For a city that holds fast to its beef-loving reputation, even decades after the Union Stockyards closed, the steakhouse represents a carnivorous pillar of luxury dining for locals and travelers alike.
The past few years have seen a glut of openings, some pushing the boundaries of the category, others upping the glam ante with sky-high seafood towers and caviar bumps. With such a dizzying array of options, it can be difficult for the average diner to choose. So, I committed my favorite recommendations to paper.
From old school to modern, dressed down to dazzlingly over the top, here are nine places in Chicago for a great chophouse experience.
1. Boeufhaus
For the steak — not steakhouse — lover: Is it a steakhouse or a European-ish restaurant with superb house-butchered beef? I don’t care. Executive chef Brian Ahern’s reliably excellent, sultry brasserie always excels at genuine (but never clingy) service, food-loving wine and French and German-inflected dishes — including luscious hamachi crudo in lemony browned butter, toothsome ridged cavatelli canoes with heady merguez and fried garbanzos, and (when in season) maybe the city’s best French onion soup. Have I mentioned le boeuf? Dry-aged for 55 days, it arrives juicy and tender with some bite, sporting that intoxicating edge of funk coaxed through seasoned hands at every stage. Pro-tip: Boeufhaus has one of the city’s best bars for actual dining — running almost the length of the restaurant and deep enough to hold all your plates. 1012 N. Western Ave.; boeufhaus.com.
2. Gibson’s Bar & Steakhouse
For an iconic good time: This is a place to experience the highlight reel, served up by unflappable, attentive waitstaff who have no qualms about redirecting you when they deem it necessary. (“Espresso martini? How about I bring you a carajillo?” Correct.) Then again, you should probably begin with a glacially cold martini, on through briny oysters and fat C-shaped shrimp cocktail to a texturally invigorating wedge doorstop. Don’t stop until you reach a hefty, wet-aged Classic Cut (a.k.a. rib eye sourced from the Upper Midwest) with a fluffy piped confection of mashed potatoes alongside. Once, on my wedding anniversary, the server overheard me gushing about Gibson’s garlicky creamed spinach and promptly returned bearing a handwritten recipe. Though I’ve made it many times, I can confirm that it always tastes better at Gibson’s. 1028 N. Rush St.; gibsonssteakhouse.com.
3. El Che Steakhouse & Bar
For the fun-loving, fire-cooking nerd: The Argentinean-inspired El Che Steakhouse & Bar exudes a buoyancy that mimics the licking flames dancing from its huge live-fire grill. By the way, everything that touches said grill is delicious, be it luscious oysters sizzling with chorizo butter, citrusy prawns heady with cumin and coriander or toothsome housemade sausages with sweet and zingy sauces. Dry-aged steaks bear the unmistakable smoke of licking flames, and all come with an invigorating little crock of chimichurri. Those really going for it might consider Che’s pricey in-house reserve steak list, which features exports (a.k.a. whole rib racks) of specialty beef, like grass-fed Niman Ranch rib eyes and porterhouses, aged to peak flavor and tender-tautness. Service is amiably hellbent on you having a grand time. The excellent all-South American wine list might be the city’s most formidable, so ask for a pour of something you’ve never tried. 845 W. Washington Blvd.; elchechicago.com.
4. Bonyeon
For the serious beef connoisseur: Taking its cue from the high-end beef omakases popular in Seoul, South Korea, Chicago’s most unique omakase experience parades premium beef through a multitude of singular preparations — chopped, sliced, marinated, seared and simmered — at an L-shaped tasting counter. The most invigorating bites incorporate traditional Korean preparations, such as marinated seared galbi (Korean-style short ribs) tucked in a lettuce wrap with ssamjang and miso. A few well-placed intermissions jolt the protein-addled senses via fresh and pickled vegetables, fish congee and handmade Japanese soba noodles. It’s a well-paced, nuanced journey unlike any beef experience in our meat-loving town. 651 W. Washington Blvd.; bonyeonchicago.com.
5. Perilla Steakhouse
For those who demand a bite of everything: This downtown steakhouse from the crew behind Perilla in the West Loop injects a little Korean BBQ-style theater into the staid steakhouse category, with staff searing meat to tender, juicy perfection on tabletop grills. An ideal spot for those who prize un poco de todo over giant hulks of beef, Perilla serves modest portions of Midwestern steakhouse and Korean beef cuts alongside Korean banchan, ssam and dipping sauces. This leaves blessedly extra space to load up on superb Korean-American shareables. Think monkey bread with gochujang honey butter, glistening caviar with kimchi-seasoned chips, erupting egg soufflés dusted with Korean chilies and charred broccoli with sesame-whipped tofu and garlicky anchovy and fermented soybean sauce. Heads up, theatergoers: Perilla offers a tight 90-minute, three-course prix-fixe meal for just $65. 224 N. Wabash Ave.; perillachicago.com.
6. Asador Bastian
For the finest-dining steakhouse experience: This ambitious Basque-style kinda-steakhouse has been piling up accolades since its 2023 debut — and not strictly for its chophouse, well, chops. On one occasion inside the low-lit dining room, you might be wowed by the robust complexity of ember-cooked meat from dry-aged dairy cows, revel in the umami of wild octopus a la plancha with briny squid ink fideua (noodles) or savor the buttery, mild essence of turbot grilled over coals and soused in creamy, garlicky pil-pil sauce. Must we choose? No, but we should always start with a fluffy Spanish omelet topped with ribbons of Iberian ham, perhaps washed down with a Spanglish martini (Old Tom gin, manzanilla sherry and vermouth). Like precious few others on this list, Asador Bastian might just transcend its iconic label. 214 W. Erie St.; asadorbastian.com.
7. Chicago Chop House
For a relaxed, old-school steakhouse experience: Housed in a whitewashed, late 19th-century brownstone, Chicago Chop House has served up legendary porterhouse steaks for almost 40 years. It’s a lively and romantic setting, watched over by portraits of some 1,400 sports legends and celebrities, including every Chicago mayor. Up the stairs, the second-floor dining room floats serenity above bustling River North while you lose yourself in that iconic steakhouse experience, ushered by thoughtful and friendly service. Throwback American grandeur rules the menu via sherry-laced shrimp scampi and lobster “escargots.” The centerpiece since the earliest days is the wet-aged porterhouse kissed with char marks and topped with a fried onion ring. But I prefer the nutty funk of the dry-aged, bone-in cowboy (or slightly smaller cowgirl) tomahawk, with its curved rib bone dangling off the plate in all its Flintstone-esque glory. Don’t miss the excellent, also oversized, grilled asparagus side. 60 W. Ontario St.; chicagochophouse.com.
8. Maple & Ash
For a raucous, caviar-dripping good time: This multilevel spot bedecked in candelabras, deep velvet booths and a photobooth (for crying out loud) is undeniably celebratory in a manner befitting of the steakhouse, down to its thumping, clubby soundtrack. It helps that it’s backed up by superb food, be it maple-glazed foie gras or chilled king crab with drawn butter, wood-fired steaks or Galician turbot dressed in zingy beurre blanc. This is a place to live the Vegas fantasy of steakhouses: to go for the exorbitant sky-high roasted seafood tower heaped with clams, lobster and king crab doused in chili oil and garlic butter or to give in to the $225-a-head “I don’t give a f – – k” menu and let the house choose your adventure for you. After all, what happens at Maple & Ash… 214 W. Erie St.; mapleandash.com.
9. Hawksmoor
For easygoing vibes, great cocktails and sustainable beef: There’s a lightheartedness to this London import that’s so often missing from the buttoned-up steakhouse experience. (On a recent trip, our genial bartender remarked that he and a fellow diner had donned almost identical Hawaiian shirts.) Hawksmoor features a standout cocktail list, headlined by the clean, ice-cold namesake gin martini with dry vermouth and a few ingenious drops of lemon oil. Foodwise, British classics collide with Midwestern nostalgia via mini Yorkshire pudding sloppy joes and lush, house-smoked salmon with malty Guinness bread. Steaks are sourced from small farms in the Pacific Northwest and the rural Northeastern coastline, dry aged, then dressed simply with salt and the spitting heat of the charcoal grill. Consider a saucy side of Marmite hollandaise, an umami bomb reminiscent of cheddar on steroids. Pro-tip: I generally skip gussied raw oysters, but I love both options on this menu: Vietnamese oysters cradle minced ginger, chili and savory fried shallots seasoned with a whisper of soy and sesame. Oysters Caruso are dotted with crunchy, peppery Caruso Provisions giardiniera, which bump up the oysters’ briny umami. 500 N. LaSalle Dr.; thehawksmoor.com.
Maggie Hennessy is a Chicago-based food and drink writer whose work has appeared in The New York Times, Bon Appetit and Food & Wine. Follow her on Instagram.