Walking in w/o reservations?

Hi

what are my chances at walking in to a restaurant? Do most that take reservations also have space for walk-ins? I'm particularly thinking about Francesca's Forno or somewhere else nearish to Double Door tonight, but in general also - restaurants in that vein, not high-end, but nice places. I didn't really think about getting a reservation somewhere near there until just now, and of course most places are full up.

Thanks for any suggestions,

Cafe' Absinthe would probably be fine. I've had two great meals there. You could also eat at the bar at Scylla - fantastic.

I'm sure you're mileage will vary based on day and time of the attempt. But I definitely don't think that it's out of the question to get seated at these types of places w/o reservations.

I've had decent meals near DD at Thyme Cafe and Tre Via, for e.g., without reservations on a weekend evening. Granted, I think we went relatively early both times I'm recalling (6:00-6:30ish).

Thyme Cafe
1540 N. Milwaukee Ave.
773-227-1400

Tre Via
1575 N. Milwaukee Ave.
773-227-7990

Zee

Around 7:15-7:30 pm on Saturday
Francesca's Forno was PACKED with a 1.5 hour wait
TreVia was nearly empty
Thyme was bustling but not totally packed, we were able to walk in. Unfortunately our meal lasted over 2 hours (which was fine, timing wise, but REALLY slow)

The new Bin 36 across the street from Thyme was open (no signage). I guess they are testing the place out before the official opening this Friday.

And Dick Dale has been on tour a bit too long. He was good, but clearly cranky, complaining about gas prices and such

So how was Thyme Cafe?

Thyme was fine, nothing exceptional. The service was incredibly slow, and when we got the food it was only luke-warm. Our server seemed unable to multi-task. She'd go to one table, go back into the kitchen. Take food to that table, stop at another, go back into the kitchen. It took us 1/2 hour after ordering to get our first course (which was soup for me, and melon with ham for my husband - neither of which are particularly labor-intensive dishes)

Well, as luck would have it I found myself cruising Wicker Park last night looking for a restaurant that I've been meaning to eat at and hadn't yet, actually first I spotted Rodan but decided that I was nowhere hip enough to eat there, or at least not dressed in such a way that I felt like pretending I was, thought about Del Toro but decided I really should have taken Erik's post and the rest of that thread along for guidance, and then spotted Thyme Cafe a few doors down from Rodan which was pretty much perfect for my needs.

I did the $25 prix fixe, as nearly everyone no doubt does; first thing I got was a pair of rolls with a strange gravy-like goo that I guess you were supposed to dip them in. Not much flavor, other than pepper, though a slight note almost like lard that suggested a fat (maybe a nut puree?), I don't know what that stuff was. Then an arugula salad with grilled apples, blue cheese and spicy walnuts. And no dressing. I reacted negatively instinctively to the lack of lubrication but after a few bites I admired the austerity of this salad, in which the apples provided the only mildly "wet" note, and thought it would have been wrong to drench it in oil. (Which is not to say that I might not have wished I'd had something else, though.) So far, interesting but not lovable.

The entree, however, was first-rate-- a braised pork shank on mashed potatoes with all kinds of autumnal things-- chanterelles (I think; it was dark and they were chopped), onions cooked in wine and meat juices, not sure what all but it was melt-in-your-mouth tender, succulent, comfy, really nice. Dessert was pretty good, a peach-apple crisp with sundried cherries and a glob of very good vanilla ice cream. The crisp part of the crisp was a little too firm and crunchy, but the fruit and syrup around it was all very enjoyable if a tad sweeter than I would have preferred (but certainly within a reasonable range).

Service showed none of the problems Leek experienced, though given a quiet Sunday night, I'd have been very surprised if it had. Amusingly the waiter apologized anyway for the pork shank taking a little longer than expected-- as if a few extra minutes would make any difference to something slow-cooked like that! (I guess it could have to some other part of the dish.) In any case things hummed right along, service was very attentive but not oppressive, the room (which I think used to be an Italian restaurant I liked but can't remember the name of) is a little more grownup/classy than the average Wicker Park exposed brick room while still being cafe-casual, the price was reasonable, all in all I was very happy and barring some sudden rise in my hipness, I'm sure I'll be back.

Thyme Cafe
1540 N. Milwaukee Ave.
773-227-1400

Mike G wrote:I did the $25 prix fixe, as nearly everyone no doubt does; first thing I got was a pair of rolls with a strange gravy-like goo that I guess you were supposed to dip them in. Not much flavor, other than pepper, though a slight note almost like lard that suggested a fat (maybe a nut puree?), I don't know what that stuff was.

I think it was a white bean puree.