Vermilion

Came here with a large group on my first night in Chicago. The drinks were interesting, the staff were kind (and funny) and the food was delicious. Our party had vegans, vegetarians and meat eaters and everyone was able to enjoy unique starters and mains. My favorite item of the night was the artichoke app — I could have eaten the whole tray. Over all a great meal and evening!

The Ambience:
Vermilion impresses with its black+white modern décor, lighting and paintings. One could spend a good amount time admiring the emotions of every subject in the paintings. What’s particularly romantic about the layout of the dining hall are the curtains used to separate it into quarters. My only qualm is the mold growing around the toilet bowl in the women’s bathroom. That surprisingly affected my appetite.
The Food:
1. Venezulan Arepas Duck Vindaloo ($ 11). Interesting mix of flavors. Three warm succulent pulled duck meat over cinnamon biscuits and smoked salsa. b
2. Grilled Peruvian pulpo octopus ($ 12). I anticipated this dish to be the tastiest, but contrarily, the spicy flavors came too thin and 1-​dimensional. Just salty and spicy. Sorry, but I won’t reorder this plate.
3. Tiffin «pindi» butter chicken ($ 15). YES. The creamy curry dripping over the garlic nan was a dream with every. bite. bb
4. Vermilion Hedonism. FREE. As the title suggests, this is an indulgence. The dark chocolate cake crumbles in your mouth, topped with raspberry sorbet and masala powdered orange. Devoured it like nobody’s business.

I used to love this place but things have changed. Bad service, quality of food has gone down and this time I had food poisoning. Aint coming back again…

After having waited almost a year to try this place, I must say that I was extremely disappointed with my dining experience. The restaurant seemed severely understaffed for a Thursday night, which only meant super slow service. I ordered the artichoke pakoras which were good with the eggplant chutney, but later realized that the artichokes might have been just taken our of a jar. I ordered the Goan Gobi and the tamarind eggplant which were just ok. The Gobi lacked salt and the eggplant though decent, didn’t tie the meal together. Needless to say, it wasn’t a memorable meal as I was hoping for and I wouldn’t go back or recommend this place to anyone.

We loved Vermilion. We ordered vegetarian appetizers – the toasted kale and the artichoke pakoras. Husband hates kale chips, so we assumed I would be eating the kale appetizer. Not so. We both loved it. The artichoke pakoras were also excellent. The appetizers may have been a little salty, if I had to find fault.
We also split the vegetarian tasting menu, which included an eggplant pakora topped with some spinach saag, really delicious red pepper soup, and two pani puris. I didn’t care for the pani puri, but I’ve never liked them, so no disappointment there. The entrée portion of the tasting menu was made up of gobi Portuguese, a cauliflower stewed in mild gravy; coconut basmati rice; and eggplant that had been dusted in chili and maybe tamarind. It was crispy, sweet, and spicy. We ate and enjoyed every bit of it.
The final portion of the tasting menu included three desserts and some fresh mango and mandarin orange. We liked all three desserts, our least preferred being the hedonist chocolate cake, which I thought would be our favorite. The dessert «flight,» which is what it is akin to, was made up of three different kinds of cake, one of them being very saucy. (I think I would have preferred a little variety there – perhaps one of the choices being a custard, flan, or kheer.)
As opposed to some of the Unilocal reviewers who felt the service was bad, our wait staff were exceptionally good. The restaurant was busy; we were there on a Saturday night but had made a reservation through the hotel concierge. Our server was incredibly knowledgeable and, once I told her some of my preferences, was candid and advised against certain dishes she thought I wouldn’t care for. They took care to time the delivery of our courses just right – from the amuse bouchée to the appetizers and the tasting menu. We were never without something delicious in front of us. Happily, they didn’t mind when we shared the tasting menu and didn’t push wine or other beverages. I did order a coconut-​cardamom martini as an after dinner cocktail. Extraordinary and dressed with a rose petal.
The whole experience was very nice, although a little expensive. The vegetarian tasting menu cost $ 65, I believe. I highly recommend Vermilion, especially for vegetarians.

Food — they have a few dishes that are really good but not all. Ordered a lot of different appetizers. Kale chat thin was awesome but the others were not at all good.
Ambience is very dull and seems like not well maintained. It feels sad and dull on a weekday.
Price– pretty expensive.

If you take price out of the equation, this would be a 2 star review. We went here on a Thursday night for dinner, because I received a gift certificate. It was an absolute ghost town, one other table had people at it. The wait staff didn’t know what to do with themselves and they outnumbered us by quite a few.
With entrees in their price range, I expect something delicious or innovative or something. I ordered the plantain crusted whitefish, which came covered in a pretty unappealing looking corn sauce /​salsa. It tasted fine, but was nothing special. I also ordered one of their cocktails, which was sickly sweet. Not sure how they are still in business, but if you want to visit better make it quick, cause I’d be surprised if they are open much longer.

The first inauspicious sign was being put on hold for 7+ minutes and forgotten about when making the initial reservation a few days before Valentine’s Day. An hour before the scheduled reservation, I called to confirm and they said there was no record of my reservation but they would be able to slot us in. Not a big deal, but still unprofessional.
When we arrived, we were surprised to learn the regular menu wasn’t available – only a special prix fixe dinner for $ 65. Not once in the prior THREE phone calls was this communicated. My girlfriend and I had been to Vermilion before and were looking forward to certain items (e.g. the Tandoori skirt steak) on the regular menu. We should’ve pulled the eject handle at this point but it was snowing hard and 8pm on Valentine’s Day, so it was unlikely we’d get another reservation on zero notice.
Every course was tiny and underwhelming. The one solitary oyster in course #3 wasn’t properly shucked. The salad consisted of a couple slices of beets and a few arugula leaves. The NY Strip with chimichurri had approximately two drops of chimichurri. The only saving grace were the drinks, which frankly at $ 14 a pop, are expected to be good. The Bollywood Item Number made creative use of green chilis and the Mango Mint Mojito was tasty as well.
The aftermath saw us down over $ 100/​person, disappointed, and hungry. Had it not been Valentine’s Day, we would’ve walked across the street to any one of the dozen nearby steakhouses and had a far more satisfying meal for almost half the price.

We booked the restaurant a few weeks in advance after looking at the menu and thinking the food looked interesting and the vegetarian options looked delicious… we were so wrong. The day before our dinner plans, the restaurant called at 8 pm that night to let us know that tomorrow (Sat ²⁄₁₃) was going to be a Valentine’s Day prix fixe menu, $ 65/​person. Why didn’t you tell us sooner? We would have looked into other restaurants but by then all of our favorite spots had been all booked up.
I had the vegetarian menu and my boyfriend had the regular one. We both ordered drinks. I had a cocktail and he ordered wine… poorly made cocktail with your typical river north price. All of our dishes had tiny servings (his second dish was only ONE tiny oyster). My entrée had cheese (I don’t like cheese), so the manager was nice enough to have the chef prepare me something else, but it still wasn’t great, it was just whatever they had in the back and seemed like nothing from their menu. I left starving and not happy we spent money on that. Definitely very disappointing.

…whats a Vermilion? Must try.

Summary: Did not live up to expectations. Ambiance was awkward and uncomfortable.
The details: We were in town for my husband’s 40^th birthday, so wanted to go somewhere special. As we both love Indian and Latin foods, we thought Vermilion sounded good. We had a reservation, but nobody told us that half of the restaurant was rented out for a private party, and that party was separated from the rest of the space by only a diaphanous curtain! This party involved several people making long, boring speeches using a microphone — which made it nearly impossible to have a conversation. Seriously, this went on for almost our entire dinner. We just kept looking at each other helplessly across the table, and high-​tailed it out of there as soon as we finished our food (which was decent, but honestly I paid over $ 20 for a vegetarian dish that consisted solely of cauliflower and rice). We had dessert somewhere else. I mean seriously, when your restaurant is literally one big room with no private dining space, either rent out the whole thing, or don’t do it at all. At the VERY least, warn other guests who make reservations that this will be going on, so they have the chance to opt out. We have young kids and rarely have the chance to eat someplace nicer than Red Robin, so when we have a sitter, I don’t want to waste it on a place where I’ll be subjected to someone else’s family stories about Dad chatting up strangers in an elevator. I wish I could get my money back.

I love Indian food. I had heard that this was a Latin/​Indian infusion restaurant and I thought about how interesting the flavor profiles would mesh. Upon entering, it was quiet. Really quiet. (Library quiet)… Our server was definitely not on point, for how quiet it was, as he was attending to a large party. (The only other people in the restaurant). Ordered the fenu Greek naan and came with assorted most delicious chutneys. Then the Indian style calamari. The calamari could have been cooked a touch more, but the flavor was pretty epic. Lastly the butter chicken. It came with these shoestring like onion rings. I couldn’t possibly eat the whole thing, so I took it home to devour the rest. The only real disappointment was the dessert. Strawberry something, it was awful. Very pricey dinner.

I have been to their nyc branch once and was amazed at the wonderful fusion. Sad to say that the magic did not work same in Chicago. Went here two days within a week and the food wasn’t that great for the price.
The ambience and service deserves a five star but the food is nowhere near the NYC branch. The menu needs to be updated and the prices should be lowered for sure

I came to this place after my friend had suggested that I check it out. It was my partner and mine’s first time in Chicago and we had gotten lists from all of our friends on where to go. We love food so we were a little overwhelmed by our options. However, we thought this would be a good option to break up our quest to try all the pizzas that were on our list.
We didn’t come here for a full meal, but we got two drinks each and a few small plates.
The place is a more expensive type of Indian restaurant. The food was good! The flavors were there, but sometimes it’s hard for me to be impressed by Indian food that is expensive because my family and I make equally good food at home.
The drinks though! They were delicious! I had an amazing cardamom martini. It had a few other wonderful flavors to it that I can’t seem to recall. My partner had the pani puri margarita and was in love (yes, sometimes we fall in love with our food and drinks). I ordered my drink twice because I couldn’t get enough of it.
The staff and management were also extremely friendly and attentive. If you’re in the area you’ll have to check this place out… the drinks are worth it!

Very disappointing, even though some of the food was tasty. The kitchen got our tables order totally wrong, in part because they’d run out of the lamb: they didn’t tell us but just brought what they wanted! Other dishes were wrong too. The final insult was that the manager said he’d comp us the dishes they’d got wrong, but actually didn’t ! It was dreadful.
If you do visit watch out for the constant up selling from the servers who it seems have instructions to push guests into ordering too much and more expensive options.

Pretty good. The waitress was sassy. Turned a bunch of my table off, although I thought it was somewhat endearing. Drinks were pretty good. LSD was great but a little sweet by the end. They made a decent Manhattan. The Old Fashioned I ordered had a ton of oranges and cherries, nothing to write home about. The appetizers were quite good, especially the duck. The entrees were also pretty good, but nothing amazing.
I don’t see a reason I would come back to be honest. It was good, but too expensive and the atmosphere was a little weird.

Service was great ! Food was.awesome. it
be off the beaten path so perhaps not as busy ?! But the atmosphere, service.and.food were great. Not. sure why.
Also without any prompt. They determined we were celebrating and gave us some. lovely prosecco to celebrate our night out/​anniversary!
We enjoyed the tamarind paneer and the methi/​sarson/​palak dishes the best.

Not a great experience. The place was pretty empty, too dark for a restaurant. The food was just okay, service too slow, waiters do not know what is on the menu, they don’t know what a dish is made of. We had a lot of vegetarian friends but not many vegetarian options. We ordered Panipuri cocktail (I forget the name) which was just okay. Paneer tikka was good and Chicken was good and flavorful, scallops were rubbery. The food looked good but did not taste good. It was not not the best fine dining experience. I would not recommend this place to anyone.

I can’t say anything to the food, but my mom and I stopped in for drinks on a Friday night. Our bill came out to $ 66 for 3 drinks — absolutely ridiculous. I told the girl at the bar that $ 24 for a Captain and diet was overpriced and she seemed embarrassed. She asked if that was a little expensive and we said that, yes, of course it was (considering we can buy a bottle of Captain for less than that). She took off one of the drinks, but it was still really expensive.
Did she charge so much because it was obvious that my mom was already tanked and she thought she could get away with it? Or because it really is that expensive? Either way I will never go back there.

Incredible & unique … GET THE TASTING MENU. There is no better way to experience Vermilion than the tasting menu (Veg & Omnivore are my favorites even though I am a meat lover). They have incredibly unique flavors, a cool vibe and the bartender makes craft cocktails on the spot with anything you ask for. My favorites are the pani puri, artichoke, crispy kale salad, lamb and chimichurri steak. The combination of Indian and Latin flavors is perfectly paired and there is no other place in Chicago that has this same flavor profile. It isn’t cheap but perfect for special occasions or a client meeting where you are looking for a little something extra.

I went here with my friend during lunch time. I guess its not a happening place in the afternoon. The place was semi-​empty. The ambiance looked nice. Food was good really great flavors and, the drinks was delicious.
Cons: they only had one waiter/​host/​bar tender on staff, it took a long time for the guy to take our order or even get the drinks going … the waiter did come by and apologize but I still think u should have enough staff if you are going to be open for lunch!

Vermillion offers very interesting food in a trendy, upscale atmosphere with a nice soundtrack.
They bill their food as a fusion of Indian and Latin, but it seemed to lean much more to Indian, although none of the items were traditional Indian, each had a unique and interesting spin.
We tried an extensive assortment of tapas, appetizers, and one entrée, and enjoyed all of them. There is also an interesting wine list with about half the selections available by the glass.
Service was friendly and attentive.

Food is really tasty. The best part was the chicken entrée being served in a stainless steel round box. The pani puri was really good. Loved the ambience. Parking nearby is hard to find. They have a common valet shared with a few other restaurants nearby and we could find no one to take our car. Found a street parking spot a few blocks away. But overall nice experience at the restaurant.

I think I’ve been here three times now. Vermilion is a fantastic fusion of flavors. Your taste buds will be incredibly happy. Yes, the portions are small. You don’t come here to get stuffed. Come as I did with a group, order a little of everything off the menu, and you’ll have a great time.
Like the food, the cocktails are unique; a bit sweet for my preference though.
Special shout out to our server from a couple of weeks ago, Sara. She was very knowledgeable about the menu, made great recommendations, and was generally a lot of fun. Great night out.

My curiosity was peaked when I learned of this Latin/​Indian fusion restaurant. I’d heard many good things in the past and wanted to try it out on my recent trip to Chicago. We arrived a bit late due to our flight issues and were promptly seated and tended to by our waitress, who also happened to be one of the bartenders. I chose to have a mango fusion cocktail that was remarkable.
The food was very spicy, just the way I prefer it. The cauliflower and lamb chops off the appetizer menu were delicious. For my entrée I ordered the tikka chicken, which was also very tasty and served in a traditional tiffin style, which was a pleasant surprise.

This place really nailed it on both the food and service fronts. My girlfriend left her phone in a cab and the manager handled getting it back so we could enjoy our meal without worrying. The service was prompt and helpful, without being pushy or over-​involved.
The appetizers were inventive and fun. I ordered ribs with a flavorful tamarind sauce. The ribs were tender and easy to eat with a very unique flavor. I ordered a gin and tonic which was appropriately strong and served with an artful shaved cucumber garnish. I thought the price was appropriate for the quality of food. Not an every day place for sure, but worth it.

This was my second visit to Vermilion. First time I had been here with my friends (a group of 8 friends) and next I went with my husband! My first time experience was great as the food was tasty and delicious; this led to my second visit! I would highly recommend the Pani puri margarita if you are a fan of margaritas and pani puri. Lovely drink with a twist of tangy. We ordered tapas food–
Cilantro Tamarind paneer– wow! I don’t like paneer but this was mouth watering tasty!
Anardana Chicken kabab– Very tasty and cooked to perfection!
Alcapurria Puerto rican croquette– was ok as we felt it lacked right amount of salt.
Crisp kale bale– tried this on waitress suggestion and surprisingly very tasty; enjoyed this!
We even ordered an entrée — tandoori chicken but they took really long time to serve so we had to get it packed as we were running late for our next business! But they gave us drinks and desserts on the house– we were really impressed and surprised by their gesture! Since they were late to serve the entrée, they also packed complimentary desserts! Service was excellent as they added a personal touch by making sure we were looked after! I really enjoyed my time and Latin/​Indian fusion food. Would recommend this place to all who love to eat fusion food!

One of the best fusion Indian restaurants in town! The panipuri margarita is a must try and so is the cilantro tamarind paneer. Go for the anardana chicken kabab instead of the alcapurria Puerto Rican croquette. the waitress recommended the crisp kale bhel and it was surprisingly great and different taste! If you love Indian food but want to try a different version give this place a try — I bet you won’t b disappointed.

Soooo when I made my reservation for Vermillion it was with great trepidation. I did my research and was definitely intrigued by the mixed reviews on here. My boyfriend and I are fans of Chopped so we were admittedly drawn in by the ex head chef’s reputation. We couldn’t help making jokes the whole time about all the choppable offenses on this menu.
First of all the duck arepas were basically a few crackers with shredded duck on top. I love arepas so I was pretty dismayed to not even taste a hint of that flavor. The dish was overwhelmingly sweet thanks to a maple syrup like molasses the tiny arepas were sitting in.
Coconut shrimp was tough and the crust wasn’t that flavorful. Maybe I was still offended by the arepas but these didn’t blow me away.
Artichoke pakoras were the only reasonably sized appetizer. Our Skirt steak was tender and flavorful though it was more of a medium rare/​rare than the medium the waiter suggested. Our service was good, though maybe a little pushy and shady? I honestly felt like the waiter was making fun of how fast we were finishing our tiny appetizers, giving us a «wow you guys are quick huh!» With a tight smile that made me uncomfortable.
I had high hopes for this place and i definitely understand some of the worse reviews on here now. Our meal came out to $ 100 but we still walked to the nearby McDonald’s afterwards on our anniversary night. Vermillion… you’ve been chopped…

Vermilion is still one of my favorites, and I am shocked to see all the poor ratings posted here on Unilocal.I am going to preface this by saying that I eat at Vermilion consistently.
First and foremost, this place has been a godsend for my bf and me since I am vegan and he is pretty much 100% carnivore. Vermilion always accommodates my diet 100%, and always does it well.
The coconut saffron drink is amazing and it is my favorite fancy drink in Chicago. The vegetarian tasting menu (made vegan) is phenomenal. Though lately I have been ordering off the menu (it’s cheaper than the tasting menu and you get more food) and I am consistently happy with the quantity and quality of the food. The taste of the food is innovative and complex, and something I appreciate since it’s not the same thing you can get at every other indian/​latin restaurant down the street. I love the three pepper lentil soup and the gobi entrée. There are a few other things I love too, but can’t recall the names of each item at the moment.
The restaurant can be oddly dead or extremely packed, I’ve never seen a happy medium. The atmosphere is romantic and serves as a great date night spot. And what puts the icing on the cake is Mikey, he is the best server in Chicago and I always look forward to seeing him every time we dine at Vermilion. He’s very positive, friendly, and always super helpful. I love Vermilion!

Menu végétarien complet, veganisable facilement.
Très bon mais un peu cher.