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    Tavern On Clark

    4.0 (364 reviews)
    Open 11:00 am - 9:00 pm

    Tavern On Clark Photos

    TAVERN ON CLARK ATMOSPHERE

    What's the vibe?
    Moderate noise
    Casual
    Good for kids
    Outdoor seating

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    Recommended Reviews - Tavern On Clark

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    Surf and Turf
    Mitch J.

    This place is definitely upscale with lots of delicious choices to fit anyone's palette: from seafood, to steaks, to pasta, to burgers, you can find just about anything here. I have been here many times with our family and I can honestly say I've never had a thing I didn't like. The most recent time we came, I had the vegan zoodle dish and it was great! Most places don't have something to fit my super limited dietary needs, but TOC did and it was very tasty. The managing of the restaurant has been the negative part in our experience. For example, we came this past Easter with our extended family (our yearly tradition we usually look forward to), we've had a reservation for weeks, and they weren't ready with our table for 15+ minutes after our reservation time, and especially with our group having two 88 year olds, it's not comfortable or safe to make them wait that long with no table seats. When they did seat us, they gave us 1 waitress for probably 25 people, when in years past they've given us 2-3 servers (and that worked great). The server we had was over and above nice and helpful, so none of it was her fault, it was just the restaurant planning side of things that was a disappointment. Our reservations were at 1, we didn't eat till almost 3. Almost 2 full hours to get our food. Granted, it was a holiday, so I didn't take off more stars for that, but that's never happened to us before and we all left with a metaphorical bad taste in our mouths. So hopefully this was just a bad day they had, and if it was, I'd for sure come back. But if that's the new normal, I don't think I would.

    Fried bacon
    Davina R.

    Went on a Friday evening and sat at the bar! Full service bar. We had a wonderful meal, very delicious and everyone was very friendly & kind! Deep fried bacon gave off state "fair food" vibes but was yummy. Very nice spot if you are in the area I would recommend it!

    Sandra S.

    We arrived after driving almost 9 hours, and were hungry, thirsty and hungry. If you know what I mean?! Our server Tammy S. made everything easy peasy. We ordered a Pretzel Amber Ale from Generations Brewery, Freeport ILL and an Anti Hero IPA from Revolutionary Brewery, Chicago. Both beers were excellent choices for the Coconut Shrimp Appetizer and the Fish & Chips. The ambiance of this local restaurant is nice but Tammy and great food were the sunshine in our rainy travel day.

    Flatbread
    Georgina G.

    Came in for lunch with 8 people and was pleasantly surprised that we were done in an hour. Service was friendly and the food came out pretty quick. Everything tasted fresh. I got the soup of the day which was a cream of potato soup. It was pretty tasty and I liked the addition of mushrooms. My husband got the steak sandwich and I had a bite of it and it was also very good. The steak pieces were huge and tender. The bread was soft but the outside had a nice light crunch to it. It came with some thick cut fries and a pickle. I think that dish was around $20 or under and for that I thought it was a really good deal given the quality and quantity of the steak. Would recommend. I also noticed they have a few slot machines near the front in a small room. And if you need the free wifi, the password is coldbeer.

    Crème brûlée
    Sharon V.

    Our first time here. We were here at lunch today. Heard good reviews. Waitress was nice and checked on us several times. But again we were the only customer until we left. Water was refilled frequently. We tried the scallop appetizer. Humongous scallop. Very tender. Seafood bisques comes with our entree were good. You actually see huge salmon chunks. Comes with crackers. Red snapper with risotto. Husband loves it. Risotto actually was good too. Then comes the ribeye I hear so much about. Tender it was Not. I ordered Medium. It was about well done. This was super disappointing to me. I came here for the steak. Photo attached. The side grilled veggies were delicious. Crème brûlée. Top was toasted like it should be but ok, why was the inside liquid? It was not set yet.

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    22 days ago

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    2 months ago

    Great knowledgeable service large variety The servers know the menu items though and mention when one of our choices are their favorites.

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    3 months ago

    Great food and service. I would highly recommend and we will definitely be back. Great atmosphere and it was a very clean establishment

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    1 month ago

    food was good and the service was kind and attentive with our large table of 10+, i would come back!

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    3 months ago

    Is our go to place for special occasions and nights out as a family, always have had excellent service and great food.

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    2 months ago

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    9 months ago

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    2 years ago

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    9 months ago

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    2 years ago

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    1 year ago

    One of my favorite restaurants for lunch or a fancy night out. Always great food and service. Their steaks are amazing!

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    2 years ago

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    1 year ago

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    4 years ago

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    9 months ago

    Bustling restaurant, smart casual, great service, the French onion soup was to die for.

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    3 years ago

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    Hoffman House

    Hoffman House

    3.5
    (139 reviews)
    0.2 mi
    $$

    Connected to hotel which is a plus. Very busy. Our server got everything right and somehow…read moremanaged to take care of us, despite the crowd. Walleye breading is thick and not tasty. Next time I will try the Cod. Overall a good meal. I would eat here again and will try something else on the menu.

    A lot has changed since the last time we visited a few years ago…read more We were looking to break out of what I call our "DeKalb" funk since we have been eating a lot in DeKalb when we do eat out. I thought of Hoffman House, which is co-located inside a hotel. We'd eaten there years ago, and their prime rib was very good. While driving north, my wife looked it up. They changed from a white table cloth restaurant to more of a sports bar theme. Their entree list was rather anemic and just not worth the trip, except they did offer Prime Rib on Saturday. We made the trip. For starters, when you walk in there is no hostess station. The bartender told us "Sit where ever you want." so we found a booth that was clean and sat down. The seating was, well worn as in worn out. The seat covers were chipping on the chairs, and the booth seating was just dead. Our server arrived and we placed our order. My wife ordered tea, and I had a Guiness draft which was properly poured. The server brought out 4 honey buns, which are light and fluffy, sprinkled with powdered sugar, and served with a honey butter blend. They are best when they arrive - HOT. (Eat them as they arrive) It wasn't very long before the main course came out. No salad was offered. My Prime Rib was ordered and served medium rare, and the baked potato was cooked properly. I was expecting some horseradish sauce with the Prime Rib - nope. My wife did enjoy her shaved Prime Rib sandwich - the roll it was on was nice, and she opted for the premium onion strings, which were tasty. Why just okay? This was a place to go for a nice dinner with your family. It has transformed into a tired sports bar. Lots of screens, but it's kind of half-hearted with regards to the sports bar theme. Servers aren't in sports uniforms, there isn't a lot of stuff on the walls. The seating is worn out and should be either refinished or replaced. It feel like they ran out of money or concepts during the conversion, and just stopped. There is nothing compelling here to bring us back.

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    Salad bar!
    Salad bar!
    Shrimp de Jonghe
    Shrimp de Jonghe
    Hoffman House

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    Thunder Bay Grille

    Thunder Bay Grille

    3.8
    (232 reviews)
    0.3 mi
    $$

    The steak salad is amazing. I would love to know what the dressing is!! Good service and a nice…read moreplace for a luncheon.

    I'd like preface: 1. Atmosphere is great…read more 2. Staff was very nice. 3. The food that we ate, tasted good. 4. Sat at the bar, drinks and bar staff were nice. 5. We DID ultimately receive a 50% discount on our plate, which I am acknowledging was gracious and I am thankful for. 6. I grew up eating fish, not only at home but in restaurants/bars. I am giving this restaurant a three star review however. We ordered the walleye fish. The two bites I was able to take, definitely tasted good. However, in both bites, I was picking out several bones. Upon inspecting, we found over another dozen bones in the walleye. Bones happen in fish sometimes, but this was an astronomical amount that made it impossible to enjoy the fish or even eat it comfortably. We quietly just told the bartender about the bones and just asked if we could have a portion of the fish discounted because we ate everything else. Which tasted great. We absolutely were willing to pay for everyone else, didn't want a discount on the entire bill. Just a little something for the fish. She talked to her manager and then the manager came out. Now IF the manager had just apologized and offered a discount, this would've been a 4.5/5 review. However, the manager proceeded to give us a lecture about walleye. She insinuated that we never ate walleye before; she said people who don't eat walleye, don't understand that there unfortunately are a lot of bones. And that there was nothing they could do about it. Keep in mind both the bartender as well as the manager acknowledged that the walleye gets several complaints because of the amount of bones. (that sounds like a supplier problem, and should probably be addressed). My family used to own a restaurant in a campground, we served a walleye, we did not have issues with bones. If there ever was an issue, we understood that fish could be unpredictable, and we would just offer a discount and remake the fish. (It happens) Again, I am grateful that she ultimately gave us a 50% discount on that plate. We were more than happy to pay full price for everything else. But having someone give a condescending lecture about walleye, assuming that I have never eaten walleye before was unnecessary. I didn't need the lecture. That alone made put a damper on the entire experience. The way management handles unfortunate situations can make or break it for customers.

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    So cute
    So cute
    Fish and Chips
    Fish and Chips
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    Lobster Roll
    Salt Rockford

    Salt Rockford

    4.2
    (30 reviews)
    1.7 mi

    Such an amazing experience…read more Starting off with the restaurant itself, such a beautifully curated spot that is unlike anything rockford has to offer. Every detail a work of art. We really enjoy the bar area and its ambiance but hope to also experience the dining room as well. We started off with the Dip of the day which was a Miso Ranch dip served with fresh made tortilla chips. This was phenomenal and my only complaint is there wasn't more! We also both ordered a drink off of their happy hour menu. I ordered the old Fashioned and my wife ordered their margarita. Both were excellent. I also ordered the VIEUX CARRÉ based on our Server's recommendation and thoroughly enjoyed that. Such knowledgeable staff makes a big difference. For our main course, I got their Mushroom Pot Pie and my wife ordered the Ora King Salmon. Both dishes blew us away. Neither of us expected to be so full after our meals, their serving sizes were very generous! I wanted to highlight the mushroom pot pie, as a vegetarian, Fine dining usually does not cater to vegetarians. So having options at a place this nice was such a welcomed surprise. The greens included with the Pot Pie really stole the show, The most perfectly cooked and seasoned greens I have ever had. Chef Nick Risseeuw came over and checked on how we were doing and after hearing me rave about his pot pie offered two of his desserts on the house. We got a pistachio orange dessert and a Malt ball ice cream that was his interpretation of whopper candy as an ice cream. Both were DIVINE! Thank you again Nick for your generosity, it was a perfect way to end a perfect meal. I also wanted to highlight the staff as they played an essential role in our unbelievable experience. Everyone was so friendly, attentive, and prompt. We will definitely return soon and cannot wait to see what is in store for their upcoming menu

    OMG we loved this place! It was our 1st visit to Salt Rockford and they SHINEDMy husband and I had…read morethe most lovely and delicious dinner!!! And thee cocktails are so good too we are going to attempt to recreate them at home. It ambience is clean and classy with a comfortable atmosphere. My favorite kind of dining experience! We will be back!

    Photos
    A look into one of the many dining rooms.  Some private rooms are available.
    A look into one of the many dining rooms. Some private rooms are available.
    Salt Rockford
    Salt Rockford

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    Council Oak Steaks & Seafood

    Council Oak Steaks & Seafood

    3.8
    (27 reviews)
    0.4 mi

    Went here last night w my bf for dinner pre-Jokoy show. Positive? GABBY OUR SERVER WAS AMAAAAAZING…read more Gorgeous layout. Negative: Reservations were for 08/07/26 5:30PM. Glad we made it that early. The food took a LONG TIME to come out. No apps. All ordered @once. Food came out over an hr later. Cooked great and to perfection. But a long wait

    Dear Council Oak Management,…read more My husband and I dined at Council Oak last night to celebrate three very special occasions: my retirement, my birthday, and his birthday. This was our fifth or sixth visit, and we've always enjoyed dining with you, which makes this experience even more disappointing. Our evening started off very well. The hostess asked if we were celebrating anything special, and we shared our celebrations. When our server, Amy, introduced herself, she also acknowledged my retirement and our birthdays and engaged us in a friendly conversation about our plans. Because your staff initiated these conversations, we naturally assumed there might be a small celebratory gesture at the end of the meal, as is customary at many fine dining restaurants. We weren't looking for anything extravagant, just a simple acknowledgment such as a small dessert or cookie. Instead, nothing was offered. In hindsight, it felt unnecessary to ask about our special occasions if there was no intention of recognizing them. The service also became inconsistent throughout the evening. Amy disappeared for a significant portion of our meal, and another gentleman stepped in to assist us before Amy returned and apologized. While we appreciated the apology, the overall pace of the meal was extremely slow. We arrived at five o'clock, were among the first guests seated, and did not leave until approximately seven forty-five. There were only two of us, yet we waited about forty-five minutes for our entrées, making the dinner far longer than it should have been. We have always enjoyed Council Oak, which is why this visit was so disappointing. I wanted to share this feedback because I hope future guests celebrating important milestones have a better experience than we did. Thank you for taking the time to read my comments. Sincerely, Sue O

    Photos
    Stare into the picture and you can see the future - tender steaks dry-aged for 28 days!
    Stare into the picture and you can see the future - tender steaks dry-aged for 28 days!
    Woodfire grilled shrimp
    Woodfire grilled shrimp
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    Tavern On Clark - tradamerican - Updated August 2026

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