Del Frisco’s to Close Gold Coast Chicago Steakhouse After Nearly Seven Years

Come January, Chicagoans will have one fewer downtown steakhouse. Del Frisco’s Double Eagle Steak House is leaving the former Esquire theater space in the Gold Coast. The impending shutter also means the third-floor bar, the Esquire Champagne Room, is closing. While the restaurant debuted in 2012, the bar opened in December 2017 after a high-profile renovation at 58 E. Oak Street.

Del Frisco’s Double Eagle counts 16 steakhouses across the country including locations in Boston, Dallas, New York, and Las Vegas. Its parent company, Del Frisco’s Restaurant Group, owns more than 70 restaurants in 16 states and Washington, D.C. They include brands like Barcelona Wine Bar, bartaco, and Del Frisco’s Grille. In September, Del Frisco’s sold the Sullivan’s Steakhouse brand to Romano’s Macaroni Grill. Del Frisco’s had closed the Chicago location of Sullivan’s in June after a 20-year run in River North.

The company sent Eater Chicago a statement and mentioned that they’ve had a “challenging few years” in Chicago and that the decision to close was a difficult one. Back in 2014, Del Frisco’s CEO revealed that the Chicago location suffered from “disappointing sales” and “execution problems,” so this closing news is not out of the blue. The company left the door open to return to the Chicago market in the future.

Marc Much/Eater Chicago

The steakhouse occupies an 80-year-old building formerly occupied by the Esquire theater. It screened movies until it closed in 2006. It’s now a fancy piece of real estate nestled between luxury retailers off Michigan Avenue.

A closing date wasn’t immediately available. Customers have at least through December to chew on one final morsel of beef. Read the full statement from Del Frisco’s below.

“Del Frisco’s Restaurant Group is constantly evaluating the performance of its portfolio of restaurants. As such, we have made the difficult decision to close the Del Frisco’s Double Eagle Steakhouse in Chicago in January after a challenging few years. While unfortunate, the closure was necessary for the Del Frisco’s portfolio of brands in order to optimize our portfolio in other markets. It’s been an honor to be part of the Chicago community and we remain open to reentering the market in the future.”