Restaurant in Chicago, United States
Curtis Duffy's tasting menu: book it or skip?
Ever is Curtis Duffy's two-Michelin-starred modernist tasting menu in Chicago's Fulton Market, earning 96 points from La Liste in 2026 and AAA 5 Diamond recognition in 2025. The service is as considered as the cooking, and the room is built for occasions that should feel deliberate. Booking is near impossible — plan several weeks ahead minimum.
Ever costs you real money — this is a $$$$ tasting menu at 1340 W Fulton St in Chicago's Fulton Market, and you should expect to spend accordingly for the full experience. What you get back is a two-Michelin-starred room where the service is so precisely choreographed it becomes part of the argument for the price, not just background noise. If you are booking a fine dining tasting menu in Chicago and service execution matters as much to you as what lands on the plate, Ever is the most credible answer in the city right now. If you want looser, more playful energy, look at Smyth or Kasama instead.
Walk into Ever for the first time and the room makes its intentions clear immediately. Venetian hybrid plaster walls, a starry overhead lighting scheme, and slat wall panels create a space that reads as controlled drama rather than casual warmth. Tables are generously spaced — this is not a room that packs covers for volume , and the seating arrangement signals that the kitchen is not racing through turns. For a first-timer, that spatial breathing room is a useful preview of the pace you are about to experience: deliberate, attentive, unhurried.
The service model at Ever is the single most important variable in deciding whether this meal justifies the spend. Servers are described as perfectly coordinated and standing at attention , that language in the La Liste recognition notes is not incidental. At this price point, some restaurants deliver technically correct service that still feels transactional or stiff. Ever's model, as documented by its AAA 5 Diamond recognition in 2025 and a 96-point La Liste score in 2026 (up from 92.5 points in 2025, a meaningful jump in that ranking's scoring), aims for something closer to orchestrated precision with genuine attentiveness. For a first-timer unfamiliar with this register of hospitality, the coordination can feel theatrical at first. Give it twenty minutes and it tends to settle into something that feels earned rather than performed.
Chef Curtis Duffy's cooking is creative modernist fine dining, and the awarded examples from the La Liste record give you a reasonable frame: Ora King salmon with fennel, wagyu with braised pistachios, English pea puree with puffed grains and black garlic. These are not dishes built on familiarity , they arrive, as the documentation puts it, with unexpected flair and form without sacrificing flavor. For a first-timer, that means you should arrive without a specific craving and with genuine curiosity about where the menu goes. This is not the right room if you want to eat à la carte or build your own meal. The format is tasting menu; the kitchen controls the sequence.
The adjoining cocktail bar is worth noting if you are planning the evening as a whole event rather than just the meal. It functions as an entry point or a way to extend the night, and the spirit-free drinks program within the restaurant itself means non-drinkers are not left with an afterthought menu. The wine program is described as generous, which at this price tier typically means both depth of selection and the option to spend considerably more if you engage the pairing route.
Fulton Market has become Chicago's densest concentration of high-end dining, but Ever sits on what the La Liste record describes as a quiet, near-empty corner of that neighborhood. First-timers sometimes expect the immediate street energy of the broader Fulton Market strip. The building's presence is more reserved than that. This is not a venue that announces itself loudly from the outside, which makes the contrast with the interior all the more deliberate.
Ever earned its Michelin two-star status in 2024 and ranked second on Esquire's Leading New Restaurants list when it opened in 2021. A Google rating of 4.8 across 392 reviews is a useful sanity check , at this price point, disappointed guests leave reviews, and the score has held. Comparable two-star operations in other cities, from Atomix in New York City to Lazy Bear in San Francisco, give you a rough sense of the experiential register: tasting menus where the sequence and service are as considered as the cooking itself. By that comparison set, Ever holds its position.
Booking is near impossible by the standards of Chicago dining. This is not a room you walk into on a Friday night. Plan for several weeks of lead time at minimum, and more for weekend sittings. Check availability directly via the restaurant's booking system , the address is 1340 W Fulton St, Chicago, IL 60607. If you are targeting a specific date for a special occasion, build in flexibility on the date rather than the venue if this is the meal you want.
For broader context on Chicago's high-end dining scene, see our full Chicago restaurants guide. If you are building a full trip, our Chicago hotels guide, bars guide, and experiences guide cover the rest of the visit.
Booking difficulty at Ever is near impossible by Chicago standards. Reserve well in advance , several weeks minimum for weekdays, longer for weekends. The restaurant is at 1340 W Fulton St, Chicago, IL 60607. Phone and online booking details are not confirmed in our current data; check the restaurant directly for current reservation availability. Given the demand level, if you have a fixed date for a special occasion, begin the booking process earlier than feels necessary.
Ever is in Chicago's Fulton Market neighborhood. The price range is $$$$, consistent with tasting menu pricing at two-Michelin-star level. The format is tasting menu; plan your evening accordingly and allow two to three hours. An adjoining cocktail bar and a spirit-free drinks program within the restaurant make it workable for mixed groups on alcohol preferences. Hours and specific menu pricing are not confirmed in our current data , verify directly before booking. For context on comparable spending at this caliber nationally, see The French Laundry in Napa, Single Thread Farm in Healdsburg, or Providence in Los Angeles.
Ever operates a set tasting menu format, which makes dietary restrictions harder to accommodate than at a la carte venues. Contact the restaurant well before your reservation to flag any requirements. Given the level of kitchen precision that earned two Michelin stars, adjustments are more likely here than at lower-tier tasting menu spots, but the format limits flexibility by design.
Ever's spaciously arranged dining room is suited to couples and small groups rather than large parties. For a group of four or more, request your table well in advance — this is a $$$$ tasting menu restaurant with limited covers and high demand. Large corporate or celebration groups should check the venue's official channels about private dining options, as the adjoining cocktail bar provides some additional capacity.
Solo diners can book Ever, but the format lends itself more naturally to two-person visits. At $$$$, the tasting menu experience is structured and immersive enough to reward a solo diner who is focused on the food, but you won't have a counter seat or bar-side perch in the main dining room. If solo counter dining is your preference, Smyth or Kasama offer formats that suit one person more naturally.
At $$$$ and with Michelin 2-star recognition plus a 96-point La Liste score in 2026, Ever is among the most credentialed restaurants in Chicago — and the price reflects that. If a multi-course modernist tasting menu is the format you want, it justifies the spend. If you want flexibility or a la carte options, Boka or Smyth offer high-calibre alternatives at lower commitment.
Alinea is the obvious comparison — also Michelin-starred and more theatrically avant-garde, but harder to book and typically more expensive. Smyth offers a similar fine dining seriousness at a slightly lower price point with more menu flexibility. Kasama delivers a tasting menu experience at a lower spend with a distinct Filipino-American perspective. Next Restaurant rotates concepts entirely, which suits diners who want variety over refinement. Boka is the right call if you want a top-tier Chicago meal without committing to a full tasting menu format.
Yes, and it's one of the stronger cases for it in Chicago. The spacious table arrangement, coordinated service, and dramatic room — Venetian hybrid plaster, starry lighting — make it feel occasion-appropriate without being stiff. Two Michelin stars and an AAA 5 Diamond rating (2025) give it the credentials to match the moment. Book several weeks out and note that the adjoining cocktail bar is useful for pre-dinner drinks.
For modernist fine dining at this level, yes. Curtis Duffy's kitchen has held two Michelin stars through 2024 and scored 96 points on La Liste's 2026 list, which puts Ever among a small number of Chicago restaurants operating at that standard. The format is fixed — this is not a venue where you order from a menu — so it suits diners who want to be guided through a progression of courses rather than those who prefer to choose. If that format appeals, the execution here is hard to match in the city.
Keep this venue in your Pearl passport, rate it after you visit, and track it alongside every other place you collect.
