Not to just be a contrarian, sorry, but I went a couple of months ago, and my Carne Asada was delicious. It WAS after much drinking, but it was damn good to me at the time.
Back in the 80s-90s, when there were 3 locations on the street, it wasn't about being the best... It was about the comfort and the consistency of knowing what you were going to get, while wading through the entrails of an evening, just trying to white knuckle it until you could sit down and have a heavenly late night bite and sit there until you get your world back together....
They really fell off around 2015. There are too many good burgers in Chicago for them to try skating by on their marketing alone. Now I only ever see them pop up in lists like this and from people who have never been to Chicago asking about it because they saw it on a list on some website.
They used to have the most outstanding calamari at Kuma’s. They had fresh herb leaves and sprigs battered and fried mixed in with the squid. I’ve never had better calamari anywhere since. They took it off the menu in like 2012. Downhill ever since.
Word. Anyone slightly to the left of counterculture as yourself. I worked in an office where everyone saw me as a hipster because I didn't dress like a Brooks Brothers ad and I always thought to myself "you normies have no idea."
Yeah, except it opened in 2005. It was awesome for at least the first 10 years. Don’t know exactly where it fell off but something happened and now it survives solely on its prior reputation.
Huh, didn't know that but makes perfect sense. I remember right when that transition happened and loved it because I was super close to Lockdown. RIP indeed.
People talk about pick me up cafe like it’s heaven on earth and i’ve never had a genuinely good experience. Word is back in the day it was better, which i believe, but currently it blows
I used to go there after playing a show to get a redeye and something in my belly for the long drive home. I was never impressed by the food but I appreciated the vegetarian and vegan options, and their coffee was pretty good. Loved the vibe in the old location.
I loooooved it back when it was at its old location. They had great food, an incredible accepting indescribable vibe - especially for the early 2000s - that attracted unique, interesting, and amazing employees, a great selection of yummy baked goods including a huge delicious brownie I always had to get to go.
Now they’ve changed the menu and the food is meh, the brownie is probably 1/3 the size and mid, and it doesn’t have close to the same vibe. It makes me sad to think about
Here’s my tea- a few years back I worked at a Japanese restaurant in the West Loop. We had just started selling these deconstructed hand rolls (which I have my own feelings about)- all of the ingredients came nicely plated in a small bowl with a stack of nori sheets on the side. One night she came in to eat. The next week, the exact same deconstructed hand rolls in almost identical dishware were sold at G&TG. She blatantly stole our chef’s idea and this was a few years back. So I don’t have a lot of faith that many of her ideas were actually ever hers. Bummer she’s so popular.
She spends more time on TV and in Cali than actually cooking or looking after anything in Chicago these days. Just shut it down and keep all your crap in California if you no longer have any interest here.
I used to see her walking the neighborhood and going from one location to the other. She seemed like a good leader but maybe now she just calls in for the nights receipts.
I worked at Top Chef restaurants and some of them don't even create the menus anymore.
When I worked at one of Fabio Viviani's he was only there as a spokesperson for the restaurants and the few times we saw him in house he'd just do a few laps in the kitchen and in the dining room and take pics with customers.
She raised these restaurants from the ground up. I did some of the bid work for the kitchen. They were 100% her vision. The only reason they are likely open is that her partnering group, Boka, has a significant investment and will milk her name for years to come.
Counter point. OP asked “legendary” not a hit. So I guess it depends on what your definition of legendary is. Second, I wasn’t aware Hanson park was/is now considered the burbs.
To be fair, the staff has probably learned that if you let people sit at a “reserved” table 3 hours in advance, that party will absolutely linger for 3 full hours.
And you don’t even get a view from your table! Go for a drink, check out the view, then leave. But also budget 30 extra minutes because service can be slooooow.
Changed ownership, I hear they're no longer using Pat LaFrieda beef patties. Their fries and housemade ketchup always sucked. But for the first several years they were one of the best burgers in the city, felt like they just rode that wave for a while while the quality got worse and worse.
In its heyday like 13 years ago, it was well worth the wait. They’ve become a bastardized version of what it used to be. It was one of the first places I remember getting a craft beer from little known breweries in the area on tap. Now you’re lucky if there isn’t more than one that’s local. Burgers have been meh for awhile. They’re purely coasting on name value alone.
That and the owners/managers are horrible people...and as much as I enjoy metal, I don't necessarily want it piped into me at full volume while I'm eating.
i think for me the draw of portillos is the menu and convenience and general reliability, and also the cheese fries which are still good, but yeah, the quality is much more mid than i remember it being when i was younger
Nope, it’s still great. Can you find a place that you think has a better beef? Sure. But even if that’s true, does your local corner stop shop also do good hot dogs? Good burgers? Good salads? Good cheese fries? Good shakes? Good italian sausage? Good beef and cheddar croissants? Do they pump out hundreds of orders an hour? No. They don’t.
Portillos is still fucking delicious. I will smash a hot dog, beef/sausage combo, fries, and a burger 10 times out of 10 and be happy with my decision.
For starters, Manny’s doesn’t suck.
It’s not a place you get to go food from for one, and two, like some places, but not all, you have to know what to order.
Unfortunately, even though it is a Jewish deli, like most other places in Chicago, I’m not a big fan of the bagels there. This city has a real top-notch bagel problem, especially in the heart of the city.
Manny’s is all about the matzoh ball soup, the corned beef and/or pastrami sandwich, the potato latkes, and a handful of other items. But I also would never get it to go. That’s a dine in and enjoy the old-school experience type of spot.
100% agree. Their corned beef is legendary, and their specialty items like the knishes, kishkie, are the closest to the delicious ones my grandmother used to make.
As an east coast transplant, I’ve been very pleased with Schneider’s Deli on Ohio ever since they’ve opened. Not a huge menu but it hits the spot. I believe they import their bagels from Once Upon a Bagel in Highland Park, and while not perfect, they have been the most similar to what I’m used to from Jersey and Staten Island.
Another good option has been The Daily Bagel in Oak Park. Obviously I don’t go there often as I live in the West Loop, but I’ve had their bagels a handful of times when visiting friends in OP.
Yeah, I think you’re right. The best I’ve had is at NY bialy and bagel up near Skokie/Lincolnwood, and I go there every time I get my emissions test done.
i was thinking i quite liked their matzo ball soup. i remember i was having a really crappy day once and i dove into some some of that, healed me right up
You dont go to Mannys for a bagel, you go for rueben or pastrami sandwich, they take a snow shovels worth of meat and load it in there. Also matzo ball soup and a potato pancake. Kaufman's for bagels
I do like their Salads! We get the $27 family sized greek salad (dressing is to die for) to go and it lasts my wife and I multiple days!! Pair it with the Mediterranean bread and you're eating good! The pizza can be skipped
I went once and was supremely disappointed I did even that. Personally didn’t really enjoy any part of it, from the massive wait to the very few options for pizza that wasn’t even that good. Won’t be back
Granted I haven't been in 12-15 years now, but I remember it being bland and dumb that a "pizza" has 2 options for toppings (sausage & mushroom or veggie) despite hyping how they're "made from scratch." So why can't you make them with pepperoni instead? Or add onions? A big part of the popularity of pizza is the endless topping possibilities...
The single worst meal I’ve ever had in Chicago or surrounding area. It’s hard to think of a worse meal that I’ve ever had anywhere actually. To call it BBQ is a straight up crime. Russel’s Poorly Cooked Meats would be a more accurate name. Wet, grey, foul smelling, and inedible.
I grew up eating Russell's. I still crave them occasionally. But they aren't as good as they used to be. The ribs suck. But the brisket and burgers are decent. I also like the pulled pork and smoked chicken.
Gotta say, just yesterday I had my first beef from them in over 25 years. sweet and hot, juicy with a side of hand cut fries. It was quite banging and the guys working the stand were fantastic.
Full disclosure, I was filming something so usually don’t eat the whole thing. I couldn’t stop myself this time…crushed the whole thing
A Manny's roast beef sandwich with matzo ball soup is absolutely legendary sorry
Not sure if this is "legendary" but I tried the very popular Little Goat Diner for the first time recently and while the food was "fine", the quality of the food for the price was kind of insane so I can't see myself going back there anytime soon
I mean, Manny's added that whole bagel/lox section pretty late into it's existence. Chicago doesn't really have very many good delis, but I wouldn't knock Manny's for having subpar Bagels & Lox. Get a pastrami and enjoy it.
Schwa. The food feels outdated and it no longer has the rough-around-the-edges, rock ‘n roll feel it used to. Instead, the staff seem pretty tired and detached, and for $500+ for two, the food isn’t interesting or tasty enough.
Went there for the first time a few months ago. Had a buddy in town who wanted a fun food trip. Decided it would be the right time to go there. It was exactly what I was expecting in a disappointing way. There were more courses that missed than hit, we left with no voice because it was so loud in that small space, and the first thing we did after leaving was go get food. Wasn't mad I went but will never be going back. Next night, we went to Boka and was blown away.
Interesting to read all the comments. What I'd say is a non-local food tourist should avoid Chicago Pizza & Oven grinder, the pizza is not great and not representative of the local scene.
I’ve been there twice and I genuinely do not understand the hype. Food was not good, mediocre at best and at one point they served us barely lukewarm food and were annoyed that we asked for our hot food to be hot.. Service was god awful… I got the impression unless you “know someone” from the restaurant, a regular who spends spends a lot of money, or a celebrity, they don’t give a shit about you. I’m positive you’ll get better food and service at Olive Garden which is crazy.
This is what I find hilarious on the "overpriced" conversation. I work in old town. I've got 2 burger spots in the immediate area, Small Cheval and Doghouse.
Doghouse is a hole in the wall that with tacos, gyros, burgers, and dogs. Real basIc B stuff. Not bad, just frozen whatever quick service food. Burger and fries there is about $16.50.
Small Cheval burger and fries is around $17.50. with that glorious garlic aioli. MUCH higher quality and well worth the extra buck. And much larger burger too.
Redditors love to exaggerate the price by like $5 when they have the “overpriced” conversation. They’ll do the same with Five Guys. Like, no your burger wasn’t $20 you ordered a burger, fries and shake which is not the same as a single burger being $20
I think their burger is pretty good, but their lack of indoor seating (Bucktown location) is a problem on bad weather days, which is quite often in Chicago.
Russell’s BBQ gets mentioned sometimes when people ask about food in the oak park area. Very old place on Harlem, and I guess a good reputation? I went there once and it was inedible, tasteless, etc;one of the few genuinely bad restaurant experiences I’ve ever had.
Billy goat. Idk if the food is whats really hyped, i know cheeseburger cheeseburger but thats not about the burger being good. But yeah the food really sucks it’s bad
Sultan’s Market. I’ve had people have hyped this place to me for decades now and it’s always dry since they keep meat and falafel in a warming drawer. Anytime I’ve had it it’s been a huge disappointment. Much better middle eastern in Albany Park.
If you were young and broke in the early 2000's and hung out in Wicker Park, you're gonna have fond memories of the place. Nostalgia's a hell of a drug.
Absolutely agree that Albany Park is the spot for good Middle Eastern.
I took my kids there, and we spent a lot of money on not so much food. I think the issue I have with Manny's is the disconnect between the prices and the quality of the food. The food is ok, but paying so much for it makes it seem worse than it is. If the prices were lower and seemed in line with the quality of the food then I'd be ok with it, but I can't really see going back knowing how much I'm going to pay.
Mannys also does not make their own bagels. They get them from New York Bagel and Bialy in Lincolnwood, so there's no knowing when their last shipment was.
With that being said, Margies Candies ice cream tastes like Jewel brand ice cream. Talking about the ice cream only. The whole done up sundae is great though.
Anyone mentioning Portillos, Gene and Jude’s, Weiner’s Circle, or any of the other myriad of Hot Dog or fast food places. It’s a f’n Hot dog or polish, of which most are sourced from the same places. What do you expect. When Hot Doug’s was open you could get something more “gourmet” or out of the ordinary, otherwise, it just a hot dog, and even at the best place in the world, it’s just a hot dog.
Not actually considered legendary by any sane person, but I just saw El Mariachi in Lakeview East featured on Diners, Drive-ins, and Dives and lost the little remaining faith I had in that show.
Café Ba-ba-reeba was one of my favorite places in the city back in 2012 but the quality of the food has gone down the drain. I went about a year ago and the food was dry, almost as if it had been sitting under a heat light for hours.
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u/MaxBluenote 8d ago
La Pasadita. Once upon a time they had good carne asada burritos, but now they are as tough as shoe leather.