Markethouse: User Reviews
Markethouse
611 N. Fairbanks Ct. - Chicago312-224-2200
Just saw on Twitter that Chef Thomas is no longer the chef at Markethouse. Another great chef that needs to open his own place. What a huge loss for the restaurant.
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Delivers some, falls flat others
By EnthusedFoodie from Forest Park, October 14, 2009
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Don’t Pass Up: The Mac & Cheese
Don’t Bother Ordering: The Hummus
Expect: B- service; A- food; $$$ prices
Uniqueness: Single-serving bread
Summary: If staying at the Doubletree this place is a nice treat, but if in the area there are plenty of other good options.
Roasted red pepper hummus was a surprisingly tasteless starter, but Mac & Cheese saved the day with it's rich and creamy deliciousness. The Baby Back ribs were unimaginative, but still good. While the Trout was saved only by the pickled vegetable garnish and a delectable apple cider vinagrette. Service seemed excellent on the surface, but ended up being typical for a hotel restaurant - fast to bring the food, slow to bring the check, like molasses on drinks. All-in-all a good experience and excellent concept, but delivering it in a hotel setting will be difficult.
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This place was great. Great neighborhood secret. Had the meatloaf, my brother the fish and chips. Both were great. Service was good, never waited for anything. Thought the GM was security he was so big. He said he just took over and the place just opened up. Nice people, great place. We will return!
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Let me begin by saying that the food was outstanding. Mac & cheese is to die for!! We also enjoyed scallop & fried egg special, the artichoke tart, for entrees the Halibut and the Lamb Navarin(cut little green city vegetables). The food is very clean flavors, well executed, well seasoned, detailed, alive, and very smart!! We had a tremendous dinning experience and look forward to return soon. This defiantley belongs in the group of best new restaurants in the city.
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Markethouse is a little gem, a secret...but not for long!! This is what Chicago needs! Service was attentive but not stuffy, food is outstanding. Better that Table 52, more creative with the comfort tag line. I forgot to ask who the chef was because he is very smart. I had the beet salad which was live and vibrant, very detailed with all the fresh herbs, and that nice little pop from the apple-lime puree. My husband had the "split pea soup", what a touch of finess, thoughtful classiness!! Not the heavy usual split pea soup, but a refined, very fresh approach to the idea of split pea soup; delicious. For entree we had the Halibut with smoked haddock chowder, and the Chicken with honey-cayenne mop. For dessert with finished with amazing bread pudding. I want to thank the Chef. Who ever you are? Well done!!! Thank You!!
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Not to pounce on the previous reviewer, but screw tops have come a long way when it comes to wine. I would encourage anyone to read up on Stelvin closures. The food here is fresh, local, and prepared with only the finest ingredients. These things cost a little more money than going to your local diner. Comfort food prepared with fine dining skill and artistry often seems to go misunderstood unless there's an Oprah seal of approval on it. AKA..Table 52.
My guest and I enjoyed our meal immensely at Markethouse. The fried green tomato and smoked trout salad with prosciutto was as delicious as it was beautifully prepared. My guest dined on the burger stuffed with braised short-rib and said it was an unbelievably juicy and new take on the classic. I had the roasted Alaskan halibut which was cooked to perfection over a smoked haddock chowder.
Service was friendly and knowledgeable without being over bearing or pushy. I look forward to dining here again.
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If you like a $23 meatloaf and a $19 fish and chips with a "salad" that consists of four leaves of lettuce, in addition to $9 glasses of screw top wine and $15 mini martinis along with dusty booth partition walls, this is your place.
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First off Markethouse is in a strange location off the beaten path of Michigan Ave. I was hoping that this new place was going to be a hit. The menu consists of many All American Comfort Food favorites, nothing on this menu was original. We paid a ridiculous amount for a steamed mussel dish that was just so-so. The service was lackluster and unmindful of the guests needs. Places like Bandera and Cheesecake Factory are better options with reasonable prices.
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MarketHouse is an excellent choice for classic American dining in a comfortable and relaxed atmosphere. The place itself is classy and contemporary ambiance. The menu has plenty of selection. I would recommend the MEATLOAF, it remind me of my grandma's cooking. And also leave some room for dessert. Order the bread pudding with rum raisin ice cream. It will make you want more. Get a window seat if you can and try to decide what you like best, the location or the food. The only downside about the restaurant service was okay. Managers need to pay more attention to the level of service especially a new place like this with great food and wonderful ambiance. Happy dining, I give this place 2 big thumbs up!
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My wife and I visited Makethouse this past Thursday with much anticipation. Although the food is great, our waiter looked and presented himself more like a corpse, the ambiance is non exsistence. I could barely understand our waiter, I asked him about wine; he was clueless, asked about the food; clueless; so we orderd the pear & endive salad, shrimp salad, wild striped bass, and the meatloaf. Let me say this "the food is something special here". There is an element of genius to the food, very detailed, well planned, and very delicious!! Every bite there was something else happening with the flavor combinations. To top it all off, we finished with the best bread pudding the the city of Chicago period!!!! I will return to MarketHouse because of the food, and maybe next time I can experience one of those younger, more vibrant looking servers.
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Review Summary
The following scores represent the average rating submitted by 12 users:
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