Note: this is for Rittergut's Grab and Go service only Rittergut missed the mark. They tried a to-go service before, but they could not compete with Rivers' to go counter which was just down the hall in the lobby of 20 South Wacker, so they shuttered their to-go counter. Now that Rivers is closed Rittergut reopened their Grab and Go, but they have missed the mark. Rivers out sold them because they offered decent foot at a decent price, which is what most office workers want. Rittergut figures that since they are the only breakfast and lunch place in the building that they have a captive audience and can charge whatever they want. They cannot. Today I paid $17 for a mortadella sandwich, and it was one truly sad and pathetic sandwich. On the plus side, there was plenty of mortadella, but given that it is really not much more than fancy bologna, that is not much of a plus. The bread was borderlone stale and tasted like it had been baked last week. The mayonnaise was neither bad nor good. It just was. And that was the entire sandwich. Bread, mortadella, and mayo. Nothing else. Granted, it was big, but big, bland, and boring is still bland and boring. There is no way in Hell's Kitchen that I will ever again buy sandwich from Rittergut's Grab and Go. (If they are open to advice, serve half of what you are selling, at half the price obviously, and add on some lettuce and tomato at the very least). Their salads are far more edible than their sandwiches, but that is like comparing the starting QB of the Bears to the starting QB of a pee wee 6-year old football league. They are tasty, but not worth the price Rittergut is charging. Their captive audience is soon going to start going to Potbelly's where the can get a bigger, customized salad for about the same price. With all of that being said, their breakfast pasties are good, albeit slightly overpriced. Again, their captive audience is soon going to realize they are better off taking a short walk and finding something just as good at a better price. I get that Rittergut has high standards (I have been to their space for private events, and the food is truly exceptional), but they have completely misjudged their audience for their Grab and Go counter. They missed the mark once before, and if they do not take the time to figure out what office workers want out of a convenient breakfast or lunch, they will soon be shuttering their to-go counter due to a lack of customers. Summary: Go to Subway. read more

Rittergut Wine Bar - This is what $17 gets you for a sandwich and Rittergut. I could not even get through a quarter of it before tossing it in the trash. - Wine Bars Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

Over priced food that literally costs 20% cheaper if you buy it from the sandwich counter next door. Same kitchen SAME EXACT FOOD.

Lovely little place, delicious food, cool cozy atmosphere, great location, reasonable prices. Our server was slow even though we told him we had theater, wasn't super knowledgeable about wine (oddly) and served the wine in the wrong glass (um...it's a wine bar. Bad form.) but was otherwise charming. Previous visits were perfect. Rivers is my favorite place but this is a nice change of pace. read more

I ate at this bar with two friends last night and I had a complaint which the manager politely listened to and offered us a free round of drinks to cover. My friends and I walked into Rittergut after having a few glasses of wine. They sat us in the corner by a coat rack but the place was mostly empty. I admit I was feeling some sort of way about being in a corner then I looked around the room and saw that all of their other patrons were in corners too while the whole middle of restaurant was empty. I actually prefer a corner seat so I was like well no big deal. I order their steak, a Manhattan, my other friends orders a burger,and a mixed drink, my third friend orders an appetizer and a glass of wine. Suddenly the waiters tone changed. He said,"I just have to let you know that wine is really expensive. It's the most expensive wine on our menu. So it's going to be very expensive." The first thing I was thinking is the movie Pretty Woman where the women in the store refused to dress her because she didn't look well off. Anyway, back to this story.... So noticing the pauses and the fact the other glasses of wine on their menu is $13-15, I ask the most reasonable question,"What do you consider expensive and how much is the wine?" Wait for it... drum roll please,"It's $20." I said,"I'm sure she's had more than her share of glasses of wine that cost $20." She orders the wine and he talks positively about the flavor tells her it's a good choice and left. After he left my friends were a bit quiet, I could tell their were bothered by how he behaved. I asked for the manager and the waitress said she would be out. The young man who was our waiter walked over to try to gauge what was wrong and asked were our drinks okay. He was circling a bit and I could tell he didn't know what he did. He wanted to know but he didn't know how to ask. So the manager comes out and we all tell the story about what happens and she apologizes, listens to the summary of what occurred, and assigned us a new waitress. We continue our dinner the impression we are just getting our first round of drinks waived. Honestly I didn't ask for anything for free and wouldn't have, but it was a nice offer so fine. Maybe we misheard the manager when she said the drinks were on them but the new waitress is great! We have another round of drinks, another appetizer and talk for a while. No bill arrives, we wait, and wait, finally I get up to ask for the bill and a waitress says,"No bill for your table it's on us." Confused because the manager said the drinks were on her. I point over to my table and said,"I was sitting right there. I had the steak." She is like yeah and you don't have a bill. We covered it." I walk away after thanking her. We leave and on the way home I wondered if he admitted to telling us it was expensive without offering the price? I wondered if he realized $13-15 for an average glass isn't that much cheaper than his opinion of what would be a very expensive glass. Also, my friends were visiting me, I live downtown and I could see how sad and uncomfortable they felt about it. If you remember that part from pretty woman when they judged whether or not she belonged in their store, or whether or not she could afford anything they had by just repeating that things were expensive? It made us feel really small but confused because it wasn't like we were sharing food, I ordered the steak. Their mix drinks weren't much lower than $20 either so I was not at all sure of why he assumed it would be too expensive ... "for us". We've been to much nicer places and haven't had anyone insist something was too expensive. The manager listened and that mattered. She also assigned us a great new waitress. I cannot judge the staff and the restaurant on one little "bro type of waiter" who clearly has other biases that made him judge us unfairly. Overall, I enjoyed my dinner, and drinks and the peace of being away from the other patrons to have a private chat with my friends over floating candles and nicely mixed drinks. It also felt good to be listened to. The manager sat down at our table and listened and genuinely seemed to care so that counts for a lot with me. I only gave this bar 3 stars because the manager was really kind. It's difficult to bounce back from a customer interaction that was so unbelievably poor, but she did the best she could and yes that counts for a lot. I'm sure this is a great place to go if you have the right waiter. read more

Rittergut Wine Bar - "It's expensive..." lol - Wine Bars Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

I agree with the other reviews here. This is a very hard place to find. People will go to Rivers instead of here. It's tucked away behind Rivers. The food is good, the wine is good and the service was great both times that I was there. I did have the same waitress both times. However I have an issue with a recent party I recently had there. I have had many parties that I have scheduled whether for corporate events or personal parties. I recently hosted a party for over 70 attendees and it went off without a hitch as my other events have. This was not the case here. I do not like to leave negative reviews but this was a customer service mishap. I assume that management will comment on my review due to our emails and conversations. Due to some changes with my employer I was able to have a celebratory dinner. On a positive note, I the event planner reduced our per plate by two dollars to fit within the confines of my budget. Also the minimum spend for the private party was not expected though we knew between dinner and alcohol we would exceed that. I appreciate her flexibility. I kept our trail of emails and a signed contract. One of the reasons I wanted to have our dinner there was because of having a cash bar. In the email we agreed to have a cash bar. When we arrived that night I gave the waitress my credit card and said this would cover my drinks and my son and his girlfriend. I also asked since we were there during happy hour if happy hour prices would be used. She confirmed yes. Later the event planner pulled me aside and I felt, admonished me. Loud enough for people to hear in the dining room. I was scolded for even thinking that we were doing a cash bar. I said that's one of the reasons why I agreed to have it. She nearly yelled at me and said that is not something we do here. I was rather stunned and taken aback. I should've pulled out my email and showed her that. But I didn't. There was definitely confusion as some people were paying for drinks at the bar and the majority were brought by the waitress. The room was lovely and the wait staff did a super job. However at the end of the night I was just handed a bill with the gratuity and tax added to it. No signature needed. The drinks were not given to us at the happy hour price and the abbreviations or too confusing to figure out what drinks were which. The next morning I pulled up my email where it said we were going to have a cash bar. I forwarded this email to the event planner. And also as to how distraught I was over being treated in this unprofessional manner. And now I had to embarrassingly go back and try to figure out the bill and who ordered what. To make matters worse one friend of mine went up to the bar and insisted she pay as my invitation clearly stated cash bar. She was able to pay for her drinks. I have no idea if they were subtracted from the total. Another friend went to pay for their drinks and was firmly told that they couldn't. There was a lot of inconsistent practices. It took several days for the event planner to respond to my emails. In her email she was at stern as she was in person that supposedly we had a conversation about having the dinner at the high tops and doing a cash bar. I do not have any recollection of that. The contract had nothing to specify a waitress for drinks or having to have the bar under one credit card. Instead of going through another conversation with the event planner I called to asked to speak to the manager who's name is Dan. I will say that conversation was one of the worst conversations I've ever had dealing with a customer service issue. I have worked in a corporate sales job for many years and also as a bartender. I've never witnessed anything like this. Dan was as well very upset with me and wouldn't admit any fault on their part. He did say there was culpability for all parties. He said I should've asked for a general manager after the event planner scolded me or I should've taken my email and showing it to someone or I should've told the waitress we didn't need her? I've never had such issues to deal with. He said we consumed the product and what did I want him to do? He said the event planner did want to send me a gift card and he told her no and wait until I saw her response and see if that would solve the problem. I had to laugh at that point. I said a gift card would be nice. He was definitely agitated and said how do I know you're going to use it and how do I know where you live? I've never had such adversarial conversations. I did hang up after that as I was so upset. We had 18 people who thoroughly enjoy their evening but at the end they were 18 very unhappy customers based on this situation who won't return. I would recommend this place for a drink or an appetizer or meal. For an event, I would most definitely make sure you check and double check and confirm the date of the event. And good luck if anything goes wrong! read more

Not sure what is going on with this place (the take out counter next to the main restaurant), but I am done. They have not changed the Dixie cups used for soup, but it seems they have changed their chef or recipes. I had I had a cream of mushroom soup two weeks ago that was inedible, way to much pepper or something and it was only luke warm. I ended up throwing it out. :-( I gave them another shot today because I thought it might be a fluke, and it is such a convenient location, but today's chicken noodle soup was too salty and hardly had any noodles or meat. It was mostly broth with tiny chopped carrots and onions. Typically the chicken noodle is one of their best soups. In fairness, I still love their kale/strawberry salad, but I miss the old chef/recipe for soups. I think it is time to petition the building to bring in some other restaurant options. Rivers/Rittergut has a monopoly and would do well with some competition. They are increasing prices and not increasing quality or service. It is a shame because at one time they used to be really good. read more

I visited Rittergut Wine Bar with some work colleagues. The server was fantastic and did an amazing job of recommending superb wine. The wine selection is a bit intimidating for a younger wine drinker and he helped make the decision process easier. The appetizers at Rittergut were phenomenal. We actually made a meal with all of the different choices. We had the crab artichoke dip, flatbread, tacos, guacamole, and shrimp. Everything was extremely tasty! I would recommend Rittergut for a post work place to impress your colleagues. If it's nice out be sure to grab a spot outside along the river! read more

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I was on my way to the opera on a Monday night and thought I would grab a preshow wine and snack. This place is kind of hard to find but located very conveniently if you are an opera-goer across the street from the opera house. I got some charcuterie and a French red wine. The charcuterie is $7 per item for one person more if the portions are for two. Some of the cheeses were great some were meh. Venue has a great dark and intimate vibe so it would also be a nice date night drinks spot. I sat at the rail and the bar tender was able to recommend some of the different charcuterie items. If you have a group of more than four it may be hard to find a spot. It is very little on the inside. Nice perk for the winter though is a great coat rack. read more

Rittergut Wine Bar - Charcuterie board and wine - Wine Bars Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

Rittergut Wine Bar is a lovely and inexpensive spot to go for wine and easy bites - particularly charcuterie. It's a little hidden in the building just south of the Lyric Opera House and a wooden door behind the guard desk. Once inside you instantly forget that you're in a high rise because it's dim and rustic in a modern way. I'm sure it'll be a real winner in the warmer months when they open to the river front! We've enjoyed Rittergut Wine Bar twice so far: both for wine flights and charcuterie. In addition, we've had a few extra small plates to go along such as a Scotch egg and marinated olives. Considering the reasonable prices we've been absolutely delighted by everything! It's a steal. We sometimes have charcuterie for dinner and easily spend over $100 for wine, cheese, meats, crackers and other accompaniments. Rittergut Wine Bar gives us an alternative that's easier, provides more variety, and cheaper! The service has been knowledgeable, laid back, and friendly. I've been impressed with how the serves are empowered to pair cheeses and meats depending on the wines chosen. It's been fun to see what they choose and then hear their explanations for their choices. The menu only shows a cheese plate but they've been flexible enough to add meats for the same price. Really. How can you go wrong? read more

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Although this eatery has been closed temporarily (I hope) due to the pandemic, this is truly a hidden gem! This is by bar one of the coziest and welcoming wine bars on the Chicago River. Located just a stone's throw of the West Loop and near The Chicago Civic Opera House, the location is situated along the Chicago River and provides fantastic views. Go for the wine flights, after work crowd, and fantastic bartenders. The ambience is great for a Thursday or Friday social gathering and the service staff makes my visit all worthwhile. read more

Pretty solid place for lunch in da loop, welcome change from the other standards like Rivers, South Branch, Lloyds, etc. I would give it 3.5 stars if I could. Located in the CME building by Rivers, its a cool little place that does not have the super corporate-y vibe. Would love to try their wines for happy hour. I had the tomato bacon grilled cheese and tomato basil soup on a cold wintery day, pretty good, although not the best. Just ok portions. My companions had the paella, niman ranch steak, and the turkey brie sandwich. All looked pretty tasty. Service was pretty good too, had a quirky waiter and our waters were always filled. read more

Rittergut Wine Bar - Tomato basil soup with bacon tomato grilled cheese. - Wine Bars Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

Despite the place being absolutely packed on a beautiful Thurs night, (which was to be expected) my girl friend and I had a blast here! I came with a groupon and didn't know what to really expect, but I was definitely impressed! The place is not so easy to find if you don't know where you're going, but being tucked away keeps it a nice secret. Our groupon entitled us to 1 wine flight, which wasn't too bad, but not good enough to remember any of them. The best part was the cheese and meat platter (the comte was my favorite)! The not-so-cheap prices were a little bit of a buzz kill, but everyone is entitled to treat themselves once in awhile! I would love to come back here before the weather gets too cold to be outside. read more

Rittergut Wine Bar - Groupon deal! - Wine Bars Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

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I had such high expectations for this place... First of all, it is incredibly challenging to get here if you don't work in the loop. I guess I should have known this in looking at the address, but I didn't properly prepare. There really isn't a whole lot of options for parking, so your best bet is to take public transport here. My second boggle is about the menu itself. There are all of these amazing looking wines on the menu. My husband attempted to order the big red flight to which he was denied because two of three of the flight offerings were no longer in stock. The server apologized and mentioned that they were currently transitioning into a new wine menu with the change of seasons, so many of their red wines were not available. After our first round of drinks, my husband selected a different red wine on the menu for round two, and subsequently found out that wine was also not available. Two for two. I mean, if half/majority of your menu is outdated, how difficult is it to print out new menus on a piece of paper for diners to be able to make an informed decision? It was a bit frustrating. Along with the above, the service wasn't great. When my husband received his first strike on the wine flight, my husband was the one who offered the option of having the bar throw together an impromptu wine flight with the wines that they actually did have in stock. The server pondered my husband's suggestion and said, "yeah, I guess we can figure something out and throw something together." He clearly wasn't thrilled about the idea. And in general, service was just slow and lacking. I was in desperate need of water and had to get up to go to the bar to get my glass refilled each time. Not sure if we will return here or not quite honestly... read more

Went to Rivers recently and found out that next door a nice wine bar had opened. They have the same great patio as Rivers (right on the river). Their wine menu is solid and relatively cheap considering the location. They have a lot of wines available by the glass, and I had no problem selecting a few that were exactly what I wanted. I had the server select a few things for me. She brought me pork belly, grilled calamari, and some various types of cheese. All were ridiculous! The pork belly really stood out to me. It came with pureed carrots which I thought I would hate, but were actually really good. Great service; attractive location; great value for the price. I'll definitely return soon. This is my new go-to downtown. read more

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I had an excellent salad here today. It's a hot spot for lunch time dining in good weather. Friendly staff. Tip: their website states they are at 10 S. Wacker (while not incorrect) the exterior of the building is labeled 30 S. Wacker on all entrances. It's literally adjacent to Rivers restaurant. read more

Enjoyed sitting outside along the river with lots of activity! Nice happy hour! Service was good and enjoyed the food and wine! The margarita flat bread was delicious! It gets very busy so come early and stay late! read more

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This review is for the GRAB AND GO portion of the restaurant. I work in the building and this is an easy option when the weather is bad or I'm in a major rush. The soup and sandwiches are fine (though the veggies on the sandwiches can look a little sad). Note that the sandwiches are mostly pre-made, so the bread can be a little soggy towards the end of the lunch hour. The bigger issue is that the portions are tiny, so it's really expensive to get a large lunch. I'll keep coming here when I need to, but it would never be my first choice. read more

I was really excited about Rittergut (despite the unfortunate name). I was excited about getting a drink. I was excited about my date. I was excited about the dark underground look of the place. I was just all around excited. Then I got to Rittergut and all the excitement vanished. The service at the bar was so bad we left without finishing our drinks. If you know anything about me you'll know that abandoning alcohol is something I only do in the event of fire or, well, I can't think of another scenario. My favorite part of the time I spent at Rittergut was when I killed a spider on the bar with a menu, handed said menu to the bartender and said "I just killed a spider with this..." as he walked away from me ignoring me "....you may want to lick it clean or throw it out". He literally didn't say a word in acknowledgment of the smashed pest. I may try Rittergut again (Spiders; you have been warned). I will. of course, let you know how that goes. read more

This isn't really a review, more of a correction (rated 4 stars because that's what it was rated at and I don't want to affect it) - I tried "edit business info" first but this particular thing was not an option for editing. "between Madison St. and State St." doesn't exist. Madison St. and State St. intercept (at State and Madison, on the other side of the Loop). What was probably meant is "between Madison St. and Monroe St." (judging form the map). read more

Another fine experience here. I have lunch here at least monthly as I work in the building. I've never had a bad meal or bad service in 5 years. Don't know why I never wrote a review before today. Brought my husband for lunch today. He was hungry and stressed. After a delicious angus burger with better than average accoutrements and a nice pour of fine wine, my guy was back in his normal happy go lucky groove. Thank you, Jess. You are a treasure. See you again soon. read more

The place, the staff, and the ambiance was top notch. They had a great selection (Sparklings, Rose, Reds, Whites, Dessert, etc). Very knowledgeable staff, be sure to do a Wine Tasting. And the food was fabulous. Loveeed the cheeses. Keep in mind its a bit pricey, but you do get bang for your buck. I'll be on the lookout for travelzoo and groupon deals! read more

Really unsatisfactory experience on all fronts: wine offerings, food and service. The wine flights tasted pretty cheap and didn't pair with the descriptions. I had the Tour de France (French reds) and none had the notes listed in the tasting sheet. My friend had the bold reds and found them all to be pretty medium-bodied. The charcuterie and cheese selections were pretty good and we enjoyed them, but did not care for the other selections. The mussels came in a weird cream sauce, which I've never encountered with mussels, and they were pretty barnyardy. The mushroom crostini was fine, but unremarkable. Service was a huge turn off. Our server seemed disinterested and over it from the get-go (mind you, it was only 6:15 on a weekday). Once we mentioned our Groupon he rolled his eyes and clearly checked out for the night. Here's the thing: I get why Groupons are annoying, but your establishment offers them, so work it out. I know to tip on the pre-discounted price, I'm not going to stiff you on gratuity, why are you stiffing me on service? I will not return. read more

Bought the Groupon deal hoping to find a new place to hang out for happy hour in the Loop. Won't return based on the service of our waiter. He was nice to us until we pulled the Groupon out. It's like don't sell Groupons if you don't like your customers using them. The wine was okay and the cheese was nothing special. If we were treated better I could say I would try it out again. But our waiter was the SLOWEST ever. We waited for everything! Here's a tip: don't make people wait for drinks if you ever want them to return. Especially when its not even crowded. read more

Right next to Rivers is this place named Rittergut in which they share the outdoor space with Rivers with an awesome view of the Chicago River. I've gone to Rivers for years and had no idea this place even existed until a friend of mine told me she had a Groupon (or something similar) deal recently. The deal included a set of 3 cheeses and 2 wine flights. The cheese we selected was very delicious...was accompanied with sweet pickles, cherries and honey comb. the cracker game was quite short, but we made it work. I got the rose' flight which was very good and right up my alley as I enjoy nice rose's. Since it was dinner time, we needed a bit more than cheese so we ordered lobster tacos which came in a set of 3. Very good tacos that hit the spot. Service here was very nice as it was raining a bit and they allowed us to move away from the hightop overlooking the river to one of the seats away from the rain. They also made sure water glasses were filled and table was cleared to make room for more stuff. read more

As a tourist, this place might be tough to find. It was for us anyway.... Maybe our GPS was messing up. It's located at the bottom of the CME Building. It was very random but such a lovely place! We sat down and ordered a flight of sparkling, a flight of red and a plate of cheeses and meats -- camembert fermier, clothbound cheddar, some type of bleu cheese that was very strong but very good, cantimpalo chorizo, finocchiona salame with fennel, cantimpalo chorizo. We also ordered some calamari which I had never had before not fried (I'm from the south lol)... but it was fresh! Everything was amazing. Our server knew more about wine than I'd ever imagine. This is a great place to take a non-wine lover as well as their beer menu was very fun. read more

I heard good things about this place, and we needed some outdoor dining, and being near the river was a plus. We ordered one of the whiskeys on the menu, yet it took ten minutes to arrive. Eventually, we ordered a few salami plates as the level of our drinks diminished. Gladly, I was already a little buzzed from a previous venue, because our server was AWOL for about twenty minutes: no whiskey, no salami plates. I looked inside the restaurant, thinking that maybe if outdoor dining was so crowded, maybe inside diners kept our server very busy. Still hungry with the booze buzz wearing off, we asked for the check. We can find sliced meat elsewhere. The check had errors. An $8 whiskey was billed at $9.35. An error?? No, $8 is the charge if you mix it with something, and $9.35 is if you don't. I can tolerate bad service, an insect crawling out of my food, and getting the order wrong. Somebody had a bad day, and I might return. But, cheat me on a listed price and refuse to give $2.70 on a $55 order, and you lose me forever. read more

I have to say it was just OK. It's a nice option for a pre Lyric dinner or something or after work drinks. We found the place alright. You have to know how some of the restaurants in the loop work. I wasn't a huge fan of our waiter. He was nice, but it was just a job for him. I don't think he gave honest opinions when we asked him some questions about the menu. Overall, wine was good. Happy Hour specials are a little weak. My food was pretty good, the mushroom risotto. The Lobster Roll was just alright. The stuff came out super fast, so not as fresh as we would have liked. They try to get you in and out fast to keep up with the crowds. I am glad for the additional pre lyric option for food and drinks. read more

Went on the absolute last day the Groupon was valid. So glad I made that decision and didn't skip over this place. Invited my dad along since he loves his wine and cheese. We both got the red wine flight, we had the guy write down the name of the first wine because it was not in English and he rattled that name so fast there wasn't a chance in hell that I could remember it. (Les Vignes de Bila-Haut M. Chapoutier 2010, in case you were curious.) The other two wines were decent but the first was amazing. We each got two follow-up glasses of it. Yay for happy hour on a Wednesday and getting drunk with your dad. For the charcuterie, we got to pick three cheeses and three meats... we got a sharp cheddar, an aged goat cheese and manchego with chorizo, serrano ham and boar sausage. All were amazing but the serrano steals the show. Good stuff. At this point we realized we should probably eat actual food so we split the pork belly, scallops and mushroom crostini. All were fabulous choices, the mushroom crostini especially was delicious. The scallop was enormous and cooked perfectly and the pork belly with the sweet potato puree was awesome. My dad's first experience with pork belly and I think he's a convert. The vibe of the place is dark and quiet but the servers are happy and pleasant and super knowledgeable without being dicks about it. Can't complain about anything, I'll come back when it's warm enough to sit outside. read more

Have to agree with some of the recent reviews: good wine and cheese, but the service was appalling. We bought a Travelzoo deal and planned a visit for my birthday. The service issues started when I made a reservation through the website. The reservationist's response was curt and unprofessional, a one-liner with "Sent from my iPhone" at the end. I sent another email to mention the voucher and received no response. Now, that's no big deal--what really irritated me was that when we arrived, they didn't have us anywhere on their list. Exactly what is the point of her job if she's unwelcoming and doesn't actually reserve people? Our waiter was extremely inattentive to us, yet he lavished attention on the larger groups nearby. He acted all smarmy when I asked to pick the cheese and charcuterie (the voucher says you have a choice, but they now try to pick a standard set for you, meh). I kept trying to make eye contact with him and another server in our section, and even resorted to waving, but we were continuously ignored. I had to wait till almost the end of our meal before I was able to ask a question about the food and get more water. As for the food: we loved the bandaged cheddar and the blue cheese; the Manchego was just okay. My partner enjoyed the charcuterie. The wines were rather good, although some of the glasses had a dirty dishwater scent. The Bila Haut wine was our fave, while the Nora had an interesting lychee-ish flavor while not being sweet. (As others mentioned, it's a bit hard to find--just go into the huge Chicago Mercantile Exchange building and talk to the security guard. Found good street parking on Washington Street.) read more

A lovely surprise along the Chicago River. It's known as a wine bar but they have an excellent beer selection as well. We settled in for food and drink post river boat ride and we're glad to be here rather than the noisy popular place next door. The manager was very knowledgeable about wine and beer and her suggestions added to our dining experience. Good was simply prepared, but with complex flavor and appeal. It's a must try spot in downtown Chicago along the river, not along the river walk. read more

Went her for a girls night out with a few travelzoo coupons. Really good wine and cheese! The staff was really knowledgeable and taught us a lot about the wine, cheese, and meat we were sampling without being pretentious. Awesome location - got to sit outside by the river while we sipped wine. Will definitely go back here frequently! read more

My experience was just okay here. I sat outside to enjoy the river and instead spent most of the night swatting flies away from my wine. Outdoor seating is great, but there need to be some bug zappers around. When a fly finally found himself in my wine and I mentioned it to the server, I did not receive a replacement, which was annoying considering the desired quality of this place. Using the groupon was good- the flights were nice and the cheese and meat plate was delicious- though we could have used more bread, especially since some of the cheeses are soft and meant to be spread. The prices for subsequent drinks, however, were outrageous. If a flight costs $15, who would expect a full glass of one of the flight wines to be $20?! Stick with the flights- you get more wine for the money. read more

We loved our first experience at Rittergut. We are Opera goers and were dismayed when Lloyds closed. Rittergut more than filled the bill! Great & delicious food preparation. We will be back for our next Opera night! Thank you! read more

Very nice Wine Bar, but nothing to really write home about. If you are looking to go here for lunch, make reservations EARLY. It was a mad house starting at 1100-1300. I opted for a glass of wine to go with my cheese and beat salad. It was good, but not amazing especially for the price. It cost me about $68 for two for snacks and drink. The wine selection is pretty extensive and they are all good quality wines. Our servers recommended some great ones for us. That's probably what was driving up the prices here, the good wines. All in all, I don't think this is a good place for a meal, however it is a good place for a glass of wine and a great view of the river. I've been to plenty of wine bars, and this one just isn't one that is memorable enough to give it a higher rating. read more

Rittergut Wine Bar? Where are you? There are NO signs ANYWHERE in order to direct you to this establishment. I walked from one end of the block to the other, I went in back by the river and all I could see was a sign for Rivers. I thought, "Hm, I must not be at the right place." Then finally, FINALLY, a nice soul asked me if I was lost and when I said yes, pointed in me in the right direction. Thank goodness! Is there a law against putting a sign with the name of your bar/restaurant outside that I don't know about??? Anyway, after getting there and being seated inside and no one acknowledging us for a good 5-7 minutes, the host came over and told us there is a table available outside if we would like to sit out there. Absolutely! It is really nice sitting out there during the pretty Chicago weather and along the river. We then went outside and again, no one came to our table for an extraordinarily long time. When we were finally waited on, we ordered 2 red wine flights. A gentleman, who was not our server, came back with one red and one white wine flight. Yeah, not correct. They fixed it right away, no problem. Then we ordered a cheese and meat tray. It was fantastic. I could eat cheese, prosciutto and salami with wine every day. So I was quite pleased. Never was approached again by our server until we flagged him down to order another round of drinks. We may have ordered even more if we had been checked on once in a while. So my summary is this: Bad service, impossible to find, but good wine, really nice view and great cheese and meat selections. Maybe I would give it a 3.5 instead of a 3. But bad service is a major turnoff and so is poor signage. I just don't like looking like a fool trying to find a place because they don't have the good sense to properly mark their establishment. There are plenty signs for Rivers. Just sayin. read more

Enjoyed a wine flight and charcuterie plate. Service was great, plenty of wine options, and good snack food.

....hmmmm. The troublemakers at the office were looking for a place to unwind after work...and we didnt want to fight through the throngs at South Branch and Rivers...so whats close to the Loop and sexy? We stumbled on Rittergut and were glad we did. First...its in the CME Building next to Rivers so its convenient. Second...its got a warm decor with brickface walls, dark wood and nice appointments. Lastly..the menu of libations and noshing nuggets were upscale and off the beaten path. Wild boar sausage...aged Manchego....and Chimay? Im in...and so was everyone else. We were in the mood for whiskey...and it is a wine bar (so the menu is heavily weighted for grape goodness)...but they still had some nice selections (Highland Park, Dalwhinnie, etc). Great beer selection, as well...but if you want just a simple Bud longnech...you may be disappointed. The waiter was a bit aloof, as well....so this and the fairly limited menu (of libations) were the reason that I didnt give it five stars. Otherwise, Rittergut is a refreshing change from the typical....and a great option for your happy hour celebrations. read more

I was very excited for this Travelzoo deal. $25 for 2 flights of wine, cheese and charcuterie (preserved meat). Oh and did I mention it's riverside sitting!? Upon arrival I had to call the restaurant to find the exact location since there's no signs directing you to it. (It's inside the Chicago Mercantile Exchange Building, security will walk you to the restaurant.) We were greeted and sat, easy breezy. Our server greeted us and I showed him our voucher. He was very knowledgeable with the wine options and various cheese and charcuterie. Once we selected our flights he said the chef will pick the best cheese and charcuterie for our options, okay cool that saved us some time. We also ordered calamari and mozzarella fresca (essentially a caprese salad). The flights, cheese, and charcuterie showed up quickly and we almost finished everything before our calamari showed up, which was quite tasty and well seasoned. Two of three cheese we got were good and the salami charcuterie was disgusting, it tasted very fishy. Oh and not enough crackers! I couldn't remember any of the cheeses or charcuterie because our server had a heavy accent and spoke very fast. Where's our mozzarella fresca? Nowhere to be seen nor did our server remember. He didn't apologize or explain and we didn't bother to inquiry since by than we were ant-sing to get out and go to Oktoberfest. Service was eh. He was good at first but maybe because we didn't order a full blown meal he just basically ignored us until we had to pay. The view was beautiful, right next to the river with all the boats cruising by. read more

Amazing wine flights and cheese & meat trays. The calamari is utterly amazing. Desert is a must! Decedent doesn't begin to do their deserts justice when describing. Vary generous with their portions of wine. The staff are welcoming, personable and friendly. They give great recommendations on wine choices and go above and beyond to give you an atmosphere most personal to who you are. read more

Rittergut Wine Bar - Calamari - Wine Bars Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

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This is a great happy hour location. I came by with a girlfriend after work, and it was crowded enough so that it didn't feel awkward to have a conversation, but still had enough room that we were immediately seated. Our service was great. We were promptly and frequently attended to. The ambiance/decor is great. My girlfriend said it felt like I was taking her on a date. It does not feel like it is in a heavily corporate building - it feels like you've walked into a tiny wine bar in Wicker Park or something. Wine is fairly expensive - 13-18/glass - but the pours are generous and the wine was very good. read more