I just remembered who has a nice outdoor space, Cody's Public House.
The patio has a nice canopy of trees, a bag toss game (Bring your own bags. Their bags are terrible!), darts and they have a pretty good and cheap beer selection.
I don't believe they serve food, but they do have a gas grill in the back where you can grill your own grub.

Cody's Public House
1658 W. Barry Ave.
Chicago, IL 60657
773-528-4050

P.S. Metromix has a guide to rooftop decks, patios and beer gardens today.

Daily Herald's suburban al fresco recommendations:

Atwater's at the Herrington Inn
15 S. River Lane, Geneva, (630) 208-7433, http://www.herringtoninn.com

Brio Tuscan Grille
The Shops on Butterfield, 330 Yorktown Center, Lombard, (630) 424-1515, http://www.brioitalian.com

Cafe Pyrenees
Adler Square Shopping Center, 1762 N. Milwaukee Ave., Libertyville, (847) 362-2233, http://www.cafepyrenees.com (opening late summer)

Don Roth's Blackhawk
61 N. Milwaukee Ave., Wheeling, (847) 537-5800, http://www.theblackhawk.com

Hackney's on Harms
1241 Harms Road, Glenview, (847) 724-5577, http://www.hackneys.net

Jimmy's Grill
245 S. Washington St., Naperville, (630) 548-2500, http://www.jimmysgrillnaperville.com

Kona Grill
Oak Brook Promenade, 3051 Butterfield Road, Oak Brook, (630) 515-8395, http://www.konagrill.com

Long Grove Cafe
235 Robert Parker Coffin Road, Long Grove, (847) 955-9600, http://www.longgrovecafe.com

M.T. Barrels
98 W. Main St. (Route 72), West Dundee, (847) 426-4030, http://www.mtbarrels.com

Peggy Kinnane's
8 N. Vail Ave., Arlington Heights, (847) 577-7733, http://www.peggykinnanes.com

wino66 wrote:And A Tavola does have a very nice patio, which Brad told me they are overhauling: a bit bigger and with a working garden which customers can walk through/around. Sounds great, and I can't wait to have that sage-brown butter gnocchi outside again!

I had the pleasure of dining on the new patio at A Tavola a couple weeks ago, and it was really fantastic. There are new tables and chairs, and a bar outside (although they do not have the appropriate chairs to suit the bar -- I assume that's coming). But that back third of the patio is now a walled-off working garden. I saw numerous tomato plants, zucchini plants, and herbs growing, all abundantly, and all of which will be used in the restaurant.

A Tavola
2148 W Chicago Ave
Chicago, IL 60622
(773) 276-7567

I think its about that time to bump this thread.

Patios now open: Piccolo Sogno, Eve, BOKA, Perennial, Vivo

Mingus Rude wrote:I think its about that time to bump this thread.

Patios now open: Piccolo Sogno, Eve, BOKA, Perennial, Vivo

looks like someone follows @ellenmalloy

Kuma's patio opens on May 1st

I'm not sure when, but El Cid #2 has a very nice patio (although the food has gone downhill a bit) that should be open soon as well.

Tuesday, July 13, 2010 was a lovely day in Chicago, wasn't it? The weather was just perfect. We had dinner outside at Feast on Delaware Street. It was half-price bottles night (Monday and Tuesday) so that was an added benefit.

I had the chicken breast stuffed with herbed goat cheese on gnocchi with spinach, tiny tomatoes in a lemon beurre blanc sauce. It was outstanding. The gnocchi were tender and light. The chicken was cooked perfectly, with nice crisp skin. The cheese oozed out and the bite of chicken, cheese & sauce was just wonderful. The spinach added a nice smoky balance to the dish, and the tomatoes were just the hint of acid that was needed.

My dining companion had the grilled whitefish, served over asparagus (I think), corn cut from the cob, tomatoes and mushrooms in a truffle cream sauce. It, too was excellent.

And with the 50% off bottle of Spanish white wine, quite a deal.

Feast
25 E. Delaware Place
Chicago. IL 60611
Ph: 312.337.4001

3x 30-something males going out tonight. We're looking to start off with an outdoor meal tonight - nothing too posh (we're guys), ideally in a somewhat active neighborhood where there would be a few decent bars within walking distance.

Any suggestions?

IMHO it doesn't get better than Homestead.

Ok, I've racked my brain to no avail. I am in need of new ideas for my sister's 50th birthday late lunch this Friday. Something with a pretty outdoor setting, some creative cocktails and fantastic food is my goal - and, of course, it needs to open on a Friday afternoon. Last year we did Piccolo Sogno so that's off the list. I appreciate any ideas. Thanks.

There really are a lot of options--Could you give some additional info? Geographic boundaries? Price range? Any other hints on type of food? Most importantly, what do you mean by late lunch? 2:00? 4:00?

Thanks for the response and request to clarify. I usually know what's in my head, but asking others to dig through that morass is unfair. My mom was a home cook of extraordinary talent and raised kids who eat everything - so long as it is well prepared. These sisters will travel for food, but need to stay within Ubering distance because of planned alcohol consumption. Location is city and roughly from Hyde Park to the South, Rogers Park to the North, and Cicero Avenue to the West. Late lunch means a place that doesn't close between lunch and dinner. We'd like to linger outdoors over courses and cocktails. As I write this, Pasteur pops into my head. I wonder if they are open for lunch...

Thanks--that will help. One more question--How many people?

Just 2.

Fat Rice is open for lunch on Fridays. They do have some outdoor seating.

leek wrote:Fat Rice is open for lunch on Fridays. They do have some outdoor seating.

They're actually open for lunch on Wednesday and Thursday, too. Saturday and Sunday for brunch, as well.

=R=

I confess, I haven't been to any of these places and the request made me really curious since the places I've been that have truly nice al fresco dining (NOT an insane, sceney roof deck or a makeshift "patio" on the street with the lovely aroma of exhaust perfuming my meal) don't open for lunch. So after a bit of checking on line, I found these--none of which I've actually been to so maybe others can comment on whether any/all are actually good or not:

1) Cindy's at the newly opened Chicago Athletic Association on Michigan Ave near the Art Institute has rooftop dining/cocktail bar opens at 3:00 if you can hold off for a late lunch.
2) RL has a supposedly lovely patio and is a Gold Coast mainstay.
3) River Roast, John Hogan's spot on the river at LaSalle (only open until 3:00 though)
4) Seven Lions, Alpana Singh's newest spot on Michigan Ave
5) J. Parker, which has a rooftop deck and food from Perennial Virant starting at 1:00 on Fridays.

Good luck and hopefully you can report back--seems like some intel we could use!!

We've really enjoyed our dinners outside at Briciola.

boudreaulicious wrote:1) Cindy's at the newly opened Chicago Athletic Association on Michigan Ave near the Art Institute has rooftop dining/cocktail bar opens at 3:00 if you can hold off for a late lunch.

Cindy's isn't a great option for a party of two. See viewtopic.php?p=499603#p499603

boudreaulicious wrote: near the Art Institute

Speaking of ...

The World's Greatest Museum has outdoor dining in McClintock Court (daily 11:00-4:00) and Piano Terra (11:00-2:30).

Only thru Labor Day though, sorry.

Had a really lovely lunch in the outdoor patio at Athena in Greektown the other weekend
Great food, very peaceful.
Waterfall wall , plants
Just perfect
oh and free valet parking

Athena
212 S. Halsted St
Chicago, IL 60661
Tel: 312-655-0000
http://www.athenarestaurantchicago.com/

Does anyone have any recommendable updates they'd like to share?

Thanks,

=R=

The Garage in Norwood Park has a lovely rooftop deck and the food is pretty good, too.
It's near the the northern Milwaukee/Elston split at Melvina (snerk), just a little south of Superdawg.

6154 N Milwaukee Ave
Chicago, 60646
http://thegaragechicago.com

There is a lovely newish (last two years) deck at Taxim. The patio at Antico is unbeatable.

150-plus Chicago patios and rooftops for summer eating and drinking

http://www.chicagotribune.com/dining/ct ... story.html

Dave148 wrote:

150-plus Chicago patios and rooftops for summer eating and drinking

http://www.chicagotribune.com/dining/ct ... story.html

Nice list but I am hoping for some more vetted options, too

=R=

I like rooftop bars. Less traffic noise, a breeze on a hot summer day...

Avenue Ale House
825 S Oak Park Ave, Oak Park

Full menu, rooftop bar. My favorite al fresco in Oak Park

Plymouth Restaurant & Rooftop Bar
327 S Plymouth Ct, Chicago

Accessible. Never had the food. View of the Harold Washington Library. Good drinks.

annak wrote:The patio at Antico is unbeatable.

Agreed! It's behind the restaurant, secluded but open enough so you don't hear every other person there. And they have 1/2 price wine on Tuesdays.

On the very casual end, we enjoyed a fabulous lunch at Rica Arepa yesterday. They have a large patio half off which is covered by a roof, the other has umbrella tables.
We started with the tequenos - Venezuelan cheese sticks. Amazing. 2 sauces offered - a garlic cream and green salsa.

We all had arepas and were thoroughly satisfied - shredded beef for Jonathan, ham & cheese for our 6-year-old, and black bean, cheese, & avocado for me.

Staff was very welcoming and attentive. It’s BYOB, but we really enjoyed the Venezuelan Limeade - so refreshing on a hot day.

Rica Arepa
4253 W Armitage

Lost Larson has a comfy if somewhat utilitarian outdoor space.



Lost Larson
5318 N Clark St.
Chicago IL 60640