Chicago, IL · market #6
Win more orders in Chicago.
17,823 restaurants compete for the same guests in the Chicago area. We take care of your marketing and sales, so guests find you, order from you and come back, and you take care of the kitchen and good food.
- 17,823restaurants in the Chicago area
- 11restaurants per sq mi in Cook County
- 41%are sit-down (full-service)
- 19restaurants per 10,000 people
Minimum wage $17.05 · tipped $12.96 Delivery apps capped at 15% (expired)
Most restaurants: Cook County (10,283) · DuPage County (1,948) · Lake County (1,273) · Will County (1,129) · Lake County (923). Busiest ZIP: 60657 (Chicago), 232 restaurants.
Your Chicago playbook
What wins in Chicago, from its own numbers.
- 1
Keep the order, not just a capped fee
Chicago caps delivery apps at 15% (expired), and every app order still pays it. On your own site there's no app commission; WhatsTable's share is 5–10%, nothing is added to the guest's bill, and the guest stays yours.
- 2
Let Maya take the calls
With minimum wage at $17.05 in Chicago, every hour on the phone is expensive. Maya answers, books tables and takes orders, so your team can cook and serve.
- 3
Win the office lunch
About 59% of Chicago's restaurants are counter-service, cafés or snack bars. One shared link lets a whole office add to one pickup order.
- 4
Be the name people find nearby
In the Chicago area guests drive to dinner, and they choose from what shows up when they search. We set you up to show up, with your menu and an order button.
Illinois right now
Chicago tipped pay rose again. Spend staff time wisely.
Chicago pays $17.05 ($12.96 tipped) and Illinois signed a junk-fee ban. AI answers calls; your site shows one honest price.
Labour costs keep rising
Chicago's minimum wage is $17.05 and the tipped cash wage $12.96. Every staff hour spent answering phones costs more.
Source · 2026-11-05
Junk-fee ban signed
Illinois' Junk Fee Ban Act, signed June 2026, requires advertised prices to include mandatory fees and covers restaurants and food delivery platforms.
Source · 2026-06
Chicago's delivery cap expired
Chicago's 15% delivery fee cap expired October 31, 2021, so app commissions are back to plan rates of 15-30%.
Source · 2021-11
How do restaurants in Chicago get more online orders?
Be the restaurant people find first when they search nearby, let them order on your own site with Apple Pay, and bring them back with offers and rewards. WhatsTable does all three for Chicago restaurants on Clover, and nothing is added to the guest's bill.
How many restaurants are there in Chicago?
About 17,823 restaurants, about 41% of them sit-down, based on US Census County Business Patterns for the Chicago area.
Are delivery app fees capped in Chicago?
Yes. Chicago caps delivery apps at 15% (expired). Orders on your own WhatsTable site pay no delivery-app commission; WhatsTable's fee is 5–10% of sales through it, and nothing is added to the guest's bill.
What is the minimum wage for restaurants in Chicago?
$17.05 an hour, $12.96 for tipped staff (from 2026-07-01). Check the city's official page for changes.
What does WhatsTable cost?
$0 a month, no setup fee, no contract. WhatsTable takes 5–10% of the sales that come through it. Walk-in sales cost you nothing.
Do I need Clover?
Yes, today WhatsTable works with Clover. Tell us what you use on the demo form and we will let you know when it works with yours.
Nearby markets
- #1 New York, NY 45,519 restaurants · up to 357/sq mi
- #2 San Francisco, CA 11,199 restaurants · up to 69/sq mi
- #3 Miami, FL 11,927 restaurants · up to 3/sq mi
- #4 Boston, MA 10,567 restaurants · up to 36/sq mi
- #5 Seattle, WA 8,443 restaurants · up to 3/sq mi
- #7 Los Angeles, CA 29,168 restaurants · up to 10/sq mi
Restaurant counts: US Census Bureau, County Business Patterns 2023 (NAICS 7225), Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN metro area. Population: Census estimates for 2023. Density uses land area from the Census Gazetteer.
You cook. We’ll bring the orders, in Chicago.
We take care of marketing and sales, so you can take care of the kitchen and good food. 20 minutes on a call.
$0 a month · No setup fee · No contract · Nothing added to your guests' bill