Le Bouchon

I am visiting in a week and my local friend suggested Le Bouchon for dinner. While searching for info I have encountered many negative remarks. Has anyone been recently? Also, I am open to other suggestions for the same neighborhood. Thanks

My most recent experience was fine, I know others have knocked it, but the main problem with Le Bouchon is that it is small and always packed on weekends (and even some weeknights)-- I have tried it and decided to go somewhere else more often than I've ended up there over the years. (And the most recent time, I sat at the bar to eat.)

That isn't all bad if you know what else is nearby and good, such as Glory. Or it could mean that you want to try something else-- Tournesol or Brasserie Jo for vaguely comparable French, for instance. (Le Bouchon also has a sister restaurant, Le Sardine, which I've never been to but that might be another choice.)

Le Sardine was reviewed by Abraus about a week or so ago.
link below:
http://www.lthforum.com/bb/viewtopic.php?t=673

In my opinion Le Buchon is not bad, but way overcrowded on peak nights. Usually a crowded restaurant does not affect my dining experience greatly, but it seems to at Le Bouchon. Everyone, including the help is wedged in like sardines and I've always felt hurried there. Try and go early or late on an "off" night.

As far as the food goes, I would consider it to be one of the better French bistros in the city. This is not saying much, as there are not as many good ones as you would expect. I had an excellent cassoulet there last winter, and Ms. EatChicago loves the hanger steak.

As far as Bucktown goes, I really enjoy Glory (two doors south of Le Bouchon). Glory serves New England fare in a more casual cafe environment. It has received mixed reviews, but I frequent it and really enjoy the Yankee Pot Roast, Lazy Man's Clam Bake, and the chowder (of course).

Also, (a litte more up the price scale) Spring is one of my favorite restaurants in the city. Spring serves creative asian-influenced seafood dishes in a very classy, serene environment. Service at Spring is top-notch. For my money, Spring is the best restaurant in Chicago of its price scale.

There are a many other decent options in Bucktown, but those are my two favorite.

If you want to stick to French, I would leave the neighborhood and hit Bistro Campagne in Lincoln Square.

Probably won't need reservations at:
Glory
1952 N. Damen Ave.
773-235-7400

Definitely will need reservations at:
Spring
2039 W. North Ave.
773-395-7100

Out of the neighborhood, French option, reservations are a good idea:
Bistro Campagne
4518 N. Lincoln Ave.
773-271-6100

I don't really care for Le Bouchon. It is fine, but just not great.

Cafe Matou is in the same neighborhood but I hear that it is also just fine (I posted yesterday about this).

Meritage is my current favorite in Bucktown. Fabulous food and wine - great outdoor seating area.

Club Lucky is fun and hip if you want a scene and Italian food.

Have fun.

Le Bouchon is one of my favorite restaurants in the city. The room is tight and crowded when it is busy, but it is in the style of a French bistro to a "T." When I go, my menu looks something like this: Pate to start, followed by escargots, some form of kidney or liver(rabbit is always the best), salad lyonnaisse, and then an entree. Bear in mind, this is a lot of French food(think butter and fat,) however, I can never make up my mind between all of them. My other favorite in Bucktown would definitely be Meritage up the street. Dirk is a great chef, although his food is a little more Asian focused. He always has a game plate on specialand the soft-shells he had last Friday were amazing. My girlfriend even ate some and they disgust her. First time she has ever had soft-shells or snails was at Meritage, so they must be doing something right.

Had a very bad experience at the overcrowded Buchon last year with the in-laws and my wife. 7:45 reservations resulted in a wait (outside of the restaurant by the valet) for an entire hour. When my mother-in-law went in to ask about seating she was scolded by the scowling, too-hip staff that "This is how we do it at Le Bouchon!" Completely unacceptable.
We left, went to Cafe Absinthe and had a great meal - excellent service and really quite tasty food around the same price point as Bouchon.

Perhaps a weekday would be fine, but I'll never know.

If you are here next Tuesday, hit up the sister, La Sardine. They have a 20 dollar pre-fixe which allows you to choose any app, entree, and dessert for the price. They have one of the best grand marnier souffles with raspberry sauce you will have anywhere.

Just let me second the recommendation. We just came back from the Tuesday dinner (which is now $22 and still one of the biggest bargains in town). Unlike, for example, Le Coq, the folks at La Sardine let you order your prix fixe items off the regular menu or the specials--not just from a limited list. Wonderful beet salad garnished with toasted hazelnuts, watercress, and a blue cheese. A very generous and fresh bouillabaisse with a whole lobster claw and some of the best shrimp I've had in a long time. And then, even though I hadn't seen the recommendation, the Grand Marnier souffle. Ed had the oxtails with gnocci for his first course, the hanger steak, and the chocolate souffle. Equally good, and the souffles beat out the ones at Hemmingways, which had heretofore been our favorite. The service was friendly, knowledgable, professional. The only downside was that our reservation choices when Ed called this afternoon were 5 or 8:15. But we got in. And I can see why people go every week. I'd love to eat my way through the menu.

LTH,

Picked friends up at the airport last evening and their dinner choice was Le Bouchon, and a good choice it was. We didn't get there until almost 10pm and still had a 10-15 minute wait for our table. The joint was jumping, crowded, noisy, bustling, we dogged waitstaff with trays while sipping white burgundy at the small bar. Combine that with Le Bouchon's very good food and you have a just-about-perfect representation of a Paris bistro in Chicago.

We started off with a few appetizers, Seafood Gratin, chock full of shrimp, scallop and mushroom, from the specials menu. Along with house-made pate, sharp dijon style mustard, and the onion tart, always a winner. About Le Bouchon's mustard, I'm not sure where they get the mustard, but it is some of the best, if not the best, in Chicago. A nice sharp bite as opposed to the muddled diffused flavor of ersatz dijon hampered with poor quality mustard seed and watered down with fillers.

For salads we had the absolute best, no equivocation, salad in Chicago, Le Bouchon's Lyonnaise. Chunky, crisp, succulent lardons, slightly crunchy croutons, nice selection of greens, well defined vinaigrette and a perfectly poached egg.



One of the specials was Roasted saddle of rabbit w/potato galette. Nicely done rabbit, crisp potato cake, what's not to like. Pork tenderloin w/garlic mashed in a port wine sauce was quite good as well, with the pork retaining a nice med-rare pink and Ellen enjoyed her filet of flounder w/wild rice. With dinner we had two Burgundy's, first a Mercury and then a Santenay.

Dessert was warm apple tart and a cheese plate. The only minor quibble we had all evening was the cheese was served slightly cold and the flavor, of the very nice cheese selection, was muted.

Service was great, prices are reasonable, they are still serving the delicious duck for two, of which we saw a few pass by, and, of course, Le Bouchon has the very best salad in the city.

Enjoy,
Gary

Le Bouchon
1958 N Damen
Chicago, IL 60647
773-862-6600
http://www.lebouchonofchicago.com

Despite numerous complaints I've seen over time (too noisy, crowded, reservations not honored, snooty waitpersons), I felt like bistro food and have an old soft spot for Jean Claude from his previous spots where I tasted some dishes for the first time.

So off we went.

We don't get out all that much, so my response to dinner is purely a response to this particular dinner and not a taste/value comparison with Tournesol, Absinthe, Matou, Compagne, Kiki, Gabi, Margot, Cyrano, et al.

We had a great time.

Made a reservation for 6PM. Got there at about 6:15 and there was no hassle, not even a slightly raised eyebrow. Just a smiling welcome from the comely host.

The friendly vibe extended to the deuce right behind me who immediately offered to scoot their table down a bit to accomodate us.

Menus and water came right away. Virtually everything looked appealing and after a bit of dithering we settled on:

Alsatian onion tart and escargots starters.

Hallibut fillet w/ ratatouille (special) and sauteed rabbit chasseur (mains)

Apple tarte w/ caramel sauce and choc mousse (dessert),

1 glass ea. of the Macon and the Lorentz Pinot Blanc (the better of the 2)

The escargots were classic and good. Bright green parseley butter, not as oppressively garlicy as in some versions. Every drop finished.

Onion tarte also a classic rendering. One had the impression that a great deal of cream contributed to the deliciousness of the custard.

I didn't taste my wife's hallibut, but it was a generous portion, beautifully white, just slightly d'ore, firm but not a bit overdone. She enjoyed it a lot.

My rabbit was terrific. The piece was about the size of a 1/4 chicken, surrounded by lovely braised celery and carrot chunks. On a bed of farfalle which managed to be perfectly done both at the outer edges and the center crimp -- something I have never been able to manage, and the reason why I never make farfalle.

The sauce benefited from what appeared to be a very rich stock base, giving it a great flavor foundation. There was just enough to coat everything nicely with only a bit left for mopping up.

The meat was tender, moist, and just a bit of flavor intensity that told you it wasn't really chicken.

Desserts were rich and delicious versions of their kind with no attempts at innovation.

I found it notable that we were served at various times by every staff person in the room, not out of any desperation or breakdown, but because they all seemed to work the room as a single well functioning team. Our main waitress -- affable, effortlessly competant, freckled, with short hair -- could have been a young woman out of scores of old French photographs by Lartigue and the like. There was something absolutely timeless about her look.

The room, nearly empty when we arrived, filled up quickly ( it was $22 pre-fixe night). Though the room bustled, it was never unpleasantly noisy, and the service never flagged.

After we paid and were heading out, Jean Claude (who delivered the desserts) made a clear effort to get all the way across the room to make contact and say thank you and good night before we left.

All in all, I could find nothing to complain about -- least of all the final tally of $75 for two for a three course dinner with wine, inclusive. (We did skip coffee.)

mrbarolo wrote:After we paid and were heading out, Jean Claude (who delivered the desserts) made a clear effort to get all the way across the room to make contact and say thank you and good night before we left.

Mr. B,

Nice review, you and I are on the same page, I very much enjoy both Le Bouchon and La Sardine. In fact Le B has my favorite salad in Chicago.

What is unusual, at least from my experience, is the glad hand from Jean Claude. Normally he's not all that interactive, to put it mildly. Maybe Jean Claude thought you and Mrs. B were French.

Enjoy,
Gary

Ann Fisher wrote:Just let me second the recommendation. We just came back from the Tuesday dinner (which is now $22 and still one of the biggest bargains in town).

It's well over a year since Ann posted this, and this Le Bouchon's $22 three-course Tues. dinner is still there and still one of the biggest bargains in town. Their tarte a l’oignon is a near perfect appetizer: smooth, sweet, and slightly smoky in a tender crust. I enjoy their cassoulet, specifically for the flavorful hunks of lamb and duck that go so well with a spoonful of white beans. (Is there a better food combination than braised lamb and white beans? Peanut butter and chocolate, maybe). I took home half of my cassoulet because I knew a third course of profiteroles was on it's way.

No matter what you order, it's a comforting bistro meal that turns decadent at the third course. Considering the quality alone, it remains an extraordinary bargain.

Best,
Michael

hey, eat, ann is talking about the tues dinner at le sardine--not le bouchon

El Panzone wrote:hey, eat, ann is talking about the tues dinner at le sardine--not le bouchon

Yeah, but the restaurants are virtually interchangable. Same owners, similar menus, similar noise levels, etc

El Panzone wrote:hey, eat, ann is talking about the tues dinner at le sardine--not le bouchon

oops. Well, I went from the thread title and I noticed her mention of Tues. night $22--same deal.

It's been over a year since I've read this thread.

Best,
Michael

Since we're new to the neighborhood we decided to try Le Bouchon last night for the first time. We called and got an 8:00 reservation and when we got there at 7:55, the table was ready for us. I must admit, I like this space. It's loud, you're elbow to elbow, but for some reason I feel a great sense of intimacy when I'm in there. There were only a few times when we couldn't hear eachother, though I found if you sit a little on the late side (next time we'll sit at 8:30 instead) that it quiets down as the 7:00 PM crowd rolls out.

Now on to the food. We started with the duck rillettes. I'm a sucker for rillettes in all its forms. This one was a touch dry and hit with a touch too much pepper. The low point of the meal, but frankly it was pretty good. Wished it would have been served with toast points or something like it, but overall pretty solid.

My fiancee had the warm goat cheese salad. She thought there was a perfect amount of dressing, the goat cheese was served at a perfect warm temprature. She thought the buttered toast crutons served with weren't the right texture for the salad or the meal for that matter, but she thought this was a pretty nit picky complaint.

I had the onion tart. Good choice to me! The onions were so perfectly carmelized and sweet, a great crust loaded with butter with great texture. Served nice and warm with w wonderful combination of sweet onion and crunchy tart.

For entrees I had the duck breast- basically a pan seared duck breast served atop wild rice with a side of sauteed cabbage. So simple and yet so good. The duck was perfectly cooked, served warm and tender on a hot plate. On top of the duck and below was a port wine reduction, but not so reduced to be syrup. Paired perfectly with the wine we were drinking.

She had the braised beef. She really liked it, though the portion size seemed a touch large. She referred to it as a french version of irish stew- meaning it's braised beef from france Very hearty.

We'll be back soon.

You should also try La Sardine run by the same people, although its not in the same nieghborhood. I've found the food to be superior and I personally prefer the more spacious quarters. I was not fan of the say-hello-to-your-neighbor seating at Bouchon - or the table so small that the waiter had to put our wine bottle on the wall moding to make room for the plates. Then again, it didn't seem to bother you so maybe just ignore my advice.

Best thing about Sardine is definitely the Tuesday night special - app/entree/dessert for $25. It does attract more of an older crowd than Bouchon, but I perfer the food.

Also, if you are living up near Bouchon you should try Meritage if you haven't yet. I've been there a couple of times over the past few years and always have a good experience.

wak wrote:Best thing about Sardine is definitely the Tuesday night special - app/entree/dessert for $25. It does attract more of an older crowd than Bouchon, but I perfer the food.

Le Bouchon has the same special, but for $20. Le Bouchon and La Sardine have the same owners; the food is very, very similar at both places. I think La Sardine's benefit is it's roomier, more brasserie-like atmosphere. I personally like the crammed-in casual bistro atmosphere at Le Bouchon. Nothing else in this city better evokes a Parisian neighborhood restaurant, in my opinion, than Le Bouchon.

aschie30 wrote:

wak wrote:Best thing about Sardine is definitely the Tuesday night special - app/entree/dessert for $25. It does attract more of an older crowd than Bouchon, but I perfer the food.

Le Bouchon has the same special, but for $20.

Look upthread. It was at $22 two years ago and I think it's a bit higher now.

eatchicago wrote:

aschie30 wrote:

wak wrote:Best thing about Sardine is definitely the Tuesday night special - app/entree/dessert for $25. It does attract more of an older crowd than Bouchon, but I perfer the food.

Le Bouchon has the same special, but for $20.

Look upthread. It was at $22 two years ago and I think it's a bit higher now.

No need - I was just there a few weeks ago on a Tuesday. There was a $20 three-course menu where you were given a choice from about three choices each for appetizer, entree and dessert. For $25, you could do a 3-course using the entire menu. But the $20 hit the high points of the bistro menu.

Actually, it looks like it was modified further:

Every day $20 menu (choice of two for appetizer, entree & dessert)

On Tuesdays, $22 prix fixe 3 course, choice of everything on the menu.

Plus Monday - 1/2 priced wine by the bottle.

Just wanted to share a great experience at Le Bouchon last night; my first time in about a year and my first ever Tuesday night. I can confirm that it's still a $22 prix fixe for any "starter," entree, and dessert. I would have loved to have attempted pictures in there, but it just wasn't that kind of meal. Sorry.

The salad Lyonnaise was truly excellent. Here, it's served on a pretty standard bed of mesclun (reminiscent of the salad mix at Stanley's) instead of the (I believe) more traditional frisee, as they do at Brasserie Jo. Fragrant, Vegas dice-sized lardons that outnumber the croutons handily. I can see this being a bit too much of a salad for lighter appetites, but I didn't personally have that problem. We agreed that this salad and an onion soup would be a perfect lunch, if only Le Bouchon was open before 5:30.

Hanger steak was fine, cooked a little bit beyond the medium rare that I requested, but it wasn't a problem. The garlic mashed potatoes were pretty unremarkable, but the green beans were quite nice. Her trout was served on a kind of raw-food ratatouille that reminded me of pico de gallo as much as anything else. Different and nice. She ended up taking most of it home.

For dessert, we split an apple tart and a cheese plate, both of which were very good, but totally overkill at this point.

I hope I'm not damning with faint praise, because I really want to get across that this was a really satisfying, upscale but not fussy meal at an incredible price. With a glass of wine and a martini, the check came to something like $66. We had a great table (the left- and backmost table) that insulated us from much of the commotion, and our waitress was professional, competent, and helpful. And maybe this should be able to go without mention, but I really love that Le Bouchon has kept this special throughout the years, and that they don't put any (apparent) miserable little restrictions on what you can order to get the deal. Add to that the everyday $20 deal of le menu bistro Lyonnaise and this place is just ridiculously solid.

I keep forgetting to post this,
Le Bouchon is now open for lunch.
1958 N Damen Ave
Chicago, IL 60647
(773) 862-6600
Monday-Saturday: 11:30 am - 2:30 pm
Monday-Thursday: 5:30 pm - 11:00 pm
Friday and Saturday: 5:00 pm - 12:00 am
Closed on Sunday

I am astonished to find the most recent post of substance in this dedicated thread to be over five years old. And I am disappointed to have to add this brief post in which I record my sadness upon today's visit. I haven't been in many, many years and was very happy to find myself in the neighborhood today at lunchtime. They open for lunch at 11:30 and I was there shortly before noon--the first table in the house. By the time I left around 12:45, there were only two other two-tops.
They had a lunch special: an app, an entree, and a dessert for $25. I added a glass of Sancerre (which was pleasant but served far, far too cold) for $13 and the worst espresso I've had in a long while for $4. Total with tip, $53. The app I chose was the charcuterie plate--three or four slices of peppered salami, several uninspired duck rillettes, and a couple slices of unremarkable pate maison. The board also featured some gherkins. Nothing exceptional, nothing offputting. Just pleasant. The mustard was smooth yellow mustard, adding little; a little preserve or sweet fruit something-or-other would have been welcome. The sauteed rabbit entree (served with farfalle!?) was very disappointing. The sauce had promise but was entirely devoid of salt; even taking another few minutes to reduce it further would have added some welcome richness. I liked the bread (not sure of its provenance, though an unmarked white van pulled up while I was eating and dropped up a large bag of bread): good and crusty, nice flavor. The rabbit was a good portion and nicely cooked, but suffered from an overall lack of seasoning as well.
The dessert--an apple tart--was served room temperature (a little warmth would have helped), liberally doused with caramel sauce and real whipped cream.
The service was not polished: though she made sure to inquire of each two-top how the food was and to visit several times, I was largely ignored. That would not have bothered me particularly except for two things. The visits I was graced with were quite offputting: I dislike the practice of dropping off the dessert menu while I am still finishing my main course, now that you ask. And I really, really dislike the practice of dropping off the check when I've hardly gotten halfway through the dessert (telling me there's no hurry doesn't make me dislike it any less). Particularly when there's only one other table in the house. The double espresso was beyond sad. It wasn't even strong coffee and there was not an iota of crema anywhere to be seen.
I had really been looking forward to this lunch and while I may return to find out if I hit the house on an off day, lunch on a weekday in a room that was barely occupied shouldn't have been this hard. The whole experience really saddened me.

Dave, heavily bummed though appreciative of your honest review. We're headed there soon (maybe tonight) and I was feeling pretty good after reading some of the older posts here and more recent ones on Yelp.

Don't be scared. I've been going there for almost 15 years. I just don't post about it anymore because I pretty much know everyone that works there. The owner is the only surly person there that I know of. If there are any problems of any kind, I just ask someone to fix it. The bartender is fantastic, and has worked there forever. If they have the pineapple tart on special get it! My only problem with the apple tart is that sometimes the caramel tastes a little burnt, and I send it back. Most of the time I get the cheese plate anyway. This is a goat cheese salad, steak frites and wine place for me.

nicinchic wrote:Don't be scared. I've been going there for almost 15 years. I just don't post about it anymore because I pretty much know everyone that works there. The owner is the only surly person there that I know of. If there are any problems of any kind, I just ask someone to fix it. The bartender is fantastic, and has worked there forever. If they have the pineapple tart on special get it! My only problem with the apple tart is that sometimes the caramel tastes a little burnt, and I send it back. Most of the time I get the cheese plate anyway. This is a goat cheese salad, steak frites and wine place for me.

Thanks, nicinchi. That's encouraging. I just got off the phone with Jean-Claude (I'm working on a Splash piece about Bouchon), and he had some interesting tidbits about Obama, one of his old customers.

I've seen a few famous people in that little place, Joan Cusack and her husband off the top of my head. Really it's just a neighborhood place where I run into other people that work in the neighborhood and hang out. We like to go on Friday for $1 oysters before dinner at the bar.