45 North

I’ve been here quite a few times, great variety of menu items and amazing martinis. I give them a four star due to our service every time we go. We have never really had «great» service. We usually have to ask for anything and everything that would come pretty common for a waitress to figure out you need. We also dislike the fact they don’t have a changing table in the bathroom, it’s a family restaurant and I have to change my daughter on the floor:/ not acceptable.

Been here a 4 – 5 times now and felt like it was my duty to leave a review. Visited for special occasions and just for lunch and have always enjoyed the food. We read the reviews before our first visit and understood that it can get loud, especially in the evening. But what restaurant doesn’t?
The meatloaf is really good (lunch sandwich or for dinner), especially when you are not considering your weight or long term health benefits! I will still order it knowing the facts! I’ve had vegetarian wrap and loved it. The chicken parm was also good at dinner and the caesar steak wrap was good for lunch. Careful with the s’mores nachos, they are addictive.
We’ve noticed a drop in service, but maybe that has something to do with the seasons. We loved the waitress with unexpectedly colored hair.

Crab cake didn’t seem fresh. Mushy inside deep fried outside
20 minutes to get the bill

Really good food. Big menu with a lot of choices. I wish they had more beers on tap. A place of its size should get more than 6 taps. Other other than that its a great place.

I can’t say anything negative about this place at all! The wait staff and bartenders have all been great and very attentive every time we come in. We have been coming here every Saturday for prime rib for a few months and it is never anything short of great. Atmosphere is nice, location is great because it is not in a busy area. Very nice to sit down for dinner or hang out at the bar and watch a game. Gaming machines are also a nice perk! Menu has a lot of choices for anyone’s liking. Definitely worth a try for anyone.

Easter brunch was pretty much ruined by choosing this place. The restaurant is extremely loud, the buffet was a joke and the prices were out of line. 3 adults 2 kids $ 140 after tip. Seriously Denny’s would of been better. Live and learn won’t be back and advise others todo the same.

Bar is now open late on weekends! New late night bartender… come back to your favorite neighborhood bar for a nightcap!

I heard they have new cooks, so I gave them another try. The burger was fantastic.
Their new menu looks good.
I don’t have much else to add. They were really bad when they first opened, but they seem to have improved dramatically. It will take several more visits to be sure.

This place is amazing. Leaving the area soon and sad to not have this place anymore. Their cheeseburger soup is unbelievable. I call and ask for it all the time ;).
Thanks to the staff for great meals will miss this place !

We went to this restaurant on May 31, 2014 with some friends. There was four of us in total. We arrived at 7pm and for a Friday night the place was pretty quiet. We sat out on the patio.
The only reason I am giving this restaurant a single star is that the food was pretty good. The biggest problem was our server, Christina. She was rude and snippy. When she came to the table to take our order, she became annoyed that it was taking longer than she wanted, and told us that she needed to get the order because she had tables inside that were waiting to have their orders taken.
A drink was accidentally spilled and she did not help to clean it up. The person who spilled the drink asked for a clean napkin because he used it to clean up the table and she never did bring him a new napkin… instead we asked for some paper napkins from the wait station. Server was unhelpful and unconcerned. She never smiled once.
We moved inside after dinner because of the bugs and it was getting rather cool. Christina was again, unfriendly, unhelpful. She was left a tip, against my wishes. No one should be rewarded for such poor service.
This place has an obvious problem with training their staff… our server was terrible terrible terrible and should not be working there.
If we go back, we will ask for a different server if she is still working there.

Unfortunately we found the French fries were greasy the cole slaw had green pepper in it? Yuck. The cod and appetizers were ok. We will not be back here. Had funnel cake fries which were funnel cake dough powdered sugar and Hershey’s chocolate syrup. Also our server was upset because of her tip. We told her the fries and the dessert were not good and her response was «I liked them» which did nothing for us the consumer so she was tipped accordingly. When we attempted to talk to management we were confronted by the server as to why we tipped her the way we did. We will not be back due to the experience we had. After this experience we went to the LakeHouse in Lake Villa for a good beer and house made pretzels.

My husband and I went to 45 North this past Friday night for the first time. Once through the front door we thought the place looked like our kind of restaurant. Loved the bar area and layout of the high top tables. We were seated very quickly, there was a family of 5 ahead of us and a party of 4 behind us. The wait to be seated was just as long as it took the hostess to seat the family and walk back to get us. The hostess was very friendly and asked if we preferred a high top or low table. We picked a low table and maybe reflecting on that, this was our 2^nd mistake (1^st mistake picking this place for dinner). We looked over the drink and food menu, which had a nice assortment of both. We must have sat there for 20 minutes, with not a single server acknowledging our presence. There were maybe 7 – 8 other tables with people in our area, all of which had either been served or the server has taken their order. As we sit and wait and wait. Standing at the bar (which was in our direct eye sight) were 3 servers and the bar tender — doing NOTHING!
Needless to say we put our jackets on and and left. We went back into Antioch to another restaurant that we have been to several times.
I would not recommend 45 North, unless you can wait longer than 20 minutes or maybe you know someone who works there.

This was our second attempt to eat here. I must confess, we haven’t had a bite to eat or a drink of water. Our first attempt a few weeks ago and the place was jammed, with at least a 30 minute wait. OK, time to go somewhere else and have dinner. IF the hostess would have been nice or somewhat compassionate, we would have stayed.
Our second attempt was last night. The place was about two thirds full. We got seated and waited. And waited. And waited…20 minutes total. No acknowledgment we were there, no water, no «I will be with you in a minute». All the wait staff were engaged in talking with each other by the bar. We walked out. On our way out we spoke with the person at the bar and told them why were were leaving, who said, «OK» because «no manager is here tonight».
We really wanted to like this place, but we won’t be back. Ever.
To the OWNER, wise up. Your wait staff is costing you $$$$. Hope you stay in business.
BTW, we went to the Shanty and had a great meal. We will return there.

If I could give it 0 stars I would. We went to have a late lunch today. I have been before and we have always felt comfortable eating there… but today they really screwed up. I understand mistakes happen but when the OWNER of the business doesn’t care, I have a problem.
I have celiac disease. The first time we went we were guaranteed there was no problem with making things to order that don’t contain gluten. They even gave me suggestions and we have never had a problem.
Today I ordered what I usually order. French onion soup with no croutons and salad with no croutons. Our salad came and mine had a rotten cucumber on it. No biggie, pushed it to the side and ate my salad. My soup came and bite never four I had a CROUTON! We let the waitress know promptly and she was very apologetic and went to talk with the manager in back. The waitress came back and said she took care of the bill. She asked if I would be ok and I said no, I will be sick for the next week or so. She asked us to hold on while she went to speak to the owner. The owner was standing out the back and we had a clear view. The waitress was talking to the owner and telling her about the problem and we saw the owner shrug her shoulders and go back to chatting with the others outside. The waitress came back inside and said she told the owner. Mrs. Gunderson, the owner, never came inside to speak with me and for her to just shrug her shoulders is even worse!!! I would NOT recommend this establishment… if something goes wrong, THE OWNER WON’T CARE! Go elsewhere!!!
You would probably be treated better at Denny’s.

I’ve been here with my wife about 5 times. Food and service has always been excellent. I have always ordered something different and have never been disappointed. i had the fish fry tonight and I loved it. I have recommended 45 north to others and the reports back have always been good. You can’t go wrong with this restaurant.

Happened to be driving by and stopped with the intention of asking for a menu to take with me as I was traveling with my dog. Ended up staying for a late lunch since they were cool with seating me and my pooch on the patio.
Ordered my lunch and went around to the patio with my dog.
My drink came immediately followed by my brie bacon burger. Burger was awesome. Cooked as ordered, with REAL thick sliced bacon cooked crisply at the same time as the burger. Fries were good, not greasy. Had the option of ordering sweet potato fries, coleslaw or fruit with the burger. I asked for another drink and the bill the next tme the wait staff came out and paid immediately. Bill was less than $ 20. Waitress came out to see how we were doing about 15 minutes later. Apparently there was shift change, because a different person came out and asked if I needed something about 20 minutes later.
Patio was pleasant (we were the only ones there) with a rustic feel. Table tops were supported by large tree stumps. Music playing outside was not loud. Plenty of parking.
Welcome addition to an area where the dining choices are limited. Overall a very pleasant experience. Also, a great place to visit if you happen to be antiquing up the road at route 50 and 45!

The restaurant itself was nice enough, but the food was outstanding. Unfortunately, the owner apparently does not employ enough wait-​staff knowing it took about 10-​minutes for the first person to show up after we were seated for our drink order, only to disappear for another 15 – 20 minutes for our water and iced-​tea.
In the end, I would highly advise you order EVERYTHING at the same time AND ask for the check when the food arrives… handing them your credit card before you even take your first bite. Otherwise, its gonna be a long night…
Again, we really enjoyed the food; however, we wasted about an hour in «dead time» waiting and waiting. Poor ownership /​leadership on the floor caused a really poor experience…
Recommendation: SKIP THIS PLACE.

I stayed away from this place because of reading reveiws that it was loud and the food was bad and their was nothing for kids. But then I read that they had made improvements, so we went, plus a neighbor said they loved the place. It is a really cool building, and it is nice and new. I just could not imagine how loud it was before the improvements because it was really loud still. The food was pretty good, I had the pulled pork sanwich. It was okay, but someone else at my table had the hamburger and they said it was excellent.
Good kids food too. I will go back for sure, hopefully it will be a little more quiet.

The northern edge of Lake County is a wasteland when it comes to good restaurants, so my husband and I were excited about 45 North.
First visit: We were seated at our table for 25 minutes, and not a single person acknowledged us even though many passed by or glanced our way. We would have settled for a «be right with you,» or «thanks for being patient» — any small token, but no one seemed to be paying attention. We walked out and the hostess seemed completely unconcerned. Hoping that the kinks would get worked out, we returned with our fingers crossed about two weeks later.
Second visit: Again, we waited at our table for at least 15 minutes without being acknowledged. By the time our waitress took our drink orders, two parties seated after us had drinks and bread at their tables. Despite the wait, our waitress was very friendly and provided good service. What she couldn’t do is compensate for the mediocre quality of the meal.
The rolls were served warm, but were tasteless. I ordered Chicken Pasta Alfredo. The sauce had absolutely no cheese flavor (it tasted more like chicken broth) and no parmesan cheese was offered. The chicken was cubed; I don’t know how it was cooked (certainly not grilled or browned), but it had no taste or color to it. Nothing was inedible, but it really wasn’t enjoyable.
Atmosphere: The restaurant itself is visually appealing. Tables are spaced well enough to make conversations at your table private and avoid the usual bumping and shifting when people get in and out of their tables around you. However, 45 North needs to decide whether it wants to be a bar or a family friendly restaurant. We went on a Thursday evening (about 5:30pm), and there were intoxicated people at the bar (loudly and frequently) using very crude language. While we didn’t have our children with us, it clearly bothered some of the elderly patrons and parents with children.
Just because we want new restaurants in our area to succeed, we’ll probably try this one just one more time, but I’m not too hopeful about the future of 45 North. Their prices are too high given the mediocre food and service, and the overall experience is very underwhelming.

This place is only earning three stars in the review for a few things that made our experience average. I’ll try to list the categories that I took into consideration.
Atmosphere — Being a brand new building, everything is clean and all of the tables and chairs are in great shape. The tables are spaced far apart and there feels like enough room to eat. A huge problem is that it’s basically one large room and becomes extremely loud when there’s people in it. It’s very difficult to hold a conversation with people at your table. I’m glad Illinois is no (indoor) smoking because the air quality would be bad throughout.
Service — Our service was excellent. Our server was Jess and she had excellent timing on when we needed things like drinks and always got them immediately. She also answered questions on a specific menu item when asked.
Food presentation — Excellent. The appetizers looked great and the entrees appeared to be carefully prepared, even on a busy evening. Very impressed.
Food Taste — Average. Our table ordered ribs, meatloaf, and a prime rib sandwich. All were average in taste. The prime rib sandwich was bland and the Au Jus was bland and watery. The ribs were dry (more later) and didn’t come with barbeque sauce — on them or on the side. The meatloaf was probably the best entrée and is a pretty unique item.
Pricing — Probably what is to be expected. $ 10-​$ 20 a person for dinner is about right for their target audience and for the looks of the inside.
I will mention that our two plates of ribs were served to us «cold» and I’d probably estimate their temperature at 60 – 70 degrees. It wasn’t like they were even partially cooked. We sent them back (which I hate to do!) and they were returned very hot after a proper reheating.
Overall, I’m not sure if we’re going back. Maybe on a Wednesday afternoon or something when it’s not so loud. I’ll make sure we don’t leave out our iphones too.