Restaurants in Chicago

When executive chef Toyoji Hemmi surveys the restaurant's daily deliveries of fresh seafood, he envisions how the fish can be used to create exciting, new sushi entrees instead of just the widely expected staples. Food & Wine magazine praised this dedication to inventive flavor combinations in 2005, labeling chef Hemmi an "innovator" and calling him one of its "favorite iconoclasts" in the United States.

He accentuates maki with seemingly disparate ingredients—including rosemary, walnuts, and cherry tomatoes—that add new dimensions to the rolls' familiar tastes, textures, and pronunciations. Established Japanese flavors remain at the forefront of other items though, such as the wasabi-rubbed filet mignon and the organic cha-soba noodles. This distinctive interplay between contemporary and traditional approaches helped to earn the menu a score of "very good to excellent" from Zagat.

The dining room's vaguely industrial setting also toes the line between contemporary and historic, featuring rustic brick walls and exposed wooden rafters as well as chic, low-slung chairs and modern track lighting. Diners can peek behind the stone-countered sushi bar and watch the chefs assemble platters of maki and nigiri, or join the bartenders, who pass their evenings pouring tastes of sake and shochu.

At Deleece Restaurant, fillets of caramelized salmon and cuts of heritage Berkshire pork don’t just sit on plates—they transform into edible works of art. The chef drizzles dishes with swirls of pear-ginger sauce, sprinkles microgreens over geometric plates, and coaxes crabmeat into gravity-defying towers. The mastermind behind these globally influenced creations is Chef Ernesto Palaia, who also works to fill meals with organic produce and heirloom varieties. In addition to featuring upscale meats—Indiana duck breast, Amish chicken—Palaia’s menu plumbs the ocean for fresh seafood such as Blue Hill Bay mussels and plump diver scallops, which he prepared for Ben Hollis when the television host visited Deleece for a W.I.L.D. Lakeview feature. Palaia’s contemporary seasonings for these dishes range from lemongrass-chili aioli and lime-agave-nectar yogurt to fig-mostarda sauce.

Despite the sophisticated nature of its culinary offerings, Deleece maintains a down-to-earth atmosphere in its new location next to the Mercury Theater. Owners Lynne Wallack and John Handler preserve the warm, neighborhood feel of their previous location—where they resided for 16 years—with the help of staff members such as Joe, their expert bartender. He and his staff craft specialty drinks ranging from a summery lemon-basil manhattan to a wintery spiced cherry bourbon, which can soothe throats raw from shouting advice at movie characters at the Music Box Theatre a few doors down. Tipplers can also sip more than three dozen wines and beers from Belgium and Ireland or brewed right at home in Illinois and other Midwestern states.

The best part of getting amazing deep-dish pizza for half off is being able to stock up on versatile circular shapes. Pizza—a round bread disc covered with tomato sauce, melted cheese, and edible toppings—is typically reserved for consumption, but with today's deep discount, feel free to grab enough pizzas to use for all your circle needs, including:

Groupon is overjoyed to bring today's feature deal from the internationally celebrated Chicago culinary icon: Spring. Chef-owner Shawn McClain (who also runs Green Zebra) has earned critical adoration from the likes of the Bon Appétit, New York Times, the Chicago Tribune, and Time Out Chicago, among many others. The upscale establishment serves some of the most refined cuisine in Chicago, and with today's Groupon you'll get $75 worth of their delicious inventions for just $35.

While traditionally used as a weapon, a barbecue-beef brisket sandwich with red onion jam is the perfect hunk of meat to put in your mouth. This Groupon gets you $15 worth of upscale sandwiches and everything else for $5 at Lunch Rolls in the Loop. It serves "scratch cooking on a roll"—swanky sandwiches such as Moroccan lamb, smoked whitefish, and Cajun shrimp jambalaya at $6.29 per sandwich. Even the oven-roasted turkey is deliciously distinct: it's served with stuffing and gravy. The menu also has fresh and juicy classics such as skirt steak, buffalo chicken, and Italian meatball sandwiches.

Today's side deal is perfect for people who only eat between late morning and early afternoon on Sundays: $20 gets you $40 worth of Sunday brunch (11 a.m. to 3 p.m.) at Duchamp, the hip French-inspired eatery in Bucktown. Brunch always draws a crowd, so reservations are recommended.