Outdoors quiet but indoors noisy. Romantic and cosy. Good value, excellent food, authentic. Great deserts.
Delia
We had eaten at Chez Joel many times and it was formerly a nice restaurant with good food and service. Last evening the service was rude, inattentive, and ineffective. The food was inedible and was not served based on the order placed. The fish special was tough in the middle and unable to be eaten. The rack of lamb was ordered with potato and Parisian vegetables and was served by a rude male buser with the wrong vegetables. The buser then insulted me when I pointed out that the vegetable order was incorrectly served. He claimed to be the owner's nephew which apparently made him think it was acceptable to tell us that he knew better what we ordered than we did. When I asked to speak to a manager he said the manager was his uncle and was not in the restaurant. We just wanted the food we ordered to be served. He walked off and left us with the wrong food. Some time later another woman came by after our original server never came to check on us, and she claimed to be the floor manager. We explained what had happened, she apologized, and said she would remove the inedible fish entree from the bill. My plate was taken away with the inedible fish as well as my wine glass and my nearly empty water glass remained where no one offered me anything further to drink. The potato ordered with the rack of lamb was brought in a side dish several minutes after the lamb was served. I should mention the original server gleefully told us when we both asked to have a vegetable that was available on the menu that evening substituted with our entrees that there would be an additional fee for the substitution. In all of our prior visits to Chez Joel this was never a problem or an additional fee. We declined to order dessert. The floor manager then came back by to say she had taken care of the check since the experience was so poor and unacceptable. We Appreciated that but such a poor experience is unforgettable.
Mary Anne
There's no better place to be on a lovely summer evening than outdoors at Chez Joel. David, our server, was terrific and attentive. Frog legs, endive salad, filet and butternut squash ravioli were all wonderful. The special blueberry tart was heavenly. Always a pleasure.
Dennis
Excellent experience as usual. 3 of us had steaks and everyone was highly satisfied. One had chicken which was prepared with tasty ingredients to make it special. No attitude, everyone is geared to giving you a good experience. The outdoor patio is a delight on any night, it just gets more beautiful as the evening goes on. We love this place.
Robert
Delightful experience. Nice assortment of choices. Loved the seasonal softshell crab entree and the grilled octopus appetizer. My wife enjoyed the linguine with seafood. Our waitress Joanna was a enthusiastic and knowledgeable and added greatly to our experience.Bob D
Donovan
Great overall- love the spot. Our server seems a little out of it though. For a 5 year anniversary celebration, would've expected a little more than we got.
Debbi
Such a charming restaurant Very welcoming Our waitress Giovanna was outstanding I would come back to Chicago just to come here for dinner
Jackie
Amazing ratatouille and completely a new take on a familiar dish. Service was spotty and felt like I needed to flag the server down constantly.
Jill
A gem of a restaurant with fabulous food, service, and ambiance. First time dining on the patio and it was a rare treat!
Shawna
What an enjoyable experience!! The patio was divine, like an oasis in the city. Service was excellent and food couldn't be better!
lovely postgame meal on a friday night. Nancy was amazing and the food delicious. perfectly cooked. will be back
Lisa
Go there quite often, but this was the first time we tried the Burrata salad. A unique and wonderful preparation. As usual, everything else was great.
Margaret
Our Go To neighborhood spot on Taylor Street - a touch of France amidst the Italian spots. Always spot on!
Randall
The Bouillabaisse is excellent as well as the butternut squash ravioli. Our waiter, Omar, was great.
Michelle
Wow this was an amazing dining experience. José was our server but the service is really a team effort. The service was my personal favorite: we had full water glasses and always had what we needed without anyone hovering. The food was incredible - classic French food cooked perfectly. I think I liked the house salad better than my entree even though my entree (salmon) was delicious. The house salad was lightly dressed and came with a goat cheese crouton. Dessert and coffee were also delicious. Highly recommend.
Outdoors quiet but indoors noisy. Romantic and cosy. Good value, excellent food, authentic. Great deserts.
We had eaten at Chez Joel many times and it was formerly a nice restaurant with good food and service. Last evening the service was rude, inattentive, and ineffective. The food was inedible and was not served based on the order placed. The fish special was tough in the middle and unable to be eaten. The rack of lamb was ordered with potato and Parisian vegetables and was served by a rude male buser with the wrong vegetables. The buser then insulted me when I pointed out that the vegetable order was incorrectly served. He claimed to be the owner's nephew which apparently made him think it was acceptable to tell us that he knew better what we ordered than we did. When I asked to speak to a manager he said the manager was his uncle and was not in the restaurant. We just wanted the food we ordered to be served. He walked off and left us with the wrong food. Some time later another woman came by after our original server never came to check on us, and she claimed to be the floor manager. We explained what had happened, she apologized, and said she would remove the inedible fish entree from the bill. My plate was taken away with the inedible fish as well as my wine glass and my nearly empty water glass remained where no one offered me anything further to drink. The potato ordered with the rack of lamb was brought in a side dish several minutes after the lamb was served. I should mention the original server gleefully told us when we both asked to have a vegetable that was available on the menu that evening substituted with our entrees that there would be an additional fee for the substitution. In all of our prior visits to Chez Joel this was never a problem or an additional fee. We declined to order dessert. The floor manager then came back by to say she had taken care of the check since the experience was so poor and unacceptable. We Appreciated that but such a poor experience is unforgettable.
There's no better place to be on a lovely summer evening than outdoors at Chez Joel. David, our server, was terrific and attentive. Frog legs, endive salad, filet and butternut squash ravioli were all wonderful. The special blueberry tart was heavenly. Always a pleasure.
Excellent experience as usual. 3 of us had steaks and everyone was highly satisfied. One had chicken which was prepared with tasty ingredients to make it special. No attitude, everyone is geared to giving you a good experience. The outdoor patio is a delight on any night, it just gets more beautiful as the evening goes on. We love this place.
Delightful experience. Nice assortment of choices. Loved the seasonal softshell crab entree and the grilled octopus appetizer. My wife enjoyed the linguine with seafood. Our waitress Joanna was a enthusiastic and knowledgeable and added greatly to our experience.Bob D
Great overall- love the spot. Our server seems a little out of it though. For a 5 year anniversary celebration, would've expected a little more than we got.
Such a charming restaurant Very welcoming Our waitress Giovanna was outstanding I would come back to Chicago just to come here for dinner
Amazing ratatouille and completely a new take on a familiar dish. Service was spotty and felt like I needed to flag the server down constantly.
A gem of a restaurant with fabulous food, service, and ambiance. First time dining on the patio and it was a rare treat!
What an enjoyable experience!! The patio was divine, like an oasis in the city. Service was excellent and food couldn't be better!
Restaurantji Recommends
lovely postgame meal on a friday night. Nancy was amazing and the food delicious. perfectly cooked. will be back
Go there quite often, but this was the first time we tried the Burrata salad. A unique and wonderful preparation. As usual, everything else was great.
Our Go To neighborhood spot on Taylor Street - a touch of France amidst the Italian spots. Always spot on!
The Bouillabaisse is excellent as well as the butternut squash ravioli. Our waiter, Omar, was great.
Wow this was an amazing dining experience. José was our server but the service is really a team effort. The service was my personal favorite: we had full water glasses and always had what we needed without anyone hovering. The food was incredible - classic French food cooked perfectly. I think I liked the house salad better than my entree even though my entree (salmon) was delicious. The house salad was lightly dressed and came with a goat cheese crouton. Dessert and coffee were also delicious. Highly recommend.
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