Classic Chicago
Chicago’s finest rolled into the March 2016 edition of Steak Night with what now seems to be considered an intimate group at 6. When deciding where to go, I took a look back through the posts and was pretty surprised we had not been to Gibson’s since 2013. So with that, one of Chicago’s legendary steak establishments became our place of gluttony.
I arrived a bit early and had an Oban while waiting for the group. I was able to find a 2-topper in the corner, which happened to work just fine. However, if one plans to gather at the Gibson’s bar with a large party, best arrive well before the rush. Despite being a bit cramped we had good service as the guys found their way in.
We were seated to a nice table of 6 and Tommy, our 26 year vet of a server, began to take us through our paces. I forgot how old school Gibson’s really is. The apps consist of nothing fancy, mostly fresh seafood options and a salad with huge beef steak tomatoes. Given the app options, I decided to go for something I have always wanted at Gibson’s; to share the huge ass Australian cold water lobster tail. The giant crustacean showed up with a soup bowl of drawn butter and didn’t stand a chance. While delicious, a touch overcooked in my opinion. Rounding out apps was a simple tomato and goat cheese salad. I think it showed up to the table different than we were all expecting – but it was actually really good.
Wine started flowing along with banter. Talk of Scott Martin’s dreadful attendance record surfaced. It seems still TBD how the board plans to address his once a quarter participation. Onto the main course….I went with the classic W.R. Chicago’s cut – a 22 oz. bone in rib eye. It was excellent. Cooked to perfection, teeming with flavor; a result that is hard to top. We ordered up the sides getting the football size 2x baked potato, a requested for hash browns if they were not sold out (request granted) as well as creamed spinach. All the sides were great – I especially love the creamed spinach.
It was Rick Ray’s birthday, because his actual 40th was not too long ago. For that Tommy brought a cartoon sized apple strudel. Rick Ray walked free for the Bronco’s super bowl win and also received a gift to compliment one of his strongest qualities – always having exact change.
We went out for drinks after, somehow were doing a shots and I ended up worse for the wear all day Friday. Great night at a classic Chicago establishment.
Filed under: General
Chicago just can’t stop opening new steakhouses. And after two consecutive steak nights at “rated rookie” joints, we got back to one of the original chophouses that put steak on the map in Chicago. Gibsons….. The ole miss. The ole man.
Back from the depths of a 10-person January extravaganza, a more intimate group of six graced the gold coast and requisite hookers with its presence. Battling traffic and running a little late, we learned Brad Ray was now running up his own bar tab one month after the rest of us did ever so unkindly. Hans, Rick, Bill and I arrived to find him cozying up to the standard Oban, and the rest of us joined, followed shortly by Sir Glick.
Gibson’s is truly a classic steakhouse and the menu proves it. With all of the competition these days from the Bavette’s and Swift’s of the world, if you’re going to serve standard apps and sides, you better do them good. There’s no foie gras on this menu. You’re getting a fucking tomato slice and a heap of broccoli. Deal with it. So without the fancy trimmings, Brad decided to order the 4lb Australian lobster for the table. I’m not a huge lobster aficionado but I thought it was excellent. Appetizers were rounded out by the aforementioned tomato slices with goat cheese and probably something else that I either can’t remember, or that Hans ate all of.
Gibson’s always loves to rep their personalized designation of prime steak and I’ve never thought it was any better than other steaks in the city. But tonight was a little different. I went with my usual bone-in rib eye, called the WR Chicago Cut. On a side note, I’m pretty happy anytime this cut is less than $60. More often than not these days, you’re in the upper $60 range. Glad to see this classic steakhouse has kept classic prices, but more on that later. My top steakhouse list, just in terms of steak, has five placeholders that consistently surpass everywhere else. Gibson’s is not on that list. Their steak has always been average to me. Tonight was the exception. I had a perfect cut of meat, perfectly cooked, and perfectly seasoned. I do think the service here is next to none though. (Except when Kevin McHale and Mike Breen get the last potato pancake)
Sides were creamed spinach, which I absolutely love here. They don’t get too fancy with it and they’ve mastered the perfect ratio of spinach to cheese. And the potato pancake…. I love this and not enough places make it, and/or do it correctly. A few years ago, I brought an out of town friend to Gibson’s with Glick. At the table across from us were Kevin McHale and Mike Breen. (Also a cameo by a very bald Jim McMahon who we didn’t recognize at first) We ordered the potato pancake and they informed us they didn’t have any left. Then mysteriously, we see them serve one up to Kevin and Mike. So we busted our waiter’s balls about it, somewhat jokingly, and they unexpectedly brought us a dessert on the house. That’s why this place has been open 25 years with a cult like following, and will be open for many more than that. A tiny bit of service goes a long way and they recognize locals. So ironically, we had the same waiter this night almost four years later and I brought it up to him again. He actually seemed to remember this, which goes to show why these guys have made good careers out of being a Gibson’s waiter. You will not find better service anywhere in Chicago. What you will find though, is a cheaper steak night. Although we did pay for Rick Ray winning the Super Bowl pool, $250 per dude is a little ridiculous. But I guess that’s what a cat sized lobster will do to a bill.
The night ended inexplicably at another steak house, Maple and Ash for cocktails. Somehow Brad Ray and myself talked each other into shots, and almost a trip to the casino. Thank god only the former happened. I felt like death Friday, but it was worth it. It was a great steak night, and I hope it doesn’t take us three years to get back to Gibson’s.
On to April! On to Spring!
Back to the classics is right. To celebrate the 40th anniversary of Rick Ray’s birth we went old school to the heart of the viagra triangle where men of a certain age roam.
Rick was dapper for the occasion -breaking out a classic sports jacket the likes of which I was surprised to see in his collection(given how tame it is to his usual risque fashion sense).
Dinner was on point. We went aggressive with ordering a massive lobster for an appetizer and while delicious the little princess in me had almost no room for the bone in to follow.
Bone in was ok – creamed spinach was out of this world. When u remember the creamed spinach its not that the rest of the meal was subpar – it’s that the rest of Chicago is subpar to this creamed spinach. It’s as the gods intended creamed spinach to taste.
Talk on the table centered around politics and football(as every conversation at Gibsons is required to) and I feel confident everyone knows when the primary is to stop the madness that is a Trump candidacy.
Great night. Solid 8.5
Like Grandmaster Flash, Shell Toe Adidas and classic comedies with Will Ferrell this month we went old school. Going to the legendary Gibson’s, a nice change of pace after going to new places for the first months of the year.
The bar was packed as always with business folks, tourists and likely some working girls but we managed to gather around a small table in the back. After the blood bath of last month no one was on the hook for drinks this month.
You always have to have your head on a swivel at Gibson’s to keep an eye out for any celebrities. Alas there were no celebrities on this visit, not even Shawn Marion or Scott Martin. Gibson’s is no frills, they do the basics and do them well. I thought the lobster was a good call for an app, expensive but delicious. Of course thanks to Von Miller and the Broncos I walked for free for the second month in a row. I went with the porterhouse medium rare, a great steak. The hash browns and twice backed potatoes both hit the spot.
The service is top notch, there is something about having an older waiter that has worked there for 20 plus years. He has seen it all and knows how to take care of a table and pace a meal. You kind of just feel like you are at a legendary place when at Gibson’s, it has that vibe of anyone who is anyone has been here at some point holding court. My only complaint is that they really pack the tables into the dining room, if I leaned back too far I literally might touch the steak on the table behind me.
The conductor change dispenser was one of the great gag gifts of all time. Dinner conversation included the presidential election, St. Paddy’s Day plans, the upcoming NCAA tournament and how Scotty Martin’s attendance is worse than Ferris Bueller’s. He makes you look like an ass is what he does Ed.
We went to Maple & Ash for post dinner drinks, not sure we need to rush to the place the girls are at especially since they basically all left as soon as we got there. Some of us went to Dublin’s for a night cap, something I had forgotten until Crenshaw reminded me this weekend. Needless to say I was a bit slow on Friday morning. Great evening as always.
A continuing trend of an unseasonably mild winter brought us into the beginning of spring and found Rick Ray going out on the town with no winter jacket required. The difference this fine evening was the celebration of the end of his roaring 30’s. There is no telling what the 40’s will bring except for more broken hearts and stone cold dance moves of course. A high top and a wildly successful BRay welcomed us to the bar area of Gibsons. This place is a shit show. It is way too crowded and full of far too much botox. I would prefer to either get there at noon when they open to lock down a table large enough for our group to arrive at 7pm or go elsewhere. Thats my only real complaint with Gibsons. Otherwise its a Chicago classic, much like Rick Ray.
Our table was intimate and the service was impeccable as previously noted. Its a nice change of pace to not get the high pressure, high energy service that pushes you into the highest priced items on the menu. Thankfully we had the wildly successful BRay on board to do just that for us. Side note on the lobster, I think I would drink the clarified butter straight if it wouldnt surely be the death of me. The steak was well prepared with a warm red center and a seared crust. Not the best in the city but certainly not the worst. The creamed spinach was the star, which either says alot about the creamed spinach or says little about the rest of the meal.
We presented Rick ray with his most fashion forward accouterments, the conductor change dispenser. I now expect every man standing at every highway off ramp to not only get his request of spare change fulfilled but also get his exact amount requested fulfilled. I am quite pleased I avoided shots at M&A which surely would have put a stop to my Friday morning agenda. Given the opportunity, I would reduce the number of tables in the bar area by 25% and the number of tables in the dining room by 15%, otherwise Gibson’s delivers a solid Chicago steak house experience.
“Dance with the one that brung ya” as Tip O’Neill said. And Gibson’s is the one that brought and has maintained Chicago’s preeminent position on the global steak map. After this night, it was easy to see why. Going to Gibson’s is like coming back home and hanging out with your best friend from high school, you pick up right where you left off.
We showed up to cocktails in the crowded bar. The Gibson’s bar has always been known for its out of town businessmen and cougars and smattering of escorts and some local silver spoon types and tonight was no different. Somehow though, BRay found a nice table in the corner for us to stand around and enjoy a few scotches.
Hard for me to add much more detail than what my fellow companions have already said, but suffice to say the service was impeccable. The lobster tail as an app was an inspired choice. The only thing more inspired was the change dispenser for Rick.
The wine glass was always full. The steak was a great – had a bone-in filet that was spectacular. Enjoyed the hash browns side to complement the meal.
I also did enjoy Maple & Ash afterwards. As a steak restaurant, it’s ok. But it has a great bar that we enjoyed post-Gibson’s.