Vintage Wine Bar and Restaurant: User Reviews

Never again
By brettn from bucktown, April 28, 2008

Overall rating:

Service very slow considering we were the only people dining at 7pm. Small plates were brought out over a span of an hour. Food was ok. Atmosphere was lacking or non existent. Dont think they will last very long in that location unless we were there on an off night. We will probably will not try again since there are many much better options for the money.

A wicker park must see
By Becky10 from Boystown, March 11, 2008

Overall rating:

This place is awesome! I met some girlfriends down their last weekend for some drinks. We sat at the bar for some cocktails and ended up having dinner their as well. The bartenders were great and very attentive. There was a great mix of people and the overall vibe was fun and friendly. The food was to my suprise some of the best I've had in quite some time. Overall everything was great and the staff alone makes it worth the trip.

Average at best...
By MichaelJ from MichaelJ, March 8, 2008

Overall rating:

I hit up Vintage Wine Bar and Juicy Wine Company last night. There is no doubt that one of these places is really an establishment interested in wine and other such things, while the other is just trying to capitalize on the current trendiness of wine. In case you don't feel like reading this whole review, you are much better off heading to Juicy Wine Company rather than wasting your time/money at Vintage.

First the positive:
Vintage has a good location.
We had no problem just walking in and getting a seat.
The wine list is kind of ecclectic, in a good way.
The pomme frites were excellent.

And then the negative:
The menu on thier website is much different than what you get when you are there. The music is very loud and you are sitting on top of the people next to you so it is difficult to have a conversation.
Our white wines were served more at room temperature rather than chilled.
The food was slow and came sporadically.

And the thing that topped it off: the cheese. The website advertises a selection of cheeses and that is one of the reasons we headed there. We ordered that after our shared plates. It was a total joke. First, we had no selection. Second, we would have been better off going to whole foods and purchasing our own cheese. Our "artisanal cheeses," which we paid $12 for, included smoked gouda, muenster and swiss(?). While in some theoretical world those are artisinal, the versions we were served were probably purchased off the shelf at Dominicks that morning. It was an insult that they served that and described it as artisinal cheeses.

In summary, if you want to see and be seen with a bunch of other things to do in walking distance, this is your place. If you are actually interested in heading to someplace where you can drink decent wine and have decent cheese, I suggest Juicy Wine Company. See my review of Juicy for more information.

P.S. The cheese was REALLY a disappointment.

Can't be bothered
By MiaLu from MiaLu, February 10, 2008

Overall rating:

We can't be bothered to return. The service is rude, the music is horrible and loud. The food is nothing special though the ambiance is quite pleasant. This is a nice restaurant and if the staff wasn't so full of themselves, this could be a lovely place.

A little annoyed...
By Jackie from Roscoe Village, January 29, 2008

Overall rating:

My boyfriend and I decided to try this place for dinner one night. It seemed as most of the people there were having an after-work glass of wine or out with girlfriends. We ordered and chose a glass of wine to go with our entrees. The waitress helped my bf choose, as he didn't know what to choose. About 15-20 minutes later, our waitress came to apologize and said they had ran out of my entree, so I would have to re-order. No problem, I ordered the chicken entree I had also been eyeing up (rather than the salmon they ran out of). The red wine I had chosen probably wouldn't have gone with the chicken much, but I didn't say anything.

After we got our food (it was good) and ordered another glass of wine, the waitress brought my boyfriend TWO glasses of wine, the one he ordered and one "on the house" because she wanted him to compare the differences. Now, this is a nice gesture, but I'm the one that was inconvenienced and didn't get the meal I had originally ordered! I felt that the experience was overall pretty good, but felt it would have been more appropriate if she offered some incentive toward me, rather than my boyfriend getting the special treatment. His review of this place would probably be 5 stars, however.

Excellent ambiance... but what's with the god awful music?
By clobdell from Wicker Park, December 19, 2007

Overall rating:

Having lived in Wicker Park for a few years now, I've had plenty of opportunities to visit Vintage Wine Bar on Division. The wine selection never disappoints, the food's unique and tasty, the wait staff always friendly and the manager beyond attentive. But I experienced something on Tuesday night that simply can not be ignored. For a wine bar with such a classicly refined yet hip decor, why, oh, why would they proceed to play not just one Maroon 5 song but literally the entire album including BONUS tracks in one sitting. What could have compelled them to truly butcher the laid back and cool vibe with such horrendous music? I absolutely adore this wine bar; the neighborhood needs it. In fact, we depend on it as a refuge from the overtly hipster bars in the hood. But Maroon 5? Seriously? My only hope is that management reads this review and remembers that patrons notice everything about your establishment, down to the most minute detail. PLEASE keep up the great work but next time, why not splurge a little bit on a better CD collection?

Terrible Service- Rude Waitress
By Emily from Roscoe Village, December 7, 2007

Overall rating:

My friends and I went to this pretentious place last night and I won't be back. The food was okay, the wine was okay, but the service was awful!!! Our waitress was so rude to us after we turned down her wine selection. She rarely came by to check on us - it wasn't that busy. My plate of food pretty much got slammed down on the table. She provided us with a lot of attitude and terrible service.

My friends and I visted...
By sdp from Chicago, IL, April 23, 2007

Overall rating:

My friends and I visted Vintage this past weekend and it was great! The food was beautifully presented and tasted just amazing. Our waitress was very friendly and knowledgeable about the food and wines on the menu. Definitely a great place to hang out and meet friends for a meal or a drink!

We were having a birthday...
By Mark from Chicago, IL, March 26, 2007

Overall rating:

We were having a birthday party for my girlfriend and someone said we should go to Vintage. From the beginning everyone was friendly and the service was great. The waitress told us that the chef was new and we ate some of his new dishes which were exceptional. Great place. Thumbs up - four stars for me and my friends.