The best seat on Michigan Avenue this fall comes with a cart. At The Ives, Boka Restaurant Group’s grill room inside the Chicago Athletic Association at 12 S. Michigan Ave., a server wheels a relish cart to your table and sets down 13 small, vintage-minded bites for $38 a person: rumaki sharpened with shio koji, crudités dusted with dill pollen, asparagus Oscar with Jonah crab salad and duck liver mousse wrapped in strawberry-miso gel. A vase of two-foot pretzel grissini stands in the middle like a centerpiece, and you eat it.
Chef Partner Chris Pandel, the cook behind Swift & Sons, Cira and Zarella, built The Ives around those tableside moments. Wagyu prime rib is carved and sauced in front of you, a Champagne cart makes the rounds, and the baked Alaska is flamed at the table. The restaurant opened in May 2026 in the room that was the Cherry Circle Room, and in October Chicago magazine named its relish cart one of four tableside carts worth the trip. Dinner runs Monday through Saturday, with reservations on OpenTable.
Order the relish cart and settle in
The relish cart is a dressed-up nod to the Wisconsin supper club relish tray, and it is generous enough to be dinner on its own. Expect 13 items on a busy night, each one a twist on an old-school starter. The selections shift with the season, so ask your server what is on the cart tonight. Past spreads have included deviled eggs, spring onion tea sandwiches, terrines and chicken liver mousse glossed with strawberry and miso. The printed card that comes with it carries Daniel Burnham’s line “Make no little plans,” which tells you how seriously the kitchen takes a snack.
Pair it with a Hemingway daiquiri ($20) and you have the classic Ives opening move.
Sit at the bar and the relish service comes stacked on a three-tier stand, so you can graze over a cocktail with the bartenders working in front of you. On weeknights from 5 to 6:30 p.m., the bar also serves a Trio of Relish for $10, built only for happy hour: an onion and truffle tea sandwich, a bite of shrimp Louie and a sunflower seed stuffed pepper.
Wagyu prime rib, carved and poured at your table
The Ives Wagyu Prime Rib ($84) is the dish the room is built around. Pandel starts with A4 wagyu ribeyes, cures them for days, slow cooks them under a peppercorn crust and seasons the jus with star anise, cinnamon and chiles. The beef is carved tableside and comes with jus, horseradish cream and beet. It eats buttery and rich, with enough chew to remind you it is prime rib.
The rest of the bill of fare reads like an early 20th century menu with a modern kitchen behind it. Start with baked Jonah crab dip with artichoke and potato chips ($16), beef tartare with chanterelles and horseradish ($19), or oysters Rockefeller with spinach, herbed breadcrumbs and Pernod ($24 or $48). The ‘1909’ Salad ($17) tosses frisée and cress with tomato, mortadella and a poached egg in Russian dressing, and the aged cheddar soup ($13) comes with bacon, green onion and crème fraîche.
Schnitzel, prawns Wabash and a truffled potato on the side
For mains beyond the prime rib, the pork chop schnitzel ($41) gets dill, capers and horseradish, the roast half chicken ($38) comes with maple jus and peas, and filet mignon ($59) is finished with a brandy peppercorn jus. Prawns Wabash ($38) arrive over corn custard with cremini mushrooms and toasted baguette for mopping. Alaskan halibut ($39) sits on new potatoes and green beans with crispy garlic. The Ives cheeseburger ($27) is hand-cut sirloin with caramelized onion and mustard, and the prime rib French dip ($28) puts the house roast on a roll.
The vegetarian standout is the fried heirloom tomato ($28) with marinated zucchini, cornbread crumble and chow chow, a dish the house says has silenced grown adults. On the side, order the Ives potato ($14) with black truffle and cheddar, and add caviar for $50 if it is that kind of night. Tallow french fries with peppercorn aioli ($12), creamed spinach with shiitake and bacon ($12) and Brussels sprouts with poached pear, almonds and Manchego ($13) round out the steakhouse sides.
A landmark room with a 60-foot bar
The Ives takes its name from Henry Ives Cobb, the architect behind the Chicago Athletic Association’s 1893 Venetian Gothic tower and one of the club’s founding members. The dining room keeps its original 60-foot bar and 12-foot ceilings, now dressed with deep green banquettes, a crystal chandelier and warm, mid-century touches. The booths are few and the light is low, which makes any dinner here feel like a private celebration.
Finding it is part of the fun. The Ives sits past the hotel’s Game Room, so walk in from Michigan Avenue and keep going. Make a night of the building: start with a drink by the fireplaces in the Drawing Room lobby lounge or a game of pool at Game Room, both on the best hotel bars in Chicago list, then head up to Cindy’s Rooftop for a nightcap over Millennium Park.
Champagne, martinis and a bar that takes walk-ins
When you see the Champagne cart coming, the night is about to get better. By the glass, the sparkling list runs from Lahert Rosé de Meunier Extra Brut ($28) to a 2018 Paul Barra Grand Cru Millésimé ($55). The cocktail list sticks to classics done carefully, most at $17 to $20: a Turf Club with gin, Cocchi Americano, maraschino and an absinthe rinse, a dirty martini in house brine, a New York sour with a red wine float, and an Old Fashioned with Braulio amaro. Two zero-proof drinks, The Cardinal and The Sparrow, are $14.
Weeknight happy hour at the bar runs from 5 to 6:30 p.m. with $10 well martinis, gin or vodka, any style, plus $10 snacks: smoked whitefish dip with ranch potato chips, chicken nuggets with honey mustard and charred leek, an Ives BLT, tallow fries and a half order of the prime rib French dip. If martini trolleys are your weakness, Kitty’s Cosmopolitan Club in River North rolls one too.
Baked Alaska in flames and a sundae for the table
Dessert is another round of theater. The strawberry rhubarb baked Alaska ($16) is flambéed at the table, the Choco-Lady ($17) comes with hazelnut praline, and the tiramisu ice cream sundae ($18) comes with espresso fudge sauce. Key lime tart with whipped crème fraîche ($15), The Banana Handshake with vanilla wafers and vanilla crème ($15), and a $6 scoop of rainbow sherbet close out the list. Metropolis coffee is pressed to order.
The team behind The Ives
The Ives is the latest room from Kevin Boehm and Rob Katz, the Boka Restaurant Group founders who won the James Beard Award for Outstanding Restaurateur in 2019. Boka runs the food and drink at the Chicago Athletic Association, including Cindy’s Rooftop, Game Room and the eight-seat omakase Midōsuji, and its other Chicago rooms include Boka, Swift & Sons and Gingie. Pandel, who first made his name at The Bristol in Bucktown, set out to cook food that is Midwestern, craveable and a little bit of a throwback.
The Infatuation named The Ives to its list of the 14 best restaurants in the Loop in October 2026, and Modern Luxury placed it among Chicago’s hottest new restaurants the same month.
How to book a table at The Ives
Reservations for The Ives are on OpenTable through the restaurant’s website. Dinner is served Monday through Thursday from 5 to 10 p.m. and Friday and Saturday from 5 to 11 p.m., and the restaurant is closed on Sunday. The bar is the easiest way in on short notice, and weeknight happy hour at 5 p.m. is the best value in the house. For groups, The Ives has a private dining space booked through Boka’s events team.
Plan your night at The Ives
- Where: Chicago Athletic Association, 12 S. Michigan Ave., Chicago, IL 60603 (the Loop), past the Game Room
- Dinner: Monday through Thursday, 5 to 10 p.m.; Friday and Saturday, 5 to 11 p.m.; closed Sunday
- Happy hour: weeknights at the bar, 5 to 6:30 p.m., $10 martinis and snacks
- Reservations: OpenTable; phone 312-792-3590
- Prices: relish cart $38 per person; starters $13 to $24; mains $27 to $59; wagyu prime rib $84; cocktails $17 to $20; desserts $6 to $18
- Chef Partner: Chris Pandel, Boka Restaurant Group
The Ives Chicago FAQ
What is The Ives in Chicago?
The Ives is Boka Restaurant Group’s modern American grill room inside the Chicago Athletic Association at 12 S. Michigan Ave. in the Loop. Opened in May 2026 in the former Cherry Circle Room, it serves tableside wagyu prime rib, a supper club relish cart, Champagne service and classic cocktails at a 60-foot bar under Chef Partner Chris Pandel.
How much is the relish cart at The Ives Chicago?
The relish cart at The Ives costs $38 per person and brings about 13 seasonal bites to the table, such as rumaki with shio koji, asparagus Oscar with Jonah crab and duck liver mousse with strawberry-miso gel. It is filling enough for dinner. On weeknights from 5 to 6:30 p.m., the bar serves a $10 Trio of Relish.
How much does dinner cost at The Ives Chicago?
Dinner at The Ives Chicago runs about $13 to $24 for starters and $27 to $59 for mains, with the tableside wagyu prime rib at $84. Sides cost $12 to $14, cocktails $17 to $20 and desserts $6 to $18. The relish cart is $38 per person, and weeknight happy hour martinis and snacks are $10.
How do I get a reservation at The Ives Chicago?
Book The Ives Chicago on OpenTable through theiveschicago.com, or call 312-792-3590. The restaurant serves dinner Monday through Thursday from 5 to 10 p.m. and Friday and Saturday from 5 to 11 p.m., and it is closed Sunday. The bar at 12 S. Michigan Ave. is the easiest way in on short notice.
Does The Ives Chicago have a happy hour?
Yes. The Ives Chicago runs happy hour at the bar on weeknights from 5 to 6:30 p.m. Well martinis, gin or vodka in any style, are $10, and $10 snacks include smoked whitefish dip, chicken nuggets, an Ives BLT, tallow fries, a half prime rib French dip and the Trio of Relish.
Where is The Ives inside the Chicago Athletic Association?
The Ives is inside the Chicago Athletic Association hotel at 12 S. Michigan Ave., tucked past the Game Room. Enter from Michigan Avenue across from Millennium Park and walk through toward the back of the building. Cindy’s Rooftop, also run by Boka Restaurant Group, sits on the 13th floor of the same building.
Further reading
- The Ives official site
- The Ives menus: dinner, happy hour, dessert and drinks
- The Ives reservations on OpenTable
- The Ives private events with Boka Restaurant Group
- The Ives on Instagram
- Chicago magazine in the Chicago Tribune: The Return of the Tableside Cart
- Chicago Tribune: The Ives Brings Classic Fare to the Chicago Athletic Association
- Block Club Chicago: The Ives, Taking Over Cherry Circle Room
- The Infatuation: The Ives review
- Modern Luxury: The Hottest New Restaurants in Chicago, October 2026
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