I recently came to Bar Mar to have lunch with a friend in early December, 2023. Bar Mar is part of a complex of two restaurants by Jose Andres in the Loop area of Chicago, specializing in seafood. The space is bright and open, with lots of glass, giving it an open-air feeling, even though you’re inside. The furnishings are modern and funky, and I love the light fixtures as well.

For lunch, Bar Mar offers a tasting menu of two courses for $35. You get an appetizer and a sandwich, so we went for this option so we could try a few things. I ordered the lobster croquettes for my appetizer. These were creamy and full of giant hunks of actual lobster – yummy! My friend ordered the “Neptune’s Pillows” which was spicy tuna on a crunchy doughy pillow.

For the sandwiches, I chose the “ham and cheese flauta” which is actually not a rolled up taco – it was pretty much a serrano ham and cheese sandwich served on long, skinny pieces of delicious bread. This was served with almost shoestring fries which were super salty and super crispy. Really excellent fries here.

My friend had the “Salmon Bikini” sandwich, also served with fries. This was with smoked salmon and cream cheese on a brioche roll which looked really delicious.

For dessert I couldn’t resist trying the sticky toffee pudding, which is one of my all time favorite desserts. This iteration was both crunchy and mushy, with lots of toffee poured on top and a solid scoop of vanilla bean ice cream. We split it and it was more than enough for the two of us. It was really excellent.

This was a really delicious lunch experience, and the service was great. I highly recommend making a reservation to come here for lunch. They also have tasting menus for pre-theater as well, and this would be a great stop before seeing an Opera at the Lyric or anything in the theater district in Chicago due to its location. Enjoy!