15 | February | 2009 | Mid-Michigan Dining

Nino’s Pizza – Alsip, IL

15 02 2009

4835 W. 111th Street
Alsip, IL 60803
(708 ) 423-9100
No Known Website
Menu

Nino's Pizza on 111th Street in Alsip, IL

Valentine’s Day wasn’t the typical Valentine’s Day for J and I. We had another commitment that took precedentover a romantic night out. No worries. We had our night on Friday night instead. On Valentine’s Day, after we got done with what had to be done, we started thinking of places to go eat that wouldn’t have a huge wait or be swamped with people. Most of the usual suspects were booked up, but I remembered a place we have driven by many, many times and never stopped at. The real funny thing is my brother was raving about a pizza he had in Matteson which is about a half hour away. I finally figured out the name of it and realized there was another location right down the road from J’s parents. Even though it had been there most of her life, J had never eaten at Nino’s, so thought we’d give them a shot. To make this even better, a friend of ours from Peoria told us some time ago that her family actually owns the Nino’s in Alsip…still, we had never stopped in for a pie.

Nino’s Pizza is near the corner of 111th and Cicero right on the city limits for Alsip and Oak Lawn. It’s a rather old building with neon tube signs on the front and side of the building. It looks like a throwback pizza parlor. J had called before we left to see if they had a huge wait and they said we’d be ok if we could get there in twenty minutes or so. I had a feeling a pizza place wouldn’t be packed on Valentine’s Day and I was right for the most part. The place was full, but there was no wait. We found a parking spot and headed towards the entrance which is on the side of the building.

Once inside, we were met by a hostess who said she had four tables and we could pretty much just pick. We took one fairly close to the door so J’s parents, who were meeting us there, could find us. The decor is very rustic. There is a lot of those thatched wood panels that you see on patio’s. They even made a drop ceiling out of them. There are several old chandelier’s scattered throughout the joint. The tables are topped with the typical red and white checkerboard table cloths. There are a number of old, wooden booths scattered throughout, but they looked pretty small like they were meant just for couples. Read the rest of this entry »

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Tags: Alsip, Chicago, Illinois, Nino's, Pizza, Restaurant, Reviews
Categories : Alsip, Illinois, Pizza, Restaurant, Reviews

Jedi’s Restaurant – Oak Lawn, IL

15 02 2009

9266 S. Cicero
Oak Lawn, IL 60435
(708 ) 499-4545
Website
Menu

Jedi's Restaurant on Southwest Highway and Cicero in Oak Lawn, IL

It was time for lunch again and we had a hard time deciding where to go. We knew there would be six of us because J’s uncle and his girlfriend were meeting us as well. It took a long time to finally settle on a place. We needed something that would be quick and something that would satisfy a number of different palates. We finally settled on Jedi’s Restaurant.

Jedi’s Restaurant is on the corner of Cicero Avenue and Southwest Highway in Oak Lawn. It’s a typical family restaurant with a large menu and a family friendly atmosphere. The rest of our party was already seated when J and I arrived, so we joined them at a table on the “upstairs” part of the dining room. We were seated right next to the fish tank which was a pretty big draw for the kids in the restaurant.

I know our party all showed up at different times which can be frustrating for restaurants, but we weren’t that far apart. There was maybe 10 minutes between the time J’s parents were seated and when J and I arrived. Once we got there, we waited another ten minutes for our waitress to come over for drink orders. J’s step dad and her uncle already had drinks. J ordered a Diet Pepsi. I ordered a Pepsi and J’s uncle’s girlfriend ordered a Diet Pepsi with no ice and a lemon wedge. Ten minutes later, the waitress brought back only the Diet Pepsi with no ice but with a lime instead of a lemon. She then took care of another table behind us and J and I still had no drinks. J stopped her to ask about our drinks and she rudely informed J that “they” were working on it. A few minutes later, we finally got our Pepsi’s. Read the rest of this entry »