South Branch Tavern Grille

South Branch Tavern has a really great patio by the river and nicely decorated restaurant inside. That being said I probably will only return for happy hour drinks/​appetizers after work rather than lunch. The menu was okay, but my fish tacos were rather bland and you can find a better lunch meal for less money other places in the loop.

Took a long time to get seated and then no waiter showed up. It was crowded so maybe that was the issue. After 10 min I got up and left. Nobody would’ve noticed except I sought out the host on the way out.

Shared the bang bang shrimp and had a few beers. Nice beer menu, drink menu and food selection looked appealing. Shrimp were fantastic. Establishment is a bit pricey so wouldn’t be a regular stop for me but it was good. Staff is friendly and extremely helpful. Fantastic atmosphere.

It’s a wonderful place for happy hour and a the food is very solid. The next time I need a place to meet a client, I will be back!

Usually I have a great experience when I don’t sit at the bar. Got here at 5:00pm, was very busy. As it died down, could hear the bartenders complaining together about everything. My drink was empty and they were all standing around, had to constantly flag them down. Will not return unless I’m sitting outside.

Been back a couple more times (again, location location location) — drinks are not too sweet (Spa, Sinners & Saints, French 100, London Mule) and decently mixed — not Aviary perfect of course but MUCH better than a well G&T at a dive bar. The whole rosemary frond in the London Mule is a nice touch, and the Sinners and Saints is appropriately strong.
Do NOT get the steak sandwich — one of the worst pieces of meat I’ve ever had the displeasure of experiencing. The brie and jam on it is tasty, but the steak was fatty, not charred, chewy and just downright awful. Try something else — the tilapia looked very good.

This place has a great atmosphere with a sleek interior and a nice outdoor section right on the river. It is conveniently located right near the business district which makes it ideal for drinks after work. However they claim to have happy hour deals but I have not ever seen them.

South Branch is your typical business lunch stop. Food is pretty good but nothing to write home about. The atmosphere is nice and they have patio seating right on the river which is perfect on warm days. Food is a little pricey for what you actually get but when work us footing the bill its as good a spot as any.

This is a good spot for work meetings and after work drinks, especially since it’s located in the heart of the loop. I went here for a work lunch with a reservation for 7 people on a Wednesday afternoon, and we were sat promptly.
For appetizers, we got the guacamole, tuna tartare, and bang bang shrimp. The shrimp was on the smaller side but very tasty. The guacamole was different in a good way; I would definitely recommend it. The tuna tartare was meh. Kinda flavorless and the chips were not good.
For lunch, I ordered the Havana Club with fries. The sandwich was very flavorful, and the pork was very tender. The fries were good, but nothing special. With the addition of the appetizers, I was able to take half of the sandwich home and enjoy it as a second meal later.
Overall, service was really great, and I’d recommend it if you’re in the area and looking for a place to grab lunch.

I personally love South Branch. I was taken here by my manager on my first day and left so satisfied. The service was decent, even though it was pretty busy.
I had a bacon and avocado sandwich with sweet potato fries and this was more than enough. I had great leftovers once I got home.
All in all, great experience at South Branch. Just looking forward to it warming up and being able to sit outside and enjoy wonderful dishes :)

Best loop lunch spot. Probably wouldn’t come outside working hours. Good working crowd for lunch and happy hour. *hot guys in suits* cowboy salad is the best salad there.

This place is in my work neighborhood, so I’ve been there several times. It gets crowded and a little too noisy at lunch time, especially if you’re trying to have a work meeting over lunch, but the service is good and the food is even better.
Their salads are really tasty, but today I treated myself to the bacon and Swiss cheeseburger piled high with avocado and served on a pretzel bun with tater tots on the side. If your mouth isn’t watering yet, check your pulse.
Best of all, they have ample outdoor seating that we took advantage of today, which eliminated the noise problem of eating in the restaurant. Whenever I leave work, I always see tons of people enjoying an outdoor happy hour, so that’s on my after-​work bucket list now.
Overall, good lunch spot with above average food that isn’t overly pricey. Try to sit outside.

I’m kind of over this place. The food is expensive, and just not that good. I had the Lobster Mac n’ Cheese last night, and there were mayyyybe two pinkie-​nail size shreds of Lobster meat. Just a big plate of noodles.
The appetizers are spendy for a small amount of relatively mediocre food.
The drinks are seem overly sweet, sweeter than before. And I hate, hate the pint glasses they’re served in. I get that they are easy to shake with a cocktail shaker, but that type of glass is so utilitarian and inelegant.
For the price, I’ve had a lot better.

Nice higher end grille with a great view right on the river, I’ve been here just for drinks, and after I did the ALA stair climb at the presidential towers, we went here afterwards, solid appetizer spread of veggies, pitas, hummus, tater tots, cheese curds and buffalo egg rolls. I got the south branch burger with asparagus, which was very good. And decent craft beer list as well. Granted my stair team foot the bill so I don’t know the full cost of everything: p but it didn’t seem too unreasonable

Delicious salad, friendly staff, generous portions and no tv’s. Perfect for a lunch meeting or lunch with colleagues.

My group of 9 arrived at around 7pm on a Thursday night, and we were promptly seated at a large, heavy table near one of the entrances.
+ Super fast service — server was always prompt and on-​point
+ Decent beer selection at reasonable (for Chicago) prices
— Cocktails are a bit on the pricey side
+ Plenty of menu options — something for everyone
+ Portions are *HUGE*, especially sides. It would be easy to share a single side dish amongst two people.
+ Appetizer portions are extremely generous as well
We ordered:
+ Cheese curds — huge portion of curds, perfectly fried and lightly battered. Very good showing.
= Lobster dip — a generous dish of creamy lobster dip with some tri-​colored chips on either side. Not bad, but not great.
+ Calamari — nicely breaded and fried; breading had nice hint of spice.
— Chopped salad: a massive portion of chopped romaine with generous serving of chicken. Unfortunately, the chicken was really dry, and some of it was crunchy… not great for grilled chicken breast. Feta was flavorful without overpowering.
Other dishes received decent reviews; Lobster Mac and Cheese was the most disappointing according to the table — they used penne pasta, which didn’t allow what little cheese there was to stick to the pasta.
Burgers were well received, as were the wraps. The asparagus sides featured massive tree-​trunk-​sized asparagus, which were unfortunately very tough and woody. Sides of tater tots were the table fave — very crisp and fresh tasting.
Total bill, for 9 people with drinks, apps, and entrees came to just under $ 300 before tip. Servers remained fantastic throughout, despite the place being slammed the entire time.
Note: it gets quite noisy in here, so it’s best for casual conversation and nothing too heavy.

Very busy for lunch. 20 min wait. I recommend making a reservation. A spot opened up at bar. Attentive bartender. Wine glass had old imprint of lipstick, but besides that I ordered the salmon, which was perfectly cooked and moist. Tomato «coulis» sauce could be from a gourmet jar, so it was lacking fresh flavor. Nice pecan crusted on the outside with a generous portion of arugula salad. Overall, a good experience.

Definitely make a reservation. Nice atmosphere. Delicious garlic hummus ‘app’ with herbed pita and veggies. My friends and I had burgers. I had the veggie burger which was actually more grains and beans than veggie. It was tasty! Plus a side of tator tots! Yum. The burger was a little dry and crumbled apart. I had it without the aioli. Felt like we were eating at a European restaurant since we shared a long table, and salt/​pepper shakers, with 4 other people. I would go back. Would be nice to have gotten a booth overlooking the river. Close to the train stations.

I’m sad to say I had an extremely disappointing experience with South Branch two weeks ago, after my winter coat was stolen from the coat rack. After closing out my tab, my friends and I went to grab our coats, and mine was no longer hanging on the rack. The employees told me they had seen a girl walk out with two winter coats — one tied around her waist over the one she was wearing. My keys and work badge were in the pockets of my coat.
The following day, I called to see if my belongings had been returned. South Branch called me back later that day to inform me that the finance of the girl who took my coat had dropped my keys and work badge off, but not my coat, and he would *likely* drop my coat off in a few days.
When I went to pick up my keys and my badge and found that my coat had not yet been returned, I asked that management contact the person who had dropped my keys and badge off, and they told me that they had not taken down any contact information for him, which is extremely disappointing. I, and a number of my colleagues, work right across the street and have loved grabbing drinks at South Branch after work. Unfortunately, after this experience, I will not be returning. I really wish the situation had been handled differently.

they only thing going for this place is its location which is probably why you they have such a snotty attitude, The food is marginal at best, which makes you wonder why they make you wait so long to get a table. Try Rivers in the CME building across the street, they typically seat you within 5 minutes and food is great, sans the attitude!

Had a quick lunch here and I had the buffalo chicken wrap, which was too much of everything for me, too much sauce, too much cheese and things were falling apart. I guess I am not a big fan of their wraps, but the place is nice so I will give 3 stars.

South Branch has potential to be one of the few great spots in the Loop. However, they rest on their location and skimp entirely on service. I ordered a salad and it took half an hour to prepare, then requested a box since I had to leave (due to not having time to eat) and that took another 15 minutes. I left having had a couple sips of beer and nothing else.

We stopped over here with a decent sized group and had a very enjoyable time. They stuck us in the private room, which was sweet, and gave us our own waitress (who did a great job). We had drinks (wine, beer, cocktails, shots…) and even some apps (Bang Bang Shrimp, Buffalo Rolls, Cheese Curds, and Baked Spinach Dip) and they were all AMAZING. If I had to pick my two favorites I’d go w/​the shrimp and the rolls… both were out of this world!
It’s a good spot that wasn’t too over-​crowded while we were there. Definitely a nicer place at which you might feel underdressed in just jeans and a t-​shirt.
It’s a good spot, we’ll be back!

We had an event here in the private room, after cocktails on the patio. The patio is beautiful and overlooks the river. Very crowded on this night with people enjoying the great weather. Quick service and the server was able to transfer our drink tab to the private room bill.
The private room was very nice — comfy chairs, a tv if needed, one wall was all glass so we didn’t feel trapped. Service was great. We were able to prop the glass door open and the restaurant quieted down fairly early (9pm on a Wednesday).
Food was good and not overly fancy.

I opted to sit here with a cocktail while waiting to board a train rather than sitting down in Union Station. Good move on the outdoor seating along the river. Bad move for the food and drink.
I ordered a French 100, one of their featured cocktails (and much like a French 75), but the champagne that came in it was flat. Don’t feature a cocktail on your list if you can’t keep the ingredients for them fresh! I ordered cheese curds to soak up the cocktail, but they tasted like they were fried in old oil. Tasted like other people’s stale dinners. I couldn’t eat more than a few, and I can *always* otherwise eat fried cheese.
I mean, it was still kind of better than sitting down in the train station. But if you’ve been down there, you know that’s not saying much.

The five stars are based on one thing — fried cheese curds, everything else is immaterial.
PS — I had never eaten cheese curds ever before this glorious evening happened to me, but I am going to dedicate the rest of my life towards finding cheese curds and eating them. Also, cheese curds should get their own emoji.

For a Loop haunt and if looking for a venue with ambiance and location, this place is it. For outside dining or dining at a booth with a window, the view of the Chicago River is spectacular. Service is nonchalant, but not in a bad way. You get what you need, the servers stop by, just don’t expect great service. It’s just not the place for it…
The Parmesan crusted talapia with spinach and garlic mashed potatoes is a delicious entrée well worth the $ 15. The cobb salad, while my friend thought it was very good, wasn’t anything special. Everything is plated well and is tempting. If you don’t know what to order, I suppose looking at what is showing up at other tables is helpful, as I sincerely doubt the staff is going to give out any opinions.

Great place for a see and be seen lunch during the business day. There were five of us on this day, the food was great. My turkey burger was top notch, and the tater tots were the perfect complement.
My only complaint would be the slow service. You know people have a somewhat limited lunch hour, waiting 30 minutes for food puts pressure on that time limit.
That said, I’d come back and try it again. Great view of the river, the food was really good, and the bar looks smashing.

The food here is reliably good and the service is always friendly. I have been here for lunch about 50 times. The service is always friendly and non-​judgmental, if, hypothetically, one drinks a few beers at lunch on a Monday.
I ordered the fish tacos, which are always good. My friend said that she liked the buffalo chicken wrap.
I also recommend the chicken tortilla soup.

My new favorite downtown bar! Drinks & cocktails — prompt & perfect, service — excellent & friendly, food — flavorful & fun, plus outdoor seating, what’s not to love?
It’s really a credit to Tim, the manager. His attention to detail will keep this place full every day of the week.
The first time we came, we were only 2 people expanding to 4, and our food order was wrong, but we weren’t sure. Tim came with the right item, and took care of the item in error.
Needless to say, we came back with 16 people on a Monday, taking care of the staff as well as they took care of us.
I think this is the start of a wonderful after work involving Happy Hour relationship…

After moving to an office downtown, this has been my go-​to happy hour and lunch spot. They have in my opinion, the BEST happy hour for anyone in the loop. This is a place to see and be seen. It gets very packed at Friday at 5pm, but if you don’t mind standing up with your group by the bar, it can be a lot of fun to be in that atmosphere. They have quite a few beers on tap and they make a great Moscow Mule. There are a total of 3 bars at this restaurant. One at the front inside, back inside, and one outside. The appetizers are very tasty and usually don’t take too long to come out once you put the order in. I’ve had the calamari and the sliders, both were fantastic.
Also they have an amazing outside section right by the river. The location here is gold. My friend and I have came here for lunch a couple of times sitting outside on a nice day enjoying the boats going by. The food is actually pretty great too, I’m a big fan of the burgers and the chicken avocado wrap. Also they have SWEET POTATO FRIES, that gives them +1 star in my book. Keep doing what you’re doing South Branch.

Nice place to hangout, good food & drinks, but Service is not that great.
I have been here once when I was in downtown and flying back to Minneapolis. It is pretty good place to sit out, watch the people going towards the union station, office goers enjoying their evening. I mean this place is full of energy and never a dull moment. And when the weather is nice — the outdoor bar is really awesome.
First — it is expensive — $ 25 for a drink and a burger. I had a veggie burger — it was pretty good and it was really filling.
Service — Not so great. Most of the waiters have a cold look as if they are asking — hey why are you here ! Working in downtown with that kind of business and decent customers, I would have expected them to be full of energy.

TL;DR This is one of those places where you go for the location, view and décor, not for the actual food or drinks. Boom, done.
I’ve been several times, I’m sure I’ll go several more. If you’re looking for a lovely place to sit outside with a date or a few co-​workers, by all means, do it. Enjoy the river, pay 15 for your drink, and gape at the beautiful people and city.
However, the food is just… eh. Last time I went, I had the Mahi-​Mahi sandwich with tater tots and an iced tea. The iced tea, good — not artificial, not weak. The tots, also good, crunchy and, well, totty. The sandwich? Small, a bit dry, the blackening flavor wasn’t really working, and the bread left a lot to be desired — dry, bland, meh.
That having been said, it was for a baby shower, and we got a lovely room off the wine cellar and it was just perfect for 20+ of us. Again, go for the location… Service was a bit slow, but it was 20+ people and it was a gorgeous day, so they were swamped. Plus, since we had so many, it allowed time to talk.

great chopped salad. Very busy, no lunch reservations for small groups. Convenient location– service was good.