Chicago Chop House

02What to order

• Porterhouse, 24 oz, wet-agedThe porterhouse of the current menu, and one of the cuts Time Out singles out.
• Tomahawk, 26 oz, dry-agedThe other cut Time Out names; the menu does not give its days of ageing.
• Bone-in Cowgirl ribeye, 18 ozFrom the dry-aged side of the list.
• Prime ribUSDA Prime, weekends only, in 12, 16 or 22 oz, with jus and horseradish cream.
• Miyazaki A5 wagyu filetServed from 5 oz, for a comparison with the Prime.

03The beef

The beef is USDA Prime Black Angus from Linz Heritage, cut in house daily, and the menu divides it in two. Wet-aged: filet mignon of 8 or 12 oz, an 18 oz New York strip, an 18 oz Delmonico, a 20 oz bone-in ribeye and the 24 oz porterhouse. Dry-aged: filet of 8 or 12 oz, a 20 oz bone-in Kansas City, the 18 oz Cowgirl and a 26 oz tomahawk. No cut states its days of ageing, and neither the website nor Time Out says how the steaks are cooked; Time Out puts the average main at about US$50.

04The story

Norton, the restaurateur behind Easy Street, Alfies, Gate of Horn, Le Pub and Shuckers, hired Bill Farrahi, formerly chef at Café Bohemia and his partner in Shuckers, to write the menu; the 48 and 64 oz porterhouses are credited to the two of them. Chop Hospitality bought the restaurant in 2017, renovated the whole building, updated the menu and added live music every night. The house's press page also cites a Takeout piece on a ghost story, a nine-year-old girl who died in 1906, and Food Network has listed it among the most haunted restaurants in each state.

05The practical

60 W Ontario St. Dinner only: Monday to Saturday 4 to 10 pm, Sunday 4 to 9 pm. Upstairs is a white-tablecloth dining room; downstairs, a piano bar with high wooden tables and old photographs of Al Capone and his gang; outside, a courtyard. Book through OpenTable, Tock or (312) 787-7100; parties of six or more carry an 18% service charge, and from nine guests a booking becomes a private event. Valet is US$21 in cash or US$23 by card; the building is not ADA-accessible. The 48 and 64 oz porterhouses of 1986 still appear in Time Out's account of the house.

Address

60 W Ontario St, Chicago, IL 60654

Phone

+1 312-787-7100

Website

chicagochophouse.com

Directions

Google Maps ↗

06In Chicago’s selections