Flossmoor help

Hey all:

I have to teach a couple of workshops in Flossmoor this Friday. I will be done at about 5 pm and am thinking I might be better off have an early supper somewhere rather than jumping into traffic. I have never been to Flossmoor, I literally have no clue. I'd love to eat at a local place and I'm totally comfortable eating alone in any joint. I eat pretty much everything. It doesn't have to be in Flossmoor per se, but it shouldn't be too far off my tracks of coming back to the city -- I live on the north side. Thanks in advance.

bjt

Flossmoor station has pretty decent food and beer. They have specials pretty much every night. If you take Metra the location can't be beat.

I like Flossmoor Station too but others have had mixed things to say about it. I'm not sure there's a surefire 100% hit in the area though. I live not too far from there, and on your way back to the city, but I don't really have a surefire 100% hit for you either. Here are a couple of options up my way though.

4 miles north, on 159th Street in Markham, is ExSenators BBQ, which has decent if variable BBQ. I've gotten good links there but others have reported them to be dry, I've gotten good tips but I've also gotten less than good tips. I've heard good things about the ribs too but again, there might be variability, as that does seem to be a potential at most BBQ places.

A little north and west of there, on Pulaski (or Crawford if you swing that way) in Midlothian, is Hog Wild. I do not recommend the BBQ here, or anything really, except for the pork chop, which is a beaut.

There is a new Filipino restaurant with a small attached market that opened recently, which I plan to report on after gathering more intelligence. The one dish I tried from there, a noodle dish with shrimp and pork belly, was tasty. It's called Philippine Cuisine, it's on Cicero in Crestwood, it's in what is recognizably a former bank building, and I hope to get back there and try more.

In Blue Island, which might be getting a little bit out of your way now, there's an Italian deli called Stefanelli and Sons. It's on Western Avenue, which at that point is a southbound one way. In addition to Rene G's favorite example of a Freddy, I recently had an Italian sub there that is maybe the best one I've ever had. Blew Bari out of the water, and though it has its detractors, I'm a fan of Bari. One thing it has in common with Bari is that they use d'Amato's bread, which is a huge plus in my book. I can't stand an Italian sub on limp wimpy bread. They also used a much higher quality of salami, though maybe just a tad too much mortadella, and at my request subbed a sharp provolone for the normal mild provolone. I plan to get back there soon.

I know there are other LTHers in the area who will have other good suggestions, these are the ones I've had on my mind lately.

ExSenators BBQ
3349 W 159th St.
Markham, IL 60428
(708) 333-1211

Hog Wild
14933 Pulaski Road
Midlothian, IL 60445
(708) 371-9005

Philippine Cuisine
14301 S Cicero Ave
Crestwood, IL 60445
(708) 925-9683

Stefanelli and Sons
13012 Western Avenue
Blue Island, IL 60406
(708) 389-0300

Right in Flossmoor:
Flavor-Excellent southern style/cajun food. Nice bar and jazz on selected nights
Gourmet Pizza by Carlo-good pie, same strip mall as Flavor
Fresh Starts: Neat the "Station". Not bad at all.
Homewood (next door to Flossmoor):
Gradys Grill: Good spot for nice sandwiches
Original Aurelio's: Need I say more
Bogarts: Good steaks
5th Quarter: Good Pub Grub downtown Homewood

These places are "right there". And good, safe areas.

What do you mean, dram, by "good, safe areas"? What areas around Flossmoor are "good"? And, more importantly, what areas are "not good"? Please do tell.

Alternatively, perhaps I should simply point out that there is nothing unsafe about the areas suggested by prior posters. So I struggle to see why either statement (good or safe) is relevant.

I grew up on Aurelio's (and thus love it) but the consensus on this board is pretty negative. Worth checking out if you're open to a unique experience. The sweet sauce is fairly divisive.

Flossmoor Station has great beer and pretty mediocre food.

Fresh Starts is a great place to go if you want a 90's time warp. I do appreciate these sorts of "frozen in time" places.

Other than that, I strongly second all JimTheBeerGuy's recs. And beyond that, I'll keep my mouth shut.

Flossmoor Station Brewery is really pretty neat. Great beer...ok food. But it's located in the old train station building and is really a neat place to have a beer and relax. A very unique place.

I've also been to Aurelio's after a nearby round of golf, and it was fine, but not worth going out of your way for.

As a life long south sider, some folks may be pushing their comfort level at ExSenators. I go a lot.
My sole intent is to get this person fed with out having to do lots of driving. As a vet of many all day seminars, the last thing I want to do is drive around the south side.
Convenience is a big factor in my recs.

I've never felt unsafe at ExSenators but it is true that it's kind of a shack, located on a pretty run-down stretch of 159th Street, and you'll be ordering through bulletproof glass. If you're into BBQ, that might make you want to check it out even more.

Thanks so much, and for the record, let it be known that I am the Freakish Lady who gets kind of excited about ordering all sorts of food through bullet-proof glass -- when the food is worth it. (Hello, Dat Donut, Harold's on 53rd, That's a Burger on 71st.) I've actually thought of pitching a story about food thru bullet-proof glass but then I don't get around to doing it. I think it's got legs (Hello Saveur . . . come find me) but so many people are fuh-reaked out by it. ("And then we had to order through bullet-proof glass!")

I'm also very happy with shacks & eating alone (I have children so this is a treat for me) and I don't mind being the minority in a dining situation, however that plays out.

BUT sadly, I am not a big BBQ fan if that means sweet & sticky, but does ExSenator's do hot wings, that kind of thing?

Thanks for all of the recs!

bjt

Try Bergstein's Deli. Corned beef, pastrami, soups, Dr. Browns sodas... I highly recommend the whitefish salad.

Bergstein's Deli
200 Dixie Highway
Chicago Heights, IL 60411

OUCH! How could I forget Bergstein's. Good place.

Flossmoor station is better for beer than it is for food, IMO.

Next door to the above mentioned Flavors is Siam Thai which has some nice lunch specials.

Mabovi is a West African restaurant with Caribbean items on the menu that is now located about 5-10 minutes from Flossmoor in Hazel Crest (17100 Dixie Hwy). It is a small family owned place, and the owner, Bea welcomes everyone very warmly. They have very good curried goat, jerk chicken, and oxtails.

Just south is Richton Park where the second location of Uncle Johns resides. They don't open until 1pm, but they are fantastic.

dramisino wrote:OUCH! How could I forget Bergstein's. Good place.

As long as you stay far away from the corned beef. I don't know how you turn Sy Ginsberg corned beef into a pile of rubber, but they've figured it out.

Mabovi is pretty good, especially Esebia's special. Exsenator's is worth a trip from anywhere.