Joe Fish

Service was terrible. We waited 30 minutes for two glasses of wine. The manager was less than sincere about making us happy. The couple seated next to us were greeted by the manager and the chef. Their drinks were served immediately after they were seated. Not a good experience. The staff just didn't seem to have it last night.

Main dishes were delicious. My wife had the butternut squash ravioli and I had the spaghetti and meatballs ("the best ever" according to their menu). Both tasted very good. Atmosphere and service were both good. The dessert (banana split) was a bit of a letdown, though.

The ambiance here is great. It's lovely inside and very elegant. I wasn't completely happy with the food and it took a really long time for us to get our food because there was apparently a party of 65 before us. The lobster bisque had a hefty portion of lobster which was great, but the bisque part wasn't as creamy and rich as I expect from a lobster bisque. It wasn't anything that I would seek and lobster bisque is my favorite soup. My dad had an Italian style salad which wasn't very good and he wasn't too pleased with his beer because he was visiting from out of town and wanted to try a local pilsner/ lager type beer. The waiter assured him he would get him that and returned with a peroni (Italian beer, not Chicago in the least). He was diappointed, but it wasn't the worst thing ever. There were three pink wines on the menu and I ordered the white zinfandel, but the waiter was confused at first. He brought me the correct one and I enjoyed it. Then the waiter apologized for the wait and explained the situation. We were fine, but weren't planning on making dinner such an event since we were going to see a blues show after. We weren't all that happy, but certainly not about to be rude or anything. The restaurant was very accommodating and brought us a free round of drinks, oysters and a crab cake. We thought that was really nice, but my dad and I couldn't eat the oysters happily without crackers which they apparently didn't have. The crab cake was pretty tasty. For our entrees, my dad got the halibut with artichoke and found it to be pretty bland, especially for $42. My boyfriend got lobster ravioli, which he liked but I thought wasn't very good. I got the scallops which were really good, but the mushroom risotto was pretty average. The food was good, but not worth the hefty price. Almost all entrees were over $30-$40 and just didn't live up to the cost. We also found our waiter to be annoying and stayed too long. He would stand in a corner and wait until we finished something, then race over. Yes he was attentive, but he could have been a bit more subtle and been a bit more intuitive considering he works in the service industry. The manager and host of the restaurant both seemed very on top of things despite it being a hectic Friday night.

The staff was super friendly, helpful and fast. The food was out of this world. Yes...definitely try the meatball. Mom's is still better but Joe's is right up there. If I'm ever in Chicago, I'll try to get back.

Real nice restaurant in the hubbub of River North with one if the most attentive staff I've ever experienced in town. Bloody Mary's are generous and are almost an appetizer! Brunch is great. The eggs in purgatory is good but I was eyeing my friend's eggs and lobster which looked amazing. Great for business brunch or a date.

Attended the preview event a few days before it opened and it was fantastic. The inside was simple but just beautiful. The wait staff was wonderful. Very helpful and knowledgeable. Our table had Scott and he was great. The fun thing about the preview was that we got to try everything which was great. The shrimp was JUMBO, like saddle up and take a ride size. So tasty. I can't wait to go back for a sit down dinner. Oh, almost forget the drinks were delicious. Strong but so yummy.