Citizen Kane - Geneva - Closed!

I had been curious about Citizen Kane for ages. It sits inside what used to be the Geneva Theater and went though many ownerships and concepts. Someone tried doing movies with food and beer being served and then someone turned it in to a brew pub. Now, as Citizen Kane it is a very sleek, almost stark space that is what was the lobby area. We went for lunch on Friday, a last minute thought because there were open parking spaces right in front so why not?! I had seen an ad that they had vegetarian options so I knew my partner would find something beyond a salad. We asked about the soups and found out that all the soups that day were vegetarian based but because it was 90 out, were weren't in a soup mood even though they sounded interesting. The server did bring us each a small sample of the Jalapeno Avocado Bisque which was liquid heaven! Smooth, creamy and a nice warming kick! I look forward to a bowl of this on a cool day. I'm predictable and had the Kane Burger plain but with blue cheese and a side of blue cheese cole slaw. The burger was rare as I requested, not bloody, drippy or greasy, just nicely firm and cooked to order. The cole slaw was wonderful with nice chunks of blue cheese that you could taste but didn't over power. My veggie partner eyed several things on the menu and choose a White Bean and Walnut Burger with Avocado salsa which was a special that day. Well, it was a hit and totally enjoyed! We had a brief conversation with chef Richard Fields (I think) who said that he keeps trying bringing in new vegetarian items and features vegetarian dishes on Wednesdays. Because it is so hard to find something for my partner to eat and be happy, we will be back. They have a nice variety on the menu at decent prices and have live entertainment Thursdays and Saturdays. It looks like it could be a nice neighborhood hangout with good food and healthy options!

Citizen Kane
319 West State Street
Geneva, Il
630-208-0500
http://www.ckgeneva.com/home.htm

Thanks for the report! It's great to hear about restaurants in the Fox Valley.

Thanks LAZ! It's hard to write about this place because many people will be immediately turned off because I said "vegetarian" but this place is more than that and has good food that will appeal to everyone. For me it's nice to find a place that has a very good burger for me and that my partner can also find something good beyond a salad.

I had a chance to eat at Citizen Kane's twice this week. The first visit was with an old work friend and we both had burgers. Mine was rare and done perfect for me, my friend asked for medium well and was happy. I had the blue cheese cole slaw and my friend ordered the sweet potato fries and declared them the best fries ever. I returned on Saturday with my partner, the veggie head. She had a slice of crab quiche with a cup of squash curry soup and I had a cup of jalepeno advocado soup with half a turkey sandwich. The soups are fantastic, both rich and creamy. The server told me the jalepeno advocado soup is their most popular and they have it on the menu every day now. Citizen Kane doesn't have a big menu, a few basics and room for some creative options but what they do make is done well.

Great review, foods sounds delicious. This will be my lunch destination this Saturday! Thanks

We went to Citizen Kane for lunch today. My daughter found out last nite she was approved for her first house, in Geneva, so we decided to go and celebrate. We pulled up in front, and as previously posted not a big menu, some creative specials, and very stark from the outside. We almost passed on it, started to walk away, and I thought per this thread, give it a try. I went the way of Likestoeatout, we split a burger, medium rare, sweet potato fries and jalapeno avocado soup. Everyone here was spot on. The soup truly is liquid heaven. I told the waiter it was to die for, and he laughed and said he hears that several times a day. The burger was cooked perfectly, and very nicely seasoned. The sweet potato fries were definitely the best I've ever eaten. I can't wait to go back and try some of the fun specials, like the sauerkraut balls they had today! Thanks for this thread, it's a wonderful place!!

jleblanc05, I'm glad you enjoyed Citizen Kane and tell your daughter welcome! I've been in Batavia now for about 35 years, if I can help point you anywhere for anything you can PM me through this board and I'd be happy to try and help. I'm pretty well versed on eating in the Tri-Cities.

We finally tried Citizen Kane this evening and enjoyed it very much. The Jalapeno Avocado Bisque was great! It was very creamy and had a nice heat level. Their special on Saturday nights is Horseradish Encrusted Prime Rib. Thee of the four at the table tried it and the consensus was that it is very good. I decided to try the Baby Back Ribs. The menu said that they were served with the sauce on the side. They were actually pretty good. They are cooked in their Alto Sham, so no smoke flavor, but the rub was tasty and they were cooked well. The sauce was a little sweet and had a little hickory flavor. My only comment is that what I was served didn't look like baby backs. The bones were almost 7 inches long and the back of the rack clearly had a piece of the skirt on it. I mentioned this to the waitress and she talked to someone in the kitchen and she came back and said that they buy ribs from larger pigs and that was why the bones were so big! It wasn't worth arguing, but these had the look of spares. This isn't really a complaint since the ribs were good and the price was reasonable ($17 for a full slab). I tried the sweet potato fries and they were very good and the Blue Cheese Slaw was good had had a lot of blue cheese.

I had noticed a sign a few weeks ago during Geneva's Festival of the Vine but today it was officially announced that Citizen Kane is moving across the street into the space formerly occupied by Isabella's. It will be interesting to see how this develops because so many dismiss Citizen Kane as a bar that happens to have good food with the focus on the bar. Across the street their restaurant seating will double with a small bar area off to the side so the focus will now be on the food I would think.

http://www.ckgeneva.com/

http://www.suburbanchicagonews.com/beac ... 26.article

We had lunch at Citizen Kane yesterday, a rainy chilly day made me want jalapeno avocado bisque! They will be moving across the street in a few weeks into what was Isabella's Estiatorio, the former upscale Mediterranean place. I asked one of the owners about the move and he said they plan to add a number of seafood dishes to their menu because "there is a lack of a good seafood place around here". Their plans are to remove the heavy draperies, replace the carpeting and paint for now. They will have banquet facilities and a patio in good weather. I'm looking forward to this move and will be sure to try.

My wife and I went for dinner last Friday. I love the jalapeno avocado bisque. Sweet potato fries were excellent as well. I snagged a couple from my wife. I ventured out and tried one of the daily specials, wild mushroom ravioli. It was fine, nothing too exciting. I was let down by my own expectations. I was thinking it would be a brown butter type sauce, but it was just a standard red sauce. The description didn't say anything about the sauce, so I should have asked. It was hard to tell the quality of the mushrooms as they were chopped very small and the sauce overwhelmed. I'll probably stick with the burger in the future.

It's a nice place and I hope the move into the new space goes well.

Citizen Kane announced today that they will reopen Tuesday, November 17, 2009 at their new location, 330 West State Street. We drove by last week in the evening and at that time the old Isabella's had been gutted out so they've been busy. There is a sign up for a new bar in CK's old space under the Geneva Theater Marquee.

LikestoEatout wrote:Citizen Kane announced today that they will reopen Tuesday, November 17, 2009 at their new location, 330 West State Street. We drove by last week in the evening and at that time the old Isabella's had been gutted out so they've been busy. There is a sign up for a new bar in CK's old space under the Geneva Theater Marquee.

The website for the new bar says it should open in December. Hopefully they actually serve some good craft beer unlike most other options in downtown Geneva.

http://genevaalehouse.com/

Hmmm... I have muted hopes for Geneva Ale House. I agree that craft beer is sorely lacking in the Tri-Cities, period (House Pub being the only exception I can really think of).

But, keep in mind that before Citizen Kane was there, a brewpub called Three Stags was there. Granted, I think they only ended up brewing 2 of their own beers (off-site at Two Bros in Warrenville), but they did have a great rotating tap selection for the area. Kwak, various Left Hand, etc.. And unfortunately, not enough people in the area were willing to pay $5.50 for a great draft, so it didn't last long (that, and they didn't have much to talk about food-wise; then again, Lunar Brewing in Villa Park has NO food whatsoever, and their great taps have kept them afloat for years). I'd like to think it isn't the lack of interest in quality beer in the area, but who knows... (And I don't consider the beer at Stockholm's to be good at all, in case you mention that brewpub having survived--pretty watery, off-tasting (usually sour) stuff).

Just received this response from the owner of the upcoming Geneva Alehouse:
"We'll have 12 taps and none of them will be miller lite. We're going to focus on american craft beer with a few belgians."

Sounding good to me. They plan on opening mid-December.

Citizen Kane completed their move across the street and now has become Sea Kane with a greater emphasis on seafood. We finally made it for lunch yesterday and when we entered the door all we could say was...WOW!! What a change! Upon entering there is a hostess station that was run by a very welcoming and professional young lady who asked if she could help us with our coats as we were seated. The room is very spacious and bright with large windows along the west and north sides. Tables are spaced nicely, are of dark wood and nice white tablecloths with a paper covered top. Even the table settings are all new! New plates, silverware, goblets and cloth napkins, no more bar decor at all! There is a small bar to the left as you enter, it's somewhat separated from the dining area by the entrance and a service hallway. It seems quite bright and polished as well. The waitstaff are all dressed professionally and dedicated to doing just that and not running from doing bar duty as well as was across the street.

On to the food! The menu is pretty much the same which was always good! We were told that there are more seafood and steaks options on the dinner menu but the lunch menu was pretty solid. I had pulled pork which was nicely shredded chunks, a generous heap with a side of sauce that tasted like it was vinegar based. My partner had salmon burger, a generous 8 oz. patty that was mostly salmon with little filler. We both had a side of horseradish cole slaw. Everything was delicious, the service was friendly, the space is bright...... such a huge difference! All the people we spoke to who had come over from old Citizen Kane were very happy with the new space and beamed with pride as they pointed out the new features and told us about more things that will develop as times goes on. Below is a link to the daily specials from 11/25, the only things different on Fridays menu where several quiches, the pulled pork and some other items I can't remember were added. To anyone who was turned off before by the bar atmosphere, I urge you to come back. Right now they only have paper signage and still have the Isabella's awning, I have a feeling the Sea Kane name may get a tweaking yet too.

http://www.ckgeneva.com/MenuSpecials.pdf

Sometime during the last month Citizen Kane has closed. The sign says "Until further notice" but I'm not sure what that means. A friend and I tried going there in early May but after not finding parking after 4 trips around the nearby blocks, we gave up. We could see the patio was busy at that time. We had gone a number of times after the move into the old Isabella's space, the food was good but there was an "off" feeling. One fault was that because of the dark glass windows you could never tell if it was open or even that it was a restaurant. I mentioned that some lights or signage might help to one of the owners and he just shrugged and walked off. That seemed to sum up the ownerships general attitude. A shame.

I never made it to Citizen Kane once they moved. The new menu didn't interest me much. It seemed like they lost a decent amount of regulars as well. Everytime I've gone to the Geneva Ale House there were a bunch of people at the bar that talked about how they had been regulars at Citizen Kane, but don't go there anymore.

Seems like they missed the mark on what their customers were looking for when they moved.

the wimperoo wrote:

Seems like they missed the mark on what their customers were looking for when they moved.

That sums it up. They did a pretty good lunch/bar business in the old space but after the move we would often be the only ones in there for lunch.