Eat &Drink- fast food chinese in the Loop

I have passed Eat & Drink for at least the last 15 months and finally ventured in three weeks ago. I have frequented the place at least three times a week since. Located at 212 Randolph (betw. Wells and Randolph) in a parking lot- it looks like a former dog/hamburger hut. It has four small tables that really can not sit more than two folks at a time. There is no ambiance to this place so you really do not want to eat here. But, the take out business is its strong suit. The lunch line somehow moves fast
Everything is made to order-freshly stirred fried by two chinese men- so your food arrives piping hot. Super hot! No steam tables here. Veggies are crisp and the dishes are not overloaded with the cheap filler carrots, celery etc. The ratio of meat to veggies is spot on. Plus not a sliced zuchini in sight(my big pet peeve in chinese food). I have had the beef and veggies, sweet and sour chicken, mongolian beef and orange beef. The orangebeef (also chicken) is really spicy) and not on the sweet side. really good. The menu is extensive and has vegetarian, , beef, chicken and fish options. No pork dishes except for some werid hot dog dishes (curry hot dog fried rice and mongolian hot dog). The place looks dumpy but the food has never disappointed.

Elfin -

Thanks for the review. I just received a delivery menu from them and wasn't ready to take one for the team on what appears, menu-wise, to be fairly run-of-the-mill Americanized Chinese food. Perhaps now I'll give them a try.

Eat & drink has gone through a few changes over the last 7 or so years. They started out as a place called "C Food" as far as I know. They used to give out the biggest portions for a chines lunch special I have ever seen. They would pack a few cups of rice, your entree, and a big honking egg roll into a standard sized syrofoam container. This was probably about 4 years ago. Back then the lunch specials were also an amazing $3.95 or so. Over time they changed management, and the people working inside changed as well.

Prices have gone up within the past 6 months by about 50 cents for lunch specials and are now 6.60 for meat/veggie and 7.85 for shrimp. The current portion sizes are pretty good for lunch. The plastic container is probably 8" by 5", divided in two parts. They fill one part with rice and the other with the dish. You also get an egg roll or crab rangoon on the side. The entree quality is par for the course as far as take-out chinese places go, and as the OP said things are cooked to order which is nice. The eggroll quality is average, it's nothing special. I would recommend their shrimp and lobster sauce myself.

I do miss the days of the super-sized meal deal that you couldn't beat for value in the loop. The eggroll of the olde days was also multitudes better than the ones they serve now. If you are looking for some americanized chinese comfort food in the loop, this is a good choice.

When I'm in the mood for Americanized Chinese, and not excellent tendon and stomach searing chili filled fare i.e. Lao Szechuan, Ed's Potsticker, Double Li, etc, this is actually my go to delivery spot. The balance of msg, stickey gooey sweet sauce, and crunchy steamed veg is spot on. Crunchy bits like rangoon and egg rolls which always have a nice star anise and five spice perfume are usually pretty good. You won't be discovering culture or regional delicacies here, but if you want straight up Chinese comfort food, this is the spot.

I've always liked this place, which, despite its lack of amenities, makes a handy pre-theater stop before shows at the Cadillac Palace. They also do wonderful fresh-fruit smoothies.

Eat & Drink C-Food Express
312/368-8233
212 W. Randolph St.
Chicago

Another shout-out for the smoothies: when I'm downtown in the summer, I'll travel out of my way for the mango smoothies, consisting only of fresh and frozen pureed mango.

My experience is now at least two years old, so take it with that in mind, but I found it appallingly bad. Although I don't remember many of the details, I do remember them pouring frozen mixed vegetables out of a bag into my soup. Not surprisingly, it tasted like chicken broth with frozen mixed veggies in it. It's possible that it's dramatically improved in the meantime, but I just wanted to get a dissenting opinion in the thread.

I too remember this place from back in the days of C-Food. I remember the menu change a few years back and it all seemed to go downhill from there (and the prices went up).

Therer was some chatter here about Eat and Drink a while back. Since that time I've eaten there a little more and have come to the opinion that the thing most interesting about the restaurant is its architecture. I'll go back - don't get me wrong. But there really should be better asian food options in the loop. Really.

There should be better places for Chinese in the Loop but the alternatives are steam table chains. I really can not dispute the prior posts comments-the egg rolls are nothing special and the place does not possess the "WOW!" factor as Three Happiness in Chinatown. In fact, I am eating the beef lo mein as I type and their lo mein is something I will not order again. But until Ruby of Siam opens in the former Bon Bon Cafe spot on Washington (for a buck or two more), the place will satisfy my stir fry cravings.

Could someone tell me their hours? More importantly, are they open on Sundays?

Thanks!

Just finished a very satisfying lunch from Eat and Drink. Got the sesame chicken lunch special and I thought it was pretty tasty. The bits of chicken were nicely cruncy and the sauce was sweet but not overly so. The fried rice and egg roll were both passable. All in all a nice option for lunch in the loop.

I like the sesame chicken there too. The place does not meet Chinatown standards, but it is passable. The food is cooked to order, which is unusual. The other area options for Americanized Chinese (Panda, Chen's, Asia2Go, 65) are far worse.

Interesting that a Thai place is coming in right around the corner from Siam Rice. I wonder if there's enough demand for Thai in such a small area. (My Thai and Singh Ha are several blocks away.)

Katherine_84f wrote:Another shout-out for the smoothies: when I'm downtown in the summer, I'll travel out of my way for the mango smoothies, consisting only of fresh and frozen pureed mango.

I am excited to see this thread, as Eat & Drink has always been a place shrouded in mystery. I must have passed the little storefront every day on the way to my office when I worked in the loop. However, I never had the notion to go inside. This just persuaded me.

PortPkPaul wrote:Interesting that a Thai place is coming in right around the corner from Siam Rice. I wonder if there's enough demand for Thai in such a small area. (My Thai and Singh Ha are several blocks away.)

Siam Rice is awful. My friend sometimes eats there 3x a week! I don't understand how they do so well. I've never been or seen My Thai or Singh Ha. How are they?

Singha is on Clark just north of the river, and it's pretty bad. In fact, I'd say that Siam Rice is way better than Singha, just in my experience. Not that I'm particularly a fan of Siam Rice.

What was I thinking with the spelling of Singha? It's Friday. I like Siam Rice better than Singha, but Singha is less expensive and less crowded if those are factors you care about. I haven't been to My Thai, but it's on State Street just south of Jackson inside the DePaul building where the Barnes and Noble is.

It seems like Japanese places are proliferating somewhat downtown. There has been a Tokyo Express on Wells for quite some time, and there is now a second one in the Thompson Center. There is also another one (Toro?) in the food court with McDonald's at Clark and Lake.

PortPkPaul wrote: There is also another one (Toro?) in the food court with McDonald's at Clark and Lake.

It's related to the one on Clark in Lincoln Park. My brother love Toro's sushi. Their specialty is interesting rolls.