Maple Tree Inn

Great food and drinks in a cozy atmosphere. Live music as well. It’s tucked on a little corner in Blue Island. Put it on your bucket list!

Our food was excellent! I had the Dis and Dat platter, the étouffée was very, very yummy! Every thing we had was so good. The service, incredible, we had our drinks, appetizer and our entrée in half an hour. Will definitely come back, it was worth the drive.

I went in January 2016. The oyster and bacon chowder was great. The jalapeño corn muffins are like candy. My mouth and belly were happy.
I had the tower of pork. Well it was dried out and unflavored. I felt it was kept warm since Christmas. My mouth and belly were sad. I tried the shrimp and grits. Meh nothing to go out of your way for.
I have been desert free since Thanksgiving and was drooling for the beignets. Dried out burnt. Sadness.

Had the gumbo and jambalaya. Both were amazing. Also has a great list of beer and cocktails. Highly recommend.

My husband and I went here for our 7^th wedding anniversary, in April. I had the Jambalaya, which was fantastic. My husband had Crawfish Etoufee, which he loved. We ended our meal with some chicory coffee and bread pudding. Nice atmosphere, great service and phenomenal food. We’ll definitely be back :)

Visited with a couple of locals and a coworker… very cool spot. Thursday at 7 found a batch of empty tables… seated in the former porch area… now very nice dining area.
Beer menu excellent; a little heavy on the heavy /​hot beers but no matter; plenty for all.
Had to have Zombie dust first… no way to avoid… second was a really good sour… recommended by the wait staff person who nailed it.
While there… check out the Blue Island Brewery right down the street.
All in all… excellent place; interesting neighborhood.
Go for it.

Here’s the thing… This is the closest thing to authentic, Cajun/​Creole food that you will find outside of NOLA. Hands down. I’ve been to the Big Easy a few times, and I’ve been lucky enough to eat at some gems down there (Jacques-Imo’s… Yum), and The Maple Tree stands shoulder to shoulder with the best! My wife and I have been going to the Maple Tree for 20 years now, and it’s been through many changes. The current configuration may be the best it’s ever been! Lucky for all of you!
Highlights include an awesome, rotating selection of locally brewed and hard to find beers.
A specialized cocktail menu that is truly one of a kind — featuring drinks lovingly prepared by a staff of mixologists, not bartenders.
Four words that have literally changed our lives… Hickory. Buttered. Barbecue. Shrimp. There are no words.
Crawfish Étouffée that will change the way you look at mud bugs forever.
Mr. Charlie’s Oysters are sinful. and they are the best oysters you will find west of the Atlantic.
Not for kids, or the meat and potato crowd. Your taste buds will be rewarded by an onslaught of flavors that you will not find anywhere else in Chicago. A must visit — even thought it’s a bit tough to find!

Had to come check out this place. Me and my guy was driving around we checked out Unilocal and this was a recommended choice so we came. Food is good, wait staff super nice and décor was inviting.

Great food, fun drinks and always busy! Make sure you put in a reservation on a Friday/​Saturday night!

I don’t know what food everyone else has enjoyed but clearly it wasn’t the same food I had tonight. Because I’m tired I’m gonna get to the point.
— the Voodoo cocktail was very good and pretty much saved this review and my dinner experience
— the Mr. Charlie oysters were ok but not what I expected. The cheese underneath was still shredded. I think it was supposed to be melted
— every single dish from the appetizers to the entrée was lukewarm.
— the gumbo that was served was lukewarm. We sent it back and received a new bowl of gumbo that was slightly warmer than lukewarm.
— the shrimp étouffée was salty
On the bright side the pecan pie was delicious and my waiter was exceptional.
I don’t know what to say about a restaurant that can’t serve food hot.

Fantastic! A little dark with the lighting but it’s ok. Great food, reminds me of my trips to NOLA. All that was missing was the Abita beer. All else, spot on for a New Orleans meal in Illinois.

I have spent a great deal of time in NO. Married a native, and have enjoyed every trip to NO that we have made over the years. Have done the ABC’s of NOLA and have ventured out of the Quarter to explore all that the city offers. That in mind… my expectations for Maple Tree Inn… were low.
I was blown away! It was fantastic. I can’t believe I haven’t made it here before 2015! Felt like I was sitting in the «Quarter» with friends and eating/​enjoying truly authentic Louisiana cooking. Beautiful and comfortable interior, great bar — beautiful construction, great lighting, the menu was awesome and drinks were plentiful. I knew, when I saw «Zombie Dust» was on TAP, this place was going to be something special.
Fried green tomatoes, Charlie’s Oysters, BBQ shrimp and grits… all fantastic! Desserts… really wonderful. Peach cobbler… yes please! Sweet potato cheese cake… really great. Service was excellent and very friendly.
Can’t wait to get back as soon as possible. A truly hidden gem in the heart of Blue Island… off the beaten path, but well worth the trip.

We had reservations on Sunday… Love the ambience and the Live Jazz band!
The Food:
I had the seafood gumbo, first impresión Was wow such a big bowl But it’s actually only half Full and the gumbo just ok kinda bland with small shrimp and seafood nibblers! The seafood jambalaya Was great and filling loved the okra and tomatoes… overall would try again.
Oh my hubby had dis and dat and said it Was tasteless But the mornay Was to die for

We wanted to check out a bar in the area and thought we would grab some food nearby and spotted this place on Unilocal.With all the great reviews we thought it would be really fun. Sadly that wasn’t the case. We went around 8pm last Friday night and just beat the rain. It’s a cute atmosphere with a faux gator overlooking the bar, Jazzfest posters and Mardi Gras decorations. We got seats on the veranda in really comfy padded armchairs.
The menu looked great and we thought we would have a hard time deciding on what to order but we wanted seafood, and it wouldn’t be right to pass up on gumbo. We got the Charlie’s flash fried oysters and a small cup of gumbo for starters. These were both meh. The oysters and the gumbo were really bland and nothing special. I regret ordering them. I got the seafood bouillabaisse and he got the crabe avec crabe. My soup had much more flavor than the gumbo and wasn’t bad. His crab dish was heavy on the batter and somewhat greasy but the fries with it were really good.
As many others have mentioned, there’s a narrow stairway to the restrooms which you share with part of the kitchen, it’s not the best set up but that’s what it is. We both left disappointed.

A hidden gem! They had an amazing beer selection, and the food was absolutely perfect. Our group tried just about everything on the menu (and that is not an exaggeration). My personal favorite is either the pork tower or the bouillabaisse. As for appetizers, just take your pick, as you are inevitably going to love it. The waitress we had was absolutely lovely and made wonderful beer selections as well as food selections. She was spot on and we cannot wait to go back with more friends and family.

As many times as we’ve been here, I can’t believe I haven’t written a review. Let me see if I can sum up all of our visits for ya.
Things you MUST try:
SPECIALTY COCKTAILS (Emily makes an awesome drink!) — Recently, I tried the ancho sour. uh-​maz-​ing. It had a little bit of heat and finished creamy because of the egg white. Really delish, I definitely suggest you try it. If those kinds of drinks don’t tickle your fancy, the craft beers (24 on tap) should scratch that itch. There are so many to choose from & quite honestly, they have some I have not seen anywhere else.. . Not that I drink much or anything.. . hehe. Ohhhh & they have wine on tap too for my fellow winos.
OYSTERS — Unless you’re allergic, you need to have them. Here’s the thing, I’ve tried them all. Let me break it down for you… Get Mr. Charlies — They are definitely my favorite (& probably the most fattening). They’re fried, then broiled then melted with butter, garlic & asiago cheese. Absolutely phenomenal. Make sure you use the bread to sop up the butter and cheese goodness left on the plate, otherwise you’ll be wasting it & that’s definitely against foodie rules! Okay enough about those. let’s talk about the others…
2 X 2 X 2 — 2 Rockefeller — butter, spinach & fennel
2 Bienville — garlic cream sauce, mushrooms, shrimp, and provolone
2 Deviled — spicy topping with sweet butter, red bell peppers, capers,
All three of these variations are delicious but stay away from the deviled if you are not a fan of spicy. They’re not too hot but have a pretty spicy kick.
Finally, Grilled oysters. The have cilantro, red pepper, butter garlic & some other good stuff I can’t remember, but that’s unimportant.. . Ha! These are great too but once again, they have a kick. in the shin. Especially when you have heartburn. Yowza! Delicious, nonetheless.
TOWER OF PORK — The name pretty much says it all. . it literally is a tower of pork. Braised pork shank with sausage and stuff… YUM! I would suggest sharing, unless you just came back from a Naked & Afraid episode.
HICKORY SMOKED SPARERIBS — Dry rubbed, slow smoked. Fabulous. That’s all. Just eat em. You will not be disappointed!
I almost forgot dessert! Pecan pie and sweet potato cheesecake were my favs. Damn I’m hungry now!
See you soon Mr. Charlies!

As I stepped out of the car on Olde Western Avenue, I looked up and down the street at the old buildings. The sun was starting to set, there were cars parked but no one outside. I’ve never been to Hollywood, but it felt like a movie set. More specifically, it kind of felt like Sesame Street, only without giant, yellow birds carelessly walking down the street.
To get more out of this picturesque setting, there’s a small patio, but we opted to sit inside. The restaurant is split into two very different areas: The first is in the bar; a dark, noisy, crowded area. The second is area is on the veranda; a casual dining area surrounding by windows that allow in tons of natural light. There’s room for a band at the back of the room, crankin’ out some Dixieland tunes. We sat in this area, mostly unoccupied until closer to 7:00PM on a Saturday.
The beer and cocktail menu at Maple Tree Inn is impressive! I had a Pimm’s Cup, which was just as good here as in NOLA, and followed up with a Seattle Pumpkin Cider. Yes, pumpkin CIDER.
The food was good, but some items disappointed our group. I love creamy soups, but the Crab Bisque disappointed the two of us who ordered it. The broth was very well seasoned and had a nice spice, but it was lacking any meat! There were about three shreds of crab in the whole bowl. The «bisque» was more of a broth consistency. I definitely would not order this again, I felt sort of ripped off.
We all enjoyed the complimentary bread basket (who doesn’t?) and those little jalapeño cheese corn muffins with the chive butter were much coveted. We shamelessly asked for refills more than once, and the waiter was happy to oblige.
For my entrée, I had the «Shrimp Boat,» which is a soughdough bread bowl, buttered and sprinkled with garlic, and filled with fried shrimp. The shrimp was generously portioned, overflowing the «bowl,» and they were quite meaty shrimp.
I was the only one at the table (there were four of us) who did not try the rice and red beans, but the opinion was overwhelming: not good. The rice and beans were underseasoned, and my tablemates agreed that the boxed Zatarain’s from the grocery store or Popeye’s were actually better. They were all looking forward to this dish which was extra disappointing.
If I were in the area, I would definitely saddle up to the bar and explore the draft beers more.
We went the indulgent route and tried many things. Four drinks, two entrees, and some extras were just over $ 90 (before tax & tip). Our waitress did explain to us that she could not give us two separate checks because of their outdated system, but they were able to run two cards with the amounts we told them. She was helpful and apologetic.
Nice time, good food, but for my N’Awlins cravings, Maple Tree isn’t quite #1 on my list.

Missing NOLA from our last visit (wife was missing shrimp and grits) I decided to take the wife to Maple Tree to finally check the place out… and we were glad we did!
Food itself was quite good. For appetizers we got mussels with a thai red curry sauce. Wasn’t really what we expected to be offered here, but was good. The hickory bbq shrimp was what the wife ordered and she liked it though the grits weren’t as she wanted/​had it in NOLA. Still good though. I had the blackened catfish etoufee and I thought the seasoning and everything worked perfectly.
Drinks were good and strong and service was very good.
Only not so great part were the beignets. Wife had 2 of them and they were shells. It was totally hollow on the inside. Not sure how that happened.
We would have never expected this place travelling over here. Quite a pleasant surprise. Will definitely be back!

I was stoked to meet friends at Maple Tree Inn. It should have spelled a fabulous evening for me: Louisianan fare plus superb company is enough to push any restaurant into the four to five star range; however, Maple Tree Inn was a surprising disappointment.
It’s possible that Maple Tree Inn was going for a crowded, boisterous vibe but the cacophony and narrow spaces spelled c-​l-​a-​u-​s-​t-​r-​o-​p-​h-​o-​b-​i-​a for me. There was more than one occasion where servers and patrons had to back into seated guests to get through. The precarious staircase down to the bathroom was what had me most concerned — especially as employees bustled about carrying things as patrons formed a squeamish queue in one of the restaurant’s back arteries.
The tin ceiling were delightful to behold and added some characteristic New Orleans charm but did nothing to mute the din of the many talking and eating maws in the packed space. Trains roared passed the open windows every 20 minutes. My party of four overcompensated by speaking in loud voices ourselves which only added to the clamor.
Our server was affable but lugubrious. There were long moments between each. and. every. interaction. Our drinks were mixed up and I bit my tongue about it because I didn’t want it to take longer to fix. Although the slow drumbeats of service were in sharp juxtaposition to the vivaciousness of the atmosphere, I assert that they were correlated. Perhaps the languid velocity was due to the numerous tables demanding attention and squeezing of bodies between them slowing efficiency like the plaque filled arteries timing a calamity.
The food was simply okay, which provided an interesting conversation at our table about expectations. Unilocal reviews led us to believe that we would be traversing to the NOLA of the southern Chicago suburbs. Unfortunately for Maple Tree Inn, everyone at my table has visited New Orleans, Louisiana and has consumed its native edibles. M and I have been to the legendary Drago’s Seafood Restaurant and enjoyed two servings of their Charbroiled Oysters. Shame on me for looking for Maple Tree Inn to compare. We shared Mr. Charlie’s Oysters and the Grilled Oysters and they were good but different from Drago’s.
Next I had the Hickory Buttered BBQ Shrimp for $ 23. My instincts were wary of barbecue shrimp but I yielded to the raves of fellow Unilocalers who hark the heralds of this entrée. It was rich and flavorful; however, I’ve had better shrimp and grits for cheaper than the $ 23 price tag at Maple Tree Inn.
M had the Hickory Smoked Spareribs for $ 18 and shared one with me. It was served with the sauce on the side and the actual rib was laden with fat. I burned the roof of my mouth with my first bite before M took it from me and slathered the sauce on it. Although the sauce improved the experience it failed to raise it beyond disappointing. M only ate one of the two remaining ribs and was still hungry when we returned home. She said that the three-​location chain Heaven on Seven was both cheaper and better than Maple Tree Inn.
Lastly we shared the Trio of Desserts and the Beignets. The trio included lemon bars, angel food cake, and some sort of interpretation of crème brûlée. The latter was my favorite. I am sensitive to eggs and disliked the angel food cake and the lemon bars because of faint eggy flavors. The beignets were delicious.
Perhaps it was unfair to go into Blue Island’s Maple Tree Inn with memories of NOLA dancing in the back of my mind; however, Unilocal pulled a cold one on me. This was by no means a 4.5 star experience and certainly not worth a trek to Blue Island.

I was very excited to come to this restaurant because of the terrific reviews on Unilocal.There were a number of positives last night.
–We found parking easily on the street.
–The weather was fantastic.
–We got a table for four right away in the back room at 6:00 on a Saturday night.
–Excellent breeze and temperature in back room.
–Our server was fabulous, attentive, funny and efficient.
–Desserts were out of this world.
–5% discount for paying with cash.
–My husband loved his scallops.
There were also some things that were good.
–Charlie’s oysters were good.
–Iced tea was good.
–Hurricane was good but as it’s premade, couldn’t be light on the rum.
There were other aspects which were disappointing.
–Grilled oysters were just OK.
–Crabe with crabe was a super greasy entrée, couldn’t enjoy it as there was so much grease.
–Ginger beer with rum was not very tasty. It was recommended as a drink I could get light on the rum and it was also light on the taste.
— 2 other members of our party had the ribs and shrimp and didn’t finish or enjoy them.
–Conversation was nearly impossible as it was so loud.
–To use the bathroom you have to go through the kitchen, down the stairs and wait for one ladies’ room. While you are waiting, you are in the traffic pattern for all the wait staff.
–Overall, it was a very pricey meal and my husband came home hungry and made popcorn.
I am glad I came here as I have read so much about it. It’s well run, I just didn’t particularly enjoy my meal. I wouldn’t come back but it is a fun, lively place if you like it loud.