A Chicago Classic Gets New Life: The Carlyle Club Opens Inside River North's Historic Reid Murdoch Building
By Socialhood News · Near North ·
Near North neighbors, one of River North's most storied addresses just got its most exciting new tenant in years. The Carlyle Club opened this fall at 316 N. Clark Street, taking over the landmark Reid Murdoch Building and bringing a full-service restaurant, social destination, and private event venue to one of the most coveted stretches of Chicago riverfront.
The Reid Murdoch Building is not a typical restaurant backdrop. Constructed in 1914, the red-brick structure was originally built for a wholesale grocer that used its direct position on the Chicago River to move goods through the city by barge. Over a century later, that same riverfront location — steps from the Chicago Riverwalk and within easy walking distance of downtown offices and hotels — has been repurposed for dining rather than shipping. The Carlyle Club is the first tenant to take full advantage of the building's river-facing character since The Kitchen American Bistro, chef and entrepreneur Kimbal Musk's farm-to-table concept, closed there.
The team behind Dēliz Italian Steakhouse is operating the new venture, and the menu reflects an American steakhouse core with globally influenced touches: steaks, sushi, seafood, and cocktails all share billing, complemented by expansive Chicago River views from virtually every seat in the house. The design pairs warm interiors with ten-foot-tall doors engineered to open fully toward the water, blurring the boundary between the dining room and the outdoors. The riverfront patio seats approximately 72 guests for a seated dinner and can accommodate up to 200 for a standing reception — making the Carlyle Club one of the most flexible event spaces to land in River North in recent memory. Total event capacity across all of the venue's private spaces reaches up to 400 guests.
The opening is part of a broader, unmistakable shift along River North's north bank. Since May, when DineAmic Hospitality opened NAIA — a 12,000-square-foot pan-Mediterranean restaurant spanning nearly a full city block at 300 N. LaSalle — the stretch of riverfront between LaSalle and Clark has been reshaped. NAIA draws from the cuisines of Southern France, Spain, Italy, Greece, Israel, Lebanon, and Turkey, and its wraparound patio is visible from the Riverwalk itself. That opening was only the first phase of a $37 million renovation of the 300 N. LaSalle tower announced by Irvine Company in 2025; a Greek-inspired coffee and pastry bar at lobby level and a private lounge on the river level are both planned as follow-on additions from DineAmic.
The result, for residents who walk that stretch of Riverwalk on a weeknight, is a dining corridor that looks and feels meaningfully different from even a year ago. Between NAIA at 300 N. LaSalle, The Carlyle Club at 316 N. Clark, and a Prasino outpost announced for the long-vacant riverfront space in Trump Tower (expected next spring), the north-bank restaurant row from LaSalle to Wabash is undergoing what amounts to a generational reset — with new operators bringing new energy to rooms that in some cases had been empty for years.
For Near North residents, all of this is walkable in the most direct sense. The Carlyle Club is accessible from the Riverwalk level, meaning neighbors can arrive from the water path rather than the street — a detail that changes the feel of a weeknight dinner entirely. The venue is designed for lunch, dinner, and private events, positioning it as a genuine neighborhood gathering place and not merely a destination for out-of-towners. Reservations and event inquiries can be directed to the Carlyle Club directly at 316 N. Clark Street.
Have you visited The Carlyle Club yet, or spotted the new energy along that stretch of Riverwalk? Tell your Near North neighbors what you think in the Socialhood comments below — we'd love to hear which dish you tried first.
Sources:
1. https://chicago.urbanize.city/
2. https://chicagoplannermagazine.com/carlyle-club-opening-chicago-riverfront/
3. https://chicagoluxeliving.com/blog/river-norths-new-restaurants-all-face-the-same-direction-this-summer
4. https://jproctorgroup.com/blog/river-norths-summer-of-new-signs-on-old-doors
5. https://www.modernluxury.com/most-anticipated-chicago-restaurant-openings/
6. https://blockclubchicago.org/2026/03/27/naia-brings-huge-patio-to-river-north-kittys-cosmopolitan-club-opens-with-ultra-cold-cocktails/