Places to eat near Morton Arboretum

Hi all,

Can anyone suggest some nice places to eat that are near the Morton Arborteum? Not too expensive, preferably not a chain either.

Thanks,
Katy

Fabulous Noodles!

http://www.lthforum.com/bb/viewtopic.php?t=3858

There is also a room with a stunning view (but very average food) at the Arboretum itself.

There's a restaurant on the grounds, and the menu seems more or less acceptable:

http://www.mortonarb.org/res/menuSpring2007.pdf

That said, I'm sure there are more interesting places to eat around there. I mean, if you want to go into Naperville, which is not that far away, there's:

Masala Yangu
43 E. Jefferson Avenue
Naperville
630.922.9999

The Arboretum has a pretty decent eating place, it's done caferteria style and has several stations were items are prepared for you to order. The food was quite good and generous portions. The bonus is a wonderful view of the lake from floor to ceiling windows.

http://www.mortonarb.org/res/menuSpring2007.pdf

You are near a few of the better Chinese restaurants in Chicagoland.

Katy's Dumplings
665 N. Cass Avenue
Westmont, IL.

Lao Szechuwan
1331 Ogden Ave
Downers Grove

and the recommendation for Fabulous Noodles is a good one

Also for a good burger/rueben

Country House
6460 College Road
Lisle, IL.

Chef Paul's Bavarian Lodge - The best beer selection in the western burbs and pretty darn good German food. It's 100% smoke free also.

Chef Paul's Bavarian Lodge
1800 Ogden
Lisle, IL
www.bavarian-lodge.com

My suggestion would be to dine at the restaurant at the Arboretum. The food is perhaps not "LTH-worthy" but very good nonetheless, the view is spectacular, and the money you spend there will go to preserving one of the Chicago area's living treasures.

If you decide to leave the grounds for a meal, Fabulous Noodles is nearby, as is Lao Sze Chuan in Downers Grove -- both are on Ogden Avenue. Other places worth mentioning are Country House for a really good burger (they also have buffalo and ostrich burgers), Bella Pizza and Hot Dogs (a new venture from the folks at Gene & Jude's), and Yerbabuena (good food but erratic service). Country House is in the strip mall at College and Green Trails in Lisle, Bella is in the Seven Bridges complex on rt53 in Woodridge, and Yerbabuena is in downtown Lisle on Main St.

Oh, and I second the recco for Chef Paul's...if I left the Arboretum grounds, it is where I would go. Great German/Bavarian/Bohemian food with an equally great selection of beer. Note that since it became smoke-free, even in the (large) bar area, it has become a destination spot for the soccer-mom-family crowd...if there will be no children with you, dine in the bar area.

here's a look..
[img]http://www.melhill.com//morton/images/combo_4152.jpg[/img]

There are numerous restaurants in the Cantera area just west on I-88. For a bit more money I'd go to Mykha's (Vietnamese/French) in downtown Glen Ellyn (5 min. north) - very unique and delicious fare.

Chef Paul's is totally worth it. The proximity to the Arboretum makes it quite easy to find -- it's right on Ogden just before Yackley; you've gone too far if you hit the Family Video with its little obelisk.

Chef Paul's has a very extensive menu with many of the staples of German (and in particular, Bavarian) cuisine on it, ranging from soups to sausage to meat of all sorts. The portions are very generous and the atmosphere of the dining room is really quite attractive. I loved seeing the postcard of the Matterhorn and the rest of the interior with that dark, German brewhouse feel. Sorry, I can't recall from the top of my head what I ordered the last time I was there.

Fabulous Noodles is worth checking into, but they're not open on Mondays. If you drive a little farther along Ogden from there, you can also try out Joy Yee Noodles (it's at Ogden and Iroquois, the lights after Naper Boulevard). Joy Yee is always busy, the portions are enormous, but they are really fantastic. Go ahead and have one of the fancy drinks -- the bubble teas are worth it, but the frozen fruit milk teas or the slushies are definitely worth getting, especially where strawberries are involved. I wholeheartedly recommend the BBQ pork noodles at Fabulous Noodles too.

FWIW the food service at the Ginkgo Room and Restaurant is provided by Aramark.

It isn't bad but lacks some of the charm of on site prepared food. In addition to all the great places already mentioned, downtown Lisle hosts Yurbabuena, a decent Mexican restaurant that's been mentioned on this site before.

If you're at the Arboretum on a Wednesday, Saturday or Sunday before the end of October, you can get food grilled outside as part of Fall Color Festival.

I'm glad to hear about Chef Paul's, I've wondered about it several times.

I have to say, though, the question of where to eat after the Morton Arboretum comes down to a simple choice for us-- Fabulous Noodles or Katy's? Katy's usually wins, but no slight intended to Fabulous Noodles.

I'm sure there are other pretty good choices nearby, and less good ones, but-- c'mon. Katy's. You're that close to Katy's! What do you want, a red shirt invitation?