[Warlord Chicago] Local restaurant in Chicago's Avondale neighborhood. This restaurant is a no-reservation location, first come first serve usually the line is packed out before they even open. The menu is constantly changing (weekly maybe?) depending on the local / seasonal items. 14 day aged Pork Coppa Atlantic Halibut Dry aged burger Undervalued chocolate cake Some local beer I think Everything here was insanely good. Just the right amount of sauce, the flavors and ingredients went very well together. Gotta come here again to see what's next on their next seasonal menu. The only downsides are that you have to get here super early if you want to try the restaurant. The service is great. The ambiance gives this sort of dark, underground, somewhat upscale vibes. Overall, 9.5/10 https://warlordchicago.com/#menu 3198 N Milwaukee Ave Chicago, IL 60618

Warlord offers a fantastic dining experience with great food and service, although it can get quite busy. Since they don't take reservations, be prepared to put your name on the list and wait for a table. The dark, moody ambiance adds a unique touch to the overall vibe, making it a great spot for a memorable night out. Definitely worth checking out if you don't mind a bit of a wait for a great meal!

This restaurant is definitely a vibe! Dark interior, loud music and a small menu that changes everyday. We put our name in at 8pm on a Saturday night and we're quoted a 40minute wait which was spot on. The hostess recommended Sleeping Village and we grabbed a drink there while waiting for a table. The burger was 10/10! We also got smoked chili oil Olives. They were unique and tasty, but a bit of work with all the pits. Fries were great too, we just wished our burgers had come out a bit sooner so we could have enjoyed the fries with our burgers. I had a cocktail and it as well made. Our server was knowledgeable and helpful. The music is loud at this restaurant, but it's definitely a fun experience with a unique dark ambiance. This place is one-of-a-kind and were glad we got to experience it!

Warlord is relatively new and it became rated as one of the best restaurants in Chicago. The hype was so big at opening that there was a line down the street and the wait is usually ridiculously long (like 2+ hours and I read an article where the wait was up to 7 hours one time). They do not take reservations and they are only open Friday-Monday from 6pm-2am. I believe they do take your number so you can go elsewhere while you wait. I visited Warlord last Friday with some friends on an extremely bitter cold night in Chicago around 10:30pm after drinking at Revolution so we needed some food. I was fully expecting it to be full and we would have to wait, but we were seated immediately as a table of four. I think the cold/holidays/time drove away many people as there were people there, but they were nowhere near full. The place is small and I read where it only seats 45 people. There is a coat check at the front desk. The vibe is intimate as it's dimly lit and contemporary, which is very similar to Gretel, Valedor, and Schwa. The music felt clubbier and it was not overly loud. Overall an extremely cool vibe! When we sat down we were welcomed by our waiter, Todd, and waters were filled up immediately. He explained the menu and confirmed that the menu does change daily with the burger being the staple and he gave us some suggestions. He told us how most of the menu items were to be shared. We decided to go with the East Coast oysters, warmed tuna belly, maitake mushrooms, two orders of fries, and all of us got the burgers. This was the perfect amount of food for four hungry people. The oysters were small, but they had excellent flavor. They had a ton of brine, which was extremely cold and they were very salty, just like I like them. The Maitake Mushrooms had excellent flavor (sweet teriyaki) and I thought they were very good even though I am not a huge mushroom fan. The warmed tuna was tender; however, it definitely lacked flavor IMO. This was the only miss on the menu for me. The burger was very good overall and I see why it is highly rated. The bun was a tad dry and the worst part; however, it held together quite well as the patty was extremely juicy. If it was better, this could be a top ten in Chicago. The patty was cooked to medium rare perfection. It was so juicy and you can tell that the flavor of the meat was high quality. It had an explosion of flavor. The toppings were very good as well. The charred onion gave the burger some extra flavor and the mayo mixed well into the burger. This burger was very similar to Owen & Engine (RIP) and Table, Donkey, & Stick. The fries were so simple and I wouldn't be surprised if they were actually Ore-Ida fries. However, they were perfectly crispy, greasy, and extremely salty, so they were excellent. The garlic aioli was amazing as well! Bun: 5 Burger: 10 Toppings: 8 Overall: 7.67 Fries: 9 For drinks, I had an Old Fashioned and a Gin & Tonic. The Old Fashioned was very good and well crafted; however, the rock was too big for the glass so I always got a big piece of ice into my lips when I drank it, which wasn't ideal. The Gin & Tonic was very good as well and they are a great cocktail bar. Our waiter Todd was excellent as he was friendly and knowledgable of the menu and the food came out pretty fast. Prices are definitely pricier, especially for the neighborhood, but the food quality was higher quality and worth it. Overall, I thought Warlord was awesome! I wouldn't wait 3+ hours for it unless someone really wanted to go, but I would go again if the wait was reasonable. Warlord is an excellent restaurant and definitely worth the trip out to Avondale!

There's a wait but it wasn't bad, we went to the Sleeping Village for a drink while we waited and it worked out perfectly. The steak with blue cheese was amazing and cooked perfectly. We also had scallops and oysters which were shared. All said and done the bill was around $200. Host, bartenders and servers were all friendly. They worked well as a team.

I've been here twice now. Recently and once when they had first opened. Curious if there would be much of a change besides the menu. I found that they are consistent, delicious, and worth the trouble of visiting. I found myself getting lost in memories of meals and places that reminded me why I like dining out. So whatever mood they're trying to elicit just from their ambiance makes me reminisce in good ways. Both visits I enjoyed counter seating and loved watching the dishes come together. It was a nice bonus getting in some banter with the chefs during the rare moments when they weren't cooking. Service was good and as expected from our server and runners. The food tasted yummy without being over the top. The effort in making the lacquered duck is well spent. Sometimes certain prep feels and tastes like it's just for show but that was not the case here. The duck was just a perfect amount to share for two and wonderful in temp, flavor, and presentation. Were I at home or at a seat in darker corner I would've gnawed on the leg. The fish was also delicious. It was at a perfect temp where it glistened without a spec of albumin (the white evidence of overcooked fish). The foam and leeks made each bite pleasant. Rum cake very rummy. The drinks were ok - the food really overshadows everything else here in my opinion, as it should. (My spouse enjoyed her drinks though, and she called them unique.) Glad we could make it before their tasting menu. Looking forward to trying that a few times too once it is available.

Dang, wanted to go 5-stars but had to make it 4. Got there on Saturday night around 8:45 and the wait was 90 minutes but they had spots on the patio immediately so we chose to sit out there. Walking through the restaurant to the back- it's sick. Just. A beautiful spectacle of dark coolness. However, when we go the back patio, it was small and had no ambience whatsoever... none. Like 5 tables on a patio. So the ambiance in the patio is why I couldn't go 5... it was pretty bad. However, I am not gonna go less than 4 becuase the food was kick ass, as in amazing. We got burgers, which were the best Ive ever had. Got a dozen oysters which were good, and someone got the octopus that they loved. The olive starters were nothing like anything Ive ever had... they were amazing. Out waitress then accidentally ordered us the duck which came out to our table, and we agreed to take since it looked so good, and holy sh#t, it was bursting with flavor and crispy-ness and was a 10. We tried to move inside, but seating never opened. Would be nice if they stepped up the patio even a little to resemble the inside. When we got out there, we all looked at each other and kind of laughed because you walk through the restaurant that which is a 10, to the courtyard which is like a 1, and it was a little surprising. All in all, they need to step it up outside but the food was amazing and cant wait to sit inside next time.

I got the firewood smoked octopus and the dry aged burger, and the chocolate dessert. Every single dish was decadent. The chocolate dessert especially good. It was much richer than chocolate mousses I've had in the past. The burger was in the same vein, a big umami bomb, but I regret not trying something else on the menu because, while the burger was amazing, other things on the menu seemed more unique. I also didn't quite know what the potatoes were on my dish... they were hard, so I think they were decorative garnish. As a man with a slightly lower than average appetite, I highly recommend getting another entree if you order the figwood smoked octopus. It was delicious but definitely left one wanting for more food! To be clear, I recommend getting the octopus on top of something else. I'm not quite sure how long the wait time is, as there are no reservations. That said, I lined up outside at 5:50 on a Friday and got seated immediately. It took about 18 minutes to process the line. The lighting is dark and moody, and the drinks all smelled delicious. Great place for a date. :) Downside is that there's only one bathroom for a relatively large seating, so there's sometimes a line. But the interior is pretty cool.

Going: Show up a half hour before 6, just bring a beer or soda and wait outside so that when it hits 6 and opens up, you can get into the first seating. We showed up with 4 people at 550 and had to wait for the second seating (just walk over to Sleeping Village for some drinks and time flies by) Drinks: cocktails were a bit pricey for me, they were good, but in retrospect should've gotten some wine or beer and spent time/dollars/calories on the food Food: Octopus - along with Amaru, now my favorite octopus in the city. Tomato - really flavorful but nearly $20 for a single tomato just seems crazy Burger - amazing, get the octopus and this and you've got an amazing meal Duck - the only thing I didn't like, just too fatty, the rub didn't come through enough, so maybe next time i'd try the ribeye Rec: just show up a bit early and then go for the octopus and burger and you've got one of the best meals I've had in a looong time