Restaurants in Chicago

Gibson's is a favourite for native carnivores, tourists and celebrities like Michael Jordan. A friendly staff serves steaks smothered with any combination of blue cheese, onions, crushed pepper, mushrooms, garlic or Cajun rub. Consider sharing your meal because it portions are laughingly large - potatoes almost the size of footballs, humungous desserts and beef portions so huge, the only thing missing are the horns and the tail.

Yoshi Katsamura combines French, Japanese and Mexican cuisine and serves it elegantly in a simple setting. The multicultural, mishmash menu includes tuna tartare with guacamole and tortilla chips, rack of lamb and Kobe beef steak with wasabi mashed potatoes and a nightly selection of fresh fish. Save room for the mille-feuille of chocolate mousse and berries for dessert. Although lunch is not served, the Sunday brunch is excellent. Closed Monday.

One wouldn't expect to find sleek décor in a neighbourhood Japanese restaurant. Then again hotate volcano sushi (smoked salmon topped with scallop and torched Japanese mayonnaise) or spicy pinenut tuna, with pistachios and topped with tuna and ginger paste are also unusual. Small portions allow diners the opportunity to sample the plentiful maki and sushi selections. Service is friendly and the wine list, though not extensive, has some interesting choices.

Located close to the Symphony Center and Art Institute, this venue, with its soft lights, round red banquettes and Russian music, sets the scene for vodka, stroganoff and many vegetarian dishes. Black bread, beet caviar and carrot salad accompany almost every tasty entrée. Ample combination plates for two include croquettes, stroganoff and other tasty morsels. Open daily for lunch and dinner. Dinner reservations are recommended.

Engraved copper tables, samovars and traditional musical, belly dancers (on the weekends) and tasty fare will have diners believing they have been transported to Turkey. There are even Turkish-styled eating areas where patrons can recline on cushions. The service is friendly, and ample servings include traditional stews, lamb dishes, and vegetarian items. The sultan's wrap , a filo dough stuffed with chicken breast or beef and vegetables, is mouth-watering. Lunch and dinner daily.

Chicago deep-pan pizza was born at Pizzeria Uno. Its cellar-like atmosphere has not changed much since it opened in 1943. Customers still clamour for Uno's crunchy-crust pizza topped with fresh tomatoes, a thick layer of sausage and lots of mozzarella cheese. Be prepared to wait, because reservations are not accepted at this ever-popular restaurant. Open every day for lunch and dinner.

Hot dogs are a Chicago lunch favourite and the diner-like Gold Coast serves up the finest. A steamed poppy seed bun, wrapped around a juicy frankfurter, topped with mustard, relish, onions, peppers or ketchup, is best accompanied by French fries and a soda. Open daily 1000-1800.

Fish and meat glow in the visible ovens, grills and rotisseries of this 1940s-style supper club. Wood, stone, rounded banquettes, martinis and swing music create the mood. The chopped salad is big enough for two and guests are recommended to try anything that is crusted - clams, steak, mussels or fish. Open every day. No lunch. Reservations are recommended.

A giant tomato hangs over the door, and inside, brick walls and earthy-tones of the trattoria-styled eatery emit an aura of warmth. The bustling bar and dimly-lit, two-tiered restaurant can be a bit noisy at times, but the din disappears when sampling the pastas, wood-oven pizzas (especially the pizza biancas), the Scoozi trio antipastini (a combination of Sicilian olives, bruschetta and caprese - mozzarella with cherry tomatoes and basil) or, for that matter, anything on menu. Dinner every night. Reservations advisable.

The retro trend is alive and well at this eating locale adjacent to the Goodman Theatre. White tablecloths, semi-circular red booths and caricatures of famous Chicagoans, like Harrison Ford (who grew up in the Chicago suburbs), decorate the walls, while Frank Sinatra and Ella Fitzgerald can be heard in the background. Tuxedoed waiters serve chops, seafood, Steak Diane and other sumptuous steaks. Lunch and dinner weekdays. Open Saturday and Sunday for dinner. Dinner reservations are recommended.

The Martinis, food and entertainment all feature twists, spice and kicks at this cosy 1940s motif venue. While the Andrew Sisters warble away, diners can delight in such specialities as Caesar Meets Cleopatra ( Caesar salad with roasted red peppers, artichoke hearts and blackened chicken), Mommy Dearest (seared pork chop with polenta cake and apple pear compote) or key lime pie. Soon the lights will begin to flash, the music volume will increase, and a female impersonator will provide cabaret entertainment. Except for Fridays and Saturdays, there are nightly specials like the second main course at half price on Wednesday, a bottle of wine for one cent with two main courses on Thursday and half-price Martinis on Sundays and Tuesdays. Closed Monday. No lunch.

A ranchy atmosphere prepares the diner for espeto corridor (continuous service). Diners receive a two-sided chip. Green side means 'go' and will immediately summon a gaucho chef. He will have long skewer of one of 15 different cuts of meat to carve at your table. Turn the chip to red and be left to savour those numerous tasty morsels. Accompaniments include a massive salad bar and a fine wine selection.

An open kitchen, illuminated see-through bar and black and red décor creates a hip atmosphere. Asian-fusion entrees are large and meant to be shared, but offerings like the Caesar salad with spiced cashews or the sweet soy marinated skirt steak with noodles and shitake mushrooms are so luscious you might want to eat them all yourself. The friendly staff will gladly assist you with savoury suggestions.

An expensive eaterie located on 95th floor of the John Hancock Center.

It is hard to decide which is better - the food, the service, the wine selection or the view of Water Tower and Lake Michigan. A friendly, efficient wait staff presents elegant cuisine in this ever popular restaurant. The diver scallops and the beef tenderloin are gastronomical delights. Reservations are required. Open every day for breakfast, lunch and dinner.

Cut to order prime rib rules at this somewhat noisy, Tudor-styled establishment. The friendly personnel provide tableside service and the accompaniments, a spinning salad (salad spun and tossed with dressing), bread pudding and mashed potatoes. The special dessert, a fruit- and cream liqueur -filled chocolate bag is a must for chocoholics. Vegans, calorie counters and cholesterol watchers need not apply. No lunch.

In spite of the austere décor, grey furniture, wood and bare grey walls, this refurbished warehouse is usually cosy and quiet. The friendly staff is well versed on the 20-page wine menu. Chef Michael Taus creates unusual and creative main courses as well as vegetarian offerings on the spot. Though the menu changes, dinner favourites like Hawaiian chopped salad and sesame-crusted Chilean sea bass, roasted roulade of salmon and a 16 oz Black Angus rib-eye steak, with creamed spinach gratin, remain. Closed Sunday and Monday. No lunch. Reservations are recommended.

This refurbished mansion is tucked away but there is not-to-be-missed dining in its stylish salons. Service is low-key, but the contemporary French cuisine is high quality. Main courses are sometimes interestingly paired, such as squab and ostrich with vegetables and chocolate-scented squab jus. Closed Sunday and Monday. No lunch. Reservations are required.

Seasonal menus at this popular venue set the standard for Chicago's haute cuisine. Dining salons are elegant and understated while the cuisine, reflecting subtle Asian and European influences, is vibrantly coloured, delicate and exquisite. Unusual pairings create delicious flavour sensations, like the parsnip and carrot cake dessert served with carrot-honey sauce and nutmeg ice cream. Three wine cellars house 25,000 bottles of wine. Reservations are required.