Drew’s Eatery

Unilocal says Drew’s is Open. Google Places says Drew’s is Open. A 45 minute train ride to Drew’s reveals… Drew’s is closed. Don’t waste your time on this, after an hour-​and-​a-​half roundtrip I’m back where I started. Why are they closed at 4pm on a Thursday? I won’t go back to find out.

Drew’s Eatery will be closing its doors for good this week.
They will have their last day open on Saturday.

The food, most of it microwaved, is so over-​priced, I am shocked so many families choose to dine here. Sure, there are a few vegan items on the menu but what vegan really wants to eat at a hot dog joint?! The puny hot dog was completely out of proportion to the jumbo-​bun they put it in and the Mac&cheese was microwaved and crunchy. The service, while pleasant, was painfully slow and after returning the Mac and cheese, no refund was offered.
2 hot dogs, 2 sodas and one bowl of raw Mac and cheese = $ 25…never having to go back… priceless!
In the future, I will go next door to Apart or Asadero for very affordable, higher quality food

This place sure packs a punch for being vegan! I left completely full and satisfied on a Sunday afternoon.
I enjoyed the green dog (fresh spinach & feta cheese blended in an
chicken & turkey sausage) with the Welles Park topping (drew’s original — tomato slices, cucumber spears, dill pickle spear & celery salt), parmesan kettle chips (super-​duper crunch and oh, so flavorful), and broccoli slaw (just the right hint of ginger and spice).
Also, it is great to see a business focus on the little ones! I love the fact that there is a «kid’s corner» in a portion of the establishment. What a wonderful way for the kiddies to enjoy their experience at Drew’s too!
It is refreshing to see a joint focus on tasty food that is both organic and mainly vegan. Here, here to Drew’s Eatery!

I really wanted to like Drew’s. I love the idea of Drew’s. But the execution was kind of meh.
I ordered the vegetarian sloppy joe and even with salt, pepper, and the allegedly hot hot sauce, it was still pretty bland. And I don’t know if it was the fact that the bun was too big, but it didn’t feel like there was enough sloppy joe in the sandwich. I had a side of chips and even though they’re supposed to be homemade, they didn’t taste homemade. Also very bland.
My partner, a vegetarian for 20 years, ordered a veggie italian sausage. Again, the bun was really big. Nothing really special about it.
Our daughter got the mac and cheese and it was basically noodles with cheese melted on it. Not a roux, but just cheese melted on it. It was an insult to mac & cheese and those who love it.

This was a «Portlandia» experience. My wife has been talking about this place for awhile, wanting to try it, and we finally came in. We originally ordered the meal for sit in, but they treated us so badly we decided to take it to go and get the hell out of there.
I ordered a vegan sausage, easy enough. Then came the most baffeling thing I ever witnessed at a counter joint… my wife ordered the Vegan Not Dog and wanted the Phoney as a topping (Vegan chili). The guy at the counter picked up a corn dog, and my wife said no, I don’t want a corn dog. Just a regular vegan dog, with the vegan chili. He thrust the corn dog up, said this is what you want. My wife and I looked at each other as if the world had gone mad. My wife yelled, I don’t want a corn dog! Seriously, what is the issue? We’re looking at the menu board trying to figure out what was happening. Did she order wrong? No, she didn’t.
He finally made our orders correct. I still don’t understand what happened, but we paid them $ 15 for that experience, and by the time we got home on the bus, the sandwiches were cold.
Never again.

I am in a quandry about writing a review for this place because on the one hand we liked the food. Thought it was tasty for the most part.
I tried the sloppy drew with mac and cheese, which was yummy and hubby had the drunken? bratwurst with mac and cheese as well. His food was also good, however, what we could not get over was how outrageously expensive this place is for what you get!
A small tub of mac and cheese for almost $ 4!!! My Sloppy drew was like $ 6 and came on a hot dog bun, really?
I understand that they are all about organic and healthy foods but really, the prices are ridiculous.
The cashier was very nice and friendly, she was a huge plus for them, however, I would not return without a deal and had we not had one we would never have eaten there in the first place!

Been meaning to check this out, and when I saw a groupon now deal, I popped in.
Us vegans are happy when a place that has vegan and nonveg food just labels everything and has a few different options. Here they basically have a vegan version of almost everything: Three kinds of dogs, multiple buns, many mustards, ice cremes, mac and cheese… Hard to make a decision, actually. But everything I tried was cravable. I got the veg brat with drunken kraut on a pretzel bun and a side of mac and vegan cheese. Yummers!
The staff is SUPER friendly, helpful, and knowledgeable. There is a tiny play area for wee ones with a few toys and books and a mini-​wienermobile. Across the street is a park too.
The only negative is that they need a changing table in the bathroom. I realize it’s a small and oddly-​shaped room, but if they have them on planes they can put one here.

After I first read the menu and saw that a little vegan hotdog is $ 3.50 and they charge for toppings, I avoided this place for at least a year.
After finally spending some time in there and trying the food, I would like to review to tell everyone out there how exciting the menu is. First of all, the word vegan is all over everything, and for the most part, substituting veg options doesn’t cost any more than the omnivorous counterparts.
There is really decent vegan mac and cheese offered as a side, vegan chili, multiple sausage/​hot dog options, homemade kettle chips, milkshakes, vegan caramel sauce for ice cream sundaes (!). The organic drink bar has some seriously great lemonade, but they also put a few strawberries in water and then charge for it.
As much as I want to just adore Drew’s, it is just so much more expensive than the competition. After adding toppings, a $ 6 hot dog is just not enough food to merit the price. Especially since it is just basic tofurkey mock meats I can buy at the grocery store down the street. If these things were homemade, or if Drew’s wasn’t a fast food everydaylunchoption type of place, I could see them getting away with it. I want Drew’s and places like it to succeed, but they need to find a way to make it both profitable and affordable enough to make me come back and visit again.

If you are driving down Montrose looking for this place and you blink, you will miss it. It is located in a tiny storefront just off of Lincoln Ave. I would have never know that it was even there if not for my wife telling me about this remarkable little place. I have to agree with her that this place is a remarkable short order stop.
The restaurant is very, very small and the décor is very quirky and eclectic. The staff was relative friendly and turn out some good food. Their focus is eco-​friendly, organic fare and they do a very good job of this. I ordered the sausage with sauerkraut and a side of organic mac-​n-​cheese. Everything was delicious but rather pricey. I will not refrain from going back here but if I ate here as much as I wanted, I would be broke for certain

The portions are small, overpriced… Yes, it’s «organic”/vegan fare, but there are better options in the area! I will never walk in here again.
I’m not cheap, but paying for toppings on a dog or sandwich? Really?! Well if I am going to do that, don’t skimp on it?
Go to Chubby Weiners or Hot Dougs if you want a Chicago style. Or Slim’s down the street.

I made the switch to bruschetta topping for the drew dog. HELLLO! That is the most perfect hot dog. Peppers, tomatoes and garlic on top of your organic, juicy hot dog.
Also, he has this italian sundae with the icecream in a big waffle cone bowl, swimming in espresso. I was not prepared for this goodness. The bowl holds it all perfectly. It’s the most delectable treat with lots of caffeine to amp it up!

Move over Doug. Now there’s something meatier. Er, less meaty. Er, cornier.
What I’m trying to say is… Drew’s Eatery has a veggie corn dog! While Doug Sohn has rarely ever let the herbivores of Chicago down at Hot Doug’s, he saddened this portion of his ardent followers when he dropped the veggie corn dog a couple of years ago. This other D’s down the road has picked up the deliciously greasy carnival snack slack. And well. Even if it’s a bit smaller than it used to be at Doug’s.
But Drew’s also added something that Chicago’s unhealthy vegetarian masses have been clamoring for (trust me, I’m attuned to these things like I am to a factory farm cow’s pain) — a veggie chili dog! Made Coney style (I love the name The Phoney). Now the ultimate Chicagoan Doug might not want to give a Detroit-​style dog props, but Drew has no such qualms. And it’s a messy, overflowing bit of soggy bliss that’s almost like a sloppy joe on top of a hot dog. Just like the real thing.
However, Drew isn’t content just taking on Doug on the carrot munchers tip. There’s a full menu of regular dogs as well. Organic. HFCS free. Non-​factory farmed (with no Bovine Growth Hormone). Fair trade. It’s a hippie’s dream dog.
If I ate meat, I could still sleep at night knowing I ate a dog that was good for me and for the environment (I don’t care about the animals, that’s not why I’m a vegetarian). In fact, everything here is as environmentally friendly as possible, from the lights in the bathroom to the ice cube machine. All without sacrificing taste or comfort! It’s like a template for what every restaurant in Chicago could be if we all willing to tighten up our morality and the notches on our belt loops.
Though not our money belts. Sacrificing a little money is something that is, sadly, a fact of life when it comes to eating this way. $ 3.00 for a scoop of ice cream prevented me from trying this other specialty of theirs (that’s kind of outrageous), but I’ll be back. To be honest, Doug’s is a little better tasting (and the veggie dog is cheaper there), but there are no lines here. There’s no rush. And there’s free wi-​fi.
Doug hasn’t lost a loyal customer, but he’s now got competition for my encased not-​meat heart! Er, my heart is meat, but… Never mind!

I just ordered from this place on Grubhub. What a mistake. The menu looked so tasty, expensive but tasty. Not was it my experience with them.
I get my order and its cold… The sloppy joe is in a hot dog bun and it was cold and mushed. The side of chili mac is cold and greasy and the malt is melted. I was floored when I looked at this. They charge me $ 5 for delivery and I get this cold?
Thank god Felix at Grubhub, he was on it, he refunded my money asap and gave me a credit from them. I guess who ever picked up the phone at the restaurant was pretty rude to him and demanded to be taken off Grubhub.
Sounds like a great start to me…

An organic delivery option? Hotdogs that don’t include mystery ingredients? Milkshakes that I don’t have to feel (too) guilty about? Count me in.
I’m both happy and sad to have found Drew’s.
Happy because, as I’ve already mentioned, they make the quick Chicago standards (Italian beef, hotdogs, etc.) with real food. You don’t have to worry about where the ingredients came from. You don’t have to wonder how long ago the bucket of Italian beef was thawed. These are real organic ingredients and – yes – you can taste the difference.
The sloppy joe and Italian beef on a pretzel bun are our favorites. Also, the peanut butter chocolate milkshake is the best thing I’ve ever tasted. The sides could use some improvement, though. While we appreciate the variety (homemade chips, mac and cheese, chili, applesauce, cucumber dill cottage cheese), aside from the chips, they are all pretty underwhelming.
However, Drew’s also makes me a little sad. As much as I want to give my money to a business that supports organic eating, I have a very hard time justifying spending $ 50 for lunch for two (sloppy joe, Italian beef, milkshakes and a couple of sides). Each time we’ve ordered, we’ve spent at least that much.
I try to buy local and organic food for our household. And I’m willing to pay a little more to buy food that is better for my body and the planet. But $ 9 for a milkshake? I can’t help buy wonder if that much of a mark-​up is necessary.
So, I’m torn. The food is delicious and – as much as an Italian beef and milkshake can be «healthy” – it is. But is this the business model we want to lead the «food revolution»? If everyone has to pay nearly $ 50 for an – albeit organic – Italian beef lunch, we might as well keep buying stock in McD’s.

Never would I have thought a restaurant would move me to poetry:
Twas the night before last, when I arrived with my spouse
To sample Drew’s we drove five miles from our house
One eating vegan, the other gluten-​free
We hoped the long trek would be worth the journey
We had a bit of sticker shock when we saw the listed prices
Those kinds of amounts are usually for bad vices
But we ordered in hope thinking the food must be fantastic
Not knowing our letdown would later be so drastic
The first disappointment came when I was asked cash or credit
And I saw that paying with plastic added 10% to your debit
I was shocked because I also run a small company
And 3 or so percent is the norm for these fees
So I plunked down 25 bucks for «a quick bite to eat»
Two sammiches, two sides and one bottle of tea
We had to buy sides because the sandwiches came plain
No chips, no salad, no fruit, no simple grain
Looking around at other prices we were taken aback
And as we waited our lips were starting to smack
Why else would people pay nine dollars for a shake?
Unless it was so good it made their knees quake
With excitement we saw our food was on its way
We giggled as the server came to us with a tray
But instead of the meal we thought would be so keen
We were greeted by the most pathetic food we had seen
Now I know I’m not crazy so I can’t be the only one
Who thinks it’s wrong to see a «sandwich» in a hotdog bun
My wife had the same, but since hers was gluten-​free
We paid eight dollars for that bit of misery
I thought biting into it my opinion would change
That the magical flavor would my thoughts rearrange
But no, it was just what I expected it would be
Some Lightlife and a bun with no magical quality
My initial shock over I looked to the other side of my basket
And pinned my hopes on the other part of my banquet
The «mac and cheese» that had cost almost four bucks?
Came in a serving size one quarter of a cup
Now don’t get me wrong I’m not one of those guys
That thinks every serving needs to be super-​sized
But when you’re paying such prices you would expect
Higher quality and portions that aren’t specks
With no other option we trudged through our meal
Wondering how the hell this place continued to appeal
Then we saw the yuppie moms starting to descend
And the pricing, the quality, made so much sense
So to my fellow vegans, do not despair!
There are other places in the city that take greater care
Places where a sandwich means what it means
And the portions aren’t so insultingly lean
I won’t list them here since I’m talking about Drew’s
But please know you have other options to choose
Support other businesses that do vegan right
And to Drew’s I say a permanent goodnight!

So I decided to give this place a second shot when my friend suggested we eat at Drew’s for a meal. The staff members were definitely much nicer and more informative this time.
Drew’s has several vegan options whether they be sandwiches, chilis, hot dogs, and ice creams. My friend and I tried a variety of things, my vegan sloppy joe was average and I was pleased with the variety of vegan ice creams (made by Temptation). Overall it was a much better experience and I’m looking forward to trying their vegan hot dogs next.

yummm

When it comes to hot dog joints, I don’t just go to any old hot dog stand (one reason why Vienna Beef’s Fullerton Factory has been in my «To Try» bookmarks for years now). Heck, you don’t know what exactly is blended up and stuffed in that thing! Thanks to Drew’s Eatery, organic and natural is key. And personally I think it’s worth the extra buck or two ($ 4.30 a hot dog is not that expensive people!). They aim at being friendly to everyone including the vegan and lactose intolerant minorities. And did I say gay-​friendly/​inviting? Uhh huh that too. Oh and I can’t forget about the kids who have it made here with their Kidz Korner on both the menu (with several options for them) and in the corner of the small one-​room eatery including books and toys.
Drew’s offers free Wi-​Fi for those techies like myself. I love that I can enjoy delicious ice cream (biiig thumbs up for the Temptations Chocolate Soycream) including the pistachio with true pistachios within and the sweet coffee flavor. Drew also makes it easy on you by offering several dessert concoctions like Drewskie Sundae that comes with their homemade Animal Cracker Cookie! Lastly, I gotta say that the take-​out menu printed on Whole Foods paper bags is greenly neat-​o, along with the fun looking water and ice bin. Nice touches! I am announcing that I have OFFICIALLY replaced Byron’s Dogs and Budacki’s with Drew’s Eatery. FYI: They’re closed Mondays!

I feel like I just found my soulmate. Drew’s Vegan Italian Sausage. What a sweet little number. Her flavor was incredible, almost exotic. Her bun, well, it was just enormous, and delicious.
With a little horseradish mustard, sweet pickle relish, and ketchup, I had myself a nice juicy little break from the library and 4 teenage boys. She was remarkable, like the patron saint of Italian Sausages I think. I’m not really one to eat food that looks or is «designed» like meat since I’ve been a vegetarian for 36 years, but hey, Drew’s VIS is my new crush I will admit.
Now, how can I get one of these in the loop around 11:45am M-​F?