North Pond

Every bite of this food was a delight. This is more than a meal this is a true dining experience. The restaurant is gorgeous, walking through the park added to the evening. A perfect night.

I have been wanting to try North Pond for years and was excited to try this past weekend.
First of all, a little confusing and slippery to get to, but I will put that in the «charm» column. Second, the service was impeccable and rivals any restaurant — including moving our table to be closer to the fireplace without us really asking (great anticipation).
Now, the food… in a nutshell, I would say this has even made it more clear the difference between 5 star and ¾ star restaurants. We had the tasting menu, and while nothing particularly poor, nothing particularly noteworthy. The best tasting was the «chef’s complement» which was a sunchoke hummus. Those flavors were deep and complex and really really delicious. Everything else was very pretty but a little contrived. The pineapple dessert was an array of ingredients not necessarily cohesive with the cocoa nib sorbet saving the day on this course.
I would mostly say this was good for the money (not over priced) but I feel misses the mark in terms of flavor overall.

Went here for the New Years Eve Tasting Menu, and the meal was outstanding. Chef Sherman created an incredible menu incorporating varying tastes and textures in fun and creative ways. One of my favorite courses was the first course which was an Egg Nog Pâté Mousse with a Coffee Waffle Cone, it was so imaginative and evrything complemented nicely.

It’s a beautiful restaurant situated on its namesake pond in Lincoln Park. The seasonal food offerings are delicious, and the service was outstanding. With its intimate setting and romantic ambience, it’s also a great place to celebrate a momentous occasion; my fiancée and I celebrated our engagement here.
Overall, we enjoyed the seasonal menu items, including the foie gras first course. My fiancée’s fish was cooked well, though we both enjoyed the grassfed beef medallions more. The desert plate with personalized message was a nice touch to round out our evening. We received beet seeds with our check, which was a clever signature of the restaurant’s farm-​to-​table focus. Our server was very warm and welcoming. She explained the menu (which included a congratulatory message) well and was attentive while still providing us enough space to enjoy the meal and the occasion.
The restaurant may be a little hard to find, as it’s set in the park slightly off the road. We dined on a Sunday evening, and I was able to find street parking off of N. Cannon Drive. Do check the signs though before heading to the restaurant to make sure you’re parked in an appropriate zone. Once parked, you’ll need to take a path toward the north end of the pond to get to the restaurant.
I’m sure the luster of the occasion made our dining experience particularly enjoyable, but North Pond still impressed!

Time for this place to get a new lift and a new chef. We were there last night for their 7 courses new years eve dinner.
Was very interesting that in one of the chef’s video on YouTube he says that he likes to keep his food real and don’t like the product to be hidden under sauces or mountain or pile of some sort. Guess what. the food was exactly the opposite of what he pledged against. All dishes was hidden or bury under way too much tasteless sauce. thank god we kept our menu with us to be able to find out what we were eating.
Can’t believe this place got a michelin star. I guess the chef should leave his kitchen more often to dine out in other michelin rated restaurant and see what they offer specially in NY. Food was tasteless, didn’t know what we were eating. Super dry dover sole (over steamed) everything was all over the place except the friendly service.
I also forgot to mention that they didn’t even plow the path to get there correctly. My wife had high heal shoes and fell on the ice.
It was a «back to the 80’s «experience .poorly managed place.

An elegant and romantic restaurant set next to the pond with culinary delights for the senses. We had a table next to the cozy fireplace. Our waiter brought the chef’s complimentary and very tasty anise bouche to start. Our appetizers of seared foie gras and pan browned bay scallops with smoked caviar were fantastic. The seared foie gras was the best that I’ve had outside of France. The charcuterie salad requires sharing by two persons. For main courses, we had lamb and snapper which were both outstanding. The snapper skin was very crispy and perfectly cooked inside. It was accompanied by delicious wild rice raisin roulade, roasted sweet carrots, chorizo, etc. Lamb had a light spicy seasoning which worked well with merguez sausage, maple cranberries, broccoli, sage and squash-​foie mousse. We stuffed ourselves to finish both main courses with no room leftover in our stomachs for dessert. Our waiter was extremely attentive throughout the 2 hour dinner and brought a small complimentary dessert for tasting. Service was 5 stars.

My second to last Chicago Michelin starred restaurant to check out and I’m glad I finally made it here. However, despite a wonderfully enjoyable meal, this isn’t a Michelin caliber place to me.
Very cool location in the middle of the park, but when its cold its not a fun place to access or catch a cab home from.
I wasn’t a fan of the confirmation call as they made a very big deal of being on time, and if I’m not closing the kitchen since I was the last reservation of the night. From my point of you view, if you want to close the kitchen set earlier reservations, don’t bother me about my experience.
Upon arriving they quickly checked our coats and sat us. Then we waited almost 10 minutes with only a drink menu before a server came. It’s really hard to plan what I want to drink without seeing the food menu to determine what I want to eat or if you are doing the tasting menu. So this is a fail as you’re 20 minutes before anything gets ordered.
When the server finally got there she was super friendly but I had a few major problems. First of all, she told us that the 5 course tasting menu takes 2 – 3 hours. At 9 o’clock, I’m guessing that was a cheeky way to discourage people from doing it. How in the world could 5 courses take 3 hours? Secondly, being it my first time there I really wanted some solid suggestions. She refused to do so either from training or ignorance, but she didn’t provide any guidance at all as to what to eat. All she would tell us was, what new items were, as if that somehow has guidance to anything. She might as well said, «here are the popular items», another pointless saying, who cares what the masses eat, I want the good stuff. Bottom line, have an opinion please. The seasonal tasting menu looked rather boring and not wanting to wait 3 hours, we opted for the regular menu.
After ordering things got exponentially better as the food came fast and was excellent.
I started off the foie gras, which was great, as most foie is. They gave the biggest piece I’ve seen outside of Paris for a very reasonable $ 18. I didn’t get much ginger at all, but the bourbon apple sauce paired perfectly with the foie. My wife started with the squash and crab, this was a boring miss.
For my second course I got the charcuterie. Another great value for the amount of food for $ 20, and again it was one of the better charcuterie I’ve had. The jowl pastrami was killer, huge portion size, this dish is meant to be shared. My wife got the beat salad, the pumpernickle crumble was a revelation. Awesome dish.
For my main I had the pheasant. It was pretty good but overall didn’t excite to much as it was very straightforward. My wife’s grassfed beef stood out, especially combined with the spaetzle.
We skipped desert, as nothing stood out to me.
Rocky start, soso service, but great simple food with big portions. I’d come back to North Pond on a regular basis, but the food just isn’t elevated to the top to me, but more approachable hearty french food.

To start I must admit that the place is a bit hard to find especially during night. You can‘t really park at the restaurant but you can easily find the spot either on N Stockton Dr or N Cannon Dr. The place has an interesting décor for the place with an old history that goes back to 1900‘s when it was used as a skating shelter. The restaurant welcomed us with candles placed at the front giving it a great ambience. The place does not have many sittings so reservations are highly recommended and they fill up way ahead in advance. We started with drink which were done superbly as they use small batch alcohols for their drinks. I had Old Fashioned and my wife took Journeyman Rum-​they add lightly burned rosemary sprig on the end which gives it nice aromatic burst. It was my wife birthday so they gave us menus with her name on it which was a very surprising gift :) and we could keep it. We started with bottle of white wine as an accompaniment to our food, the list is short and prices are a bit on the high side and starts from about $ 52 and up for whites. You have to start with Foie Gras –it is delicious but for me a little bit too many sweet elements, and my wife said it was her best ever. Salads were very fresh and Chef Bruce Sherman inspect every dish before it hits the floor so it is perfectly decorated and has a balance when it comes to taste. We ordered pheasant and lamb for main dishes and it was harmony of taste as both were very delicious. Nice thing about this restaurant is you can see all the stations in the kitchen and observe how your food is being made. we will definitely visit the place in summer time when they take big windows down so you can enjoy North Pond view.

Hard to find, on a dark and rainy night, this place is a gem of architecture, location and outstanding food.
Our party of 4 spent nearly 3 hours eating wonderful seasonal selections, including a charcuterie board that could have been an entrée!
And ‘spent’ is the operative word here. Get ready to $$$pend as you take advantage of everything they have to offer. Great wine selection, a 4-​course prix fixe menu for the table (everyone must participate) the bartender’s cocktail configurations you’ve never heard of…
Make sure you go with friends who enjoy food as much as you do, and it will be a doubly great experience.

I went here today for a lunch/​brunch celebrate my birthday! the place, the location and the ambience are amazing! it is very romantic and peaceful!!!
When it comes to food, the playing is just amazing. it is colorful, it just looks beautiful… I think the dishes I had are among the most beautiful ever. seriously!!!
Now, the flavor of all the dishes were very middle eastern oriented. They were very fruity! You may like this or not. For my personal taste and for my boyfriend’s tastes, they were a little overwhelming… The flavor of the fruit was overpowering the other flavors. But I still think that this is a very personal taste. Also, we were not expecting that that of cuisine. We were expecting a more standard modern american cuisine.
But I still think it is very interesting to try!
The price/​quality/​value was very god for brunch, which is a 3 course meal for 34 $. An amazing value!
I recommend this place if you are looking for an amazing location, great-​looking food and more middle eastern oriented flavors.

Ok, the great, the good and they meh…
First the great. The nicest people and best service one could hope for on a crappy weather Saturday night. We had a traffic incident and they held out table while we delt with the business. When we sat down, they gave us glasses of sparkling wine to sooth the nerves. All through dinner, the service was great, and much better than my mood.
Second, the food. It was good. Not great, but good. We each had first courses, a foie gras, very good, a pork belly, pretty good, and scallops I think, which was interesting. One salad to share and that was a fresh plate of nothingness. On to the entrees. Two beef tenderloin with a beef cheek. Totally nothing special. My snapper was good, but I needed to peel the skin off, too tough a texture. So food was pretty, good, but not living up to the hype.
Lastly, the meh. I personally thing the dessert offering is too contrived and too lacking in bliss. It is art on the plate, yes, but it was not delicious and made no sense.
I think they need to deal better with the parking, directions, and posting off of Cannon.
Thank you to the staff again.

Update: We retrieved the phone message from the Hostess at North Pond. She phoned and just said this is North Pond calling, and hung up the phone. No mention of the kitchen closing, she knew if we didn’t answer we were on our way. The management of the restaurant is horrible.
To the person who thought my original review was funny, you are sick.

Wow. Came here for an early dinner the other evening, really great place. The food was incredible, everything we ordered was a 10. All of the dishes were pieced together wonderfully-​exquisite balance of taste and texture. Most of the entrees are meat/​seafood-​centric, me and my date are veggie, and our server made a great substitution suggestion that came out awesomely. Was surprised the food was so moderately priced for the freshness and presentation.
Really though, the only thing nicer than the food and service was the location and ambiance. The room is comfortable, not too crowded. The music was understated and relaxing. The scenery is beautiful– feels like youre in the middle of Central park; show up a little before sunset and watch the lights of the city come alive. Great experience

Good food and excellent service. We came with a group of 4 and tried about 10 different dishes and liked them all. None of them stood out as particularly noteworthy above the others for me, but it was all very good. The setting is tranquil and pleasant too, sitting right on the eponymous north pond in Lincoln Park.
Parking can be tough, easiest thing is to find their valet guy at the T-​intersection corner of Lakeview and Deming. If you don’t see him, just pull off to the side of the road in the middle of that intersection and he’ll emerge from somewhere and find you hopefully.

Beautiful food and location.

Absolutely delightful!
My fiancé and I just celebrated our recent engagement here and we were over-​the-​moon impressed with service, staff, cuisine, and overall ambience!
We came here for Sunday brunch, which proved to be a pleasant balance of upscale dining and warm atmosphere. Staff were attentive and quick!
I had the lamb sausage, Arctic char, and panna cotta. He enjoyed the crab-​tomato app, pork loin, and almond cake. Every bite was creative, smart, and visually gorgeous. They also helped us celebrate our engagement with some delicious mimosas.
I thought the price for brunch ($ 34 per person) was quite reasonable, given the reputation and caliber of this restaurant. We will definitely be back, and hopefully soon to celebrate many more milestones.
Cheers!

Just the best experience!
We went for Sunday Brunch for my nieces 21^st Birthday. Everything was perfect and made special. The tasting menu couldn’t have been better — great choices for each of us.
Service was well paced and each course was great.
Only one negative: one of the worst bloody Mary’s I’ve ever had. Thin and lacking any flavor.

Went here to celebrate with family. First of all, best Valet Parker in Chicago. He seemed to be working alone but was so quick and with it. It’s a crowded corner on a busy summer weekend but he directs traffic, parks cars and smiles simultaneously.
The setting is gorgeous on a summer evening. Despite being in the main dining room without a view, the walk up to the restaurant and the Art Nouveau décor make up for it. Great place for family photos with the pond and skyline in the background. Also, the tables are nicely spaced and the noise level was conversation friendly.
We ordered the special cocktails. We asked our server which drink was not too sweet. The lemony one we chose was way overly sweet. The other flavors were not discernible. Also, drink service was really slow. 20 minutes for 3 cocktails and a soda? And forgetting the soda? Had to ask twice where it was.
The food was really good. The chef must be on his middle eastern kick with the use of feta, apricots, melon, pistachios. As a former resident of Israel, I loved it. Everyone loved the food, even our picky 18 year old. My yellowtail was outstanding. The sweet spicy mix on the melon lettuce tabbouleh was delicious.
Our server was meh. She answered questions perfunctorily and was rarely seen. The hostess was much more attentive and welcoming, bringing an amuse bouche and truffles and checking up on us during the meal.
Back to the Valet who handled a big group with several cars and us with alacrity. My cousin said he must have his PhD.
Definitely a special place and a great place to bring out of town guests. Wear comfy shoes and you can stroll through the park after dinner. Shows off the best of Chicago.

Probably one of my best dining experiences ever. My partner took me for a special treat. The whole ambiance was very vintage romantic. The place is well designed with gorgeous wood trim all over. It’s nice and dark giving it that mellow romantic mood. There’s another «sun room» that gives off more of a brunch vibe. At first they sat us in that room, and we asked to be moved to the other side where it seemed more romantic with the dim lighting. They did so without any hesitation. It looks as if they re-​renovated an old out house — you know the one’s you see a long the drive/​beach. Pretty cool, I think I overheard another waiter explaining that.
Our server was nice and attentive. The menu was kind of small and I was told the portions are small sized so I decided to order a soup (shrimp, potato) which was really good. I think I might have ate a flower, but it was a bit spicy so I had to keep reaching for that delicious bread! Yum! Then I ordered a egg/​lobster salad with semi-​boiled egg with bacon bits. It was very delicious. All in all, everything filled me up. The portion sizes were perfect. I forgot to mention I ordered a glass of pinot grigio too.
For dessert, we ordered strawberry/​fennel which was a flourless chocolate cake with pecans. I don’t like fennel so we asked if we could go without it. The waiter seemed hesitant at first to not disappoint the chef, but in the end they made the accommodation for us. :-) It was well worth it, at least I enjoyed every bit of it. Although, I think they snuck one piece in there!
Bonus was we were served two complimentary items: one was a sample main dish (forgot what it was) and the other was a delicious chocolate dessert.
The thing that made this place stand a part from other restaurants was definitely the exceptional service. What looked like the manager would come around to ask us if everything was okay and if we needed anything along with our waiter doing the same, but it wasn’t overbearing either.
Lastly, the view of the Lincoln Park pond was beautiful. Although, in the romantic room you couldn’t see it, but we stopped by afterwards and took a romantic walk in the park. This is a little hidden gem located near a LP lagoon! Perfect especially for a special occasion.
It is on the expensive side, but like I said the price is right for a special occasion.

O.M.G. I want to rewind to Sunday morning and eat North Pond’s brunch all over again. My husband and I went to celebrate our 1^st wedding anniversary and it could not have been a better experience. Among the «nicer» Sunday brunch options in Chicago, we chose North Pond due to its location and view as well as the chef’s/restaurant’s wonderful reputation.
We were seated at a table in the very airy and bright room facing the actual pond. Definitely make a request for a table in there, if you can. Our server brought over two glasses of sparkling rose (which my husband sneakily called ahead to request) as well as custom menus printed with our names and anniversary greeting. The menu is not for your average pancake and eggs brunch. It’s a 3 course ordeal (for $ 34) with 4 different and delicious-​sounding options in each section. We had:
An amuse-​bouche of coffee cake
Egg and asparagus – what a great starter! Flavorful, but not heavy so you don’t fill up before your main. I particularly liked the pork-​mushroom gallette.
Shrimp and rice – I had a bite of my husband’s starter and was really impressed. I’m iffy on shrimp, but this was so well cooked.
Arctic char – aside from seafood restaurants on a coast, this was my favorite seafood entrée to date. The fish was cooked perfectly, didn’t have a «fishy» aftertaste, and the accompanying sauce really complemented it.
Beef – again, only had a bite to taste, but the meat was very tender and the radish pickle a nice flavor addition.
Banana pecan – mini churros and chai ice cream… need I say more? This was actually not my favorite of the 2 desserts we chose, but that’s because I am not big on sweets. If you are a regular dessert eater, you will love this.
Macadamia passion fruit – what I wish I had ordered for myself! Loved everything about the flavors, could have done without the toasted marshmallow, but, again, that’s just personal sweetness preference.
I also ordered the vodka brunch cocktail. If you don’t like ginger, you’ll probably hate it. I really liked it and it is deceivingly strong – the ginger and kumquat flavors really mask the vodka in there!
Presentation of the dishes was nicely done, the staff were all extremely friendly, and I think the price is a bargain for the quality and amount of food you are getting. We easily found free parking on Cannon Dr at 11:30 on a Sunday (though if you go during warmer months, it could be a bit harder). Décor is a little old school, but what you might expect. The building has a neat history (it was a warming shelter for ice skaters in the early 1900s), which we learned when we were given an envelope with a copy of our personalized menu as well as a sheet all about the restaurant and space.
I don’t see North Pond becoming anyone’s regular brunch spot, but it is a great option for special occasions or if you want to take your out of town guests somewhere nice. Looking forward to coming back and trying out their dinner menu!

loved the setting and prix fixe sunday brunch