The Exchange
American restaurant · Loop ·
Upscale cafe & bar with state-of-the-art audio experience
Upscale cafe & bar with state-of-the-art audio experience
"The Listening Room is a bar and listening cafe in the Loop. What’s a listening cafe, you ask? Taken from their website, it’s “a clubby dining experience with a state-of-the-art audio experience.” And “clubby Loop restaurant” is not something we expected to like. But it turns out it’s not very clubby—it’s more of an upscale cafe that works for a casual date night. Plus, the food is delicious. The menu has dishes like tender chicken thighs with crispy skin, mac and cheese that gets melted raclette poured over it tableside, and some very interesting roasted carrots served with a fluffy coconut mousse and topped with peanuts. The “listening” part really just means that the sound quality is really good, and the music genre changes, so check their Instagram to see what they’re playing before you visit." - adrian kane, john ringor, veda kilaru
"In a season three flashback, Sydney eats solo in a wide atrium, with a large white staircase behind her. That setting in real life is The Exchange, a restaurant with a regular American menu that’s also popular for weddings. Located in the Loop, the opulent space is more memorable than the solid orecchiette or mango creme brûlée. And because the atrium has such a big echo, it’s ideal for eavesdropping to see if anyone’s also there because of The Bear." - adrian kane, nick allen
"Part of the Chicago listening bar scene, known for providing a space to enjoy curated music selections." - Lisa Shames
"The Listening Room is a bar and listening cafe inside a Loop restaurant called The Exchange. What’s a listening cafe, you ask? Taken from their website, it’s “a clubby dining experience with a state-of-the-art audio experience.” But it turns out it’s not very clubby—it’s more of an upscale cafe that works perfectly for a pre-show dinner. Plus, the food is very good, with dishes like tender chicken with crispy skin or orecchiette with a creamy sun-dried tomato sauce. The “listening” part just means that the sound quality is really good, with a rotating playlist highlighting different genres." - adrian kane, john ringor
"Housed in a former bank building in downtown, this is one of the few late-night spots aimed at the non-student crowd, known for excellent cocktails at pleasantly low, small-city prices." - Travel + Leisure Editors
