Virtue Restaurant

-Grubbing in Chicago  
Chef Driven Southern Food in Hyde Park

It’s hard to believe Hyde Park’s Virtue Restaurant is more than five years old. It might be even harder to believe I just ate dinner there for the first time recently. I’d been for brunch when they did that but just got my first chance at dinner. Virtue is owned by 2022 James Beard 'Best Chef Great Lakes' winner - Erick Williams. The kitchen is currently ran by 2023 'Emerging Chef' nomination - Damarr Brown. The menu is a mash up of redefined takes on southern plates plus the straight up classics.

Locals Favorite in Hyde Park 

It’s not hard to get a reservation for Virtue but it’s going to be something you want to do should you plan on checking it out.The location in the heart of Hyde Park’s busy 53rd street corridor means it’s pretty much always busy. Williams also runs the nearby Daisy’s Po’ Boy and Tavern should you need a backup plan. The people eating here are happy to be doing so, so expect some good energy and a lively crowd. The menu is seasonal and morel mushrooms happened to be in season on our visit so we ordered a plate of them served up with Egyptian grains, sweet peas, crispy shallots. It was a solid dish but the mushrooms were just a part of it rather than the focus of it like I think they should be.

Morel Mushrooms 

The cornbread is one of those menu items that they can’t take off without hearing it from their regulars thus it's always an option. The recipe comes from Erick Williams’ grandmother but he chefs it up with a made in-house butter and locally produced honey with each order. I can’t think of a better version in Chicago. I thought that the gumbo down the block at Daisy’s Po’ Boys was pretty good, especially for as far north as we are. I got some from here and it was pretty much the same thing. No complaints.

Cornbread / Gumbo at Virtue 

Erica had a piece of fish she liked just fine, it wasn’t memorable but was more than just edible. The shrimp and crawfish with grits was the real winner of the meal. I would’ve been happy with this down in Charleston or Savannah so I was very happy with it here in Chicago. Nothing unique as far as the prep and I’m totally fine with that as it was pretty special as far the taste of the whole thing goes. The shrimp were cooked to a perfect al dente (not too soft) and there was plenty of rich sauce to soak up the smooth grits. This is a top tier Chicago dish and quite possibly some of the best shrimp and grits outside of the South or more importantly this was a version that would fit in perfectly down there.

Shrimp / Crawfish and Grits at Virtue 

Virtue Restaurant
1462 E 53rd St
Chicago, IL 60615
(773) 947-8831
Website