Chicago Firehouse Restaurant

While River North may be Chicago's premier steakhouse neighborhood, there’s a pretty good one hiding in the South Loop, too. The Chicago Firehouse used to be the home of the Chicago Fire Department’s Engine Company 104, before they converted the entrances of this 1905 building (designed for horse-drawn fire engines) into massive floor-to-ceiling windows. And massive seems to be the theme here: The ceilings are almost comically high, there’s a large bar that tends to fill up around Happy Hour, a huge main dining room, and a sizable secluded back patio. The cavernous restaurant has a vintage-but-modern feel—including the menu, which covers all your steakhouse bases like an excellent lobster bisque and steaks that are aged and butchered in-house. It’s a great option for a nicer-than-average weeknight dinner or when you have something special to celebrate.