially given the cost of potatoes? Give me nice slices of deep fried potato, not those potato bits.

OVER priced for the quality and presentation of the food. The front area is not so bad if you don’t mind the dated lodge look. Make sure that you don’t get seated in the depressing back room. It looks like the basement of a cheap 1950s backwoods ranch house — nothing nice about it. The service was barely okay. The steaks did not taste prime, and were not correctly cooked. My husband’s fish tasted old. Our waiter was indignant when we complained about the fish, and insisted it was fresh. I really don’t understand the crowds, unless just hanging with EJ makes them feel special. Go figure. Forced valet parking is not a plus. Prices are on par with, or higher, than much better places.

Wonderful old place. Much nicer than it looks from the outside. Menu is very similar to Gene and Georgetti’s downtown. Waitstaff has served there for decades. Very nice high quality place. For some reason, I never feel completely comfortable there — always feel like I have to rush. It is expensive, by the way.

The ambiance is, eh. Lots of older people on a Friday night at 630. However, the service and the food was amazing. My friend and I ordered a salad to share, and the bone in rib-​eye to share, though it was a little pricey for 2 gals to have a early dinner, it was very good and well worth it. Might be checking this place out again a little later when maybe there will be a more lively atmosphere.

My husband and I live nearby and are kind of regulars on account of both the great steak and old school professional wait staff/​bartenders who clearly know what they are doing and take pride in their craft. We love to sit at the bar and share a large bone-​in ribeye with the sauteed calamari, garbage salad, cottage fries and of course top shelf cocktails (George normally hooks us up and is fun to chat with). :)

NOPE ! NOPE ! Alleged Prime steak isn’ supposed to be tough and chewy, is it? Waiter inattentive to our TablePricey for quality and atmosphere Forced valet parking Nice bread basket.

Ate here on 9÷5÷15. Will definatley go again. Shrimp Cocktail very fresh. Crab cakes-​delicious. Bone in Sirloin cooked medium rare and the meat tasted as good as anything I;ve had at Morton’s or Ruth;s Chris No loud annoying music so, it’s possible to have a nice conversation with your guest without screaming. Nice place. Excellent Service. Wife had Breaded shrimp which were huge in a flavorful batter. Salads were crisp– not drowned in dressing The cottage fries were just OK– kind of potato chippy. I liked it a lot.

I have driven by here a million times and read the reviews and knew it was expensive so I was apprehensive about trying it. I finally went and we loved loved loved it.
The atmosphere is great and the waiters are totally classic. It is expensive but not anything unusual for good steaks and service. My wife had the veal chop and although I really liked my NY strip the veal was like butter. My advice is if you are not in the mood to spend money then skip it but if you want a good bottle of Cabernet and some carnivorous delights in an old school clubby atmosphere with some beautiful characters for waiters this is the place.

If you like oysters start with a dozen fresh, as good as any seafood place around. Ironically two of their best entrée’s are fish as well (Dover sole and Chilean sea bass)
However the steak is phenomenal.
Suggest the bone in ribeye medium rare with a char (Pittsburgh style). Sitting at the bar provides dinner and a «show». Be sure to ask for George
Enjoy!

EJs is one of my family’s favorite places to go for special family dinners. The food is typically very good and it’s a little expensive but worth it. The sausage and pepper appetizer is a favorite amongst the family, I also recall a very amazing key lime pie if you’re looking for dessert suggestions!

Ate here last Thursday and it was wonderful. I love coming here. My wife and I and our baby girl flew into town and had a nice meal with friends and family. And we got to see EJ, a wonderful friend. Can’t wait to eat here again!!!

Food is always good here. Always ask for Johny he is the best!
The restaurant offers a variety of foods from pasta to chicken, steaks and seafood. They have the chicken vesuvio that is really yummy (you can order it boneless). They have this crunchy cottage fries that so good and it comes with your entrée if you want it or not. Their skirt steak is really good too so don’t miss out on that one. Over all they offer good food and great service but it gets loud though. But who cares as long as you’re enjoying your food that is all matters most.

My company booked a private party room for an official dinner today. Easily valet parked, we were seated, the appetizers came bang on time. The order included crab cakes, fried calamari and grilled calamari all of which were excellent. Then came the humungous salad plates, the main course was grilled slamon chicken with garlic potatoes, pasta, baked potato, mushroom in wine sauce and side of home made chips.
Overall good experience and waitstaff was very polite!

I had a fantastic dinner here this week with a colleague from work and an international guest. With respect to the concerns expressed by some of the other reviewers, I didn’t experience any of that. First, we arrived early, around 5:30 and there was plenty of parking available around the back. Nobody forced us to use the valet service, which incidentally is complementary (except for tip). When you walk in, the place has the ambiance of a supper club of perhaps 50 years ago. It has a very rustic feel. You would almost imagine that Al Capone could walk through the door with a couple buddies and take a table over in the corner away from the bright lights. Yes there are a few television screens up on the wall, but they are not huge and they didn’t make any noise. They didn’t bother us at all.
The bartender was very attentive while I and my friends had a few drinks before dinner. When we were ready, we were ushered to a cozy table on the side. Our main server was Jose, and he did an outstanding job. Every few minutes somebody would come by and fill up our drinks without disturbing the conversation. For dinner, my colleague ordered a NY Strip Steak and I had the Lake Superior Whitefish with a baked potato. I can tell you, that fish was done perfectly and it was delicious. Did I mention that the portions are enormous? By all means, take some home to enjoy later. For dessert we had a piece of chocolate cake that was big enough for the three of us to share. We just had them bring us 3 small plates and forks.
Yes, it is a little more expensive than the average restaurant you might visit in this area. But you get great food, and lots of it, along with excellent service. If you’re looking for an inexpensive meal, then by all means go elsewhere. But if you appreciate the atmosphere, you will have a very enjoyable experience at EJ’s.

Want to know why I’ll never go to EJ’s again? Not the food. The steaks are plenty and fine. Not the old fashioned wait staff. They are a little uptight but acceptable for an old fashioned dinner place.
Nope. It’s the valet parker who honked and flagged down my wife and myself because we parked our own car. This is the second time I’ve left the restaurant because valet out front demands that customers valet park and sometimes I don’t want anyone inside my car.
So tonight we pull around the side of the building away from the valet zone and the guy comes after us honking at is in another customers car and then tried to wave down my wife. We walk inside the restaurant and the staff tells us if we park on the south side of the building it is ok to self park but I’m pretty upset to be honked at by a valet so we leave — for the last time. This was 5:15 on a Tuesday and the place was empty and they lost my $ 200 check because of the parking lot attendant.
Previously the valet told us we had to give him our car or we couldn’t eat there so we left.
No one is going to demand my car to park it anywhere so this place needs to wake up because it’s not a good way to greet customers honking at them in the parking lot.

Based on their web site, you’d think this was one of the finest supper clubs/​steak houses on the North Shore. Judging from the parking lot, packed with Cadillacs, Benzes and Porsches, you’d have to believe it’s true. Based on our experience, it’s one of the all-​time great rip-​offs.
We arrived before six and were seated immediately. Someone brought out a sad basket of dry breadsticks and took our drink orders, which arrived promptly enough.
We ordered the crab cake appetizer, two Caesar salads, veal piccata and their full-​size filet mignon, medium.
The place filled up quickly, and I was surprised to notice that everyone else was getting these beautiful, heaping bread baskets. Seemed strange, so I asked our waiter about it. He explained that the bread delivery had just come in, and graciously offered to bring us another basket, but by then our appetizer had arrived and it was too late.
The crab cake was fine, but seemed to have a lot of filler in it. The Caesar salads were oily and flavorless, with two little croutons arranged at the edge of each plate. (Must have been due to the bread shortage.)
Things really went downhill when the steak arrived. It was like a lump of charcoal. The inside was gray, dry and the whole thing was completely inedible.
When the waiter came back to check on things I explained the situation. He offered to bring another steak, butterflied this time, but when it arrived it was completely raw. He offered to take it back a third time, but my companion had finished his meal by then, and we had a show to catch. I had him box it up and figured I would finish cooking it at home.
Our waiter did his best to handle the situation, and comped our desserts. But even then the check for two people was almost $ 200. I’ve had meals three times as good for half the price at places that were much more on point than EJ’s. I left hungry, angry and feeling ripped off.
Maybe they were having an off-​night. The joint was packed by the time we left. It was obvious some of the waiters knew their customers well. At the table in front of us, the waiter stopped by constantly to shake hands and pat backs. When he left, there was a long and lingering hug.
The prices are high, but the quality and presentation of the food sure don’t justify them. We won’t be back.

Wow, who knew? I’ve been driving past this place for over a decade with no idea what was inside: the classic steak house format set inside a Northwoods lodge.
After the initial shock of being two levels under-​dressed and thirty years underage, I enjoyed the meal. Everything was Old School. We got a bread basket with white, multigrain, breadsticks, and raisin bread. The house salad was 95% iceberg lettuce, and the dressing on the side came in a bowl the size of my palm. When three of us ordered garlic mashed potatoes, they brought a large bowl for the table.
Other reviewers have mentioned sticker shock, and it’s true that the prices seem high for the quality – but not for the quantity. I ordered the pork chops (noting the plural quizzically) and what they delivered were two inch-​thick chops each the size of my hand. Good lord! One filled me up handily while the other came home with me.
A couple of nitpicks:
1. Mandatory valet parking. Actually, this isn’t a nitpick – I detest this policy. They get very busy on a Saturday night and want to pack the cars like sardines into their tiny parking lot. But they should just pony up to expand the parking lot. Or else charter a few shuttle buses to make a circuit through Skokie, Glenview, and Wilmette. It would probably tickle the shit out of the regulars to leave their Buicks in their garages for the night.
2. The busser who cleared our plates mumblingly asked «Coffee? Dessert?» as he leaned over the table. Only half of our group heard him, and up to then we had dealt only with our main waiter, so we were confused whether we were being offered the full range of end-​of-​meal options and whether this would be our only opportunity to order something else. As it turns out, we did order coffee from him and then our regular waiter came by with dessert menus. But it was awkward and annoying. If you want to offer us something, stand still, address the entire table, and communicate clearly instead of treating the entire thing like an afterthought. Better still, let the waiter handle it.
Minor service snafus notwithstanding, we had an enjoyable evening. Now that I know what to expect (dress up a little and fast for 24 hours beforehand), I would be happy to return. They don’t make ‘em like E.J.‘s anymore.

I live walking distance to this restaurant so we chose it for our New Year’s eve dinner place and it was good but overpriced food. You can get comparable quality at Jameson’s or Wildfire in this neighborhood.
I ordered the fish special, Dover sole, which was done perfectly and my husband ordered the skirt steak which was hearty but not spectacular.
My son had the veal parmesan with the bone and he really enjoyed that.
His girlfriend ordered the chicken vesuvio which was good and plentiful.
I was disappointed in the bread pudding dessert but coffee is good.
It’s a decent restaurant, but I wouldn’t go out of my way to come here.