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Category: Breakfast & Brunch [Edit]
Neighborhoods: South Loop, Printer's RowLaSalle (Blue)
Harrison (Red)
LaSalle/Van Buren (Orange, Brown, Purple Express, Pink)
Mon-Fri. 8:00 a.m. - 1:30 p.m.
Sat-Sun. 8:00 a.m. - 2:30 p.m.
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Look, this place was ok, and it had the benefit of being a stone's throw from my house. But Yolk on Michigan is nearby, and superior in every way.
Yes, the orange coffee was an interesting novelty, and one of the omelets (with basil and mushrooms) was good.
I say the odds are about 50/50 that something better moves in (and I say this having no clue what's going to happen with the space, just that Orange is average).
I've been to Orange on Clark, and was happier with it than the Harrison location. . . but never completely delighted. Sure, it's hard not to be carried away by enchanting visions like fruishi (though ours looked more like a splatter painting and cantaloupe? That's a pretty low-grade fruit, no offense), and the pancake flight. The pancakes were gummy, dry and needed a LOT of syrup to be palatable. Sorry to say too that the orange coffee was pretty bitter.
The good news is you can get in with NO line. I think the location is beneficial to quick in and out, unlike the nearby Bongo Room, which I favor. Also, you really can't beat the ambiance. It delivers on the whimsy of the food. I don't think we'll be back. Not for almost $50 for two people. I think that's a bit criminal for gummy flapjacks, no matter how cute they are. We didn't even have mimosas!!
I frequently dine here because 1. it's good. 2. it's right around the block from where I live.
The service I've gotten here has always been pretty good. Waitstaff has always been pretty attentive and helpful with menu selections. I like it when you ask your waiter what they like and they can list a few items from each section. It tells me that they actually eat the food and enjoy it. I've had their juice blends a few times- overpriced and not as good/flavorful as when I make it at home. I do admit they have very creative selections when it comes to their sweeter dishes, ie their pancake flights, chai tea infused french toast, etc. I usually get a savory option (not much of a sweet tooth) and it's always been good, but then again it's kind of hard to mess up eggs. I've sampled some of the sweeter things and they're also good, but I wouldn't be able to eat the whole thing without something to counter the sweetness.
Overall, a great brunch place. Their one plus for me is that it's so close by. I definitely prefer Yolk on Michigan and Roosevelt because of their huuuuge menu selction, but since it's a farther venture, I settle for Orange. Prices are comparable to other brunch places, slightly overpriced for food that is makable at home. One thing I did not like about Orange- that I have to walk out of the restaurant and down a long corridor to go to the bathroom. No biggie just a hassle for ppl like me who wash their hands before and after every meal (germ-phob).
note- sometimes i see certificates for orange at http://restaurant.com so check to see if it's available to save some cash!
I heard so much about this place, just to be let down. Came here because I had a coupon. Waited for a very long time to sit down and some fools kept holding the door open letting the snow in.
FOOD: This place has all sorts of breakfast food. I had one of the many strange scrambled egg plates they had. Wasn't very good. Hash browns are in a loaf which is nothing to even talk about, but it was mentioned as a highlight prior to my visit.
DRINK: this is the fancy part. you could get virtually any fresh squeezed juice combo. I had something strawberry kiwi or something. It was pretty good and pretty pricey.
ATMOSPHERE: Loud, cold, extremely uncomfortable wood chairs. Imagine trying to have a nice meal in the chairs they had in the school library when you were a kid. A ton of Columbia kids. Basically I think of this place as a breakfast place for hipsters.
If you want breakfast food, go to one of the "Golden" chains, i.e. Nugget, Angel, etc. or Hollywood Grille. That's how America does breakfast. Fast, cheap, greasy and delicious. You can still eat healthy in life without sacrificing taste and charging an arm and leg.
I love this place... The airiness, the fresh fruit juices, and the creative and delicious selections are enough to keep bringing me back to this joint.
My favorite is the Pancake Flight of the day. Pure artistry! Not to mention, quite tasty. I also like their Green Eggs & Ham (scrambled eggs with pesto and Italian ham).
I'm not a huge fan of the orange flavored coffee - I'm kinda traditional in that regard. But other than that, I've always been happily stuffed when dining at Orange.
I'll definitely be back now that I live right around the corner...
I happened to be going to Chicago for a wedding and looking for things to do. I had foodnetwork on at home, and Giada was at Orange having some Frushi. I decided to give this place a go as it was pretty close to Museum Campus.
I visited twice (just a hop and skip away from the Harrison station), and thoroughly enjoyed both visits. Unfortunately, I did not have a chance to get the Frushi (available only on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday), but I did get to enjoy one of the omelettes and pancake flights.
Tuesday: The omelet was filled with asparagus, mushrooms, cheese, and covered with a balsamic glaze. Potatoes and toast on the side. Now, most people who have eaten with me know that I'm a big eater. For as small as I am, I can pack away a decent amount of food. The omelette was so big, that it was a battle though. I ate half of it. It stared at me. I stared back. I cut it with a fork, and it bled balsamic glaze. I shoved more mushrooms into my mouth. I was winning the battle. About 10 minutes later, I had defeated the beast. All was well. The waitress helped roll me out the door so I could go to the Shedd Aquarium.
Thursday: Pancake Flight - the Olympic theme. Four stacks of silver dollar pancakes each with a different country and theme. USA was raspberry infused pancakes with whipped cream and blueberry jello. Cuba was coffee infused condensed milk with cinnamon. Japan was sweet potato paste with toasted sesame seeds. France (I think it was France) was banana pudding with chocolate ganache. Mmm..... they all sound delicious, but the pancakes themselves were a little tough. Also, the waitress asked if I wanted bacon or sausage though I didn't think it came with the pancake flight. I said "bacon." Whatever, I'll take it if it comes with. When I get the bill, the bacon was an extra 3.50. While it was good bacon, unless it was covered with shaved white truffles, it isn't worth 3.50.
+1 Big as yo face omelettes
+1 Cute and colorful decor
+1 Creative pancakes
+1 Squeezed juice to order (I got a free glass when they moved my table for another party)
+1 Cute hallway with flowers to the maze to the bathroom. The security guard at the station on the way to the ladies room chatted with me twice. She's really friendly.
+ Practically empty on the weekdays. I was in and out and first in line at the Field Museum on Thursday.
-1 Tough pancakes. I like them tender and fluffy.
-1 This place is also kind of pricey.
Went here again more recently after eating a lot at Yolk!
The ambiance here is better because it's more spaced out and not as loud, but the food just couldn't compare to Yolk!
They had some interesting things on the menu and some are decent, but most are an overdose. So eat with caution and enjoy in small quantities only.
Last weekend, I got there at 2.45pm and the hostess said she'd get us a table. She walked me to a… Read more »
It's a South Loop locale and a favorite with Depaul/Roosevelt college students (you can see them drift in after 11AM on weekends).
Green Eggs and Ham is a cute and savory dish, the Pancake Flights are hit or miss (my favorite was Ben and Jerry's week...mmm), and the Frushi is tasty, but overly trendy and overpriced.
PS: the hallway to the bathroom is trippy - like being in Alice in Wonderland. yeah, you know what I'm talking about.
I like it - I don't love it. I think I'm just over it though.
I'm giving them four stars for the dish my friend ordered (Eggs Benedict with Basil Pesto and Tomatoes), the cool atmosphere, and pretty short wait time, considering the Sunday morning brunch crowd. I would give them 2 to 3 stars for the absentee server who started out great then fizzled shortly thereafter and my lackluster dish of Omelet #11.5 (brie , bacon, leeks, and overcooked eggs....I forgot that I do not like brie but it was not the dish killer). Tried the frushi: cool dish, interesting taste, probably wouldn't order it again. They offer fresh squeezed juices. I tried to make my own fruit juice combination: disaster, should have stuck with the classics, i.e. orange+pineapple. (FYI, cucumber, ginger, and lime are not as delicious together as I thought)
My recommendation: Go to Orange for a delicious brunch in a hip atmosphere at decent prices.
I have been to this place a million times, always with my friends. They take reservations for parties of 8 or more, which is nice because I like to come here with big groups (the last time we were there, we were in the corner "VIP" room). If you come here as a party of two, the wait is never too long so it isn't really a problem as long as you aren't so hungry you'd be willing to trade your first born for a tic tac.
Some of the things that I have ordered have included the Orange Rosemary French Toast, which is the perfect blend of sweet and savory. Also, the french toast comes in a bowl with the soupy sauce so it is never dry (which I can't say for the French Toast Kabobs. A little boring). I also recommend to pass on the frushi. It's a cute concept, but really, it's fruit wrapped in rice. Next.
Their make your own fruit juices that are made to order are DELISH. Orange lime juice, orange banana, both winners.
the only qualms I have with this place are A) the servers have always been a little off. The first time i came here, my friends tried to have bacon held off of their meals and the waitress said it would ruin the integrity of the dish and that she wouldn't do it. Wow. Offensive. And B) what's with the Where's Waldo type bathroom search? it's down a few halls, past a fountain, surrounded by foliage....really out there.
Well, Orange on Harrison closed it doors for good about...an hour ago, and I just had my first (and last) experience there today. I know they're moving, and while I had a good time there, I dunno if it'd be worth the trouble to get there past the 5 minute walk I did today.
Things were busy, as expected, but we managed to find a spot at the bar. I ordered a pear-grape-strawberry juice to start, which was quite nice, though it had a strong green apple-y flavor. The food took quite some time to arrive, slow to the point where the packed house wasn't really an excuse.
Now my roommate ordered the 11.5 omelet which is stuffed with bacon and has an avocado spread on top, while I got the 6 omelet which is filled with mushrooms and asparagus and dressed with balsamic vinegar. When our food came, things looked all right...until my friends looked in their omelet and surprisingly found mushrooms inside. Sure enough, they mixed up the innards of our foods. Good thing I have nothing against bacon, but a lot of people do...they did replace the food quite quickly, though.
We also ordered a the honey pancake flight listed in another review here, but one of the pancakes was bacon flavored, which turned out subtle but savory. Overall, the food was good, price was decent (unless you do like me and order a ton of food), juice was excellent, wait was lengthy, and none of this matters because it's gone now. :(
Overall evaluation: a little pricey but delicious.
I went for the pancake flight. This week's theme was "honey" (mango granola cakes, strawberry banana walnut cakes, honey and powdered sugar cakes, blueberry strawberry cakes). Will I ever recover from this sugar high? Jury's still out. It was very tasty. I asked for no meat, they accommodated me happily by subbing some fresh strawberries for the bacon that was on the menu.
The decor is cute, bright and cheerful. Came with a group of 4 around 12:45p.m. and didn't have to wait at all for a table. The orange-flavored coffee is a real treat -- subtly citrusy.
Last, and perhaps most importantly, they played all of Weezer's Pinkerton album during our lunch. (This alone could win me over.)
Thumbs up.
Really fun atmostphere. It's BYOB - but the mixes they serve up are kinda....well, gross. I ordered their tomoto juice to mix it up with some vodka and well, I'm just not an "unprocessed" tomoto juice drinker. it was way too pure - the tomato separated into 1/2 water, 1/2 tomato.
I tried so hard to add tobasco, then worcestire, etc to make it taste like my normal brunch bloody. didn't happen.
On another note though, the breakfast was really good. Eggs benedict was done pefectly and my friend ordered the steak and eggs which was excellent. I'm ordering that next time I come.
Service, lacking a little. but I guess it's because this place is SO busy every time I come and visit.
You know if you want a really good bacon, eggs, toast, hash browns and coffee breakfast...don't go here. If you like artsy food and "different" creations, sure go ahead. My omelet well, wasn't really an omelet, but had some kind of nuts and balsamic or something on it. Frushi? Fruit sushi? Really? NO.
12 stars for the fresh OJ
You must get their orange coffee. It's amazing. I typically don't like orange flavored items, but this orange infused coffee is to die far. And when I went the second time, I asked for a to-go cup for my left-over coffee, but he gave me a new cup with fresh hot coffee. Great service even on a busy weekend
day.
Their meals though aren't spectacular. It's decent. The Eggs Benedict is simply made and not at all special. However, the Chai Tea French Toast is worth a try. It's unique and delightfully delectable. The first time I ordered it, it was a tad dry and not enough flavor, but the second time - amazing.
I give this place 3 stars due to the lack of consistency, but great service and coffee.
We took a couple of friends from out-of-town here for the first time and we love it! The wait was a bit long and it was a very crowded area to wait in but it was a Sunday morning. It is so bright, sunny, and cute inside and it smells like . . . well ORANGES! The fruit juices and smoothy choices were great, you can pretty much customize whatever drink you'd like. My husband and friend really enjoyed the orange flavored coffee.We order frushi which was pretty creative. Frushi is rice topped with thin slices of fruit (kiwi, strawberries, and watermelon).
I ordered the green eggs and ham and it was delicious!!! There were big chunks of ham mixed in with pesto and scrambled eggs. The portions were huge and the presentation was really cute too. I loved all the different names on the menu. There's a pretty wide variety of items to choose from. I want to come back again soon for the pancake flights which looked so amazing. The servers here were attentive, quick, and nice. All of that deserves 5 stars!
So I'm a little torn with this one. The food is decent enough and the atmosphere is fun. The problem I have is with the service. I'm big on customer service so I really won't go to a place that is lacking.
I've been to Orange on Harrison twice. The last time I went with some friends from out of town, we saw there was a line, not a problem. After waiting 45 minutes and watching everyone be seated except us, we realized that the hostess had passed over our names. When we inquired about it, we were suddenly next on the list, but they never said we were passed over.
We tried to forget about the incident, but then our waitress went MIA and it was another 20 minutes before she resurfaced to place our order. We didn't see her until our food arrived another 30 minutes later. When it came time to pay, we had to hunt her down. Not how you want to spend your ENTIRE morning.
I'd rather go to Tempo. They have a wait, but it's quick and the service is always great!
IS MOVING TO LINCOLN PARK. : (
I REALLY ENJOYED THE CUCUMBER IN THE WATER. I would gaze @ the reflected green in the glass as I sat there awaiting my Lovely 8 dollar grilled cheese sandwich and my 2 dollar side of egg white...every bite I took was like 75 cents, and the Mexican employees that barely understood a word I said really encouraged me to prolong my conversations with Friends.
This was right before Christmas too.
Although, I came across SRO subs that day, and found a new place to engage and introduce conversation to.
My roommate and I came together and shared the Egs Benedict with Basil Pesto & Tomato and the Rosemary Orange French Toast. It was delicious, but I wasn't as big a fan of the decor as most people are or as I was meant to be maybe (?), because it reminds me of the orange stands in FL. Which is better for everyone here who wants that. It was also really hot and muggy out when I went (in August) which was even MORE like FL. I'm from Fort Lauderdale, FL, and call me crazy but I hate the hotttttt weather. Plus, when I'm eating our for brunch on a hot, muggy, Sunday morning, I really just want any diner I choose to keep the AC on FREEEEZING if they insist on the doors staying open. Maybe I sound snotty, but for realz.... I hate hot weather and I went out for brunch in part to escape the hot muggy apartment and save the AC some of the work.
Otherwise it was great, pretty normal prices for a diner, ya know $10 a plate and what not.
I liked how the French Toast sat in the creamy rosemay orange cream mixture as well.
This place is bright and cheery and a little weird. I liked my food, but I thought it was strange that I couldn't substitute things in my omlette. I have some serious food allergies and I felt like the disclaimer on the menu about substitutions and "creating your own omlette" was a bit abrasive. Whatever, like I said, I really did like my food.
The other thing that was a little weird was the server brought me the wrong food, which was fine at first because everyone makes mistakes. When I finally flagged her down and told her about it, she left the food on my table. I mean, I am staring at someone else's brunch, trying not to breath on it, for fear that she might actually try to serve it the appropriate person! I just thought it was so odd that she didn't immediately snatch up the plate, and return it to the kitchen to straighten out the order.
This place gets three stars for: good, fresh food; Carafe of coffe on the table; And pleasant brunch atmosphere.
Orange is the anti-Golden Nugget. As it states clearly on the menu, if you want substitutions, this isn't the place for you. Everything is fresh, innovative, and comforting all at the same time.
The orange infused coffee is something that will keep you coming back, as well as the freshly squeezed juices that you order on the spot. Some of my favorite meal items include:
- Cinnamon Roll Pancakes
- Chai French Toast
- ANY Omlette
Make sure to go early, or be prepared to wait. The smaller the group the better, but a foursome is typical. Enjoy!
2.5 stars. I wanted to like it. I really did. I've been to the Orange on Clark and was only mildly impressed.
So I walk in this location on Sunday at noonish by myself. I was told that I would be better off waiting for one of the bar stools to open and that most of those folks were waiting for a table. As I stand smooshed in their waiting area, I eye not only the menu that was given to me, but also the people carelessly chatting away in "my" seat! Finally I ask if I can claim their seat when they are called and they gladly give it up saying I should have asked earlier. Thanks, but really the restaurant shouldn't allow people to sit and chat while other folks need those seats to sit and eat (read: trying to give them more money).
So I finally have a seat. Love the kid behind the counter. He gets me a yummy orange strawberry banana drink and takes my order quickly. I knew what I wanted for about an hour at this point! I wanted something different and boy did I get it. It was the orange cherry rosemary french toast. I don't know; there is just something weird about rosemary in your breakfast, ya know? It was soggily swimming in a milky sauce and had cocktail cherries strewn throughout. Huh. Side of bacon: ok, but overpriced.
My overall experience here was frustrating and meh. Probably won't be back. One star: Fruit drink. Two stars: Cool guy at bar. Half star: Food trying to be different.
Want to visit Orange on Harrison and don't want to wait in line? It's easy! Get a juicer and forget how to cook.
In all honesty, for me, this place lacked value. Maybe it's because I have a palate...
It's outrageously crowded, and that means if you sit near the door you're always bombarded with either people eye-f**king your food or a blast of air and noise...annoying even on my good days.
The whole "orange" concept has gone too far. C'mon people...orange coffee. Uhm, no. It sucked!
My eggs benedict (how I gauge your place) were not good at all.
My friend's pancake flight is the only reason I award an extra star. Not terrible but not worth the wait.
On the flipside, the waitress was nice!
Hate it.
You guys said it was a love it or hate it place right? You would think that after they took 30-45 minutes to bring out the food, I would be hungry enough to like it but naw..... I hate it and I even tried the caprese benedict that so many yelpers raved about. The potatoes were as bland as cardboard. Even the customizable juice was eh... nice but nothing special.
The fruishi looked pathetic and gimmicky and the servers were pretentious when we asked about how it's made and what's in it. "We cook the rice with juice.. in something called a rice pot. This is called maki and this is called nigiri" Yeahh.... okay, because a rice cooker is such a novelty and I live underground so I've never had real sushi before. Pass.
It's brightly lit (which I liked), but if it weren't for the discount we got (students/young alums can get 20% off the entire bill if they ask), the food would have been a total rip-off. Oh, and watch out... the servers trick you into buying sides by making it sound like it already comes w/ the dish and then the bill comes and there's extra $. I don't mind paying extra for good food for but this isn't exactly good food we're talking about here. Very gimmicky.
This place is cool - i loved the decor, the fresh squeezed juice and the menu. There were a million things I wanted to try, including seasonal pancakes and some spicy twists to eggs benedict. What I did order though, Omlet 11.5, I was a little bored with. It has bacon, brie and an avocado drizzle of sorts. It just left me wanting more.
Totally worth the trip, and I wouldn't pitch a fit about going again, but I'll make no efforts to initiate a trip there.
I am a huge huge brunch fan. Now the fact that they do not serve bloody mary's or mimosas or any Sunday funday drinks was ok with me this time because I was incredibly hungover when I rolled into this joint. Luckily for us we were seated right away.
For my juice of choice I mixed grapefruit and celery and seriously could not get enough of it, so fresh and tasted great even though sounds weird. My boyfriend had the green eggs and ham, which actually sounded sort of eh when i saw it but looked amazing and tasted great (I had to have a bite or 12). I had some omelette with brie, bacon and avocado. So good. However my absolute favorite part was the orange coffee! Sounds so weird, but I left wanting to take some home with me. The only bad part was that my hangover was so bad this fine Sunday morning, i couldn't finish my meal and in fact had to leave the premises to go lay down. but not because of the food. I will come back when I have my wits about me.
I had read about Orange on Yelp, and never having had a really trendy brunch before, thought a free Thursday with hubby would be a good time to give it a try. It was a fun experience, and I would probably go back again,especially on a weekday because I hate waiting.
We got the pancake flight, which was yummy and easily enough for two, and the "Popeye scramble" of scrambled eggs with spinach and tomato. We figured we'd share both, and the healthiness of the spinach would somehow cancel out all the fat and calories of the sweet and creamy toppings on the pancakes. I can really rationalize anything.
I liked the unique taste of the orange coffee, but I didn't think much of Orange's potatoes that came with the eggs. It was a sort of bland cake of skin-on mashed spuds. The whole dish needed an application of salt and pepper.
Overall, a fun change of pace. In spite of the crowd they cater to, there is a kids' menu. The whole thing set us back about $30. One star off for the annoying lengthy schlep to the bathrooms.
eh.
I actually was on Yelp this week, thinking of what I should review, and I completely forgot that I was at Orange this weekend. And no, its not because I had been drinking. It was just pretty forgetable. Judging from the menu, it looks fantastic but our meals were nothing to write home (or on Yelp) about.
Pros-
Frushi is OK, kind of interesting
You can design your own juice combinations and fill it out like a little score card
Cool, Different things on the Menu
Cons-
-Our food was cold
-Bad Breakfast Potatoes- Which I feel is virtually impossible bc potatoes are delicious almost any way you make them
- Our food was just mediocre- and I hate all mediocre things!
I had some high hopes for this place but it really fell short for me.
This location is superior to the Orange on North Clark: The space is bigger, the decor more intricate, and the service more attentive.
Where to start regarding the menu? Here's what separates Orange from the everywhere else:
1. Cucumber garnished ice water.
2. Orange-flavored coffee.
3. Smoothies with hundreds of flavor variations.
4. Fruishi (fruit rolled the way a piece of sushi would be rolled)
5. Weekly thematic pancake flights.
6. Huevos Rancheros (Eggs over tortilla chips over cheese over beans.
7. Green eggs and ham (ehh, but, hey, it's green eggs and ham!).
I love this spot and will keep it at the top of my breakfast and brunch rotation.
The wait will likely kill you if you are starving.
We (like every other breathing Chicagoan) headed down to Orange during the Printer's Row book fair. Not the brightest bulb on a Sunday morning, I suppose. :) The wait was 1.5 hours, and they did not overestimate...luckily, we just perused some overpriced books for an hour or so and then reported back...my best gal pal got us in good with the host, as they were both from Omaha. I think it knocked a whole 3 minutes off of our wait! ;)
This was actually my best experience at Orange besides the crowd and wait. The cofee is supersonic. No other coffee on earth hypes me up like Orange coffee. Our waiter delivered 2 carafes to our table and we just got to serve ourselves, how convenient! And how dangerous!
The fruishi was divine, as it always is. Perfection squared with raspberry drizzle and mango chunks. My green eggs and ham (a staple) was absolutely fantastica, perfectly prepared, piping hot with two big slices of buffalo mozzarella melting nicely on top...yummmm. Gal pal got the french toast kabobs and loved them, I drooled at her ability to consume major carbs and be skinny. Boyfriend ordered the benedict and finished it swiftly, as well as my potatoes and toast.
Overall, just a great breakfast.
One odd thing is that the bathroom requires you to walk out of the restaurant and into the lobby of an office building, its seriously like a one block walk. I got lost of course...but with all that coffee...you know how it goes. :)
Def a good place. I suggest going on a weekday if possible, or trying to go when there isn't a large, huge, street event less than a block away :)
The self park in the building is only $8 with Orange validation.
This was a fun place! I've been here a couple of times and there is always a twist to the menu. I don't eat pancakes, but I hear great things about them. My children love all of the orange decorations. The green apple juice does look a bit gross, but I hear it tastes great.
I recommend this place for families or for a meetup with friends.
Orange is a pleasant, airy, high ceiling brunch spot with hot waitresses and of course amazing orange juice. In fact we were noticing there was a hot waitress for every sort of indie stereotype (grungy hippie chick, classic 40s pin-up girl, quirky art school student, tattooed rock babe, dreaded raver w/ revealing tank top), sorta like choosing a girl on http://altporn.com.
My steak benedict was tasty but I couldn't finish it for psychological reasons. You see, the poached eggs resembled ice cream because instead of hollandaise there was a worcester vinaigrette drizzled on top that looked like chocolate sauce. It was just too weird. They also have something called frushi (fruit sushi), I rest my case.
I love this place, even though I admit the food is just above average.
Getting there is great - there's a blue line right near by and there is definitely street parking within a 1-2 block radius.
When you walk in, you're greeted with the strong fresh scent of oranges, which I love! The restaurant is big and roomy, so you can usually seated pretty quickly. The negative is also that it's big and roomy - which means it can be kind of loud.
The best part of the menu is drinks! Create your own fruit drinks (mixing of fresh juices in 2 sizes from things like grapes to carrots) and it is awesome because you can't find anything quite like it anywhere else in the city. It's not the "fresh" orange juice you can order at other brunch places that is fake or sugared up and diluted with water. Plus they have "orange" coffee, which is like coffee with an orange flavor to it (not sweet though). I love it .. not sure everyone else would, but you can have to admit this is pretty ingenuious (i wonder how they do it?).
The food is excellent (I'd skip the Thai inspired omelette though) but not the top in the city. However, what it lacks in overall food they more than make up in their drinks :)
I started putting cucumbers in my water after eating here! I like the look of Orange... the flight of pancakes special is always fun. Or the Chai-infused French toast.... or the custom juices.... or the Mexican flair of some of the menu items.
I look forward to coming home to Chicago. And it usually means breakfast here (at least once).
Orange is more gimicky than I traditionally like my brunch places, but its a great place to take people from out of town for a fairly unique (but still tame) brunch experience. From the pancake flight to frushi to the fresh juices, its been a crowd pleaser for guests I've brought to town.
I always end up spending more than I like--but the juices are great, the coffee smells phenonmenal (roasted with orange peels), and the omelet 11.5 is to die for. Not a 5 star place because the food doesn't put me over the top, the prices are a bit high, and the wait can be terrible (I always go around or before 10 because I've learned my lesson)
I like this place. I like the space. The servers are always great. I love the the ability to create your own juice combo (the carrot, lemon, ginger is my fave). I love the creative menu items.
Yet as exciting as the menu items look, I gotta say that my satisfaction with the actual item rarely measures up to the expectations I have after reading the descriptions. Don't get me wrong - the food is good. But it's only good. (The descriptions on the menu are much more impressive.)
I find it ironic that the best items I've had on the menu are the ones with the most basic names. (Omelette #6, for instance.)
I should mention that if you can handle a complete sugar rush so early in the day, give the Jelly-donut Pancakes a try. When you come down from your sugar high, you'll crash into a food coma. I can only handle these once a year they're so sweet. (But yummy.)
One complaint - and I don't know if they were having issues with the HVAC that day or what - but the last time I was there it was HOT. They had the door open and the ceiling fans were going, but it was a hot and humid morning in the South Loop that day, and they needed to get the AC cranking.
Sweet Jesus. This place is good. We came here based on all the previous Yelp reviews of this location and the other location, and of course we tried the fruishi and the pancake flight. A+++ on both of them. The fruishi is fruit and fruit-flavored rice wrapped up like sushi, and it tasted like heaven. The pancake flight is four stacks of silver dollar-sized pancakes (sweet, fluffy, and delicious) with a weekly theme. Today's was "Spring," so the pancakes were grass (green butter creme icing, green coconut flakes, and a basil chiffonade), trees (chocolate ganache, walnuts, caramel sauce, and a mint leaf), flowers (orange anglaise and edible pansies), and my personal favorite, which was named simply "pink" (pink vanilla glaze, pink sprinkles, and maraschino cherries). They all tasted like dessert and I did my best to finish as much of them as possible even though I was getting full.
I also LOVE the "design your own juice" selection. I chose pear-kiwi and the boy chose grapefruit-pineapple. I LOVED mine. (Not a fan of grapefruit personally, so I didn't love his.) They also had a bunch of other interesting choices, from traditional like apple, orange, and tomato to exotic like cucumber, watermelon, mango, and strawberry.
Other than the "design your own juice" selection, though, picky eaters should be aware that there isn't as much flexibility on the rest of the menu. The top of the menu explicitly tells you that "if you want to design your own omelette, go to a place with 'Golden' or 'Nugget' in the name." The numerous varieties of omelettes, pancakes, french toast, and eggs benedict they offered DID all look amazing, though, and the menu says "Trust us!" It would be hard for me to ever try anything else, though, because I was so completely sold on the pancake flight. I did try my boyfriend's cinnamon roll pancakes, and they were quite tasty.
The ambience of the restaurant was really nice. Open and airy, and the bf and I both felt like we were on vacation somewhere tropical. It wasn't TOO crowded by the time we got there (between 1 and 2 p.m.) -- we didn't have to wait in line, but we did have to sit at a table very closely situated between two other tables, so we were all eavesdropping on one another's conversations. Not too bad though. And our server was super nice!
Just a note about the parking garage next door: It is pretty expensive, and the restaurant validation only takes off $2.00. Plus, it is weird and has valet parking once you get inside the garage, so... I wouldn't recommend driving here, or if you do, I wouldn't recommend parking in the garage.
I definitely want to go back. Super duper yummy. At one point during the meal, my boyfriend looked over at me and the look on my face, and said, "Are you in your happy place?" and I said "Yes." I think that just about sums it up.
My biggest beef:
Whenever I get Eggs Benny, I order with regular bacon instead of Canadian. So, here at Orange, I order my food, and the server tells me that the bacon will be on the side. Cool, I can put it on top of a damn English muffin myself, it's not that deep, although I thought it ridiculous. When we get the bill, there's a charge for a side of bacon. At that point, I just wanted out, so I didn't bother bringing it up, but it seemed like some foul shit. If he would have told me, I'd have paid and been screw-faced, but not as annoyed as I was with the dumb ass charge. Like, who does that? And if I'm paying for it, you couldn't take the extra 10 seconds it would have taken to add it to the damn dish? Sorry, I'm still a bit annoyed, ha ha-- and I didn't even pay for the meal, we were treated by a friend.
The juice was good, but crazily overpriced. Word to the wise-- if you order ginger in your drink, tell them to half the portion. It completely overpowered a friend's carrot drink and that's a great combo, but this one tasted awful.
My food was decent, but not great. The potatoes were plain old baked russets half-mashed in the shape of a small bowl. Classy! Ugh, they were inedible.
I think that's that. We won't be going back.
I love Orange...Orangey-Orange-Orange.
Some words about Orange...
Unique (See: Pancake Flights)
Fresh (their juice)
Wait (it's popular, so 30-60 minutes to get a seat)
Cramped (see previous line about 'popular')
Repeat (yep, coming back)
I've been wanting to try out orange for a long time and was really disappointed.
First of all, the famous fresh juice- we didn't get ours until near the end of our meal and I thought my OJ tasted watered down. Honestly I thought they should have comped it because it came so late but I felt like an asshole asking.
None of the food was outstanding either- first of all the frushi- one kind that we got didn't even have any fruit inside! Just a chunk of flavored rice with a tiny slice of kiwi on top. Definitely not what I was expecting.
My benedict caprese was alright but the pesto had kind of a funky flavor that made me not want to finish it. The potatoes that came with were some of the blandest I've ever had, didn't seem to have any flavor added at all.
Also this place is EXPENSIVE!
Lots of Great Specials
Neighborhood: Wicker Park
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