Dinner near Double Door?

[beccamiami]

Hi,
I'm visiting from Miami and will be going to the Double Door (1572 N Milwaukee) on a Sat. night. Does anyone have a suggestion for a good place to eat within walking distance? Not really into fast food, but also not looking for a formal, fancy place. There will be 5 of us. Thanks!

[leek]

There are a ton of places near there, and it's also right under the Blue Line L stop at Damen, which opens anything along that line to you. So if you can narrow it down just a bit in terms of your preferences, that would help.

[beccamiami]

Sure, thanks. It's an unofficial 40th BD/51 wedding anniv. dinner that we are officially celebrating the next night at Sepia because my brother is playing at the Double Door that night. So I'd say, something kind of festive and unusual, relatively fast and uncomplicated. I'd like to stay within walking distance. We eat everything and like to eat well. We should probably stay away from extremely spicy.

[rubinow]

What band is he in?

BTW: Ear Wax cafe is pretty good across the street. Mostly vegetarian stuff. It DOES match your festive/unusual/fast/uncomplicated request.

[beccamiami]

~ Battles. Thanks! We'll try it.

[rubinow]

AWESOME! I saw Battles last year at Pitchfork and they were great.

Also, Irazu Costa Rican restaurant at 1865 N Milwaukee (down the street) is a board favorite.

[beccamiami]

Thanks leek and rubinow. Does anyone have a suggestion for a weeee bit more of a "nice" place? ...although we will probably try Ear Wax. Thanks again!

[rubinow]

Bin 36 wine cafe across the street is great. You'll probably need reservations.

[3rdcoast]

Bin 36 is a nice place, my only complaint is that the atmosphere is somewhat sterile - minamalist. Obviously a great wine list. Joe's Stone Crab for seafood and steaks also nearby is very popular, but can be noisy on weekends - def. need reservations.

[rubinow]

Bin 36 Wine cafe is on Milwaukee across the street from the Double Door. Joe's Stone Crab is far away from there (downtown). Joe's IS close to the Bin 36 restaurant.

And Joe's isn't fast.

[motomouth]

Las palmas is about a block or so away, and they have superb, very creative Mexican food and drinks - it's got an upscale vibe without being too douchey. The pollo pibil is fantastic. Piece is a good scene as well, with great pizza and a marvelous beer selection. To my mind, Earwax is ideal for brunch/lunch but a bit strange as a dinner spot.

[jdmath0]

Hey I thought I already replied, but I don't see the response so I apologize if I double posted.
Within 1 block of the Double Door are Cafe Absinthe and the Violet Hour. Both are interesting. Absinthe is a neighborhood place that has been around longer than most of the neighborhood and it's the type of place that never took foie gras off of the menu when it was banned and used to sell absinthe from behind the bar when they could get away with it. It's casual and neighborhoody but it is closer to casual fine dining menu and price point wise. The Violet hour is a sort of psuedo speak-easy. There is no sign but it's easy to find. The emphasis is more on the gourmet cocktails than the food, but the food is good (and causal) and the experience is wonderful. There is no marking outside and it is Gorgeous inside. There is a newer place called Between Boutique and Lounge about 3 blocks down from Double Door that has really good Indian focused global cuisine and great cocktails in a lounge like setting. Karl is the name of the owner and if you ask for him and tell him that you are celebrating something he will take really good care of you. Irazu, which was mentioned already, is excellent and super casual Costa Rican Cuisine. Depending on how nice is nice and how formal is too formal, Mirai, Takashi and Spring are all within 4 and 1/2 blocks of Double Door. Mirai may be the best Japanese food in Chicago and is more hip than formal. Sit on the second level if you go there and get the Kani Nigiri, it's excellent. Takashi could be called new-american with french and asian influence. Chef Takashi is a James Beard Best of the Midwest award winnner and again the restaurant is more hip than formal and tops out at maybe $28 a plate with some really cheap small plates. Spring is just two blocks from Double Door. Spring is Seafood with Asian Influence. Another James Beard Award winning Chef and entees average around the mid to high twenties. Spring is very friendly and you could wear jeans but it definately has a somewhat formal feel to it. Hope some of that helps!

[leek]

I'd vote for Irazu. Not festive, necessarily, but good! Def. try the shakes, the oatmeal is tremendous. It's BYO, but I'm sure you'll be able to have enough to drink at the Double Door.

[beccamiami]

Just an update, we ended up trying Earwax - except it was too late - so we went to Bin instead. The food was interesting, the wine was fine, ambiance good EXCEPT that it was so incredibly loud in there that I lost my voice completely afterwards. But I really liked the place and it worked well for what we needed (we just didn't talk much). Thanks for the input.