With planning for corporate and office holiday parties underway, these new and recently renovated Chicago venues provide suitable options for company celebrations. The venues, which include bars, lounges, nightclubs, restaurants, private rooms, cultural spaces, and hotels, can accommodate small and large groups for Christmas, Hanukkah, New Year's Eve, or holiday parties of any type.
Ella Elli opened in Lakeview in March. The globally inspired restaurant serves charcuterie, toasts, and pizzas cooked in a wood-burning oven. With decor inspired by the 1920s, the 2,200-square-foot restaurant has around 70 seats that include love seats, couches, barstools, and booths. Replete with a fireplace-lit lounge, the venue offers buyouts for receptions of 100 guests.
The Ritz-Carlton, Chicago unveiled a multi-million dollar renovation in July. With a completely refurbished lobby (pictured), the hotel has some 25,000 square feet of event space, including a 14,000-square-foot ballroom. Billed as the largest luxury ballroom in Chicago, it can hold receptions for 600. There's also a new 3,500-square-foot ballroom called St. Clair, which holds receptions for 220 guests. The hotel's new restaurant, Torali Italian—Steak, has two private dining rooms: Ventoso, which seats 40 for dinner, and Levante, which seats 16 for dinner.
Goose Island Barrel House unveiled an event space in August. The 4,200-square-foot main room seats 150; it can be rented in conjunction with an 1,100-square-foot side room that holds receptions for 225. On its own, the side room seats 30 or holds receptions for 55. Goat Group Catering is the caterer, and can arrange for dinners paired with Goose Island beers.
Dos Toros, the fast-casual restaurant that serves taqueria fare, opened its first Chicago location in August. Dos Toros Chicago can be bought out for holiday parties: it seats 65 or holds 150 people standing. On the second floor, a semiprivate dining room has standing room for 65. The venue also offers catering packages for nearby offices; menu items include burritos, quesadillas, and tacos.
Apogee opened on the rooftop of the Dana Hotel and Spa in March. The bar specializes in elaborate, large-format drinks; decorative touches include a marble bar, mohair sofas, and vintage-inspired lighting fixtures. There's also an 1,100-square-foot patio with a fire pit and its own bar. The indoor/outdoor space holds cocktail receptions for 300 guests.
Barrio, a sumptuously decorated Mexican restaurant, came to River North in July. The 6,000-square-foot venue seats 170 guests; a private dining room called Casita seats 11. For holiday events, the restaurant can arrange for taco stands and seafood stations stocked with ceviche, oysters, shrimp, and more. Dessert options include churro-sundae stations.
In June, Split-Rail opened in a former donut factory in West Town. With iron doors, oriental rugs, and American art sourced from a local pawn shop, the cozy dining room seats 60. A metal bar has an additional 15 seats; a private dining space seats 30. The restaurant serves childhood classics with a modern twist—think loaded-baked-potato gnocchi, and chicken nuggets with house-made honey-mustard. Staffers are also able to customize menus for vegans, vegetarians, and gluten-free diners; the restaurant is entirely nut-free.
Oyster Bah, a seafood restaurant in Lincoln Park, opened a new event space in July. The upstairs room, called the High Tide Lounge, seats 75 and holds 100 reception-style. Within the lounge, the smaller Halsted Room seats 40 and holds receptions for 50. The space has a dedicated bar and kitchen, and staffers can arrange for oyster-shucking stations, build-your-own taco bars, and more.
Steak 48 opened in River North in July. The restaurant has four private dining rooms. On the ground floor, the Chef's Room seats 18 and holds receptions for 20. On the second floor, the East Room seats 30 and holds receptions for 36; the West Room seats 48 and holds receptions for 50. The full second floor holds seated dinners for 200 and receptions for 300. The entire venue hosts seated functions for 400 or receptions for 500. Menu items include twin lobster tails, bone-in filet mignon, fried deviled eggs, and meatballs.
Beatrix Fulton Market, a new location of Beatrix, the modern American restaurant and coffeehouse, opened in the West Loop neighborhood in May. A semiprivate dining room seats 40, and can be rented in conjunction with the main bar to host receptions for 65. The coffee bar, which is stocked with lounge furniture, holds receptions for 40. Look for menu items like crispy kale salad and halibut with watermelon salad; there's also a selection of gluten-free dishes.
