Kroll’s South Loop – Chicago

16 02 2009
  • 1736 S. Michigan Avenue
  • Chicago, IL 60616
  • (312) 235-1400
  • Website
  • Menu
Krolls South Loop on Chicagos Near South Side.

Kroll's South Loop on Chicago's Near South Side.

I wasn’t planning on eating lunch in Chicago today.  My dad and I went to the Chicago Auto Show, so I put on a post on Chow.com asking if there was anyplace to eat within walking distance of McCormick Place.  Most of the replies said no, but someone replied this morning and J happened to see it so she texted me with details.  About 2:00, dad and I were getting hungry so I thought, what the hell.  It’s only a half mile or so away, so I called J to get directions and we went for a walk.

Kroll’s South Loop is on the Near South Side at Michgan Avenue and 18th Street.  It’s a little, corner neighborhood bar.  They have the menu posted outside and prices looked reasonable, so we went inside to grab a bite to eat. Read the rest of this entry »


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Categories : Burgers, Chicago, Illinois, Pub, Restaurant, Reviews, Sandwiches

Vito & Nick’s Pizzeria – Chicago, IL

4 02 2009
  • 8433 S. Pulaski Road
  • Chicago, IL 60652
  • (773) 735-2050
  • Website
  • Menu
Vito & Nicks Pizzeria on Chicagos south side.

Vito & Nick's Pizzeria on Chicago's south side.

When we were home for Thanksgiving, one of the places J’s step-dad recommended we eat was Vito & Nick’s on Chicago’s south side.  We passed and went for ribs instead.  Imagine our surprise when we saw the pizzeria on Diner’s, Drive-In’s, and Dives earlier this month.

After that airing, we decided on our next trip home, we would check the place out.  It’s not far from J’s parents, so we hit the place up for lunch on a Wednesday afternoon.  J’s mom was off work so she decided to join us.  Vito and Nick’s was a place her parents used to take her, but she hasn’t been there in a number of years and wanted to see if it was the place she remembered.

The Original Vito & Nick’s is located on 84th Place and Pulaski.  There’s another location in Lemont, but we wanted to go to the one in Chicago.  J’s mom said she remembered the place as having a red, white and green awning and that’s what we looked for.  By the time she saw it, I had missed the parking lot, so we had to circle around the neighborhood to get back. Read the rest of this entry »


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Categories : Chicago, Dive Bar, Illinois, Local Flavor, Pizza, Restaurant, Reviews

Bloated Goat Saloon

22 11 2008
  • 141 E. Grand River Ave.
  • Fowlerville, MI 48836
  • (517) 223-8413
  • No Known Website
  • No Online Menu
The sign hanging from the Bloated Goat Saloon in downtown Fowlerville

The sign hanging from the Bloated Goat Saloon in downtown Fowlerville

The Bloated Goat Saloon is my kind of bar.  Not only is the name awesome, but the inside is the typical small town, turn of the century saloon with above average food. 

J and I were heading out to Howell to do some Christmas shopping.  Might as well get it out of the way early.  I hate people and you can’t have a crowd without people and you can’t Christmas shop in December without crowds, so we went to the Tanger Outlets the week before Thanksgiving instead of the week after.   We’re always on the lookout for new places and when I was searching for restaurants in and around Howell, I came upon a place called the Bloated Goat Saloon.  There were a couple reviews that said the place was really neat and the food was good, so we decided to give it a try.

The Bloated Goat Saloon is in downtown Fowlerville.  It’s not hard to find.  There’s a huge sign hangining on the side of the building.  The inside is dark, long, and narrow.  There isn’t much width to the place.  There’s a really neat bar running along one wall in the front of the space and tables along the other.  The back of the room is filled with more tables and the usual pub games.  Back to the bar for a second, it’s a really interesting design.  There’s the bar, but there’s also a boxed in shelf a few feet above the bar.  The whole thing is supported with steel pipe, so it looks like there are a bunch of “windows” when you’re sitting there.  About half of the bar stools are attached to the bar itself and then there’s a couple of the more traditional free standing stools. Read the rest of this entry »


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Categories : Bar, Burgers, Fowlerville, Local Flavor, Michigan, Pub, Restaurant, Reviews, Sandwiches

Auggie’s Grille & Pub

9 11 2008
  • 820 W. Miller Rd. #3
  • Lansing, MI 48911
  • (517) 272-0099
  • No Known Website
  • Menu
Auggies Grille & Pub on Miller Road in Lansing.

Auggie's Grille & Pub on Miller Road in Lansing.

I hate writing bad reviews.  I always feel bad, but I’m not going to not write about a place just because it might make me feel bad.  I always look for the good in things because I know a bad review can be bad for business.  If someplace just pisses me off though, I sort of feel like they deserve it. 

Auggie’s Grille & Pub is located in a tiny strip mall on Miller Road.  There’s a party store right next to it and there are signs all over the place saying drinking in the parking lot is illegal.  That should have been a sign.  Auggie’s looked like a nice place, but I’m guessing that it’s not a good area of town.  On Thursday night, I drove by to scout the place out before meeting J at our regular Thursday hang out, Barley’s.  The parking lot was packed so I figured the place was legit.  Read the rest of this entry »


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Categories : Bar, Lansing, Local Flavor, Michigan, Pub, Reviews

The Barn Tavern

16 10 2008
  • 207 S. Bridge St.
  • Grand Ledge, MI 48837
  • (517) 622-8686
  • No Known Website
  • Menu
The Barn Tavern in Downtown Grand Ledge

The Barn Tavern in Downtown Grand Ledge

We do so much shopping on the west side of Lansing that we’re starting to run out of places to eat.  We made our usual trip to Horrocks and Wal-Mart just before lunch time.  I was blanking on a new restaurant to eat at, so I said let’s make the short drive to Grand Ledge to see what they have to offer.  I keep hearing about Cugino’s, but I wasn’t in the mood for Italian.  We drove through the cute little downtown and saw a sign for The Barn.

The Barn Tavern doesn’t really look like it’s open when you drive in front on Bridge Street.  There are no windows and it kind of looks like it’s boarded up.  There was a lunch board outside advertising specials so I assumed that meant they were open for lunch.  We parked across the street then played Frogger to make it to the front.  The front door is in a little alcove and again, it feels like you’re doing something you shouldn’t be doing.  It’s a very cramped area, but once you open that door and walk in, you get a totally different impression.  Instead of feeling like you’re walking in to a speakeasy, you feel like you’re walking into a place you’d like to call your home bar.  Read the rest of this entry »


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Categories : Bar, Burgers, Downtown, Grand Ledge, Michigan, Restaurant, Reviews, Sandwiches

The Draft House Neighborhood Bar & Grill

11 10 2008
  • 12449 S. US Highway 27
  • DeWitt, MI 48820
  • (517) 669-5206
  • Website
  • Menu
The Draft House Neighboorhood Bar & Grill on Old US 27 outside of Dewitt

The Draft House Neighboorhood Bar & Grill on Old US 27 outside of Dewitt

How many times have I said all restaurants need a website?  I know I keep harping on it, but again, we picked The Draft House for lunch just becuase I found a website and it looked cool.  We were out in Clinton Country because we wanted to go check out Uncle John’s Cider Mill, but first, we needed lunch.  I looked for places in St. John’s and didn’t find a whole lot.  My Google search then led me to Dewitt.  I found a few places there, but The Draft House looked cool and looked like our kind of place so that’s where we went.

We had a hard time finding the place at first because the GPS wouldn’t recognize the address they way it was written on Google.  We instead hit “City Center” and started driving hoping we’d find it.  There’s no way we would have had we continued on that path, but when we got to an intersection marked “Old US 27” we tried putting that in the GPS and we finally got the address right.

The Draft House is on Old US 27 outside of DeWitt.  There’s a huge sign out front, but the building itself is pretty non-descript.  There were a few cars in the parking lot, but we were pretty early.  The football games had just started so the bar wasn’t completely empty.  Things started looking good when we opened the door to go in.  Hanging next to the door is a sign proclaiming The Draft House is smoke free!  YAY!  Read the rest of this entry »


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Categories : Bar, Burgers, Dewitt, Michigan, Pub, Reviews, Sandwiches

Black Forest Brew Haus & Grill

1 09 2008
  • 281 Heinlein Strasse
  • Frankenmuth, MI 48724
  • (989) 652-6060
  • Website
  • Menu
Sullivans Black Forest Brew Haus & Grill in Frankenmuth, MI

Sullivan's Black Forest Brew Haus & Grill in Frankenmuth, MI

My parents have been to Lansing several times since I moved here from Central Illinois.  On I-94 going through Indiana, they always see a billboard for Bronner’s CHRISTmas Wonderland.  Christmas is a big deal in my family and this year it’s even more special. My brother and his wife are expecting my parents first grandchild.  My mom, dad, and aunt decided to come north for Labor Day and I suggested we drive over to Frankenmuth to check out the town.  I heard it was pretty touristy and it was.

Before we did the tourist thing, we needed to find something for lunch.  My parents had been on the road since 8:00 AM CST and we arrived in Frankenmuth at about 2:00 EST.  Everyone kept saying, “Go to Zehnder’s” or “You have to eat at the Bavarian Inn.”  I did a little research and noticed the chicken dinners everyone raved about were $20/person, so that was out.  Seems pretty expensive…even for an all-you-can-eat.  I mean, really, it’s just chicken.  I didn’t get a whole lot of suggestions when I asked for one on Chowhound, but I ended up stumbling across a website for the Black Forest Brew Haus & Grill.

We ended up finding Black Forest right across the street from Bronner’s. My family was marveling at just how big the Christmas store was when I turned in the driveway for Black Forest.  They all turned around and said the same thing about the big, castle looking building we were now sitting in front of.   We hit up the brew pub during off peak hours.  It wasn’t quite lunch nor was it quite dinner.  We were right in between so there weren’t a whole lot of people in the restaurant at the time.  We were met at the door and show to a table in the dining area to the left of the bar.  Besides the bar area and the dining room, there was a four seasons patio not far from where we sitting.  Upstairs, there were big banquet rooms.  The dining room and bar area is realy spacious.  There are high exposed ceilings and lots of seating.  There is a big room enclosed in glass where the distillers sit.  Read the rest of this entry »


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Categories : Brew Pub, Burgers, Frankenmuth, Local Flavor, Michigan, Restaurant, Reviews, Sandwiches

Jimmy’s Pub

5 08 2008
  • 16804 Chandler Rd
  • East Lansing, MI 48823
  • (517) 324-7100
  • Website
  • Menu
Jimmys Pub on Chandler Road in East Lansing.

Jimmy's Pub on Chandler Road in East Lansing.

After another day of shopping at Meridian Mall, we decided to head out to Chandler Crossing to get some lunch.  I know it doesn’t make sense, but this blog has been getting a ton of hits for Small Planet.  I noticed on their new website the kitchen is (is going to be?) open at 11:00 am.  Since that’s what a lot of people are coming here for right now, I thought we’d check out the menu and see if it’s worth going during the day.  We found Small Planet and there were people inside, but the doors didn’t open when we got up to them, so we assumed they were closed.

Since we struck out at Small Planet, we needed a new place for lunch.  We’ve seen the commercials for Jimmy’s several times on TV, but didn’t know where it was.  We passed the pub on Chandler Road and the parking lot is actually connected to Chandler Crossing.  It looked like our best bet for a meal, so we headed over to their side of the parking lot.

Jimmy’s has a pretty cool atmosphere.  It’s kind of got a old world street feel going.  When you walk in, you run into the big horseshoe bar.  If you look down, there’s a faux cobblestone street.  Above you is a fake night sky with little twinkling lights that look like stars.  The theme is continued with street lamps used for lighting and street signs hanging in the corners. 

There wasn’t a whole lot of people in the bar, but there were a few there obviously on a business lunch.  We found a pub table in the “pool room” and took a seat.  The menus were already on the table, so we started browsing before our server came over to take drink orders.  When she came back with our Pepsi’s, we were ready to order.  Read the rest of this entry »


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Categories : Burgers, East Lansing, Pub, Reviews, Sandwiches

Buddies Grill – Holt

17 07 2008
  • 2040 Aurelius Rd.
  • Holt, MI 48842
  • (517) 699-3670
  • No Known Website
  • Menu (From Okemos Location)
Buddies Grill in Holt

Buddies Grill in the Holt Plaza Shopping Center

Buddies has been on the short list of places to try near our house for some time.  Why we never got there is a mystery, but we finally hit it up for lunch.  Even the day we went, it was second choice.  I had heard about a deli inside a hardware store on Aurelius Road and that’s what we went looking for.  We found Big T’s Extreme Deli inside Brower’s Hardware, but there was a closed sign on the counter, so we were forced to find something else.  We had just drove by Buddies and my girlfriend suggested we turn around and head back there.

Buddies is located in a strip mall at the corner of Holt Rd. and Aurelius Rd.  It’s a huge space with a nice big outdoor patio.  The heat index was up over 90 degrees the day we stopped in, so we passed on the outdoors thing.  The inside is seperated into two rooms.  The main bar area with a variety of pub tables and regular tables scattered around the bar and then there’s another non-smoking room off to the left.  We took a table in the non-smoking section.  Our waitress came over for drink orders as we looked over the menu and it’s a pretty big menu.  By the time she came back with our Pepsi, we still weren’t quite ready, so she gave us a few more minutes.  Read the rest of this entry »


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Categories : Burgers, Holt, Pub, Restaurant, Reviews, Sports Bar

Claddagh Irish Pub

14 07 2008
  • 2900 Town Centre Blvd.
  • Lansing, MI 48912
  • (517) 484-2523
  • Website
  • Menu
The Claddagh Irish Pub in Eastwood Towne Centre

The Claddagh Irish Pub in Eastwood Towne Centre

My parents had come to town for the final day of Common Ground to see Trace Adkins.  After a four hour drive, they were a little hungry and it was still way to early to head to Riverfront Park, so we decided to find a place for dinner.  One of our first weeks in Lansing, we went and found Edgewood Towne Centre and noticed an Irish pub on one end.  Since pub food is usually a sure bet with everybody in my family, we headed out to Lake Lansing Road for some grub.

Claddagh is a chain of fifteen Irish Pubs located in the midwest with the home office in Solon, OH (you know, “we’re going bowling, so don’t leave her in Solon.  Moon over Parma, tonight!”  I love Drew Carey 🙂 )There are only two locations in Michigan with the other being in Livonia.  It was a beautiful day so we opted for the patio over the dining room.  We got a quick look at the inside and it’s a gorgeaous pub.  Very typical of what you expect.  Lots of dark woods with a huge horseshoe shaped bar in the middle.  The really interesting feature was the pub tables located near the bar.  They took old whiskey barrels and put a table top on them.  I noticed it when we were walking out and I actually went back to take a closer look.  It was a really cool idea and added nicely to the overall theme. Read the rest of this entry »


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Categories : Burgers, Chains, Irish Bar, Lansing, Pub, Restaurant, Reviews

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