Roadhouses of Northern Illinois - An ongoing series

Our frequent trips to Wisconsin have given us the chance to also take in some supper clubs of Northern Illinois. Consider this a first in an on-going adventure. Before I report on two recent experiences, I have to give one serious warning about eating in Northern Illinois (as well as certain parts of Wisconsin). The water sucks. Bad. I actually wonder if this is a limiting factor on the cuisine. Anyway, do like most customers do at these places: drink.

Crandall’s

Crandall’s, just south of the Wisconsin border on Illinois 47 is one of those low, been there forever, roadhouses that makes me hungry no matter when I ate last. While the building dates to before World War II, the current restaurant is only about 10 years old. The lack of history does not seem to bother the people of Hebron Illinois who pack this place and ignore the truly retched water. Nearly everyone eats the house special, broasted chicken. You have two options as dinner, which gets you soup or salad or as all-you-can-eat, which is more chicken but less appetizer—it does include a small dish of cole slaw. An onion soup with a gratin of shredded cheddar suggests the all-you-can eat is a better package, even if you stop at the first plate of four pieces. If you have had broasted chicken before, you know Crandall’s chicken, moister, with a solid if not crisp crust. What separates Crandall’s is the basket of yeast rolls served with dinner, about 75 % get a cinnamon glaze, the other just plain.

J.W. Platek’s

If all of Hebron was at Crandall on a Sunday night, all of Richmond seemed to be at J.W. Platek’s on a Wednesday night located at the intersection of highways 12 and 31. This is no roadhouse but a place in the same vein as many a Wisconsin supper club (with the affectations of an in house brewery and a large selection of wines by the glass). You know it is a supper club when you are seated with a big relish tray platter. To be honest, this was the pinnacle of our meal. A large round plate holding four glass bowls: cheese spread, chopped liver, ranch dressing and pickled beets; surrounding these bowls, broccoli, carrot, radish and celery. Because of the high crowd, service waned, and we finished nearly every bit of this platter before our “real” food arrived. Being a supper club, I ordered supper club, prime rib. I stuck with the regular portion and still got a huge slab of red meat—I’ve learned to order my prime rib rare. The meat showed no complexity, no deep flavors, as if, but enough beefy goodness to justify its $20 price tag. The house dressing with the salad was goofy, bottled creamy Italian mixed with shredded cheeses. Soup was only slightly better if at least made in the house. I liked the steak fries, wedges of baked potato fried, but the rest of the family did not. On the other hand, I did not think much of the tenderloin steak sandwich, tasting way too much of commercial tenderizer.

Crandall's is up in my neighborhood and is an occasional stop when i don't feel like cooking.

Everybody at Crandall's orders the chicken or maybe the fried fish, both of which are quite good and will set you back about $8.95. In my opinion, that is about all that I would order from the menu. Whenever we deviate from that, we are generally very disappointed. The chicaken is moist and is the best that you'll find. The almosphere is quiet and pleasant.

On Sundays only, they serve a brunch from 10 am to 2 pm that features eggs, bacon, chicken, creamed chicken (to die for), waffles, french toast, seasonal fruits and a wide variety of "down home" homemade desserts. The price is $10.95.

While Hebron is a town of maybe 1000 and home of the 1952 Illinois HS basketball champions, they have some of the best eating in McHenry Co. The Royal Oak Orchard - 3 miles west of town has a great restaurant in season (May-October). The Bake House pizza serves a darned good pizza. And there is an old fashioned soda fountain that is open for breakfast and lunch Monday - Saturday.

HI,

Since I am forever in this direction in summer, the addresses are:

Crandalls
10441 Il Route 47
Hebron, IL 60034
815-648-2609

J W Platek's Restaurant
8609 East Il Route 173
Richmond, IL 60071
http://www.plateks.com
815-678-4078

Bake House Restaurant
12020 Maple Avenue
Hebron, IL 60034
815-648-4005

Royal Oak Farm
15908 Hebron Road
Harvard, IL 60033
http://www.royaloakfarmorchard.com
815-648-4141
Open May-October
Closed Sundays

jlawrence - Is Bake House the place with the soda fountain or another place?

Regards,

Vital Information wrote:Our frequent trips to Wisconsin have given us the chance to also take in some supper clubs of Northern Illinois. Consider this a first in an on-going adventure. Before I report on two recent experiences, I have to give one serious warning about eating in Northern Illinois (as well as certain parts of Wisconsin). The water sucks. Bad. I actually wonder if this is a limiting factor on the cuisine. Anyway, do like most customers do at these places: drink.

There's nothing wrong with the water in Wisconsin. You're used to drinking Lake Michigan water. Central and northern Wisconsin rely on wells and I agree that some well water can be nasty, especially if the well isn't deep enough. Iron and sulphur are the two biggest culprits. Is the water a limiting factor on the cuisine? Only when used for iced tea, coffee, or ice cubes. Have you tried the Gun Club Restaurant in the Beloit area? http://www.wtvo.com/market_place/gun_club.asp

Cathy -

No. I believe that the soda fountain is called Ellison's. If you are going to make a special trip out there, I would STRONGLY recommend a phone call as their hours appear to be irregular.

It is located across from the Dari Bar and the Bake House.

Ellison's Restaurant
10101 Main St
Hebron, IL zip code
Phone: (815) 648-2181

I am going to need to drive up to Hebron tomorrow.

We took 14 back to Chicago from Madison (or wherever it picks up in WI) and ran across an ice cream parlor in Harvard, IL...worth a stop if you're in the area. They've got sodas "on the rail" and make a mean Coke float (if you like them...which I don't, but my sidekick does). I had the homemade peanut butter ice cream. Outstanding stuff.

Capital Cream
36 N. Ayer Street
Harvard, IL 60033

Does anyone know anything about a butcher shop called Sorg's? It was closed when we passed it, and I can't remember if it was in WI or IL.

Sorg's Butcher Shop is in Darien, WI approximately 15 miles north of Harvard. They are open 9-5 M-F and 9-4 Sat closed Sundays.

They are a pretty standard butcher shop that does a lot of their own processing. They make some pretty good homemade sausages and also offer a variety of specialty meats as well as some frozen game birds.

Just remember to grab a number when you go in there for service.

If you are looking for USDA Prime meats or anything really top -of -teh line, you won't find it at Sorg's. The prices are pretty decent and generally lower than you generally find in the supermarkets.

Sorg's is on U.S. 14, about a quarter-mile south of the 14-WI 89 intersection. As jlawrence notes, it's a pretty standard buther shop. They do some interesting things with lamb (a bit of a rarity in WI), esp. (if memory serves) with a lamb sausage.

It's not worth a trip, but it's worth a detour.

BTW, there's a decent Mexican place, Hernandez', in Delavan, just a couple of miles away.

Geo

Mark's Wunder-Bar Restaurant, Antioch

I took a wrong turn recently in Fox Lake to find myself in Antioch. Rather than backtrack to locate the restaurant we were aiming for, we decided to find something along the road. As luck would have it, Mark's Wunder-Bar German-American restaurant is yet another roadhouse according to their history:



Dinner began strong with a hearty bread basket:



Accompanied by a relish tray of German potato salad, pickled beets and coleslaw:



We especially loved the small balls of liver dumplings in their soup:



All of the appetizers and soup came promptly, then service came to an abrupt halt. Maybe we should have reconsidered our choices because Mark does highlight on the specials menu what he intends to eat. We might have tolerated the wait better if the dining room wasn't so dark and the noise level substantially lower. Unfortunately we were consigned to wait.

The Moms each had Wienerschnitzle, which they were both not too enthusiastic about:



Fortunately my duck was better with a raspberry sauce that was quite refreshing. I would have loved more spaetzle than they offered:



The highlight of our meal was the bread, relish tray and soup with the entrees a means to get what we liked. Not exactly a ringing endorsement, though it was interesting to us to have located another roadhouse for VI's collection.

Mark's Wunder-Bar Restaurant
40805 N. Rt 83
Antioch, IL 60002
Tel: 847/395-8282
Closed Tuesday
Weekday: 11:30 AM to 9:30 PM
Friday: 11:30 AM to 10 PM
Saturday: 4 PM to 10 PM

Regards,

I haven't been to Crandall's in years!! Do they still make the potted cheese there? It was soooooo good as I remember and I had heard they had a pretty serious fire at one time. Again, been awhile...wow! Another place to add to the list. I love the places you are visiting and reporting on, Cathy - love those old-time relish trays...anyone remember the ones you got at Buresh's Lobster House (sorry to digress)?

Big Foot Inn, Big Foot, IL

Since we had done Crandall's Sunday brunch a few weeks back, I decided to try the Big Foot Inn, which is a roadhouse that is on Rt 14 at the Illinois-Wisconsin border. Big Foot consists of the roadhouse, two or three "buy here, pay here" used car lots and a few frame houses.

Like most roadhouses, you walk into a foyer. On one side of the operation is a bar with a few tables and a supplemental dining room. On the other side is two well decorated dining rooms. The interior looks a lot better than you would expect.

The Sunday Brunch is $12.95. For that price, you get a wide selection of food including carved ham, carved sirloin, fried chicken, baked salmon, crepes, eggs, and a salad and fruit bar. It is not the Ritz Carlton by any means but all the food that I tasted was well prepared.


Big Foot Inn
11508 N US Highway 14
Harvard, IL 60033-9151
Phone: (815)943-4740


I generally drive through Walworth4-5 times a year on the way to Darien for the Corn Festival or on my way to either Madison. Janesville, or Whitewater. In the square is a restaurant/carry-out called Pino's Pizza. We always meant to try it but never git around to it.

We tried their "everything pizza" which came out hot and well topped but was pretty bland and greasy, Real disappointing. The salad was the all inceburg lettuce with a tomato garnish

Nothing special.

Pinos Pizza
VILLAGE SQUARE HWY 14
WALWORTH, WI
53184-

While I am thinking about the McHenry County area, there are two places that are on my list to try.

Heritage House - German American place adjacent to the hotel in Harvard on US 14.

Dieter's in Woodstock - Even though this is 1.5 mi from my house, I am gun-shy as most restaurants in Woodstock tend to be overpriced and overhyped. What is curious is that in the SIX years that I have lived here, NOONE has EVER recommended it. AND many of my friends eat out a lot!

HI,

Last week I tried to have lunch at Crandall's. I learned they open at 4 PM daily, except for Sunday brunch when they open much earlier. I then attempted to have lunch at Royal Oak Orchards, but they had a slow moving line for the food. I went back into Hebron hoping to eat at Bake House only to find it does not serve lunch on Saturday.

By default we ate at Ellison's restaurant, which is a local diner featuring ice cream. My table ordered an olive burger and fries, a BLT club sandwich and I had the blue plate special of sliced turkey over bread with lots of gravy and mashed potatoes. The first two meals came with a cup of homemade chicken soup. When I asked for soup also, they provided it complimentary. It was clearly made on the premises with lots of chicken and noodles.

While the main courses were not stellar examples of their kind, they were well prepared and well received by us. For the oliver burger lover as long as there are lots of olives, then she was in heaven. The BLT was stacked way beyond a comfortable bite. The most outstanding feature was the really red ripe tomato, which was clearly obtained from very local sources. Again though cumbersome to eat, it pleased my friend. My blue plate special was unique for several details: the crust was cut off the soft white bread nesting the turkey; the mashed potatoes were fresh and the gravy had a nice sage undertone seemingly made on the premises. Still not quite sure about the gravy's pedigree, though it was better than average restaurant turkey gravy. If it came from the can, then maybe it was influenced by the cook's skills in seasoning.

When out in the middle of farm country with almost no lunch competition nearby, Ellison's provided a good lunch in the diner style.

Ellison's Restaurant
10101 Main St
Hebron, IL zip code
Phone: (815) 648-2181

Vital Information wrote:
J.W. Platek’s

If all of Hebron was at Crandall on a Sunday night, all of Richmond seemed to be at J.W. Platek’s on a Wednesday night located at the intersection of highways 12 and 31. This is no roadhouse but a place in the same vein as many a Wisconsin supper club (with the affectations of an in house brewery and a large selection of wines by the glass). You know it is a supper club when you are seated with a big relish tray platter. To be honest, this was the pinnacle of our meal. A large round plate holding four glass bowls: cheese spread, chopped liver, ranch dressing and pickled beets; surrounding these bowls, broccoli, carrot, radish and celery. Because of the high crowd, service waned, and we finished nearly every bit of this platter before our “real” food arrived. Being a supper club, I ordered supper club, prime rib. I stuck with the regular portion and still got a huge slab of red meat—I’ve learned to order my prime rib rare. The meat showed no complexity, no deep flavors, as if, but enough beefy goodness to justify its $20 price tag. The house dressing with the salad was goofy, bottled creamy Italian mixed with shredded cheeses. Soup was only slightly better if at least made in the house. I liked the steak fries, wedges of baked potato fried, but the rest of the family did not. On the other hand, I did not think much of the tenderloin steak sandwich, tasting way too much of commercial tenderizer.

The Wife and I had dinner at Platek's tonight and dug the vibe a lot. We sat at the bar and split dinner.



The place has a history...which I must admit, I fall for in a big way.



Me, like VI, like a relish tray -- that's chicken liver pate and German potato salad under the fork.



For dinner, we had Bavarian zweibelfleisch, rib-eye steak, sliced and griddled, covered in Swiss cheese, on top of spaetzle with veggies -- not spectacular, but pretty tasty. I'm glad we split it; it was big.



Service here is spotty, as VI noted, when the place is busy (and it was very busy tonight), but I liked it pretty well. The bartender had only a vague idea how to make a Manhattan, but took direction well, and two cocktails, two beers, and the big entree (with salad, house made soup and referenced relish tray), came in under $35. I plan to visit Platek's again later this week (it's on what is becoming a regular route for me), not because it's great, but because it's comforting.

An update on some of the restaurants mentioned upfront.

Capitol Cream closed about a year ago. There was not enough business left in Harvard to support a year-around ice cream stand.


Ellison's restaurant has been sold to new owners. It has been reopened under a new name, Kati's Restaurants and now has more regular hours. The food is pretty good but the fountain and their homemade pies are the draw, in my opinion.


Kati's Restaurant
10101 Main St
Hebron, IL 60034
(815) 648-2932‎

Hi,

I finally had lunch at Crandall's! I was at Royal Oak Orchards to check on apples. I ended up only buying a peach-apple slushy for $2, that really hit the spot.

I was about to head to Richmond to the hunt club restaurant, when I speculatively drove toward Crandall's. Glad I did, because it was actually open. I learned this summer they decided to be open for lunch on Saturdays. This might change after Labor Day.

I had vague memories of reading about their chicken. I saw they had an all-you-can-eat broasted chicken for approximately $12.95 each including soup or salad, baked or mashed potatoes, coleslaw and chicken. I almost opted for that until I learned of the lunch special: two pieces broasted chicken (any combo except two breasts), choice of potato and coleslaw for $7.95. I went with that.

I did see they offered as an appetizer a cheese spread, which was probably complimentary before from prior reports. I didn't get it this time, because the other diner would never touch it.

They did bring out a breadbasket with two cinnamon rolls and two Parker House type rolls. For breadbasket fans, these were warm, fluffy and delicious. My only quibble was the butter was rock solid cold.

I ordered a thigh and breast, which came to the table with a thin crisp crust. It was not a heavily breaded bird, it was just enough to keep everything sealed in. I did ask for an extra side of gravy, which was a bright yellow (likely from chicken base). Perhaps I was really hungry, it really satisfied my desire for fried chicken. I dipped my chicken in that gravy, along with some mashed potatoes for a really nice bite.

I skipped dessert, though upon exiting I slightly regretted it. It was abundantly clear they make their own pies with someone who prefers rolling out a thin crust. You could see the color of the fillings underneath the crust.

If I have to shop for vegetables this weekend, I will be there before 2 pm for the lunch special.

Crandall's
10441 IL Route 47
Hebron, IL 60034
(815) 648-2609
(north of downtown Hebron by a mile or two)

Regards,

Cathy2 wrote:
I skipped dessert, though upon exiting I slightly regretted it. It was abundantly clear they make their own pies with someone who prefers rolling out a thin crust. You could see the color of the fillings underneath the crust.

I would recommend Kati's Restaurant in Hebron for their pies. They are across from the dairy bar. It is nothing fancy but the food is very good.

What I cannot believe is the quality of the food in tiny Hebron and the real lack of good food in much larger Harvard, IL.