Summer House

The main attraction at Summer House is the atmosphere. It’s a big place, always seems crowded and lively, but it also not too loud like other Lettuce restaurants can be. I would still go back here just for the atmosphere, but the food (or at least the items we ordered) was disappointing. The flight of hand rolls was not good, and left me extremely hungry after finishing them. I would think the burger would be a safer option next time. I also had the fries and chips and guac, each were okay but nothing better than average.

Normally, I would never step inside a restaurant like this. Frankly, its overall atmosphere made me feel uncomfortable, and not because it was a crappy place because it wasn’t, it’s just not my style, not my cup of tea. Same with most places in this neighborhood (Lincoln Park). Alas, a friend wanted to try this place out and since it was her birthday, it was her choice.
This experience did not start out well. We went during dinner time and the wait was over an hour. We waited. One hour later, I’m still waiting so I went up to the host and wanted to see what was up. «Oh, I called your name not too long ago.» Yeaaahhh, I didn’t hear crap. The hosts/​hostesses are not great at their job, I must say. They quietly shout your name when your table is ready, so it made sense why I didn’t get the notice about our table being ready, but whatever, eventually we got to sit down.
The menu is small, the food’s a bit pricey, but I did enjoy sitting out in their little patio-​ish area. The English Muffin burger was pretty yummy and extremely messy. Reminded me of being at Kuma’s. Everyone else’s food looked good too, so at least this place has that going for them.
Our server was probably the biggest highlight of our night though (in my opinion, at least). She was very courteous, always came by to re-​fill our water and had a great attitude the whole way through despite it being near the end of her shift. She even gave my friend a (free) birthday ice cream cookie thing, which was pretty unexpected. Definition of a great waitress, although I can’t remember the name.

The vitamin D room is amazing. Does feel like summer in a nice terrace. The food is good without going 100% crazy, it’s enjoyable. Our waiter was incredibly attentive, excellent service. But mostly very cool place. Definitely would come back.

Cheery, Southern California-​inspired concept in the heart of Lincoln Park. Expect to wait for a table but the place is worth checking out for the beach house-​inspired décor and friendly vibe. The menu is simple prepared and diverse with local/​seasonal dishes. My meal, English muffin burger, didn’t really stand out but sure did sound cool.
There is also an enticing bakery counter right at the entrance that is hard to ignore.

To sum up the dining experience in one word, underwhelmed. I read so many great reviews and was super excited to finally check this place out for brunch and was mildly disappointed. Don’t get me wrong, the interior is fabulous. You totally feel like you’ve left Chicago and landed at a beach side establishment straight out of SoCal. Unfortunately the service and food left much to be desired. Our waitress was friendly but she was clearly pasting on a smile and she was unexpectedly inattentive. We were a party of three but two of us arrived earlier and she took our drink orders (after quite a wait) but completely forgot about mine. I had to flag her down and ask where my drink was. Another thing, I ordered the malibu cooler which was supposed to be orange and passionfruit, but I think they gave me the wrong drink. It tasted more like orange and pineapple to me (which was another drink option on the menu but I forgot the exact name of it). That was fine, whatever, I didn’t bring this up because I was already tired for flagging this girl down and we hadn’t even ordered yet. After all 3 of us had arrived it took FOREVER for our waitress to come back and get our order, we almost had to wave her down again.
Now let’s get to the food. I can only really comment on mine as the three of us were catching up and I guess no one’s food was bad or good enough to comment on (except for the eggs). I ordered the hashbrown benedict with candied bacon. This I was extremely disappointed about. The eggs were not runny like they were supposed to be, only one of the two were and the 2 on my friend’s dish were both half cooked too which she was pretty displeased with. Also the rest of the dish was SO BLAND. I literally had to douse it in pepper, salt and ketchup for it to taste like something other than plain potatoes and chewy bacon. And the bacon, I was not a fan of either. Maybe I don’t understand candied bacon but my expectation was something salty sweet with a nice crunch. It was basically a just sweet and chewy… bleh.
I don’t know, maybe the atmosphere fools people in to thinking they’ve had a great meal. Maybe I just ordered the wrong thing? But the sub-​par service and tasteless entrée makes me wonder. I think there are many better places to go for brunch and right now I’d suggest elsewhere. Perhaps one day I will revisit this place and see if my feelings change.

Food is mediocre, at least worth 3-​stars, but the management and service bring it down to garbage levels for me. I’ve been here a number of times, with some previous frustrations, but tonight was absolutely abysmal. Here’s the run down for you…
A group of four of us arrive for a few drinks and apps on a beautiful night, which was then doomed from the moment we stepped into Summer House. We get to our table and the waitress takes orders of two of the ladies at the table, does a great job there, but then walks away and ignores the other two of us at the table. Even if not ready, a quick recognition and ask if she should come back would have been appreciated. Not a huge deal, but a start to frustrations.
Next she orders drinks for my brother and I. First she tells me that the bourbon I ask for is out of stock, which is not true as I point out multiple bottles of it on the shelf at the bar (clueless), and then takes my brothers order.
She brings my drink, but tells my brother it will be a few minutes. 20 min go by and she comes back to say «we don’t have that»… Okay, so he orders a different option. Our group also orders a dessert, which she first says is ALSO out, but we again point to the abundance of the prepared dessert at the entrance, showing her that it is indeed available.
Another 20 minutes go by, and my brother asks about his drink. At this point, it has been about 50 minutes. She tells him it’s at the bar and she’ll grab it… Whoops! Caught in your lie… Apparently out of that too. :(Couldn’t have checked with the bar staff I guess. :(:(
At this point, my brother is a little frustrated and the waitress sends the manager. This is where it gets to one-​star levels.
The manager comes up, slicked back hair and all, with the biggest douche smirk on his face. This guy is all-​world douche. Anyhow, after smugly addressing our concerns, he eventually asks us if he can get our next round of drinks, and delivers!
Hold the excitement… We get our bill after, and it includes all of the drinks he said he was getting for us!!! When we ask for him to explain, he flips out and starts telling us all to get out of his restaurant.
We gladly did leave, and gladly will not return. Whether or whether not the weasley douche is running the show.

Ive been to Summer House 4 times. Every time, they deliver. First off, the space… so cute. You ALMOST escape the Chicago winter, or whatever this is, for 90 minutes or so. The service is ALWAYS great. Friendly… check. Attentive… check. Knowledgable… check.
The food is always great. Always served at the right temp. Always as good as you expect/​hope for. Do you see the trend? CONSISTENCY. My last dinner here consisted of the beet salad, the brussel sprouts, and the mahi mahi tacos. Im a sucker for all things beets, this salad was different than whats on most menus. The sprouts were perfect, although its hard to mess them up. I would definitely order the tacos again too, although there are so many things on the menu I still want to try.

Perfect brunch spot in the city!
We went for lunch and it was the cutest little place ever! Luckily, there was no blizzard out but if there was one, I would appreciate this establishment even more so due to its beach-​y interior. Everything is extremely well decorated and you actually feel like you’ve been transported to a beach town!
Our food was very tasty, and I was quite surprised because novelty places like this typically don’t have high ratings for the food – people show up for the ambiance. But all in all, I am so happy that my friend brought me here. We boozed and ate, and we were happy before setting out for the day’s adventures.
I would be sure to make reservations before coming in. I could see the wait being tremendously long without one.

I went here with another couple on a Saturday night. All the great things I’d heard were true! It was a horribly rainy day but the inside felt bright and sunny. It’s a little loud, seems that everyone is energized once they step inside.
The place was packed until 10pm so I was glad we had a reservation. There were several high tops near the bar, not sure if they save those for walk-​ins but we had a table in the main part of the restaurant.
The cocktails were good and what I expected for the price. The food was delicious. We asked the table next to us for recommendations as they were leaving. Not helpful. They’d been there several times and liked the entire menu.
The burrata was amazing. Now I love burrata and I’m never disappointed by it, but this was elevated by the salsa they served with it. Definitely a must. The calamari was superb and I’m not a calamari fan.
My husband loved his burger on the English muffin and I had the tuna plater. We took cookies home which were delicious. I’d also recommend buying a sleeve of English muffins. They’re fluffy and delicious!

Perfect summer spot!
We went here for brunch on a Saturday and were able to make a reservation through Open Table, and were able to be seated pretty quick.
Their menu is simple, but delicious! They don’t offer a ton of choices, but the ones they do — are great! I had the Acapulco omelette with multi-​grain bread, and my plate was completely cleaned by the time I finished. Not a crumb left.
I was pretty full between my breakfast & an order of chips and guacamole (comped, thanks to Unilocal!) — but I had to have a bakery treat. So we topped off our meal with coffees, espressos, and blueberry muffins! And they were so delicious, I didn’t even feel bad for eating enough food for a small family in one sitting. Everything was absolutely worth it!
I recommend trying their boozy Kale breakfast drink. I did mine with Tito’s Vodka and it was out of this world delicious — I couldn’t believe it! So good.
The ambience is great (the garage door was open so we sat near the outside tables) and our server was great as well. (Not the fastest service here, but it’s a busy place so understandable.)
I’m so happy a friend recommended this place — it was the bomb!

Strictly on their desserts and décor–
Oh my, I absolutely LOVE this place! It really transported me to California. They had indie music playing and fake palm trees on the inside. I was really loving the vibe this place gave off.
I had the chocolate chip cookie that had the rice krispy on it. It was AMAZING. It was nice, soft, and moist, definitely baked to perfection! I cannot wait to go back and try their food.

Wow, this place is gorgeous! It has a very summery, California vibe to it.
We had 4^th of July brunch here and we were all very pleased with our experience. (I know, it’s a late review).
Five of us shared their «very nice caramelized french toast» which came with a vanilla bean whipped cream.
For my main meal I went with the short rib hash, so good! The drinks, which there were plenty of, were very refreshing.
The whole time there I just stared at the inside décor and kept thinking «what a great place this would be to have an event» and «man, I could make this my house». haha I’m pretty sure I asked the waiter if people had gotten married there, I can only image how beautiful it would be!
This place is exactly what I look for when I want to brunch.

I came here last night with some friends to catch up and it was an OK experience.
It was my first time, and I had heard amazing things about it, so I was pretty excited.
When you walk in the door it’s slightly confusing, there’s a bakery counter in front between the restaurant and the Stella bar, and two host stands for each. The host stands are to either side of the entry way, not super obvious, and took me a few minutes to find.
We made reservations, even so it was packed. We had 4 people and they put us at a small high top bar table, and we were right beside the bar, so people were crowded around the table and even leaning on our chairs and table, it was so annoying and they couldn’t move us because they were over booked. Not the end of the world, but when I worked in the restaurant industry, usually the customers with reservations got the better tables. But they could have just been that overbooked too.
We ordered a couple of cocktails to start, it was a prosecco cocktail with cranberry and rosemary, it was really nice, fresh and perfect for the season.
Now for the food– meh. I wasn’t super impressed.
We started with the ahi tuna tostadas. My friend had ordered them before and she said they used to be bigger, these came out and they were tiny, the ahi tuna was over powered by jalapeños on top, and usually I love ahi tuna, but here was hardly any on it, it looks like more because there watermelon as well. It was ok.
For the entrée I ordered the mushroom enchiladas. They were good, I liked the sauce and the veggies were cooked perfectly, but the dish was $ 18, for veggies in a tortilla. It was good but not worth the price.
When we were ready to order dessert and coffee, I asked for frangelico to go with my coffee, my favorite, but our waitress let us know the bar had closed down and she couldn’t bring it to us. I wish she would have mentioned that the bar was closing Earlier, because we would have ordered after dinner drinks, also the dining area was pretty crowded still and the bar still had people sitting and drinking.
Overall I think there is a lot of hype, but my experience did not live up to my expectations, and it was not worth it for the price. Pretty disappointing.

Love everything about this place!!! They seriously have the best spicy margaritas! It’s smokey and perfect. Make sure you make reservations because it’s always packed!

I was pleasantly surprised on my visit here.
First things first, this place splits an entrance with Stella Barra, so don’t be confused! It’s on the left side of the entrance (where all the pastries are), and arguably brighter, and more «summer-​y» — appropriate given its name.
Which leads me to my next point. It just feels summery. You walk in and it’s an instant burst of vitamin D — which makes me nostalgic to my Californian roots, but sets a nice mood.
It’s louder than expected. Given the high ceilings, I wouldn’t have expected so much chitter chatter, but maybe the high ceilings are what’s causing all this echo, but it’s definitely louder. Not screaming-​loud, but we were seated next to a very obvious first date, and let’s just say the volume of the restaurant did not help the situation.
As for the food, it tastes relatively healthy. It’s reminiscent of Beatrix (another Lettuce restaurant) in both portion and style. The cocktails are a little pricey but taste fresh. That being said, you probably need to knock a few back before feeling the buzz.

I’ve only been here one time and I sat at the bar solo on a Saturday late afternoon. I give them 4 stars for ambiance as I enjoyed the open patio and light that streamed in for a spring afternoon lunch but only 3.5 stars for food.
They were extremely busy and I waited for a couple to get up to grab a seat at the bar. The bartender cleared the dishes but never wiped the counter in front of me. I used bar napkins to wipe it myself. In general, she looked unhappy and never smiled once. A man sat down beside me and immediately commented how unhappy she seemed and ordered a glass of white wine. He received an extra large pour and was happy about that.
I ordered the Palm Fizz with wine, apple, lemon, prosecco & rosemary; it was well balanced and not too sweet but didn’t blow my socks off.
I also ordered the Santa Monica Cobb Salad, hold the bacon & eggs, add grilled salmon. I was pleased with the freshness factor of all the vegetables but the salad was mostly lettuce and the salmon was quite small. It was tasty though and satisfied my desire for a fresh healthy meal.
Overall, I enjoyed the ambiance and food but nothing stood out as special or super delicious, overall 3.5 stars. There are a lot of shared plates. I’d take a friend here for a day date and light fare.

Since my first review 2 years ago, I’ve been back to Summer House many, many times. It has always been an enjoyable and delicious experience. I definitely prefer their brunch menu and the brightness of the space during brunch hours. The atmosphere is always lively and the restaurant bustling aka you definitely need reservations because it is packed every weekend.
Some of my favorite brunch items are the breakfast tostadas and scrambled egg sandwich. My husband always gets the English muffin burger and has never been disappointed. Portions are large, but the burger is definitely in the XL category. You’ll probably have to eat it with a fork and knife, but it is pretty delicious!
As with most LEYE restaurants, staff is friendly and reservations easily made on OpenTable.

My friend took me here on St Patrick’s day last year. I am a big brunch snob but this definitely stood up to my expectations.
It had an LA vibe to it. You could come as dressed up as you want but it’s fun to go here wearing your best outfit. They have great brunch options and a variety of drinks. It’s best to make reservations in advance since they tend to be pretty busy on the weekend. Their bacon is candied bacon so if you don’t like a sweet touch then don’t order it.
They also make their own cookies so save some room for desert. I got free cookies when I went there for my birthday. The waiters are super nice, attentive and on point.
Definitely would recommend this place for a Sunday brunch any day.
The food was good, it wasn’t the best I’ve ever had but you can tell its quality food.

I hyped this place up way too much in my head, so much so that I could have easily been disappointed. The best part? I wasn’t! It was everything I thought it would be! Atmosphere was wonderful, food was delicious, cocktails were great, and service was on point. It was that night we were all told there would be a blizzard out. Although there was no blizzard, it was snowing and dreary and when we walked into summer house, we were instantly transported to somewhere warm in Santa Monica! The décor, lighting, and environment did that with ease! When we walked in, there was a display case full of fresh goodies. I wandered back before they closed that portion of the restaurant at 9 and picked three delicious cookies to take to the next bars and loved them all! Next to the display case, there was complimentary infused water, yum!
We had 7:30 reservations, but weren’t seated for a good 35 minutes, but thank goodness that was the worst part of our experience! I wish we would have been seated in the main dining area, but being close to the bar also has its advantages ;) we ordered a ton of food and just split it all:
+ Homemade chips and guac: a Unilocal check in gets you this on the house. The chips were delicious, perfectly seasoned and the guac just the same!
+ Burrata: this is always a favorite of mine and it game on a bed of tomato jam, which was also tasty!
+ Caramelized Brussels sprouts– one of my favorite items we ordered! Delicious! The vinegar or balsamic drizzled all over tasted amazing!
+ Tempura main lobster: I was nervous it would be too fishy for me as I just started diving into seafood and sushi, but it tasted great! Enough pieces to share!
+ Wild mushroom enchiladas: so tasty! Perfectly seasoned mushrooms on the inside, tangy and delicious sauce on the outside, topped with cheese and some cabbage!
+ Ancho-​marinated Amish chicken tacos– this was still delicious but likely my least favorite item we ordered– the chicken was too dry for my liking, but again– everything on the plate was seasoned well!
For drinks, I had a beer at the bar and then switched to the bonfire cocktail. Loved it and enjoyed a few of them. My friends enjoyed the cocktails they had, as well!
Service was wonderful! Our waiter was attentive, friendly, and very knowledgable of the menu! He overhead my friend mentioning it was my birthday the next day and took my first drink off the check.
Overall, absolutely great experience and I can’t wait to keep coming back! Next up– I want to try their brunch!
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Update 3 days later, we made it in for brunch! The wait was 1.5 hours, but it was a beautiful day so we wandered around the area. The wait was worth it. Service was just as wonderful and nothing beats this atmosphere! This is now easily my favorite place in the city and I can’t wait to continue coming back (I’ve already made my next reservation to try more items on the menu)!! For brunch, I had the breakfast tostadas. The pulled chicken was seasoned very well and the entire tostada was delicious. The salsa isn’t spicy so I did add my own hot sauce. I also split the Mexican hash browns with my friend and loved it.

Love love love this place. You enter this place and greeted by a sweets stand. This also served as the waiting area for both summer house and the pizza spot next door. The first time I came here, the wait for a Sunday at 2pm was still an hour and a half. The second time was on a Saturday at 4pm, 15 minute wait. I didn’t mind the second time around for the wait.
The only down side, aside from the wait times, is that the server I had and the hostess were both kinda cold and not attentive. Had to ask the hostess twice about my status, apparently she didn’t put my name down the first time around…
Good was delicious though, I had the Amish chicken tacos! And the house Malbec