Epic Sky

The roof of the River North steak-place Epic, dubbed Epic Sky, has white cabanas and fruity drinks, but it didn’t carry me away to South Beach. It took me to Soho.

Perhaps it was all the suits, or the singles. It could have been the prices, too, although good luck paying less than $12 for a cocktail at any fancy downtown Chicago bar, plush setting not included. It feels like a bonus that the drink you’ll end up with here will—if your experience is anything like mine—at the very least be pretty strong (the margarita), and at the very best be pretty pleasant to drink (the Kentucky Smash, with floating bourbon-soaked cherries).

There are three things you should know in advance will not be available here, though. First, glass. The drinks are served in thick plastic cups. It might not be especially sophisticated, but damn if it’s not sensible. Second, a view. It’s not that there isn’t one, it’s just that it’s mostly of unremarkable nearby buildings. And third, at the moment, food. If you want some, go downstairs, to one of the three levels of the enormous restaurant.

Best not to worry about the drinks or the view or the food, though. No one else here seems to be. The point is you’re a few stories up, at a stark white bar or on a sleek white couch, and even the fact that you’re holding a plastic cup can’t stop you from feeling glamorous.

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