Irazu: User Reviews

Good Food, Poor Service
By BucktownBearsFan from Bucktown, March 6, 2008

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Had dinner here on a Wednesday night... first time at Irazu. Pretty busy for a weeknight and had to wait a little for a table. Once my wife and I were seated, the bus boy brought us waters and tortillas and asked if we wanted guacamole which we decided to give a try. The guacamole was a very good sized portion but was somewhat bland even though we asked for the spicy version. We then proceeded to wait at least 10-15 minutes before our waiter stopped by to take our order. My water was empty and the guac was gone. Very frustrating given that we had already decided on our meals while waiting to be seated. My wife was tempted to leave. However, we wanted to try the food and were not disappointed. The meals took a while to be served but the steak casado and chicken tico were both excellent. Nothing over cooked, nothing bland... the cabbage, costan rican rice, plantains, and veggies were all tasty. I ordered a soy oatmeal shake to go and it was the perfect dessert. To sum it up, the food was great but the service experience was not very good. Our waiter was nice, but he definitely had his hands full working the place solo. To make matters worse, he was hit with a 10-top shortly before we were seated. I will give this place another try knowing that we really enjoyed the food and expecting that the service will be better.

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consistently great!
By kamerican idol from wicker park, February 13, 2008

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I have been to Irazu multiple times over the past few years, and not once have I been disappointed. The service is great, with a wonderful personal touch. The staff is always warm and happily answers any questions that you have about the cuisine. I recommend the potato tacos (vegetarian) and the guacamole! Everything else that I have had was also wonderful! A must try! Cash only, but there's an ATM there and you can bring your own wine/drinks!

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bad service
By Foodie from west loop, February 3, 2008

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So my friends and i went there on a saturday evening. we waited about 30mins because we heard good things about the food. everything looked great. however when we got our food we were slightly disappointed. the meat was more bland than i thought it would be. furthermore we didnt mind b/c we were having a decent time since it is BYOB. however they promptly brought us our check without asking if we wanted a dessert. we paid the bill and were sitting and finishing our beers and drinks when the waitress came over and said there are people waiting we need your table. we were well aware there was a wait and we were not sitting too long taking up a table! just hearing that was such a turn off for the restaurant.
The food is ok....i thought it was over-rated. the service was bad. i will not be going back

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Pretty Good
By rainatmu from south loop, January 7, 2008

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Came here with a bottle of wine and two of my friends. We had a great time. Some of the menu items were quite good-the flan was great. My main dish was very average-some of the ingredients tasted like they were out of a can. I would stop by or carry out the mango shake and some flan-but I might skip the main course.

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Everything with the exception of...
By Jason from Chicago, il, August 7, 2007

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Everything with the exception of the service was great. That is the only reason i give this place 2 stars. The food was great, you can't beat the value for the type of food. The waiter was rude and made us feel unwelcomed. Won't go back.

Decided to take my mom...
By Surprisingly not good from Chicago, IL, June 9, 2007

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Decided to take my mom to Irazu since she lives in the neighborhood. To my surprise I was really disappointed with the food. My mom ordered the Pork Chop dinner and the chops were very dry and the rice overcooked with no flavor. She didn't eat anything on the plate except the cabbage salad which was very tasty. My dish was ok, I had the rib eye tossed with onions, black beans and rice and I believe platanos. I not getting the sandwich instead which probably would have been better. Next time I'll go for the sandwich and skip the dinner.

We went on a Saturday...
By Tim from Chicago, IL, June 3, 2007

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We went on a Saturday afternoon and were delighted with this Costa Rican restaurant. It has a large menu of tortilla wraps, meats, sandwiches and other native dishes. The sandwiches are fantastic, come on a delicious toasted baguette and are ridiculously inexpensive. We sat outside, which was fun. Service was attentive even for a fairly busy Saturday. The only drawback is that it is cash-only, although there is an ATM machine. The menu is large, and there are multiple vegetarian options. The owner spoke with us after our meal, and was very friendly. It's a comfortable spot, and I can't wait to go back!

I went to Irazu for...
By Chris from chicago, IL, March 14, 2007

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I went to Irazu for the first time on sat for lunch..The food was unreal. I had a biste tico and my buddy had a casado w/ a fried egg on top..Very tasty!! The service was Great even though they were very busy. The waitress was cute & friendly and very attentive. Overall, our experience was Excellent. Great price for the amount and quality of food..Can't wait to go back.

Fabulous Food!! I went for...
By Kevin from chicago, Il, July 20, 2006

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Fabulous Food!! I went for lunch this past saturday. I had a steak casado and oatmeal shake. It was a great recommendation by the waitress. The place is very casual, great service, and excellent price..it is also byob..Will go back soon!!