zoid wrote:

Eric wrote:

zoid wrote:I would kill for that pot roast recipe.
Mine is good but I can't replicate that Depot Diner gravy.

Who dies?
http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/pot- ... index.html

Yeah but they left out the most important part. The only mention of the gravy is "Ladle 3 ounces of brown gravy over the pot roast and French fries"

Wouldn't the gravy be the braising liquid (carrots, celery, Spanish onion, bay leaves, thyme, and water)?

I passed the Depot tonight and it looks like their unofficial name might be The Depot American Phoenix, as the sign in the window advertises a sort of rise from the ashes, so to speak.



Good to see the Depot coming back! No additional info that I know of, at this juncture.

--Matt

Drove past the Depot tonight on the way home from work. It was very open and the counter looked full

New bright yellow sign complete with flashing red lights moving around the perimeter.

I overheard a bit of a conversation when I was at Parky's a few weeks ago that indicated that the owners of an area Cafe that had closed due to a fire was taking over the Depot .

I stopped by the newly reopened Depot American Diner, this afternoon, to check it out. Cutting to the chase: it seems at least 90% the same as its prior incarnation with some promising augmentations--and for me that's a relief.

There is new ownership. I spoke briefly with one of the owners, Neal Cosmos, who told me he has about 30 years' experience in the restaurant business, including parents who used to run the Cosmos restaurant in Oak Park on Madison St. (at the site where New Rebozo is now.)

Neal said he was an old Depot customer, expressing his appreciation of the "home made" qualities of the Depot, and seems well-oriented toward keeping things that way. Some notable additions to the old menu are (1) milkshakes made with actual fruit for flavoring, and (2) a selection of waffles from an old style waffle iron, along with expanded pancake/omelette choices. Neal also declared his opposition to having a microwave oven on the premises to preclude the evil of microwave-reheated food, though he may yet be prevailed-upon to get one solely for warming desserts like the excellent turtle-style bread pudding I had there today--laced with chocolate, pecans, and a caramel topping--a creation of Taiwan, one of the two cooks retained from the "old" Depot.

I understand that on the morning shift, Miguel is still there too, and I'm looking forward to again having the sheer pleasure of a front-row seat at the counter where I can watch this short-order master cook riff his savory melodies on the cooking surface with the speed and precision of a flamenco guitarist. To my mind, a visible cook is a fundamental quality of this classic-style diner--integral to an authentic experience.

The other front-of-house staff I met (Erica and Tanya) are friendly and attentive; the Costa Rican coffee is good; the Mexican Coke and Sprite with cane sugar are still there; the turkey is still recognizable as real roasted turkey; the donuts are still made-to-order; the Blue Plate Specials remain, as does the pot roast sandwich, and I'm told the weekend menu will continue to have biscuits & gravy, as well. Good portents.

As for infrastructure changes, the paint and the booths have been spiffed-up a bit, there's a new sign outside, and I'm told the exhaust and air conditioning systems have been attended-to (a prior issue with the old Depot.) But most customers likely won't notice those details, and perhaps that's as it should be.

Some of us may wonder if this new cycle of the Depot will prove to be merely a coattail-riding attempt to exploit the DD&D-boosted notoriety of the original one. I'm certainly willing to give Neal & company a chance to demonstrate that they can keep both business and quality afloat...we'll just have to get around to re-experiencing *all* the celebrated old menu items along with the new ones and report back here (--a laborious task, I know, but with some LTH teamwork, I'm confident that we're collectively up to the challenge.... )

At this point, things appear promising for a re-instantiation of The Depot experience as originally crafted by Robert & Annemarie Nava. As for me, I'm of the opinion that our world is better off with the Depot alive and operating today--even if it eventually comes to achieve the best of the original only moderately well--rather than having nothing more than a fond memory of how good a now-defunct diner icon once was. So as I suggested above, I'm happy that it's back.

The Depot American Diner
5840 W. Roosevelt Rd.
Chicago, IL 60644
773-287-8422

--Matt

(Edited to add new phone number and adjust spelling, e.g., of names.)

This is awesome, encouraging news.

If anyone stops in and gets the pot-roast sandwich, if they still sell it, please post a review.

I went to Depot Diner over the weekend to check it out. The bottom line? It's more or less the same, with a few minor differences. Here's what I found:

The same guy that used to cook when Robert was not in the house is still manning the grill. This guy, whose name I never found out, is a master of short order cooking. He's a perpetual motion machine, never standing still long enough to even get a decent picture that wasn't blurred. The grill is in quite capable hands.

Depot Diner Cook


We ordered a few of the "greatest hits" to see how they compare. First up, the daily special of biscuits & gravy. This dish is pretty much as I remembered it. A workman-like version with small chunks of sausage and pre-made biscuits. Not much taste to the sausage. I'd put these at the middle of the pack of area renditions of this classic breakfast dish. Pretty much how they always have been.

Depot Diner Biscuits & Gravy


The reuben is still pretty good, if a little stingy on the corned beef.

Depot Diner Reuben


The pot roast sandwich is also still very good. I noticed a couple of differences, but nothing that threw off the balance of the sandwich. The first thing was that they are now using crinkle cut fries. I'm not sure that matters one way or the other, since the fries they used before, as the present day ones, are frozen food service fries. They are still seasoned with what appears to be Lawrey's Seasoned Salt before serving just as they have always been. The biggest change is that instead of serving frizzled onion rings atop the sandwich, they are now topping it with what appears to be the crumbs of the breading of the onion rings. If anything affected the sandwich in a negative way, this would be it, although the combo of crunchy bits and soft as silk beef is still a great one.

Depot Diner Pot Roast Sandwich


Desserts are still home made. I took home a piece of 4 layer chocolate cake that was stellar! The Depot Diner, though under new ownership, is still solid as a rock. I only wish I lived closer so I could visit more often.

Steve and Matt's posts and comments got me back in a hurry, and the signature pot roast sandwich gustatory experience was indeed consistent with my final visits to the original version. That's not perfect, mind you; my pot roast was not tender, but tasted right. Gravy and bun were great, onions reasonable, and I actually thought the fries were better cooked than ye old planks (and had the exact same ratio of "off" potatoes, I always got a bad fry or two at the Depot). This sandwich is a mile better than the standard bearers of other diners in the area, but I still think an echo of what they were initially turning out.

The Guy Fieri stencil remains on the wall, and I don't think they've fixed the venting issues that seem worse to me than many similar spots. The outer sign and menus lack the design flair of v.1, but the vitals seem the same, and I do want to try the waffles soon (along with a donut test). I hope this crew will be able to make a good run, though I was the only soul there at primetime on my visit.

The pot roast was good, but i thought the beef gravy was a little saltier and less fatty tasting than before. Open face turkey was solid, the cranberry sauce was a bit more straightforward, as was the cole slaw. I think the cranberry had ginger in it before and I suspect the coleslaw had a little tartar or pickle brine, I felt like the old menu had a lot of really subtle nuance that perhaps may be lacking. We'll see. Pancakes were great as always. The service was attentive, they brought my brood a plate of grapes out while we waited. Very promising! would love for them to hand cut some fries or even upgrade the food service choice - i liked the old "steak" (?) fries better but never thought too much of them. So glad they're open this spot is so close to my hood!

Mrs. JiLS and I had a pretty good breakfast at Depot a couple of weeks back. Actually, Mrs. JiLS would probably say hers was better than just pretty good; she had a garlic and feta cheese omelette that she continues to mention favorably. I went for biscuits and gravy, and I'll say it's better than you typically find in Chicago, but really not all that great.

[Diversion; read at your own risk: My particular sticking point with Depot is the fact that they reheat biscuits on the grill. Right there, that tells you they are doing it wrong; biscuits should never have to be reheated, because that means they already are not fit to serve, because they have cooled off enough that somebody thought heating them on the grill would be an improvement. I know it's a mind blower for those raised around here (meaning north of Marion County, IN), but biscuits are NOT meant to be made in advance, allowed to cool into bricks the density of a white dwarf, wrapped in foil, and reheated to be proudly served up as a substrate for cheap gravy. To put it another way, biscuits done right are NOT drunk food, nor are proper hangover food; they are supposed to actually taste good. They should be baked more or less on demand or, as McDonald's used to do long ago with its burgers, made on a regular basis and then thrown out if not consumed within a fifteen or twenty-minute time frame. Again, this is real mind-blower for some people. End of diversion.]

The gravy also was not very flavorful, but acceptable. The grill man was remarkably good; a real maestro, and a joy to watch.

JimInLoganSquare wrote:Diversion; read at your own risk: My particular sticking point with Depot is the fact that they reheat biscuits on the grill. Right there, that tells you they are doing it wrong; biscuits should never have to be reheated, because that means they already are not fit to serve, because they have cooled off enough that somebody thought heating them on the grill would be an improvement. I know it's a mind blower for those raised around here (meaning north of Marion County, IN), but biscuits are NOT meant to be made in advance, allowed to cool into bricks the density of a white dwarf, wrapped in foil, and reheated to be proudly served up as a substrate for cheap gravy...

This was my big gripe with this place when I went. Not only were biscuits reheated, but so were the fried onions that were on the pot roast sandwich. And felt everything we had was bland.

That said, I went the last month it was under the old ownership, so perhaps it fell off a bit.

I want to emphasize that the food at Depot on our recent visit was on average very good, and the service was fantastic. But at the prices they charge, they have to be fantastic on every count, which they achieved on only 50% of our meal (i.e., Mrs. JiLS's fantastic garlic and feta omelette). When it comes to biscuits (and gravy), in a cage match, Two Way Grill at Elston and Pulaski would mop the floor with Depot for about half the price charged. (As a point of reference, Two Way Grill is the only place in Chicago I've actually been told I'd have to wait for a biscuit, because they were just coming out of the oven in a couple of minutes; for me, that says it all.)

JimInLoganSquare wrote:Two Way Grill is the only place in Chicago I've actually been told I'd have to wait for a biscuit, because they were just coming out of the oven in a couple of minutes; for me, that says it all.)

Me too. That's very useful information. Thanks!

=R=

Stopped by with the family for an early dinner. The pot roast sandwich was much as I remembered it (unexceptional fries and all), but sadly, the donuts did not stand up to my fond memories. The mocha sauce they are served with had an unpleasant sour taste, and when we pointed this out to our kind waitress, she informed us that several other patrons have complained about it too. No idea what they're doing to it, but it is not supposed to have a sharp, vinegary flavor, obvs. The Nom enjoyed his pancakes, though.

I don't think I would go out of my way to eat there, but I would definitely give them another chance. The pancakes really were good.

Well, this is good news to hear. My husband and I may give it another shot while we visit the area often.

Went today for lunch and it was by and large just the way we remembered it. Had the fried chicken, meatloaf sandwich, club, veggie omelette, donuts. Everything was great, new staff was very nice. I did not detect anything unusual about the mocha sauce as mentioned up thread.

I wonder what Robert and Ana Marie are doing now that they are no longer running the Depot? Any word?

Robert is cooking at the Hard Rock Hotel. Rumor Alert: I have heard that they are very unhappy about the new ownership and are/were planning on opening The Depot somewhere else. I've heard they feel pretty taken advantage of; that their menu, name, and brand have been stolen.

Depot Diner no longer serves egg creams. Along with the criminally underseasoned pot roast sandwich and boring fries, this place has really fallen off from what it once was. Can't say I'll be returning.

The egg cream and pot roast sandwich were my two favorite things. Blimey.

geno55 wrote:Depot Diner no longer serves egg creams. Along with the criminally underseasoned pot roast sandwich and boring fries, this place has really fallen off from what it once was. Can't say I'll be returning.

The posts from last month indicated that things were pretty much status quo. Did things go downhill since then?

jmc wrote:Robert is cooking at the Hard Rock Hotel. Rumor Alert: I have heard that they are very unhappy about the new ownership and are/were planning on opening The Depot somewhere else. I've heard they feel pretty taken advantage of; that their menu, name, and brand have been stolen.

If they sold the business to the new owners, doesn't the menu, name and goodwill go with it?

ld111134 wrote:

jmc wrote:Robert is cooking at the Hard Rock Hotel. Rumor Alert: I have heard that they are very unhappy about the new ownership and are/were planning on opening The Depot somewhere else. I've heard they feel pretty taken advantage of; that their menu, name, and brand have been stolen.

If they sold the business to the new owners, doesn't the menu, name and goodwill go with it?

Yeah, I'm not getting what possibly could have been "stolen" either. (As opposed to purchased.) Or even how they were "taken advantage of."

ld111134 wrote:The posts from last month indicated that things were pretty much status quo. Did things go downhill since then?

I don't know, but the man who cooked my food was also not the same person as in stevez's first pic there. So YMMV...

geno55 wrote:

ld111134 wrote:The posts from last month indicated that things were pretty much status quo. Did things go downhill since then?

I don't know, but the man who cooked my food was also not the same person as in stevez's first pic there. So YMMV...

That cook was there when My Bride and I stopped by for breakfast a week or so ago.

All was good! I had the Blue Plate Special of Chicken Al La King and my bride eggs and stuff.

Managed to talk to the owner and he used to be a former customer and fan. I think he might of bought the name and recipes too.

I am planning to do a Pot Roast Sandwich taste-off between The Depot and Big Guys some Monday.

I was in New Orleans recently and I noticed a remarkable similarity between the classic roast beef po' boy (which I had at Tracey's and the Parkway Bakery) and the Depot's pot roast sandwich. The Parkway actually roasts their beef and makes a gravy from the jus, while Tracey's boils the meat, slices it up and the puts the sliced beef in the oven with a gravy made from the boiling liquid; nevertheless, the finished products are similar.

Well, what I heard (All of this is anecdotal/rumors) is that the new owners did not purchase the business, the name, or the recipes - they just began renting the space, re-opened, and hired the same team.

Had to get a tire fixed and while I was waiting, I was going to drop in for a bowl of soup.

Dang! New Hours. 6 am to 4 pm.

Maybe next time...

Saw the old grill man there a few months ago, but he was not there today. I couldn't bring myself to go for the meatloaf or the pot roast without seeing any familiar faces. Had a chorizo omelet, which was good, but most of the charm is just not there anymore. Especially with 80s music playing in place of blues. The food is still decent, but to me it is certainly no longer a destination.

I noticed the lack of the old grill guy when I finally returned, too, and I also noticed some differences in the menu. Service was pretty slow, even (especially?) at the counter. The open faced turkey was similar, but not exactly the same. Don't know if it was always this way, but the turkey itself looked like it came from the freezer, though it was (at one point) clearly homemade. Probably not worth another shot any time soon, alas.

Vitesse98 wrote:I noticed the lack of the old grill guy when I finally returned, too, and I also noticed some differences in the menu. Service was pretty slow, even (especially?) at the counter. The open faced turkey was similar, but not exactly the same. Don't know if it was always this way, but the turkey itself looked like it came from the freezer, though it was (at one point) clearly homemade. Probably not worth another shot any time soon, alas.

What does homemade but previously frozen turkey look like? How does that differ from homemade turkey that has not previously been frozen? What gave you the impression that the turkey had been frozen? Did you actually see the turkey before it was heated for service?

It is common practice for restaurants with broad menus (full service restaurants, diners, etc...) to pre cook and freeze certain proteins (single portions of corned beef hash, for example) in order to reduce spoilage and control costs.