My favorite burgers in the NW 'burbs.

I do love Red Robin's Whiskey River BBQ burger, but I do like a couple burgers out here better.
#1: The Tracks, 108 W. Main St. Cary (right by the train station) I think all their food is great. The best bar food in the area, but I really enjoy the burgers.

#2: The Cottage in Crystal Lake on the corner of Crystal Lake Ave. and Grant St. I like the cheddar burger with tater tots.

I don't know how to describe why I like them so much, I just do.

The best burger in the NW burbs, in my humble opinion, is at Di Pescara at Northbrook Court. It arrives on a pedestal sitting above the plate itself, accompanied by nice crisp frites, a house made thousand island dressing, and ketchup. It is just fantastic, and by far the best LEYE burger.


Di Pescara
www.di-pescara.com
2124 Northbrook Ct
Northbrook, IL 60062
(847) 498-4321

Slim, I really enjoy your posts alot, and new ideas out this way. I've never tried The Tracks or The Cottage, and thanks to you for great Mexican!! I'll be trying both of these soon!

I'll second the mention of The Tracks. Went last year while visiting my folks in a nearby burb and they have a great burger!

Jamie

Don't forget GNR Winner Paradise Pup!


Photo: Ronnie Suburban

Paradise Pup
1724 S. River Rd
Des Plaines
847-699-8590

Tortfeasor wrote:The best burger in the NW burbs, in my humble opinion, is at Di Pescara at Northbrook Court. It arrives on a pedestal sitting above the plate itself, accompanied by nice crisp frites, a house made thousand island dressing, and ketchup. It is just fantastic, and by far the best LEYE burger.


Di Pescara
http://www.di-pescara.com
2124 Northbrook Ct
Northbrook, IL 60062
(847) 498-4321

First of all since when is Northbrook in the NW burbs? It's the North Shore. The guy who started this thread is taking about places in McHenry county - now that is the NW burbs!

That being said - I agree with you. Di Pescara's burger is now one of my favorites. It's a 9 ounce beauty on a brioche bun. But I do a little with it. One, I order it medium, since they tend to overcook the burgers and it comes out perfect (with just a hint of pink). I flip it over and add these things to the bottom - I put a lot of black pepper on it, I add worcestershire sauce, a little butter (yes! Fat = flavor!), and ketchup. On the top I might leave the lettuce on (depends on my mood) and I ask for crispy onion strings which I add to the top. Sometimes I get bacon too. It's amazing. The fries are a little different than the norm but they taste great. Unfortunately for my gut they have a great (big) Caesar Salad and house bread that I have to get every time!

And this might fall into the NW burbs category - I had the Kobe Beef Burger at Cheesecake Factory (Old Orchard location) the other night for the first time and it was awesome. It normally comes with sauteed mushrooms and onions and that's it. I'm not a fan of mushrooms, so I had them hold them off, and I switched the sauteed onions for their crispy ones. I will get this again! Excellent quality of meat. I got mashed potatoes instead of fries - thumbs up.

Cheesecake Factory
Lincolnshire Commons
930 Milwaukee Ave.
Lincolnshire, IL 60069
(847) 955-2350

Woodfield Shopping Center
53 Woodfield Road, F-301
Schaumburg, IL 60173
(847) 619-1090

First of all since when is Northbrook in the NW burbs? It's the North Shore. The guy who started this thread is taking about places in McHenry county - now that is the NW burbs!

No, it isn't. Northbrook is one - and sometimes two - 'burbs removed from the lake, depending on where you are with respect to Willow Road. Heck, Skokie is far closer to the lake than Northbrook.

If it's west of the Edens, it isn't on the North Shore, IMO.

Well, according to the Westin North Shore, the North Shore stretches all the way to Wheeling, colliding with Greater Woodfield.

When I'm being a purist, the North Shore includes only suburbs that touch the lake. But sundevilpeg's definition, east of the Edens, is good enough for most purposes. "North suburbs," with no shore, stretch a little farther west, but I don't agree that Wheeling and Prospect Heights are Chicago's North Suburbs, no matter what the CVB says.

For these lists, I used the Tri-State as the boundary between the north suburbs and the northwest suburbs.

NW burbs .... I still have to nominate Brandts tavern in Palatine. They have one damn good burger. Only downside is it is a bit pricey

I forgot about Brandts, and have to totally agree!! Unbelievably great burger!

Please folks, let's keep the discussion on this thread focused on our favorite burgers in the NW 'burbs and not on the associated geographical boundaries. If someone recommends a venue that you personally feel is not within the designated geographical area, feel free to ignore that recommendation and let other readers decide for themselves whether or not to give it a shot.

Thanks,

=R=
for the moderators

Had a great burger recently at Govnor's Public House in Lake in the Hills.

I have always liked the burgers and the prices at:

Jake Moran's
57 S Lake St
Mundelein

D.

My girlfriend used to live in Streamwood and we always liked the Assembly's selection of fine burgers (prepared on a grill right behind the bar). They serve the best burgers in the area (other than the chains, e.g. Portillo's, Culver's, etc.).

The Assembly
2570 Hassell Road,
Hoffman Estates, Illinois
(847) 843-3993

The Assembly's got my vote for BEST BURGER in the 'burbs. The Parmesan Burger is awesome . Absolutely one of,if not THE best burger I've ever had in my almost 43 years on the planet !!! That burger from Paradise Pup looks pretty darn good too,too bad I'm about 1200 miles away!! The 'burbs are definately NOT a vast wasteland burger wise or for that matter almost ANY type of food. Portillo's is always a solid option,I'm not a huge fan of Culver's.

Slim wrote:I do love Red Robin's Whiskey River BBQ burger...

I'm glad to see a little love for RR. I end up at the RR in Owings Mills, MD on my visits to look in on my mom, because the area right around the Hilton Garden Inn where I stay is bereft of non-chain options. So I go to RR more as a lesser-evil thing than anything else, and every time I do, I end up saying, "You know, this isn't just the lesser of evils--this burger-fries-and-beer is actually good!"

I frankly reallllly like Michael's in Highland Park. They have the best burgers!

Try the Bionic Burger at The Assembly 2570 Hassel Rd. Hoffman Estates. These babies have been keeping this place busy for over 25 years, Really pretty good.

ld111134 wrote:My girlfriend used to live in Streamwood and we always liked the Assembly's selection of fine burgers (prepared on a grill right behind the bar). They serve the best burgers in the area (other than the chains, e.g. Portillo's, Culver's, etc.).

The Assembly
2570 Hassell Road,
Hoffman Estates, Illinois
(847) 843-3993

I've heard such great things about The Assembly. I'll have to go there one of these days.

My contribution for a good burger is a new place near Algonquin commons called Double Jacks. They have elk and bison and even a pulled pork stuffed black angus burger. I had The Double Jack w/ an extra 1/3lb patty added and it was excellent. It was topped w/ white cheddar and their own special sauce plus garnish. Sloppy but great and cooked to a perfect medium rare like I ordered. They also make fresh cut french fries (nothing like a place in Chicago but very good w/ their chipoltle ketchup. Sadly there is no website that I have found or menu online.

Double Jacks
2380 Esplanade Drive, Ste. 101
Algonquin, Illinois 60102

Edit: I know this looks fishy being my first post and all but I am in no way affiliated w/ Double Jacks, just really enjoyed the burger.

cb150 wrote:
I had The Double Jack w/ an extra 1/3lb patty added and it was excellent.

I'm assuming that a double jack with an xtra patty made it a 1lb burger? How much did that run?

Some of the best hamburgers that I have had recently has been at Finn McCools in Crystal Lake. In addition to a hot and juicy hamburger, they also let you substitute steamed broccoli with garlic butter sauce in lieu of french fries.

Finn McCools
72 N. Williams St.
Crystal Lake, IL
847-303-4400

I have been to Double Jacks a couple of times and I found it just sort of all right. I really didn't find it worth the money.

gp60004 wrote:

cb150 wrote:
I had The Double Jack w/ an extra 1/3lb patty added and it was excellent.

I'm assuming that a double jack with an xtra patty made it a 1lb burger? How much did that run?

I might of worded it incorrectly but it was two 1/3lb pattys. Price for that was $10.99.

cb150 wrote:I might of worded it incorrectly but it was two 1/3lb pattys. Price for that was $10.99.

gp60004 wrote:

cb150 wrote:I might of worded it incorrectly but it was two 1/3lb pattys. Price for that was $10.99.

It's an upscale sports bar, kinda normal out this way unfortunatly

Sorry, but I also have to agree that Double Jacks is not worth the trip. My wife and I were excited when it first opened, but will likely never return after trying to give it the benefit of the doubt three different times.

1st trip: Bison burger was clearly pre-frozen, as the meat was so compressed that it had no texture whatesoever. As a result, it was also horribly dry once cooked. For $12, my wife was not happy at all.

2nd trip: Food was OK (we avoided any wild game this time, assuming it all arrived in pre-frozen form), but the service was HORRIBLE. We sat at the bar, ordered a beer and put in the food order. 40 minutes later, with no sign of food coming, the bartender informed us that our order had been lost, and he had just re-entered it. It took another 30 minutes after that for a chicken burger and a grilled cheese. No apologies, and most definitely no free beer on the house or any sort of other goodwill gesture--not good for a brand new restaurant. Thie was all compounded by the fact that one of the owners was right behind us telling a customer about all of his plans to franchise this place--learn to walk before you can run, buddy.

3rd trip: Got a "stuffed" poblano burger. If I hadn't known it was "stuffed", I NEVER would have guessed it--I think there about 2 little specks of pepper inside the meat. Again, for around $12. So, yeah, 3rd strike, you're out.

The one positive--the fries are really good. Which is a shame, because nothing else seems to be up to par. We were really hoping they would work out the kinks, but after about a month, nothing seems to have improved.

Good burger recommendations: Emmett's Tavern in West Dundee. They have a really nice (freshly pattied) bison burger for around $10. Country House in Geneva also makes some good burgers--beef, bison, ostrich. Finally, one other new joint in Geneva just opened called Urban Grill. Basically a pick your toppings type of place, but with beef, turkey, veggie, salmon (ground), etc., as the meat choices. Good fried pickles, too.

Oh, and Brass Brewery in South Barrington has some pretty tasty mini sliders for $1 on weeknights (from 4 to 7, I think?). Much bigger than what you would normally associate with a "slider".

I went to Double Jacks in September they had just opened and they had major problems. I just recently went back there and found the food to be excellent and the prices lower. I love the Stuffed pulled pork burger and their fries. Now if I want a burger I go there.

dodger wrote:I have always liked the burgers and the prices at:

Jake Moran's
57 S Lake St
Mundelein

D.

I live right near Jake Moran's but I've always been a little nervous about going there to eat, being, well, I'll admit it, female. It looks like the kind of place where a woman walking alone into would get some funny looks.

But I'm curious now so I'll steel my nerves and go check out their burgers.

There used to be a place called Moran's up in Highwood that everyone in my family loved for its corned beef sandwiches. We were sad when it lost its lease and closed.

The Assembly - very good, very messy burger Taylor Brewing beers
http://www.assemblyrestaurant.net/

Stonewood Ale House - Maybe a slight reach for the topic but Sunday 3-7 PM there's a 4.99 cheeseburger special. The kitchen has been very good at getting medium rare correct.
http://www.stonewoodalehouse.com/

Entourage - Very good burger, better than average surroundings
http://www.entourageventures.com/

Bogie's (formerly The Loft) on Kensington across from Randhurst does a very good burger.
Their Southwest Burger is overloaded: too many toppings, and the focacia roll, while stiff enough to hold up to the toppings is just too much bread.
But their patty melt? Heaven. Crisp outside, juicy burger that's never missed medium rare.
Get the onion straws with it.

My only gripe with Bogie's is "damn, people, buy a salad spinner!" I've rarely had a salad there that isn't floating in water at the bottom. Actually, it's been better lately, maybe they've shelled out $15 bucks at Bed Bath and Beyond.