The 'spouse and I were running errands the other day, and decided to stop by Patty's for lunch.

Man, you guys weren't kidding about that burger!

Regretfully, I didn't take pictures, but had the very good Corned Beef and Cabbage special (not Celtic Knot, but good nonetheless) with very good Navy Bean soup - and all I could scam off the 'spouse's burger and fries - BTW, Patty fries a mean fry as well.

Talking about Sparky's

Mhays wrote:I want to go back for the breakfast, because it seems to me that they might do better at that.

Mhays,

I had late breakfast today at Sparky's, crisp hash browns*, over easy eggs, sausage and an English muffin. Not necessarily a candidate for Best in Chicago, but nicely executed by Gus the grill man and served with a wink, smile, and song for that matter, by a friendly raven hair grandmother type who the regulars seem to adore.

Sparky's is not going to replace Patty's or Moon's Sandwich Shop as my diners of choice, but an overall nice experience.

Enjoy,
Gary

Sparky's Snack Stop
3624 Oakton St
Skokie, IL 60076
847-673-1002

* I asked for the hash browns crisp

I was at Patty's for lunch today. I learned that Patty doesn't serve the creamed turkey in the summer. But that's OK with me, because I can't remember the last time I was served potato salad that was made in-house. This was part of a combination plate of (fresh daily) tuna, chicken and potato salad with cottage cheese and big slices of cantaloupe and watermelon and a pile of grapes. And, since it's the lunch special, it's served with a cup of soup and that nice, soft, buttered house made white bread. With coffee and tax it came to $7.50, which is quite a deal, if you ask me.

Apparently some people who read about Patty's here have been showing up around closing time on Sundays, and Patty hates to turn anyone away, so Susie asked me to remind people that Sunday closing time is at 1PM, though the rest of the week they stay open until 2PM. I edited the original post to reflect this.

Hi,

Interesting the creamed turkey is a cold weather menu item. Snack'N'Go in Amboy, IL has the same policy. Makes me nuts actually because I have yet to get to Amboy when creamed chicken was available. Someday!

Regards,

I've gotta confess- that I've driven out of my way- many a Sunday- to savor the peppery goodness of Patty Ham Hash w/ a couple SunnySIDE Ups on top.
<i>This last Sunday was my last visit, though.</i>
G.F. and I called to ask- "what time do you stop <b>serving</b> today?"
and were told 1:00 on Sunday.
Since I was Biking along the Sculpture Path on McCormick>into the Green Bay Trail- what better reward than a great breakfast at Patty's?
So- when we rolled in at 12:42- and were "gruffly" greeted with..."we close at 1"...followed with a quick scan to notice no seats at the tables (save for a deuce in the window)- we were a bit taken aback- but then when one of the waitress told another NOT to let us sit at a table(s) - & that "there's space at the counter"...she yelled to us...and then:: after seeing there was no space at the counter - proceed to further say that they closed at 1:00- it became clear that they didn't WANT any more customers- be they repeat customers who come there a lot & tip nicely or not.

So we left.
Why own a restaurant, or any food service establishment that is open to the public- if you don't want any customers?
There's lots of other dives to eat Breakfast in ChicagoLand- I don't think I'll be going back to this one.

As unpleasant as that experience was for you, the gruffness of the staff is one of the most endearing parts of Patty's for me.

Endearing/Schmendearing.......if I want to be treated poorly- I'll call my brother!
When I go to any "food <b>SERVICE</b>" establishment- that, is part of my expectations - S E R V I C E !
Also, I have a personal philosophy of not giving my money to those that don't appreciate it....call me cheap/poor- but I work too hard to make my $$$$- and wish to spread it out where it's "honored"/appreciated.
That's all.

I left an hour or so before you came in, but I could tell those ladies needed that day to end. Very hot; emotions were running high. I'm sure you can understand.

You have to appreciate their work, I know I could never do what they do.

I've been at Patty's on at least a couple of occasions when the language flying around was as peppery as the hash. At first, it did make me a bit uncomfortable but I just kept my head down and finished my breakfast. Now, I pretty much view it as 'charming' but of course, it's never been directed at me.

And namram is so right, I could never do the work those ladies do. That's one tough gig and I do appreciate it.

=R=

Josephine wrote:Apparently some people who read about Patty's here have been showing up around closing time on Sundays, and Patty hates to turn anyone away, so Susie asked me to remind people that Sunday closing time is at 1PM, though the rest of the week they stay open until 2PM. I edited the original post to reflect this.

My sense is that Patty and her staff were trying to be nice about it, and also to communicate their limits when they reminded me about the 1 PM Sunday closing. That's why I posted this.

Hombre de Acero wrote:<i>This last Sunday was my last visit, though.</i>

Cool - less competition for seats.

Yeah, sometimes the tempers run hot - and boy if you are sitting at the counter behind Patty when that's going down it's quite the show. I agree with the other comments that there's no way I could do what they do. But no way am I giving up on the ham hash, eggs, and gravy over everything that just makes my day (and the side show can be sort of a daylight version of Weiner Circle).

LTH hasn't steered me wrong yet!

Went to Patty's for "lunch" today and ordered up the Corned Beef Hash with a side of wheat toast. Very good, very fresh homemade from scratch CBH. Two over-easy eggs sitting atop huge chunks of fresh corned beef mixed with crispy potatoes. Really, really good.

I wish I would have seen the lovely, beautiful hunk of Ham in the corner before ordering - I'll go the the ham hash next time for sure.

R.I.P. Johnny Uncle Jim's as my monthly breakfast stop. Patty's knocked you out in the first round. Not even close - and I like JUJ's alot.

Great LTH recommendation!

Now, I must confess, I would not call the service "friendly" in the least but it's not quite "abrasive" either. I despise surly, disrespectful treatment of patrons whether actual or of the faux-Ed Debevics kind. At Patty's, I'd call the service serious. Only a handful of customers were there today, so conditions were optimal. It's like going to Johnny's Beef or any other place where food/orders are turned-over quickly. You need to be ready with your order...and if you're not you deserve some shit in my book.

I thought I was in a rerun of Alice for a few minutes. This is a great little diner.

Bster

We must have passed in Patty's today Bster. Went with the Missus and youngest daughter before she heads back to school in the wilds of Bloomington-Normal. I also did not get my usual ham hash this morning, and opted for the "garbage" omelette, which was (as expected) very, very good. The Missus did a cheese omelette (which I finished for her) and youngest had scrambled eggs. Service was the same as always....quick, efficient and no-frills. All in all it was fairly quiet in there today...from both customers and staff!!

LuvstoEat:

I was there from about 12:45p to 1:15p or so...didn't see any children or female patrons. We must have just missed each other. I'm sure the omeletes are great! But, Why go for the single bypass fare when triple bypass selections are available...LOL! I can't imagine opting for anything other than the Corn Beef or Ham Hash for the first dozen or so visits.

What a really good place!


Bster

Bster....

We actually rolled ourselves out of Patty's about noon-ish...

I have already done way more than a dozen or so ham and/or corned beef hash's. I figure it's a win-win situation. I get to indulge in wonderful food, Patty makes a buck or two off of me, and the cardiologist can bill the insurance company fairly regularily!!! Could there possibly be a downside???

LuvstoEat wrote: Could there possibly be a downside???

Well, aside from death, I can't think of one.

And what's your point????

Touche.

i have got to try this place one day... thanks for the heads up ladies and gents!

Patty's will be closed for vacation August 30th through September 5th. They will reopen on September 6th.

can I respond to Hombre de Acero for a sec?

When I go to any "food SERVICE" establishment- that, is part of my expectations - S E R V I C E !

what kind of service do you expect for your six dollars? You're not dealing w/ employees, you're dealing w/ owners at Patty's, no? I would think they know if they want your six dollars or not in that particular moment. Have we all become so accustomed to the 24 hr convenience store w/ minimum wage clerks from another country, that we expect others not to be able to say, "Hey, I've had enough for today, I have church at 3pm and it's gonna take an hour just to get these people out and then I have to clean up, I think we should close" Is that not a respectful position? Obviously, the attention from this site has increased their business and maybe they're not yet up to speed for the crowds yet. I know it ghurts business to do it, but sometimes one has to just to maintain some sanity.

On the other hand. I went to a 2005 GNR awardee last week and paid $150 for 2 ,w/o tip, for a waiter that admitted to not knowing the wine list at all, a bread plate w/ no bread, ..ever; appetizers delivered 5 minutes apart, entrees delivered 10 minutes apart, the first to the one of us that was in the bathroom at the time; a 15 minute wait to see the dessert menu, and another fifteen minutes to return for the dessert order. At which point I asked for the check,(becuase it could only get worse), yet I added the check w/ tax in my head faster than the waiter did on the register, and he had no other tables.

there's fining dining and not fine dining. if I pay $28 for a duck that I know cost only $4 to execute, I expect the other $24 are going to pay for the service employee costs. such as a sommelier, a busboy, a food runner, a host. Silly me, I guess that's why every other table was having the 1/2 priced burger.

And to top it all off, I know one of the owners of this place, so it pains me to say bad things about it, but apparently none of the staff know him.

and- w/out making this personal...
let me respond to DK...

can I respond to Hombre de Acero for a sec?

Quote:
When I go to any "food SERVICE" establishment- that, is part of my expectations - S E R V I C E !

Generally speaking - part of ANY dining/food experience breaks down into 3 components (allthough James Ward is happy w/ just Bread & Circus)
Food
Service
Ambience
Now- when I go out to enjoy a fine dining experience- I count each of them, as an important element of the 'experience".
When I go to Maxwell Street, I generally give less credence to the "Service" and "Ambience" in my overall judgement of that Business.

But, as a former Caterer, Manager of a 50K ft2 nightclub that did Food Service, and a fmr.Lettuce Entertain You Rater Rater( 2times)....I think I know of what I speak.....that ANY Food Establishment- from a Charlie Trotters to a Cafeteria, needs to pay attention to their customers, and that includes not "kicking them out"/verbally harranguing them, before a place closes! (I arrived a full 15 minutes b4 they closed!)

Service, is perhaps one element of this important Triumverant- but, can seriously overPower/outweigh even the most awesome Ham-on-Bone Hash around - iffn the service is poor/hostile.

Hombre de Acero wrote:and- w/out making this personal...
let me respond to DK...

can I respond to Hombre de Acero for a sec?

Quote:
When I go to any "food SERVICE" establishment- that, is part of my expectations - S E R V I C E !

Generally speaking - part of ANY dining/food experience breaks down into 3 components (allthough James Ward is happy w/ just Bread & Circus)
Food
Service
Ambience
Now- when I go out to enjoy a fine dining experience- I count each of them, as an important element of the 'experience".
When I go to Maxwell Street, I generally give less credence to the "Service" and "Ambience" in my overall judgement of that Business.

But, as a former Caterer, Manager of a 50K ft2 nightclub that did Food Service, and a fmr.Lettuce Entertain You Rater Rater( 2times)....I think I know of what I speak.....that ANY Food Establishment- from a Charlie Trotters to a Cafeteria, needs to pay attention to their customers, and that includes not "kicking them out"/verbally harranguing them, before a place closes! (I arrived a full 15 minutes b4 they closed!)

Service, is perhaps one element of this important Triumverant- but, can seriously overPower/outweigh even the most awesome Ham-on-Bone Hash around - iffn the service is poor/hostile.

You're right, of course, you're right. Rude service is rude service, I don't care what they're serving. Let's face it - that's an inarguable premise. It's the utmost silliness to claim that you should take abuse because someone's ham hash is sooooo good. Maybe some are willing to do it, but I don't blame you for not. That is capitalism, pure and simple. You can choose to take you business elsewhere.

LTH,

Had a wonderful breakfast at Patty’s this past Saturday morn’. The lady and I strolled in around 9ish. She was starving and I was a little apprehensive as I expected a long wait at this presumptively peak time of the day and week. The lady can be an absolute monster when she’s too hungry and we didn’t want the monster to come out.

However, my waiting concerns were unrealized as we walked in and saw only one of the handful of tables full and only 3 of the 15-20 or so bar seats occupied. Kind of surreal at the supposed peak weekend breakfast time, but good for us! The monster did not make an appearance….this time.

The lady is very picky about her breakfast and generally will only order French toast or pancakes. I can’t ever imagine ordering either of these dishes, but to each their own. Anyway, the lady opted for the pancakes and loved them. Remarking only that she ate too much and would only get a half order next time.

I opted for the Ham Hash having gotten the fabulous Corned Beef Hash last time. The Ham Hash was simply one of the best plates of food I’ve ever had. Fresh chunks off a displayed bone-in ham, meshed with taters topped off with two over-easy eggs and some red hot sauce. Remarkable. Very, very good. Real damned good. Spectacular.

Because it was slow we struck up a conversation with Patty and the other server working that morning. Patty remembered I had asked about the Old Potatoes mentioned on LTH and she cooked some up for me to try gratis, they were pretty good, though I like the taters that came with the Ham Hash better.

Patty mentioned that the patronage was sparse that morning due to the air show being in town. She noted that every year for the 17 years she’s been there the air show slows down the business. She also felt the economy being beaten up the last couple weeks along with a focus on back-to-school expenses for some of her regulars’ children might have something to do with it.

I like their coffee too, don’t love it, but I like it.

I really, really love this place.

I think our meal came to $15, I just gave them $20. They deserved it.

Bster

Josephine wrote:Patty’s Diner
3358 Main St. (just West of McCormick)
Skokie, IL 60076
(847) 675-4274
Open Mon-Sat until 2PM, Sunday until 1PM

As of noon today, Patty's Diner was closed. Perhaps it's now closed on Mondays? Anyhow, best to call ahead prior to going.

Yes, closed on Mondays.

aschie 30--Thanks for pointing out this error. I will correct the original post. I'm sorry if you drove from West Town only to be disappointed! My mistake.

Josephine wrote:aschie 30--Thanks for pointing out this error. I will correct the original post. I'm sorry if you drove from West Town only to be disappointed! My mistake.

No problem - I went to Poochie's instead. I'd never been there, either, so all was not lost.

LTH,

Patty's has become a semi-regular visit for me especially on weekend mornings. I've probably be there alomost 10 times by now.

A few weeks ago, as I sit at the diner bar contemplating my order, I could just not decide whether to get the Ham Hash or Corned Beef Hash - so Patty opined that I should get the Ham/Corned Beef Hash Combo. Well, OK, let's do it - I chimed.

The verdict - I love the Ham Hash. I love the Corned Beef Hash. I do not like the Combo at all. It suffers from an identity crises. Too many flavors and clashing between the ham and corned beef ruined th dish. It wasn't horrible but it wasn't good either. Kind of a mushy mess with no discernable flavor emanating through.

Went back last Saturday morning and had the Ham Hash. Perfect, as always.

Lesson leanred.

Bster

We made our approximately monthly pilgrimage to Patty's today for a late breakfast. As usual, the food was great and the service was friendly. It was very nice seeing Patty's GNR award hanging on the front door and I would have snapped a pic, but it was raining. Here, however, are a few shots of our meal . . .


Biscuits and Gravy
I like these at Depot American Diner and CJ's but the B&G at Patty's are my favorites. Our party split this half-order as a "starter."



Ham Hash with Old Potatoes and Scrambled Eggs
Patty is very accomodating. Want your ham hash made with old potatoes instead of regular? Just ask!



Ham and Cheese Sandwich on House-Made Roll, with Fries
It's so nice to get ham off the bone when ordering a sandwich.



My usual . . . Ham and American Cheese Omelet with Old Potatoes



Rye toast, buttered

=R=