We had a wonderful dinner here. Our server was very attentive and made some excellent suggestions for our meal. The food was well worth the price, we were happy with every dish we ordered. The mashed potatoes were a must-have; cooked with bone marrow, the dish was so rich and buttery. The drinks were great too! We'll definitely be eating here again.
Durrell
Ok food but had to get my steak sent back twice because it was under cook but overall all was ok
Israel-Nelson
This was a great restaurant. I think if we came on any other day than Valentines day, my experiences would be much more different. My partner & I had a reservation for 7pm. We showed up promptly and were asked to sit at the bar so our table could be prepped. No big deal. We were there for about 10 minutes. Around 7:20/7:25, we were sat at our table and as soon as our server came, we were ready to order as we did our research before hand due to having a show to catch at 10pm. Our order was placed by 7:30- a Cesar salad, 2 poterhouse steaks, lobster mac & cheese and the asparagus. This is a typical meal we order at other steakhouses so we were fully prepared to be there for a while. Our order did not get to our table until 9:15. The ceaser salad arrived at 9pm. After I had to ask our server twice for it. Sure, maybe the steaks took some time and the kitchen was backed up but 2 hours for the salad as well? Again, as much as I wanted to be a bit upset, I worked in a restaurant in college so I would never be rude to kitchen staff nor wait staff, our server kept apologizing despite me giving him reassurance it was not his fault. Our order arrived at 9:15, we had to be out by 9:45 so my partner and I just ate as fast as we could. My partner is a huge, HUGE fan of Lobster Mac & cheese as she has tried several from many cities and loves to compare- we scoured our bowl for a single piece of lobster and none could be found. I gestured our server over and asked if the lobster was blended into the cheese, or served whole? Any explanation as to why there would be not a single piece of lobster in a dish that lobster was the attraction. Our server looked as well and did agree that there was none- apologized again and offered to take it off our bill. Again I told him it was not his fault and told him to leave it on the bill for which he insisted. Very nice server, very nice staff but man 2.5 hours to get a salad and steaks? I don't think i've waited that long for a meal in a while.
Brenna
We had an incredible Valentine's dinner here. The food was excellent, although extremely pricey. We did wait over an hour for our entrées and our server asked if we want a dessert before we ever got our meal, but he was kind, and the rest of the staff was also extremely sweet. And they were extremely busy. It's wonderful to have a good steakhouse in the North Center and Lincoln Square neighborhood! I hope they stay around a long time!
Ismael
If we ever go back it won't be on any type of holiday. Giving them the benefit of the doubt though. Newer restaurant; not as experienced staff; mom and pop feel to it (good and bad). Go and try it out when you're tired of dealing with downtown.
Wallace James
I must say that the food was outstanding and our server Vlad as well. However, the restaurant raised it's prices exponentially on Valentine's Day, for a neighborhood restaurant the prices were already high. To me for a business to do a bait and switch was absolutely abysmal. For diners who are considering going I would warn you before you go.
Danielle
The food here rivals any downtown steakhouse and is better than most! The service was also impeccable - everyone from the hostess to the bread service server was friendly and attentive. We had cocktails, salads, filets and some sides and every item was top notch. It's a great addition to the neighborhood and perfect option for amazing food or celebrating a special occasion. Cannot recommend enough!
Trinda
This little steak house in Lincoln Square serves delicious cocktails, outstanding steaks and amazing sides. Loved the cocktails! Loved the complimentary bread service. Loved the wait staff- the service was exemplary and highly professional! The dining space is quite large and they could use some hanging pendant lights and even carpet runners to bring in a cozier vibe. A fireplace would work well here and maybe someday they could have live music, the dining area is large enough! We enjoyed visiting an authentic steak house in the neighborhood but would suggest the restaurant consider adding some items on the menu that would appeal to families like sides of mac & cheese or pasta. Additionally, they could get more regular and repeat business if they offered some menu steak items in a medium price range. A hamburger on the menu would be great too. For excellent food and service, easy parking in a neighborhood - highly recommend.
Liz
Don't waste your time or money. Our steaks were served cold, side dishes mediocre. Much better options in Chicago if you're looking for a good steakhouse.
Opentable Diner
Exceptional food and service (Vlad) and on a holiday (NewYear's Eve). I usually hate eating out on a holiday because no matter the restaurant service and food usually suffer. Not so at North Center Prime! The food was excellent, hot, well seasoned and the service far surpassed most restaurants. Vlad was courteous, friendly, and attentive to every need. It was the first time at this restaurant but it won't be the last.
This is a new restaurant and they have some kinks to work out. Everyone worked very hard to please us and the owner came by several times to check on us. He truly wanted our opinions and was happy and grateful for our thoughts. I wish him well.
Laurie
Food was excellent. Menu was a bit boring - very standard steakhouse fare with minimal interest. Service was lovely but slow. When we arrived there was literally one other person dining. Drinks, appetizers, and dinner still took two hours, even though we alerted our server that we had a show we needed to get to. I really hope this place can elevate itself quickly as this neighborhood could use a great steakhouse!
Olivia
Talk about putting lipstick on a pig. The moment you walk in, it's clear this “Prime” restaurant is really an old dive bar dressed up with low lighting and a few tablecloths. Nothing about the space says “prime.” I was genuinely excited to try a new steakhouse in my neighborhood so I wouldn't have to trek to the Gold Coast for a quality meal wow. I walked in, and I should've walked right back out. While the service was excellent, the food and atmosphere were not. The steak tartare was overly salty, and the wine selection was disappointing, offering only California wines by the glass. I ordered the scallops and the Wagyu steak. The scallops were fantastic truly the highlight of the night and something I'd return for. But the Wagyu? Chewy and tough, which is almost impressive for all the wrong reasons.
kim
I wanted to love this place since it is right in the neighborhood, but it just wasn't that great. Prices are pretty on par with downtown steakhouses, so just not worth it. We ordered escargot and oysters Rockefeller as apps and they were just ok. We ordered their signature steak medium rare and it came out rare, which shouldn't happen with a $98 steak. The highlights were the sides of potatoes and mushrooms. Again, we spent a lot of money on this meal and it just wasn't worth it. The other tough part is there is zero ambiance. You would expect in December to at least have a few decorations up, but it was very bare bones...No lights or anything. It is also really drafty so all the food came out warm and not hot. I really hope they make improvements since it is convenient, but I would need to see a bunch of positive reviews to give it another shot.
Daniel
Great food and friendly staff. A few small wait staff (forgets) but in all it was great! The price was decent and on par for the a nice restaurant in the area. Definitely will come back especially since it's not in the downtown area and way more convenient. The owner came up and checked in which was a nice touch and showed he values his patrons which a lot of places don't even do.
We had a wonderful dinner here. Our server was very attentive and made some excellent suggestions for our meal. The food was well worth the price, we were happy with every dish we ordered. The mashed potatoes were a must-have; cooked with bone marrow, the dish was so rich and buttery. The drinks were great too! We'll definitely be eating here again.
Ok food but had to get my steak sent back twice because it was under cook but overall all was ok
This was a great restaurant. I think if we came on any other day than Valentines day, my experiences would be much more different. My partner & I had a reservation for 7pm. We showed up promptly and were asked to sit at the bar so our table could be prepped. No big deal. We were there for about 10 minutes. Around 7:20/7:25, we were sat at our table and as soon as our server came, we were ready to order as we did our research before hand due to having a show to catch at 10pm. Our order was placed by 7:30- a Cesar salad, 2 poterhouse steaks, lobster mac & cheese and the asparagus. This is a typical meal we order at other steakhouses so we were fully prepared to be there for a while. Our order did not get to our table until 9:15. The ceaser salad arrived at 9pm. After I had to ask our server twice for it. Sure, maybe the steaks took some time and the kitchen was backed up but 2 hours for the salad as well? Again, as much as I wanted to be a bit upset, I worked in a restaurant in college so I would never be rude to kitchen staff nor wait staff, our server kept apologizing despite me giving him reassurance it was not his fault. Our order arrived at 9:15, we had to be out by 9:45 so my partner and I just ate as fast as we could. My partner is a huge, HUGE fan of Lobster Mac & cheese as she has tried several from many cities and loves to compare- we scoured our bowl for a single piece of lobster and none could be found. I gestured our server over and asked if the lobster was blended into the cheese, or served whole? Any explanation as to why there would be not a single piece of lobster in a dish that lobster was the attraction. Our server looked as well and did agree that there was none- apologized again and offered to take it off our bill. Again I told him it was not his fault and told him to leave it on the bill for which he insisted. Very nice server, very nice staff but man 2.5 hours to get a salad and steaks? I don't think i've waited that long for a meal in a while.
We had an incredible Valentine's dinner here. The food was excellent, although extremely pricey. We did wait over an hour for our entrées and our server asked if we want a dessert before we ever got our meal, but he was kind, and the rest of the staff was also extremely sweet. And they were extremely busy. It's wonderful to have a good steakhouse in the North Center and Lincoln Square neighborhood! I hope they stay around a long time!
If we ever go back it won't be on any type of holiday. Giving them the benefit of the doubt though. Newer restaurant; not as experienced staff; mom and pop feel to it (good and bad). Go and try it out when you're tired of dealing with downtown.
I must say that the food was outstanding and our server Vlad as well. However, the restaurant raised it's prices exponentially on Valentine's Day, for a neighborhood restaurant the prices were already high. To me for a business to do a bait and switch was absolutely abysmal. For diners who are considering going I would warn you before you go.
The food here rivals any downtown steakhouse and is better than most! The service was also impeccable - everyone from the hostess to the bread service server was friendly and attentive. We had cocktails, salads, filets and some sides and every item was top notch. It's a great addition to the neighborhood and perfect option for amazing food or celebrating a special occasion. Cannot recommend enough!
This little steak house in Lincoln Square serves delicious cocktails, outstanding steaks and amazing sides. Loved the cocktails! Loved the complimentary bread service. Loved the wait staff- the service was exemplary and highly professional! The dining space is quite large and they could use some hanging pendant lights and even carpet runners to bring in a cozier vibe. A fireplace would work well here and maybe someday they could have live music, the dining area is large enough! We enjoyed visiting an authentic steak house in the neighborhood but would suggest the restaurant consider adding some items on the menu that would appeal to families like sides of mac & cheese or pasta. Additionally, they could get more regular and repeat business if they offered some menu steak items in a medium price range. A hamburger on the menu would be great too. For excellent food and service, easy parking in a neighborhood - highly recommend.
Don't waste your time or money. Our steaks were served cold, side dishes mediocre. Much better options in Chicago if you're looking for a good steakhouse.
Exceptional food and service (Vlad) and on a holiday (NewYear's Eve). I usually hate eating out on a holiday because no matter the restaurant service and food usually suffer. Not so at North Center Prime! The food was excellent, hot, well seasoned and the service far surpassed most restaurants. Vlad was courteous, friendly, and attentive to every need. It was the first time at this restaurant but it won't be the last.
Restaurantji Recommends
This is a new restaurant and they have some kinks to work out. Everyone worked very hard to please us and the owner came by several times to check on us. He truly wanted our opinions and was happy and grateful for our thoughts. I wish him well.
Food was excellent. Menu was a bit boring - very standard steakhouse fare with minimal interest. Service was lovely but slow. When we arrived there was literally one other person dining. Drinks, appetizers, and dinner still took two hours, even though we alerted our server that we had a show we needed to get to. I really hope this place can elevate itself quickly as this neighborhood could use a great steakhouse!
Talk about putting lipstick on a pig. The moment you walk in, it's clear this “Prime” restaurant is really an old dive bar dressed up with low lighting and a few tablecloths. Nothing about the space says “prime.” I was genuinely excited to try a new steakhouse in my neighborhood so I wouldn't have to trek to the Gold Coast for a quality meal wow. I walked in, and I should've walked right back out. While the service was excellent, the food and atmosphere were not. The steak tartare was overly salty, and the wine selection was disappointing, offering only California wines by the glass. I ordered the scallops and the Wagyu steak. The scallops were fantastic truly the highlight of the night and something I'd return for. But the Wagyu? Chewy and tough, which is almost impressive for all the wrong reasons.
I wanted to love this place since it is right in the neighborhood, but it just wasn't that great. Prices are pretty on par with downtown steakhouses, so just not worth it. We ordered escargot and oysters Rockefeller as apps and they were just ok. We ordered their signature steak medium rare and it came out rare, which shouldn't happen with a $98 steak. The highlights were the sides of potatoes and mushrooms. Again, we spent a lot of money on this meal and it just wasn't worth it. The other tough part is there is zero ambiance. You would expect in December to at least have a few decorations up, but it was very bare bones...No lights or anything. It is also really drafty so all the food came out warm and not hot. I really hope they make improvements since it is convenient, but I would need to see a bunch of positive reviews to give it another shot.
Great food and friendly staff. A few small wait staff (forgets) but in all it was great! The price was decent and on par for the a nice restaurant in the area. Definitely will come back especially since it's not in the downtown area and way more convenient. The owner came up and checked in which was a nice touch and showed he values his patrons which a lot of places don't even do.
Loading...