Chicago earned its steakhouse reputation honestly. For more than a century the Union Stock Yards on the South Side made the city the meatpacking capital of the country, and Carl Sandburg's 1914 poem famously called Chicago the "Hog Butcher for the World." The stockyards closed in 1971, but the steakhouse culture stayed.
Today the city's steakhouses fall into three camps: the old-guard institutions, the glamorous modern rooms, and a few neighborhood spots that cook a steak just as well for a lot less fuss.
The old guard
- Gene & Georgetti in River North: open since 1941 in its original frame building under the L tracks. It's old-Chicago power dining at its purest. Order a bone-in strip with garlic chicken on the side.
- Gibsons Bar & Steakhouse on Rush Street in the Gold Coast: the loud, see-and-be-seen room where politicians, athletes and conventioneers have met since 1989. Get the bone-in ribeye and a martini.
The modern classics
- Bavette's Bar & Boeuf in River North: a dark, jazz-soundtracked room that feels like a 1920s supper club, and the steakhouse everyone wants a table at. Get the bone-in ribeye, and don't skip the fried chicken.
- Swift & Sons in Fulton Market: a grand room in the old meatpacking district that pays tribute to the Union Stock Yards era. Order a dry-aged steak.
- Maple & Ash in the Gold Coast: the flashy, party-minded option, known for wood-fired steaks and over-the-top seafood towers. Order the dry-aged tomahawk ribeye.
Neighborhood picks
- Boeufhaus in Ukrainian Village: a small, cozy brasserie that cooks a steak as well as the downtown palaces, without the scene. Order a ribeye, or the braised beef sandwich.
- Tango Sur in Lakeview: a beloved BYOB Argentine grill on Southport. Share the parrillada mixed grill with chimichurri and a round of empanadas.
How to do it right
- Book ahead. The big downtown steakhouses fill up on weekends and during conventions.
- Share the sides. Steakhouse sides are built for the table, so order a few and pass them around.
- Know "Chicago style." At some steakhouses you can order a steak "Chicago style," meaning charred hard on the outside and left rare or medium-rare inside.
- Save one for a special occasion. These are the places Chicagoans go for promotions, anniversaries and visiting parents. The neighborhood picks are the ones for a regular Tuesday.
More Chicago meat traditions: how to order an Italian beef and South Side barbecue. New to the city? ChicagoApartmentBuildings.com is our guide to apartment buildings across Chicago.