Went to Oceanique last night for a last-minute reservation. I needed to use a silent auction win which had an $180 value for two 5-course meals, but we paid even more given the auction competition (I forgot how much). Anyway, we had the 5-course meal that was included + 2 cocktails + green mashed potatoes because sides were an extra charge. We paid an ADDITIONAL $140 for this meal. $18 per drink (which we knew). I don't remember how much the potatoes were. But they charged us a $59 tip + a bunch of mind-spinning taxes. Yikes! My husband and I left laughing that we got GOT GOT. lol.The service and dessert were amazing. The fish and scallops were tasty. The other "5-course" offerings were terrible. Like really really bad. One of the dishes was a SINGLE shrimp in some kind of butter sauce. DEFINITELY not a $320+ meal (crazy). We could have gone to a much finer restaurant for the price.We didn't let the getting GOT GOT get to us, but instead chalked it up to a $320 funny story and keeping the staff employed.It's clear that they need to work on the pricing. They have potential, but they'd probably have a lot more business if they better balanced the quality vs. cost. I'd pay $320, but it better be a lot of food and not be some diced up raw zucchini and carrots or cold pate straight out of the refrigerator.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 3
Service: 5
Gregory Schalliol
The taste of the food was not worth the price.
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 2
Service: 5
Heidi Parsons
I dined at Oceanique for my birthday during Restaurant Week, so my friend and I enjoyed a special three-course menu. I had the striped bass and my friend had swordfish. We finished with the pot de crème. Everything was a-maz-ing! Harry was our waiter, and the service was impeccable.
Went in for restaurant week special at 59.00....which was way overpriced for what was served...in addition the food was nothing to rave about...not even close to fine French Cuisine.....complimentary Ceviche was mediocre, then came the starter, Chicken Liver Pate served with what appeared to be aspic and a type of tapenade, not a great pairing....entree, Scottish Salmon, pretty good served on a thin slice of sweet potatoe with a bare minimum of corn kernels.... dessert lacked presentation, appeared rather messy and once again just ok. Finally, had a cocktail, Cucumber Martini which was sickly sweet and had to ask for one sans all the sweet syrup. Bill exceeded 125.00 with gratuity. Sorry, wont be back.....Bread was excellent. Waiter was not attentive.
Brian W.
Tonight, we tried Oceanique for Chicago Restaurant Week in Evanston. We had reservations and immediately sat at our reserved time. The bar area looked nice, the table seats were comfortable, but the decor was stuck in the late 7ps. White wallpaper, mirror on the wall with designs on it, etc. It's not bad, just dated. Our server was very nice and personable. He explained the options for restaurant week. The wines we bought were not included but our red and white were very good. First, there was bread...crispy on the outside and soft on the inside. The next little dish was a taster. It had mozzarella cheese with what appeared to be thin salmon and something else in oil. It was simple but tasty. For our appetizer, my wife went with the butternut squash ravioli. It was delicious. I went with the shrimp salad. It was good, but it was way too close pop small taster originally brought out. I wish the waiter would have advised something else a little more different, so I didn't feel like I was having more of the same (thenshrimp was big and cooked well, though). Our entrees were swordfish and salmon. Her salmon was delicious. My swordfish was tough but tasted good. We ordered the basil mashed potatoes. The basil complimented the fish, but the basil was a little strong that it overpowered the potatoes. Overall, the food was good. The issue we had was for the money at $59 a course, we aren't convinced it was worth what we got. The portions were small, and the flavors they meshed together just wasn't our style. It almost seemed like pot luck or abstract art. I'm not saying it didn't taste good, just it didn't knock us over the moon. The presentation was worth 5 stars, the taste and service was 4 stars, but the choice of flavors and food I'd give 3.5.
andrea breunig
I just don’t think I’m going to have enough space here! My husband and I went to Oceanique for the first time last Friday, and to say we were floored is a vast understatement. Everything about this restaurant is STELLAR. Food was out-of-this-world, ambience was warm and charming, and the service could not be beat. We had a Groupon and they didn’t make us feel awkward at all about using it. I’m sad we didn’t have time to try the pastries everyone talks about but it gives us good reason to go back. DO NOT MISS THIS RESTAURANT and remember they are participating in Restaurant Week:)
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
William Lasko
Going for two decades. Great wine list. For foodies.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Siobhan Climer
Romantic and gorgeous and delicious!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Wild Maine Day Boat Sea Scallops
Kevin Powers
We have been going here for years and it's always great. We get the Chef's Tasting menu on Groupon and it never disappoints!!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Corn-Leek Soup, Seasonal Sorbet, Wild Maine Day Boat Sea Scallops, Wild Maine Lobster Belgian Endive, Wild Japanese Day Boat Scallops
Denise Leath
Everything was perfect. Five course tasting menu. Fabulous wine. Great service.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Seasonal Sorbet, Wild Maine Day Boat Sea Scallops, Wild Maine Lobster Belgian Endive, Vanilla Panna Cotta Seasonal Fruit Fruit Coulis
We celebrated a big birthday there and they made it a very special evening. Hard to decide which was better, the food or the service. Both were outstanding. And the restaurant is not too loud. The bouillabaisse was out of this world. Highly recommend.
SLD1200
We celebrated a big birthday there and they made it a very special evening. Hard to decide which was better, the food or the service. Both were outstanding. And the restaurant was not too loud. The bouillabaisse was out of this world. Highly recommend.
214Disappointed
A Groupon coupon cost $71.20 (advertised as 1/2 price) and the bill after eating was $96.73. A total of $167.93 for two people. e.g. Martini was $16. A glass of tea 5.50. I knew the tip would be 18%. There was also a surcharge of 4% along with taxes and other unique charges. The service and good were good. But we can dine at a comparable restaurant for 1/2 of $167.93. Tables are to close together. The restaurant is not as classy as advertised.
Peter K.
Amazing experience. Everything is fantastic and service is top notch. The baked oysters were to die for as well as the lobster salad.
Michelle S.
Oceanique is an amazing culinary experience! Lovely decor, nice wait staff and incredible food. It's as good as any high class restaurant that you would see in downtown Chicago, only in a suburb. Definitely check out the 5-course tasting menu. You will NOT be disappointed!
Went to Oceanique last night for a last-minute reservation. I needed to use a silent auction win which had an $180 value for two 5-course meals, but we paid even more given the auction competition (I forgot how much). Anyway, we had the 5-course meal that was included + 2 cocktails + green mashed potatoes because sides were an extra charge. We paid an ADDITIONAL $140 for this meal. $18 per drink (which we knew). I don't remember how much the potatoes were. But they charged us a $59 tip + a bunch of mind-spinning taxes. Yikes! My husband and I left laughing that we got GOT GOT. lol.The service and dessert were amazing. The fish and scallops were tasty. The other "5-course" offerings were terrible. Like really really bad. One of the dishes was a SINGLE shrimp in some kind of butter sauce. DEFINITELY not a $320+ meal (crazy). We could have gone to a much finer restaurant for the price.We didn't let the getting GOT GOT get to us, but instead chalked it up to a $320 funny story and keeping the staff employed.It's clear that they need to work on the pricing. They have potential, but they'd probably have a lot more business if they better balanced the quality vs. cost. I'd pay $320, but it better be a lot of food and not be some diced up raw zucchini and carrots or cold pate straight out of the refrigerator.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 3
Service: 5
The taste of the food was not worth the price.
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 2
Service: 5
I dined at Oceanique for my birthday during Restaurant Week, so my friend and I enjoyed a special three-course menu. I had the striped bass and my friend had swordfish. We finished with the pot de crème. Everything was a-maz-ing! Harry was our waiter, and the service was impeccable.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Seasonal Sorbet, Butternut Squash Ravioli
Went in for restaurant week special at 59.00....which was way overpriced for what was served...in addition the food was nothing to rave about...not even close to fine French Cuisine.....complimentary Ceviche was mediocre, then came the starter, Chicken Liver Pate served with what appeared to be aspic and a type of tapenade, not a great pairing....entree, Scottish Salmon, pretty good served on a thin slice of sweet potatoe with a bare minimum of corn kernels.... dessert lacked presentation, appeared rather messy and once again just ok. Finally, had a cocktail, Cucumber Martini which was sickly sweet and had to ask for one sans all the sweet syrup. Bill exceeded 125.00 with gratuity. Sorry, wont be back.....Bread was excellent. Waiter was not attentive.
Tonight, we tried Oceanique for Chicago Restaurant Week in Evanston. We had reservations and immediately sat at our reserved time. The bar area looked nice, the table seats were comfortable, but the decor was stuck in the late 7ps. White wallpaper, mirror on the wall with designs on it, etc. It's not bad, just dated. Our server was very nice and personable. He explained the options for restaurant week. The wines we bought were not included but our red and white were very good. First, there was bread...crispy on the outside and soft on the inside. The next little dish was a taster. It had mozzarella cheese with what appeared to be thin salmon and something else in oil. It was simple but tasty. For our appetizer, my wife went with the butternut squash ravioli. It was delicious. I went with the shrimp salad. It was good, but it was way too close pop small taster originally brought out. I wish the waiter would have advised something else a little more different, so I didn't feel like I was having more of the same (thenshrimp was big and cooked well, though). Our entrees were swordfish and salmon. Her salmon was delicious. My swordfish was tough but tasted good. We ordered the basil mashed potatoes. The basil complimented the fish, but the basil was a little strong that it overpowered the potatoes. Overall, the food was good. The issue we had was for the money at $59 a course, we aren't convinced it was worth what we got. The portions were small, and the flavors they meshed together just wasn't our style. It almost seemed like pot luck or abstract art. I'm not saying it didn't taste good, just it didn't knock us over the moon. The presentation was worth 5 stars, the taste and service was 4 stars, but the choice of flavors and food I'd give 3.5.
I just don’t think I’m going to have enough space here! My husband and I went to Oceanique for the first time last Friday, and to say we were floored is a vast understatement. Everything about this restaurant is STELLAR. Food was out-of-this-world, ambience was warm and charming, and the service could not be beat. We had a Groupon and they didn’t make us feel awkward at all about using it. I’m sad we didn’t have time to try the pastries everyone talks about but it gives us good reason to go back. DO NOT MISS THIS RESTAURANT and remember they are participating in Restaurant Week:)
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Going for two decades. Great wine list. For foodies.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Romantic and gorgeous and delicious!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Wild Maine Day Boat Sea Scallops
We have been going here for years and it's always great. We get the Chef's Tasting menu on Groupon and it never disappoints!!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Corn-Leek Soup, Seasonal Sorbet, Wild Maine Day Boat Sea Scallops, Wild Maine Lobster Belgian Endive, Wild Japanese Day Boat Scallops
Everything was perfect. Five course tasting menu. Fabulous wine. Great service.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Seasonal Sorbet, Wild Maine Day Boat Sea Scallops, Wild Maine Lobster Belgian Endive, Vanilla Panna Cotta Seasonal Fruit Fruit Coulis
Restaurantji Recommends
We celebrated a big birthday there and they made it a very special evening. Hard to decide which was better, the food or the service. Both were outstanding. And the restaurant is not too loud. The bouillabaisse was out of this world. Highly recommend.
We celebrated a big birthday there and they made it a very special evening. Hard to decide which was better, the food or the service. Both were outstanding. And the restaurant was not too loud. The bouillabaisse was out of this world. Highly recommend.
A Groupon coupon cost $71.20 (advertised as 1/2 price) and the bill after eating was $96.73. A total of $167.93 for two people. e.g. Martini was $16. A glass of tea 5.50. I knew the tip would be 18%. There was also a surcharge of 4% along with taxes and other unique charges. The service and good were good. But we can dine at a comparable restaurant for 1/2 of $167.93. Tables are to close together. The restaurant is not as classy as advertised.
Amazing experience. Everything is fantastic and service is top notch. The baked oysters were to die for as well as the lobster salad.
Oceanique is an amazing culinary experience! Lovely decor, nice wait staff and incredible food. It's as good as any high class restaurant that you would see in downtown Chicago, only in a suburb. Definitely check out the 5-course tasting menu. You will NOT be disappointed!