The Noodle Cafe - Wilmette

Parents wanted to grab dinner last night, so ended up at The Noodle Cafe in Wilmette.
The Noodle is a small place, tables are tight. Service was friendly, prompt.

Starters:
Eggplant Stack - grilled eggplant layered with breaded goat cheese, basil and tomato;
topped with fried onions* and drizzled with balsamic vinaigrette. This was ok, not sure but maybe the lack of pop had something to do with tomatoes not being in season. My Pop who has had this quite a few times, said something was off last night with this dish. Large dish, easily shared by the 3 of us.

Maple Soy Sea Scallops - large sea scallops sautéed with maple syrup, soy sauce and sesame seeds, garnished with vegetable risotto. Not quite large sea scallops, I'd say medium with tough side muscle left on. Mom & I found the syrup/soy sauce to be too overwhelming, Pop loved it. Scallops were cooked well, I would prefer a bit less done but that would be nitpicking. Vegetable Risotto was good. This dish would be a meal for some, quite a bit of food.

Mains:
Costa Rican Tilapia - pan-roasted and served with caramelized ginger. Didn't get to try any, Mom scarfed this up pretty quickly.

Barbecue Pork Tenderloin - marinated with red wine and rosemary; grilled and finished with smoky apple barbecue sauce, served with a side of fettuccine. I had a piece of the pork & it was cooked perfectly, sauce was very sweet.

I ordered the farfalle pasta with both the Bolognese and Italian sausage/pepper sauces. Really good, I very much enjoyed. I had a side of the tomato basil soup w/cream, quite tasty.

The Noodle Cafe
708 12th Street (1/2 block from Metra train station)
Wilmette, IL
http://www.thenoodlecafe.com/
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Their pasta was always really solid. G/f and I had a rather unpleasant dinner there one Valentine's Day, but I've always assumed the kitchen wasn't ready. All the waitstaff was the usual area teenagers, so a dinner like that tends to throw a wrench in the usual flow.

Other than that, I've felt The Noodle was always a really hidden gem in Wilmette.