koffeeguy wrote:I eat at Edzo's about once a month or so and their burgers are the best (double griddle, swiss, garlic butter, grilled onions), but the last 2 times I've been in their fries have tested terribly fishy (as in tasting like actual fish - not tasting suspicious). If I hadn't gotten carry out today I would have taken them back. These are regular (not old) fries. Seems they need to change the fryer oil a little more often.

if i were you, i'd tell eddie what you've told us. he's definitely the kind of guy who would care what his customers think. jj

justjoan wrote:

koffeeguy wrote:I eat at Edzo's about once a month or so and their burgers are the best (double griddle, swiss, garlic butter, grilled onions), but the last 2 times I've been in their fries have tested terribly fishy (as in tasting like actual fish - not tasting suspicious). If I hadn't gotten carry out today I would have taken them back. These are regular (not old) fries. Seems they need to change the fryer oil a little more often.

if i were you, i'd tell eddie what you've told us. he's definitely the kind of guy who would care what his customers think. jj

That's weird. Does he even have fish on the menu? I don't think he did the last time I was in.

I'm with Joan, let him know ASAP.

Perhaps Ed uses canola oil. When it breaks down, or is overheated, it smells fishy. I don't even keep it in the house, personally.

sundevilpeg wrote:Perhaps Ed uses canola oil. When it breaks down, or is overheated, it smells fishy. I don't even keep it in the house, personally.

interesting.... i didnt know canola oil can smell fishy. i have a bottle of spectrum organic canola oil that i recently opened. it expired in 2007 and still tastes fine. i realize 'breaking down' refers to heat, but i'm still surprised my oil is ok. justjoan

I stopped into Edzo's for milkshakes yesterday with some colleagues after lunch at 527 Cafe. I was about to order a maple shake when Eddie reminded me of the special shakes. (I think I always miss that sign; it's on the wall opposite the kitchen, not up by the food menus.) The special toasted almond shake may have changed my life. Seriously. Made with marzipan as well as bits of toasted marconas, I annoyed my colleagues for the rest of the day by incessantly raving about the shake, even long after I had finished it. Easily one of the best things I've consumed this year.

happy_stomach wrote:I stopped into Edzo's for milkshakes yesterday with some colleagues after lunch at 527 Cafe. I was about to order a maple shake when Eddie reminded me of the special shakes. (I think I always miss that sign; it's on the wall opposite the kitchen, not up by the food menus.) The special toasted almond shake may have changed my life. Seriously. Made with marzipan as well as bits of toasted marconas, I annoyed my colleagues for the rest of the day by incessantly raving about the shake, even long after I had finished it. Easily one of the best things I've consumed this year.

Is the Maple shake from syrup, ice cream or both? Hmmm, I have some maple syrup here tapped by a friend, I wonder if dear husband would let me spare some for an ice cream. That sounds lovely.

pairs4life wrote:

happy_stomach wrote:I stopped into Edzo's for milkshakes yesterday with some colleagues after lunch at 527 Cafe. I was about to order a maple shake when Eddie reminded me of the special shakes. (I think I always miss that sign; it's on the wall opposite the kitchen, not up by the food menus.) The special toasted almond shake may have changed my life. Seriously. Made with marzipan as well as bits of toasted marconas, I annoyed my colleagues for the rest of the day by incessantly raving about the shake, even long after I had finished it. Easily one of the best things I've consumed this year.

Is the Maple shake from syrup, ice cream or both?

I don't know; I've never had it at Edzo's and didn't ask. However, the idea inspired me to make maple shakes for Boxing Day yesterday. I mixed maple syrup from Québec with some tangy frozen yogurt I made. My friend said that the smashed maple cream-filled cookies from Trader Joe's that I mixed Blizzard-style into hers put the shake over the top.

@happystomach- That sounds delicious.

Following the maple shake/cookies discussion - you can get those same maple cookies at ALDI for a lot less than TJs.

And now back to Edzo's...

Anyone know if Edzo's is open this week?

I was thinking about making a trip down there today but I know they sometimes close for a week here and there. I've called a couple of times but it just goes to their machine/voicemail.

Thanks,

=R=

edlakin wrote:CLOSED thru 1/3/2011 for winter hibernation.

clogoodie wrote:

edlakin wrote:CLOSED thru 1/3/2011 for winter hibernation.

Thanks. I had a feeling.

=R=

ronnie_suburban wrote:Anyone know if Edzo's is open this week?

I was thinking about making a trip down there today but I know they sometimes close for a week here and there. I've called a couple of times but it just goes to their machine/voicemail.

Thanks,

=R=

Yeah, Husband and I did not have the foresight to call, check the website, or inquire here. We were pretty disappointed when we showed up, primed for burger, to find the place dark. Wiener and Still Champion made a more than decent substitute, but I was really craving Edzo's excellent beef.

Hmm...now that Patty's is (almost) gone, I wonder if Edzo's will produce a Gary, a la the old potatoes homage?

Oh please, oh please....

Suzy Creamcheese wrote:Hmm...now that Patty's is (almost) gone, I wonder if Edzo's will produce a Gary, a la the old potatoes homage?

Oh please, oh please....

Edzo's already serves something called Old Fries, which are an homage to old potatoes.

stevez wrote:

Suzy Creamcheese wrote:Hmm...now that Patty's is (almost) gone, I wonder if Edzo's will produce a Gary, a la the old potatoes homage?

Oh please, oh please....

Edzo's already serves something called Old Fries, which are an homage to old potatoes.

I know. Hence my reference to same.

Yesterday I made it to Edzo's for the first time. I don't often get up to Evanston and usually when I do -- it seems to be too late to go to Edzo's or we have other plans. At any rate, I caught an early show of The King's Speech (a very good movie) and then hotfooted it over to Edzo's, with the smell of griddled burger in my head.

I can't even remember when the hype about something or someplace matched up to the reality as well as Edzo's did. What a delicious lunch! I had a double griddled burger with everything plus tomato -- next time I will order more onions but that's my deal -- not theirs. I just like lots of onions. The burger was delicious and the ends had that lovely little crunchy thing that goes on with what i sort of think of as the "skirt" of a griddled burger. Bun was soft but held up and the condiments were all in good proportion -- except that i love lots onions!

The fries were great. I got the crazy fries -- which were basically chili cheese fries. Next time I'm going for garlic but I thought the chili was delicious -- especially with little onions scattered all over the place. The cheese was a bit heavy for me but I somehow managed to scarf it up anyhow.

I splurged on a Goose Island root beer and maybe in the spring I'll get a shake a try. I was tempted but I can't do ice cream in the winter. It makes me shiver too much.


At any rate...it was a great visit and I will make sure it doesn't take me as long to get back there.

My wife and I both made it up here yesterday for the first time as well. Char burger was ridiculously juicy and perfectly done medium rare. Fries were spot on as we the nutella shake. Evanston is lucky to 2 great burger and fry joints.

Edzo's has been nominated for a GNR Award. Please discuss the nomination here.

I support Edzo's nomination for a GNR. I live in Evanston, and it has become one of my go-to neighborhood food destinations. The nutella shake alone is one of the best things I have had in the last two years! Why had no one ever thought of this before? Wow!

The fresh-cut fries are perfect and the various flavorings-toppings which I have tried (Buffalo, cheese, truffle) have been amazing. I can never eat an "institutional" fry at a restaurant again. (or do I need to with Poochies and The Wiener also closeby)

Edzo's is unique in offering a choice of burger cooking styles and both the grilled 8oz and the griddled (smashed) 4 oz bugers are wonderful. The char burger rivals those offered at twice the price at steakhouses and is always cooked medium rare as ordered. The griddled patty (like a Steak and Shake or In-N-Out style) gets nice crispy edges and the cheese melts right in. The patty melt is the best I have ever had anywhere.

Edzo's is easily one of the best burgers-fries-shakes places I have tried in the whole metro Chicago area. The fact that it is only open for lunch makes eating there a special occasion. It's also special because I rarely eat dinner after a lunch at Edzo's; feeling pleasantly satisfied all the rest of the day!

I absolutely support Eddie! His food is consistently amazing and happily affordable for college students! It's the yummiest "unhealthy" food in town.

Eddie is the personification of everything I like to see in a restaurant proprietor. He spends time researching and testing and perfecting his products, so that he can be proud to serve them. His burgers are the best, though my house splits with me favoring the crispy edged double griddled and my wife insisting on the half pound grilled burger cooked medium rare. The "old" fries wih Merkts are my go to order, and the crunchy fry bits are perfect. My kids will not leave the place without each getting thier own hand dipped shake, served with a cherry on top and the extra in the shaker. (Eddie even picked the shake machine after testing various models and deciding on the correct speed.)

This is the burger joint that gets the family in the car for a Saturday road trip. My only misgivings are that Stevez beat me to the reccomendation. So, in short, I support the nomination.

Absolutely agree with this nomination, just sorry I didn't make it. The level of care that goes into this food is amazing, you can tell the whole staff, not just Eddie want you to have a great experience. The mexican chocolate shake changed my world and like Stevez I love the old fries w/ giardenara and the griddled hamburgers with their lacy edges. Now if only he's stay open later to satisfy my cravings life would be perfect. Consider this nomination seconded.

Eddie not only serves great food on a consistent basis, he also is the personification of a GNR by his always friendly nature towards all of his customers.....great guy....I endorse.

A great spot and the epitome of a GNR, in my personal opinion. I enthusiastically endorse this nomination.

=R=

I also would like to nominate Edzo's for a GNR. Hands down one of my favorite burger places anywhere with excellent fries and shakes to go with it. I love Eddie's simple approach and how he wants to concentrate on the main items in his store - burgers. I still don't know which I love more griddled or char-grilled. Yeah, we all wish he was open longer, but at least he's close by.

Let me jump in too. Edzo's is just great, and Eddie is a hell of a guy.

He gets what is necessary to build customer loyalty - produce an excellent burger at a very fair price. Edzo's is the epitome of a GNR.

The only reason this isn't already a GNR is that it opened shortly after the last season.

Edzo's was a GNR from the first day it opened. I love the atmosphere, the menu, and of course the food. Something as simple as a medium rare char-grilled burger with salt, pepper, and mayo is tough to get right, but it's executed perfectly here. Innovations on classics are great as well, with the old fries and unique shake flavors. The toasted almond is the shake that changed my life; I'm already planning on making some toasted almond ice cream as a tribute. The mexican chocolate shake didn't do much for me, with the chocolate flavor more subtle than I would have hoped, but that's just one item on a menu full of home-runs. If this place was closer to downtown, it would be a regular stop for me.

Thank you, steve, for doing this - I was starting to panic that I wouldn't have time to write a reasonable GNR post. I'll add my approval to this nomination.

I'd add a disclaimer that Eddie is a personal friend...but the friendship came about because of his participation on LTHForum, and is shared by many, many other LTHers.

Everyone has a price: mine is Edzo's tasty fresh-cut, twice-fried french fries. The rest (and I do enjoy the rest) is a bonus.

thanks, everyone for the kind words and thanks, Steve, for the nomination. as someone who's used the GNR's as a resource to find new places literally dozens of times, and who has the GNR poster hanging on my family room wall, I can say that it's definitely an honor to be included among such esteemed company.

thanks again!

Eddie