Chicago Restaurant Spotlight: Dillman’s

When my friend Adrian goes to a restaurant on a weekly basis, I know it must be something special. Plus, the fact that Dillman’s is a sister restaurant to Bavette’s means that it is destined for greatness. After months of Adrian telling me to go to Dillman’s, I finally made it there for lunch with a few of my favorite blogging friends. Here is the recap.

The food at Dillman’s is classic American meets Jewish deli. The menu includes items like potato pancakes, potato knish, and matzo ball soup, along with classic American fare like burgers, steak, and chicken pot pie. It is a great place to go for comfort food.

I really enjoyed the atmosphere and decor of Dillman’s, which mixes simple diner style with more glamourous accents. The restaurant is lined with red leather booths and has simple black and white checked floors, but has grand chandeliers. The style bridges cozy classic American with 1920s excess, and it works.

The food lived up to my high expectations. I ordered exactly what Adrian suggested, the burger, which is one of the city’s best, and the potato pancakes. The burger was wonderfully juicy, had just the right amount of cheese, and had very finely chopped red onion with a dijonnaise. It’s a classic American burger done right. The potato pancakes were nice and crispy, and of course I ate every bite.

Now that I have made it to Dillman’s, I am sure I will be back frequently. There were several other menu items that I want to try, and I have heard great things about their brunch and dinner. I especially want to try their English tea service, mostly because I have seen great photos of it on instagram.