I don't mean to cause no fuss...but I ate at the YumBus

I've been eyeballing this place for a while, as I occasionally drive this somewhat forgotten stretch of Main Street in Skokie, and you can't miss the bright yellow exterior of the establishment - from the brightly-colored graphics, I extrapolated that it might be an Asian-fusion kind of place, maybe even Korean...but, as you can see, this was not to be:


Mildly disappointed, I went inside to check it out. The interior is homemade and homey, clearly a lot of thought was put into it, you get a bit of a granola-crunchy feeling - the menu describes their original mission to deliver freshly prepared lunches to businesses in the area.



The menu had some unfortunate names ("Yum-Nini") and the prices were fairly high ($4-7) for someone expecting hole-in-the-wall prices. However, the very kind counterman chatted with me while he took my order, mentioning that they did all the sweets baking in-house, and he gently upsold me a oatmeal/cranberry/chocolate chip cookie to go with my egg salad wrap. Apparently they've just begun offering the Saturday breakfast, and they aren't getting much in the way of customers at this point, as they apparently haven't been "discovered."

As I had errands to run, I opted to take my lunch to go, eating it in true LTHer fashion off the steering wheel of my car, which fortunately gives you a size comparison (a possible explanation for the $6.50 price tag) - Burrito Futbolero size.


I broke into it, and was delighted to see large chunks of egg and red lettuce.



While I'm not generally a fan of wraps, I liked this one: the egg salad was very good, especially if you tend towards egg-salad purism as I do: eggs (and a lot of them,) mayo and a hint of relish and maybe some parsley. Egg salad is also available as a, well, salad ("YumScoop.") I ate half, intending to save half...and kept going until it was all gone. Simple and nice, definitely fresh; I'd have added a bit of salt if I'd stayed in-house. The accompanying couscous salad also raised a warning flag, as these types of sides are usually an afterthought, but was surprisingly good as well: the red bits are sundried tomatoes, and it had an overall tangy flavor.



I'm sorry, I ate the cookie before I thought to snap it. Though saran-wrapped (another red flag,) it was good and fresh. It had a nice cinnamon/chocolate flavor and a good crunch, with some bright notes from the cranberries. Overall, despite my initial trepidation, my experience was positive and hopefully indicative of the rest of the menu.

I look forward to hearing what you all discover.

The YumBus Station
4010 Main St @ Crawford ave
Skokie, IL 60076
847-982-2877
http://www.yumbus.com

I'm pretty sure this used to be a thai place.

Yep. The Thai place wasn't too bad. I can't remember the name of it.

I had carry out at the YB a month or so ago. I agree that it was a bit pricy for what they served.

My husbands good pal's parents used to own that location but it was a diner and my grandfather-in-law used to own Tony's barber shop next door.

That would be the Douvris family that owned Skokie Noshery in that location since probably the late 1960's, for a long time. It was your typical 8-stool counter facing the grill and four booths in the back. Good grub--I would even take my then 2-year-old daughter there for breakfast when I lived in the vicinity in the late 80's.

But back when I was growing up in the 60's, you were considered a man about town at our grade school (Cleveland) if you could escape at lunchtime, pedal your bike like hell to 'The Nosh', grab a burger to go, and get back to the playground before the teachers or the principal were any the wiser. The mustard stains are what usually tipped them off, though...

Dave148 wrote:I had carry out at the YB a month or so ago. I agree that it was a bit pricy for what they served.

I'd love to hear more - what did you have, Dave?

I'm sorry, I don't recall the sandwich. I do remember it was the daily special.

I do remember hanging out at Noshery. Great greasy french fries. I lived in the neighborhood in the mid to late 60s.

YumBus is closed.

Dave148 wrote:YumBus is closed.

Sorry to hear when it happens to anyone's effort.

Big Thank You for putting the closing announcement on the thread discussing its life. I'd hate for someone to read it here, assume it is open and arrive to an empty storefront.

Regards,

No problem. I happened to drive past it the other day. No idea when it closed. Sorry I missed you last night.