Au Cheval and Small Cheval

Recently, we had an early dinner at Au Cheval on W Randolph St between Green St and Halsted St in the West Loop. The restaurant is famous for their notoriously long waits (no reservations accepted), but when we showed up at 4:30pm on a Tuesday, our group of 4 was seated immediately in a comfy booth, which was a pleasant surprise. The kitchen is closed from 3pm-5pm every day, so maybe that helped in making our timing good. We enjoyed some drinks before our meal to fill the time, but it didn't feel like we were ever waiting at all. Our server began taking food orders prior to 5pm, and the kitchen was fully ready to accommodate everyone there. Even as we were finishing up and a line had formed out the door, we never felt like we were being rushed out of the restaurant to make more tables available. The staff remained warm and kind.

I love the vibe at Au Cheval. It's a kind of dark, sexy, hipster vibe. Au Cheval recreates traditional comfort foods in modern and inventive ways in a relaxed and cool environment.

I ordered the Fried House-made Bologna Sandwich. It's a massive sandwich featuring thinly sliced mortadella with some black pepper and lots of salt piled high on a brioche bun. It's smothered in what I suspect is a creamy gruyere cheese as well as a mayonnaise and Dijon sauce. It takes the classic all-American fried bologna sandwich to another level. It takes a lot of smushing down to fit a bite into your mouth, but it can be done.



Simply put, I love this place. The wait can be stupid, but sometimes you can get lucky.

About a week later, a co-worker and I tried out the new Small Cheval restaurant on N Milwaukee Ave at Wabansia Ave in Wicker Park that's run by the same folks at Au Cheval. It just has a minimalist and faster version of Au Cheval's menu. The same 3pm-5pm kitchen closing applies.

I tried out the simple Cheeseburger. It was a peppery, greasy, perfectly cheesy two-patty burger. It's everything a burger should be without all of the contemporary flair. It's just perfectly right. It's just a simple, good burger.

There's a great outdoor patio to enjoy during our short Chicago summers.

I recommend both places.