I agree that Candlelite seems to be back on their game. I recently discovered that they deliver to Evanston and we've ordered twice in the past couple weeks. Delivery was extremely fast both times and the crust was nice and cracker-y (ordered well done both times).

This is very good to know; thanks ek!

ChgoMike wrote:Candlelite pizza certainly experienced a dip in quality at some point, for reasons unknown. However, over the past 3-4 months in my experience, the crust and pizza is back to destination quality.

I share your sentiments. I didn't have my camera with me yesterday to take photos (it broke, and I just ordered a new one) and though the pie I ate during the first-half of the Bear's game wasn't as good-looking as the one I've pictured earlier (beause, I'm thinking, it was the smaller version and was topped differently) the crust was classic cracker-style and it was good tasting. I have been asking the bartender/waitress to ask whomever is making the pizza's to give me some char and I'm assuming the extra time in the oven is contributing to the better cracker crust - so I don't know if the pies are arriving at my table differently than if I hadn't made that request.

Bill wrote:though the pie I ate during the first-half of the Bear's game wasn't as good-looking as the one I've pictured earlier

It's understandable. Watching that game would have dulled the culinary sensibilities of the strongest of Chicago's pizza fans... even, I suggest, Pizzaboy.

I've only been to Candlelite once. I remember the pizza crust being so thin, and on the menu they called it pizza skin! I assume they've changed a bit since then. I hated the sauce. It was so acidic and strong that it ruined everything. It was a big letdown as I adore paper thin and crispy pizzas. Since a friend of mine lives in Evanston, I might be willing to check it out one more time, but man this place has a lot of up and down comments in this one thread.

After a long hiatus, we returned to the Candlelite last night with friends to watch the Bears actually win a game. The place was packed, so much so that one of the servers was called in on her night off. Mondays are half-price appetizer night, so the table had nachos, wings and garlic/herb fries with feta. I thought the nachos were uninspired, the wings mild (we ordered spicy) and the fries plenty garlicky. After noshing on all this, we had the sausage and peppers pizza mentioned above by Bill, ordered extra crispy. I'm happy to report that the crust was nice and crackery. We all enjoyed the pizza and commented that we need to return again soon. A latecomer to our table ordered the mac and cheese, which she declared too dry. The server did offer to have more cheese put on it, but my friend declined. Dortmunder Gold was the nightly draft special. It was a good night.

Our family went to Candlelight the other night. It was two for one pizza night, and the pizza was fantastic. Great crispy thin crust. Better than average. We will return soon. FYI.

TC

Nice write-up in the Sidewalks section of today's Tribune.

i used to live close to Candlelite twenty years ago, glad to hear they are still going.....must make a drive down to see them again......in the North Burbs we go to Alex's Washington Gardens in Highwood where they make the best thin crust inthe area....especially if you order the pizza extra thin and tell em tocook it crispy

Does anyone here actually go out and enjoy eating out without being a food critic? Rick Kogan evidently does, good for him. Great article on Candlelite and how to the point, to able to actually enjoy a place for what they offer to you and it is not about you.

foodmex wrote:Does anyone here actually go out and enjoy eating out without being a food critic? Rick Kogan evidently does, good for him. Great article on Candlelite and how to the point, to able to actually enjoy a place for what they offer to you and it is not about you.

Speaking personally (not as a moderator), I just hate posts like this. You're certainly free to post them but ironically, they say way more about you than most posts here say about their writers. If you don't like the vibe here, don't come here. We are what we are and it's not very likely to change, so if you don't like it, go away.

And for the record, I couldn't care less what Rick Kogan thinks about Candlelite, though I'm sure it's a well-written piece.

=R=

You're right. We are all critical narcissists who enjoy typing BS in some monochromatic forum that looks like it came straight out of the mid-90s (where is the awesome graphix dood?) and not the food we are actually eating.

Ha-"you can't have any pudding if you don't eat yer meat"-bibi.

*edited to reflect that this response was not to Ronnie but the dude before him, and now seems superfluous.

Habibi wrote:You're right. We are all critical narcissists who enjoy typing BS in some monochromatic forum that looks like it came straight out of the mid-90s (where is the awesome graphix dood?) and not the food we are actually eating.

Ha-"you can't have any pudding if you don't eat yer meat"-bibi.

*edited to reflect that this response was not to Ronnie but the dude before him, and now seems superfluous.

The nice thing about the mid-90s monochromatic forum look is that it is fast and pretty safe from error messages, and it helps there are no ads bogging down page loading. Compared to some forums I visit LTH's simplicity makes it a joy to use.

Personally, I hate food. I just enjoy being critical.

Suzy Creamcheese wrote:Personally, I hate food. I just enjoy being critical.

Nominated for masthead.

Santander wrote:

Suzy Creamcheese wrote:Personally, I hate food. I just enjoy being critical.

Nominated for masthead.

I'll second it. My best line of 2010 can't be the masthead w/o a MPAA rating .

Suzy Creamcheese wrote:Personally, I hate food. I just enjoy being critical.

See, this is why I love this place.

Dave148 wrote:Nice write-up in the Sidewalks section of today's Tribune.

For the life of me, I can't find this article. Any help?

My wife and I went to the Candlelite last night for the 2-for-1 pizzas. Pizzas were great. We had a Popeye (spinach & pesto) and one with sausage, roasted red peppers, and roma tomatoes. We also tried the cheese curds, which were fair. They needed more salt and the cheese wasn't oozing enough for my taste. But they're cheese curds, so even fair ones are pretty darn good. I hadn't been the Candlelite in probably 25 years (i.e pre-teen years) and it was a completely different restaurant then. I'm happy that it has evolved into something still very good.

Darren-

It was in the Sunday section of the January 31 Trib, inside back page.

We've recently been back to Candlelite and were glad to find it back on its game.

-Mary

The GP wrote:It was in the Sunday section of the January 31 Trib, inside back page.

Thanks, Mary. I was never able to find this on-line. Otherwise, I would have provided a link, as I'm guessing Dave would have too.

=R=

Hi,

Has anyone been to Candlelite recently who was there when it was in top form a few years, then changed formulas and now has tried this revised recipe? If it is comparable to its top form a few years ago, this is really something.

Regards,

Cathy2 wrote:Has anyone been to Candlelite recently who was there when it was in top form a few years, then changed formulas and now has tried this revised recipe? If it is comparable to its top form a few years ago, this is really something.

I went to the Candlelite last week with a couple of friends that have been going there for 20 years. While it is hard to say that the pizza is 'exactly' the same as it was a couple of years ago without placing them side by side, it is definitely comparable. I think the crust may be a wee bit thicker now, but still falls safely within the 'cracker-crust' category. We had a large sausage and pepper pizza ordered 'extra crispy'. The general concensus was, "that's a damn fine pizza". We also split a couple of orders of the fried fish special (it was on a friday). The special consisted of two large oblongs of moist cod in a crunchy but light breading, good fries and tangy slaw for about $6. The cod was pretty tasty also. All in all, not a bad meal for the price. The Candlelite seems to be over the consistency issues it experienced in the recent past, but I don't frequent the place enough to know if that is true or I have just been lucky.

ronnie_suburban wrote:

The GP wrote:It was in the Sunday section of the January 31 Trib, inside back page.

Thanks, Mary. I was never able to find this on-line. Otherwise, I would have provided a link, as I'm guessing Dave would have too.

=R=

For some reason (I blame Sam Zell) some of the feature sections/articles from Sunday's Trib never make it online. Now they're messing with the comics.

Cathy 2 wrote:Has anyone been to Candlelite recently who was there when it was in top form a few years, then changed formulas and now has tried this revised recipe? If it is comparable to its top form a few years ago, this is really something.

The Chow Poodle and I made our triumphant return to Candlelite for pizza tonight. I'm happy to report that they are back from the abyss, albeit not quite all the way to their former glory. We ordered our old standby of sausage, caramelized onions and garlic (light on the cheese, well done and crispy). While the crust didn't seem to be quite as cracker thin as it used to be, it was close. My only complaint is that they didn't follow through on the well done and crispy part of the order, making our first Candlelite pizza in a few years less than it could be...but there's hope. I'll certainly be back on a 2 for 1 pizza Tuesday to try again.

Candlelite Sausage, Caramelized Onion & Garlic Pizza


Crust Detail


Apologies for the cell phone pictures

Steve, those cellphone pics are better than many non-cellphone pics I see.

The pizza looks overtopped to me, which is no fault of yours, given the order. What I mean is that it looks like if it had cooked been long enough to get the top side to a proper doneness, the bottom would have burned. Or, with the bottom cooked properly, the top would have remained undercooked. However, in this case, it actually appears to have been undercooked on both counts. Still, it's nice to know that they are "back from the abyss." There was a time a couple of years back, when their pizza wasn't even close to its former self.

=R=

Great cell phone pics. I'm very impressed.

I think my next order at Candlelite will be that pizza, with an emphasis on the well done part of the order. Looks great.

Steve,

I'm glad they have reformed themselves substantially enough for you to consider returning. I was there only a few times before they changed their recipe. I feel much better about it having a veteran diner affirm it was mostly back on track.

Thank you!

Regards,

ronnie_suburban wrote:Steve, those cellphone pics are better than many non-cellphone pics I see.

The pizza looks overtopped to me, which is no fault of yours, given the order.

They do tend to overtop the pizzas a bit. That's why "light on the cheese" is a necessary part of any order. Tonight, they overdid the onions as well, but it wouldn't have been so bad if they'd cooked it "well done and crispy", which is another necessary part of any pizza order at Candlelite.

Cathy2 wrote:I'm glad they have reformed themselves substantially enough for you to consider returning. I was there only a few times before they changed their recipe. I feel much better about it having a veteran diner affirm it was mostly back on track.

I don't think they have quite returned to their former GNR level of pizza making, but it's a good solid neighborhood choice...and the 2 for 1 deal on Tuesdays makes it quite attractive.

We went during the decline, and our major complaint was that the pizza was incredibly overtopped. Stevez's looks like a desert by comparison. I didn't know about the two-for-one deal, have to remember that next time we're at loose ends for dinner on a Tuesday - after all, it's right around the corner.