Gemini Bistro

One of our favorite spots in the neighborhood for a nice dinner out. Nothing super fancy or trendy — just a really good meal in a good atmosphere. Servers have always been friendly as well.

Consistently great food, drinks, and service! Seasonal dishes always are always amazing, but the normal menu options are on par every time I have been. One of my favorite spots in Chicago! I highly recommend.

Hanger steak was one of the best I’ve ever had. Service was decent, would definitely come back for the steak

Had never been to Chicago and was staying close by so decided to check it out — the «bistro» threw me off a little (I imagined a café/​lunch spot), but was pleasantly surprised.
Crab cakes were delicious. Nice wine menu. Good service. Cozy environment. This is just nitpicking: Stella didn’t come in its usual fancy shmancy glass.

Simply very well done. Excellent food and service. Great find on the fly during a cold weeknight hangin’ with my cousin.

I came here to celebrate a friend’s birthday with low expectations, and was actually very surprised. The restaurant itself was so cute and festive, and although it took them a while to seat us (we had a large party AND we didn’t arrive on time), the staff was accommodating.
My friend and I split the short rib ravioli, cauliflower risotto, and mashed potatoes. I ordered a lychee martini, and we had truffle fries for the table. The portions aren’t huge, but everything was done really well. Our waitress was super helpful and willing to answer the excessive amount of questions we asked in addition to splitting our complicated bill.
One of my friends had cookies that were supposed to come with her meal that we never got, but otherwise this place was great.

Really delicious, very «Chicago» experience. Made reservations the same day even though the place was packed. Had family in town and everyone very much enjoyed their meal. Server was knowledgeable and friendly. She recommended lots of good food options. Crab cakes are a must!

This is a great spot. Good date night place. Cauliflower risotto is delicious. Good service. Make a reservation.

Perfect neighborhood quick bite! Romantic and warm setting with the dark lighting, staff were very friendly and eager to make suggestions! I had the gemni bistro salad which was delicious– frisée salad with lardons and a delicious fried egg (which actually had its own bread crumb crust, unusual but delicious), mushroom soup with a hint of rosemary and succulent seared scallops, served with a medley of squash (butternut and spaghetti). Would definitely recommend!

Went here for a birthday dinner. We had a great time. Loved the relaxed atmosphere. Awesome braised short rib. My friend raved about the celery soup and ravioli. Scrumptious apple crisp dessert. Would definitely go back.

Wonderful filet mignon & incredible butter nut squash crème caramel dessert. Great ambiance and can also be more casual as well.

I got the lobster salad and the short rib ravioli and my friend and I shared the truffle fries. The lobster salad wasn’t exactly what I expected — there was a small serving of lobster salad, a side of greens and toasts. A deconstructed salad! While it wasn’t what I expected, it was delicious.
The short rib ravioli is a medium-​sized dish — there are four raviolis which aren’t huge but the dish is rich. One of the best parts is running those addictive truffle fries through that rich short rib sauce. Yum!

I eat here about once a week as I live right around the corner. This is honestly one of the best run restaurants I know of, consistently excellent in food, service, and ambiance. The menu could perhaps be changed more often (particularly since I eat at Gemini so often), but every dish is consistently executed. The staff is always friendly and professional, with very low turnover.
In addition, they do excellent take out, and the outdoor dining is the best in Lincoln Park.

The food is so good. The service too. Friends and I were here recently when I was in town. I ordered the Chicken entrée that included potatoes and carrots. My buddies who ordered salmon, steak and other entrees tried talking me into ordering salmon or steak. I know my order sounded very minimal, but it was really good. They even thought it looked really good. I don’t know why people frown on chicken. It’s weird how some of my friends consider it as a lower-​end product… oh well.
We ordered brussels sprounts and other sides to share. I normally don’t like brussels sprouts; a lot of it has to do with the smell, but the sprouts we ordered were delicious! I never thought I would say something good about brussels sprouts! The Heirloom Tomato Salad was really good too.
Everyone kept telling me about the Southern-​Style Fried Chicken this place has, but unfortunately, it’s only available on Sunday. I will have to come here on a Sunday next time.
Definitely returning next time I’m in Chicago!

I want to start by saying that I would really love to give this place a four star rating. I just can’t, as they have to refine s few things.
The ambience is beautiful with a European feel, done in darker wood finishes and dim lighting, but classic. As for the wine, we had a nice bottle of Morgan Pinot Noir 2012. The waiter was helpful in the selection and in making it a memorable experience.
As for the food, it had some real highs and lows. I will start with my lobster salad, which was very tasty. It was served deconstructed with a small arugula salad tossed with a light dressing, a light mayo based lobster salad, «lobster roll» type of butter bread that was lightly grilled. Anyways, a must try as it was very good. I also had the PEI Mussels with saffron, but they were disappointing. The saffron broth with celery was tasty, but the mussels were a joke! The smallest mussels I have ever seen. It was also served with garlic bread that was very garlicky! For dessert we weren’t impressed and it wasn’t memorable.
I’d gone back to give it another chance, as the service and ambience were solid!

My friends and I came to Gemini Bistro to celebrate a birthday in the group and had an enjoyable time. The service was top notch (thanks Sylvia) and the food was good, but not good enough to require another visit anytime soon. For that reason I’m giving Gemini Bistro 3.5 stars.
*Beef Tartare — my friend visiting from Italy really enjoyed this (4 stars)
*Spring Onion Risotto — good, but not memorable (3 stars)
*Jumbo Lump Crab Cake — was definitely lacking in the jumbo department for the price, but was fresh and tasty (2.5 stars because of the size of the crab cake)
*Short Rib Ravoli — good, but for that price you don’t get enough ravioli (3 stars)
*Steak Frittes — delicious and worth trying (4.5 stars)
*5 piece fried chicken — good, but didn’t knock the birthday girl’s socks off (3.5 stars)

Chose this «gem» because of its proximity to the Greenhouse Theater, but the valet service closes up too early to get away with parking the car just once. (My fault for not calling to check the valet hours instead of just making the reservation online.) So we won’t visit again on theater night, but we will return because of its sophisticated, friendly atmosphere, attentive service and fabulous food.
We arrived early on a week night and got a booth at a window, which is the way to go here… the tables looked a bit cramped. My friend and I shared a salad, mussels and hanger steak with fries. The spring salad was okay, but nothing special. The saffron mussels more that redeemed Gemini… succulent mussels swimming in a rich white wine sauce. Came with two enormous chunks of toasted bread to soak up the broth. I usually order mussels if they’re on the menu, and these were about the best I’ve ever had. The grilled hanger steak was also a winner, cooked perfectly with wonderful seasoning. The fries were too salty for my taste, but it didn’t stop us from eating every last one of them.
By the time we’d finished our meal, the place had filled up. Our service had been excellent until then, but it took three requests to get coffee. Disappointed there wasn’t enough time for the carrot cake, but will allow more time the next visit.

Ok, the three of us dropped some coin here tonight. First the food. Bistro salad, very good. Scallops looked great, but I was told that my cashew crusted ones were better. The flounder was good and Babes liked her pork chop allot, but I thought it was too rare, as it was supposed to be medium. To me, pork, even the berkshire breed, needs to be cooked at least medium to get some texture. This was rarish.
All in all, a great foodie stop in Lincoln Park. They could upscale a little with some table cloths or something. I guess with some more ambiance, I would have given it the 4^th star, and the price of the meal deserves some more ambiance.

Short Rib Ravioli– YUM!
My bf thinks we have a new fave in the city. From the minute you sit down, the bread they give you at the table is delicious. Grainy and tasty, with very soft butter. We all ordered different things. My brother and his friend ordered the burgers, which looked delicious, I had whitefish and my bf ordered salmon. We all raved about our meals but didn’t share with one another because we enjoyed our own meals so much. Great date restaurant, comfortable environment for get togethers with close friends.

I’ve been to Gemini Bistro enough times over the past year and a half with such wonderful service and food that upping it to a 5 star restaurant is not a question.
Come here with your kids, your parents, your boyfriend, your friends, or alone… somehow they’ve achieved an unpretentious yet sophisticated neighborhoody vibe that it attracts a variety of clientele and serves that clientele well.
I’ve been dying to try it for brunch, which I still haven’t been able to, but we made it in for dinner last night and finally got to sit out on the patio. It’s a large patio and is set off enough from the six-​way intersection at Lincoln, Dickens, and Cleveland that you don’t get much (if any) traffic noise.
I’m a huge fan of their risottos — perfectly portioned on the ‘medium’ size of their menu — and my fiancé never drifts from the Gemini Burger (well, he did on New Years Eve, and was satisfied!). Truffle fry upgrade is a MUST.
I’ll echo what I said in my first review — it truly is a neighborhood «gem» and you are missing out if you don’t give it a try.