Black Bear Bistro delivers excellent food from a chef who clearly knows what he's doing. The menu shows calculated culinary risks that genuinely pay off, resulting in thoughtful, well-executed dishes. Prices are fair for the quality, and the small, quaint setting makes it perfect for a date night or special occasion. read more

A t small restaurant with one chef, one server and one kitchen helper. Service was a tad slow. The two appetizers - fried calamari and fried avocado and pickle spears were all very tasty. The aioli that came with them was a little sweet and spicy. The roasted poblano soup was really delicious with deep flavors. My entrée was the roasted mini pumpkin with foie grass and apples. It was very tasty although a tad sweet and for a few extra dollars it would have been nice to have two slices of foie gras. Another of us ordered the trout and it did not state it had a creamy sauce that was going to smother the dish...two others ordered beef or the mixed grill and it was way too rare and chewy - not high enough quality meat. Not sure I would return. read more

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Great food. Excellent service. Small quaint spot in downtown Algonquin that offers upscale food at a decent price

It's been a little bit since we came here, so pardon my memory on some of the names of dishes we had. We came here for a rare date night without the kids, and it also happened to be our 11th anniversary. It was the tail end of the pandemic, so many restaurants were still trying to regain the foot traffic they once experienced. We were lucky to have the entire dining area to ourselves for most of our time! For that alone, the ambiance was romantic and even if there were others in the restaurant, the setting lends itself to encourage soft conversation versus raucous jubilation. The service was personal (as we were the only ones there), and the server was patient to explain all of the fresh items and new dishes the chef had been working on. We started with a soup sampler trio, which was an explosion of flavor. I believe there was a black bean, tomato, and I think one was a cream base with herbs, but I can't remember the herb! All were unique and had ingredients that made them stand out. My wife had the flank steak with some fresh sautéed veggies, and I had crab cakes with a mushroom risotto. Both of these were cooked to perfection, though the crab cakes were not as dense as I had hoped, and the ratio of crab to filler leaned more on the filler side (though the flavor held up). My only other criticism is that some of the sauces were runny, so the plating wasn't super clean and it made the dishes feel less sophisticated. That said, I still want to err on the side of highly supporting this local, independent restaurant, because when taking all elements of this experience together, it was a great celebration for my wife and I. They even gave us a complementary dessert for our anniversary, which we had to take home, because we were too full to eat it! Great job, Black Bear team! read more

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It was a different type of setting-- the interior, but ok. I had the pork belly with sweet potatoes, which I liked. My husband had some type of mushroom & filet mignon pizza, which he thought was --again, different. It was just "ok" for him. We ate here because we were hungry, and our primary choice of restaurant had a 75 min wait. Service was pleasant. read more

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A quiet little restaurant you might walk right past. However, the chef and his wife inside make the most wonderful wild game dishes you've ever had. From wild boar to quail and even Kangaroo, all the dishes taste fresh and extremely flavorful. The staff was courteous, accommodating to allergies and very generous with complimentary service. It does get a bit loud at the restaurant on the weekends, but the ambiance is still lovely. Make a reservation! read more

The Black Bear Bistro - An amazing presentation of a scallops dish - New American Near Me - Algonquin, Illinois

My husband and I had an exceptional dinner at The Black Bear Bistro in Algonquin tonight! We started with the clam chowder and it was absolutely perfect! The clams and potatoes were tender and the seasonings were perfect. I odered the stuffed poblano with lobster and scallops paired with risotto and veggies and my husband got the Paella with Shrimp, Scallops, Mussels, Calamari and sausage with some potatoes and root veggies. Both were five Star meals! Highly recommend! Also, Chef Santi's is extremely talented, and his wife, Estela is the sweetest person ever! read more

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The owners are so lovely, warm and welcoming and Chef Santi works magic! The server, Catarina, was friendly and attentive. Another fabulous experience. read more

We were treated by our daughters for our 50th anniversary & it was Great! We had calamari that was tender & sat on a green salsa type of sauce that was delicious. The rainbow trout I can't even explain how wonderful it was. My husband loved the duck breast. The service was fantastic by Sarah! The owner made us a special decorated flourless chocolate cake that was amazing. This was our first time here but not our last. It was a wonderful experience. read more

Excellent food with great drinks! Small, quaint place with an amazing French (I think) chef that serves varied dishes and has specials often. Friendly staff with good service. Definitely recommended! read more

The Black Bear Bistro - Quail. - New American Near Me - Algonquin, Illinois

I was looking for a small, intimate place to take my wife after our marriage ceremony. I couldn't find any place in the Crystal Lake/McHenry/Algonquin area that was excited to have us and perhaps make a few special arrangements for us. Until I talked to Estella. She was thrilled we wanted to end our day with her at her and her husband/chef Santiago's restaurant. She made sure we had the best table (great view of Main Street and tucked into a corner), offered to me I could decorate the table any way I wanted to, and agreed to create a memorable dessert. Despite being 6pm on a Thursday night, parking was not available on the street in front of the restaurant or nearby. That actually added to the fun of the night as the walk from a parking lot behind the downtown area made it feel like being in Chicago and walking to tucked away gem. When we arrived, Estella greeted us with a smile and such warmth, it was like going to a family member's home. She thanked us for choosing her restaurant and said we were lucky for her because many weekday nights they are not busy and they had a nice crowd this Thursday evening. I quickly noted she had placed a vase of small roses on just our table. The young servers were excellent, the diversity of the menu made it exciting to choose...my new wife for the first time had quail and I had rainbow trout with crabmeat. Simply delicious and I knew it must have been as my wife rarely finishes a meal! I also saw there was a Wednesday night special of Beef Wellington which we definitely will return to enjoy. Perhaps the highlight of our night was the special chocolate cake Chef Santiago prepared for us with heartfelt well-wishes written out on the plate. There was so much we got to take some home so we can have that one year anniversary cake tradition. We ended our night posing for pictures, getting hugs, and being thrilled at such hospitality. It's now like an old-school "our place" that will forever be in our hearts and certainly pleased my wife with the level of care and detail I had for her post-ceremony dinner. I hope others can experience what we did there so this cute couple and restaurant can thrive. read more

The Black Bear Bistro - New American Near Me - Algonquin, Illinois

Black Bear Bistro is the type of place where when you get your meal, you feel like it was crafted especially for you. You feel like you belong to a special club, and you do. The chef/owners are so warm and inviting that if you become a repeat customer, you just may end up having something that wasn't printed on any menu, other than the one in Chef Santi's mind. And that's not to say you won't be wanting to try everything that IS printed. The variety cannot be matched - whether it's game meat or local produce that interests you - and the flavors are beyond measure. Everything is fresh, and it shows. Oh, and the fries! Potato, sweet potato, coco malanga! Every starch you could want. Beyond the small front room and past the kitchen is... the back room. It's just another, slightly larger room also for eating, but being led back to it adds to that "secret society" feeling. And that makes everything taste better. Or at least I think it does. Closing notes: if you like spice, you will be pleased. If you're thinking about dessert, get it (Key Lime!). If you're not into sweets, then avoid the owners' smiles at all costs. They're delightful. read more

Horrible Sat us in back near kitchen Everything we ordered was cold I spent over $200 on food that was cold and mediocre read more

Worst dining experience I've had in a long time. It's my fault for thinking this would be a good choice for dinner with friends. We spent more time talking poorly about the food rather than eating. The lobster tasted like absolute iodine, my girlfriend's steak was completely rare, thankfully the waiter noticed when he picked up our plates and took it off our tab. The concept is great but poorly executed. Should've just stayed at 1776...what's up with all these roses used as a garnish on every plate? read more

What a unique place to go for a meal. The food was amazing, the service was exceptional and the ambiance was perfect for our anniversary. Love that the place is own by a husband and wife duo. The husband is the chef and serves the food fresh and hot with a depth of flavor I have rarely experienced. The wife runs the front of the house and makes sure to visit each table. You know the food is good when the owners are present! read more

Absolutely incredible! It feels very intimate and exclusive and the food is out of this world! I hesitate to write this review because it feels like a little secret but really hoping this place makes it big! read more

We live in Lombard so it is a 45-60 minute trek out to The Black Bear Bistro but it was worth it!! The food was delicious, my very fussy husband loved the poblano soup and everything was fresh and delicious. The grilled calamari and the fried pork belly were both great and the onion rings were the best we've ever had. The service was exceptional and the ambiance ( we had the back room for our party of 5 ) was perfect. It was a great birthday dinner and all of us loved everything!! We will come back again. read more

We dine here every time we come to McHenry county to visit family and friends! A trip to this region is not complete without enjoying the ambiance, unique menu and hospitality at Black Bear. Calamari starter nailed it as usual and our friends enjoyed the jambalaya and paella dishes. Service was spot on and the night got our holiday weekend off to a great start! Thank you Chef Santiago for sharing your talent and creativity with us for the last three decades! read more

Small spot with decent food, super casual atmosphere. Came here for a late dinner with my mom and sister and ordered several things on the menu. Some items were really good, others were a bit off but still had good flavors. The tacos were good but I couldn't eat some of the meat because it was too chewy so you couldn't chew through the meat or had too much fat on it. The onion rings had a good sauce but they were super soggy. That was the story for pretty much every item. The staff was really nice but the service was extremely slow. So definitely have mixed feelings about this place but would come by again for their margaritas. read more

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I will never walk a foot in this place! We had a reservation at 5 as you can see clearly says 5pm. Apparently we were 1 hour late and our reservation was at "4 " according to the owner. We tried showing her the reservation on our phone and she denied to look and told us we were not aloud to sit at the dining area and took us to a back room walking through the kitchen. Back room was small, smelled like cigarettes, no windows! Very quiet and awkward! Also passing the Kitchen is very very unsanitary. She was rude! And Mean. So we walked out. We went to Cucina Bella across the street. And we are glad we did. THE OWNER LOST 4 good customers. SHAME ON YOU! read more

The Black Bear Bistro - Our reservation says 5 - New American Near Me - Algonquin, Illinois

We were greeted by a friendly masked face on a brutally cold night. Things were off to a good start until the hostess's friend, Andy showed up behind us. She was in the middle of figuring out which table to seat us. When we finally picked a table, she quickly ignored our choice and gave Andy the option of taking the table she already offered us. Andy didn't want to be seated near the front door on a night when it's negative below out. Smart choice. So I guess we get the table not good enough for Andy. Ernesto and Luis were our servers. They were very attentive and took very good care of each one of us. We started off with the fried calamari and escargot. Calamari was a bit bland while the escargot was too salty for our taste. However, my husband had the Mexican clam chowder which was outstanding. Perfect combo of sweetness from the cream and heat from the poblano peppers. For our main course, I had the mixed grill which comprised of elk, antelope and boar meats. They were all cooked perfectly temperature-wise. It came with a side of mashed potatoes (actually, everything came with mashed potatoes - appetizers and main courses). Overall, it was an okay dinner. Nothing out of this world, but a good place to have in the neighborhood to add variety to the area. read more

The Black Bear Bistro - Andy's table - New American Near Me - Algonquin, Illinois

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Very small place make reservations! You will not be disappointed at all! We started with Calamari, escargot and the tuna. Each plate was delightful and large portions for our party of 6 on NYE. They have so many different plate options for dinner. They serve elk, pork belly and even kangaroo! I am a huge pork belly fan, it was just ok for me only because I did not like the gravy on my pork belly. (Not a gravy fan) My boyfriend got a flank steak that I honestly wish I got instead. The plate was made for perfection! Definitely will be going back to try more! read more

Extremely slow service, was told we needed a reservation due to it being a Saturday evening. I was told over the phone that we would be given "great service" since I told them this was our first date night in months since having our child. We were not greeted by anyone at the door, we awkwardly stood in the dining room until a server came by and asked us if the two-top was ok for us. She then came by some time later for drink orders, the drinks took about 10-15 minutes to get to us, quality was sub-par at best. We then ordered appetizers and waited 45 minutes, we had to leave without receiving our food due to our sitter at home. Had we known it would have been what I assume would be a 2+ hour dining experience, we would have been more prepared. We also over heard the line cook/chef complain about us wanting to leave due to the long wait time for food and our time restriction. The server apologized when she handed us the check and said they were short-staffed. Totally understandable, but if that was the case it should have been mentioned at the beginning of service. We also saw what we assumed was a manager going around doing table-touches. They never stopped by our table or checked in to see how things were going. We will not be returning, unfortunately. read more

Tried out for the first time tonight - we wish we would have tried sooner! Everything we had was truly delicious. The food had layers of unique flavors and was prepared and packaged so nicely (we ordered carry out). The passion from the chef shines through - such a different experience than going to a chain restaurant. We thought the flank steak was cooked to perfection and was wonderful. The pork chop was a generous portion and had so much flavor. The steak tacos melted in your mouth and the honey potato pancake was a dessert in itself. Give Black Bear Bistro a try and see if you are as impressed as we were. read more

The Black Bear Bistro - Take out bag - New American Near Me - Algonquin, Illinois

Wow. This is the most unassuming spot with the most delicious food! I kept seeing good reviews for this place, so when we were finally in town, we had to give it a try. Walking in, I was surprised to see how small it was - I can imagine most nights it must be reservation only with such limited seating. When looking through the menu, there were a ton of unique options and lots of choices for gluten free folks - jackpot! Everything we tried was so tasty! The staff was quick, friendly and knowledgeable. I'm truly so impressed with this place and will be recommending it and revisiting many times. But if you go, my major recommendation is to make a reservation. read more

Food was wonderful. Menu was unique. Service very good. Definitely a place I'd go back too

Came here for a celebration dinner based on the reviews and was not disappointed. The ambiance is low-key, nothing fancy, but the food is. Our party of three was seated in the back room (had no reservation) - perfect for us as we had the space to ourselves, yet server was fully attentive. Had a lovely dinner of dishes filled with unexpected, delicious ingredients. We chose a mix of the changing menu and the standard - great variety. Nice drink options. Rum Reishi drink was a smooth mix of complex flavors. One minor suggestion to the restaurant is to pay for the premium music streaming service, as the ads distracted from the food and conversation during the meal. If you want to eat amazing food without a hoity-toity vibe, this is the spot. read more

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It's been a while since we have been there, but our visit was full of attentive service, great food, and nice ambiance. The food is definitely worth the wait! read more

Always amazing food! The presentation and taste is always exceptional! Pictured is the roasted duck and seared scallops. read more

The Black Bear Bistro - This meal was amazing! The roasted duck is the front dish and seared scallops in the dish behind it! The food is even better than it looks. - New American Near Me - Algonquin, Illinois

If you are looking for a great place to take a significant other, look no further! Excellent food and service, unique food offerings and my were they tasty. Highly recommend the fried pickle and avocados. Jambalaya was spicy without being a sweat fest. read more

What a wonderful bistro! First and foremost the owner and staff and VERY friendly and accommodating! The food was creative and delicious. Same with the drinks. Can't wait to go back (this was our second visit). read more

If you are looking for an absolutely delightful eating experience this place is for you! A little pricey some might say but not for the uniqueness of the food you are being served! You can tell the chef not only is passionate about his food but they use the best and freshest ingredients as well! Everyone is super friendly and goes out of their way to give you a great dining experience. The unique options in the menu are the best part! We will be back! read more

Second visit was just as awesome as the first. Food is fun, creative, and delicious. Staff is so friendly and the service was quick. Best Mac n cheese ever!! Can't wait to come back! read more

The Black Bear Bistro - Cheesiest, gooiest Mac n cheese ever!! - New American Near Me - Algonquin, Illinois

Outstanding food, service, ambiance. Highly recommended. Fresh, eclectic menu. Highly recommended. read more

The Black Bear Bistro - The Black Bear Bistro - New American Near Me - Algonquin, Illinois

Amazing!!!! My husband and I dined here on a Friday night. He had a delicious Kombucha Old Fashioned and I had a glass of Côtes de Rhône. It truly is farm to table and offers an incredible menu. We started with Bison Ribs which fell off the bone and were to die for. I had the Pork Belly entree and my husband had the special Wild Game Plate- consisting of antelope, kangaroo and duck. The plates were full and display excellent. George was an excellent server, gave us what we needed without being on top of us. He recommended the blueberry bread pudding. It was probably our least favorite part of the meal, but when everything else was as good as it was, who cares? We'll be back! read more

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The layout is very small but the menu is very unique. The service was great and the bison tacos were great.

This was our first time having dinner at the Black Bear. It was a recommendation from a friend of ours. Food was very good. Service was attentive and the servers recommendations were spot on! Trout and Duck were awesome. Very small and intimate. Chef knows his stuff. Too top off dinner we had two desserts. The flowerbeds chocolate cake may have been the best we have ever had! Key lime was a solid second. Nice hidden gem in downtown Algonquin! We will be back! read more

The Black Bear is the best kept secret in the Fox River Valley. The creativity of the menu items borders on brilliance in a way to challenge the customer to try something new. This is a small shop with over the top friendly staff. Chef Santiago Do everyone a favor leave your cell phone on your pocket, sit back and relax and enjoy the experience. Chef Santiago changes the menu regularly so the ingredients are always fresh. They have daily specials, "Small Bites Thursday " (3 courses plus dessert) or a single entree complete with sides. The menu also includes starters, soups & salads, unique ingredient specialty pizzas, main entrees, sides and desserts. They have wine, beer and mixed drinks. They are willing to add or subtract an ingredient which allows the customer the ability to tailor the meal to their satisfaction. Ok that's what you get every time you walk in the place. For us my girlfriend had the Fresh Buffalo Mozzarella salad with tomato & basil cheese smoked salmon & mango black garlic vinaigrette followed the salmon filet with goat cheese mashed potatoes. The dish normally comes with a curry sauce but she asked to have a buttered dill caper sauce instead. I had beef satay over Fruit chutney & port wine drizzle which was followed by Bison Meat Sliders with Monterey Cheese with Smoked Chipotle BBQ sauce. In case you missed it we thoroughly enjoyed every aspect of our meal and plan to regular customers. read more

We love this place. The chef is amazing and the staff is so nice! We can't wait to come back.

Absolutely fantastic! The food is beautifully prepared and presented, good portions and the taste/flavors are Amazing!! We had wonderful service from Annette and everyone who works there is kind, friendly and so welcoming! A perfect gem. read more