Joe's Seafood, Prime Steak & Stone Crab

The story

Crafted with passion, served with love

A Story That Starts on a Florida Shore

The stone crab on your plate carries a genuine origin story. In the early 1920s, Joe Weiss and his wife Jennie discovered Florida stone crab as an unknown delicacy in the coastal waters of Miami Beach and began serving it at their restaurant there. The claws are hand-harvested one at a time, and the crabs are returned to the sea — a practice that makes the ingredient as sustainable as it is seasonal. That founding ethos travels intact to 60 East Grand Avenue in Chicago, where the familiar crack of claw against mallet is as much a part of the atmosphere as the tuxedoed servers.

The Menu: Seafood and Prime Steak, Done Seriously

Joe's Chicago is exactly what the name promises — a seafood and steakhouse that takes both sides of that equation with equal seriousness. Florida stone crab, served chilled with Joe's Mustard Sauce, remains the centerpiece and is available while seasonal quantities last. Beyond the crab, the seafood roster runs from oysters on the half shell and a colossal lump crab cake to Dover sole with brown butter, Chilean sea bass with miso glaze and bok choy, and a showpiece plateau called The Whale — king crab, lobster, jumbo shrimp cocktail, and oysters together.

The prime steak program is no afterthought. Bone-in cuts are hand-carved by master butchers exclusively for Joe's, prized, in the restaurant's own words, for their "rich, on-the-bone flavor and melt-in-your-mouth tenderness." A bone-in rib eye, a porterhouse, and a bone-in filet mignon anchor the list, each available with add-ons ranging from béarnaise to a King Crab Oscar.

Sides carry their own legacy: Jennie's Mashed Potatoes and Joe's Famous Grilled Tomatoes appear on every menu across all locations, quiet tributes to the couple who started it all.

The Room and the Cellar

The dress code is upscale casual — jackets not required, comfort actively encouraged — yet the setting reads as proper fine dining. Wine Spectator recognized the cellar with its Best of Award of Excellence, a distinction that reflects the depth and curation of a list built to pair with both delicate seafood and well-marbled prime beef. Guests are also welcome to bring a rare or collectible bottle not found on the menu, subject to a corkage fee.

Part of the Lettuce Entertain You family of restaurants, Joe's Chicago sits in the River North neighborhood with valet parking available, making it a practical choice for a special occasion or a long, unhurried lunch.