Evanston Restaurants and Wilmette Restaurants

Hi,

Evanston and Wilmette restaurant lovers, we have a website for you- http://www.localplatter.com. The site is a directory of all of the restaurants in Evanston and will soon include the rest of the northshore. Also, localplatter.com lists the specials in Evanston's restaurants. Please let us know what you think of the site, and recommend any restaurants that you think we should include.

Thanks in advance.

Local Platter

Ed Khan

I looked at the site, and I guess I don't understand its reason for being. It seems to duplicate what the Reader and Metromix do, only with less detail and less accuracy. It seems to do a good job listing chains and franchised operations, but it ignores some restaurants which you'd think would be listed in several categories, and it includes at least one other I found in my cursory review that's been shuttered for several years. The photos of the food from each restaurant look suspiciously generic. What is there about this site that differentiates it from others, and offers a good reason to suck in eyeballs?

nr706 wrote:I looked at the site, and I guess I don't understand its reason for being. It seems to duplicate what the Reader and Metromix do, only with less detail and less accuracy. It seems to do a good job listing chains and franchised operations, but it ignores some restaurants which you'd think would be listed in several categories, and it includes at least one other I found in my cursory review that's been shuttered for several years. The photos of the food from each restaurant look suspiciously generic. What is there about this site that differentiates it from others, and offers a good reason to suck in eyeballs?

Don't mean to pile on, but I totally agree. You have listed Betise (closed for a few years) and Cheese to Please (closed for at least a year) in Wilmette with generic photos. You have missed numerous long time restaurants like Pete Millers in Evanston and have included some restaurants twice. Sorry, but this site is a miss.

ekhan wrote:Hi,

Evanston and Wilmette restaurant lovers, we have a website for you- http://www.localplatter.com. The site is a directory of all of the restaurants in Evanston and will soon include the rest of the northshore. Also, localplatter.com lists the specials in Evanston's restaurants. Please let us know what you think of the site, and recommend any restaurants that you think we should include.

Thanks in advance.

Local Platter

Ed Khan

What's your niche? Is the site a vehicle for restaurants to promote themselves? Or do you seek out the best restaurants and highlight them? Or is it a place for read patrons' reviews of restaurants? When I want to learn about restaurants, I come to this site. What's new about yours?

Sorry, but this site needs help. I agree with previous criticisms such as long-dead restaurants being listed. Example: Kabul House in Skokie (which is listed under both Skokie and Evanston restaurants).

On the other hand, I couldn't find Prairie Joe's which remains in business after many years. Also, this is nit-picking, but the correct spelling is Sarkis, not Sarki's.

In addition, the site is slow-loading (I have DSL), and it's designed for a wide-screen monitor, so not all of it the page shows on a regular monitor.

The organization of restaurants is by category which would be OK if there also were a general listing by name as with http://evanstonrestaurants.net/ Listing by category only has limitations. For example should Va Pensiero be under fine dining or under Italian?

The no-frills Northwestern student guide does a better job with quick links to reviews, and it's easier to use. http://restaurant.asg.northwestern.edu/

Hi Everyone,

Wow, thanks for all the great feedback. Local Platter is focused on restaurants in the Chicagoland suburbs at a very local level- Evanston, Wilmette, etc. We want the site to promote the restaurants in each town, and we want visitors to be able to find specials for all the restaurants in their town in one place. In fact, we believe that listing restaurant specials makes us different from any other restaurant directory. By the way, restaurants may list themselves for free as well as their specials. Finally, the site is new and still being developed, but we thought that Evanston was fairly complete- thanks for letting us know about Pete Miller's. Additionally, we are adding new restaurant specials every day.

Thanks again for your feedback- we would like our site to be heavily influenced by restaurant-lovers. In fact, we look forward to more of your input, and we would like the Local Platter to be designed by the community. Please continue to check out the Local Platter- we believe that you will like it.


Ed Khan

Again, I still don't see the purpose in your site. All the photos are generic, none are from the restaurants. I'm not going to spend any more time looking at your site, but to omit Pete Miller's - which has been in Evanston for over 10 years means that you haven't done your research. You didn't include Bistro Bordeaux which is new. That's just two in Evanston. You also have duplicates of some restaurants. Not to mention the ones in Wilmette...Gilsons, The Noodle, Kama Kura, Bobtail Ice Cream, Olive Oil...all within a block of each other.
I don't know where you got your info for the site, but you or your staff need to do more research. I mustn't be part of your target audience-a site that lists Evanston, Wilmette, Skokie and Schaumburg? I don't understand-are you from the area or were you just hired to put together a website?

Hi Diane,

Thanks again for your input. Pete Miller's is on the site now- thanks to you. Also, please forgive us for Wilmette- it is still in progress. We are making corrections to our website, which is why we greatly appreciate your feedback.

Best of luck with your new version of the wheel!

And just to pick one more nit. "Chicagoland" is one word. Chicago Tribune editor and publisher Robert R. McCormick coined the term to describe the entire region

Do you have any interest in a site where you can see all of the specials in the participating restaurants in that town? http://localplatter.com/category/evanston/

I don't think that Metromix or anyone else has ever done this. The specials will be updated weekly.

Please let us know what you think.

Yes, I think a website that lists specials is a good idea. (The Foodie iphone app sort of does this too.) But, to be useful, you need a lot more restaurants. If you go the route of featuring restaurants like Hooters and Cosi, this won't be useful to people who seek out good food.

Yes, you have some good points, and we are adding new restaurants everyday. I see your point that specials in only 'good' restaurants would be ideal, but we are allowing all restaurants to join for free and to post their specials. I am not sure how we could filter which specials are post-worthy. If you have any ideas, I would be glad to hear them.

Thanks.

Has anyone ever tried the Easter lunch at Va Pensiero? The menu looks great, but I have never tried it.

ekhan wrote:Yes, you have some good points, and we are adding new restaurants everyday. I see your point that specials in only 'good' restaurants would be ideal, but we are allowing all restaurants to join for free and to post their specials. I am not sure how we could filter which specials are post-worthy. If you have any ideas, I would be glad to hear them.

Thanks.

I didn't mean that you should filter restaurants. I meant that you should direct your recruiting energies towards better restaurants and away from the chains.

Yes, we would love to do that. Unfortunately, we are having problems locating restaurant owners at the privately owned restaurants. The corporate restaurants tend to always have someone available to work with us. In fact, if you know any restaurants owners who would like to list their specials for free, we would be glad to add them to the directory.

ekhan wrote:Has anyone ever tried the Easter lunch at Va Pensiero? The menu looks great, but I have never tried it.

There are plenty of posts on this board if you do a search for Va Pensiero,
and indeed the owner posts here from time to time as well.

The food there is fabulous, and he always treats his guests wonderfully.
You can't go wrong at Va P.

Va Pensiero closes its doors

Another restaurant has bitten the dust, a victim of tough economic times, and this one's a biggie: Va Pensiero in Evanston, one of the area's finest Italian restaurants since it opened in 1989, served its final meal last Sunday.

Chef/owner Jeff Muldrow, who ran the restaurant for the last 13 years, closed the doors after Easter Sunday, citing the economic downturn and the resultant heavy debt load.

These communities aren't that big. IMO, the only real way to make a site like this work is to spend some genuine time pounding the pavement. Scour each and every street in Wilmette and Evanston and stop into every single restaurant. Take notes and a few pics (of their exteriors at the very least) make contact if possible and record their information. If I were going to launch a venture like this one and I really wanted to make it useful and distinguish it from every other useless web site out there, that's what I'd do. I wouldn't wait for the restaurants to come to me. I'd go to them . . . every single one of them. Doing anything less is really just re-sorting and regurgitating information that's already out there in one form or another.

By taking a hands-on, comprehensive, proprietary approach, your information will be current and unique and perhaps your web site will offer some truly indispensable value.

=R=

That is a great idea, and we are now pounding the pavement in Evanston. Our resources are limited though, since the site is free. Would anyone be willing to help get pictures and specials from each of the restaurants? We are hoping to include all of the north and northwest suburbs in the site.

We have been living in Evanston for a long time, and since we started our site, localplatter.com, I realized that I have only eaten in a handful of Evanston's restaurants- 15 to 20 restaurants at most. Also, I believe that there are about 300 restaurants in Evanston, so I have tried only a small fraction. While I know that I get stuck in a rut, and I don't consider myself cheap (no one ever does), I think that I would try more restaurants if they offered more specials. I am a little up in the air on coupons (that may be crossing the line), but I think the specials would draw me to try some new things. We are putting together the site, localplatter.com for this reason. Also, since joining this forum, I have received great input on our site, and now I am wondering if restaurant specials make any difference in your restaurant choices? Do coupons make any difference, or are they only acceptable for lower-end restaurants? Please let me know what you think.

Thanks in advance.

ekhan wrote: I am wondering if restaurant specials make any difference in your restaurant choices? Do coupons make any difference, or are they only acceptable for lower-end restaurants? Please let me know what you think.

Knowing the specials ahead of time does not do much for me. I like the element of surprise. I select a restaurant based on familiarity, a recommendation, or some other factor. If I don't care for any of the "specials" it's not a turn off for me. I'm sure I can find items on the regular menu that will make me happy.

On the other hand, coupons do have an influence for me. On one hand, it provides me with an incentive to try a restaurant that I may not have considered in the past. I also use coupons for restaurants that I would normally go to regardless if it's high-end or low-end.

Just my two cents.

ekhan wrote:Do coupons make any difference, or are they only acceptable for lower-end restaurants? Please let me know what you think.

I think that coupons, flyers, menu-drops, etc. can really diminish the value of a brand. Unless they're very skillfully wrought, they can make a high or medium-end place seem like they are less than they really are and, in some cases, even desperate.

=R=

Yes, I see your point. I was once a member of the Illinois Trade Association, and our business did some business in trade. As a result, we accumulated 'Trade Dollars' which could be spent with other businesses including restaurants. Anyway, the first time I ate at Chef's Station, I had intended to use Trade Dollars to pay for the meal. However, I could not bring myself to do that, since the meal had been so good. Perhaps there is a sense that coupons are somehow devaluing the food? I think though that perhaps restaurants could view it as a marketing expense, and coupons might entice people to try a restaurant that they had not tried. Anyway, that is how I am starting to view coupons.

ekhan wrote:Yes, I see your point. I was once a member of the Illinois Trade Association, and our business did some business in trade. As a result, we accumulated 'Trade Dollars' which could be spent with other businesses including restaurants. Anyway, the first time I ate at Chef's Station, I had intended to use Trade Dollars to pay for the meal. However, I could not bring myself to do that, since the meal had been so good. Perhaps there is a sense that coupons are somehow devaluing the food? I think though that perhaps restaurants could view it as a marketing expense, and coupons might entice people to try a restaurant that they had not tried. Anyway, that is how I am starting to view coupons.

Trade dollars aren't the same thing as coupons. They represent real money for products/services that are being bartered between businesses. It's hardly the same thing as discounting, and therefore cheapening, your brand/product/service.

How about, as Ronnie mentioned, if coupons are skillfully wrought, they can be used at higher end restaurants? Ronnie, do you mean that if the coupon was printed with high quality and perhaps some artwork that it might work for a higher end restaurant?

ronnie_suburban wrote:

ekhan wrote:Do coupons make any difference, or are they only acceptable for lower-end restaurants? Please let me know what you think.

I think that coupons, flyers, menu-drops, etc. can really diminish the value of a brand. Unless they're very skillfully wrought, they can make a high or medium-end place seem like they are less than they really are and, in some cases, even desperate.

=R=

Ronnie - Groupon and Restaurant.com seem to attract high end restaurants. Mado was just on Groupon, for example.

Darren72 wrote:

ronnie_suburban wrote:

ekhan wrote:Do coupons make any difference, or are they only acceptable for lower-end restaurants? Please let me know what you think.

I think that coupons, flyers, menu-drops, etc. can really diminish the value of a brand. Unless they're very skillfully wrought, they can make a high or medium-end place seem like they are less than they really are and, in some cases, even desperate.

=R=

Ronnie - Groupon and Restaurant.com seem to attract high end restaurants. Mado was just on Groupon, for example.

Sure they do, but I don't think that makes Ronnie's comment any less valid. I agree with it completely, in fact, and I was disappointed when I saw that Mado, one of my favorite restaurants, had gone the Groupon route. At least they did it in a small way (20 bucks for 40 bucks, or some stupid thing like that), so hopefully it won;t have too damaging a financial effect. But yeah, it cheapens the brand.

Darren72 wrote:

ronnie_suburban wrote:

ekhan wrote:Do coupons make any difference, or are they only acceptable for lower-end restaurants? Please let me know what you think.

I think that coupons, flyers, menu-drops, etc. can really diminish the value of a brand. Unless they're very skillfully wrought, they can make a high or medium-end place seem like they are less than they really are and, in some cases, even desperate.

=R=

Ronnie - Groupon and Restaurant.com seem to attract high end restaurants. Mado was just on Groupon, for example.

I count Groupon in a different category. After all, participation requires a purchase and the offerings are usually limited. There's an element of exclusivity to them, as well. As an owner, I'd still be a bit worried about participating, mainly because of perception issues, though I can clearly see the potential appeal and the potential upside.

I was mainly referring to printed/printable coupons that end up in the local ad flyer or get distributed via an on-line consolidator. IMO, they have negative connotations but again, this is just my take and may not reflect reality.

=R=

How would you feel about a membership card that gives discounts at participating restaurants? That way, no coupons would be involved.