Wave Restaurant

Sleek, Comfortable, Lively, Inviting, Chilled out, People friendly are words that come to mind

Every Friday and Saturday Night this place is transformed into some ultra lounge that cool and well dressed people hang out at after 9PM or so.

Good for hanging out if you are trying to meet people. They have some nice couches right behind the bar should you want to make the conversation private :)

In speaking with some of them, not all of them called the Streeterville area home. Many people come here from different hoods.

In the summer they have an outdoor patio area that is nice.

Good event space. You will like the way they treat you here.

They added some extra couch spaces to the overall decor so there is plenty of lounging around to be done :)

I was here 2 months ago for a party and the DJ rocked the house...not sure if people still use that expression. I will add a pic of that when I find a picture of that.

The bartenders make awesome concoctions and at $10-$14 it is at pretty good prices as well.

Whether or not the Wave bellini will help you with a hangover is up to you..I think they serve that just on the weekends.

If you are a whino or are a whino in training this is a good place to hang out as the wines are of pretty good varieties

For those of you that like Mojitos be happy because this is one place where you can find one and a pretty good one at that.

The reisling is pretty good and of good quality.

I braved the Wave restaurant this morning (I was staying upstairs at the W for the previous three nights). I debated on using my extra hour before I had to leave for the airport to work out and then realized I'd worked out about every day this week and yet, I hadn't eaten breakfast more than once, so breakfast won (not to mention the fact that I didn't eat dinner last night).

I have a confession. I am all too often an insane bitch for the duration of the morning leading up to my flight, if that flight leaves before 3pm. Add to the fact that food hadn't been in my system since a salad for lunch and froyo for dinner the previous day, and well, you can imagine (at least my friends and boyfriend can).

My flight was at 1pm. I woke up late at 9am due to the fact that the goddawful Whiskey Sky Lounge was located right above my room and the music was pumping until 2 am. I should mention that I'm hardly the type to complain as I am often awake until sunrise, however this week I had a lot of early mornings so I wanted to wake up early and work out AND eat breakfast. But that wasn't meant to be. This made me bitchier than usual.

So, I woke up an hour later than intended at 9am, and had to scramble to pack and shower and I thought room service might be nice to order so it could show up by the time I finished doing all that, but oh guess what, there wasn't a room service menu to be found in the room (just that door card thing you leave on the knob by 2am to indicate what mediocre breakfast option you are choosing to spend upwards of 10 dollars for, unless you want cereal for 7 dollars or toast for 6 dollars. Just on principle, I can't do that).

I dragged my cranky self down to the Wave and was greeted by a lovely hostess and a lovely waiter and almost all was well (despite my excruciatingly frustrating experience with the goddamned lobby computer that ostensibly allows you to check in for your flight. Guess what? It doesn't work if you book that flight through Orbitz).

Back to the calming, accommodating staff at the Wave. They made things better for me for the half hour that I could manage to eat half my breakfast. I ordered a far too large 3-egg omelette with asparagus, mushrooms and smoked mozzerella. Because eggs tend to disgust me, I didn't fare well with this, as the vegetables caused an not so appealing liquid from the eggs and veg water. That's not their fault. I own up to my issues. The flavor was meh, besides, so I left most of the omelette on the plate. The breakfast potatoes were delicious (except the ones touching the egg and veg liquid) and I was able to manage a bite of the whole grain toast.

Oh why do I even bother trying to eat breakfast, when I am typically so concerned, nay, obsessed with all the stuff I want to accomplish or need to accomplish during the day? Allegedly it's the most important meal of the day, but I can't agree. Coffee is the most important meal of the day.

That said, besides the kind waiter, food runners and bus boys, I was extremely appreciative of the individual tiny bottles of Tabasco (of course I needed more than one) and ketchup. As I used to be in food service, myself, I appreciate this. I still have nightmares of being assigned "condiments" as my side work. UGH!! The marrying of ketchup bottles was the absolute most soul sucking activity I've had to endure in my entire career.

End of story, as it's going on far too long.
Service is easily four stars.
Food is a bit less than three stars.
Soy latte (yes, they have soy milk!) 3.5 stars.

I was desperate. I didn't hate it, but I doubt I'd go back unless I was pressed for time again (that is, if I were staying at the W Hotel. And that's a review that still needs to be written).

Wave is a totally mod, swanky restaurant overlooking the lake in the W Hotel. We sat at a long table that had sofas instead of chairs and had a great view of the water.

Andy M definitely got the prize meal of the day, he went with the mac & cheese, the chicken and chocolate candy bar choices off the Yelp Eats menu, and everything rocked. I had the calamari (very nice except I hated the strong balsamic drizzled over it), the ricotta gnochhi (big & plump but too mildy flavoured) and the buttermilk panna cotta (not sweet enough and too rubbery). But the sangria we ordered was awesome. Until the bill came for it that is. Listed as a "pitcher" it actually was one of those glass wine servers that poured slightly more than 2 glasses. And it was $25. Now maybe it was noted on the menu and maybe I just missed it but I did see each glass was $8. So how does it work out that this "pitcher" is so much more per glass? Isnt it supposed to be a better deal to order more? Well, anyway that was my only gripe with the place.

Service was top-notch and of course the interior & vibe couldnt be beat. Like Andy wrote in his review, he would go back for the chicken and I have to agree. I would go back to order that as well. Just get a drink other than the sangria!

Let's talk about a Restaurant Week FAIL.

Oh yes, at the W.

For such a swanky hotel, you'd think that the food/service at the Wave would also be top notch. But, we were misguided. It was the complete opposite!

Let's discuss where things went wrong:

1. Our waiter wasn't exactly friendly, attentive or informative. Yes, we were there for Restaurant Week, so the menus were already placed on the plates for us. But, the waiter didn't even explain any of the items, recommend anything or even greet us with an 'intro'. Meh. Plus, he refused to acknowledge my friend who was desperately attempting to get his attention so we could pay the bill. LIke, helllllllo.

Props to the OTHER waiter, though. We eyed him enviously as he cheerfully greeted his tables and took the time to actually explain what the eff was on the menu.

2. Service was painfully SLOW. Wave wasn't even crowded on a Saturday night. Yet it took forever and an effin' day to get the food! We waited like 20 minutes between courses, seriously. What exactly are ya'll doin' in the kitchen?

3. Now, the items offered for Restaurant Week were a little unmemorable. The calamari was ok, but I think I've had better at Leona's. The pork was good, albiet a bit dry. And, that apple tart dessert thing tasted like "a combo of McDon's apple pie, Taco Bell cinnamon stix and apple chips". Sound appealing? Didn't think so.

4. The menu is overpriced, frealz. $28 for some pork tenderloin? Please. I guess if any hotel an do that, it's the W.

5. BIG GROUPS TAKE NOTE: My friend noticed that the bill actually charged a 19% service fee (as we had a group of more than 6 people). However, the menu stated that the gratutity would be charged at 18%. When my friend confronted the manager about it, he stated that the fee was actually 19%. Well...maybe you guys should update your menus to reflect accurate information.

The manager changed the bill (probably against his will) and then basically threw the revised bill back on our table. Love the manners.

Also, Makers on the rocks is apparently $12, not $10 as I thought was listed on the menu. Perhaps they could add a note or disclaimer for people (like me) that don't know that you tack on an extra fee for ish on the rocks? That'd be much appreciated.

Although the decor is trendy, modern and swanky, it doesn't make up for the terrible service, mediocre food and shady price charging techniques. The W has failed me. Spend your money elsewhere.

I have a love hate relationship with this place now.

Let's start with the "hate" part. We came here after work to sit outside with our dog. . One of the waitresses told us she would send the hostess out to seat us. That person never came. We sat at a table by ourselves for 10 min and nobody came by to say hi or give us menus. I finally got fed up and called the place to ask what the hell is going on (YES, it's right inside, but if they weren't willing to come out, I wasn't willing to go in and ask). The woman answered the call was very apologetic. Then someone came outside, brought us menus, water, etc.

We got some drinks and both had the $35 per person prix fix menu - honestly if I judge the place solely on food, it was pretty bad. Both of my husband and my salads were drenched in dressing and shaved cheese, which completely ruined the taste of fresh asparagus and romaine hearts. For entrees, I was told the salmon would be medium rare, and it came out as well done. The risotto underneath the salmon was nasty. The only good thing on my plate was some pieces of grills asparagus. My husband's chicken was a little dry and bland.

Ok here's the "love" part. It is dog-friendly outdoor patio, so our dog can relax with us. Also I do like their drinks, and they are strong. And more importantly they gave us 20% discount for the full bill, and I assume that's another way to say we are sorry that we ignored you guys at first. At least they are trying.

I LOVE the the Wave bar. Living in the area, it's one of my favorites to just go and chill. The bartenders Danny and Brody are soooo nice! I always have a great time when they are around as they provide attentive service and are quite entertaining to boot. I haven't eaten in the restaurant area, but have had food at the bar while enjoying some mango cocktails. I've sat both at the bar with friends and outside -- both are great places to enjoy the company of friends or be on a date. I've tried the hummus, calamari, truffle fries, and jeremiah iced tea here. I recommend the hummus and calamari - YUM!

On weekends, they do have a DJ that spins in the lobby/lounge area. It feels like a little getaway relaxing at this hotel bar. I highly recommend sitting at the outside tables (or sit in the pretty nifty rocking chairs) and having a drink and/or food out there. From that spot, you can look out onto the lake and enjoy a rather tranquil moment. Or you can watch the cars and motorcycles speed by on Lake Shore Drive. If there's a major event in town, you might see some fancy cars cruising down LSD as well. The Wave Bar is a great spot for a relaxed night and good company.

We just came back from dinner here for the restaurant hotel it was pretty good :) I don't know if I would come here if I lived here for dinner but for being here for work and not wanting to go out in the cold...I'm pretty happy with dinner.

We did it tapas style which was really nice...and our waiter was super sweet and nice...took care of us.

We went to Wave for their Wednesday "Street food" special. The month of March featured India -even though it said Israel, and for $10 we got 3 tasters AND a cocktail - the cocktail along was worth $10. (would go into more detail on the food and drink, but that special is over now)

The space itself was really cool -as you can see, and it;s located in the W hotel so that's could be a + or - for some. The wait staff was great, service was prompt...and again, the food was really great.

I'd heard about the street food menu and was curious to check this place out. Visually, I can't get enough of the W - the decor is really hip and I love how the lobby is filled with couches and chaises, which feed right into the bar and to Wave. I thought it was really cool that my group could hang out in the open, relaxed lobby area and still order food and drinks without having to do a formal sit-down thing.

The street food menu is a $10 deal on Wednesday evenings. Each month features a new country (January is Morocco, coming up Feb = Israel, March = India, April = China). You get a featured cocktail and your choice of 3 items off the menu. Keep in mind that everything is pretty small (including the drink) so think of this more as a sampling or a happy-hour snack, that sort of thing. My group was pretty hungry and we were digging the food so we ended up just ordering 2 rounds each, haha. It's a really good deal compared to the prices of the regular menu, too!

I ended up trying 4 of the 5 dishes they were offering:
- potato croquettes were really creamy inside, delicious!
- beef and date bastilla, with sugar and cinnamon - I know this sounds weird...it was kind of like a beef churro. Flavors that I did not understand but somehow worked really well. I regret ordering this only one time!
- chicken kebab - good flavor but a tad dry
- Merguez sausage roll - nice and spicy! Cucumber relish and a yogurt sauce helped to cut the heat, though.
- eggplant zaalouk - I didn't try this one but my friends liked it

I will definitely be back for upcoming "street food" events but also to try their regular dinner menu!

I simply cannot rave enough about the Braised Wagyu Short Ribs. By far the best short ribs I have ever had, no question.

Service was very good, never overbearing. Wave is definitely a bit pricey but considering this meal it was definitely worth it.

I will be going back