Wilde & Greene Reviewe

Stopped by Wilde & Greene for lunch today. It's an ambitious place - 1/4 market, 3/4 dining. My first impressions were mixed. The market is pointless. Everything was overpriced and easily accessible elsewhere. The dining set-up is based on food stations -- pizza, salad, seafood, Asian, gelato, etc. You get a swipe card, ala Foodlife. Many of the options were predictable -- pasta, burgers, rotisserie chicken. But there were some interesting outliers -- rosti, paella, bouillabaise. Prices were all over the place -- a reasonable $5 for a ruben, but $10 for a crepe with italian sausage. The baked goods looked solid -- muffins, scones, apple crumble, bread pudding. But truth be told, the food that I saw served was poorly prepared and poorly presented. For example, I ordered a rosti with smoked chicken. I was handed a mangled wedge of hash-browny potatoes on a white plate with a few pieces of smoked chicken scattered over the top. Zero presentation value, and it seemed like the person preparing the rosti had just learned their task that morning. Looking around at other plates, the same pattern emerged -- amateurish preparation and presentation. I'm assuming that this is in large part because they are in 'soft-opening' phase; but once you are open you are open, and quality should be maintained. Another issue I had was that they have a sort of generic salad bar and antipasti, but no composed salads (although they might have had a Caesar). Given their emphasis on fresh and green ingredients, I was hoping for some nice salad options.

On the plus side, the place is beautiful, the seating area quite nice, the employees gregarious and welcoming, and there is nary a plate of orange chicken in sight. I have a feeling that they'll work on the food issues, but time will tell.

Wilde and Green
4999 Old Orchard Center [Westfield Old Orchard Center]
Skokie, IL

Well, at least they could always bring back the food court, and now it will look even nicer!

I'm thinking about checking this place out Sunday.

Dr. K wrote:Wilde & Greene Reviewe

Two close friends went on Friday and refuse to ever step foot in the place again.

They walked in and were initially quite impressed. They asked someone at the entrance if the food was organic and the employee gave them a long speech about how organic is overrated and that what's really important is that everything is fresh, etc. A cheeseburger and a pulled pork sandwich were ordered, each with fries, and they were surprised that all of that started frozen, except possibly the pulled pork. For whatever reason, the pulled pork sandwich was made quickly, but the burger took more than 15 minutes of standing at the counter (there was no option to bring it to the table). The food tasted okay, but the final shocker came when they paid on the way out - the price for the pulled pork and burger, each with fries (no drink) was $27. Ouch!

The market is pointless. Everything was overpriced and easily accessible elsewhere

I walked through last weekend and couldn't agree more (I didn't try any of the food stations). My initial thought was how idiotic to basically put in a mini supermarket with nothing you couldn't buy anywhere else. Left me with an immediate sinking feeling for the success of the whole concept.

I walked around this place on July 31st. They were pretty strict with the rules. You HAD to take a card in case you bought something and they HAD to seat you, even though 80% of the tables were empty, and I would have preferred to sit where I want. I even had to be ALLOWED to leave! It seemed a bit pricey, and my girlfriend didn't want to eat there so we just browsed. The market seems like a bad idea (who would want to deal with Old Orchard traffic to shop there?) and wasn't that big anyway.

I might eat here if I am shopping at Old Orchard someday, if they are still around.

rickster wrote:

The market is pointless. Everything was overpriced and easily accessible elsewhere

I walked through last weekend and couldn't agree more (I didn't try any of the food stations). My initial thought was how idiotic to basically put in a mini supermarket with nothing you couldn't buy anywhere else. Left me with an immediate sinking feeling for the success of the whole concept.

It's a "mom's out shopping and might as well pick up some ingredients for dinner" concept. There was a gourmet market in the Glen when it first opened that lasted for a while. We picked up an item or two while we were out shopping. But that kind of purchase doesn't a business plan make.

I was thinking about the Glen Market when I was walking through. I thought the Glen was much better, maybe because it seemed to have more unique, better quality stuff you couldn't get elsewhere.

Has to be some sort of record for the most negative reviews ever posted on Yelp in a short period of time -- averaging 1 1/2 stars. I'm now afraid to go -- and I like the way Foodlife works so can't imagine why all the complaints about a card system. Plus, still a temporary home page for a web site.
>>Brent

brotine wrote:Has to be some sort of record for the most negative reviews ever posted on Yelp in a short period of time -- averaging 1 1/2 stars. I'm now afraid to go

First of all, stop relying on Yelp - the posters are either knuckle-draggers or attention-seekers. Real posts get lost in the shuffle. Having said that, it's in "soft opening" mode - for a month. Pretty stupid idea. There have been a lot of snafus and a smarter operator would not have exposed customers to them. Figuring out how to order is not rocket science and the food is -- not bad. Wait until it "officially" opens next month before judging.

spinynorman99 wrote:First of all, stop relying on Yelp - the posters are either knuckle-draggers or attention-seekers.

Norm...I don't think anyone is relying on Yelp.

Incredibly, 23 of the 34 Yelp ratings are 1 star. I don't like Yelp, but that has to mean something.

spinynorman99 wrote:

brotine wrote:Having said that, it's in "soft opening" mode - for a month. Pretty stupid idea. There have been a lot of snafus and a smarter operator would not have exposed customers to them. Figuring out how to order is not rocket science and the food is -- not bad. Wait until it "officially" opens next month before judging.

I'm opening a restaurant that will be in soft opening for 12 years. No judging until 2023, we're still in soft opening.

I just completed a very satisfying first visit to Wilde and Greene, and I'd like to explain why I think it's going to end up being a unique alternative for dining, at least for an upscale shopping center, and perhaps a destination place for folks who like variety and spontaneity.

First, some background. No one in this thread has mentioned this, but the owner/managers of this restaurant, Richtree Inc., are based in Toronto, Canada, and have operated a series of similar restaurants in Canada (and a short venture in Boston) for at least 15 years. I regularly visited these restaurants in the period between 1996 and 2000, and found them to be a great dining experience, especially when I had to find a good place to eat late in the downtown Toronto financial district.

The real attraction was multiple food stations, preparing fresh, high quality ingredients, with a single check-in and check-out. The approach encourages grazing, where you can get an appetizer, sample a salad, choose a main course, and then search for dessert. While this basic approach doesn't work for everyone, it encourages spontaneity and curiosity in dining. It is somewhat unstructured, as you can use the restaurant for a quick snack, or a five course gourmet meal. If the food preparation is good and the variety sufficient, it creates a place where you can return many times, with a different, yet positive experience each time. One took a food ticket, which back then was punched as you were given food, at the end of the day, you took the ticket to the register, and paid as you left.

On to today's visit...

The wife and I ventured over a little after the lunch rush, and checked out almost every food station. We chose a station with an item that was among our favorites in Toronto, the Rosti, which is a Swiss variant on hash browned potatoes. I have learned to love rosti, and I even figured out how to make them for myself after I stopped traveling to Toronto. These were almost an exact duplicate of what the Canadian restaurants were producing, with tender Yukon gold potatoes carrying a sweet, buttery flavor, with just enough crisp crust to create a crunchy texture in several bites. I was thrilled to be able to get fresh rosti a mere 10 minutes from my front door. We chose a curry bratwurst, which was quite good and nicely spicy, and a cheese kielbasa, which was OK, but not nearly as good as the bratwurst. Other choices included smoked chicken, smoked salmon, and a chicken schnitzel.

We also found a nice caprese salad, with beefsteak tomato slices, balsamic dressing, pickled Bermuda onions, and mozzarella slices. The tomatoes could have been better, but I thought the serving size for a small salad was sufficient to split between two moderate eaters. We finished with a dish of blackberry gelato for me, and a slice of apple strudel for the better half. The gelato had lots of fresh berries in it, and was creamy and refreshing. The wife reported that the strudel was pretty great, and she had enough left for a second serving.

The punch tickets are replaced with a memory card, like a credit card, and the stations swipe your card at each station you get food. Think Foodlife in the Water Tower. Total cost - around $17 each, tax and service charge included. We spent a little time checking out other stations, and the variety and quality of the ingredients were impressive. I'm a transplant from Boston, and the seafood at the sushi and seafood stations was excellent looking and fresh smelling, and they can actually whip up a bouillabaisse or cioppino on the spot. A rotisserie had beautiful chickens, and offered fresh, plump roasted quail. QUAIL! And they have Two Brothers Resistance IPA on tap, along with Fat Tire and Blue Moon.

I can hardly wait to go back! The soft opening period is ending, and the cooking stations are finding their strides. The dishes I tasted were as good as the originals in Canada, and exactly met my expectations. For me, that is a winning dining experience. I'll be explaining the restaurant and recommending it to friends, and I recommend it to you, too!

P.S. One must understand with Wilde and Greene - this is NOT fast food. All dishes are made to order, and that may mean a wait at peak periods, or even off peak, like today when a group of folks were waiting for burgers and steaks to be cooked at the grill. So you may spend a little time waiting for food.

Also, you should be careful if on a budget, and you don't have the discipline to shop before you choose. While I think the value proposition for most items is extremely good, there are items that I think are overpriced, and one can run a healthy tab without realizing it.

rfleisch1 -- I'm glad to hear your experience at Wilde and Greene was positive. You seem to be invested in enjoying the place, given your positive prior experience at the Richtree concept in Toronto. I'm invested in enjoying W & G as well -- just because I have to spend time on occasion at Old Orchard. So I decided to put the place to the test...

Last Saturday, I had to take my 4-year-old daughter (and partner in culinary crime) to OO to buy a replacement for the pink plastic bracelet her 2-year-old brother had smashed into pieces (ah, fatherhood!). We landed just around noon and were both hungry. E. said, "Daddy, I want Frontera." I had an itching for their smoked shrimp torta myself. I decided we would park by Wilde and Greene, and stroll through the place -- if anything tempted us along the way, then I would know that W & G was on the upswing. The place was definitely calmer than my first visit (although they are really annoying when you enter -- they insist on trying to give you a tour -- it's like being hounded by a carnival barker that wants to show you all the acts before the show...). E. and I made our way around, and I was careful to note what diners were eating. The food on the plates looked more composed than the chaotic presentation from my last visit -- a good sign. The lines at each station seemed more organized -- another good sign. BUT -- there was just nothing that could distract me from the Frontera smoked shrimp torta. I realized that what Frontera offers is a complex, sophisticated food item. Whereas most of what W & G offers is of the one-note variety -- a burger, sausage, a pizza, sushi -- nothing that I could not find better elsewhere. To be fair, I have only tried the rosti (and wasn't impressed). But I am just not TEMPTED by much at W & G -- and given that giving into temptation is the primary reason I seek out food, I'm not sure why I would go back...

Ugh! My experience last week was not a positive one. I too, tried the rosti, as I figured I'd take to opportunity to try something new. (Though I must say, part of the reason I went with the dish was because not much else appealed to me.) The rosti with bratwurst was nothing more than mediocre, lukewarm hash browns topped with a whole, commercial grade cheese- stuffed sausage. I would have been just as satisfied by opening up a bag of Ore Ida frozen hash browns and an Eckridge Farms kielbasa and tossing them on the stove for ten minutes.
I also tried the brisket, which was excessively fatty while simultaneously dry. It tasted like bad buffet roast beef. I saw and tasted nothing that was fresh or made with high-quality ingredients. I waited for more than 5 minutes at another station for an iced tea, before leaving without service because the only employee at the station was too preoccupied with trying to make a coffee for another customer.
With Frontera mere steps away, I regretted every calorie, second, and dollar I spent on my meal, and doubt that I will return.

I had a mediocre experience and W&G. I decided to order the Rosti (Swiss fried potato "pancake"), which seemed the most distinctive offering. It is not so hard to make. All you have to make sure that the potatoes are crisp and the frying does the rest. Well, the potatoes were soggy, and they were out of mackerel, which seemed like the most interesting choice, and they attempted to up-sell me to buy smoked salmon, which the young cook assured me "tasted much better."

Caesar Salad lacked anchovies, but had plenty of bacon bits. No surprise. But I guess W&G is no worse than Judge Judy's food court.

went there Sat evening it was crowded. Got our cards walked around. Found the place confusing. Not sure where the lines were, or what the food was. Thought the potato thing was just a baked potato. after walking around twice, we turned in our cards and went to Magiannos for pasta. Maybe Ill try it on a slower time, but I doubt it.

An errand at Old Orchard around lunch time presented an opportunity for me to check out Wilde & Greene. With expectations tempered (this is a food court, after all), I took my card at the door and walked around to check out the offerings. I think, if you keep it basic, a decent meal can be had.

Wilde & Greene Interior


After looking around at most of the stations, I decided that the prime rib burgers in the case at the "butcher shop" looked pretty good. The burgers are cooked to order. Mine came out perfectly cooked to medium rare as ordered.

Wilde & Greene Cheeseburger


Fries and roast potatoes were offered at the butcher stand, but I opted instead for the much ballyhooed rosti. I thought the rosti would be much thinner and crisper than it was; more like a latke. Instead, it is a fairly thick affair, cooked in a 10 inch skillet and cut into wedges like a pie for serving. I really liked the rosti, which was nicely crisp on the outside and very creamy on the inside. I'm pretty sure it is made with yukon gold potatoes, because the color an texture was beautiful. Sour cream is available for an upcharge.

Wilde & Greene Rosti With Sour Cream


I doubt that Wilde & Greene will make it into my regular rotation, but if I'm stuck at Old Orchard and feeling peckish, it will be a consideration.