Gift Certificate Recommendations near Edison Park

A friend of mine is pregnant with her first child and the baby shower is this weekend. I come from a tradition that doesn't generally do baby showers - and though I'm not personally all that superstitious I still would rather buy something for mom than for as-yet-unborn baby.

I'll be getting her a gift certificate for manicure/pedicure, but would like to throw in some gift certificates to good restaurants near her so that she can not have to stress about preparing food and just get some takeout/delivery during these final months of pregnancy or the first few months after baby arrives.

She's near the Edison Park blue line stop. I've done a search on the site and found some recommendations of good restaurants, but I'll admit I had a hard time finding any references more recent than 2009ish. Probably anywhere within reasonable takeout distance is fine - whether they deliver or it would have to be pickup. So Edison Park, Norwood Park, Lincolnwood, Niles, Morton Grove, Park Ridge... you get the point.

She's a relatively adventurous/open eater, and I know she likes Asian (Korean and Japanese in particular) and Italian quite a bit - and the one thing she is immensely looking forward to almost as much as her bundle of joy arriving is being able to eat Sushi again.

Any recommendations much appreciated!

I doubt you'll have a lot of luck finding places that will let you use a gift certificate for delivery. Takeout should be fine though.

You might like to try Ruk Thai and Sushi in Jefferson Park. The food is decent, and they deliver. Perhaps you could do Noon-O-Kabab. They'll deliver pretty much anywhere, they just charge extra per mile. I have them deliver to me in Jeff Park for about $3.50 per order. If she wants to eat in, Caspan Sea is a more affordable Middle Eastern option. There's also E-Wok Cafe and Hands On sushi. Both are decent delivery options. As stated above, I'm not sure how likely they are to allow you to use a gift card for delivery, but it's worth asking!

Your best bet would be to buy her something like a Seamless.com giftcard so that she can order whatever she'd like whenever she'd like from whomever she'd like.
http://seamless.giftcards.com/purchase- ... t_id=38637

It might be cute presented in a basket with a soft blanket, a bottle of sparkling cider, and a bag of popcorn.

Also- if you're looking for a mani/pedi place in her area, check out The No Chip Queen on Milwaukee. I've been seeing her (Felicia) for years, and she is hands down the absolute best there is. Her reviews speak for themselves. Tell her Bella sent you!

Good Luck!

In Edison Park proper, a gift certificate to Zia's Trattoria would be a good call.

mailsf wrote:Probably anywhere within reasonable takeout distance is fine - whether they deliver or it would have to be pickup. So Edison Park, Norwood Park, Lincolnwood, Niles, Morton Grove, Park Ridge...

I'd give her a gift card from Lettuce Entertain You, which is a group that includes several dozen restaurants in the Chicago area with many diverse concepts and price points. One of theirs is L. Woods in Lincolnwood, which is a Midwest comfort food type place that does a huge carry-out business (they even have a separate entrance for carry-out, with dedicated parking spaces). Plus, their gift cards are good at all of their restaurants, so if they're interested in going downtown or to one of the other areas where their restaurants are, they can do so. And if they don't use the entire gift card in their first visit, they can use the remaining balance at a different place, and aren't tied to a particular restaurant. Click here for more info.

Another option is to get her an American Express prepaid gift card. It's good at any restaurant that accepts their card, and has those same advantages of allowing them to try more than one place and using the remaining balance at a different place. One disadvantage is that they charge a transaction/shipping fee on top of the value of the card itself. Click here for more info.

Incidentally, the Edison Park train station is for Metra (commuter train). The CTA Blue Line (el), which runs along the center of the Kennedy Expressway (I-90), is not far away.

stevez wrote:In Edison Park proper, a gift certificate to Zia's Trattoria would be a good call.

I was thinking the same thing.

Artie wrote:

stevez wrote:In Edison Park proper, a gift certificate to Zia's Trattoria would be a good call.

I was thinking the same thing.

Also my first thought when I read the thread title

I personally like Nonno Pino's in Edison Park for Italian. It's a few blocks from my home. The place is usually crowded with families from Edison Park on any given evening. They have a very nice take-out/delivery system. I had my daughter's baptism there a couple of years ago, and the owners were very accommodating. They often close off the restaurant for private parties (baptisms, first communions, baby showers, bridal showers, wedding receptions, anniversary, retirement, birthday, etc.) and their dinner packages are very reasonably priced. The owners are from Elmwood Park and take a lot of pride in their Italian food. Their Pino Puff appetizers, along with their Pistachio Crusted Chicken entree are both excellent. Their Chicken Vesuvio and besciamella pasta are very good, too. Good stuff.

seebee wrote:Also my first thought when I read the thread title

Mine as well, along with Zia's sister restaurant Cafe Touche.

G Wiv wrote:

seebee wrote:Also my first thought when I read the thread title

Mine as well, along with Zia's sister restaurant Cafe Touche.

And I'm thinking the owners would create a certificate good for either place.

Many thanks to all for your suggestions.

I'm enjoying the takeout gift certificate +movie basket idea very much - but then I also just found out how expensive a mani/pedi combo is (I'm not much of a pampering myself girl). I think I'm going to have to do the mani/pedi on its own this time around, then the gift when the baby is born can be a few gift certificates (including Zia's and Lettuce for sure) - and some containers of meals I prepare.