Beautiful ambiance, speedy service, delicious food, hospitable staff.Eastern Kille has knocked it out of the park.We have been accustomed to their delicious cocktails, but, we were skeptical of how they would execute food and a full scale restaurant scene. No disappointment here. 10 out of 10. From the beautifully designed dining area and patio to the attention of service staff executing quickly during a busy Friday night service, every part of our experience was top notch. The food rivaled Michelin Star restaurants, the chicken liver pate special was well balanced, the bread warm and crisp. The black garlic Caesar had the correct balance of flavors and substituted croutons with a delightfully crisp crumble which remained crisp the entire time we enjoyed it. The pizza crust is perfection and the cocktails, as always, were a chartreuse on top of a beautiful experience.So happy to see the growth and to see expansion done well, keep it up Eastern Kille!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Torey Groen
11/10 would recommend. Favorites are the Hot Honey pepperoni pizza and the pistachio and mortadella. Saltines and Sardines are a must try. Cocktails are awesome.Saw some other reviews calling for an "expanded" menu. Please don't. It's so good. Restaurants expanding their menu into 1000 options is not conducive to actual good food. Keep it up guys you are crushing it.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Ryan Wolters
One and done for me. Off by 45 minutes on wait estimate which I would never hold against a restaurant because it's a guess. Go there knowing you can't get a drink while you wait. Which I also understand being a craft cocktail bar you can't keep up with tables. people at the bar and people waiting. Problem I have is the obnoxious entitled bar tender. 1st time there so how would I know? After waiting 45 minutes after my waitlist estimate a seat opened up at the bar so I walked up to order a drink. She quickly asked with a sarcastic tone if I checked in for that seat. I said no just looking to get a drink while I wait. She went on to ask me if I needed an explanation as to why they don't serve drinks to people waiting instead of politely explaining. Yeah I get it you entitled little brat. I've been to many bars and cocktail establishments. I WILL NOT RETURN TO THIS ONE. Probably a great spot for all the Rockford Yuppies though. So if you enjoy being belittled by bartenders this is the spot for you. If I wasn't hungry I would have left. So we stayed. Pizza was.good not great. The normal brick oven style pizza you'd expect. Service was slow as it looked like they had a private event the staffs attention was distracted by. Had a mule and old fasion. I honestly make better ones at home so I see NO reason to return here.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 3
Service: 1
Jay Bee
The place is beutiful and clean, however that is the highlight. Menu is limited to overpriced pizza and apps. While the food is good, it is very overpriced for what you get.Pizza is cheap to make and fast to cook with good equipment. $20 for a small, relatively simple pizza is a big ask, especially when all mixed(not draft) cocktails are $12+ , all made with their own spirits, which should be cheaper to them than buying branded spirits.$10 for the foccacia that is about 1/8 of a pan is insane. When I make foccacia at home, it costs about $3 to make a pan. This is excessive, double the portion or cut the price, this was not nearly enough for the table to share.On to service... we were greeted and seated quickly, that was nice. There were 2 servers each time they came, it made it feel awkward and overly formal for a casual place, I guess they are trying to be fancy? Idk. Then we waited at least 20mins after we were done to get our bill. I don't think I will be back, there are a dozen places to get better dinning experience for that price( or a lot less). If you don't care at all about value and are ok with sub par service, the place is beautiful and the food is good, so have at it!
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 3
Service: 3
Jon
1st time visiting this week and it was awesome. Great service from our waiter - engaging, kind, timely. Had the Pepperoni pizza which was amazing - pepp, honey, sage - one of the best I've had in a while around GR. Tried two cocktails using their local booze and those were also tasty & potent! The building is new and beautiful with amazing woods views out the large windows. Great work EKD!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Denise Grinnell
Found this new place and love it! Nice space. Interesting drinks. Not too loud. Not too cramped.Love the Caesar salad. lol. Got it at 2 consecutive visits.Pizza was ok.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 4
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Tiramisu
James Irwin
The pizza and drinks are phenomenal! The service is solid! Our waitress had one minor hiccup, and the atmosphere is good. I just wish maybe they had some TVs by the bar or something. Other than that I highly recommend.
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 5
Service: 4
Karry Johnson
The food was very good! Highly recommend the caesar salad and pepporoni, sausage, mushroom, onion, and red chilli pizza.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Adam Stowie
Bottom line: it's a nice place with good food and drinks, but it's small and pricey. Not much to complain about, will go again.Pros: intimate, classy atmosphere with quality cocktails and food made with obviously good quality ingredients.Cons: the occupancy is low, so you may be waiting a while. And while the food is good, it's reflected in the price. At that price point it might be nice to have other options then pizza.
Great experience! Awesome food and great cocktails.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 4
Recommended dishes: Pepperoni Pizza
Mary Nguyen
Service was not good. It took a long time to get our check because the wait staff stopped checking in with us after we got our food. Food was very good. Pizza crust was amazing. Ranch and marinara sauce was awesome. Mixed drinks were great. Highly recommend old fashioned and doc orders. I would go again for the drinks and food. Hopefully the service was a fluke.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 4
Service: 1
Recommended dishes: Pepperoni Pizza
Matt Haws
Food was incredible. Hostess was great. Service started alright and then went downhill. Food came out and then she didn’t check back in for 20+ minutes. Finally brought the check and it was for the wrong table. We had to flag down someone else because she wasn’t coming back.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 5
Service: 1
Fred R
Though they just recently opened this winter, they are off to a good start. The quality of their spirits and mixed cocktails are very good, but a tad on the expensive side for this market. The atmosphere is contemporary yet comfortable with a friendly and helpful staff. The food menu is limited to special pizzas, which are excellent, other apps and salads. In time I am sure it will expand. It is right off the White Pine Trail and will have outdoor seating during warmer seasons.Parking: Due to it being new, there have been more customers than parking spots. The wait for a table or bar meeting is roughly 20-30 minutes at peak times.
A phenomenal evolution for a business that has grown with its customers. The menu is deceptively simple. My wife and infant daughter were very comfortable there with a stroller around 5pm on a Thursday. The stracciatella was unreal and I plan on ordering it every time we come in, which will be often.Vegetarian options: Each menu item is marked as vegetarian if it is made without meat.Kid-friendliness: We had no issue with our 4 month old and stroller.Wheelchair accessibility: There was plenty of access.
Beautiful ambiance, speedy service, delicious food, hospitable staff.Eastern Kille has knocked it out of the park.We have been accustomed to their delicious cocktails, but, we were skeptical of how they would execute food and a full scale restaurant scene. No disappointment here. 10 out of 10. From the beautifully designed dining area and patio to the attention of service staff executing quickly during a busy Friday night service, every part of our experience was top notch. The food rivaled Michelin Star restaurants, the chicken liver pate special was well balanced, the bread warm and crisp. The black garlic Caesar had the correct balance of flavors and substituted croutons with a delightfully crisp crumble which remained crisp the entire time we enjoyed it. The pizza crust is perfection and the cocktails, as always, were a chartreuse on top of a beautiful experience.So happy to see the growth and to see expansion done well, keep it up Eastern Kille!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
11/10 would recommend. Favorites are the Hot Honey pepperoni pizza and the pistachio and mortadella. Saltines and Sardines are a must try. Cocktails are awesome.Saw some other reviews calling for an "expanded" menu. Please don't. It's so good. Restaurants expanding their menu into 1000 options is not conducive to actual good food. Keep it up guys you are crushing it.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
One and done for me. Off by 45 minutes on wait estimate which I would never hold against a restaurant because it's a guess. Go there knowing you can't get a drink while you wait. Which I also understand being a craft cocktail bar you can't keep up with tables. people at the bar and people waiting. Problem I have is the obnoxious entitled bar tender. 1st time there so how would I know? After waiting 45 minutes after my waitlist estimate a seat opened up at the bar so I walked up to order a drink. She quickly asked with a sarcastic tone if I checked in for that seat. I said no just looking to get a drink while I wait. She went on to ask me if I needed an explanation as to why they don't serve drinks to people waiting instead of politely explaining. Yeah I get it you entitled little brat. I've been to many bars and cocktail establishments. I WILL NOT RETURN TO THIS ONE. Probably a great spot for all the Rockford Yuppies though. So if you enjoy being belittled by bartenders this is the spot for you. If I wasn't hungry I would have left. So we stayed. Pizza was.good not great. The normal brick oven style pizza you'd expect. Service was slow as it looked like they had a private event the staffs attention was distracted by. Had a mule and old fasion. I honestly make better ones at home so I see NO reason to return here.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 3
Service: 1
The place is beutiful and clean, however that is the highlight. Menu is limited to overpriced pizza and apps. While the food is good, it is very overpriced for what you get.Pizza is cheap to make and fast to cook with good equipment. $20 for a small, relatively simple pizza is a big ask, especially when all mixed(not draft) cocktails are $12+ , all made with their own spirits, which should be cheaper to them than buying branded spirits.$10 for the foccacia that is about 1/8 of a pan is insane. When I make foccacia at home, it costs about $3 to make a pan. This is excessive, double the portion or cut the price, this was not nearly enough for the table to share.On to service... we were greeted and seated quickly, that was nice. There were 2 servers each time they came, it made it feel awkward and overly formal for a casual place, I guess they are trying to be fancy? Idk. Then we waited at least 20mins after we were done to get our bill. I don't think I will be back, there are a dozen places to get better dinning experience for that price( or a lot less). If you don't care at all about value and are ok with sub par service, the place is beautiful and the food is good, so have at it!
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 3
Service: 3
1st time visiting this week and it was awesome. Great service from our waiter - engaging, kind, timely. Had the Pepperoni pizza which was amazing - pepp, honey, sage - one of the best I've had in a while around GR. Tried two cocktails using their local booze and those were also tasty & potent! The building is new and beautiful with amazing woods views out the large windows. Great work EKD!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Found this new place and love it! Nice space. Interesting drinks. Not too loud. Not too cramped.Love the Caesar salad. lol. Got it at 2 consecutive visits.Pizza was ok.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 4
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Tiramisu
The pizza and drinks are phenomenal! The service is solid! Our waitress had one minor hiccup, and the atmosphere is good. I just wish maybe they had some TVs by the bar or something. Other than that I highly recommend.
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 5
Service: 4
The food was very good! Highly recommend the caesar salad and pepporoni, sausage, mushroom, onion, and red chilli pizza.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Bottom line: it's a nice place with good food and drinks, but it's small and pricey. Not much to complain about, will go again.Pros: intimate, classy atmosphere with quality cocktails and food made with obviously good quality ingredients.Cons: the occupancy is low, so you may be waiting a while. And while the food is good, it's reflected in the price. At that price point it might be nice to have other options then pizza.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Amazing atmosphere and phenomenal
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Restaurantji Recommends
Great experience! Awesome food and great cocktails.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 4
Recommended dishes: Pepperoni Pizza
Service was not good. It took a long time to get our check because the wait staff stopped checking in with us after we got our food. Food was very good. Pizza crust was amazing. Ranch and marinara sauce was awesome. Mixed drinks were great. Highly recommend old fashioned and doc orders. I would go again for the drinks and food. Hopefully the service was a fluke.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 4
Service: 1
Recommended dishes: Pepperoni Pizza
Food was incredible. Hostess was great. Service started alright and then went downhill. Food came out and then she didn’t check back in for 20+ minutes. Finally brought the check and it was for the wrong table. We had to flag down someone else because she wasn’t coming back.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 5
Service: 1
Though they just recently opened this winter, they are off to a good start. The quality of their spirits and mixed cocktails are very good, but a tad on the expensive side for this market. The atmosphere is contemporary yet comfortable with a friendly and helpful staff. The food menu is limited to special pizzas, which are excellent, other apps and salads. In time I am sure it will expand. It is right off the White Pine Trail and will have outdoor seating during warmer seasons.Parking: Due to it being new, there have been more customers than parking spots. The wait for a table or bar meeting is roughly 20-30 minutes at peak times.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 4
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Pepperoni Pizza, Tasting Flight 12, Tiramisu
A phenomenal evolution for a business that has grown with its customers. The menu is deceptively simple. My wife and infant daughter were very comfortable there with a stroller around 5pm on a Thursday. The stracciatella was unreal and I plan on ordering it every time we come in, which will be often.Vegetarian options: Each menu item is marked as vegetarian if it is made without meat.Kid-friendliness: We had no issue with our 4 month old and stroller.Wheelchair accessibility: There was plenty of access.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5