Belvidere Oasis

Went to Panda Express they shorted me on an entrée. The day before stopped chicken was hard and overlooked but chow mien and shrimp were delicious. Understood there could have been many reasons as to the poor chicken. Sent my daughter the second day but was disappointed as to why I didn’t receive the proper portions my box should have been full for a three dish entrée but was half compared to the two dish the day before. Tried to call the survey got all the way to the end and it disconnected me tried again and same thing happened, thus my Unilocal rating. Although my daughter commented that the portion was inappropriate the employee informed her it was correct, I knew the moment I opened the container. Disappointed once shame on you… twice … As a customer don’t go back. Then write to Unilocal review.

It has been foretold since the days of old
That of all the many places
There is not a one that can’t be outdone
By the Belvidere Oasis
A beacon on the plains, a vision of joy
For all the creeds and races
Not a soul who breathes could conceive
A more swell-​ly dear oasis
In these days of mirth when the people of earth
Are nothing if not faceless
There is sanctity on the interstate
The Belvidere Oasis
So gather with me ye cherished dear
Tonight we sojourn towards Belvidere
Our time is short and when we die
Our lives reduced to traces
Our souls will hear our kin adhere
the call of The Belvidere Oasis

It’s 11pm. On a weekend. Right outside of Chicago. And even though every light in this place is on full blast indicating it’s a bustling haven and available spot for travelers to get what they need, alas EVERYTHING, literally everything was closed? Nothing is open, Dude. 1. Turn off the lights and 2. don’t make people driving hundreds of miles who already exhausted pull off the highway, get out of their cars, stumble through freezing weather and into… a completely EMPTY place. Must be nice when it’s open but get your shit straight and 3. get a B team in here for the weekend. Sigh.

Halfway between here there and everywhere this oasis is clean and offers cheaper gas than Chicago and has some tasty food options.

Great place to stop on the tollway. The McDonald’s here has prices that are higher than your McDonald’s you would find anywhere else. The dollar drink I normally get at any other McDonald’s is $ 2 here. The service was Meh. The rest of the place is nice and clean.

Just wanted to give a compliment for the team that keeps the rest area clean!!! That is the cleanest restroom of any rest area I’ve stopped at in my 20+ years of traveling!!!

Can’t stop here anymore due to the overwhelming butter stench from the popcorn shop. It’s what microwave butter popcorn used to smell like when the chemicals caused lung damage.

Mmmmm Sbarro had great breakfast on the cheap. Five bucks fir 3 eggs, a giant sausage, large potato wedges and a toasted garlic bread as thick as my arm. So delicious!

If you’ve been to one Illinois Oasis, you’ve been to them all… I’m pretty sure they all have the same options available to you, or as least some variation of the following: Subway, McDonalds, Auntie Anne’s Pretzels, Starbucks, etc. This one has the ones mentioned, a mexican place, DQ, Panda Express … etc something for almost every taste. I stopped in there yesterday for two things — Ice Cream & a Bathroom… I got both.
Decent rest stop… a place to stretch your legs, grab some eats, coffee, gas for your car, what have you… oh, and they have free wi fi!
Clean facility here with clean bathrooms… definitely a rest stop on your way in or out of Illinois to hit up if necessary.

A commuting and traveler’s PARADISE… A sensational experience fulfilled by the SHOWCASED Mecca of fast-​food industry chains, all here in one place. I stop here to fill up on food & coffee, or take a little break from the monotony of driving, make use Of their clean well maintained restroom, do some txt’ing and emailing, and even rest my tired eyes here … There’s a two-​hour limit so plenty of time for all your needs…

Get your gas on, get your potty on, get your lunch on, get your snack on — what could be better? Clean, light, bright & spacious dining area to eat purchased food or your food from home. Clean, large ‘family’ restroom was much appreciated. Forget the typical fast food joints… get a ‘real meal’ at Kronos Gyros & thank me later.

Clean, spacious facility with lots of natural light. Food options are typical fast food fare. Panda Express, a popcorn shop, can’t remember the others, but we had Sbarro and McD’s.
Sbarro — 2 stars
$ 4.37 for a slice of the works
$ 3.79 for sausage slice
McDonald’s — 2 stars. We got the oatmeal, egg mcmuffin, apple juice, hash brown.

Your typical Illinois oasis.
Air conditioned
plenty of food shops
clean restrooms
WI-​Fi enabled location
spot to walk the dog outside
plenty of parking
No complaints here, good pitstop on your way to or from Rockford.

Like a mall food court without the mall. The whole place smells like butter. Amazing.

Do yourself a favor and hold it until you get to the Belvidere Oasis. This will spare you from the questionable gas station bathrooms of northern Illinois and southern Wisconsin. Not only are the bathrooms mighty clean but you’ll also find…
*A plethora of tables to sit with your not-​so-​healthy eats
*A myriad of food and beverage options (McD’s, Subway, popcorn, Greek eats, Starbucks) — at 11:30pm on a Tuesday Subway and McD’s were open… just for reference!
*Travel shop
*Vibrating massage chairs that always seem to be occupied no matter the time I walk in here
It’s shiny and clean and provides a very quick on/​off the highway. See you soon, Belvidere.

Truck-​stop Trixie?
Not quite, though arguable, but I will say that if I’m driving on 90 and can afford to hold it until we get to the Belvidere Oasis, I do. I’ll sit on my foot and rock back and forth until until my eyeballs float (#1) or my cold spells turn to over-​heated panic (#2).
And even when I don’t have to make yellow and/​or brown, I can usually find some excuse to stop at the Belvidere Oasis. Clean bathrooms + so many options as far as a transient service area go. In fact, if I didn’t have a family to gorge with on Thanksgiving I’d totally come here. With the cornucopia of eats and entertainment available, I’d be willing to best that my truckstop harvest celebration would be just as good, if not better than most familial Turkey Day gatherings.
Not a bad place to get gassy.

Sometimes in life you gotta pull off the road. If it was up to me, that would be about every twelve hours. However, the people in the car with me never go along with that plan. So if you are getting off, I want it close to the highway and everybody’s needs met.
Gas — check
McDonalds — check
Clean bathrooms — check
Easy on and off — check
Food that passengers in my car like — check
I would give it five stars if the gas were less expensive.
Get off, get it done and get on with your life.

While driving to or from La Crosse, WI this is either the first stop of the trip or the last. I think I hit this rest stop nearly every time and there is an important reason and guess what it is.
The restrooms? No, although they are well maintained and plentiful.
The travel store? No, although I have gotten trail mix there.
The vibrating chairs? No, but I love seeing kids in those.
The fast food? No, but I admit I have had breakfast here.
OK, I will tell you. It’s because there is a Starbucks! Yes! I need it to wake up on the drive up and I need it to stay awake on the way back.
Plus, you can get gas here as well!
Helping people travel wide awake, check it out!

I remember when I was a kid this place was a rundown rat hole. Now it is such a cool place to go. They have everything you can think of for food and coffee. Cool souvenir stand too and the gas station has super cheap smokes. Almost 3 bucks cheaper per pack then Chicago. So stock up on your smokes of your coming back to Chicago.

A Starbucks on the way to Wisconsin or Galena — I’m sold!
I was rather disappointed when the Krispy Kreme shuttered however my waistline isn’t complaining!
Restrooms are nice and clean, the gas is cheap and there’s a McDonald’s — the oasis has come a long way from the old days of just McD’s!