Long Grove

Hi All,

Looking forward to the upcoming holiday season, the significant other and I are thinking of taking a trek up to historic Long Grove to get in the holiday mood. (I remember it being chock-ful of holiday goodness when I was younger) But we were looking at some of the restaurants online at http://longgroveonline.com/restaurants.html and I really didn't recognize any of them, aside from The Seasons, where I have played many a wedding gig. Any recommendations? I'm thinking of just making an event of it and staying in the immediate area for a weekend afternoon. I do know plenty of places around the area, since I grew up nearby, but I was wondering if any of the restaurants directly in the historic section were worth visiting.

Thanks in advance,
Sharona

Long Grove Tavern is fun, but the food isn't outstanding. Not bad, just not noteworthy. (Of course, I was there for dinner. Lunch be better, as one is more likely to order hamburger than steak.)

The Long Grove Café is very attractive, has a lovely view, and the couple of times I've met people there, we've all enjoyed out meals. But that's all I remember -- it was very nice, but not unusual or remarkable -- but it was better than my last visit to the Tavern.

Suzi's Teas is lovely, but it's a tea shop -- beautiful sandwiches and soups, plus their wonderful selection of teas, but if you're looking for a holiday celebration, it might fall short.

Seasons of Long Grove is still my favorite place in Long Grove -- even if just for the fabulous berry vinaigrette.

I'd say that, of the group, I'd only consider Seasons a "destination." (Voted best creme brulée in Illinois.) But all of them are nice and would be pleasant places to eat. So it depends on what you want. If all you want is a beautiful sandwich and very good soup in a cute little house with a tea emporium next door, Suzi's is ideal. If you want scenery, go for the Café. If you want a celebratory meal in holiday surroundings, Seasons is the place. Or leave Long Grove for lunch and go to Le Titi de Paris over on Dundee Road -- they're serving lunch Wed.-Sat. during the holidays.

I live in that neck of the woods and don't think there are too many of us locals who frequent LG's restaurants. The Tavern has good burgers and sandwiches, but the atmosphere makes it nothing special. In fact, the last time I was there it needed a good cleaning. Gridley's just rates an "ok". However, the one place I have heard decent things about (and that was from an LTHer) is Enzo and Lucia's which is across the street from Seasons. Sounds like some wonderful, fresh tasting Italian definitely worth a try.

I really like Enzo & Lucia's. Good Italian food and great service. It has been several months since I've been there and I can't recall my favorite dish but that's where I go when I go to Long Grove.

They are right across the street from Red Oaks Furniture on Old McHenry Rd.

http://longgroveonline.com/merch-pages/ ... lucia.html

If your significant other is a guy take him to the Long Grove Tavern. It's the only "guyish" thing in that town!

I would reccomend Enzo and Lucia's also. They have really good calamari and ravioli!!

The last time I went to LG may be the last time I go to LG. It used to be an interesting destination but strikes me as an overlly commercial tourist-trap kind of place now.

Hello again!

Thanks for all the suggestions. My boyfriend and I braved the cold and ventured to LG today. We saw some reindeer, waved at Mr. and Mrs. Claus, briefly considered taking a horse-drawn carriage ride (which we didn't), and bought some Christmas gifts. We first stopped by the Apple Haus, where boyfriend got an apple fritter and I got an apple cider donut, which was impossibly tasty. But following Cynthia's suggestion, we headed towards Suzi's Tea Shop. They have about 100 teas in their shop that are all blended and chosen by Suzi with the help of tea blenders. I chose a creamy vanilla earl gray and my boyfriend chose a rooibos chocolate mint. The tea was served in a personal tea brewer/mug, complete with timer that beeped when your tea was at optimal steeping time. The earl grey had that great bergamot scent with the sweetness of vanilla and the roobios smelled like thin mints.

The menu has great sandwiches, salads and specials every day. There were two soups today: a creamy tomato basil bisque, which my boyfriend had, and a roasted sweet potato chowder, which I enjoyed. The chowder had huge chunks of parsnips, spinach, cabbage, and pureed sweet potato. I then ordered the sandwich special: grilled roast beef with provolone on rye with a cranberry horseradish sauce. My boyfriend ordered a grilled cheese sandwich with monterey jack and cheddar (he's a vegetarian and just told me to mention that there were plenty of vegetarian options as well). Both sandwiches hit the spot, especially on such a cold day. The sandwiches were served with chips (looked like wavy lays)--I kind of wish they had some kind of homemade sweet potato chip or kettle chip, instead of something that seemed so generic.

The room is cheery and bright, with a very warm fireplace. Suzi and her husband Chuck (I believe that was his name) were very visible and constantly checked up on us. They clearly love what they do: Suzi loves talking about tea, and Chuck is very proud of his food (he's the chef).

All in all, it was a very pleasant visit. We walked out of there with 3 kinds of tea and two of those cool tea mug/brewer things.

Thanks again for the suggestions. And although LG is a bit touristy, it was quite picturesque with the snow lined streets and trees and the little old stores.

Suzi's Tea and Cafe
132 Old McHenry Road
Long Grove, IL 60047
773-895-7408
http://www.teavision.com

I was at Suzi's Tea House for lunch w/my friends 3 weeks ago (sorry for not posting sooner). I ordered the creme brulee tea, which was deliciously fragrant, but lacked in taste. At that time, they had the same specials that you mentioned. I ordered the soup and salad combo: roasted sweet potato chowder and herbed goat cheese salad w/mixed greens. The food was pretty good, but I left hungry - which never happens. I usually only finish 1/2 of my meal when I eat out.

We then went to Apple Haus for apple donuts, which did not live up to my fond memories. There was not much cinnamon sugar coating as they usually have. The donuts looked much better when they were being freshly prepared in front of your eyes during the Apple Fest at the end of Sept, but the lines were just too long for us to wait at that time.

Overall, I was a little disappointed on my most recent visit.