Buffalo Grove and surrounding communities- a recommendation

Hi,

I will be in Chicago this weekend and are looking for a good restaurant, (not fine dining, not a chain) within reach of Buffalo Grove.

La Tasca in Arlington Heights is the right price point and vibe but a little noisy for a family that will include one three month old. Maybe it's not too loud at 6 pm??

Any suggestions in Palatine, Arlington Heights, Lake Zurich, Wheeling, Greenview or Libertyville would be appreciated.

Thanks,

Tim

I am not sure if you need a place which is family friendly or not.

Green Basil (Vernon Hills) - upscale Thai restaurant. My favorite dishes are drunken noodle, cashew chicken, and pad thai. The duck curry dish is also good. I think this is closer to Buffalo Grove than Libertyville.
Bob Chinn's Crabhouse (Wheeling) - some of the freshest seafood in the area. I have to get here before 4:30 to avoid the lines.
Firkins (Libertyville) - interesting dishes. See http://firkinoflibertyville.com/.

You did not mention if you were looking for Mexican food or not. There are good non-chain Mexican restaurants in Mundelein and Palatine. Mundelein should be about the same distance from Buffalo Grove as Libertyville.

The one Great Neighborhood Restaurant in the area is Chaihanna -- the only Uzbekistani restaurant in town, and a lot of fun. Highly recommend the blintzes, Chicken Tabak (cooked under a brick with oodles of garlic). Just south of Dundee on Buffalo Grove Rd.

If your group likes Indian food, I highly recommend India House, right in the center of Buffalo Grove.

A little beyond your range, at the corner of Wolf and Kensington Rds in Mount Prospect, is Salerno's- really great casual Italian. Fresh ingredients, they don't skimp on anything and very reasonable prices.

I recommend the pizza, paninis and any of the chicken entrees....oh, and the meat sauce is really good, too....I've never had anything bad there.

Salerno's
1716 E Kensington Rd
Mt Prospect, IL 60056-1900
(847) 699-2822
http://www.salernoscatering.com/

Couple French bistros in the surrounding areas:

Retro Bistro
1746 West Golf Rd.
Mt. Prospect, IL 60056
(847) 439-2424
http://www.retrobistro.com/menu.html

DJ Bistro
466 S Rand Rd
Lake Zurich, IL 60047-2359
(847) 438-8001
http://www.dj-bistro.com/indexE.htm

Also, this is a chain restaurant but good food, good price!
Biaggi's Ristorante Italiano
Deer Park Town Center
20560 North Rand Road
Deer Park, IL 60010
(847) 438-1850
http://www.biaggis.com/

JoelF wrote:The one Great Neighborhood Restaurant in the area is Chaihanna -- the only Uzbekistani restaurant in town, and a lot of fun. Highly recommend the blintzes, Chicken Tabak (cooked under a brick with oodles of garlic). Just south of Dundee on Buffalo Grove Rd.

I was at the dinner at Chaihanna we had last year and found the food acceptable but no more.

The whole time we were there, there were five other people in the restaurant.

Personally, the Chinese noodle shop next door was hopping and crowded and seemed like people were having a blast.

Pho U Restaurant
23 E Dundee Rd
Buffalo Grove, IL 60089-4383
(847) 353-3333

Jameson's Charhouse at 53 & Dundee, or Enzo & Lucia in downtown Long Grove.

http://www.jamesonsdundee.com/index.html

http://www.enzoandlucia.com/

Nghe wrote:Couple French bistros in the surrounding areas:

Retro Bistro
1746 West Golf Rd.
Mt. Prospect, IL 60056
(847) 439-2424
http://www.retrobistro.com/menu.html

DJ Bistro
466 S Rand Rd
Lake Zurich, IL 60047-2359
(847) 438-8001
http://www.dj-bistro.com/indexE.htm

Also, this is a chain restaurant but good food, good price!
Biaggi's Ristorante Italiano
Deer Park Town Center
20560 North Rand Road
Deer Park, IL 60010
(847) 438-1850
http://www.biaggis.com/

I would like to second the recommendation for D&J Bistro (if you like French bistros). The food is consistently high quality at a very good price. They also have a good Prix-Fixe menu. I like it more than Biaggi.

There's a family-owned Italian restaurant on Arlington Heights Rd, just south of Lake Cook called Pompeii (not related to the counter-service chain in the city). The owners are the Longobardi (sp?) family. VERY very good food.

4216 N Arlington Heights Rd
Arlington Hts, IL 60004-1372
(847) 259-0560‎

There were some comments here: http://maps.google.com/maps?oe=utf-8&rl ... 9200360600

Check out Smokin' T's BBQ in Long Grove. Their version of a beef brisket sammich is actually beef rib meat that has the perfect fat content and tender smoky goodness to make you feel like your money was not just well spent, but well invested. Also try their smoked chicken with their wonderful white sauce.

3976 Route 22, Suite A
Long Grove, IL 60047
(847) 726-0726

I second sujormik's recommendation for Pompeii Ristorante. We have been there many times and have always been extremely happy with the quality of the food and service. In addition to the regular menu, there is always a long list of specials. This is a family owned and operated restaurant. The only possible drawback is the owner who visits every table kibbiting, joking and sometimes even singing. Some of my family loves him...others don't. But, I wouldn't let that keep you from going there. The food is great. It's in a strip mall on the northwest corner of Arlington Heights Road and Lake Cook Road.

If you want good Chicago style deep dish pizza you can go to Lou Malnati's which is just east of Pompeii at Lake Cook Rd. and Buffalo Grove Rd.

Pompeii Ristaurante and Pizzeria
4216 N Arlington Heights Rd
Arlington Hts, IL 60004-1372
(847) 259-0560

Lou Malnati's
85 S. Buffalo Groive Rd.
Buffalo Grove, IL 60089
Phone: 847.215.7100

JoelF wrote:The one Great Neighborhood Restaurant in the area is Chaihanna -- the only Uzbekistani restaurant in town, and a lot of fun. Highly recommend the blintzes, Chicken Tabak (cooked under a brick with oodles of garlic). Just south of Dundee on Buffalo Grove Rd.

I just had dinner this evening at Chaihanna, and I second this suggestion. I've been there many times, and they have smoothed out the bumps they experienced at first, so the food is now consistently excellent, even on nights that aren't too busy. My top recommendations are the sour spinach (i.e., sorrel) soup (I'd go for this even if it were the only thing they served), the manti (huge dumplings) filled with either meat or pumpkin, the chicken tabaka mentioned above, the beef pilaf (the most common food in Uzbekistan, I was told by a friend who worked there with the Peace Corps), the lamb, and most of the salads (I had the spicy beet salad tonight -- yum). There is usually only one waiter, so service may not be perfect, but it is generally efficient and always cordial. I haven't had everything, but everything I've had has been good.

Just thought of another place -- a bit more modest, but excellent food and pleasant surroundings: Adams Cafe and Deli in Wheeling. Here's a thread on it, with photos: viewtopic.php?f=14&t=24697 $6.95 for lunch, $8.95 for dinner, $9.95 for weekends.

And in Northbrook, there's the excellent Prairie Grass Cafe: http://www.prairiegrasscafe.com/

And depending on the meal, Le Titi de Paris in Arlington Heights can be quite a bargain: their fixed-price lunch is $16. http://www.letitideparis.com/

And Long Grove has some lovely options, if that isn't too far.

This thread will point you at many north and northwest suburban options.

Downtown Arlington Heights has several options in your range, as do Vernon Hills and Wheeling. (I'd avoid Chinn's if noise is an issue.)

D&J Bistro also gets loud because of the wood floors. It is less noisy between 5 and 6 since the restaurant is not full at that time.

LAZ wrote:This thread will point you at many north and northwest suburban options.

Downtown Arlington Heights has several options in your range, as do Vernon Hills and Wheeling. (I'd avoid Chinn's if noise is an issue.)

Names would actually be helpful.

Tim

Cynthia wrote:J
And Long Grove has some lovely options, if that isn't too far.

It is too far, if I don't know where to go!

Tim wrote:

LAZ wrote:This thread will point you at many north and northwest suburban options.

Downtown Arlington Heights has several options in your range, as do Vernon Hills and Wheeling. (I'd avoid Chinn's if noise is an issue.)

Names would actually be helpful.

Tim

The names are "click," "mouse," and "read". I have some other names I'll keep to myself.

Long Grove is literally next door to Buffalo Grove; they share a border (west end of BG = east end of LG). In fact, Mrs. JiLS and I found ourselves in Long Grove just this Sunday, where we had a fine bar-food meal at the The Village Tavern in Long Grove. "Cute" and "charming" don't do half justice to Long Grove. Really, a great place that does an extraordinary (for similar Olde Country Townes of the Midwest) in preserving its past without being just a museum. I like the fact, for example, that the Village Tavern has been serving alcohol continuously since 1849; this simple fact gives me hope.

Tim wrote:

LAZ wrote:This thread will point you at many north and northwest suburban options.

Downtown Arlington Heights has several options in your range, as do Vernon Hills and Wheeling. (I'd avoid Chinn's if noise is an issue.)

Names would actually be helpful.

Tim

Tim,

If you click on the link provided by LAZ, you will be taken to a thread where the places are listed in a very user-friendly format.

=R=

Thanks, Ronnie. You are my much kinder translator.

Here is the Long Grove visitor info.

If you go to Long Grove during the day, I would recommend stopping by the following:

Long Grove Apple Haus (great apple cider donuts, apple cinnamon loaf, and brown bag apple pie)

Long Grove Confectionary (I go here for the dark chocolate pecan myrtle)

I don't know if you are looking for somewhere to go for breakfast. I recommend Walker Bros Original Pancake House (Lake Zurich) or Walker Bros Original Pancake House (Arlington Heights).

Kenny,

Sorry to have offended you.

Tim

I like the Village Tavern in Long Grove. I don't remember the daily specials, but I like rediscovering them whenever I go there. The bar is something to see - carved wood the full width and height of the room. A nice place to sit and talk.

Many years ago when I was little and my family lived in Buffalo Grove, my parents would trust us younger ones to the care of the older siblings and go out on a Friday night to stations of the cross and a fish dinner at the Village Tavern.