Evanston - need recs (and great places)

Hubby just got a job in Evanston. It's somewhere off on Davis. The parking situation drives me insane as it seems everything is metered. Anywho.. your recs are greatly appreciated.

mby385 wrote:Hubby just got a job in Evanston. It's somewhere off on Davis. The parking situation drives me insane as it seems everything is metered. Anywho.. your recs are greatly appreciated.

There's a wide variety of eating in Evanston, though I only have a few favorites. Perhaps you can give us some more detail on what type of recommendations you're looking for. Lunch spots? Dinner? Cuisines? Price ranges?

Best,
Michael

I'll gladly pay a meter in Evanston when I can find an empty spot. I live in Lakeview/Lincoln Park, which is known for terrible parking, but the Evanston situation drives me crazy!

That being said, I like Cozy's for Thai. I frequent the Wrigleyville location, but my friend enjoying frequent lunches at the Evanston location.

There is a tapas place, Cafe Barcelona. Not my favorite for tapas, but suits its purpose most times.

Joy Yee's has an eclectric Asian menu, not sticking to any particular region. Some things are better than others, and there are some things that I really enjoy.

Unfortunately, most of my other Evanston dining experiences have concluded with the thought that I could take it or leave it. And some, I'd leave for sure.

I've heard good things about Va Pensiero, but I've never been. It might just be open for dinner.

I look forward to other people's posts on this.

I have never had a bad meal at Siam Pasta.

Though not in Evanston, you can't go wrong with Candlelite on Western. Not in Evanston but worth the 10 min drive.

Candlelite
7452 N. Western Ave.

Three favorites, all more upscale than casual dining, but not up the level of the now-shuttered Trio:

Chef's Station, in the ground floor level of the Davis St. Metra Station (915 Davis St.) has very good electic food, and a decor/vibe that's on the slightly elegant side of funky. The well-discussed chef from Sweets and Savouries previously worked here.

Jilly's Cafe, 2614 Green Bay Rd. (just north of Central) is small, romantic, and has a mostly French-inspired menu that's a touch above bistro food.

Stained Glass, 1735 Benson Ave. is a restaurannt cum wine bar (the name refers to the slight wine residue left in the wine glass; you won't see any cathedral-like glass artworks here). Like Chef's Station, the menu is contemporary; unlike Chef's Station it's a more straight contemporary vibe.

Enjoy your explorations.

The husband and I had an outstanding dinner at Oceanique right around the holidays. We did the Chef's 6-Course Tasting Menu and nothing disappointed. The atmosphere is relaxed, but the staff is still very detail oriented.

Va Pensiero has been the site of quite a few of the husband's client dinners and always seems to enjoy it.

Btw, we lived in Evanston the first 5 years that we were married and really enjoyed it there. Thank heavens our apartment building had it's own lot.

http://oceanique.com/

I can second Kwe730' recommendations, too. I just overlooked them when I posted. But you have to respect anyone whose screen name ends in three numbers.

I am assuming that your husband is looking for lunch destinations. I really like the Celtic Knot on Church across from the Library. I have never had a bad meal there. It is discussed here in this thread.

If you husband needs/wants to move his car during lunch, there is Al's Deli on Noyes near the el stop. I love those butter cookies w/ all that icing. They have weird hours - I think they are open 11-4 MTThFS. I always craved a cookie walking home from class on Wed, when they are closed!

Here are a few more idea:
Jacky's Bistro: a moderately upscale French bistro I've very much enjoyed. It was started by a very well known chef, Jacky Pluton, who sold the place a few years ago. The new owners have, as of year or two ago, kept the same dishes and do quite well with them.

Cross Rhodes: A great neighborhood greek place. This is the place to get gyros.

Piron's: A small chocolate shop (they make all their own) which terrific.

If you're in southern Evanston, there are several good places quite close by in Skokie and Morton Grove. Look up on this board Kaufman's (take out Jewish deli), Pita Inn and Larsa's (great Middle Eastern).

Jonah

As long-time Evanstonians, some of our usual faves include:

The restaurants of the Clean Plate Club group:
Davis Street Fishmarket is our always-reliable hangout for fresh fish
Merle's is our favorite for dinosaur-sized beef ribs or dry-rub St. Louis pork ribs (we can take or leave baby backs)
Pete Miller's for their great prime hamburger

Prairie Moon: ecletic menu that's steps above next-door Bar Louie or Tommy Nevins but quite reasonable with both small plates and big plates plus great sandwich platters (try the tuna steak)

Lucky Platter: Main street cafe that's an overlooked gem; does breakfast, lunch and dinner with great flair

Agree with all the other recs, especially Joy Yee's and Cross Rhodes for great lunches.

>>Brent

I too am an Evanstonian, so familiar with the parking complaints, but I have to say I don't always understand them. I've never had a problem finding space in the big parking garage on Maple (in the daytime, anyway -- weekend nights can be a problem, I realize), and the first hour is free. After that meter rates apply. It's walking distance to anyplace downtown, unless you really are unable to walk a few blocks. It always vexes me that people will drive round and round looking for a spot on the street when they could have parked on the lot and got where they wanted to go already.
As to food, if you're looking for lunch spots, I would also add Cozy Noodle on Davis for decent Thai food; Pine Yard, also on Davis, for good if overpriced Chinese; Sea Ranch on Dempster for very fine sushi (they have a seating area there); Dixie Kitchen for pretty good New Orleans style food -- good beignets and coffee for breakfast, too (also Cajun Charlie's, but is he open for lunch? Can't recall.) There's excellent take-out to be had at Hecky's, especially good for fried chicken and the ever-popular Mutt special. Prairie Joes on Central St. is a great place. Most of these places have had numerous comments on the board in the past, I think -- try an Evanston search.

Well, if general culinary impressions of Evanston are of interest, here's mine:

For me, dining in Evanston is all about dining in the meaty part of the bell curve. There's really nothing that's outstanding, but very little that's truly horrible either.

There are only three standout places in Evanston that are on my list of destinations (i.e. places I go out of my way to go to):

--Pine Yard Chinese Restaurant, specifically for the crispy duck. I also enjoy their chicken with celery and garlic.

--Bennison's Bakery, specifically for the sour cream donuts. Although I haven't been in a while, they were normally only avaiable on Thurs. and they were usually gone by 8am.

--Piron Chocolatier. They do one thing, take it seriously, and do it very well.

There is a short list of places that, when in Evanston, I have on my short list of places to eat, but I'm definitely not going out of my way to get to them:

--Olive Mountain: I enjoy the food here more than the much-heralded Pita Inn. Their chicken shwarema can be hit or mis, but when it hits it's among the best.

--Mt. Everest: Indian & Nepalese food. I enjoy their momos quite a bit.

--There are worse places than Pete Miller's to get a steak (but there are much better ones too).

--Jacky's Bistro has some pretty good dishes and they serve an addictive roasted garlic head with the bread.

Most everything here has been discussed in a variety of threads. A search for the word "Evanston" should yield a lot of results to comb through.

Best,
Michael

Pine Yard Restaurant
1033 Davis St.
Evanston
847-475-4940

Bennison's Bakery
1000 Davis
Evanston
847-328-9434
http://www.bennisonscakes.com/

Belgian Chocolatier Piron
509 Main Street
Evanston
847-864-5504

Olive Mountain
610 Davis
Evanston
847-475-0380
http://olivemountainrestaurant.com/

Mt Everest
618 Davis
Evanston
874-491-1069
http://www.mteverestrestaurant.com/

Pete Miller's
1557 Sherman
Evanston
847-328-0399
http://www.petemillers.com/

Jacky's Bistro
2545 Prairie Avenue
Evanston
847-733-0899
http://www.jackysbistro.com/

Don't forget the often overlooked Central Street district at the north end of Evanston. Only Jilly's in that area has been mentioned so far.

Parking is metered, but something generally shows up fairly quickly (unless Northwestern has a football or basketball game on).

Besides Jilly's there is Jackie's Bistro (on the pricy side -- about in the same ballpark as the excellent Va Pensiero mentioned previously).

Trattoria Trullo - good Italian. The owners are from Bari in the Puglia region and offer a wide range of authentic dishes. The grigliata (spelling?) mista is an excellent appetizer, risotto is nicely al dente, and the canelloni is excellent. Dinner only. Less expensive than Jackie's, typically$30-40/person total depending on how much wine you have.

More moderately priced Symphony's has good mediterranean and traditional American lunches and dinners. Figure about $25/person including tax/tip for dinner; lunch is less. Also has standard American breakfasts at diner prices. Open 7 days.

Prairie Joe's is a fun, funky diner with an exclectic mix of traditional American, Mexican and Middle Eastern. Good food quality, cheap (meals under $10). There have been several posts about it, so search this site. Closed Sundays, closes early Mon, Tues. Check on hours before driving up here.

Andaman West (about 3/4 miles west of Green Bay Road) is a good Japanese / Thai place. We've had take-out a couple of times + one evening meal there. Been pretty good each time. Reasonable prices but no lunch time specials; parking easier than near Green Bay Rd.

Bluestone is a very popular family-friendly bar and restaurant. Bar food + more. A lot of people like their pizzas; the owner has a relationship with Candllelight (also mentioned previously) and the pizza is similar.

eatchicago wrote:For me, dining in Evanston is all about dining in the meaty part of the bell curve.

I'm not sure how the fine folks at Blind Faith Cafe would feel about that quote. (It's a generally well-reviewed all-vegetarian restaurant that can occasionally satisfy even a carnivore like me.)

I once knew a guy who sold a used car to the owner; he said the place is well-named.

Blind Faith Cafe
525 Dempster St.

I like vegetarian food as much as the next carnivore (maybe a bit more as I go out of my way to have it from time to time) and I despise BFC. Granted, it's been a few years but I have shuddery memories of poorly made seitan and stews with just too much crap in them. I'd rather get a salad at one of the other places named previously.

IMHO, YMMV...etc. etc.

nr706 wrote:

eatchicago wrote:For me, dining in Evanston is all about dining in the meaty part of the bell curve.

I'm not sure how the fine folks at Blind Faith Cafe would feel about that quote.

OK. The faux-meaty part of the bell curve.

eatchicago wrote:--Olive Mountain: I enjoy the food here more than the much-heralded Pita Inn. Their chicken shwarema can be hit or mis, but when it hits it's among the best.

Olive Mountain and Ruby of Siam are both on my list for solid, relatively consistent, quick in-and-out carry-out lunches relatively close to work. OM has lunch specials that put a complete lunch at around 7 bucks. Most items at RoS are reasonably priced. They have a lunch buffet as well.

Ruby of Siam
1125 Emerson St.
(847) 492-1008

Zeeshan wrote:

eatchicago wrote:--Olive Mountain: I enjoy the food here more than the much-heralded Pita Inn. Their chicken shwarema can be hit or mis, but when it hits it's among the best.

Olive Mountain and Ruby of Siam are both on my list for solid, relatively consistent, quick in-and-out carry-out lunches relatively close to work. OM has lunch specials that put a complete lunch at around 7 bucks. Most items at RoS are reasonably priced. They have a lunch buffet as well.

D'oh I forgot to mention Olive Mountain! I enjoy their chicken schwerma over Pita Inn as well - it's very moist and packed with great seasoning. It's very easy on the wallet while being very satisfying at the same time!

George R wrote:Bluestone is a very popular family-friendly bar and restaurant. Bar food + more. A lot of people like their pizzas; the owner has a relationship with Candllelight (also mentioned previously) and the pizza is similar.

Gotta say I have had a couple of absolutely ABYSMAL meals at Bluestone. The bar food (and pizza) there is passable, but overpriced IMHO, and I would definitely avoid the "restaurant" menu at all costs. I continue to be mystified at this place's popularity - I think it is due to their having a liquor license - there's really nothing else resembling a bar anywhere near there, and it is quite kid-friendly.

It's my understading that the owner used to be a part owner of Candlelite before the current group of owners bought it..

Again, ranging out of downtown, there's the Gateway just past the border into Chicago (formerly "My Place For?," during which time I was afraid to go there, because along Howard "?" covers quite a lot of things)

Very good, if not extraordinary Greek food - step above Cross-Rhodes, step above a diner, step below Greektown. My somewhat uncultured palate LOVES their creme brulee and the dandelion appetizer you can drown in lemon and excellent house olive oil. Plenty of parking near the Dominick's lot - I don't have the exact address, but it's on the corner of Howard and Clark/Chicago (depending whether you're north or south of the border)

Can't agree about Pete Miller's, though I wish I could. At least not if you want steak. http://www.lthforum.com/bb/viewtopic.ph ... ht=millers

Nobody has yet mentioned some of my favorite Evanston eateries:

Campagnola (Chicago Ave. south of Main St.) Solid upscale Italian food with a focus on fresh, organic ingredients. Particular recommendations include the wood-fired radicchio and pancetta appetizer and the pasta with carmelized onions and guanciale.

Lulu's Dim Sum and Then Some (Davis St. west of Sherman Ave.) Very good pan-Asian. While in no way "authentic," Lulu's has a variety of inexpensive and delicious small plates and larger entrees. I particurlarly enjoy the seafood, crab, and vegetable wontons; sesame noodles; potato croquettes; wide rice noodles with chicken; chicken salad with ginger dressing. Try the bento box for a good selection of a number of different dishes. Munch a Bunch is a set-price all-you-can-eat fiesta, taking place a couple of times a week.

Buffalo Joe's (Clark St. west of Sherman Ave.) Top-notch buffalo wings (try them "suicide") and unparalleled waffle-cut cheese fries. Good selection of burgers, brats, Italian beef sandwiches, etc.

Kuni's (Main St. east of Chicago Ave.) Serene, uncomplicated Sushi and Japanese favorites.

That Little Mexican Cafe (Church St. east of Oak Ave.) Decent noveau not-gloppy Mexican. Nice selection of tequilas and they make guacamole at your table.

Carmen's Pizza (Church St. east of Oak Ave.) Best deep dish pizza (mediocre thin crust) in Evanston, and they deliver. Crust is buttery and delicious. Try the "stuffed" pizza.

and who could forget...

Steak 'n Shake (Oakton St. east of McCormick Blvd.) Beloved Midwest chain restaurant grilling up "steakburgers" and other standard fare. Good shakes, or for something different, try a Lime Freeze. Drive through available. Service completely lacking.

While not technically Evanston, venture across the Wilmette border to...

Walker Brothers' Original Panckae House (Green Bay Rd. north of Isabella St.) Visit this North Shore favorite any time other than weekend breakfast/lunch. Pancakes galore, including sweet apple, puffy German, and skinny Swedish. Killer fluffy omelets and good corned beef hash.

Can't believe no one has mentioned either the estimable Kuni's, on Main St just east of Chicago Ave., or Campagnola, on Chicago Ave. just south of Main St.

It's been a couple years since I've eaten at Va Pensiero, but it was excellent. I always find it hard to pay premium prices for Italian, though, because of the volume of cheap Italian, which brings me to...

Dave's Italian Kitchen, what made surviving in Evanston possible during college in the 80's. Love their eggplant parmesan and a quite good spaghetti carbonara. Never have figured out why their chicken vesuvio doesn't have potatoes, but it doesn't.

I'll second Pine Yard as darned good Chinese. It won't take you to Sichuan province like Lao Sze Chuan, but they've got an excellent hot and sour soup, and everything will be very well prepared.

Someone mentioned Central, and one of my faves in that neighborhood has always been Daruma... but it hasn't kept up, and no longer is as sharp on the Japanese front.

Kuni's - so far the best sushi we've had in Chicago.

Someone mentioned Central, and one of my faves in that neighborhood has always been Daruma... but it hasn't kept up, and no longer is as sharp on the Japanese front.

Daruma's gone - has been for quite sometime. It turned into Andaman West, mentioned above. Haven't been there; if I'm having Japanese, it's at Kuni's. Helluva good place.

JoelF wrote:Someone mentioned Central, and one of my faves in that neighborhood has always been Daruma... but it hasn't kept up, and no longer is as sharp on the Japanese front.

It definitely hasn't kept up, particularly in the months since it closed.


The space is now occupied by Andaman West (2901 Central St.) - Thai/Japanese - haven't tried it.

And I should mention for good Mexican - not up to Salpicon and other upscale Mexicans, but better than average, is Lupita's (700 Main St.)

Prairie Joe's is a must. George R did a good job of summing it up in his post above--but . . . words will never be sufficient to describe the place and Ayden, the owner.

Daruma's gone, eh? Add that to the list of RIP faves from my college days:

Davis Street Deli (famous for "No white bread or mayonaise on corned beef without South Dakota ID"). On Davis east of Chicago.

Fritz That's It: An early Lettuce restaurant, very similar to Grunts in its day, with nice discounts on Sunday evenings. On Chicago north of Davis.

Los Magueyes: Great 'standard' Mexican with an outstanding salsa, very good chiles rellenos, and basically taught me to appreciate cilantro 25 years ago, On Chicago south of Main.

There's a lot of little places that are gone that I don't care so much about, and a few little ones that I wonder if they're still there (Mandarin (Mongolian?) House on Noyes, where I ate my first Korean, The Spot on Foster, Yesterdays...)

I'd agree with the above on Bennison's (Actually their paczki were very good this year), olive mountain, piron. Most of the others, well I'm not so fond of

In evanston I am partial to evanston chicken shack (chicken obviously), au rendez vous (haitian).

there's quite a bit of information on skokie the neighborng suburb to the west (pita inn, herm's, poochie's, larsa, kaufmann's, ny bagel and bialy, chaim's)

there's also a ton of info on Rogers park, the neighborhood in chicago just to the south

these two areas have far better eating choices (IMO) than evanston

JoelF wrote: ... a few little ones that I wonder if they're still there (Mandarin (Mongolian?) House on Noyes, where I ate my first Korean ... )

Evanston lunch group had a good time at Mandarin House (it's still there) organized by CrazyC ...

http://lthforum.com/bb/viewtopic.php?t=6271