Discover the most romantic restaurants in Chicago. This comprehensive guide includes over 30 restaurants that are the perfect place for a memorable meal for two.
When we created this list, both the decor and the ambiance were taken into consideration. Sometimes a restaurant looks romantic, but the mood isn’t romantic. The restaurants on this list offer both a romantic setting and romantic mood.
Last Updated: March 2022
Romantic Restaurants in Chicago
Table of Contents
The list of the most romantic restaurants in Chicago is organized by neighborhood.
River North
Bavette’s Bar & Boeuf
River North
Steakhouse, French
Bavette’s has consistently been on the list of best restaurants in Chicago since it opened a decade ago. Scoring a reservation isn’t easy, but if you go early you might have luck grabbing a seat at the bar where the full menu is offered. The menu focuses on seafood and steaks along with exceptional salads and mouthwatering side dishes. Save room for dessert, the chocolate pie is one of the best desserts in Chicago. The cocktail program is one of Chicago’s top.
Ciccio Mio
River North
Italian
A sister to Bavette’s located just next door, Ciccio Mio has a romantic space with deep red velvet banquettes and oil paintings illuminated with candlelight. A self described “a nice Italian restaurant”, Ciccio Mio’s menu emphasizes pastas like black truffle bucatini and porcini mushroom bolognese, and includes several meat and seafood dishes. Plus there are sharable antipasti and sides.
Gilt Bar
River North
American
Another sister to Bavette’s located on the same block of West Kinzie Street, Gilt is a lounge with decor inspired by a vintage library. The cocktail menu highlights classic cocktails with several different old fashions and martinis. The menu has a mix of seafood, pasta, and meat entrees.
GT Prime
Fine Dining, Steakhouse, American, Romantic
An exceptional steakhouse fit for a special occasion, GT Prime serves seafood and a selection of prime cuts of beef. The menu doesn’t have many non-meat options but I think most vegetarians would be happy with tagliatelle with parmesan and 5 grams of truffle.
Untitled Super Club
American, Romantic
Untitled is prohibition-era Chicago supper club and bar located in a basement that has burlesque performances and live entertainment Wednesdays through Saturdays. What starts as a romantic spaces turns into a party as the night goes on. The food menu includes a seafood raw bar, several pastas, and steaks. In 2021, Untitled received Michelin Bib Gourmand recognition.
Brindille
French, Fine Dining, Romantic
Brindille serves a seasonally changing menu of elegant French cuisine. This restaurant is ideal for a special date night. The dress code is smart casual.
Topolobampo
Romantic, Fine Dining, Mexican, Lunch
James Beard Award Winner Rick Bayless helms a trio of restaurants on the same block of North Clark Street. Topolobampo is the most formal and serves a multi-course tasting menu for $145 per person.
West Loop
Alla Vita
West Loop
Italian, Pizza
This gorgeous West Loop eatery has a classic Italian menu with homemade pastas, pizzas, and wood fired meats.
Sepia
West Loop
Fine Dining
Sepia is a romantic fine dining restaurant serving an $85 four-course menu that lets guests choose from a small menu to design their own meal. The menu highlights seasonal ingredients and the wine list is one of Chicago’s best. Wine pairings are available with your meal.
Trivoli Tavern
West Loop
American
A beautiful dimly lit tavern with a decor that makes you feel like you have stepped back in time. Part of the Hogsalt restaurant group which helms some of Chicago most acclaimed eateries, Trivoli Tavern has a menu that includes seafood, pasta, steaks, and comfort foods like chicken pot pie, fried chicken, and fish & chips. This is one of the most romantic restaurants in the Chicago West Loop neighborhood.
Gibson’s Italia
Italian, Steakhouse, Romantic, Lunch
Gibson’s Italia is a three level Italian steakhouse on the Chicago River with two fireplaces, a roof deck, and spectacular city views. The large menu mixes upscale Italian cuisine with classic steakhouse fare.
Smyth
West Loop
American
This restaurant serving rustic American fare has earned two Michelin stars. Smyth serves a $265 tasting menu that takes diners on a 2.5 hour journey.
The Loyalist
West Loop
French
Located beneath Smyth, The Loyalist is an upscale neighborhood bar inspired by French brasseries that serves one of the best burgers in Chicago. Beyond the burger, the menu features oysters, foie gras, tartare, mussels, steak Diane, Parisienne gnocchi, and an omelette with the option to add caviar.
Streeterville
Les Nomades
Streeterville
French, Fine Dining
A French fine dining restaurant that serves a prix fixe dinner menu. The menu has traditional French cuisine such as foie gras, caviar, oysters, braised short rib, and roasted duck breast.
Wicker Park
Mama Delia
Wicker Park
Spanish
A traditional Spanish restaurant in a gorgeous dimly lit space that serves paella, tapas, seafood, and meat dishes. It received a Michelin Bib Gourmand recognition. After dinner, visit the speakeasy upstairs, Bordel.
etta
Wicker Park
Italian
Etta is serves housemade pastas and a perfectly executed cacio e pepe. In addition to the pastas, they serve pizza and wood fired meats. Their rooftop is an especially beautiful and romantic space. Etta does have a second location in River North but the atmosphere isn’t as romantic.
Bucktown
Le Bouchon
French, Romantic, Lunch
You will feel like you have been transported to France when you dine at this charming romantic restaurant. The cuisine is classic French with a menu serving escargots, mules a la Provencal, French onion soup, seared foie gras, steak frites, and duck cassoulet. Le Bouchon serves lunch and dinner Monday through Saturday. This restaurant is a fixture on every list of most romantic restaurants in Chicago.
Gold Coast
Adalina
Italian, Romantic
An upscale modern Italian restaurant with caviar service, shellfish towers, and oysters in addition to handmade pastas and steaks. For an even more romantic setting, visit the restaurant’s rosé lounge.
Le Colonial
Gold Coast
Vietnamese
After 20 years on Rush Street, this restaurant moved in to an elegant and romantic third floor space on Oak Street. The food has remained the same but the ambiance has been elevated. Le Colonial is an upscale Vietnamese restaurant with French influences that serves lunch and dinner. The menu has an even mix of meat and seafood dishes. The restaurants signature dish is Ca Chien Saigon, crispy whole red snapped with a spicy garlic glaze. Meat dishes include chargrilled Berkshire pork ribs, roasted duck, and caramelized filet mignon.
La Storia
Gold Coast
Italian, Mediterranean
Located in a former Gold Coast home, La Storia opened as an Italian restaurant and over time the menu has embraced more Mediterranean influences. The menu has a variety of pastas including gnocchi genoese, lasagna all bolognese, tagliolini Neri frutti di mare, and goat cheese agnolotti plus meat and seafood dishes like swordfish in trapanese sauce and a rack of lamb. The courtyard patio with twinkle lights is one of most romantic places to dine in Chicago.
The Loop
Cherry Circle Room
Romantic, American, French
Located in the Chicago Athletic Association Hotel, the Cherry Circle Room is an intimate dimly lit restaurant with leather banquettes. The space won a James Beard Award for Outstanding Restaurant Design. The menu blends American and French cuisine with items such as foie gras torch, black truffle croquette, oysters casino, heritage pork chop, and steaks on the menu. Pre-theater dining is offered and most theaters are within easy walking distance. The game room, which is on the same floor as the Cherry Circle Room, is a beautiful place to play billiards before or after dinner.
Lincoln Park
Mon Ami Gabi
Lincoln Park
French, Kid-friendly
A traditional French restaurant located beside the park, Mon Ami Gabi has an a la carte menu in addition to a prix fixe menu that changes weekly. The menu has several steaks plus mussels, roast chicken, escargot, and beef bourguignon.
North Pond
Lincoln Park
American, Fine Dining
Sitting on the edge of a pond in the heart of the park, this Michelin starred restaurant serves a $110 seasonal tasting menu with the option for a wine pairing. A brunch tasting menu is served on Sundays for $49 per person.
Boka
Fine Dining, American, Romantic
Boka is a Michelin starred restaurant offering both an eight-course seasonal tasting menu and an a la carte menu. The entrees on the a la carte menu include roasted chicken, slow roasted short rib, and a whole dry aged duck.
Geja’s Cafe
Fondue, Romantic
Geja’s Cafe lays claim to being Chicago’s most romantic restaurant. The menu includes a several different fondue dinners. Select from meat, seafood, surf and turf, and vegetarian options.
Armitage Ale House
British, Indian, Romantic
A neighborhood pub by Hogsalt Hospitality which also owns Bavette’s, Ciccio Mio, and Gilt Bar in River North. This beautifully decorated restaurant gets its inspiration from a London pub in the 1920s. The menu includes a mix of British classics and Indian food.
Lakeview
Ella Elli
Lakeview
Global, Mediterranean
Ella Elli’s global and Mediterranean inspired menu is broken into sections containing charcuterie and toasts, vegetables, pizza and pasta, and seafoods and meats. When compared to the cuisine at the other 4 Star restaurants, Ella Elli takes a big step towards fine dining while still remaining approachable. Grilled octopus with rice, Catalan aioli, and cilantro and Australian Wagyu with roasted turnips, leeks, butterball potatoes, and romesco are two current menu items. During the warmer months, Ella Elli has a beautiful sidewalk patio decorated with flowers and twinkle lights.
Logan Square
Osteria Langhe
Logan Square
Italian
A casual yet romantic restaurant serving cuisine from the North Italian region of Piedmont, and one of the best restaurants in Logan Square. The menu is small, containing just five antipasti, four primi, and four secondi options. The plin, pasta filled with la tur cheese and topped with thyme and butter is especially delightful. A four-course $55 Taste of Piemonte menu is available on Wednesdays.
West Town
Piccolo Sogno
West Town
Italian, Gluten-free
Piccolo Sogno means “little dream” and this restaurant’s large garden is one of the dreamiest spots in Chicago. The menu is seasonal rustic Italian with an emphasis on pastas, pizzas, and hearty meat dishes. Dinner is served nightly and lunch is served Monday through Thursday. Much of the menu is gluten-free.
Porto
West Town
Spanish, Portugese
Porto’s cuisine is inspired by fishing villages and farmsteads in coastal Portugal and Spain. An eight-course tasting menu is available for $100 in addition to the a la carte menu. The a la carte menu is divided into sections with seasonal dishes and “conservas” preserved dishes like sardines in olive oil, clams in brine, and sea urchin roe.
Beatnik
West Town
Mediterranean, Global
Beatnik also has a location on the Chicago River, but the West Town restaurant has a quieter more romantic atmosphere. The menu includes a ceviche bar, spreads like smoked baba ghanoush, and mezze such as feta stuffed dates, pistachio tzatziki beets, and chicken kabobs. Plus there are larger sharable entrees which include Lebanese-style roasted lamb and dry-aged ribeye.
Jeong
Korean, Fine Dining
This is one of the hottest restaurants in West Town. Both the restaurant and its Chef Dave Park are a finalists for the 2022 James Beard awards. Jeong serves a tasting menu that presents refined modern Korean cuisine.
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