Eno wine bar

We had a wedding reception to go to at the Hotel Intercontinental, and an hour between the ceremony (at Old St. Pat's - beautiful church!) and the reception.

We decided to get a glass of wine at Eno, inside the hotel. It's new, only open 3 weeks. They do wine, cheese and chocolate. They have flights and by-the glass selection, as well as a larger list of bottles.

It's a dark-wood modern space - clean lines, mostly seating at high tables with bar-stool height chairs. The staff was very nice, but seemed a bit distracted. A woman took our order, gave us one empty glass, then wandered off. We think she told a guy to get our wine, but they both ended up helping other tables. Another woman (I think their cheese expert - she was wearing a white smock) asked if we'd been helped, and she sounded like she expected us to say no and was sorry about it (very expressive, she was).

I also had a fun discussion with another of the women who works there about esoteric kitchen gadgets we own (cherry pitters and heated ice cream scoops) and foods you just don't see much outside their home bases (sour cherries and blue crabs).

They are a bit pricey, but then they are on Michigan ave. It was very pleasant to sit there and nibble on cheese and sip wine and look out at the world going by. They kept my water glass filled, which I appreciated. With the cheese they also serve a small bit of quince paste, marcona almonds, pitted olives (nicoise?) and fig raisin bread.

I'm not sure I'd make it a destination, since I can walk to Bin Cafe and Webster's, but it's a nice option in that part of town.

You can enter right off Michigan ave, without traversing the rest of the hotel.

Eno
505 N. Michigan Ave.
312-321-8738
(in the Hotel Intercontinental)