I’ve been wanting to check out the Atwood Cafe for a long time, and finally met Frances there for lunch, to continue our tour of Chicago hotel bars & restaurants.

Atwood Cafe is the restaurant at Hotel Burnham (as in Daniel Burnham, famed Chicago architect), which is a Kimpton Hotel. I just love that the cafe is right in the middle of State Street’s bustle, with large windows looking out over the shoppers walking by. The decor is so rich with Art Deco details, and the building is so full of history. And now that I’ve dined there, I can also say the atmosphere is classy yet cozy, and the food is quite good!

We ate rather late, at 2:30 pm, so there were only a handful of other tables taken. Luckily, we were seated at a fancy booth, overlooking the festively-decorated dining room. And – our waiter was French!

We started off with wine, naturally. And in my defense, we were having a late lunch so it was well past noon. I wanted to try the featured wine from Spain, but they were out so I had to go with a glass of the Antonio Sanguineti ‘Nessun Dorma’ Super Tuscan. Can’t go wrong with a name like that, and the wine was really good.

Then we both opted for the soup of the day, a baked potato soup that was exactly how I like it – simple, super smooth & pureed. After that, Frances got the mussels (not my thing at all) and I ordered the veggie burger (hey, I’m trying to up my vegetable intake). My burger was really tasty and very filling. Almost even tasted meaty.

The dinner menu is definitely much more adventurous, featuring rabbit and hen among more traditional main ingredients. I’d definitely go back, though!

Also, on our way out, I couldn’t help but notice the gorgeous tiled floor of the Hotel Burnham and the fancy elevators. Love those details.