So I recently went out to dinner with bae for our anniversary, we went to Grand Lux Cafe, and it was amazing. I decided it needed to be shared, and this place needed to be known. Grand Lux is located at 600 N Michigan Ave in Chicago and is described as an “upmarket chain offering a wide-ranging American menu in opulent surroundings.” Basically, this place is amazing, and so is the food.

So we went on a Sunday at 6:15 pm and it only took us five minutes to get a table. I was impressed. We sat down in a booth with marble table and low-lighting -pretty fancy shmancy.

We both ordered a Strawberry Lemonade and that is where I fell in love. Never in my life have I had a drink as amazing as this Strawberry Lemonade. It even came in a chilled glass with sugar around the rim.

First thoughts: “Woah what is this? I’ll just take a pitcher of this and leave thank you.”

Next we ordered an appetizer; chicken lettuce wraps. Which contains “Minced Sauteed Chicken Breast and Vegetables in a Delicious Asian Sauce. Served with Cool Lettuce Wraps.”

This appetizer is not for first timers, I think bae was expecting actual wraps. Basically, you have to be skilled in the art of lettuce wrapping, which thankfully, I am.

It came with a teriyaki-type sauce and another spicy, mustard-y sauce. The sauces were a little weird, so I probably wouldn’t get this one again.

Then we ordered our entrees and… oh my goodness. I got Pasta Carbonara, and he got a Flat Iron Steak.

My first thoughts: O.M.G.

His first thoughts: O.M.G.

My pasta was described as, “Imported Spaghettini Tossed with Smoked Bacon, Peas, a Touch of Garlic and a Parmesan Cream Sauce. A Classic Combination.” Definitely fancy, definitely delicious. I could eat that pasta for days. However, the serving size was enough to feed a village, and when the pasta is heated up as leftovers it gets all greasy and gross, which is a bummer.

His steak came with, “Garlic-Herb Butter. Served with Potato or Vegetable.” Vegetable? I guess they meant giant onion rings? And what about the potatoes? Anyway, he didn’t try his steak right away because everything comes to the table super hot. But he did try the mashed potatoes, and he freaked out. I tried them too -pretty amazing.

Final thoughts: Bring down the serving size on the pasta, especially if it gets all gross the next day. Also he said he wished he had gotten his steak cooked a different way. But that’s his fault, not the restaurant’s. Basically, it was all great. We both took home leftovers. He devoured his the next day, and lucky for him, they were just as good.

We also got dessert. Judge us, but it was a fancy dinner, ya know? You’re there, you might as well have something sweet.

We ordered a Molten Chocolate Lava Cake and if the name doesn’t convince you to order this then I don’t know what will. These are made to order and they take about 30 minutes to make, so you should order it with your entree. Trust me, it is so worth it.

First thoughts: BRUH.

Forgive me for the presentation because let’s be real, something that good looking didn’t last very long at anyone’s table, so I may have taken a bite before I took the picture. This cake is so amazing and the outside is perfectly crunchy, and the inside is perfectly soft and melty: it’s just amazing.

If you go to this restaurant for anything, go for this cake. It’s hard to eat all the rest of the meal when you know this baby is on it’s way.

Grand Lux Cafe was truly an amazing experience and if you’re looking for somewhere to go for that special date, or maybe you’re just hanging out down town, this place is the place to go. The wait is relatively short, depending on the day and time of course, the staff is amazing, and the meals come out timely, hot, and delicious.

I rate it 4.5/5 North Stars.