Five & Dime, Lulu's, Taco Diablo, and Blue Horse Tavern have become my go-to spots for everything from casual dinners to hosting out-of-town guests. The food is consistently delicious, and there's always something that hits the spot no matter what I'm craving. A few standouts I keep coming back to: Bang Bang Shrimp Ribs Salmon with Delallo pepper drops French Dip Enchiladas Verdes Whether I dine in or order on Uber Eats, it always arrives fresh and well-made (rare these days!). And in good weather, nothing beats Five & Dime's rooftop -- easily one of the best places in Evanston to enjoy a relaxed, fun meal outdoors. Friendly service, great variety, and reliably fantastic food! read more

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I was here last week for a special event (this time one I didn't organize and just got to attend as a guest), and it was great as always. The food is delicious (the event I was at had a taco bar, chips and guac, and a few desserts), the drink list is amazing (including a few great mocktails), and the space works really well for either private parties or just hanging out with friends. Five and Dime never disappoints. And for those who do have to plan events for stuff, F&D is great. I had happy hours here for new students in 2018, 2019, and 2022 (post-pandemic), and it was a smooth and enjoyable process each time. read more

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my boyfriend and i came for a post beach day dinner and didn't get approached by any server even though, they checked on so many tables around us. we were starving and had more than enough time to read the menu with sitting around for 15+ mins, it was very disappointing having to wait so long. read more

Really nice large rooftop patio with a great vibe. The nachos were absolutely delicious. Highly recommend. The cheeseburger was good but a bit a bit messy and watery. Also both were priced a bit on the higher side at about $19 each. Our server I believe her name was Olivia was awesome. She was very kind and helpful. She was the only server for all the tables at the time including a party of 10 handled it like a boss. Overall will definitely be coming back read more

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The venue lay out, staff and drinks were fine. The food itself lacked flavor and frankly the chicken was cold and felt like something from a microwave. Beautiful set up and elite staffing though and perfect for a summer night. read more

Came here to enjoy the weather on the rooftop. I love the rooftop ambiance. I sat at the bar, but it took a little while for someone to come out and take my order. I ordered a margarita and nachos. The margarita tasted watered down. The nachos were definitely filling. read more

Five & Dime - Nachos - American Near Me - Evanston, Illinois

Love this spot so much! Always a must visit when I'm back in Evanston! The Lulu's Ginger salad with teriyaki chicken is so so good! The flavor is perfect and its really big, so makes perfect for left overs. It's so fun to be on a rooftop, especially on a nice summer day! Staff was exceptionally kind. Overall, an amazing experience--will be back for sure. read more

Came here, and in spite of the slowness about everything for the service it wasn't bad. It really was quite slow. Five & Dime is one of the most happening places in Evanston. Had a pretty big crowd and they opened the patio so it was crowded the most out there so they had to work hard. This and the good drinks and food let us forgive them for being slow as molasses. A place that pretty much is the same as the other restaurants in this building. It just is the top floor. The menus are pretty much the same as there. Get stuff from Taco Diablo. Or have the bartenders up here make something. We tried some of the cocktail specials. It's about $12 each. The Yes, Please is exactly what we said to getting this. Besides the clever name, it's also good. This is Ketel One Rose Vodka with citrus, passionfruit, and pomegranate. As for the food, it's from downstairs. They make it and then bring it upstairs. Had the Taqueria Guacamole. It's about $11 for a lot. This was enough for a couple people. Great atmosphere. It's even better when the patio is open. There's drinks made by the bartenders downstairs or upstairs, along with appetizers and small bites, from the menus of the other restaurants. read more

Five & Dime - The Yes, Please And Taqueria Guacamole - American Near Me - Evanston, Illinois

This was my second time trying this place. It's a lovely rooftop restaurant with superb drinks and tasty food. I stuck to the "yes please" drink - it was so refreshing and tasty on the rooftop on a sunny day! The fried oysters were also amazing. I ordered a hot dog for my entree, which also came with fries. We ended with a flan for dessert, which was not bad. Our waiter was great and checked on us regularly, and the staff also did a nice job of clearing our table and making sure our water glasses were filled. Overall, it was a great meal! read more

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Great place in the summertime. You can sit outside on the rooftop and enjoy the weather without being right on the street. Love the poke and the ribs are very good. This is definitely one of my go to places in the summertime. read more

I went to Five & Dime this weekend with a friend to check out their patio. They have two options of sitting upstairs on the rooftop or inside. The rooftop is a big space and really nice. I wish I got a picture of the space, but it was dark at this point. We got seated right away, however our server was really slow. We ordered drinks and an appetizer right away. After that it took about 20 min plus to get our server to come back to check in. I tried waving him down multiple times and finally had to get another person to ask if they could get him. Once we got our food it started to rain- like downpour. We had to move inside, but since it was close to closing the staff were wrapping things up. We were rushed to finish. Thank goodness the drinks and food were really good. What's cool is you can order from a few different menus of other restaurants (Taco Diablo, Lulus, etc). The Yes Please drink was fruity, strong and refreshing. The Burrata was excellent. Nachos were bursting of flavor. Lulu's Ginger Salad is such a great take on an asian salad. Portions are big! I would come back because of the space and how good the food was, however the service could absolutely be way better. Overall experience 4/5. read more

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One of the coziest spots you can hit in Evanston. Unique ambience! Delicious food! Great beer/ciders/cocktail selection! Top notch staff! Ziveli!!! read more

Five & Dime - BBQ Ribs !!! - American Near Me - Evanston, Illinois

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Five and Dime is a gem and always a great time from the food to the drinks. Patio is amazing and service is always great! Go check it out.

I love going to five and dime! The outdoor patio is great in the summer for friend/ family dinners. The menu has a variety of food including classic bar food. I enjoyed the poke bowl a lot and the nachos were loaded with toppings. Our server was very nice and friendly as well! Definitely recommend coming to five and dime, and try to make reservations if you can! read more

Five & Dime - Nachos with an old fashioned - American Near Me - Evanston, Illinois

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I enjoyed lunch with friends on the rooftop of Five and Dime. I ordered the Yes, Please- a delicious cocktail. My friend and I went halfsies on the Ginger Salad and Prime Rib Sandwich because we couldn't decide which we wanted, and I'm so glad we did! Both items were delicious! I will definitely be back for both the ambiance and to try their other menu items. read more

Five & Dime - American Near Me - Evanston, Illinois

Love the outdoor rooftop seating. Easy to get to on public transportation as well. Great food, large portions and tasty. Kids loved it, too!

Great Wait Staff. Ethan waited on my husband and me on 9/30/25 at the Five and Dime rooftop bar. He was attentive, friendly, and jovial. Good customer service is such a rare thing these days. His attitude made our visit fun and special. read more

We had a birthday party for my husband upstairs in the Game Room, which is a fun space! Carlos, Jeff, and Maddie did a tremendous job taking care of us! Carlos really helped me with the menu and planning. They all went out of their way to make sure we had everything we needed! The food was awesome (we did have some leftovers). I am a huge fan of the Taco Diablo tortas and they did not disappoint! I would not hesitate to recommend this venue. I look forward to having another event there. read more

Place is always amazing. This is a regular for the Agent and I. Ambience is great and servers/bartenders are the best. I usually go for drinks but I've had their burgers (can't go wrong) and the last time I went, I had their flan which was almost as good as my abuelita's flan. Such a fun place. read more

Five & Dime - Flan - American Near Me - Evanston, Illinois

Food was good. Service was great. Ordered cauliflower and salmon and it was delicious. Cocktails were nice. Great ambiance. Definitely a favorite Evanston spot for me. read more

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Decent food and friendly staff make it a good place. Place can get loud. Ribs are great with cole slaw. Be advised that servings can be big and overwhelming. read more

Five & Dime - N/A - American Near Me - Evanston, Illinois

Came here for a happy hour event, and was pleasantly surprised by how cute the interiors and rooftop decor were. We ordered a few cocktails and enjoyed them - they also make some mocktails for those that would prefer it! read more

I've been a bad, bad boy. I've been at five & dime many many times and just haven't even thought to write a review. So here it is. Went there last night with the brood for Father's day (apparently along with the rest of Evanston for a beautiful roof-top evening). The kids, and the grandkids, along with some quality visitin', Five & Dime's legendary Margarita, their heavy-weight nachos, substantial enough to make a meal for several people, as well as a few entrees, and a couple of other alcoholic beverages. A recipe for a lovely evening. Truly the best rooftop in town, great service, wonderful food, reasonable prices... I don't know what else I could ask for. read more

Taco Diablo on a Saturday night for my birthday celebration with friends!! Great margaritas, food, and service!!! Definitely coming back soon. read more

Five & Dime - Celebrating my birthday with friends! - American Near Me - Evanston, Illinois

Great food and drinks. Roof deck is a wonderful place. Service is tricky on the roof deck- we were sitting for 20minutes and finally had to flag a server down....they did apologize but a better system is needed for seating and figuring out service on the roof read more

A nice place to have dinner. Great guacamole with the rooftop view and the lights. A great vibe to relax in.

I know this place has been around for a while, but never thought to give it a try until I wanted to eat on a rooftop restaurant. It was such a delightful evening and during the week so it wasn't over-crowded. I really liked how they built the area with shaded areas and brightly sunny areas. There are 3 separate areas to eat and play games like pinball and other games like a giant Jenga set. The areas are separated enough and you can reserve this for small parties. Now for the menu, it is a bit small but carries a lot of variety. I had a poke bowl and I liked the big chunks of tuna, but they didn't do the dish justice. The forgot to put the spicy chili aioli and when they did it wasn't spicy. Very little ponzu sauce and I asked for more but they didn't provide. So in place of this they brought us a dessert, the flan, and it was very very smooth and creamy. I will definitely come back and order differently, like the nachos or the burger. Their cocktail list is awesome and I tried one of their daily specials and it was wonderfully refreshing, I just wish I remembered the name. Their washrooms were very clean and pristine. read more

Five & Dime - Peachy keen - American Near Me - Evanston, Illinois

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One of my favorite summer time restaurants- unique cocktails (shoutout to the "phenomenal new friend" cocktail) and delicious food (I dream about the tuna poke bowl) combined with the best patio in evanston. Love it here! read more

~Monica's T.A.S.T.E. Test~ Taste: I had the black bean burger with fries as it was one of the only vegetarian options as an entree. The burger was good and no complaints on flavor, smoky with a bit of heat. Fries were average. Coleslaw amazing. Atmosphere: the outdoor seating makes me want to hang out everyday. I love the scene on the second floor that they have created. Totally worth hanging out with friends or a date. Service: our waitress was attentive and spunky. The food came out promptly and correct. No complaints here. Tab: definitely downtown Evanston prices. My black bean burger was $15, before tax. You're paying for the rooftop so in all, still worth it. Extra wow factor: The games! They have a side room FULL of table games like ping pong and giant jenga. Perfect end to our date night (see Nathan's review for his perspective). Does it pass the T.A.S.T.E. test? Yes. I'm a sucker for anything outdoors and fun games. THEY HAVE BOTH. How wonderful!! read more

Five & Dime - American Near Me - Evanston, Illinois

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Five and Dime... What is that? An old 7-11 that sells everything for a nickel or a dime? What a lousy name. It doesn't match the decor, the menu or the neighborhood. We were confused as hell. We were seated on the large patio (yay!) for one of the first nice nights of this year. But sadly, we were told by the waitress that their restaurant menu was not available (BOO!!!). Again, what kind of morons are running this strange place?? All that was available were bar bites which included a $6 tin of olives. My use of the word "tin" is kind. It was no more than one layer of olives presented on a plate, that probably came from a $1.99 tin. Maybe I should have used the word "tiny". Holy moly price gauging! WTH! Yeah, I'm not going to surprise you 4 paragraphs in. The rest of the bar bites were also not good. Don't come here for the food!! read more

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Rooftop | Games | Date-Spot Rooftop: This may be the only rooftop restaurant in Downtown Evanston. So if you are looking for a place away from street noise where you can still be outside during the summer this is the SPOT. The rooftop has three sections: 1) basic seating, 2) a bar area with a TV, and 3) large group seating with couches. We sat in the basic seating area. Games: They have cool games. Foosball, Ping Pong, Connect Four, super-sized Jinga, shuffleboard, and corn-hole. Monica and I played Ping-Pong after dinner which was a nice way to end our night. This makes the restaurant ideal for groups of friends at all times of the day. Date-Spot: This place offers a great first/second date location. The games offer a way to break the pressure of normal dinner/drink dates. At the same time, there is a good amount of space between tables, which offer enough intimacy to have private conversations. Lastly, the price point is reasonable if you want to pick up the whole check. Pro Tip: Although there is A LOT of Northwestern Gear all over the place they do not offer a northwestern discount. Honestly, it was so surprising I almost gave this place 4 stars. It just comes across as disingenuous if you are going to represent Northwestern SO HARD, only to tell its students and faculty ... nah FULL PRICE. Pro Tip: The Wings come with towelettes and are easy to eat. Unlike other spots that DROWN their wings in sauce, they put a sufficient amount where you get all the taste benefits with little messiness. They are very very very good. I would definitely go back have them again. read more

Five & Dime - Monica! - American Near Me - Evanston, Illinois

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Service was amazing, atmosphere (rooftop) was perfect, and the food was delicious... Can't wait to go back! I got the tuna bowl. read more

Five & Dime - Tuna Bowl - American Near Me - Evanston, Illinois

Great food always I love five n dime. Staff is very friendly and informative. I always feel welcomed read more

Five & Dime - Five and dime!! Great food - American Near Me - Evanston, Illinois

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Of the 5 of us, I choose the most unfortunate main of previously frozen swordfish. Expectations are indeed the road to upsets! The fish was thin and chewy The 2nd floor outdoor area is very large and popular (crowded). Prices I ignored as hosts were paying. read more

Consistently good food and drinks. The summer rooftop experience is delightful! Rooftop Deck read more

Love the food. Very friendly fast service. Charming Krunchy There used to be a skirt steak with shrimp dish. So without any notification they took off the shrimp. I asked about that and the server said oh yeah we don't put shrimp on anymore. I think that was a really big turn off for me. They didn't let me know ahead of time And the price stayed the same. read more

A disaster for a party. We thought we would have a party in the alcove. Here is literally what happened. It is hard to believe but it is the truth, in detail. 1) there were no tables set up. There was no cutlery provided. Not only not set up, not provided. Not even water. 2) There was no food for about one hour. 3) the food was mediocre but acceptable 4) the noise level of 85db measured made conversation nearly impossible 5) one waiter Carlos occasionally struggled to provide service. He did not succeed. We never had plates or cutlery. Water was self service in plastic cups STAY AWAY read more

Super chill, hip vibes, and fun decor! We were there while the sun was still up, but I could tell that it's a great place for both day and night. The guac is a good staple and a generous serving. The chips were perfect! Crispy and just the right amount of salt. The nachos were such a huge serving that among two people we still had a good bit left over. Great proportion of meat to beans, although it could have done with a bit more cheese. Slightly disappointed with the drinks. I got the "yes please," which had a great citrus flavor, but I could hardly taste (or feel) the vodka. Would still come back if I'm in the area! read more

Five & Dime - Guacamole and chips - American Near Me - Evanston, Illinois

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Five & Dime is really a nice place. Very nice set up with plenty of tables and quite spacious. The service was great and we had a reservation which I'd recommend just to avoid any issues. The cocktails were well prepared. The Brisket was awesome, pulled pork, sausage and fried chicken were great too. We also tried the Mac and Cheese which was good too. We had an awesome time and I'd definitely return again myself and would recommend people to try it too if they haven't already. read more

I am so glad I found this rooftop restaurant of Five & Dime! It's such a cute place to grab drinks at and snack on some appetizers, and its so much closer than downtown Chicago! The food and drinks we ordered were delicious. We ordered their Tuna Poke Bowl. It was huge! Lots of food and it was good. The fish was fresh. Everything was well seasoned. It comes with a large piece of tempura shrimp, which was truly great. The drinks were also decent. Not to forget also that the service was really good and friendly. Servers are welcoming and attentive. Great spot to hang out and grab a drink and appetizers. I would recommend this spot to all the people I know who also lives near the area. read more