Dawn Ressel
Reviews written by Dawn Ressel
This is one of my favorite restaurants in Chicago. It is the absolute healthiest food and it still tastes fabulous. The owners/chefs are really helpful. They will make anything to order. The vegetables are always perfectly cooked - still crisp and fresh tasting. My favorite appetizers are the steamed dumplings and the Energy Sticks. My favorite entrees are the Wolfman's Dream Treats, the pancakes, or the Buddha 3-Luck. The portions are always generous. You will leave feeling satisfied and happy.
I always know I can get a good meal at Chicago Diner. I definitely have my favorites on the menu. Anything with their fabulous seitan is a good bet if you like fake meat. The Seitanic-Cesear, Fajitas, Nachos, Reuben, and Philly Cheesesteak are some of the stand-outs. I love the biscuits and gravy with scrambled tofu during brunch. Their new Bolognese Lasagna is also wonderful. They have a great rotation of specials, in addition to their regular menu. The soy shakes are amazing. Yummy! The desserts can be hit-or-miss, but they seem to be improving over time. The service has also gotten better since I've been going there for about 5 years. I love this place.
Everyone that I know really enjoys this restaurant. I think the food here is mediocre. I haven't had great Thai food in Chicago. I ate Thai a lot in Atlanta, but none of the restaurants in Chicago live up to my expectations. The good side is there is no questioning whether something is vegetarian or vegan here. They don't use fish or oyster sauce at all. I have tried at least 5 dishes here, and I've never though anything was bad, but I never thought it was fabulous, either.
I eat at Ethiopian Diamond about once a week. I love this food. I never get sick of it. My favorites are the red lentils, mild split peas, collard greens, spinach, shim brassa, and cabbage and carrots. Everything on the vegetarian menu is vegan, and it's all delicious. The vegetarian combo is the best deal, but they exclude some of the pricier items from your choice. The staff and owner are extremely friendly and attentive.
This restaurant is great because you can see exactly what goes into your food. They label all of the sauces that are vegan and also give nutritional info (calories, fat grams) for the sauces. You can put a special stick on your bowl that tells them know you are vegetarian or have food allergies and they will cook it on a separate grill. It's all-you-can-eat and a great bargain - especially at lunch time.
The food here is really good. The lasagna is delicious, as is the meatball sandwich. The service is great, and I really like the atmosphere. My biggest complaint is the price of the food versus the portion size. I don't mind paying a little extra because it's downtown and slightly more upscale than other veggie restaurants. However, if I pay $13 for an entree, I expect to get a filling portion. I got an appetizer-sized portion, which just doesn't cut it. The only side was a couple very small pieces of garlic bread. Everyone left hungry.
Leona's has lied to me about food items being vegan on more than one occassion. They assured me that a pizza made with their soy cheese and regular pizza sauce is vegan. However, I ordered it and there was obviously cheese in the sauce. The restaurant manager argued with me, saying that it was garlic. I KNEW it wasn't. He went back and checked their official ingredient book to prove me wrong, but turns out I was right. More than one vegan I know was given the same information. Their vegan burger, which I'd even question the true "vegan"-ness of, is gross. I would never eat here again.
You can't go wrong with their dosai. I believe they are all vegan, but there may be one or two with paneer (cheese). The food can definitely be on the spicy side, so ask for mild if you can't take the heat. The prices are very reasonable and you get a lot of food.
The vegan morel mushroom wontons are worth the trip alone. The one vegan dessert is the only one you'll ever need. I wasn't super impressed with either of the two vegan entrees, but they were OK. This is a really nice place for a special night out. It would run you about $60 for an appetizer, 2 entrees and 2 desserts without drinks. It's an aesthetically-pleasing, funky, young and energetic atmosphere.
Although they only have a few vegan options, they do them all really well. The Vegan French Toast is my absolute favorite, and their vegan milkshakes are amazing. I also like the Humboldt County (Spinach and Tofu scramble). They also have vegan pancakes and a dairy-free pizza.
The food here is decent, but they are not very forthcoming about what is in stuff. I am still looking for a great Thai place in Chicago that I can trust to make vegan food.
I find the food here generally uninspired and mediocre. Most of the entrees are made with dairy and/or egg. The people who work here are not incredibly informed about what constitutes vegan. I had one girl tell me something with cream in it was vegan. Luckily, she read the ingredients aloud from their book, and I was able to tell her she was wrong. The desserts are the best part of Blind Faith. The chocolate and chocolate peanut butter cakes are amazing, as are the vegan cupcakes. The fruit/oat bars are also really good. The best entree is the Lemon Seitan. I've tried about 5 others and was never impressed. I also like that there is a self-service part. I always sit there because the food is pricey without considering tip.
I wish I could give this restaurant two ratings - one for service and one for food. Instead, I'm averaging the two. The food was great. I had the brunch plate, which consisted of about five samples of dishes - all delicious. The service, on the other hand, was offensive. I stood at the counter for five minutes and no one acknowledged me - even a guy who stood a foot away from me. When they finally got around to helping customers, they helped the person who was behind me in line. I had to interrupt and ASK where to sit and if I could have a menu. They messed up my take-out order, and by the time I noticed it was a few hours later. I called back to see if I could stop by to have it fixed. The person answering the phone was unapologetic and even rude, saying, "it's a new shift now. I don't know anything about it." When asked for the manager's name, he said there isn't a manager. It's a wonder they can make food that tastes so good, but I won't be back.
The service at the sit-down part was really great. The service at the counter was slow, but I can forgive them because they were trying. The food is fabulous, whether you order off the menu or get the take-out from Chuch. The Red Curry Tofu and the Garden Spring Rolls are to die for. I'm jealous of Montreal for having a gem like this in the city.
I really wanted to like this place. The service was great. The server was helpful, friendly and very attentive. The food, however, was mediocre at best. The peanut butter dumplings were OK. They definitely get points for creativity. I got Ma Po Tofu and it was obviously made with frozen vegetables - not fresh. There were perfectly cubed carrots and lima beans and green beans straight from a bag, even with a freezer-burnt taste. The sauce had no flavor, just heat. I have made this dish 10 times better at my own house, and I am not a great chef or even Asian. I'm sorry, but a vegetarian restaurant that uses frozen vegetables just isn't good enough. I want my restaurant food fresh.
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Jul 1 05
The food at Alice and Friends is outstanding. Everything is delicious. My favorites are the steamed dumplings and the Korean-style barbeque. The downsides are the portions are small for the price and the service can be really bad when they're busy. Don't go on a weekend peak time if you mind waiting and possibly being ignored. Oh, and don't expect them to be very friendly, either.