Each time I come to Obelix I am so surprised. Via it's James' (wonderfully friendly, knowledgeable bartender) or Jamie (friendly, made great pairing recommendations) both have made each experience better than the last. I'll forever mourn the loss of the omelet, but highly recommend this spot for anyone passionate about wine or missing france.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
kelsey sturgeon
Best French restaurant in Chicago. Obsessed with everything I’ve tried on their menu and the service is always 10/10.
I came here for brunch, sat at the bar, and had a delightful experience. The service was excellent and the food was delicious. They even had a tasty nonalcoholic French 75. Overall, I would definitely recommend
Jeremy
I had been meaning to visit Obelix for a while since I've heard and read so many good things. Finally, I visited the other day, and I realized when I got there, I was ‘that customer’ who strolled in during the lunch rush without a reservation. Given how busy they were I wasn't sure if it was going to happen. They couldn't get me a table, but they were able to seat me at the bar. The bartender was friendly, but busy and working their tail off. They still got my drink and my food order quickly.
If you like champagne, go there for Monday brunch! The bottles are half-priced, and if you don't finish them, you can take them with you. I was only halfway through my first glass when my food arrived. You know it's really good food when you skip the food pic and dive right in!
I ordered French onion soup and escargot. The soup was an amazing symphony of flavor and wonderful gooeyness (I mean that in the best possible way haha). The escargot was so much more delicate than I usually find, in most places, the texture is way too tough.
After eating, I stuck around enjoying my amazing bottle of champagne, which the bartender helped me pick and really knew their stuff. I chatted with a couple of the servers and the bartender as things slowed down; they were all super friendly. I was really struck with how knowledgeable they all were, and how invested in the food and the place. Another thing that stood out to me was how well everyone worked together.
Overall it was a great experience and a grand way to spend a mental health day skipping work. Going back soon and bringing friends with me!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Soupe À L'oignion Gratiné, Escargot Bourguignonne
David Leibowitz
Everyone enjoyed Obelix. Most of us had the cod, I had the chicken - both very good. Many people ordered beef Wellington which looked to be outstanding. Desserts were lovely too. Wine is overpriced in my humble opinion.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Karla Solis
Was here for Sunday brunch. Food was good. Drinks were good. Wouldn't recommend coming here for Sunday brunch. The staff was stressed, stretched thin, with an idgaf attitude which led to some uncomfortable interactions with them. Don't know how service is at other times, but my friend and I felt it was an unwelcoming environment.
Atmosphere: 2
Food: 4
Service: 2
Derek
Great food, great service. One of our favorite restaurants in the city. Highly recommend for any occasion! Definitely want to get reservations as they fill up very quickly on weekends. The foie and crispy rice is SO GOOD.
Edit: As someone who is very clearly Asian, the recent reviews of discrimination are hilariously unfounded as I have NEVER experienced anything remotely close to what is being described in my dozens of visits to this Obelix or its sister restaurant, Le Bouchon. It is slanderous and entirely out of place to speak of the same restaurant that had a special Lunar New Year pastry menu.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Mary Kirk
After reading reviews from others on Valentine's Day, I'd like to add that the hostess was blatantly ignoring the couples in the order they arrived in and allowing for at least two white couples to be seated before two non-white couples who had been waiting much longer. Notably, there was a point in which she pointed to my partner and I, who are white and white-passing, as being next to be seated, obviously ignoring a non-white couple who arrived before us and who were standing in front of the hostess podium, clearly appearing to be next in line. We contradicted her as the line had already been ignored more than once with no explanation. Evidently, she did not appear to be concerned with keeping track of the order of which we arrived, nor offered any acknowledgement that the group waiting would be attended to shortly. We discussed this interaction with the other couple and all agreed it was extremely strange as we collectively had service experience and had never seen a line handled so unprofessionally.
Now that I have read the reviews, it is disheartening to reasonably assume that discrimination, whether conscious or unconscious, was taking place. As someone who has experiencing hostessing, this restaurant completely failed in making patrons feel attended to and welcome upon entrance. I'm sorry to those whose experience was worse than what I am describing, especially on a special occasion like Valentine's Day. Will not be returning.
Atmosphere: 2
Food: 3
Service: 1
Emmanuel Macias
Front of house hostess was discriminatory and could not keep track of who came in. People who cut the line were seated first even thought it was Valentine’s Day and we all had reservations. My partner had to remind the hostess who came in first as we did not want to cut anyone or be cut ourselves. The hostess called my parter a team player condescendingly for doing her job. After we finished eating, we found out that I couple behind us had been seated last, and they came in right after us. So at least 3 other couples were sat first even thought they had come in first. Nevertheless the food was great but the experience the hostess gave was a terrible first impression. After reading other reviews we found that this establishment has a history of racist interactions.
Atmosphere: 2
Food: 5
Service: 1
J X
I had a terrible experience at Obelix in Chicago, where I felt I was subjected to racial discrimination.
For Valentine’s Day, I made a brunch reservation well in advance, but after being seated, I waited for 50 minutes and only received some bread—nothing else. Meanwhile, I watched as the white customers at nearby tables received and finished their meals, including those who arrived at the same time as me.
When I brought this issue up with the restaurant manager, instead of apologizing, they argued with me for 10 minutes with a dismissive attitude, essentially saying, “take it or leave it, but you still have to pay in full, even if we don’t serve you.”
To make matters worse, because I’m Chinese, they condescendingly explained that French cuisine is “served one dish at a time.” But if that’s the case, why did I have to wait 50 minutes without even seeing a single leaf of salad? It was beyond ridiculous.
As for the food, it was awful: • Snail bread: Overly salty • Duck salad: Took 50 minutes to arrive, drenched in vinegar, with greasy, cold duck—it felt like eating cold lard • Foie gras pancake: No foie gras flavor at all, just disgustingly sweet, like something that could give you diabetes on the spot • Lobster crepe: As someone from a coastal city in China, I can confidently say this was an insult to lobsters
If you want to spend $200 (around $100 per person) for two hours of racial discrimination, this is the place to go.
I had the worst experience at this restaurant, and I am absolutely appalled by the racist treatment my party and I received. The front-of-house manager was incredibly rude and discriminatory toward us, all because we were Chinese. We were made to wait for over 50 minutes, with only one dish being served, while tables that arrived after us were immediately served their full orders. When we questioned why, we were told our course was course out, but it was clear our order was never even put in. To top it off, the manager tried to tell us we didn't understand French food and made us feel completely unwelcome. This completely ruined our anniversary celebration. The level of disrespect and blatant racism is beyond unacceptable. Do yourself a favor—avoid this place if you don’t want to be treated unfairly. Never coming back here again.(the food is also for sure overrated)
Yue Luo
I wish I could give no star to this place. Service was terrible, wait 50mins for a salad, ask the manager, manager was being rude, act like we don’t know the concept of French restaurant, we want to get the check, pay for what we got so far and leave, she told us that we can’t do that we had to pay for the whole order, cause the food has already been made( which I didn’t see any plate on my table while she talk to us)worst dining experience ever, ruined my Valentine’s Day.
GLEN DEKOVEN
Just a wonderful experience food was amazing. Service was outstanding.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Michael Black
We had our first meal at Obélix last night and loved it. The slightly chaotic but friendly service was endearing, and the almost always excellent food was welcomed. All the drinks were generous pours! I’m not a huge fan of vast amounts of sauces covering the food, so when the cod was served virtually unadorned, it was heaven. We’ll be back.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 4
Service: 4
Debra Goldstein
Fabulous authentic French food in a really lovely atmosphere. The service was lovely, the wine perfect and the food outstanding.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Soupe À L'oignion Gratiné, Steak
Each time I come to Obelix I am so surprised. Via it's James' (wonderfully friendly, knowledgeable bartender) or Jamie (friendly, made great pairing recommendations) both have made each experience better than the last. I'll forever mourn the loss of the omelet, but highly recommend this spot for anyone passionate about wine or missing france.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Best French restaurant in Chicago. Obsessed with everything I’ve tried on their menu and the service is always 10/10.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Soupe À L'oignion Gratiné, Salad, Steak, 10-Day Dry-Aged Duck Breast, Escargot Bourguignonne, Beef Wellington
I came here for brunch, sat at the bar, and had a delightful experience. The service was excellent and the food was delicious. They even had a tasty nonalcoholic French 75. Overall, I would definitely recommend
I had been meaning to visit Obelix for a while since I've heard and read so many good things. Finally, I visited the other day, and I realized when I got there, I was ‘that customer’ who strolled in during the lunch rush without a reservation. Given how busy they were I wasn't sure if it was going to happen. They couldn't get me a table, but they were able to seat me at the bar. The bartender was friendly, but busy and working their tail off. They still got my drink and my food order quickly.
If you like champagne, go there for Monday brunch! The bottles are half-priced, and if you don't finish them, you can take them with you.
I was only halfway through my first glass when my food arrived. You know it's really good food when you skip the food pic and dive right in!
I ordered French onion soup and escargot. The soup was an amazing symphony of flavor and wonderful gooeyness (I mean that in the best possible way haha). The escargot was so much more delicate than I usually find, in most places, the texture is way too tough.
After eating, I stuck around enjoying my amazing bottle of champagne, which the bartender helped me pick and really knew their stuff.
I chatted with a couple of the servers and the bartender as things slowed down; they were all super friendly. I was really struck with how knowledgeable they all were, and how invested in the food and the place. Another thing that stood out to me was how well everyone worked together.
Overall it was a great experience and a grand way to spend a mental health day skipping work. Going back soon and bringing friends with me!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Soupe À L'oignion Gratiné, Escargot Bourguignonne
Everyone enjoyed Obelix. Most of us had the cod, I had the chicken - both very good. Many people ordered beef Wellington which looked to be outstanding. Desserts were lovely too. Wine is overpriced in my humble opinion.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Was here for Sunday brunch.
Food was good. Drinks were good.
Wouldn't recommend coming here for Sunday brunch. The staff was stressed, stretched thin, with an idgaf attitude which led to some uncomfortable interactions with them. Don't know how service is at other times, but my friend and I felt it was an unwelcoming environment.
Atmosphere: 2
Food: 4
Service: 2
Great food, great service. One of our favorite restaurants in the city. Highly recommend for any occasion! Definitely want to get reservations as they fill up very quickly on weekends. The foie and crispy rice is SO GOOD.
Edit: As someone who is very clearly Asian, the recent reviews of discrimination are hilariously unfounded as I have NEVER experienced anything remotely close to what is being described in my dozens of visits to this Obelix or its sister restaurant, Le Bouchon. It is slanderous and entirely out of place to speak of the same restaurant that had a special Lunar New Year pastry menu.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
After reading reviews from others on Valentine's Day, I'd like to add that the hostess was blatantly ignoring the couples in the order they arrived in and allowing for at least two white couples to be seated before two non-white couples who had been waiting much longer. Notably, there was a point in which she pointed to my partner and I, who are white and white-passing, as being next to be seated, obviously ignoring a non-white couple who arrived before us and who were standing in front of the hostess podium, clearly appearing to be next in line. We contradicted her as the line had already been ignored more than once with no explanation. Evidently, she did not appear to be concerned with keeping track of the order of which we arrived, nor offered any acknowledgement that the group waiting would be attended to shortly. We discussed this interaction with the other couple and all agreed it was extremely strange as we collectively had service experience and had never seen a line handled so unprofessionally.
Now that I have read the reviews, it is disheartening to reasonably assume that discrimination, whether conscious or unconscious, was taking place. As someone who has experiencing hostessing, this restaurant completely failed in making patrons feel attended to and welcome upon entrance. I'm sorry to those whose experience was worse than what I am describing, especially on a special occasion like Valentine's Day. Will not be returning.
Atmosphere: 2
Food: 3
Service: 1
Front of house hostess was discriminatory and could not keep track of who came in. People who cut the line were seated first even thought it was Valentine’s Day and we all had reservations. My partner had to remind the hostess who came in first as we did not want to cut anyone or be cut ourselves. The hostess called my parter a team player condescendingly for doing her job. After we finished eating, we found out that I couple behind us had been seated last, and they came in right after us. So at least 3 other couples were sat first even thought they had come in first. Nevertheless the food was great but the experience the hostess gave was a terrible first impression. After reading other reviews we found that this establishment has a history of racist interactions.
Atmosphere: 2
Food: 5
Service: 1
I had a terrible experience at Obelix in Chicago, where I felt I was subjected to racial discrimination.
For Valentine’s Day, I made a brunch reservation well in advance, but after being seated, I waited for 50 minutes and only received some bread—nothing else. Meanwhile, I watched as the white customers at nearby tables received and finished their meals, including those who arrived at the same time as me.
When I brought this issue up with the restaurant manager, instead of apologizing, they argued with me for 10 minutes with a dismissive attitude, essentially saying, “take it or leave it, but you still have to pay in full, even if we don’t serve you.”
To make matters worse, because I’m Chinese, they condescendingly explained that French cuisine is “served one dish at a time.” But if that’s the case, why did I have to wait 50 minutes without even seeing a single leaf of salad? It was beyond ridiculous.
As for the food, it was awful:
• Snail bread: Overly salty
• Duck salad: Took 50 minutes to arrive, drenched in vinegar, with greasy, cold duck—it felt like eating cold lard
• Foie gras pancake: No foie gras flavor at all, just disgustingly sweet, like something that could give you diabetes on the spot
• Lobster crepe: As someone from a coastal city in China, I can confidently say this was an insult to lobsters
If you want to spend $200 (around $100 per person) for two hours of racial discrimination, this is the place to go.
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 1
Service: 1
Restaurantji Recommends
Racism alert!!
I had the worst experience at this restaurant, and I am absolutely appalled by the racist treatment my party and I received. The front-of-house manager was incredibly rude and discriminatory toward us, all because we were Chinese. We were made to wait for over 50 minutes, with only one dish being served, while tables that arrived after us were immediately served their full orders. When we questioned why, we were told our course was course out, but it was clear our order was never even put in. To top it off, the manager tried to tell us we didn't understand French food and made us feel completely unwelcome. This completely ruined our anniversary celebration. The level of disrespect and blatant racism is beyond unacceptable. Do yourself a favor—avoid this place if you don’t want to be treated unfairly. Never coming back here again.(the food is also for sure overrated)
I wish I could give no star to this place. Service was terrible, wait 50mins for a salad, ask the manager, manager was being rude, act like we don’t know the concept of French restaurant, we want to get the check, pay for what we got so far and leave, she told us that we can’t do that we had to pay for the whole order, cause the food has already been made( which I didn’t see any plate on my table while she talk to us)worst dining experience ever, ruined my Valentine’s Day.
Just a wonderful experience food was amazing. Service was outstanding.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
We had our first meal at Obélix last night and loved it. The slightly chaotic but friendly service was endearing, and the almost always excellent food was welcomed. All the drinks were generous pours! I’m not a huge fan of vast amounts of sauces covering the food, so when the cod was served virtually unadorned, it was heaven. We’ll be back.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 4
Service: 4
Fabulous authentic French food in a really lovely atmosphere. The service was lovely, the wine perfect and the food outstanding.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Soupe À L'oignion Gratiné, Steak
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