Home Bistro

I love this place. The food is very good, albeit a bit heavy, and the ambiance is cozy. We love coming here!

Cozy restaurant close to our airbnb home.
Broccoli salad: 4 stars. Fresh and not drowning in dressing
Bacon wrapped dates: 3 stars. Nice balance of sweet and salty
Chicken livers: 2 stars. Turns out I don’t like liver after all. Nice presentation.
Homemade fettuccine with octopus: 3 stars. Too heavy on the olive oil. Could improve on the pasta texture — not quite succulent enough. Octopus itself was tender and not fishy.
Trout: 4 stars. Delicious
Pork shank: 5 stars. WOW! Fall off the bone, tender, flavorful and perfect with the pickled cabbage and mashed sweet potato.

Great place. Ashamed to admit we come here at least twice a month– it’s that good.
Food is excellent– portions are quite large, and you won’t be disappointed. Love their salmon as well as the patatas bravas. Have not had a single dish here that was anything less than delicious. You should come here for both brunch and dinner– creative and amazing.
Servers are sweethearts and quite attentive, but also mindful about letting you enjoy your meal. The older gentleman who busses tables during their dinner shifts is highly efficient and quick at removing plates.
Place is small so occasionally you need to wait to be seated but it’s worth it.

Food was good, but the service seemed overwhelmed. I had a reservation for 2 on a weekend night, and had to wait 20min after our reservation to sit. Our waiter opened our wine that we had brought, but we had to wait ~10min to have wine glasses brought to us because they had run out and had to get some cleaned. I ordered the special (which sounded amazing) but was told that they had already run out. This is fine, but the waiter had given us the details about the special 5min before… so I was disappointed in my unfortunate timing. Finally, our appetizer was given to us with-​out plates, and the waiter was busy with other tables, so we flag the bus-​boy to ask for him to bring us some plates. Besides this, I will say the food was delicious and the environment was friendly and relaxed. I would guess my problems with the service we unlucky being that it was a busy weekend night and we were also told it was the first night of a new menu.

The food, service, and atmosphere here is amazing. I have to say, they had one of the best salmon fillets I’ve had since moving here. Also, our waitress, who I believe had the entire place was friendly and extremely informative and helpful. Also, it’s BYOB so be sure to bring some vino!

I had a nice dinner here last night! Dave was our waiter, who was friendly and attentive. I started with sharing the sweetbread appetizer with arugula and a nice aioli. I also shared the escargot with cherry tomatoes, butter, shallots, garlic and seasonings with white wine reduction, yummy! I had the trout with fingerling potatoes and I don’t even remember what else, just that it was very good! I got side tracked, as I was excited about being able to BYOB of wine.
Make reservations, as it’s a very small venue and seats fill up fast. We went around 8:45 pm calling only a half hour ahead on a Friday night. They did seat us fairly quickly. We weren’t rushed and were able to enjoy our conversation without being pressured.
I enjoyed our evening and will be back!

Wonderful food, everyone I dined with said it was one of their favorite meals in Chicago. Creative (but not TOO creative) dishes, well-​prepared, with a surprise flavor palate if you look for it (toasted brown sugar on the dates, anise in the mussels were particularly interesting). Solid.
Normally, this would get a restaurant a 4-​star rating. However, the setup of HB is what put it over the top. Unpretentious and relaxed, it was a nice respite from the Fulton Market standard. BYOB is a plus. Service was hands-​off, but there when you needed it. Pluses all around.

Shared the muscles and frites and the curry pork shoulder. The muscles were delicious but a little anise-​heavy. The fries prepared to perfection! The curry pork shoulder was outstanding — the curry sauce had clear, delightful notes of coconut and peanuts with a bit of spice. The pork shoulder was incredibly tender went perfectly with the sauce — not to mention the jasmine rice ‘salad’ (which was just flavored cold rice, but fantastic flavored cold rice at that). Somebody else in my party had the smoked amish chicken thighs which were cooked to perfection. For desert we had the bread pudding served with (what seemed like) fresh whipped cream and a vanilla icing. The bread pudding was the perfect texture and a large portion at that!

My boyfriend and I came here to celebrate a promotion, and it didn’t disappoint. The place is pretty small, so we had to call ahead and make reservations for sure. We went on a Friday night, and it was packed. For a quality restaurant like this, it is SO NICE that it is BYOB. Normally, you spend a ton of money on food, then buy super pricey drinks and wine. Not here.
I would say the staff as a whole wasn’t very friendly, but they were fine overall. The menu isn’t huge either, but you can kind of expect that when the menu changes as much as this one does. All of the menu items were different and made to perfection. We would go again once the menu changes to try more of their original recipes.

Solid four star. Cozy (perfect for 2 – 4 people, might be less enjoyable for a bigger group because of small space and general background noise level that would make it difficult to have a conversation across a table with a large group of people), casual vibe with well-​prepared food. Added bonus is the lack of corkage fee for BYOB and our friendly server — she wasn’t pushy at all and I was in no rush catching up with friends I hadn’t seen for a while but one could have been annoyed from slow service if they wanted to quickly eat and leave.
I was starving when I came on Friday evening at 7pm but it turned out my eyes were bigger than my stomach — very generous portions.
We tried:
Appetizers
–fried artichoke: excellent. deep-​fried to golden crispy and I don’t even like fried food in general
–Smoked butternut squash: I love anything winter squash so I seriously turn yellow in the Fall and Winter from all the buttercup squash I consume, but this dish was a meh. Forgettable.
–Baby beets: favorite appetizer! Perfectly cooked golden and red beets with goat cheese
Main dishes:
–Amsterdam style mussels: I can eat endless amount of oysters and mussels until my stomach hurts. This was the very first time I left more than ¹⁄₃ of mussels ever in my life. Maybe I was already full from appetizers but the flavor just wasn’t there and mussels weren’t plump at all. Fries with garlic aioli were very good though.
–gnocchi with lamb meatball and mustard seeds: excellent dish, hearty but not too heavy.
–my friend ordered pork belly (special of the day) and he seemed to like it.
I was stuffed up to the ears after the meal! I’m still curious about escargot, pork cheek and trout but there’s always a next time!

I went with my wife a couple of weeks ago and here is my experience!!!
We had been wanting to go this place for a long time. I read the reviews and the pics in Unilocal and they looked amazing.
To be honest, the food did not meet our expectations. We had the dates with brown sugar– they were good. Then the fried oyster tacos and unfortunately the tortilla was falling apart. Not sure if it was because of the brand or because they were kinda cold. Then, our waiter recommended the Osbuco and the fall gnocchi dish so of course we went for it. The Osobuco wasn’t tender and for the same reason it did not have a lot of flavor. It came with greens in the side and they were so bitter that we weren’t able to eat them. The gnocchis were ok. Not a big fan of the combination but they were well prepared. For dessert we had the pudding and that one was good.
The service was good. All my comments are regarding the food.
We decided to send an email to the chef/​owner of the restaurant and he did response with a thanks message for the feedback and an apologize for the experience.

Decided to here on a whim when I saw they had a prix fix menu. Definitely do not regret it — everything we had was delicious, and everything on their menu is available for the meal.
The favorite was the mussels and chorizo dinner — the special of the day. It was a huge plate of mussels and a few clams with a chorizo sauce at the bottom. Definitely recommend if they have it when you are there.
Also BYOB with no corkage fee.

We did not have a very good experience here on Saturday night. My friend from NYC picked this place out due to its location and the great reviews. I brought the wine.
Its cute and has a small dining area, but its also very loud. It looks like it would be a great date night place but maybe not for the first date because you have to scream to be heard.
We started with the fried zucchini that came with a soft boiled egg. It was really good. The zucchini wasn’t soggy, it had good seasoning. We were excited for the good start.
Then we waited. And waited. And waited… they didn’t seem to notice that we waited a really long time for 2 entrees that shouldn’t take very long. Then they brought my friend’s chicken thighs. And we sat and looked at each other for a bit… then he waived down one of the guys and asked where my dinner was. A min later he brought it out but didn’t break his stride. No apology, no explanation of what we were about to eat. Nothing.
Our initial reaction for both dishes that they didn’t look great. I had four little scallops sitting next to some carrots and two slices of parsnips. It was sitting on dry wild rice. The scallops were so incredibly salty that I couldn’t eat them. Dry rice is also not a joy to eat. So I had some carrots.
My friend thought they were stingy with the chicken thighs. He received two and a bunch of brussels sprouts to fill up the plate. His chicken was also too salty to eat.
Then the bus boy took our plates away. No one took notice that they were full plates! No one asked how our meal was, or questioned why we were pretty much sending the whole thing back.
Then after another glass of wine one of the waiters came over and asked if we wanted dessert.
We did not. They didn’t seem to care.

Very good food and a nice, comfortable atmosphere. The food was very delicious and the server was incredibly knowledgeable and friendly.

We stopped in for dessert and had the bread pudding. It was served differently from any bread pudding I’ve seen before. It came as slices, rather than in a ramekin or other container. It was delicious, though. Service was also extremely friendly and stopped and chatted with us for a while about the BYOB laws in Chicago (HB is BYOB). Have not eaten a full meal there yet, but definitely will be coming back.

Made a reservation for a party of 6 on a Friday night and…
–We sat right down at our reserved time
–Our waitress was awesome, especially with bringing us booze from our BYOB stash
–Regarding the above, there was no corkage fee and we brought a lot to drink
–The Shishito Peppers were an excellent appetizer with a bit of a kick
–They had a special crab sandwich on the menu the night we were there, it was delicious, though it got soggy by the time I finished the first half
–The Truffle fries!!! Woah! Best thing I had the whole night. I am a sucker for fries though
–I don’t personally like bread pudding, but all other 5 people at the table raved about how good it was
–The total bill for 5 apps, 6 entrees and 2 desserts was $ 220 which is VERY affordable
Will definitely be back here again.

This place is pretty small and not eye-​catching from outside. It’s pretty dim and quite inside, which is good for a date dinner I feel. There are not overwhelming choices on the menu. We ordered fresh off the cod corn salad and red leaf lettuce salad! They taste pretty awesome except for they are a little bit too salty. But over all experience is positive in this restaurant:)

Home Bistro serves 5-​star food at a reasonable price. Taste-​wise, this restaurant is probably among the best in Chicago. What’s more, every Wednesday, you can get a 3 course meal for just $ 33 (a $ 50+ value)!
The interior design is very unique too. I would call it cozy but quirky. Unfortunately, the restaurant is a bit small.
But the reason why Home Bistro doesn’t get 5 stars is because of the service. I counted just one waiter, and if there were more waiters, it certainly feels like there’s only one waiter. If service time were to improve with an additional waiter, then this would definitely be a solid restaurant.

Bravo! Home Bistro has moved into my top 5 places for dinner in Chicago. On a whim we decided to make a reservation since we were heading to an event down the street. We were able to secure a same day booking, which was nice. The space is cozy and ideal for small groups (less than 4, but ideally 2). While you could bring a large group, the place itself only seats around 50, so be careful.
The menu is amazing. There were so many great options it was hard to choose what we wanted. In terms of our meal, we got he red leaf salad, fried oysters, Amsterdam muscles, and the pork shoulder steak special. The muscles came with a huge bowl of fries, which coincidentally went really well as an accompaniment to the pork shoulder steak. I had never seen pork shoulder (still with the bone) served like a steak, but I’d easily order it again. It was perfectly grilled with a crème fresh and strawberry compote on top. Very simple, yet highly flavorful.
It’s BYOB, so plan accordingly. There is a 7 – 11 across the street if you wanted to pick up something. If you bring wine and need it chilled, they can bring a bucket out for you table side.
There were only 3 – 4 front of house staff working, but it was perfect because HB is so small. They were all highly friendly and made a point to explain the entire menu, and check on us frequently. The food came out promptly after ordering.
Again, great work, Home Bistro! We will be back for sure. We will for sure be back to try the items we didn’t get to sample. To me, this is the sign of a great chef and menu planner. Just seeing all the great things on the menu will bring us back. They don’t need to advertise or anything, just keep offering great food at a reasonable price.

Came to Home Bistro for Easter Brunch with some of my favorite Unilocalers and two other friends. Seeing how this was my first day of drinking since Ash Wednesday I don’t recall two much from this brunch after the 2^nd of 5 bottles of champagne.
What I do remember is:
1) the excellent service we received from the moment we arrived
2) how they kept our bottles of champagne on ice as we plowed through them
3) how delicious the food was (I had the HB breakfast sandwich and it was damn good)
4) how affordable the dining experience was (my credit card statement showed I spent less than $ 23 dollars)
I will definitely be coming back to Home Bistro with my bottles of booze to enjoy great food, service and friends!

Yowsa, this was one of the most delicious and flavorful dinners we have had in a while. The flavors in every course were all so complimentary and distinctive. To boot, we enjoyed the $ 33 pp prix fixe dining option on this Wednesday evening. What was particularly nice for this prix fixe was that you pick whatever 3 courses you want from the regular menu, and it looked to be roughly a $ 12 pp discount. It’s also BYOB, and I brought in some FFF Gumballhead, but almost every other table had either wine or champagne it appeared (good for them, but beer was perfect for us). So, I ordered up:
— Housemade corn dogs (not from the ballpark, but rather made of beef short rib)
— Braised beef cheek fettuccine
— Cranberry bread pudding
Wife ordered:
— Smoked eggplant appetizer
— Belgian endive salad
— Rainbow trout, which came with a fried egg (this was best course of all the very good ones we had).
The menu photo has a much better description of the courses. The only minor knock was the fettuccine was slightly undercooked. Otherwise, awesome meal and a charming venue. This place is tiny (we counted 14 tables) and can get noisy when filled, but it would also be a great date night sort of place. At regular prices, I would say it would be on the spendy side. Server was Amy, and she was very friendly, attentive, and always had a nice smile. She and the help were also very efficient. The place has been around for 10 years, and it’s high average 4.5 star Unilocal rating for 700 reviews is well deserved. FYI — I don’t think there’s any free parking in the area — it’s standard metered $ 2/​hour with the rest of the area looking to be permit parking. Overall, great place to try at least once and highly recommended.

This is such a quaint little restaurant tucked away in Boystown. It’s BYOB so make sure to bring a couple bottles to enjoy with your meal!
I decided to come here for my boo’s birthday dinner. Based on the reviews and the fact that it was BYOB, I thought it would totally be worth a try. Even though it was a Tuesday night and there weren’t many people in the restaurant (4 tables including our party), it took a while for the food to come out. Other than that, the service was very attentive and I can tell that they take pride in the dishes they come out with.
We ordered two of the specials that day, which was a pork tacos (definitely had a kick to it, so if you can’t take spicy, beware!) and the pork loins with creamed corn. We also ordered the mussels, which were on the main menu. We both loved the pork tacos the best, mostly b/​c of the spicy kick that it had along with the complementary flavors of the kimchi and Thai mango salsa. The mussels were pretty decent, not like the most amazing mussels I’ve had. By the time the pork loin dish came out, we were getting pretty full, so we actually only had a few bites of it and took the rest home.
Since it was my boo’s bday, of course we got some dessert. They brought it out with a little lighted candle so that he could make a wish. What’d you wish for, honey? Your wish already came true when you met me! (Barf)

A friend of mine told me that if I only visit one restaurant in the ambiguously named Boystown/​Northalsted/​Lakeview vicinity, it needed to be HB (Home Bistro). So off I went, on a cold and rainy Wednesday evening.
It might’ve been dismal outside, but the interior of HB is warm, cozy, and very inviting. Lots of earthtones and oranges, mirrors, and candles whisk you off to a romantic villa somewhere on the Mediterranean coast. Once I was seated, HB felt like a perfect refuge.
I lucked out by showing up on a Wednesday, since that’s their prix fixe night — $ 33 for 3 courses. That’s a killer deal for high-​end cuisine in a high-​rent district.
I started dinner with some hot tea — perfect for keeping those Midwestern chills at bay. (HB is a BYOB, so no booze on the menu — sorry alchies!)
Course #1 was baby beet salad with honey ricotta, hazelnut streusel, and arugula. I normally love beet-​anything, but I didn’t enjoy this salad at all. The beets were totally undercooked (mostly raw in the middle), and all that raw earthiness clashed badly with the overly-​sweet honey ricotta and streusel.
Course #2 was much better: pan-​roasted Atlantic salmon with couscous, cucumber ralta, and strawberries. The salmon was cooked perfectly, and the cool raita and sweet strawberries contrasted well with the fish.
The real highlight was Course #3 (dessert) — bread pudding. I get the impression that this is the specialty of the house, and for good reason. It’s moist and light and crazy flavorful, without overdoing it on the sweetness. It’s probably the best bread pudding I’ve ever had.
Service was very gracious and friendly. Even though I was dining solo that night, the hostess and server made me feel like part of the family.
All in all, even though the food was inconsistent, there’s still lots to like about HB.

BYOB’d on Easter Sunday. Does that make me a sinner?
I came with a fun brunch group that entailed one friend who had given up alcohol for lent. Easter Sunday he proclaimed, «Jesus rose and so will my liver!» HB was the spot for this.
The space isn’t very large but it’s airy and quaint. The bathroom is labeled as a study or something like that, and it feels like it’s antique. There’s only one toilet, so don’t break the seal until you really need to. The server was slightly overwhelmed and kept bringing out individual food items instead of everything all at once and forgot side item requests. Jesus forgives, so can I.
We popped champagne, bailey’s with coffee, I think some vodka too. The drinks made the so/​so service much easier to handle as the waitress went a little MIA when it was time to pay the bills.
As for food, the french pudding French toast is where it’s at. Veggie pancake was unique and I didn’t feel like I was going to get bloated from eating this, but not sure I’d get it again. Felt like it needed different seasonings. Hubby loved his breakfast burger and everyone was pretty content with their meals.
All in all, I would hit up HB for brunch or anything else again as BYOBing makes anything mediocre, holy.