The dishes at Apolonia sound amazing on paper and are plated tastefully. However, I was let down by the flavors and textures in the pastas/entrees. We also had some issues with pasta being undercooked and incorrect charges on the receipt too which may have added to my overall disenchantment. I will say that the dessert was fantastic so we did end off on a good note. What we got: Fiorentini al Sugo: 8/10; smoked tomato, catalpa grove sausage. Grilled Mediterranean Branzino: 6/10; marinated olives, dill, caramelized fennel. It was cooked well but kind of one note. Also a pretty small portion given how expensive it was. Black Truffle Puff Bread: 9.5/10; crunchy herbs, toasted garlic. THIS. This dish was the reason I came here and it did not disappoint. Shellfish Tagliolini: 7/10; blue crab, bottarga. Very generous amount of crab. Harissa Spiced Lamb Skewer: 8/10; cucumber tzatziki, lime, dill The Pistachio: 9/10; pistachio done three ways in a dessert (crumble, cake, and gelato?) read more

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I've been to Apolonia a few times and have always enjoyed the food. It's located in the south loop with ample of street parking. The space itself is large and very open with floor to ceiling windows letting in a lot of natural light and you're also able to see the hustle and bustle of being in the city pass by as you dine. You can see the chefs cook while you are seated which is really unique for an upscale place. The staff are always friendly and helpful when explaining different menu items. Being a vegetarian and having so many dishes made from scratch they were able to modify things to better suit our dietary needs. Coffee is always a good idea here. We got the black truffle puff bread, fiorentini al sugo with mushrooms instead of meat, ricotta bombolini and a cheese and mushroom tart. Every single item was beautifully crafted, tasty and coursed out. This was very important because you could enjoy each dish without having 5 dishes come out all at once. The place is family friendly and they went the extra yard by making a fruit bowl for my kid. The staff also gave him a kids cup a which was sweet. It was my husband's birthday so they gave a scoop of ice cream on the house. read more

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Our first time dining at Apolonia, and we had the Restaurant Week dinner special. We enjoyed our meal and ended it with a sweet dessert. We would definitely come back to try other dishes--great spot to try during Restaurant Week. read more

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Made a reservation for 11:30am on a Monday and we ended up being the only ones dining there at the time. We shared the black truffle puff bread and fiorentini al sugo. The black truffle puff bread was definitely unique and very flavorful with good texture. But it lacked a bit on the actual truffle flavor. The pasta was pretty good too and I liked the burrata on top. Our server was very friendly. Pretty good one-time experience! I loved the decor and ambiance inside - minimalistic and japandi vibe. read more

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How doesn't such a beautiful restaurant offer a gift card? It's absolutely absurd and sad. Paid for parking walked into the restaurant only to be told they did not offer gift cards!! It would've been a big one guys very sad about it read more

this is a perfect nice meal. definitely can't get any of these dishes anywhere else. my only complaint is that it is pricy (rightfully so btw) so i can't go as often as i'd like to read more

This restaurant is gorgeous. Service was good, but it was quite a wait for the food even though the restaurant was pretty much empty. I'm actually surprised there were only 3-4 parties during dinnertime on a weekday. The fiorentini al sugo was delicious! I would order this again and again. The shellfish arrabiata bucatini was okay, not memorable. Also tried the mussel toast and black truffle bread, both of which were pretty good. The drinks were a huge miss for me. I didn't like the first two I ordered (barely drank them and I don't remember their names), but the third (desert rose) was good. I think their drink menu is always changing, so I guess it is hit or miss. read more

Apolonia - Modern European Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

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I stopped by on a chill night for a late evening dinner. I had a wonderful time! I started with delicious puffy crispy, salty black truffle puff bread. Amazing! I had a skewer of harissa spiced lamb chunks on top of a bed of tzatziki with a slice of lime. And last I had Fritto Misto - tasty tidbits of vegetable and squid, battered and fried, garnished with mint and slices of red chili, surrounding a white creamy yogurt. My service was good. The interior was bustling and busy and happy, even later night. What a great place. read more

Apolonia - Black truffle puff bread - Modern European Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

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The food? Excellent. The Roasted Mussel Toast was a buttery, chili-spiked bite of heaven, and the Grilled Branzino with olive sauce was the kind of dish that makes you pause mid-chew just to appreciate it. The decor is modern and understated... very "cool without trying too hard." The service, on the other hand, felt like it was moving in slow motion. We finished all our starters before anyone circled back to take our wine order. Not exactly the pacing you hope for at this price point. Also, not loving the surprise 5% "employee benefits" fee tacked on at the end. I'm all for supporting staff, but maybe just fold it into the already upscale menu prices instead of springing it on me with the bill. Overall, a tasty meal, but next time I might opt for takeout and my own wine pour. read more

Delicious food and attentive service at this surprisingly over half empty restaurant. Perhaps due to the dark lighting giving an initial impression of it not being open, but we were happy we chose to dine here. Delicious tapas styled appetizers and flavorful entrees. The pastas - bucatini and gnocchi- were delicious and the burger tasted how a classic burger should taste. Inviting service makes this a place to come back to. Would recommend. read more

We went to Apolonia for the second time the other night. The first time was for brunch over a year ago, which I didn't enjoy very much, but this review is for their dinner... which we loved! We had the black truffle puff bread, roasted mussel toast, fiorentini al sugo, and the branzino. Every dish was wonderful. The truffle bread and mussel toast were really interesting and unique. Great flavors, textures. The mussel toast flavors were complex and the calabrian chiles gave it a long flavor profile (front, middle, finish). The pasta was cooked perfectly and the sausage was nice and crumby. The branzino was very good too! Grilled nicely with a slight crisp. The accompanying sauce paired well and I felt like it was appropriately portioned - everything on the dish was meant to be eaten together. I'm really glad we gave Apolonia another chance and I would definitely come back for dinner. It's fine dining, that is approachable and delicious! I'd recommend getting everything we ordered. My only complaint is that it was cold in the restaurant, so bring a jacket. read more

Beautiful organic decor and pleasing ambiance, food was 10/10 , presentation, taste , the best food I have had in Chicago so far . read more

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Was in Chicago for a conference, so was stuck around the convention center due to schedule. The restaurant is nice, open space, nice design. The service was good although a bit slow. The menu is modern med. greek, italian inspired. Descriptions sounded good and interesting. We were a partynof eight so everyone pretty much ordered different starters and entrees. I had the paella pasta for entree and octopus to start. We also ordered the bread because the server raved about it. The bread was nothing special. I dont know why he hyped it up. My octopus was decent but nothing special. My paella pasta was interesting but again nothing special. One thing is the portions are tiny and I was starving after. My colleague had the hanger steak and it was the smallest portion of steak, I've ever seen. The price was not worth it. I actually went back to my hotel and ate at the bar after. read more

Apolonia - octopus drowing in presto, oily - Modern European Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

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We came for an early Sunday brunch. The place is very spacious, but it unfortunately seemed too big for the the three tables that were being used. Perhaps this isn't a brunch place and gets full for dinner. It really sucks to see a place so empty, especially when the food is good. We ordered their Black Truffle Puff Bread and their Fiorentini al Sugo pasta dish. The Black Truffle Puff Bread came out first. It was topped with with crunchy herbs which added amazing texture and toasted garlic. It was honestly bigger than I thought, and very delicious. The Fiorentini al Sugo came with smoked tomato, and catalpa grove pork sausage. The sugo sauce had a nice smoky flavor to it and the pasta was cooked perfectly. The pork sausage was also delicious and you get a decent amount. Overall the food and service was great. I'm not sure I'd come back for brunch but can definitely see myself returning for a nice dinner night. read more

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I was recently in town for work and we had dinner as a group at Apolonia. When I walked in I was blown away by the beautiful atmosphere and aesthetic. We had reservations and were seated immediately. I took particular notice of the amazing bar area. Our waitress was very attentive, friendly and patient with our large group. The only hiccup was my coworker was served my cocktail and I her mocktail as she's sober. Honest mistake and not on the waitress but remedied quickly. We ordered almost all of appetizers for the table and we enjoyed them all. Everyone raved about their entrees as well. The star was the shellfish tagliolini! It was super delicious and full of flavor!! My friend regretted not ordering it when she tasted mine lol. Everyone enjoyed the desserts as well. I will definitely be visiting again whenever I am back in Chicago! read more

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Food was good and service was snappy, though that's about all that I would give the stars for at this establishment. While it might be the restaurant's policy to only seat customers in the dining room if they have a reservation, it's a bit ridiculous that it is still a requirement when the tables are 90% empty. Upon being told that my only option was bar seating, I opened up Opentable and made a reservation on the spot and showed it to the woman at the front, who scoffed at me but allowed me to sit at a table in the (mostly empty) dining area. During my meal, I noticed several more people being diverted to the bar or made to wait until their exact reservation time before being seated, even though by the time I left there were only two groups (pictured) in the entire dining room. Both the tartare and crab bucatini were good though. read more

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apolonia was good but not rave-worthy (outshined by the haidilao right next door ) best items were the octopus (weirdly served in escargot dishware) and blue crab tagliolini as someone who typically isnt a fan of the texture of gnocchi, i really liked their "hand-torn" potato gnocchi with wagyu short rib black truffle puff bread had a deep truffle flavor and great crispy texture - maybe a drizzle of something sweet to balance the saltiness of the shaved parmesan would elevate the dish further? the grilled branzino had an incredible crispy skin and the fish was cooked perfectly; the marinated olives added a certain brininess to the dill oil but were very salty. however the fennel was cooked beautifully and a great add to the dish dishes were a little salty across the board but desserts (pistachio ice cream and tiramisu) made up for it! ambiance was nice but service was a little lacking! read more

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Sat at the bar a few weeks ago. Restaurant was jam packed due to a concert downtown. Service at the bar was a bit slow, but the food was good. A bit artsy kind of place if you like minimalism. Prices seem a bit high it it is downtown Chicago near McCormick Place. read more

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We stumbled upon this place after checking into our accommodations. Our server was amazing! We had great service and she was so helpful and provided great recommendations. The cocktails were great. We got the beets, cauliflower and verde pasta. The beets were delicious. The cauliflower had a great sauce but was very oily. The pasta was tasty but a bit too salty for our liking. read more

Absolutely outstanding chef's tasting menu. The highlight was the mussel toast. Sat at the bar, the bartender Isaac was super knowledgeable about both the menu and the drinks. Two snaps up for sure, highly recommended! read more

Apolonia - Tasting menu - Modern European Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

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Just go here. You will win. If you like dessert, get the pistachio dessert. If you don't like dessert, get the pistachio dessert. If you're allergic, I'm sure the staff and ambiance will cure you. Go here. read more

Apolonia - Skirt Steak 10/10 - Modern European Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

Came here for brunch with my parents - the truffle bread was heavenly. The vibe is very light and airy and swanky, very luxe. Service was good and attentive. The steak and eggs in purgatory were a little off, which was surprising to me, probably a fluke. The mushroom brunch flatbread was yummy. We surprisingly didn't get pastries, but the pastry menu looked top tier and I definitely want to try it. read more

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Stopped by for a quick lunch before a conference. I ordered cod roe creamy pasta and my coworkers ordered the chicken main dish. They seemed to enjoyed their dishes. My pasta was cooked well and had a nice seafood-y creamy texture. If I were to try it again, I would try to order something else that would help cut the richness of the pasta. Service was great and the ambience was nice as well. Not too busy and an easy spot to walk in for lunch. read more

Apolonia - cod roe pasta - Modern European Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

Ate here while at a conference. It is a very pretty restaurant and nice concept. The service is on point. The food was okay but a little sparse, especially for the prices they are charging. We had two drinks, two entrees, and two desserts and came away with a bill of $220 - it was good enough, but not that good. read more

Came here for lunch with a group. All of the foods we ordered were yummy! I loved the mushroom puff one the most. The staff was a bit slow, and it did take a while to get the check. Food came out at a reasonable time though. There were plenty of seating, and the interior was new and minimalistic! read more

One of the best meals I have enjoyed in a long time. Unique menu and flavors. I will be back tomorrow for another selection! Wait staff was kind, fun and knowledgeable. Paid attention to my allergies. But most of all THE FLAVOR! Bravo. read more

Good service. Nice location for conference center. The calamari dish was a bit oily.

I'll start off by saying my dish came out with a very obvious black strand of hair right in the center of it. When I told the waitress she was initially confused but then asked if I wanted it replaced. That aside, there wasn't as much of a selection available as I would have expected. I ended up ordering the Shellfish & Safron Malfadine because it looked interesting and the description said it had flavors of paella. When I think of a pasta dish I consider three aspects - noodle, sauce, occupying meats. The Malfadine noodles were too hard, flavorless, and very dry with little to no sauce coating. There was some oil at the bottom of the dish but it left a bitter after taste. The best part of the dish was probably the seafood - there wasn't much of it but the one piece of octopus was tender and the shrimp wasn't overcooked. There were some shell pieces in the mussels but I guess that's occasionally the case with that type of shellfish. Overall service was relatively quick but the piece of hair definitely took a chunk of my appetite. The appetizers were okay but the toast was a bit hard and cold. It would have tasted better warmer. For the price, I had higher expectations :( I would recommend the pistachio ice cream for dessert, that ended my experience on a higher note despite the rest of the night's details. read more

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The service & food were both remarkable. It was an unexpected find near by McCormick. We were in Chicago for work and stumbled across Apolonia. What a treat! The staff was amazing. We'll definitely return. Don't sleep on the puff bread! read more

Apolonia - Mafaldini Verde - spring onion & house made boursin, asparagus. It was delightful. - Modern European Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

Made a reservation for bar seating (our preferred). Plans changed, but they had earlier reservations available accommodate. The space felt elegant and expansive when they closed the blinds on the windows. We commented that the seating meant for people waiting felt like a "time out" area or a kid's table- just a little out of place. There was a separate room for private parties, just to note. Wasn't impressed by the wine offerings, and my partner felt the earl gray whiskey cocktail basically tasted like sweet tea. Despite it, the alcohol made up most of our bill.. oops. Food was pretty good, but nearly each item had something slightly off: Tuna crudo: Fish was of excellent quality but the truffle in the potatoes was overpowering and couldn't taste any lemon. Lamb was very tasty- well cooked and seasoned. I thought the cucumber tzatziki tasted good, but the texture was a little mushy and weird. I liked the cod, but I like overcooked fish. My husband felt it was overcooked. The pasta dish was superb. My husband liked it better than Rose Mary's ragu because it had a some spice to it. The galette was a undercooked and too doughy, but it did taste good. It had a caramelization on the edge.. so good. I was torn about having more bites. I'm glad I tried the place, it has been on my list for a while. read more

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Made reservation online and got texts and emails reminding me of the date and time. Came here for dinner with a couple of friends and it was quite empty at 6:30p but definitely got much busier as time went on. Food: **** 4 stars - some dishes were better than others - Black truffle bread was yummy **** - Tuna crudo was just ok -*** - shellfish bucatini pasta - good **** - Grilled Branzino - good **** - dessert: The pistachio- 4.5 stars - the best of the evening Service: **** 4 stars until it gets busy Friendly staff - they're filling up your water glasses very quickly Restrooms: - clean and well kept Overall, dishes were on smaller side but if you order a good number to share it will be ok. read more

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I returned for dinner the following week after my initial brunch visit and the menu was exciting for me everything was delicious. The lamb skewers and octopus was perfectly cooked and flavored. My main dish the branzino was light perfectly cooked and the olives and fennel complimented the fish wonderfully... a 5 star for me The black truffle puff is a highlight a must perfectly warmed light and airy bread with an excellent taste and perfect crisp. 5 star. The chili garlic oysters, a bit small but tasty and cooked perfectly. 4 stars The almond pastry croissant 5 stars... delicious and the creme inside gave it the right hint of sweetness. The chocolate meringue flambeau was yummy. The piece of caramel inside I wish it had melted but the banana, caramel, chocolate cake bon a petite... 4.5 stars For brunch I had the steak and eggs. It was in a tomato base which I was unaware that it would be served that way, and I'm not a tomato fan, but nonetheless it was decent. 3.75 My bestie ordered warm seafood salad and stated that if was delicious 5 stars . Red blend wine was great Light red for the fish was the perfect bitter without being sour 4.8 stars The mimosas lemon/citrus were also perfect. 5 stars read more

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Apolonia gets 3 stars from me, but only because the food was 5/5. We chose to do the tasting menu that included half portions of 4 dishes then a dessert. The portions were not large, and it was pricey for the amount of food we got, but I'm glad we were able to try an assortment of items on the menu. The roasted mussel toast and fiorentini al sugo were my favorite items on the tasting menu, and the pistachio dessert was to die for!! Unfortunately, we didn't have the best experience given how loud the restaurant is. I felt like we had to practically shout to converse all night. Also, our waiter was quite dismissive and rude with us. I felt like a burden when asking him about the tasting menu. Not quite the hospitality I would expect from such a highly rated restaurant! read more

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First time here and would for sure return! Food was so good!! The Potato Gnocchi with brisket was easily one of the best dishes I have ever had. Service was great and ambience was also great!! read more

I know, I know. A one star review at 4+ place? This must be some loud foo complaining about an unlucky instance of bad service, right? Nah, though I will say service the first time I came here was quite abysmal (I think they were extremely understaffed). Sadly this one star is due to the worst food poisoning I've ever experienced. Tl;dr the food here is very good. The interior is beautiful. Service can be a little hit or miss depending on how crowded the restaurant is. As long as no food poisoning happens, I'd say this is staunchly a 4 or 5 star place. I recommend the puff bread, the sugo pasta thingy, any pastas that sound good to you, really, and honestly everything has been pretty solid. The most disappointing thing I've had here was a mushroom flatbread - it was ok, just a bit dry and outshined by everything else. Now onto my tale of poisoned woe. I totally understand that there is a slim chance the food poisoning is being misattributed here, but considering that all I ate during the relevant time window other than the meat, raw fish, and shellfish I had at Apolonia was some coffee, an apple Danish, and an egg sandwich (from a Yelp event at a cafe) earlier that day, I'm fairly confident I was (food) poisoned here. If I'm wrong, my b and I'm very sorry, but I'm not denting their overall rating much, and dash it all if I got done in by a darned egg sandwich. Or oat milk. Yeesh. Anyway, the specific food I tried that day was their new tasting menu. I'd only recommend this if you don't actually want to order full sizes of everything on it, because they only give you half portions, and financially it's obviously not a value deal. I say 'obviously' here, but obviously I thought they were giving you full portions prior to actually trying it, so you're welcome for the pro tip. I've always loved their garlic truffle puff bread (ordered this separately) and the sugo pork pasta thingy, and I was also surprised at how good the mussel toast was. Normally I find mussels too fishy, but that wasn't the case here. The crudo was good, but very small and sweet, and the branzino was delicious. The pistachio dessert I've gotten twice now - I think it's not bad, though it tastes more like pistachio extract/artificial pistachio flavor than the real deal to me. I'd recommend ordering another dish or two if you're splitting the tasting menu. Otherwise it's a LOT of food for one! Fast-forward to a few hours later and my stomach feels more and more nauseous, and then an extended, very painful period of gross things happening that no one wants to read about. Needless to say, tasting my beloved sugo pasta and puff bread coming out the way it came has permanently ruined our relationship, and the whole ordeal was so bad I don't think I can ever come back. Was it the mussels? The crudo? Alas, I may never know. Thus ends my tale of woe. read more

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We love coming to this restaurant for the atmosphere and great food. My friend and I enjoyed their earl grey and green tea ice tea. For our meal we shared the Brussel sprouts, beet salad, cauliflower, Fiorentini Pasta, steak and salmon. Everything came out perfectly. I also wanna shout them out for having a portable changing table in the bathroom so I could change my daughter. So many places do not have one is I was happy they had a table! We will be back for sure as the service was impeccable as well. read more

Apolonia - Modern European Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

Came here for dinner and the dishes were nice to share. The highlight of the night was the desserts! Although the food was good, I felt like there wasn't a dish that was memorable. The black truffle puff bread was really popular and we didn't think it was anything amazing, but it does taste good. The service was good and our server was really attentive with our needs. read more

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I found out about this place from an episode of Chicago Today with Cortney Hall and Matt Rodrigues. They had some amazing dishes and I thought I need to get my @$$ over here to check it out! I have been numerous times at this point and always end up in the section of the awesome Tom S. Really good dude and knows how to take care of his diners. The place itself has a cool bar in which the lovely Nicole works...she pours a good drink to say the least. The Basic Peach is really good...its a mezcal based cocktail and very delicious. I usually start out with the Black Truffle Puff Bread. Believe me, its worth the damn carbs lol! I've brought 3 people here and they all love this dish! The Grilled Branzino is pretty good...I definitely recommend that. The Fiorentini al Sugo pasta dish is really good also...the catalpa grove pork sausage and smoked tomato is packed with much flavor. My ultimate go to is the Spring Lamb Bucatini! Such an amazing dish that is very enjoyable to the belly. I love the flavor and am usually mad once the plate is clear. I highly recommend this more than anything. Great location as its right on the southeast corner of Michigan & Cermak (22nd St) with the big windows...you cant miss it. Great service, drinks, vibe and food. What more could you want? read more

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I came in late on a Friday and they were kind enough to seat me at the bar. I only have a burger and a salad to Judy by but it wasn't pretty so so. The lettuce was withered. The meat had this dark, overcooked taste and the fries were way too salty. Maybe I caught them on a bad night. It has a very clean, contemporary, thoughtful restaurant vibe. All the front of house was moving in a very elaborate dance of service with a very serious level of focus. The food was explained when delivered and the servers are friendly in those moments. But without the food to back it up it comes off as a kind of restaurant theater of what a fancy restaurant in Chicago should be. read more

nice menu and ambiance with side room family style sharing, variety of flavors Artichoke Hummus with pecan dukkah and pomegranate molasses Cauliflower 'Caponata' golden raisins | caper sofrito quite tasty Harissa Spiced Lamb Skewer al dente pastas Shellfish & Saffron Mafaldine and Fiorentini al Sugo Grilled Mediterranean Branzino and Hearth Roasted Half Chicken read more