Breakfast near the Loop?

I'm picking up my out of town college roommate (36 years later) in the Loop on her weekend visit for a family wedding and we're going to breakfast. We'll be eating at around 11 on Saturday. Our breakfast tastes run to diner and I'd rather spend the time eating and gabbing than going too far afield. I'll drive, but just within a few miles. Thanks!

Just west of downtown - http://moonssandwichshopchicago.com/
It gets the LTH Love here - viewtopic.php?f=14&t=10043&start=30

Moon's is a great choice, as is Palace Grill, if you want to stay close to the West Loop. Another option would be the classic Lou Mitchell's on Jackson...at the start of Route 66.

Palace Grill
1408 W Madison St
Chicago, IL
312-226-9529

Lou Mitchell's
565 W. Jackson Blvd
Chicago, IL
312-939-3111

If you want something more interesting than generic diner fare, just south of downtown is one of our iconic breakfast specialty restaurants:

Bongo Room
1152 S. Wabash Ave.
Chicago, IL 60605
312-291-0100

They serve pancake specialties, such as pretzel pancakes with white chocolate caramel sauce, as well as the usual egg dishes, sandwiches, salads, etc. Tip: A standard portion consists of three GIGANTIC pancakes, but you can also order one-third and two-third portion sizes at a reduced price, which lets you try out multiple dishes.

Like all of Chicago's breakfast specialty restaurants, you can expect to have to wait a while to be seated on weekends between 9:30 and 1:00.

Another option in the Loop itself is the cajun/creole cuisine (including breakfast items) at the Wabash location of Heaven on Seven, on the seventh floor of a downtown office building:

Heaven on Seven
111 N. Wabash - 7th Floor
Chicago, IL 60602
(312) 263-6443

There is also Plymouth Restaurant, which I think is owned by the same people as Palace. I have eaten at the Plymouth several times for breakfast and enjoyed it.

[urlhttp://www.plymouthgrill.com/index.php][/url]

Plymouth
327 S Plymouth Ct.

Depending on your definition of "Loop," Meli Cafe is a great choice as is Ina's on Randolph a little West of Halsted. As for the other suggestions, Bongo Room is great as is Heaven on Seven. Plymouth Grill and Lou Mitchell's are not worth a visit in my opinion. Lou Mitchell's has more of a nostalgia factor but the food is just not worth it for me. Meli is a few blocks away and much better.

Bongo Room is vile in my opinion--a menu full of overly sweet, pseudo-trendy gut bombs. But what do I know--i'm a fan of "uninteresting" diner food. Geez--if someone states a preference for something is it necessary to trash that preference AND push a place that is the opposite of what they're asking for??? And I've always enjoyed Lou Mitchell's for both the diner atmosphere and the food and it certainly suits the OP's requirements. Moons is delish but the counter seating may not be as conducive to hanging out and catching up.

spinynorman99 wrote:Depending on your definition of "Loop," Meli Cafe is a great choice as is Ina's on Randolph a little West of Halsted. As for the other suggestions, Bongo Room is great as is Heaven on Seven. Plymouth Grill and Lou Mitchell's are not worth a visit in my opinion. Lou Mitchell's has more of a nostalgia factor but the food is just not worth it for me. Meli is a few blocks away and much better.

I agree on all points. Note that Meli Cafe now has two locations - one on Halsted in Greek Town just west of the Loop, and the other on Wells in River North just north of the Loop. I like Meli Cafe a lot; they offer plenty of egg dishes, and nine (!) kinds of French toast. I think Bongo Room is more distinctive, as I find their pancake creations to be unique as well as delicious (and can be combined with the standard diner type items on their menu), but Meli Cafe is worth the shout-out too!

Meli Cafe
301 S. Halsted
Chicago 60661
312-454-0748
540 N. Wells St.
Chicago 60654
312-527-1850

Incidentally, one unique advantage of Ina's worth mentioning, since you're driving, is free parking.

Ina's
1235 W. Randolph St.
Chicago 60607
312-226-8227

I will third Meli. I just love that place.

You may also consider Yolk at 747 North Wells Street, (312) 787-2277. I don't recommend the South Loop location because parking is difficult but the Wells location has a lot of street parking. The Wells location also has a much more spacious feeling; you can linger and talk. I think some people don't like Yolk because it tries too hard to please everyone, but I think that's a virtue since most anyone can find something to like. However, all things being equal, I would go to Meli.

Is Meli Cafe really as good as all that? I have never been, and based on the recs above, I gave their website a once-over. My reflexive reaction is that, perhaps, you have to experience it to appreciate it. BUT ... The online menu indicates they charge $11.00 for a ham and cheese omelette, $2.50 for white toast, and $4.00 for a side of bacon. In my experience, there are limits to how good you can make eggs, white toast, and bacon, and I think those prices mean they must have discovered something really innovative. Maybe the the fancier items make up for it and are worth the up charges. And there are intangibles here that might warrant the mark-ups throughout the menu. For example, as they note on the website, "Meli Cafe is a Chicago breakfast & lunch restaurant where you may also run into a celebrity, casually relaxing in a corner table." No place I regularly frequent has made such a claim, and I do not know the value of such a perk, and so shall stand down.

But enough reverse snobbery; helpful posts include positive recommendations along with the snark. Moon's is a good recommendation, and even Manny's might work out well; they do a really nice hash, and it's defInitely a great place to relax and talk over your breakfast. If lucky, you might find an alderman or a couple celebrity lawyers relaxing at a table there, as well. Breakfast served until 11:30 on Saturday, which meets the OP's target of 11:00 a.m.

Manny's Cafeteria and Delicatessen
1141 S. Jefferson
Chicago, IL 60607

Bill Cosby, c. 1971:

"Anybody staying here at the hotel? Have you looked at the breakfast menu? … Look at the breakfast menu. It’s one of the funniest things you’ll ever want to see. Says, one egg, any style, a dollar thirty-five.

“Do you hear what I’m saying? You don’t understand me, do you?

“One egg.

“E. G. G.

”One!

“O. N. E.

“Without the shell. A dollar thirty-five!

“Now can you believe that, that I’m losing in the casino, I’m going to lose in room service, too?

“One egg, a dollar thirty-five.

“Housewife, give me the price of a dozen eggs.”

An audience member called out, “Fifty-five cents.”

“Fifty-five cents for twelve of them—with the case. Now these people in room service going to send me one egg, just because they put behind it ‘any style,’ a dollar thirty-five. …

“All I know is, when that egg comes to me, it better have an act. …

“Then if you look underneath, it says two eggs, any style, a dollar sixty-five. Now what the hell’s wrong with the second egg?

“No act, I guess.

cleanplateclub wrote:You may also consider Yolk at 747 North Wells Street, (312) 787-2277. I don't recommend the South Loop location because parking is difficult but the Wells location has a lot of street parking. The Wells location also has a much more spacious feeling; you can linger and talk. I think some people don't like Yolk because it tries too hard to please everyone, but I think that's a virtue since most anyone can find something to like. However, all things being equal, I would go to Meli.

Keep in mind that Yolk also has a location in Streeterville/River East. (I'm not that crazy about Yolk either; I'd still choose Bongo Room or Meli instead.)

Speaking of Streeterville/River East and parking, the cafe in the rear of Fox & Obel, the upscale gourmet food store, is another option. Note that they've changed it a bit, it's no longer self-serve, they come to your table and take your order. And they've changed the menu a bit (I miss the cobb omelet, which I used to enjoy). It's still not fancy, and I'm not crazy about the changes; the breakfast food is not memorable. But one advantage is that they validate free parking in the high-rise across the street (after you pass F&O on Illinois, look for the orange signs on the left to direct you to their spaces underground). Another advantage is that you get to look through their other food departments and buy stuff if you like (I still love their bakery department, despite changes elsewhere). I don't know that I would go there if I were walking and only eating breakfast/brunch. But having free parking when driving, and also being able to pick up their prepared foods and baked goods, may be reasons to consider it for breakfast/brunch.

I was genuinely impressed by Meli, but, yeah,it's a little expensive. Still, the space (at the greektown one at least) is lovely, service is great, and the food is quite good. Bonus points for having quite a few gluten free options (including almost all the crepes) and quite a few vegan options, so just about anyone can eat there and have a good, satisfying meal.

Ah fair responders. I sheepishly report in after all your generous work. On our way to Moon's, my visitor, hellbent on a diner breakfast as you recall, noted the plethora of Greek diners as we passed Halsted...my favorite, she said.

Do you want Greek, I asked?

I would love that, she replied. And so it was.

I have a list to be used for other outings -- many new places. Thank you.

wordlvr wrote:Do you want Greek, I asked?

I would love that, she replied. And so it was.

Tagline?

JimInLoganSquare wrote:Is Meli Cafe really as good as all that? I have never been, and based on the recs above, I gave their website a once-over. My reflexive reaction is that, perhaps, you have to experience it to appreciate it. BUT ... The online menu indicates they charge $11.00 for a ham and cheese omelette, $2.50 for white toast, and $4.00 for a side of bacon. In my experience, there are limits to how good you can make eggs, white toast, and bacon, and I think those prices mean they must have discovered something really innovative. Maybe the the fancier items make up for it and are worth the up charges. And there are intangibles here that might warrant the mark-ups throughout the menu. For example, as they note on the website, "Meli Cafe is a Chicago breakfast & lunch restaurant where you may also run into a celebrity, casually relaxing in a corner table." No place I regularly frequent has made such a claim, and I do not know the value of such a perk, and so shall stand down.

I've eaten at Meli many times and I agree that it really isn't all that special. I certainly wouldn't plan a trip there. It's good if you are in the neighborhood or want a place with a large menu. I would describe the food as competent. Certainly not innovative, nor is there anything special about their ingredients. By contrast, I find Ina's noticeably better.