Between Boutique Cafe & Lounge

Has anyone been to this small plates bar/lounge/whatever-we're-calling-these-places now (man that makes me sound old...)? I know The Violet Hour has received most of the attention lately, but how is Between Boutique Cafe & Lounge (1324 N. Milwaukee)? A friend of mine is looking to celebrate her birthday and she's worried that the place will be too empty at 7pm on a Friday night.

Personally, I think that the fewer the people, the better the service and the easier to hear everyone talk, but it's her birthday not mine.

But is the food good? Atmosphere, service, etc? And just how small are the plates anyway? Will it take 4 plates to feel satisfied and full?

ETA: here's their (hard to Google) website: http://www.betweenchicago.com/

I went here over a week ago, and it was almost completely empty on a Friday night, about 8pm, so your friend was right to be worried.

Let's start with atmosphere. Between is trying to go for the romantic, good-date-place vibe, with its darkly painted walls, small tables, and couches surrounded by beaded curtains. This is just me, but the couches and coffee tables made it pretty uncomfortable for eating (even with small plates), and the beaded curtains just aren't my thing. Because it was essentially empty as well, I did not get the vibe that this was going to be a fun place. They had their liquor license at this point, but that didn't seem to help boost the attendance.

As for the food, this played a large part in convincing me I wouldn't make any effort to return. We had the "duck duck goose" which is duck ravioli with gooseberry sauce. A cute idea, but the duck didn't actually taste like duck (more like ground beef) and was really greasy. My friend wanted to try the chicken and waffles - the supposed cumin waffles intrigued her, but I got no sense of any interesting spices and the dish was essentially chicken nuggets on top of waffles with some drizzling of honey mustard. The lobster trifecta was interesting, my favorite part was the bisque, but I can't say I have ever met a bisque I didn't like! We ordered the shitake and beef baturas, which were like big dumplings, these were just ehh.

As for the service, our waiter was competent, and I did not get the impression that our service was any better because the place was empty. That's not to say it was bad, but I have a feeling it could have been better had the owner's wife not decided to actually sit with us for most of our meal, because I think he felt we were already being "take care of." This was the truly strange part of the experience. I'm all for owners making the rounds just to check in on how your meal is going, but honestly it's a little awkward when they sit with you. This particular dinner was one of those "I haven't seen you in years, and you're visiting for the weekend, so let's catch up" type of dinners, so to have this uninvited guest was a bit intrusive.

Bottom line, the night left me wishing I had chosen another restaurant.

jn2001, thanks for the report. I think my friend is still set on giving it a go (she was sold on the Rum Bubble Tea drinks). Maybe we'll have a more enjoyable time?

Possibly?

Hopefully?

We'll see.

My friend's birthday has come and gone now and I can safely say that we were wildly underwhelmed by Between Boutique. I should paid more attention to jn2001's warning.

I arrived later than I anticipated and not hungry, so I didn't try the food. My friends who did eat were generally positive and enthusiastic, though the plates were rather over-priced for what you got.

The drinks, though, were a complete disaster. One friend was saying that they only recently got their liquor license, but unless they received it that morning, there's no excuse for serving only Heineken and Miller Light. When someone asked for a whiskey, the only option was Seagram's. I steered clear of the mixed drinks because there was no drink list available, and the drinks that I sampled were sub-par (case in point, a pinot grigio spiked with pear brandy cocktail... it was... barely drinkable). The Rum Bubble Tea drink turned out to be the worst drink she ever tasted, too.

Our server seemed ambivalent, bordering on annoyed that we were there at all. We were a large group, and people were ordering food and drinks at different rates. But with such a focus on small plates, and it being a lounge, I feel like that should be expected. The chef came out to ask how we were enjoying ourselves, and we lied because we felt bad.

The room was empty, and not just in terms of people. It felt sparse, and unfinished -- cold, too. It's been open for 2.5 months, but you wouldn't know it to walk in.

Granted, they're on a tough stretch of Milwaukee, one that has only recently begun to show the same amount of life found near North and Damen. But that excuse can only let them get so far -- look at Schwa, a restaurant that found great success despite being a little off the beaten path; or even The Violet Hour, a room that is certainly sparse, but hardly cold or uninviting.

So, until they stock their bar appropriately and maybe re-vamp their concept to be less lounge-y and more restaurant-y, I don't think I'll be back.

I was there on Saturday night. Very weird vibe here. We sat in one of the tables that had the fringe around it, but it was cold and just plain weird. They don't have a full bar and we stayed for one drink, although the russian waitres was nice she was really trying to get us to stay.

You know.. I went with a couple of friends over there ...it was my second visit (the first time they were byob and had little paper slips as menus) and I have to say, it was a pretty good experience. New menu, great BIG cocktails for half price ($6 - $8) and the service was decent. I probably would go back if it was in my neighborhood. My partner loves this place. oh yeah.. and the menu is actually balanced this time.. I would probably just have to say they need a bigger dessert menu.

We've been there a few times (we live in the neighborhood) and really love how the menu has evolved. The Chef, who was previously Sous Chef at Vermillion, has developed a really interesting menu of small plates with flavors of india and asia. I am not sure how some people on this board thought this place was over priced because it is a relative steal as far as hip dining in Chicago goes. Last time we were there we had 6 or 7 dishes and a few glasses of wine and the bill came in just over a hundred. Compare that around.

I agree the desert menu needs expanding, but by the end of the meal we were so full it wasn't a factor.

Try the beef / tuna dish and the lobster trifecta. I dare you to find a better lobster bisque!

The atmosphere is cool and I like the tables behind the curtains... gives it a private party vibe.