Illinois due west of Chicago (I-88, I-80)

Today I went out to visit my friend the Chicken Lady for a ground breaking on a long term project. I promised to arrive early to help out, which meant leaving home at 6:30. My timing seemed to beat the traffic jams, which can turn an estimated trip of just over 2 hours into something unpredictably long.

My bonus time allowed me to take Route 30, which you approach via the Sugar Grove exit, instead of I-88 to I-39. I took Route 30 very intentionally because you pass through several small towns where I could eat breakfast. I stopped at the very first place I found that was open, which meant I passed several shuttered restaurants.

Country Cafe's customers after 8 AM were mostly farmers or locals having breakfast. I scanned through the menu hoping for biscuits and gravy with a faint hope for grits. I didn't get the grits, though I lucked out on the biscuits and gravy. I ordered the southern combination of biscuits and gravy, sausage and two double-yolk eggs sunny side up for $4.50:



Before I ordering I asked about the pedigree of the biscuits and gravy, were they made on the premises or the gravy from a canned product? I was assured the biscuits were baked on the premises and the sausage gravy made fresh daily. I am absolutely certain the biscuits and gravy fans, like JiminLoganSquare, would love the sausage gravy which had generous quantities of sausage and very peppery. The biscuit was also quite good, though I am not capable like JiLS to estimate if it was baked in the last 30 minutes! This was one of the best sausage and gravies I have had to date.

While the eggs didn't seem double yolk egg from the hen, there were four yolks present. Since I live for runny yolks, this was all that mattered to me. The only thunk was the sausage link, which was a bit dry. Otherwise I would return tomorrow for the same breakfast, if there wasn't this little issue of distance.

My friend Helen ordered two (double yolk) eggs over easy, hashbrowns, 3 pieces of bacon and two malted pancakes.



I know many, like GWiv, who have to ask for their hash browns "extra crisp" to get the level of crisp Helen received without special instructions. The bacon was so crisp it could have been a floor board and quite delicious. She was also quite pleased with her eggs. She shared with me her malted pancakes, which might have been the very first time I ever heard or saw malted pancakes. Whatever they were, it appeared the pancake batter was made fresh on the premises instead of from a mix. I won't bet the farm on that opinion, however most commercial pancakes batters have an after taste, which I don't find in my home cooked ones.

Helen also commented the coffee was very good ... I got my caffeine via a diet Pepsi.

I believe this Cafe is on the way to the Sandwich Fair Antique Flea Market.

Country Cafe
103 Galena
Big Rock, IL
Tel: 630/556-3610
Fri: 6 AM to 8 PM
Sat, Mon-Fri: 6 AM to 3 PM
Sun: 7 AM to 2 PM

Regards,

Cathy2 wrote:She shared with me her malted pancakes, which might have been the very first time I ever heard or saw malted pancakes.

Cathy,

That looks like one fine breakfast! The B&G look particularly spectacular. For some malted pancakes a bit closer to home, stop by Edgebrook Diner. You can order them on the side or you can substitute 2 mini-pancakes for toast.

Snack'n'Go

Amboy is south of Dixon between I-80 and I-88. It is a town where along the main corridors, the towns people plant Marigolds of the same variety along the curb. They have a Subway and had a Dairy Queen. The Dairy Queen sign is still present, though there is no sign of the building. It almost seems to have been lifted on a truck and carried away because the lot looks otherwise untouched.

I first came to Amboy about ten years ago. I was visiting a friend who was a transplanted suburbanite now living in the country. In a few years, she learned to garden, then began raising chickens, ducks and geese. I'd occasionally go out there to buy chickens and check out her farmette.

Part of the fun of going out there was the opportunity to visit Snack'N'Go. It was the very local variant of fast food. Once you placed your order, then your food was cooked. The volume of business apparently wasn't enough to prepare food in advance of the customer's order. While your food might not have been fast, it was certainly fresh.



The menu has folder-over sandwiches. There are two kinds of pork tenderloin sandwiches: mass produced or made on the premises pork tenderloin. In addition to french fries and onion rings, they have fried corn nuggets and fried pickles. One dish they used to advertise as a seasonal dish was creamed chicken and biscuits available once the weather got cold. Unfortunately it was never cold enough whenever I visited.



Clearly labeled to avoid showing up at the wrong window:



It's been quite a while since I passed through Amboy during daytime hours. I was really looking forward to my usual teasing conversation about the weather and my hopes of creamed chicken and biscuits. Unfortunately not everyone waits for me to return:



Snack & Go
305 East Bluff Street
Amboy, IL 61310
815-857-3500

Cathy2,

Thanks for the posts & the pics. One of the things that was hard when I was researching for our recent road trip was finding places via-route. The labeling and info in this thread will really help for any future trips.

Rob

Cathy2 wrote:I believe this Cafe is on the way to the Sandwich Fair Antique Flea Market.

Country Cafe
103 Galena
Big Rock, IL
Tel: 630/556-3610
Fri: 6 AM to 8 PM
Sat, Mon-Fri: 6 AM to 3 PM
Sun: 7 AM to 2 PM

I've never been much into flea markets--UNTIL NOW.

Hi,

Sharing driveways and parking lot, immediately in front of Snack'N'Go is Dairy Delite.



A fire in the last year took away their competitor: Dairy Queen, whose sign is still present though the building is gone.

Dairy Delite serves both soft serve as well as hard ice cream by George. When I asked about George, I got the snappy answer, "He's at home." I quickly learned Meusel Dairy Delite is a family enterprise: Dad-George makes the hard ice cream, his wife runs the Amboy operation and their daughter runs the Dixon operation.

When I inquired if George also made soft serve, I was advised he could though it isn't worth the effort. The wife advised there are technical issues to making soft serve related to pasteurization. If they made soft serve preparation with pasteurized milk, they are obligated by law to pasteurize the product again. If they use a commercial mix, then they can skip the pasteurization. She also commented while George makes the hard ice cream, he adds enough mix to qualify not having to pasteurize the mixture a second time. Otherwise his hard ice cream is made on the premises by his recipes.

Another attention to detail by Dairy Delite is their whipping cream. They bought an Italian whipping cream dispenser for $2000, which would be a sound investment by many ice cream shops. This machine refrigerates, whips and dispenses whipping cream from a cooled dispenser tip. I know of only two in the Chicago area: Zephyr's and Cheesecake Factory, who have these machines. You could have knocked me over with a feather to find a modest enterprise using top of the line whipping cream machine dispensers. At their level of activity, a kitchenaid mixer plus a pastry bag and tip would have been a reasonable substitute.

I naturally ordered George's peach ice cream, raspberry fudge ice cream and extra whipping cream on top:



Made on the premises ice cream AND real whipping cream, what a winning combination!

Meusel Dairy Delite
303 S Mason Ave, Amboy, IL
(815) 857-2050

Meusel's Dairy Delite
118 E 7th St, Dixon, IL
(815) 284-0912

Sunday I drove out to Sublette, IL to visit friends particpating at the Truck and Toy Show.



For quite a while, all I could see were the trucks, tractors and antique cars. Not yet seeing one toy, it sure added currency to the old saying, "The difference between men and boys are the price and size of their toys."



The perimeter of the exhibit area was defined by tractors fitted with water and fertilizer nozzles crossing the entire street. Looking out onto a field does not give you the size perspective of a two-way street with angle parking on both sides.

I did eventually follow people walking into steel buildings to find the toy exhibits, though the real action was out on the street.

On my way to Sublette, I was able to check on my favorite small town independent fast food venues: Dairy Delite and Snack'N Go.

At Dairy Delite, I finally met George who makes all the ice creams sold at their Amboy and Dixon locations. Taking George's advice I ordered his favorite butter pecan ice cream with a dollop of real whipped cream on top.



I briefly considered the St. Patrick's Day specials, which George proudly acknowledged were dreamed up by his daughter who manages the Dixon location.



George also filled me on the fate of Snack'N Go. When I was out there last summer, the business was for sale and no longer in operation. George reported it opened under new ownership three years ago. He predicts the new people will be able to make a go of it. I crossed my fingers to inquire if the new owners planned to continue the tradition of cream chicken and biscuits. He said they have indeed kept it on the menu, which their website menu confirms, although it is only on Tuesday and Thursdays from September through May.

Snack'N Go is closed on Sundays, though I was cheered by the site of their St. Patrick's Day specials.



Snack'N Go
305 E. Bluff St.
Amboy, IL
Tel: 815/857-2313
e-mail: [email protected]
website: www.amboysnackngo.com
Open Monday through Saturday: 11 AM to 7 PM
Closed Sundays

I took I-80 west to get to Sublette, later I headed south then east on I-88 to make my way home with a few stops along the way. As I was passing the Starved Rock-Utica exits, I remembered this post on a Cajun restaurant. I exited estimating it couldn't be too hard to find a Cajun restaurant in this region. Sure enough I found signage advertizing its location almost immediately and bee-lined there.

Cajun Connection is not difficult to find.



It is really out in the middle of no where.



I arrived there after 6:30 PM, which I quickly found out was 30 minutes too late. I met the owner Ron, who was out in the parking lot advising another disappointed customer. Remembering people had purchased sausage, I inquired if I could purchase some. He led me to the kitchen and pulled out packages of hot and mild boudin for $10. total. They were cleaning up and tossing food away. I watched with a bit of sad envy as they poured gumbo into the garbage. Ron got me a take-out menu to read and dream about until my next visit. Having reread ccrush's Cajun Connection review, I regret even more my poor timing.

Cajun Connection - Taste of Louisiana
897 E. US Highway 6
Utica, IL 61373
815/667-9855
www.ronscajunconnection.com
Thursday-Saturday: 4-9 PM
Sunday: 12 - 6 PM

Trying to make lemonade out of a lemon, I told Ron my plans to continue east probably stopping next at a truck stop in Morris. Did he have any recommendations where I could eat. He said it was tough finding places like his who cook everything from scratch, which I completely believe having seen his kitchen larder. He said my search was made tougher since it was Sunday night with many places having shut down already.

He did advise I could stop by Lindy - Gerties in a strip mall behind the Walgreen's in Morris on Highway 6. He said it was a bit of way off the expressway, then he remembered it was closed. He said their ice cream and chili were the choice items to get there.



Lindy-Gerties
100 W Commercial St
Morris, IL
(815) 941-0352
lindyschili.com

To be continued ...

Cathy2 wrote:He did advise I could stop by Lindy - Gerties in a strip mall behind the Walgreen's in Morris on Highway 6. He said it was a bit of way off the expressway, then he remembered it was closed. He said their ice cream and chili were the choice items to get there.

It'a hardly worth all that driving just to go to Lindy's Chili, when all you have to do is to drive down Archer Ave. to visit the Mothership. There are even a few other outlets festooning the South Side.

Lindy's Chili
3685 S Archer Avenue
Chicago, IL

7 Other Locations in Chicagoland

HI,

While it may not be worth the drive. If you are out there anyway with limited choices, then it may not be the worst option. When you get to less population dense areas, some recommendations are better than none. It was also the worst case situation of Sunday evening when most places are closed.

I did see Lindy's had Chicago region outposts, though the focus of this post was food along I-80 and I-88.

Regards,

Back again!

I have to admit when I pointed the car toward I-80, I already had a destination and meal on my mind. I was contemplating ordering a 4-pound burger known as the Ethyl from a truck stop in Morris. I didn't know the name, though how many truck stops could there be? Meanwhile I had Cajun Ron's advice to seek out R Place Restaurant. It turned out my truck stop destination was indeed the very same R Place Restaurant.

When I arrived at R Place Restaurant, I was led to a two-top table looking out into the nicely appointed room. As much as I loathe booths, I would have really preferred one now. Somehow a booth seems more private especially when you are contemplating doing a largely exhibitionist activity. I started to get cold feet reading the menu while weighing in my mind my reasons for doing this.



I casually asked the waitress how often were Ethyl's ordered. She said more frequently than one might expect with most ordered on the weekend. She gave me a copy of the rules for getting a free Ethyl:



I knew it would make a great picture as well as a great story. I also knew there was no way I could really contemplate eating it. I began to plan delivering the remains to my friend whose three teenagers are bottomless pits. Unfortunately I couldn't reach her.

I checked out the other hamburgers on the menu to find the Ethyl a real bargain at $19.99. The puniest half-pound burger was a very substantial $7.99. Whereas four people could share an Ethyl in equal portions of four one-pound burgers for effectively $5 each, which would be a very generous lunch for $5 or under. Want a Coke? Invite a 5th person to bring the cost down to $4 for just over a 12-ounce burger. I just loved running the numbers through my mind and the fun of sharing an Ethyl with a group of like-minded friends. While an Ethyl would have been an interesting experience, I was alone with nobody to share the experience. I decided I would come again soon to conquer the Ethyl with a few friends in tow.

Reading through the menu, I found the "Hubcap Tenderloin: this hand pounded pork tenderloin is as big as a hub cap! Trimmed with lettuce and tomato. Served with fries." I was already mentally eating this hand-pounded wonder when the waitress advised they were out of pork tenderloin sandwiches.

I finally settled on the daily special of fried chicken with hash browns, which required at least 20 minutes. The half chicken was from a very generously proportioned bird in the 3-4 pound range. My chicken was not as good as it could have been. It seemed to have spent just a bit too much time in the fryer. The hash browns were a bit too crisp with almost no soft underbelly as contrast.



When at the cashier, I purchased a turtle candy the diameter of a cd-disk for $2.99. It was intended as a gift, though I took a nibble to find soft, pliable caramel embedded with pecans and chocolate. The other baked goods made on the premises looked very promising especially for a truck stop.

I hope to return someday soon for a 'Food for Giants' meal consisting of hubcap sized tenderloins and Ethyl Premium Burgers!

R Place Restaurant
Interstate 80 and Route 47 (northeast corner of this exchange)
Morris, IL 60450
815/942-3690

Regards,

At the risk of being dubbed the loose-meat queen, there is a Maid-Rite restaurant that serves good loose-meat sandwiches just off I-80 at the Peru exit (Exit number 75) The place has a diner decor and little cardboard cars that kids meals come in. The fries are generic ..like they come from GFS or something but are usually well prepared.

The place is inside the Peru Mall. The phone number is 815-223-7483. Not sure what the hours are but I'm guessing they're regular mall hours.


My husband works out that way and we have a small house in LaSalle. The strange thing about the Ottawa/LaSalle/Peru area is how many good Italian places there are. Recognize that I've lived in Chicagoland most of my life and grew up eating John's Pizza in Cal City. I *know* good pizza.


That being said some of the best pizza I've had in my life is at Sam's Pizza in Oglesby, IL. It's just off the Oglesby exit on I-39. The owner makes all of his own stuff, including the sausage. It's some of the porkiest tasting sausage which is really refreshing. It comes on a thin crust, but its kinda of a doughey thin...sauce is good. Real cheese...its all good stuff. Its interesting to watch him bake a pizza. My son likes pepperoni so we 1/2 sausage and 1/2 pepperoni. The owner put the pizza in the oven for a bit sans pepperoni, then put it on. After about 5 minutes or so, the owner pulled it out and used a paper towel to take up some of the pepperoni grease and then put it back in.

The place gets 0 atmosphere points. There are tables to eat at but I've never seen anyone in there eating, just picking up. If the owner gets too busy he takes the phone off the hook. The toppings are very basic (sausage, pepperoni, onion, mushroom, anchovy, green pepper...) you won't find a chicken hawaiian pizza here. There are no fried sides to get...its just pizza.

Sam's Pizza
115 S Columbia Ave
Oglesby, IL 61348
(815) 883-9413

The final interesting place is the The Rootbeer Stand just down the street from Sam's Pizza in Oglesby. It's a genuine drive-in that sells root beer by the gallon. I've never had the root beer as I don't like the stuff. They have good cheeseburgers that are often on special during the weekend. (And no, they're not loose meat!) They have lots of ice cream stuff (generic mass produced kind of ice cream) including this favor swirl stuff my son is really enamored of. I get fish and chips usually ...comes with a salad...and its $3.75.

The Rootbeer Stand
225 Columbia Avenue
Oglesby,IL 61348
815-883-9254

dlws92,

Thank you for taking time to offer these suggestions. While you may not hear feedback anytime soon, believe me people will be consulting this information when they head out that way.

Thank you and keep the ideas coming!

Regards,

dlws92,

Thank you for some suggestions about Oglesby, that area is a half way stop between Batavia and Peoria where we travel 6-7 times a year to see the inlaws. We used to stop at a place off I-39 behind the Subway that is now empty, it had been through several owners and had a great pork tenderloin and a decent salad bar. We tried Delaney's once and did not like it. Our most frequent stop is Sunday afternoon when we go home and stop for lunch at Ron's Cajun Connection on Rte. 6 in Utica. Ron and Amy are the best, always a warm welcome and we frequently take a carry out order with after we have eaten there. He sells his boudin frozen so it's nice to take home a package of that and a nice big container of his gumbo.

I went with my sis and my aunt to R Place earlier this year. We, too, thought it was expensive: I got the chicken pot pie, and the others SPLIT a reuben sandwich with soup, and with 2 pops, it was over $25.00. Since it was near my sis's birthday, we got a cupcake that was, well, pretty awful. Very very heavy, not tasty, and seemed sort of institutional. The restaurant itself is pretty entertaining, especially the marionnette show in the hallway, but I don't think I'd go back. Although the fried chicken on someone else's plate did look very good.

dlws92: Can't thank you enough for the lead to the Peru Mall Maid Rite. I've been looking for one of these for a long time. I go thru there often on my way out to western IL to see family. I'll be going out there next Wed, as a matter of fact. Wow. Maid Rite, with mustard, and a chocolate shake. Brings back childhood memories of a little drive-in, long gone, in Kewanee, IL, where my folks would take us. We'd get Maid Rites and eat in the car. Had to have a chocolate shake with it. Have no idea the name of the place, tho. It had a big "Sealtest" ice cream sign on front, so I always called it the Sealtest Drive In.

I've also been looking for interesting and good places along 80 around Princeton, where my Mom lives. Seems like the only remotely decent place to eat there is the Red Apple just off the Route 26 exit going south. We've also been to a supper club (sorry, can't remember the name) in Malden, which is only about 10 minutes east, but not directly off of I80, that was very good. Malden is about 3 blocks long and there is a motorcycle accessory/repair shop adjoining the restaurant.

Any other suggestions for places in the Bureau County area??? We're running out of places to take Mom when we come in from Chicago to visit!!

I've read about Ron's Cajun Connection in Utica and will go there. We just came back from Cincinnati and ate at Terry's Turf Club there. It was a small place, crowded, dive type joint with crazy good burgers with unbelievable sauces and cheeses, filet chili, great scallops, and great beer - and friendly staff and diners. I'm looking for this type of place in Chicago, preferably along I-80 corridor between Ottawa and Orland Park, or up Route 59 north of Plainfield. The most important thing is the flavors in the food and the friendly atmosphere. I'd like to try a place out tomorrow nite so please give me some ideas. Thanks!

Anything worth stopping for on the way to Peoria?

Capponi's/Mona's - Toluca, IL.

Cajun Connection

Central Illinois Turtle Crawl

Eats on or around Sheffield, IL

I-80 to Central Illinois

John's North Star Inn, LaSalle, IL

Ladd, IL & LaSalle County Fried Chicken nor far off I-80

Rip's Tavern, Ladd, IL

Smitty's Place - Leonore, IL

Starved Rock for lunch?

Surviving in Ottawa, Illinois

The area I know (DeKalb, Sycamore, Genoa), and what I like.

Verucchi's Ristorante(since 1914) - Spring Valley, IL.

Mal wrote:I've read about Ron's Cajun Connection in Utica and will go there.

Do Dat!


Four Course Combo Plate (Bubba Shrimp scampi, crawfish etoufee, shrimp creole and red beans & rice)

Cathy2 wrote:Cajun Connection

Nice starter before heading over to Rip's.

Cathy2 wrote: ...
Country Cafe's customers after 8 AM were mostly farmers or locals having breakfast. I scanned through the menu hoping for biscuits and gravy with a faint hope for grits. I didn't get the grits, though I lucked out on the biscuits and gravy. I ordered the southern combination of biscuits and gravy, sausage and two double-yolk eggs sunny side up for $4.50:



....

Country Cafe
103 Galena
Big Rock, IL
Tel: 630/556-3610

We've driven past the Country Cafe for years, and finally had an opportunity to stop on our way to Iowa on Sunday morning. We arrived around 9:45 AM and got the last available table. It's a smaller place than I realized and we hit it at the peak time. I had two eggs over-easy, sausage links and toast. Mr. X had a broccoli and cheddar omelet with hashbrowns. We split an order of biscuits and gravy. They have a great version of B&G. The biscuits are freshly baked and these were perfect. The gravy had a lot of flavorful sausage and was nice and peppery. I also enjoyed the sausage links -- they had a different flavor profile than the sausage in the gravy, but were moist and well-cooked. The Country Cafe is definitely worth a visit!

The GP,

I'm glad you liked your breakfast there.

A little inside baseball trivia: Art from Pleasant House Bakery grew up in Big Rock. He attended the school across the street from this diner. The diner used to have another function, because every time I bring it up to him, he tells me what it used to be. I want to say city hall, but not 100% firm on that.

Regards,

Spied some taquerias and mexican markets when I was cruising around Sterling, IL. a couple Saturdays ago. Those spots and a few fried chicken spots caught my eye and called for a return trip. Popped into the area yesterday with jvalentino and hit a few spots from Oregon down to Deer Grove and back to Dixon.

La Laguna, market and taqueria, market was empty as far as customers, they had some good looking meat, and chicharon. At the back of the market is the taqueria, pretty hopping at 3 p.m., complete with lunch counter. Spied the Al pastor spinning on the trompo and I knew we were gonna be ok., Pepsi in the bottle, 4 different sauces for the chips, all good. Just a snack here, an al pastor taco, and a carne asada. Al pastor was really good, some crisp bits from some time on the flat top. Beef was ok, for the small bits carne asada style it wasnt dry, heavy on cumin.

Solid taqueria that could have been in Joliet or Chicago.









al pastor & carne asada:



La Laguna
301 Avenue G
Sterling, IL.

815-625-6183

Oregon, IL.. Back in the day I went to summer camp here at White Pines Ranch, nowdays I like to explore these river towns. First stop out in this area this past weekend turned out to be one of the best. Messies Bar & Grill. Basic roadhouse spot, beer and a shot, burgers, and for this place some good fried chicken.

Messies:



Their fried chicken was more than solid, nice crunch, and juicy, but the meat packed some flavor.

1/2 Mixed:


Messies Bar & Grill
17 N. River Road
Oregon, IL.

http://www.messiesbarandgrill.com

Looks good . . .

One of the mysteries of the small-town Midwestern tavern is the common juxtaposition of a scratch-made specialty served with some of the very lowest common denominator stuff on the side. I've got a few favorite fish fry places in Michigan where they elevate fresh lake perch to an art and make soup shortcut-free every day. Then they tear open a bag of Don foodservice crinkle cut fries or nasty battered curly fries and place them irony-free next to the lovingly-prepared fish, then add some peas from a can and slaw from a gallon tub. Look at those pale fries. They don't even look like they could have come from the same cook (or oil) as the chicken. I guess it's very similar to BBQ places, particularly the classic aquarium smokers here, as well as Harold's -- which like them or not pays much more attention to the bird than the limp grease-collecting fires. Interesting to think that the standards for fries are generally infinitely higher at places where the main events do not involve the fryer -- beef and hot dog stands.

JeffB wrote:
One of the mysteries of the small-town Midwestern tavern is the common juxtaposition of a scratch-made specialty served with some of the very lowest common denominator stuff on the side. I've got a few favorite fish fry places in Michigan where they elevate fresh lake perch to an art and make soup shortcut-free every day. Then they tear open a bag of Don foodservice crinkle cut fries or nasty battered curly fries and place them irony-free next to the lovingly-prepared fish, then add some peas from a can and slaw from a gallon tub. Look at those pale fries. They don't even look like they could have come from the same cook (or oil) as the chicken. .

I agree, not how Id run my kitchen if I was frying fish or chicken to order anyway..

Ill eat a few french fries, but to me most versions are just filler.

My first Grubseeker excursion was a good one, though I have some things to learn (pace yourself). I think Messies was the best chicken we had that day and the tacos at La Laguna were solid. Really good finds if you find yourself out there.

popped back up to Sterling on Saturday(as well as Savanna, IL, Sabula, IA, Galena, IL) -

La Laguna(in sterling, mentioned upthread) was solid again, went with a couple Al Pastor tacos(this was supposed to be the first food stop of many so iwent light, my mistake as the other places we hit were pretty weak). Something I did notice on this visit was it appears they are making their own tortillas to order. Watched the girl come from the kitchen in back hand forming a tortilla putting it on the grill to cook.

No pics of the food @ La Laguna,

Ive probably mentioned it before but I am fascinated by the past(1800's-1960's), especially theatres. Spotted this one a couple weeks ago, finally got in a decent position to get a pic.

Sterling Theater - Built 1924 as a theatre for Vaudeville and stage acts. Destroyed by fire in June of 1943, rebuilt in the Art Moderne style, re-opening in 1944, seating 1,020 people. Currently closed/not in operation., but thankfully over the years has been restored and looks to be re-opening in some capacity in May of 2013:



Sterling Theater
402 Locust Street
Sterling, IL.

A brief trip to the Oregon/Dixon area last weekend yielded a few finds. My most enthusiastic recommendation is for Flynnie’s Diner in Dixon—finally a good place to eat a few hours out of Chicago along the Illinois desert of I-88. We had an excellent breakfast. Flynnie’s corned beef was homemade and crispy with savory corned beef and well-done potatoes. I had mine with a fried egg and only wished the helping had been larger. Cabbagehead’s large helping of biscuits and sausage gravy was also homemade and was thick and peppery without being gloppy. He enjoyed them (I’m not much of a fan so I can’t judge). Their coffee, often the downfall of small town diners in our experience, was good, though not great. They do serve it with real half-and-half at least.

Flynnie’s is open for breakfast and lunch every day but Monday. They are open until 7 pm Tuesday-Thursday and to 9 pm on Friday night.

Flynnie’s is definitely worth the 6 or 7 minutes drive into town from I-88.

Flynnie’s Diner
609 Depot Avenue
Dixon, IL 61021
815-564-2252
http://flynniesdiner.com/

Cathy2 wrote:....

Country Cafe
103 Galena
Big Rock, IL
Tel: 630/556-3610

Country Cafe is now called Big Rock Cafe. We didn't stop, so I don't know what else may have changed.

Found a good enough deep fried taco out in the IRV area which saves me from having to run up to Sterling, IL. and Manny's Pizza for some, or god forbid schlep east when I get the crave.

Valley Bar & Grill in Spring Valley, IL. has got em' daily. Reading that a few more spots in the area also do them - just gotta hit those bars on the right day......(I will).



Pretty solid version - flour shell, nicely done - well seasoned beef - $2.85/Ea. or 3 for $5. Wasnt expecting much but was pleasantly surprised with this joint. - ark as heck inside - easy on my sensitive eyes - bad for snappin a pic.

Valley Bar & Grill
107 E. St. Paul Street
Spring Valley, IL.

http://valleybar.webs.com/

good 1st stop @ Valley Bar, wasted enough time to get to Rip's in Ladd - maybe 10 minutes away - soon after they opened at 1130(sat. lunch hours) -

hooked on these Rip's tenders & their honey mustards(Hamms drafts don't hurt either) - these tenders get the same batter as their bird - makes them pretty much best in class - hands down.




No fried chicken per se at lunch(no 1/4s) @ Rip's, but pork tenderloins, chicx sandwiches, chix tenders, wings, burgers. Lunch at Rip's is laid back vs the crazy dinner rush.


side note - a new burger spot in Spring valley on the other end of St. Paul Street caught my eye -

Disaster Shack
219 E. St. Paul
Spring Valley, IL.

https://www.facebook.com/Disaster-Shack ... e_internal