The Clocktower Cafe

Was rollerblading down lakefront trail with my gf and decided to stop by for a bite.
Everything’s in the $ 10 – 12 range. Sitting on the patio was nice but nothing special. We got a chicken sandwich it was really good. The fries were okay, way too much seasoning.
Reason for the 3 star rating is that the service was pretty poor. The waitress was nice but not around when we needed her and it took us forever to get the check when we were in a hurry.
Also we were sitting right next to a window with a few large spiders crawling around their webs. ewww

I was really impressed with the food here, definitely better than what you can usually expect from a seasonal place by the beach. There is a small patio on the west side facing the softball fields and a larger patio on the east sides with great golf course and lake views.
I had the California club on a pretzel roll, it was piled high with fresh avocado and crispy bacon. There was a spicy mayo on it that really made it excellent. The fries are also excellent, huge thick cut steak fries. The wine was wine, and $ 7 which is reasonable.
The service on the other hand was extremely unprofessional right from the beginning. When we entered the restaurant the manager was asking two servers to step outside, you could tell that they were getting in trouble for something. No one greeted us or offered to seat us and our server came over in a huff, clearly having a bad day, but not something you take out on the guest.
Luckily the location of this restaurant can’t be beat… the décor, tables and professionalism on the other hand, eek.

I’ve golfed at sydney marovitz hundreds of times but last Saturday was the first time I ate a clocktower. The food, atmosphere, and location was great but the wife and I were turned off by the bartender. He frequently disappeared when we needed him. What offended my wife the most was his attitude toward his coworkers and the cart girl. I don’t think he realized that I’ve golfed here 100s of times so I think that their cart girl does a tremendous job especially when the course is busy. I’ll come back again but will never sit at the bar again because of his negativity.

Much better than expected food, drink and service.
Nice deck, comfortably cushioned chairs with umbrella tables overlooking a golf course 18^th green and views of the lake beyond, as well as the namesake clock tower. Imparted is a private country club leisurely 19^th hole feeling.
Indoor dining is not at all as attractive. Some tromp l’oeil murals and/​or more windows would help a lot.
Their quesadillas and salsa and guacamole are fresh and as good as or better than those of many more typical restaurants and at much lower cost.
The Toasted Cheese Ravioli is crispy edged and delicious, served with a tasty, tangy marinara dipping sauce. Portion is a bit small, because it’s good and I want more.
Their Wisconsin Bratwurst is of the highest quality, crumbly and dry meat in a perfect, crunchy sleeve– much better than is necessary really– served on a tender French roll with sauteed onions, tasty, tangy brown mustard and sided with thick, rippled potato chips that were potatoey fresh and crispy in a hot, very humid late morning. Brat is available as package deals with chips and soda or beer.
Brewed iced tea! Well prepared Arnold Palmers! Free refills!
Decent selection of icy cold and good tap, canned and bottled beers, mostly IPAs. Very short list of serviceable, inoffensive wines of the expected types.
Seemingly slightly overpriced, though to a thoroughly acceptable and situationally understandable degree. In other words, please consider all aspects of the wonderfulness here before concluding total bill is too high.
Servers have always been of excellent quality as well, friendly, kind, thoughtful and generous. Good people to have as allies and accomplices. Perhaps the chitchat amongst and between servers and cooks could be diminished somewhat to improve speed of service.
Plenty of parking.
We really like this place and the people who work here. I’m sorely tempted to give them a five, though can’t quite do that yet.
~Peter O. and S.

Near the lake and outdoor patios. Staff is a bit rushed but friendly. The food is so-​so; saw that there were drink specials! Anyplace with TVs gets one less star in my book but overall it’s a decent place to grab a bite and chill when you’re by the lake!

The café is awesome. I’ve been there 3 times in the past 2 weeks. It seems like it’s under new management. GREAT food — recommend the hummus. Cool kinds of beer on tap including something dark. Just had the ice tea — it’s the real deal. Highly recommend!

This is a great location and perfect for a summer brunch. The prices are good and I enjoy the food/​drinks but my one complaint is that service is always incredibly slow, even when it isn’t very busy. I’ll definitely go back, just don’t go if you’re really hungry or thirsty as it will probably be a while

On Saturday afternoon after playing tennis at the courts on Recreation Drive we decided to grab a beer at the Clock Tower Café. The weather was perfect and we were able to grab a table on the west patio overlooking the softball fields. When we sat down our table still had all the glassware from the previous group. The waiter stopped by after about 15 minutes and finally started clearing off the table and took our order. This wait would be acceptable if this place was bigger however there are no more than 15 tables on both the patios combined and the inside bar is small too. I couldn’t tell if they were simply short staffed or whether the server was just terrible…
When we got the check our bill came to $ 22 for 3 beers before any tip… We had ordered two 312s and a Budweiser. The amount seem a little high given that we ordered 3 very common beers and I’m glad we didn’t decided on getting a 2^nd round. It’s a bit of a rip off paying that much for just okay domestic beer.
The experience overall is pleasant. You can’t argue about sitting on a patio in a park enjoying a beer. Will I go back? Probably not. I live right on Lake Shore Drive a few blocks from the café so the next time I want to drink a beer in the park I’ll bring a cooler.

Parisian outdoor café meets DMV.
This location has struggled for years, under various managements. Waitstaff vary from inexperienced summer jobbers to lovely and helpful staff. Fortunately, our waitress today was in the latter category. Either way, there may be a bit of a bottleneck in the kitchen that slows service. They seem not to have as much room as they need.
Food was better this year than last.
The manager on duty today was a rude, unkempt lout who smoked cigarettes just outside the entrance to the deck.
There’s a je né sais quoi that’s missing. The place gives the impression of being owned by nobody. Perhaps you have to know somebody downtown to get the nod for a business in the park. If you took this place and teleported it to Halsted street, it would not last three weeks.

It was cold watching softball yesterday and was sure I could get coffee at Clock Tower and something to eat.
But they were closed until May.
This place is a gem on the lakefront and needs to be open.

A nice little surprise after some softball. The menu was standard but was executed well. I had a tasty burger. The back patio overlooks the golf course and the lake and is a nice little spot to have food outside on a sunny day.
The order took longer than it should off, hence the 3 stars. I understand they were short staffed and had a football rush they weren’t prepared for and even though they were understanding and apologetic it still knocks it down a peg.

I love this place. In fact we normally play softball at the North Ave fields but I’m going to vote that we start playing here just because of this place. Good food. Pleasant staff. Good drink specials (even on Saturday). It’s off the beaten path but if you’re golfing or playing softball stop in, you won’t be disappointed.

get place to grab a drink or quick bite to eat. Also, dogs can sit on front patio! Bonus!

«Wait! … Oh wait!» We had just finished a very enjoyable few hours at Clock Tower Café and were casually stumbling along the sidewalk while trying to watch the final innings of a softball game when we heard someone yell. «Please, wait!» We turned to find Melissa, the friendly, attractive bartender from Clock Tower Café, running after us. «You left your credit card!»
We stopped, took our card from her outstretched hand, and thanked her for her thoughtful gesture. «It was all my fault,» she said, as we waved goodbye. Then we laughed. Of course it was NOT Melissa’s fault we left our card … she was just being gracious. After drinking two delicious cocktails each, gobbling down two giant, crispy plates of fries then lapping up one decadent, chocolate fudge brownie ice cream dessert, we were on the verge of a fuzzy, buzzy food/​drink coma. Making our way home on foot was going to be a challenge; forgetting our credit card was to be expected.
Clock Tower Café is a hidden treasure on Lake Michigan. Comfortable outside deck seating featuring views of the park, golf course and lake, a super friendly staff (featuring, among other amazing people, Melissa, BJ and Nick (sorry girls, he’s taken), great food options, a well-​stocked bar with generous drink specials, and interesting people-​watching … it’s all part of the CTC experience. In any case, we know we’re lucky to have such a great café/​bar near our home and plan to enjoy it again many more times this year before the weather closes it down. Highly recommended.

Had a baby shower here recently – and the best part of the shower was dealing with managers Chet and Jim. They really stepped things up – pre party, it was Chet and during the party, it was Jim.
The food was excellent – patio gorgeous and perfect for a shower – whether baby shower or wedding shower! Sunny outside but we had enough umbrellas, and the food was complimented by the guests (we had a buffet with a variety of sandwiches and pastas and salad). You can bring your own desserts as long as they are not made at home.
I was a little nervous because a manager I was dealing with was fired during the event, but Chet was wonderful about being responsive to me during the transition (when it was otherwise pretty hard to get a hold of people!).
During the event, Jim had such a sense of humor and good sense of how to run a party, that he was a great GO-​TO person.
Only reason I give it four stars instead of 5 was that I had little heart attacks along the way of planning because it was hard to get a hold of people until Chet kind of took the reigns and assured me that everyone was in communication and things would be fine. I was assigned to deal with managers other than him, but it seemed like he was the only one around most of the time!
All in all, everyone was extremely nice, the view of the lake and the golf course from our own private deck was beautiful, and the staff was competent and attentive.
Thank you for a lovely event!

We used to really like this place. Then they changed the whole menu and not for the better. They got rid of the high quality ingredients in favor of more bland cheaper options.
Worst of all they just served me a grilled chicken sandwich that was completely raw on the inside. You could tell it was raw by the texture it was so undercooked. So if you don’t want food poisoning, I would not come here.

This was about my fourth time here. I’m thinking they might change the name to the «I’m So Sorry Café.» I think I heard that remark from our server no less than ten times as she dashed in and out, going bonkers waiting on a total of five tables. She advised us she was the only server working that day, and that they had had a bomb scare earlier in the day. Perhaps not something you want to share with many of the customers, dear. But when I was a server, 4 – 5 tables was pretty much a station for one server. I felt bad for her all the same in this disorganized place. Completely new staff from our last visit which was probably last fall. But no improvement.
The good news is you could come to this beautiful spot, plunk yourself down at a table on the deck with a good book, and no-​one would ever bother you. On the other hand, if you want food or drink in any prompt fashion, you should probably stop and eat on your way. Took us a good 20 minutes to get things started, which wasn’t all that bad on a beautiful day; but I wasn’t sure when we would see food.
I should have stuck with the sandwiches because those, and the fries, are pretty good. I had possibly the worst Chicken Caesar Salad (small $ 8) I’ve ever had. That rubbery tasting Romaine, with hardly any dressing (it’s usually the opposite problem with a Caesar in other places, where they glop it on.) The worst rubbery chicken, which may have turned me vegan for good. I do think I saw someone flinging rubber chickens in the kitchen. Anyway, this place is the most beautifully placed outdoor café where you can sometimes get decent service and food. Just don’t go with high expectations. Get a pitcher of beer, relax and take in the scenery.

What’s up with the bad reviews? I’ve played softball at Waveland for almost a decade and I am thrilled that the Clock Tower Café has opened. The menu has a lot of options and the prices are reasonable. I wouldn’t say anything is spectacular, but the servers are nice and it’s a great place to go after softball or golf. The outdoor seating is the best when the weather is nice. You can also dine outside with your dog, which is somewhat of a rarity in Chicago.
They also have a nice brunch spread on the weekends. I haven’t tried it yet, but I’ve eyeballed it a few times. You get a ton of options for around $ 12. The Clock Tower Café is a nice change of pace option for a weekend lunch/​brunch.

I’ve been here twice now. The first time, I just came across it as I had no idea it existed. Yesterday I saw they put up a little sign by the bike path, which is a good idea.
The first time I went, I sat at the bar with a friend after a rousing game of tennis. Cordell was our bartender and he was da bomb! He mixes great drinks, and we trusted him to choose for us. I also had Coronas and they were ice cold!
The 2^nd time I went was on the Sunday of the air and water show. I sat on the patio which overlooks the golf course. Service was slow, but they were also more crowded than when I went last, and I didn’t mind because I was relaxing. However, even though I didn’t mind waiting, I do have to note that the wait staff attended to and served us after a couple tables that got there after us. She kept missing our table and we had to flag her down every time we needed something.
The staff is very friendly, and they’d like to be open all year round. I wouldn’t mind being a regular here, but will forego the patio in the winter.

Decent food. Great deck overlooking the golf course and views of the lake. I did order my burger medium, it took some 30 minutes to come out and when it did it was very well done and the fries on the plate were skimpy! I mean you could literally count them!
The server was eager to please she offered a new burger but I said I did not want to wait another 30 minutes. I did order another side of fries and when they came out, again a skimpy order! Most places I eat burgers at give you an ample amount, that’s an automatic.
Anyways she said the fries were on the house and Chef will discount burger 20% which she did not. When the check came the fries were comped and the burger was full price. I didn’t make an issue I paid my check and left but left thinking WTF…
I more than likely will go back! Give them another opportunity if they read this seriously what gives with the fries?! I am certain I am not the first and only to notice…