Where to Go for Girl's Night Out

I'm meeting up with some of the gals for a night out, and luckily it's all up to me to pick a place. I mean that sarcastically, as I'm having trouble with the logistics. Here's the challenge: one chick lives near Bellwood, one chick lives in Crystal Lake, and I lives in Niles. Bellwood isn't too far from me, but Crystal Lake is way out. So...I need ideas for somewhere:

...centrally located or downtown, but preferably not too far from Ogilvie Transportation Center.
...not expensive; I think I'm being treated. Less than $20 a plate.
...not very child-friendly. My evil side is rearing its ugly head.
...with an interesting menu...no diners, burger joints, etc.
...not noisy. I'm the quietest person in the world and having to shout makes me cranky.

I'm open to all cuisines but Chinese, Mexican, and BBQ are way down on my list.
Thanks!

This is a place I haven't been, but it's a place I want to go, and it fits your criteria (including proximity to the Ogilvie Center): Prairie Fire.

riddlemay wrote:This is a place I haven't been, but it's a place I want to go, and it fits your criteria (including proximity to the Ogilvie Center): Prairie Fire.

Prairie Fire, yep, my first thought, too...though others in the "immediate area" would be Publican and Carnivale, which might also be fun for groups (actually, compared to Prairie Fire, they'd be downright raucous and maybe too noisy).

Publican is MUCH TOO NOISY for someone who wants to avoid places that are TOO LOUD.

La Sardine fits all your criteria.

nsxtasy wrote:Publican is MUCH TOO NOISY for someone who wants to avoid places that are TOO LOUD.

La Sardine fits all your criteria.

Publican probably too loud unless you go early and/or sit outside.

David Hammond wrote:

nsxtasy wrote:Publican is MUCH TOO NOISY for someone who wants to avoid places that are TOO LOUD.

La Sardine fits all your criteria.

Publican probably too loud unless you go early and/or sit outside.

EXACTLY

La Sardine can get EXTREMELY NOISY too when the place fills up.

I vote for Carnivale, although I haven't heard any reports of the new menu under the new exec. chef.

gleam wrote:although I haven't heard any reports of the new menu under the new exec. chef.

Another reason to vote for Carnivale.

Prairie Fire. Pie Lady they always have lovely Pie offerings. Don't forget to get the French Lentils. I adore this simple dish.

I haven't been to Carnivale in a long time, but it's not for talking in my opinion. If you are willing to stretch the boundaries I would do Sweets & Savories. It can get louder than Prairie Fire, but I think you can manage it.

Pie Lady-I am still dreaming about the peach cream pie I had at Prairie Fire when we were there last month.
I think Prairie Fire meets all your criteria-quiet, good food and a good location.

You all had me at pie and muk muk cake, if only just to say it out loud to the waiter.

Prairie Fire is my pick for sure. But just in case, since neither of these gals mentioned a price range, I should probably ask for a second, cheaper option (like $12 per plate or so) so they can choose between the two. I'm probably worrying too much but better to be safe than have to help out with the bill.

On second thought, for girls night out, nothing beats Baton Lounge: viewtopic.php?f=14&t=714

Pie Lady wrote:You all had me at pie and muk muk cake, if only just to say it out loud to the waiter.

Prairie Fire is my pick for sure. But just in case, since neither of these gals mentioned a price range, I should probably ask for a second, cheaper option (like $12 per plate or so) so they can choose between the two. I'm probably worrying too much but better to be safe than have to help out with the bill.

I can only think of Chinese in Chinatown at that price and you said you wanted to avoid Chinese. If you are having second thoughts then I would go with Moon Palace. You can hear yourself and the food is good.

To get to a lower price point, you're probably going to have to leave the West Loop--I can't think of any place in that area--ethnic or otherwise--that will come in at $12/plate, other than sandwich spots.

At that, i'm not sure any of these places will work either but the first two are small plate/sharing type places so you can order as much or as little as you want to spend/consume.

I ate at Cumin in Wicker Park a couple of weeks ago and it was very nice for a group meal. I don't remember it being overly loud but no promises on that. It was reasonably priced, particularly if you are up for sharing dishes. Also in that area, I loved Taxim for a girl's night out a couple of months ago--everything was delicious. We had a few cocktails so I don't remember the noise level either way. I just remember that the food was excellent and the atmosphere was festive without being crowded or irritating.

I also enjoyed the $24 prix fixe at Jam--food is pretty good for that price range and the lovely outdoor patio is nothing if not quiet. And it's BYO. It's also cash only so don't forget about that...

enjoy your evening!

Jen


Cumin
1414 N. Milwaukee Ave.
Chicago, IL 60642
773-342-1414

Taxim
1558 N. Milwaukee Ave.
Chicago, IL 60622
773-252-1558

Jam
937 N. Damen Ave.
Chicago, IL 60622
773-489-0302
http://www.jamrestaurant.com

GNR Winner Paramount Room isn't terribly far from the train station, and offers something in the sub-Prairie Fire range. If it's a weeknight it can be pretty quiet, but for weekends, I find sustained conversation a bit difficult. Generally interesting food, though.

Paramount Room
415 N Milwaukee Ave
Chicago, IL 60654
(312) 829-6300
http://www.paramountroom.com/

To chime in, I've never had a bad meal at Carnivale (or even a bad course, for that matter) and I don't find it to be "too noisy". And they make a world-class Mojito.

spinynorman99 wrote:To chime in, I've never had a bad meal at Carnivale (or even a bad course, for that matter) and I don't find it to be "too noisy". And they make a world-class Mojito.

"Too noisy" is subjective, of course, but I quote Mark Mendez, who found the noise at his Carnivale sometimes terrifying:

"All of Jerry’s restaurants…are notoriously loud. But here, a lot of his places the kitchens are open, so you kind of get used to it, it’s a natural thing, you don’t really notice it as much, but I’ve noticed here, the kitchen is closed, sometimes the door will swing open and it will go from quiet or a gentle hum of people talking to a roar, you hear the music, you hear the salsa, you hear the timbales being played, you hear people talking, people laughing, you hear that a lot, or maybe it’s because people drink a lot here, I don’t know (laughs). If you look at the board and there’s not that many tickets, but you hear a lot of people, then you know you’re going to get just really, really killed. That’s terror."

Well I offered Prairie Fire in my email with a closing requesting that they tell me if it's too pricey. I'm crossing my fingers. It's certainly convenient...

boudreaulicious wrote:To get to a lower price point, you're probably going to have to leave the West Loop--I can't think of any place in that area--ethnic or otherwise--that will come in at $12/plate, other than sandwich spots.

Wishbone does.

If you go to Prairie Fire on a Monday it's BYOB with no corkage. If you do go on Mon or Tues, ask for waiter Rennie. He's terrific!

leek wrote:If you go to Prairie Fire on a Monday it's BYOB with no corkage. If you do go on Mon or Tues, ask for waiter Rennie. He's terrific!

And if it's a Tuesday, La Sardine features any three courses on the menu for $25.

Damn, it's a Saturday!
But Mr. Pie and I will be ditching work on an upcoming Tuesday...

Pie Lady wrote:Damn, it's a Saturday!
But Mr. Pie and I will be ditching work on an upcoming Tuesday...

La Sardine in the West Loop, and Le Bouchon in Bucktown, are sister restaurants, both French bistros with the same ownership. Both offer the same deal on Tuesdays (any 3 courses for $25). I know La Sardine gets busy on Tuesdays, thanks to the special, and I suspect Le Bouchon does as well, so reservations are recommended. You can make reservations for La Sardine on their website (NOT Opentable) or by phone; Le Bouchon accepts them only by phone.

And if you enjoy French bistros, Bistro Bordeaux in Evanston has a similar deal on Wednesdays, 3 courses for $28.95, with small upcharges on one or two items.

gleam wrote:La Sardine can get EXTREMELY NOISY too when the place fills up.

I sure don't think so. I've eaten there several times when they are full, including tonight, and I don't think it's anywhere near as loud as most restaurants. You can conduct a normal conversation without any difficulty hearing your dining companions.

Might just be where I've been sitting. I've always had a lot more trouble hearing people at La Sardine on a Tuesday (when they're busy, but not packed) than Carnivale on a Saturday.

gleam wrote:Might just be where I've been sitting. I've always had a lot more trouble hearing people at La Sardine on a Tuesday (when they're busy, but not packed) than Carnivale on a Saturday.

Maybe. My previous visit was on a Tuesday (and they were full, with a few people waiting by the hoststand) and I sat in the middle of the room. Last night they were full and I sat in the far left corner of the room.

Prairie Fire did fit the bill perfectly and it was a nice convenient ride in for me. And we did get the pie.

Happy to help.

Now I need to get there.

Pie Lady wrote:Prairie Fire did fit the bill perfectly and it was a nice convenient ride in for me. And we did get the pie.

Glad it worked out! Which pie

Raspberry cream cheese with raspberry sauce. It was really outstanding. I loved it except for the crust, which had absolutely no flavor and shattered so it was difficult to pick up with a fork. We decided to share, and when they brought this huge thing I was glad we did. It was at least a 6th of a deep dish, and I was already pretty stuffed. Although I wished someone would have ordered the Muk Muk cake so we could split both, since I saw another table order it and it looked like heaven. Really gooey and very dark and rich.

I suppose I could mention the less important details like the entrées...

I first went with the soup of the day, a corn and poblano pepper cream with tortilla strips (is it just me or do crispy tortilla strips make everything better?) which was a highlight. I ordered the brisket, which came in a crock-type bowl over mashed Yukon Golds and wee diced veggies. I tried to move the brisket slices to the side to taste some of the taters with just gravy, and they fell apart, they were so tender. A little salty, but very good. I forked over a bite to one companion in exchange for a bite of her Moussaka—not nearly as good as the brisket. My other companion ordered the Phyllo Strudel stuffed with spinach and cheese and that was also pretty good, but also not as good as the brisket. One complaint is that one companion ordered the Terrine of Amish Blue Cheese salad—which looked fantastic, by the way—but the Strudel also came with a side salad and the waiter didn't bother to either change the side or at least tell her she was getting more of the same.