The Bedford

Two Words: Mushroom Toast! … I love this place. I came to Chicago on a business trip and one of the Staff members at my hotel recommended this restaurant. It has a great ambiance. The Mushroom Toast was AMAZING! I can’t stop thinking about it. The next time I’m in town, this will be the first stop on my list.

So, I only came here for a couple of glasses of wine for happy hour, while traffic out of the city died down. With that being said, this place is gorgeous. It is an old bank that has been retrofit to become a cool, dark restaurant. You walk down a flight of stairs to enter the restaurant and immediately walk into the bar area. The hostess will either seat you, or show you to the open bar seating, which is not small by any stretch of the word. To the left, as you walk in is a cool, semi-​private lounge that was once a safe, that still has the huge door and safe deposit boxes in tact. There is a lot of seating here for dining as well, which leads me to believe they serve a pretty high volume of guests for dinner. I had a couple of glasses of rose while at the bar, which were a little over priced in my opinion, but, when you take into account the location, décor and ambiance, it was well worth it. Fantastic place to go for a date, or even just drinks. Will for sure come back again very soon.

Fun dim lit atmosphere! There was a Tuesday night special for cheap burgers and beers. Great place for dinner with a friend!

I recently went to this place a few days ago with some friends. This place is so cool, especially the vault room. This place is very low key and is definitely a place to go to. I came in sat at the bar, the bartender was awesome! I tried oysters for the first time i was skeptical but they were great! I also had the burger and their Mac n cheese topped with onion crumbs which were amazing. I will definitely be back. Since I am in the hospitality industry its so nice to dine at a place that has great food and service!

The food is unbelievably tasty every time. Deviled eggs are a favorite. The beef dishes are delicious as well. I chose to give 4 stars instead of 5 because the last two times I’ve gone the dinner service has been painfully slow even when it wasn’t particularly busy. It was a solid mix of kitchen and servers, but the food and cocktails were truly worth the wait.

The ambiance and every single plate we ordered was fantastic. A real Chicago gem! You feel super trendy eating in an old bank volt.
Starters
Pot Roast Rolls– must!
Roasted Mushroom & Gruyère on toast– super yummy
Jar of pickles– I’d pass next time
Sides
Broccolini– so underrated
Mac & Cheese– one of the better ones I’ve tasted in the past few years
Kennebec fries– my party of 5 liked these more than I did
Brussel sprouts– I love love brussel sprouts, but I will say their version wasn’t something I’d write home about– I wanted them to be roasted not as soggy. Just seemed like a dish anyone could make while the others were out of this world!
Main
Lamb Ragu– my dish, the mint and fennel pairing was superb
Beef Short rib– solid meat go to dish– my bf loved it
Free range chicken breast– pretty good
Dessert
get the doughnuts, you won’t be disappointed!

Their food is really good here. I enjoyed everything except for their beef tartare. Drinks are awesome.
1. Meat and cheese appetizer board — THE BOMB
2. Mussels — sauce tastes like pizza! It had bacon bi.chunks. I’m hungry just thinking about it.
3. Fried cauliflower — holy schmoly… It tasted like fried shrimp!
4. Chicken entre — soooo tender and juicy. A little bit too salty… But it was still really good.
5. Chicken liver pâté — terrible way of serving it. It’s delicious, but they already put it on toast! Why not just put it in a jar and let me put it on my toast? This was a little hard to share. It was on two pieces of toast.
Service was pathetic! We went on the Jazz Night on a Wednesday. It was barely busy. The server was hardly around… She was constantly always in a hurry to leave our table. She even had 3 other people who had to come help her.
The worst part is, she even rolled her eyes at us.
I’ll be back one day… But I can’t expect good service.

We were introduced to the Bedford by number one daughter – Thank you number one daughter!
Someone made an inspired decision for this restaurant setting – downstairs in a bank – the conversion is elegant, but still allowing for a relaxed dining experience. A focus of the restaurant is the vault – fun, but not at all necessary to soak in the restaurant’s atmosphere.
With the first step into the restaurant, the staff welcomes you for an evening of enjoyable dining. Our waitress (Alexa, I think – this review is being written with a few weeks after our visit) was professional and watchful, making sure we were happy with each aspect of the meal.
I ordered the Monty Burns cocktail – the name nearly describes it – a specialty cocktail that was special.
We ordered a Kalette Salad, short ribs and grilled Bayette steak. The salad had a thoughtful, creative mix that included apple and jicama – very fresh, enough for two to share. I was pleased with my order of the Bayette steak – served rare, just as requested – the plate was full of complementary tastes that added to the enjoyment of the steak.
Number one daughter had been to the restaurant and thought we’d enjoy it – her savvy doing this through Groupon. The remarkable point of this is that the restaurant was again welcoming, only inclined to be generous in what was offered during the meal.
We went mid-​week which made the spot very conversational friendly. With a crowd on the weekend, I would think the volume rises – our daughter enjoyed the weekend setting.
So this is a restaurant with a diverse, straightforward menu that compels one to put it on the ‘let’s-go-again’ list.

If you were just strolling by the neighborhood, you probably would give The Bedford much thought. The entrance is hardly marked near a busy corner in division street and the restaurant, being in the basement, isn’t really noticeable from the street. But down in the basement of a former bank building, is a great surprise.
First of all, we loved the restaurant design. Fantastic space re-​use with a bar area surrounded by former safe deposit boxes, marble floors and a fantastic bar area. The restaurant is a bit loud but not overwhelming for a dinner conversation. The bar area is likely noisier.
The service was friendly and competent. Not a super large menu but certainly enough variety to please a group. The cauliflower fritter small plate was delicious — nicely fried and yummy dipping sauce. The olives were nice to munch with drinks (but we’d like more large olives over small ones). We enjoyed a complimentary champagne taste.
The lamb ragu and squash agnolotti were truly delicious. The 3 of us shared and enjoyed sides of brocollini (outstanding) and fries (also good). The dessert choices are a bit limited and we decided that we were full enough so we passed.
Great spot with a great vibe. Give it a try!

YUM! This place is yum. And I mean you’re eating in a 1920’s bank vault surrounded by plush seating and fireplaces so the ambiance is pretty cool, I guess…
Started out with the Ricotta Honey Toast which was absolutely delicious. Great mix of savory and sweet, came with two toasts, great for sharing. Ordered the Lamb Ragu and Mac and Cheese for dinner. Life hack — add bacon to the Mac and Cheese. Trust me. Lamb Ragu was perfectly cooked, perfectly seasoned and a huge portion. Also got the octopus which was amazing.
Also — going out here is mad fun. Great music and craft cocktails. Love this place!

Came here for drinks. A friend mentioned that it was another friend’s birthday just to see if we could get the vault. The waitress brought us a slice of cake, which was nice… Until we got the bill and there was a $ 9 charge for that cake, which we didn’t order.
Come midnight, they called last call. Ten minutes later they all but kicked us out.
Would not come back. There are much better places.

This place is my place. I trust everything on the menu.
Food:
I LOVE the steak tartar: perfect flavor
Cheese & charcuterie is always amazing and different each time.
Wine — we get a bottle of Malbec and LOVE it.
Pork meat balls are decadent porkiness!
Service — always top notch!
Ambiance: warm, inviting… There is a wall of fireplaces and you can grab a drink in a legit old bank vault. Sometimes there’s a band on the weekends or later at night.
I never have to wait for a table and I’ve been about 6 times.

A massive old bank vault open to the public, food and drinks served by a barley clothed young lady next to a fireplace, these things may explain all the five star reviews but I am surprised bewildered and baffled.
The scallop dish really stood out. When creating a dish for fine dining you must imagine, design, execute and deliver. Let me deconstruct. One scallop, split in half, wrapped in potato strings, fried crispy on both sides taking extra care to suck every last morsel of moisture from said ½ scallop. This french fry with the essence of scallop was situated upon a mound of braised parsnips that were coated in some sweet glaze, mmmm sweet and salty, just like fast food.
Oysters were $ 3 each, about what everyone else charges, their selection was what you would expect from a Myrtle Beach fried fish shack.weak.
Hangar steak with rotten, I mean spoiled, er um rancid yes that’s the word, rancid fucking potatoes.
The food was abysmal on all counts, braised octopus, smothered in a pasty acidic tomato sauce with some vial sweet starchy gluey concoction they call crème Fraiche, topped with arugula. A murky marshy mixture that made me wonder things aloud.
Even with the Groupon it was still $ 50 per person, so many other places, what an absolute failure.

I came here Friday night for an early Valentines celebration with the boyfriend. We had a reservation for 7 and were seated promptly. Our server, Rachael, was fantastic! She gave us a brief history of The Bedford as this was my boyfriends first time here. We had drinks and shared the mussels to start– delicious! We shared the chicken and brussel sprouts as an entrée– chicken was a small portion but was tender and had a tasty broccoli garnish. The brussel sprouts were made with chicken jus and bacon and were divine. All in all this is a great date spot but a little pricey for a casual night out. I will definitely be back to celebrate more special occasions over the years!

So this place is cool, in a sense. Its an old bank vualt turned bar, very lounge and swanky vibe. I was here on a wednesday night, the place is rather large and was not very crowded yet service was very slow. We were prob seated for 20 min before the waitress came by.
We ordered manhattans to drink which were good. To eat we order the brussle sprouts, which I loved, and the honey roasted carrots, which were not bad but I wasnt crazy about them. I think I was expecting something more sweat than savory and they were definitely more savory for carrots.
Its a good date spot, not a place to meet people or really mingle with other crowds.

Low lights, comfy seating, not too noisy, fireplaces… great atmosphere for a date night. I was blown away by every single bite. We had the deviled eggs, chicken liver mousse, Brussels sprouts, pork meatballs, and cheese platter. The pork meatballs and Brussels sprouts tasted amazing together. The deviled eggs combined with hot sauce were to die for.
There are some «large plates,» but the menu has a lot of appetizers, smaller plates, and sides that can be shared. Since the food is so tasty, this is the route I’d recommend going so you can try several different things.

Let me start by saying the service is absolutely amazing!!!
I’ve been to the Bedford a few times before, but never hosted a party. At first, I was skeptical due to cost for a large party, cake cutting fee was high, 18% gratuity etc. It was the perfect location for my Great Gatsby (1920’s) theme party for my friend, and I had no choice to endure the cost those fees.
Upon arrival, we were greeted by the host immediately. They walked us to the reserved spot in the vault. I was instantly shock! I thought that the vault had a minimum of $ 500 for a reservation. While setting up for the surprised party our host Heidi offered us complimentary champagne (so that’s not the first AWESOME thing) after setting up they offered us and entire complimentary bottle of champagne (CRAZY)! I’m sure this does not happen often. I am beyond grateful that they accommodated us.
The entire time we were there we never had to wait on Heidi. She was always readily whenever we needed her. The food came out fast (especially for a large party) and it tasted great (no one complaints from anyone). Usually, I don’t like burgers in this case it was spicy and yummy (when in doubt go for the burger).
Overall, thank you for making this experience at the Bedford a memorable one for the birthday girl. You guys absolutely rock! Thank you Heidi for your outstanding service!

Holy happy hour Thursday! Such a great place to go on a Thursday evening for some $ 1 oysters! We came in this past Thursday to celebrate and got 4 dozen oysters with half a pitcher and it was such a great spot. It really sets the mood with the dim lighting and how it’s set up. Our waitress was so accommodating and helpful.
My goal is to try all the $ 1 oyster spots in Chicago and I can finally check off Bedford as one of the completed spots. They had 3 types of oyster available that night: west coast, east coast & daily oyster. Of course, we got all three. It was great! Even the punch was not too overpoweringly strong and just the right amount of alcohol. I’d love to come back next time!

Another restaurant on my list of Chicago musts that must have hit its peak a while ago. The Bedford is a cool, swanky bank-​turned-​restaurant with a menu that a foodie would love, but one that does not live up to its descriptions.
My friends took me out to the Bedford to celebrate my birthday and check out this WP hot spot. The waitress tempted us with the sound of the Chamomile Tequila Punch so we started our night off with a half bowl order. While the list of ingredients all sounded fancy and elaborate, it really should’ve said «house party style tequila punch.» We were shocked that this was actually one of those giant punch bowls you see at college parties filled with SUPER strong alcohol. Definitely embarrassed that this crowded up our table. Where were all the promises of chamomile, lime and grapefruit? We will never know.
As for food, my friend and I shared the beef tartare, the macaroni and cheese and the mussels. My other friend had the classic Bedford burger, which she loved and what we should’ve ordered, because the dishes my friend and I ordered weren’t as scrumptious as we had hoped.
First off, the beef tartare. I personally thought the chunks of meat were off-​pleasing and not the usual even consistency of tartare. Love the raw egg, but the beef cubes did not vibe well with us and I felt bad this was my friend’s first time with tartare. The macaroni and cheese was pretty standard. At first, I thought the creaminess tasted a little artificial and almost velveeta-​y, but it grew on me as the onion topping really redeemed this side. We also had the mussels which were my favorite of the night. A giant pile of mussels with a tasty tomato broth. Not enough toast for dipping, but it were delicious indeed! My friend also had the whipped ricotta and truffle honey toast and she said that was her favorite dish.
So to conclude, the food at the bedford isn’t anything exceptional, but is clearly known for it’s atmosphere and trendy setup.

Prime date night spot
The Experience:
Went here with my girlfriend with a promotional coupon. When we arrived they had a special experience set up for us. They gave us keys and escorted us through the authentic large vault door into the safe then to the wall of safety deposit boxes. We then opened one of the boxes to reveal our menu for the night. Really nice idea that added a little adventure /​intrigue.
I am not sure if they do this regularly but if you wanted to surprise your significant other with a gift it wouldn’t be a bad idea to give them a key and have them open a box to reveal the gift. I assume the staff would help you out with that as they are very nice and accommodating.
Love the ambience in the place very intimite dimly candle lit setting. Multiple fireplaces inside. The vault itself makes for a really interesting interior.
The food:
I felt like the food was a bit expensive for what you were getting. Food was average but service was excellent.

Absolut stylish !!! Sehr ungewöhnlich dieses Restaurant/​Bar in qype erstmal neu anlegen zu müssen. The Bedford ist eine der angesagtesten Clubs im Wicker-​Park District. In einem ehemaligen Bankgebäude (UG) befindet sicher der Club in de Safe– & Schliessfachräumen. Zum Interior muss man die Bilder auf der Homepage einfach gesehen haben. Das Publikum ist sehr gemischt, vorwiegend um die 30. Preisniveau für Getränke ca. 20% niedriger als in Bars Chicago downtown oder Loop-​District. Wenn man eine ausgefallen Location sucht, The Bedford ! Die servierten Gerichte haben, optisch, einen klasse Eindruck gemacht. Wer etwas ruhiger sitzen möchte, empfiehlt sich eine Reservierung im Safe.