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Mirani's
Rating Details »
Category: Restaurants [Edit]
727 Elm St(between Arbor Vitae Rd & Lincoln Ave)
Winnetka, IL 60093
(847) 441-5590
- Hours:
Tue-Sat. 11:00 a.m. - 10:00 p.m.
- Good for Groups:
- Yes
- Accepts Credit Cards:
- Yes
- Parking:
- Street
- Attire:
- Casual
- Price Range:
-
$$$
- Good for Kids:
- No
- Takes Reservations:
- Yes
- Delivery:
- No
- Take-out:
- Yes
- Waiter Service:
- Yes
- Wheelchair Accessible:
- Yes
- Outdoor Seating:
- Yes
- Good for:
- Dinner
- Alcohol:
- Full Bar
11 reviews for Mirani's
Wow, I can't believe the low reviews for this place!! I realize that it's not the best meal I've ever eaten, and maybe it doesn't stand up to some of the best brasseries in Chicago, but it's good authentic french food served by wonderful people.
If you can't tell, I love Mirani's. It's my family's "special occasion" restaurant. The food is great. I have never been disappointed. The french onion soup and all of the salads are really good and I always get the steak au burre which I find excellent. The frites they serve with the steak are also really really good. Wonderful wine selection. Most importantly, however, the owners are wonderful. So helpful, friendly and they really employ good people.
I do think that the place lost a lot of its ambiance when it moved from Hubbard Woods to its current location, but that happens. The food quality stayed the same and the service as well.
I've been here two or three times and haven't been impressed enough to go back. Overpriced, OK but not great food, average service. I bet if they bring their price points down a bit they'd pack the place; as it is it's almost always empty when I've been there or walked by. That in itself makes for a poor dining experience - I hate being in an empty restaurant, as there's no buzz.
Brent J. hits the nail on the head: judged on its own terms, Mirani's succeeds admirably, but if it were downtown next door to, say, Brasserie Jo, it would probably wither. That said, I enjoyed my experience here, although I wasn't paying (thank you, visiting work vendor).
First off, the decor is not nearly as cartoonishly stereotypical as the website photo suggests. It is charming and handsome, although the space itself in the main dining room may be too large to achieve the right kind of mood.
Second, our service was fine. Not stupendous, but much better than other reviewers have noted. Granted, this was a Wednesday, but the LONE waitress (the owner helped out here and there) took care of all the tables (sadly only about six, not counting our party of eight). She was warm and friendly, and we never felt neglected.
Their bread is among the best I've ever had: crusty on the outside and cloud-soft inside, served warm--no butter required. It nicely complemented the mussels and soupe des champignons with which I started the meal. The mussels were okay, nothing special but with the traditional white wine and garlic broth. We more enjoyed dipping our baguettes in the broth than eating the mussels themselves. The soup also was satisfying but not spectacular; it was semi-pureed with a light cream base.
My entree was the steak aux beurre des fines herbes, nice and simple. They perfectly cooked my "medium" order which seemed like the right choice for a thin steak like this. I was confused by the frites. I ordered "Belgian-style" which were simply their regular frites with truffle oil and shaved parmesan. What came out, both Belgian and regular, were not frites at all but more like housemade potato chips--thin and crispy. They were delicious, but I was expecting, you know, actual frites. If they didn't have the additional accoutrements, I would have counted them a disappointment.
I'm usually the only one to order dessert in these gatherings, but I don't let it shame me. YOU might feel self-conscious with seven half-strangers watching you enjoy a piece of cake, but not me. All they were offering was cheesecake and chocolate-mousse cake, which is a no-brainer for me. The mousse cake was excellent.
Overpriced menu items in which you could probably get a better-tasting options elsewhere, this place is a full-on bust. Stick with Le Bouchon or better yet, go to France. Not worth the hike up to Winnetka.
Had dinner at Mirani's this past Friday and it was delicious. The French onion soup ($8) has consistently been excellent and I started with the special seafood tart ($12) which was very good. Entree-wise, we had the specials ($28/ea) - the seared sea scallops, and the flounder en papiote with a beurre rouge (red wine butter sauce). The entrees were delicious. I have had the coq au vin before and this too is very tasty with a nice rich wine flavor.
If Mirani's were in Manhattan, it wouldn't deserve four stars. But in Winnetka it's a different story. In a generation this suburb has seen restaurants serving over-cooked meat served with over-cooked vegetables replaced by a few tasteful eateries, including Mirani's.
Mirani's has style. Not haut style, but a comfortable cosmopolitan ambiance. A compact bar area is partially walled off from it's high ceilinged main dining area with hard floors and warm lighting.
The food at its best is delicious. But, as the Yelp reviews collectively indicate, the entrees' quality may be inconsistent. Even so, I have not had a bad meal among the three or four I've had here.
Service is Mirani's weakest element. The service is slow during busy hours, and the staff is not well trained.
The place is almost empty when it's not packed -- that is, on Friday and Saturday nights. And when it's packed there's not much room to move in the bar area. Crowds like this would not be worth a mention in Chicago, but they are almost a welcome addition to Winnetka's staid nightlife.
Almost, but not quite.
I work in the area and let me tell you, we were excited to see something opening in this long-empty storefront. And it happened to be a local establishment who was relocating. All the better, we thought.
Well the restaurant has been opened for months and not all the kinks have been worked out. I have enjoyed the sandwiches and side salads (Excellent house dressing), as have my co-workers. I have not heard any negatives from my own customers concerning the food.
The big problem, why they only receive 2 stars - the service. Not the servers themselves, but the maybe the management? (I am not an expert). Once I was in for a late lunch. The tables started filling and there was only one young lady working the entire floor. You could tell people were restless. I felt bad for her.
Good waitstaff is hard to come by up here, but I hope Mirani's can pull through and offer service that matches their prices.
(updated review: 2/22/07)
I have been to Mirani's quite a few times; first when they were in the original smaller restaurant and then again after they relocated to the larger, new location.
The food? It's been consistently decent. The best food I've had here? Steak au poivre or the steak frites. The seafood ? Inconsistent. Desserts? maybe the strength of their menu. Wines? Overpriced, but what do you want? This is the North Shore....they need to pay the rent on what is likely a seriously expensive lease.
I agree with the others reviewers about spotty service. I believe the older gentleman others have mentioned is the owner and/or manager? He seems nice but needs to stop turning the music UP. I have been there multiple times when he turns the tunes up and the customers (including myself) have to yell to the others at their table to be heard. If you want to listen to music, buy an iPod !!!
We went here for lunch. Ordered three light meals - half sandwiches with a few leaves of lettuce on the side. Not bad...this isn't Subway. However, while the food was decent and nicely prepared, I have to second what the other yelpers have noted. The service here was frustrating. Not rude, but slow and inattentive. We had to continually ask for help - first for the menus, then to place our orders and finally to get our bill. A real pity, considering how pleasant and classy the restaurant's ambiance is.
I am most disappointed to have to give Mirani's one star, however I cannot justify two stars. With 7:00pm reservations my family was seated at 8:00pm. They could not muster ANY place for us to take a seat, so our party of 5, including my 85 year old grandmother was forced to stand for the entire hour. Mirani's offered no apologies, appetizers or cocktails to ease this inconvenience. The Wait Staff was young and clearly inexperienced; you would expect experienced servers for the prices and ambiance. Although the food was good, I will not be returning out of principle. I can only hope they step up their level of service to avoid losing any other customers.
Summer 2007
Friday night, we joined friends who are regulars at Mirani's and are very enthusiastic about its "downtown ambiance." After our evening there, I can only assume they're referring to downtown Sheboygan (my apologies to any decent eateries in that fine community). Following cocktails, we were seated at a table next to a visually appealing wall of wine bottles. Not wanting meat, I asked our personable waiter for a recommendation. He gushed enthusiastically about that day's featured salmon, and I bit. What I got was a piece of mushy fish--overcooked and several days past its prime--and sides that were memorable only for their mediocrity. I'm a trencherman, but even I was forced to put my fork down and return the dish. The staff was very apologetic, but I passed on ordering a replacement, finding satisfaction in a second over-priced martini and a hunk of very fresh sourdough. It's disappointing: I live a short distance from Mirani's and won't return. Mojoman
