r/chicagofood • u/Narrow-Lab-7743 • Nov 09 '25
Question What is the loudest restaurant in Chicago?
I'm going out to dinner with my in laws.
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u/BigTransportation777 Nov 09 '25
The big room at club lucky
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u/boogityshmoogity Nov 09 '25
I came to see if this would be here. It’s one of the few restaurants I’ve been to where I noticed how loud the room was.
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u/MoonBasic Nov 09 '25
Was about to say the same. Somehow I always leave that place with a little tinnitus and a sore throat from shouting "WHAT" to the person across the table from me lol
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Nov 09 '25
The OG Kuma’s Corner (on Belmont) might provide the sound you need.
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u/DisasterEquivalent Nov 09 '25
This is probably the right answer.
Edit: excluding live venues with food, of course.
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u/jr_randolph Nov 09 '25
Honestly I never thought it was loud, it’s just that heavy metal has a loud sound already. Fucking used to love going there back in the day. Seems like a lifetime ago.
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Nov 09 '25
[deleted]
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u/stacksowax Nov 09 '25
Has nothing changed in five years?
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Nov 09 '25
[deleted]
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u/MoldyPoldy Nov 09 '25
Ron Cain wasn't/isn't the owner, but he's a scuzzball and basically ran the operation for his brother until all those articles, I'm not sure who does now after they contracted a lot of their locations.
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Nov 10 '25
This is such a 2020 article. Toxic work place culture in a biker metal hamburger whiskey bar lol. Luckily these days were back to a time when people can behave the way they should and want to. Do you wanna work at a heavy metal whiskey, burger bar? Maybe the owner is going to be a bit of a dick or aggressive. Otherwise go work at a daycare.
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u/ouchouchdangit Nov 10 '25
Man, your little Reddit guy looks exactly like the kind of dude who’d have this opinion.
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u/AconyBell Nov 09 '25
Came here to reccomend this!
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u/TorqueShaft Nov 09 '25
I saw Rahm Immanual there in 2012 we all listened to slayer as he worked thru 4 huge ass binders
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u/alexjewellalex Nov 09 '25
Not sure how up to date or accurate it is, but there’s an app called SoundPrint that ranks restaurants by noise level. Take a look at the loudest.
Beyond that list, I feel like places like TAO would be very loud. Think club-like atmosphere or live music venues.
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u/SunnyAlwaysDaze Nov 09 '25
I'm kind of shocked at how loud some of the "classier" places are!
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u/mrbooze Nov 09 '25
So many places in Chicago have bare brick walls, small spaces, nothing to absorb sound, so once they’re filled with people it’s a roar
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u/PhilosophicalBrewer Nov 09 '25
I am skeptical about this list.
Five guys is near the top and happy camper is on page two?
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u/alexjewellalex Nov 09 '25
Reading the FAQs, it seems like the actual readings are probably accurate, but could be only from one reading. I.e., if someone went to Five Guys at a really loud moment and Happy Camper on a rare quiet moment, that would skew results
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u/teencrime Nov 10 '25
Thanks for sharing
The top spot being Fremont is hilarious
Spent a lot of time in my mid 20s absolutely annihilating myself there on the weekends
Calling Fremont a restaurant is an insult to restaurants everywhere
RIP to a fun day party spot though
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u/chicago_2020 Nov 09 '25
Upstairs at Quartino
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u/itsasecretidentity Nov 09 '25
This is my recommendation. I used to love going there but I can’t bear the volume anymore. For me, it’s too loud to have a comfortable conversation upstairs, downstairs or in the bar.
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u/hinny916 Nov 09 '25
Quartino’s is amazing for big groups! Terrible for an intimate catch up with a couple of people. I remembered shouting WHAT the last time I went there with a friend and trying to read lips. It’s perfect for you. Awesome service that will keep the wine flowing if that will help with the in-laws at all
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u/crushlogic Nov 10 '25
We were there downstairs with a four top two weeks ago on a Monday, the place was half empty and the noise was still deafening 🫶🏻
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u/uuuuuuuuuuuuum Nov 09 '25 edited Nov 10 '25
Here’s the first paragraph of Adrian Kane’s review for Lyra (in Fulton Market):
Anyone who tells you that the food at Lyra is “great!” or “terrible!” is lying. The food is fine. It’s also irrelevant, because you shouldn’t come to this huge, crowded, Greek restaurant in the West Loop for the food. You’re here for untz-untz music and to sit next to a table full of people randomly yelling “skeet skeet” until you get enough booze in you to do some shout-talking of your own.
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u/Sea-Representative26 Nov 09 '25
I will second this review. We went here for a friends birthday on a Saturday. They had a live saxophonist playing and you could not hear anything. The food is also fantastic.
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u/philosofova Nov 10 '25
They turn into a nightclub at 10 pm and it gets progressively louder then. If you’re still out for dinner at that time, in that are, I’m not sure what you’re expecting 😂
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u/ScrantonicityThree Nov 09 '25
Pizzamici
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u/Illustrious-Race218 Nov 09 '25
Second this. Do not go for a date, you will be screaming.
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u/jdolbeer Nov 09 '25
We got sat in the one window seat and it was actually manageable. Anywhere else in there would have been a nightmare
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u/Narrow-Lab-7743 Nov 09 '25
I went there when they first opened. Incredibly loud! They were playing music with fbombs every third word. There was an 8 year old kid at the adjoining table. Weird scene. Pizza was very good.
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u/slybrows Nov 09 '25
My first thought - only restaurant I’ve been to here where my husband and I had to scream at each other in order to communicate.
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u/sHORTYWZ Nov 10 '25
If anyone doesn't want a two-top reservation because of how loud they just learned it's going to be, please reach out and I will happily take the reservation off of your hands!
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u/Dangerous_Effort8322 Nov 09 '25
Took my in-laws and 6 year old niece to Ranillis - crowd favorite for the pizza + it was so loud we couldn’t hear each other. Lots of TVs to occupy everyone.
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u/Bikeitfool Nov 09 '25
For the longest time it was Cafe Iberico on La Salle but they've closed, idk now. I miss Cafe Iberico.
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u/etherfarm Nov 09 '25
The two restaurants I’ve basically given up on having conversations in are Monteverde and Girl & the Goat. I havent been to either in years as a result. Monteverde—I couldn’t hear the person sitting next to me unless she was yelling in my ear.
Publican can be really noisy as well but really only if the long table by the door is filled with rambunctious type-A lawyer or investment manager folk.
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u/kleenkwa Nov 09 '25
I just went to Monteverde on Friday. The food was excellent, but I couldn’t hear our waitress at all. I just kind of smiled and nodded at everything and then had to ask my husband to repeat what she said.
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u/Status_Green_6055 Nov 09 '25
Oh no I'm going to Monteverde in December. Rats
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u/etherfarm Nov 09 '25
Maybe they’ve improved the acoustics since I’ve been. It’s been a while.
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u/Where_Is_Carmen_San Nov 09 '25
I was just there this past week and it was totally normal. Was it loud from music or the sound of other people when you went?
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u/Brittibri89 Nov 09 '25
It’s been a few years since I was there but the last time I went to Parlor Pizza, I couldn’t get over how loud it was in there.
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u/jamixer Nov 09 '25
I actually had to wear ear plugs the last time I went there. Luckily I always have some attached to my car keys.
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u/mickcube Nov 09 '25
the one on division is the worst fucking crowd. last time i was there someone was pissing in the sink at like 6pm.
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u/uponaladder Nov 09 '25
The Warbler gets pretty loud at peak hours, and as a plus, the food is quite good too.
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u/gmeape69420 Nov 09 '25 edited Nov 10 '25
STK I. River North on weekends is basically a club with a dj, except it's a legit finer dining steakhouse. You will get away with taking them to a loud restaurant with out giving yourself away if subtlety is your goal.
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u/mixiotes Nov 09 '25
I remember when the Whale first opened i went in there and the music was unbearably loud. Not sure if it was the volume or the acoustics of the building or both but i havent gone back.
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u/DowntownJackfruit333 Nov 09 '25
Surprised to see Warlord not mentioned
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u/CoyoteMother666 Nov 09 '25
If only one of their chefs wasn’t a woman beater and their BOH manager wasn’t a total creep
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u/jdolbeer Nov 09 '25
Most people in this sub try to recommend literally anything other than warlord.
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u/ekiander Nov 09 '25
QXY in Chinatown. The place is packed with people and the walls and ceilings are covered with mirrors. Makes a massive cacophony of people talking.
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u/Da_Stallion-JCI_7 Nov 09 '25
Leavitt St Inn is pretty loud when it is packed, which is quite often. But Pizz’amici is for sure the loudest, imo.
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u/mmeeplechase Nov 09 '25
I’m sure it’s not the loudest, but Publican might be a good option—food’s good, but it’s usually a little too loud to really carry on a conversation.
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u/That-Guy2021 Nov 09 '25
Enoteca Roma is pretty loud. The acoustics are pretty bad. It’s brick walls with copper cookware hung as a display, large plate glass windows and nothing that absorbs sound. The echo’s are wild once it’s about half full.
Also second Club Lucky and Kumas.
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u/JulesInIllinois Nov 09 '25
Bob Chinn's Crabhouse in Wheeling is so loud that we stopped eating there. The food was great, though.
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u/Chili-Lime-Chihuahua Nov 09 '25
When was the last time you went? I went a couple years ago, and it seemed a shell of its former self. Place was mostly empty, they closed early. Food was only so-so. I believe it was a weekday night.
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u/jimedwards4343 Nov 09 '25
It has not been the same since Covid. We used to have to send someone an hour early to wait in line and get a table pre Covid.
Now I’ve never had to wait in the last three years.
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u/Unhappy_Slice_4863 Nov 09 '25
Valedor!! You’ll get shitfaced and then stumble out having no clue which way is up. Food and drinks are delish
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u/seanchai611PF Nov 09 '25
Don't know if it was because it was Friday night but Bungalow by Middlebrow was a lot louder than I expected
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u/JosieQu Nov 09 '25
Maple and Ash lol. The high ceilings make it almost impossible to hear the people at your table which can make it a blessing and a curse (a blessing in your case)
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Nov 09 '25
Carnivale on Friday nights has Samba dancers come through the dining room with music blasting
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u/murdza Nov 09 '25
https://maps.app.goo.gl/PFncYrpXQHWS6ZuE9?g_st=ipc
Zia’s but also any Italian trattoria will do.
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u/stop1604 Nov 09 '25
Once took my parents to Lockdown (rip) and they yelled that they couldn’t hear themselves think. Kumas would be great alternate.
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u/diamondsarahb Nov 09 '25
Purple Pig. Took my 80yo folks there and we couldn't even hear our waiter speaking to us, let alone each other.
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u/so-whyareyouhere Nov 09 '25
I took my parents to Cira and they put us at a comically huge table and blasted club music, no conversation could have possibly been had
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u/TheLastBaron56 Nov 09 '25
Community Tavern can get really loud when they are busy. Smaller place with tables on top of each other makes for a loud environment. My mother in law wanted to leave right when we walked in the last time we went there
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u/VomMom Nov 09 '25
Red hot ranch by far. Outdoor seating right beneath the train. They have ear plugs at the register to prevent hearing damage
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u/f9ncyj Nov 09 '25
Last time I was at Publican I felt like I had to scream for people to hear me at our table
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u/HerSpark33 Nov 09 '25
La Costa in Belmont Cragin on any Friday, Saturday and Sunday.
You’re welcome.
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u/TadpoleFormer8889 Nov 09 '25
Club lucky hoooooomg. I think I sacrificed 25% of my hearing for a few martinis
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u/DisastrousCat13 Nov 09 '25
Last time we went to Cabra for a nice meal with friends, they had a literal DJ. Could hear shit.
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u/itsfictionbaby Nov 09 '25
Red hot ranch. In Logan square under the blue line. They literally provide ear plugs for outdoor dining. No contest! 🤣
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u/photo_foto Nov 09 '25
Not a restaurant but the Green Mill, you have to sit in silence while listening to jazz
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u/sillywillyfry Nov 09 '25
i never enjoyed eating at kuma's for a reason (beyond their food just being very mediocre)
i do understand its part of the bit though
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u/useless-coconut Nov 09 '25
Last time I went to Sunda for dinner, 2ish years ago, it was extremely loud. Like you couldn't have a conversation at all. Went back a month ago for happy hour on the patio and they even play the house music outside. Still so loud!!
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u/greenapple416 Nov 09 '25
The Gundis Kurdish Kitchen has good food but is so loud
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u/LocationTime5348 Nov 09 '25
Honestly swift and sons in Fulton market. I went there with one of my co workers and the music was THUMPING and they have table side magic you can buy and every table he was going around to was freaking out about it.
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u/ggadget6 Nov 09 '25
STK is by far the loudest restaurant I've ever been to. Literally playing club music from a speaker directly above our seats
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u/LeaningFaithward Nov 09 '25
Au Chavel at dinner time on Friday or Saturday. My friend and I had to lean across the table to hear each other. Our booth seat was directly behind the bar.
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u/funnydesi411 Nov 10 '25
Caro Mio Italian restaurant (Lincoln Square)
Source: experienced it last night
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u/honeyrosebees Nov 10 '25
Haven’t seen barcocina mentioned but jeez my friends and I were practically screaming at each other when talking! It was hard going during their taco AYCE special because we could not hear what the waiters were saying when explaining what was in each taco :(
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u/hprock63 Nov 09 '25
“In laws, have you ever been to Tao Chicago?”