Johnny D's - Grayslake, IL

Hands down, its the Best Seafood in Northern Lake County

Located in a shopping strip just east of the Grayslake post office right before the Piggly Wiggly on Center Street, I spied what looked to be a newer storefront in what used to be the Jake’s Pizza, and in the front window was the familiar Red Hot Chicago sign in front, so I’m thinking quick, cheap & perfect!

Walking to the front I also caught a glimpse of the “angus burgers” & “Genuine Broaster Chicken” posters in the windows, so I’m thinking OK, I’ve been looking for a chicken place, maybe, just maybe…

Nothing about this very typical looking hot dog, burger & chicken place could have prepared me for the meal and the other menu offerings inside. To say Johnny D’s is very unassuming is the understatement of the year!! I'm also thinking of how the adage to never judge a book by it cover applies here as well.

The place is very clean and homey inside. It almost feels like two places loosely sharing one space, which sort of fits the dual personalities of the place. The front half, has an open counter and room for 2 four seat tables, which are in the window. And along the side, going all the way back is a seafood place. I’ll call the front one Johnny D’s, and the back one the new Pier 83. From the front counter you get a clear view of the well equipped kitchen.

We were quickly seated and handed a multi page menu: HOLY COW!! this is NOT just a hamburger & hot stand, there's everything under the sun in here!

I come to find out that Johnny D’s happens to be the former owner of an old Lake County fine dining establishment called Pier 83. Here’s a quote from the owners web homepage:

“About 20 years ago, here in Grayslake, Illinois, we had a restaurant called Johnny D’s Pier 83. It was a very successful and popular place to meet and enjoy fine dining. We capitalized on seafood; however, we had an assortment of entrees to please everyone

Due to a fire and other circumstances we chose to close our doors and recover our losses.

For the last 18 years, Susan and I have been doing the food service at the Lake County Fairgrounds. We had a café style restaurant on weekends and during shows that would happen during the year. We have always yearned to serve our fine fare and seafood along with our café style food.

Due to the sale of the Fair Grounds, we have decided to leave that period of our lives and begin a new venture here in Grayslake. It will not be the gourmet dining you may remember at the Old Pier 83, but we assure you the quality and style will be unsurpassed. We will have seasonal items as well as all the things you need for a versatile selection for your lunch or dinner.

We believe Fish Fry is for every day, not just Friday. We also feature take out Chicken, Beef, Ribs and Pork dishes as part of our entrees.

We appreciate you giving Johnny D’s Diner on Center a try and we hope we can make this a regular experience for you, your family and your friends.

Thank you

John & Sue Doetsch”

So now I’m really intrigued, but the skeptic voice in me is screaming “Burt, places with menus this big always seem to disappoint”, and as I look deeper into the menu, I see that in addition to the seafood, they also offer BBQ! Smoked pork loin and ribs. Hmm, now wait a minute! Do they really have a smoker?? So I ask!

Turns out, my voices were dead wrong! Johnny D’s cooks everything in house, fresh from scratch. And yes, they have a smoker, a smaller Southern Pride as a matter of fact. “Do you want to come see it??” I’m asked. “Yes!!”

Sure enough, they’re smoked pork loins and cut me a sample, its good! Well I’ll be damned, that's just more stuff to mull over on what to get for dinner, I was not expecting all this!

Andrew and I split an order of hand breaded fresh Mexican brown jumbo gulf shrimp, they offer them two ways; Johnny D’s or Pier 83, I opt to split the order for a taste of both. We get a rack of ribs, and a 4 piece chicken dinner.

The shrimp & chicken come out first along with some excellent homemade peppery coleslaw. Oh my Gawd!! I’m in awe, these guys over delivered on quality! The shrimp are huge, perfectly cooked, and both the of the hand breading’s are magnificent! If pressed, I’d have to say that I preferred the lighter Pier 83 version over the slightly heavier and saltier Johnny D version, but I really loved them both.




Next up was the broasted chicken, and again Johnny D’s hit another home run! This chicken is excellent, it’s moist and fluffy inside with a crunchy, delicious breading on the exterior. One of the best examples of broasted that I’ve ever tasted.

The ribs were next, I liked them but didn't love them. I thought there was a bit too much smoke on my batch, plus I should have asked for the sauce on the side (my mistake, I forgot). Otherwise they were cooked perfectly to the right doneness and tenderness without being overdone and falling off the bone.

I loved everything that night an promised them a return visit soon.

As it would turn out, that next visit would come just few day later. I brought with me a couple that we dine out with very frequently. We showed up with a troop of kids too, making us a party of 8. We filled up the dining area pretty good, and just as with the previous visit, the service we experienced was quick and attentive with John & Sue being gracious hosts. On both of my visits, John & Sue have provided excellent service, and I noticed that they make sure they stop by everyone's table to make sure everything is the best it can be.

On this visit, we tried the fish fry, the broiled tilapia dinner, an Angus burger & the Polish sausage.

The polish sausage was HUGE! With its girth and length equaling that of a full Polish Kielbasa, in fact it was quite overwhelming, but very tasty and more than satisfying. We ordered it Maxwell St. style, but I think it really should be ordered with the sauerkraut, because trying to eat this behemoth on a bun was quite challenging!

The burger wasn't on my plate for me to get a taste of, but it looked delicious, I could tell it was a hand formed 1/2 lb meat patty and then nicely grilled over a flame.

As we were finishing up lunch and getting ready to leave, John brought out a sample of his country ribs fresh our of the Southern Pride. They were tender, smoky and delicious. I want to go back and try more of the BBQ, as I think it has a great deal of promise. The problem is, that I’m going crazy over loving everything here and I just cant seem to focus!!

One thing is for sure; the fish and chicken are what really shine here. The fish fry special is not only a tremendous value, it’s one of the best I’ve tasted anywhere. Johnny D’s offers a large variety of fresh fish, and if your a displaced Wisconsinite or Minnesotan, this just might be your seafood salvation in Lake County. They have Bluegill, Perch, Canadian Walleye, Whitefish and even Smelts! As well as the more standard Chicagoland fish offerings of Icelandic cod and catfish. Be sure to look at the website seafood menu as it seems to have a more extensive listing of the available seafood options than the menu at the table does, or… just ask! if you ask at the restaurant for any of those items they gladly serve them up.



Johnny D’s has so impressed me on my several visits, that I am only happy to name them as having both the Best Fried/Broasted Chicken in Lake County AND as having the Best Seafood in Lake County.

I’m really glad I found this restaurant gem nearby!!

Wow! Something dining worthy in Grayslake. I'm impressed.

Johnny D's Diner & Take-Out
827 Center St
Grayslake, IL 60030-1648
(847) 223-2442
http://www.jddiner.com

BTW - where's the dividing line between Northern Lake County & Southern Lake County? Just curious.

Dave148 wrote:Wow! Something dining worthy in Grayslake. I'm impressed.

Johnny D's Diner & Take-Out
827 Center St
Grayslake, IL 60030-1648
(847) 223-2442
http://www.jddiner.com

BTW - where's the dividing line between Northern Lake County & Southern Lake County? Just curious.

Although I've never seen anything formal ever published, I know most of my neighbors and I tend to think of Rt60 as the imaginary dividing line.

I know that physically looking at it on a map, it looks like it should be Rt137, but then that would split Libertyville.

So I guess I think of it as anything north of Hawthorn mall.

HI,

I know Johnny and Sue quite well. When I was once involved in managing the 4-H pop sales at the Lake County Fair. All our Pepsi products were purchased through them.

I had noticed there was a change of ownership for the on-the-premises full time catering at the fair grounds. The new concession uses predominately premade food requiring heating up instead of cooking. Johnny and Sue offered freshly made eggs and potatoes whether it was during the fair or for the flea markets.

Until this thread, I assumed they retired. I'm glad I have another opportunity to interact with them. I will just have to pick up Mom2 for dinner there very soon.

Thanks!

Regards,

abf005 wrote:

Dave148 wrote:BTW - where's the dividing line between Northern Lake County & Southern Lake County? Just curious.

Although I've never seen anything formal ever published, I know most of my neighbors and I tend to think of Rt60 as the imaginary dividing line.

I know that physically looking at it on a map, it looks like it should be Rt137, but then that would split Libertyville.

So I guess I think of it as anything north of Hawthorn mall.

I don't know about up in Gurnee, but I've lived in other parts of Lake County (north and south of Route 60) all my life, and I've never heard anyone talk about "northern" vs "southern" Lake County in terms of food or any other kind of destination. So why do we need to draw any sort of line here?

Katie wrote:

abf005 wrote:

Dave148 wrote:BTW - where's the dividing line between Northern Lake County & Southern Lake County? Just curious.

Although I've never seen anything formal ever published, I know most of my neighbors and I tend to think of Rt60 as the imaginary dividing line.

I know that physically looking at it on a map, it looks like it should be Rt137, but then that would split Libertyville.

So I guess I think of it as anything north of Hawthorn mall.

I don't know about up in Gurnee, but I've lived in other parts of Lake County (north and south of Route 60) all my life, and I've never heard anyone talk about "northern" vs "southern" Lake County in terms of food or any other kind of destination. So why do we need to draw any sort of line here?

Why indeed? Its not like its the city, with every few blocks having their own identity, or being part of the Northside, Westside or Southside. After all, Lake County only occupies a land area that covers 448 square miles. So why would 713,000 people want to know what side of town they were on, how silly!

You should check out the restaurant it's in Lake county...

Katie,

When I was active at University of Illinois Extension in Grayslake. I was regarded as the one who came from so far away. I never did hear the designation of northern Lake County, either.

If I were even thinking of how the county was divided, Route 60 seems a bit low. It is roughly ten miles to Buckley Road from my house and another 15 roughly from there to the Wisconsin border. Buckley Road seems more like a dividing line. There is a cultural gap between North Chicago and points north than from Lake Bluff and points south.

Truthfully I don't have this north-south issue, I just roam about the county.

Now some years ago there was an interesting Farm Bureau exhibit at the Lake County Fair. In 1970, Lake County was approximately 90% agricultural. Twenty-five years later it had flipped: 90% residential and 10% agricultural. I could easily see those who lived through this transition as feeling us-vs-them. Since I am part of the 'them,' I am somewhat oblivious to the social chaffing that may be out there.

Regards,

After seeing the reviews on LTH, we went to Johnny D's last night with a couple friends, seeing that it's about a 15 minute drive tops from my abode.

It's at once a weird combination of strip-mall hot dog joint & someone's house, if that can be imagined. We sat at one of a narrow row of 4 tops in a sort of hallway, right near the kitchen door.

Johnny is a trip. He spent time with us explaining what's good tonight (catfish good, blue gill, soup not) and chatting with cronies in the storefront while cooking for us. His wife Sue was great in serving our meals & refilling our drinks. A very home-y feel.

The food? Raw oysters on the half-shell, a buck apiece, were very good--fresh blue points I believe--while the oysters Rockefeller--$2 apiece--were tasty but too cheesy & had chunks of raw onion that hadn't been sauteed, IMO not worth the extra money. One of our crew at poor man's lobster broiled (probably a monkfish) and she said it was fine but a bit salty, although her dirty rice and sauteed zucchini was really nice. My other companion had the daily fish fry, with roasted potato wedges & coleslaw (decent, nothing special) for $5.95, and he deemed that very solid. My broasted catfish (also $5.95) with the same sides except potatoes O'Brien was very nice--a thick, juicy filet that for me was the highlight of the meal.

At these prices, Johnny D's is definitely worth a couple more tries, to find that personal sweet spot of an entree item that will make it a regular haunt for me.

Cathy2 wrote:Truthfully I don't have this north-south issue, I just roam about the county.

Me too.

The best food finds in Lake County will eventually get their own threads by name, just like the best finds in Cook County.

Cathy2 wrote:Now some years ago there was an interesting Farm Bureau exhibit at the Lake County Fair. In 1970, Lake County was approximately 90% agricultural. Twenty-five years later it had flipped: 90% residential and 10% agricultural. I could easily see those who lived through this transition as feeling us-vs-them. Since I am part of the 'them,' I am somewhat oblivious to the social chaffing that may be out there.

I'm with you there too. In my mind's eye and in my roaming around, most of what's west of I-94 is the same beautiful corn field, apple grove, farm stand, horse farm country it was back then. That there's an overlay now of more homes, more businesses, and more traffic in some parts doesn't really bother me. The good bones are still there.[quote]

Katie wrote:
The best food finds in Lake County will eventually get their own threads by name, just like the best finds in Cook County.

I agree, it will look pretty sad if the thread dedicated to Johhny D's ends up being a debate on directions & geography. A better place for us to move that discussion would be here, dont you think?

Nice write up jnm123, I completely agree, the place is hard to define on ambience, but easy to enjoy and off the charts on the value scale, glad you tried it.

at least the spelling and punctuation were ok Burt..thats the usual fodder

abf005 wrote:
it will look pretty sad if the thread dedicated to Johhny D's ends up being a debate on directions & geography.

I agree with you Burt, talk about the food.

Looks like a great place, and a great find, why no pics of the bbq?(i know I have a one track mind)

I grew up in Grayslake and my Mom still lives there, it always lacked dining options (IMO of course). I'm thrilled to hear about this place! I try to avoid this strip center as much as possible too, I'm quite glad you posted this, thanks!

It's closed.