Urban Counter

What a surprise! We are traveling from Chicago and happened upon this place. Great food, very affordable, and friendly staff. Kind of random that it’s connected to a gas station — it almost scared us off! But the atmosphere was very modern and clean and the gas station was so nice! Definitely recommend for travelers looking for something slightly nicer than the typical fast food fare.

Stopped by yesterday evening (around 5:50 pm) for a milkshake. I’m always getting gas here, and had been curious about the restaurant. I had a taste for a vanilla shake and stopped in after filling up my tank.
The place was clean, and the staff was friendly. I ordered an vanilla shake, and it was very generous for the price. The manager who made my shake made a chocolate shake instead of the vanilla shake I ordered.
When I told him I ordered vanilla, he apologized, and without skipping a beat offered me to make my original shake and said l could keep the chocolate one. He was so courteous and professional. I really appreciated that!
I have yet to try the food here, but I’m really looking forward to it now! The two guys working that evening were awesome too, they were funny and had cool vibes!
My vanilla shake was super yummy, and made my long commute alot more tolerable. It truly makes my day when I have a great experience with a business thanks :)

«For people on the go» — Urban Counter
I guess my first mistake was I didn’t get it to go and set down to eat my food.
So not worth driving out the way to come here. the only way I would ever come back is I moved within a 5 min driving distance and had to walk inside to pay for gas. I don’t want to downplay it like it’s a gas station with an a McDonald/​Burger King attached to it. I walked in at the start of employee team meeting. I ended up having to turn on music to drown them out. Although I only got water. thought it was annoying I had to walk out of the restaurant down the small hall into the regular gas station and across the large gas station floor to get water/pop.(but at this point I’m probably just nick picking as I just didn’t enjoy the food)
Blue Cheese Burger– I think if I had gotten the Bacon Burger this review might be complete different but I ended up going with their «signature» blue cheese burger. Things to note I threw half the sandwich in the garbage before walking out. YEP! As visual good as the burger looked. It just reminded me of that one family member that buy some really cheap patties that come in a box 50. this was quantity over quality at its best. I’m sure a rep would defend this but these are the only kind of burgers I throw away. The only redeeming quality is that it was cooked exactly how I asked for it. (Medium)
Mozzarella Cheese Sticks — Frozen from a bag
Onion Rings — Frozen from a bag
I’m sure we all have had frozen from a bag food that we love but this wasn’t it for me. I ended up driving down the block to Whole Food and picking up a smooth and kicking myself for not just going there in the first place and grabbing something from the Hot Bar.

The food is really good but the people who work there are always kind of odd and unfriendly and it takes forever to get your order. Every time I have been there the employees seem like it’s their first day on the job. But k return because the food is good.

Exellent burger actually the correct doneness. Good service and good food in an odd location but not one’s normal gas station food.

Food has been good, but service is «I’ll be dead before I eat» slow. Seriously. It’s that slow. I have never even been there when its busy, and its slow. You can drive into Hinsdale and Lagrange, go to a sit down restaurant, and get your appetizers before this place would give you your food. The food itself, however, is decent or good, depending on what you get. Good fries, though. But not good enough to warrant the wait. Fix the service, then it’ll be worth going to.

Yum yum yum! I stopped in on my way to school for some food. I always hit up the gas station and figured I’d give it a try. Prices are great. I got sweet potato fries and a turkey burger. I wouldn’t expect this from a restaurant attached to a gas station. Blew my mind. I wish they were open later so I could stop by after class! I will def be back!

Went in there to get get carry out looking at menu person behind counter told me we are closed. Wonder why he let me stand there looking at menu. Then I heard person say we are closed at 7 by the way he then see you son. I am in my 40s and this kid looked like a high school student. If you want a young punk disrepecting you this is the place to go incredible!

Apparently the hours are variable. I would have liked to try it. The door says they are open until 7pm on Friday but at 6:15pm the door was locked and the employees behind the counter simply looked at me and turned away without explanation.
Perhaps a week after the daylight savings time change they had still forgotten to set their clock back an hour? Perhaps.

I got the opportunity to meet a friend for a late lunch on a weekday and found this place on Unilocal for us to meet up. Sweet potato fries are the bomb, they actually taste like their source vegetable, unlike at so many other places. I ordered the bacon cheeseburger, my friend the Chicago hot dog, and we decided to split a chocolate shake. Friend loved the dog, I had the best burger in years, and our counter guy brought our shared shake in two cups complete with whipped cream and cherry for each of us – so very thoughtful! While the location is a bit odd, in a gas station with a convenience store in the middle and a bar at the other end (weird, right?!), Urban Counter was clean, the food was excellent, the price point acceptable for what we got, and the two young people working the counter and grill were very nice and accommodating of our special requests. I would definitely come here a couple of times a month for lunch, and look forward to trying other menu items. It’s close to work but far enough away to feel like I’ve escaped for an hour.

My first time and I will never go back. Probably the worst experience i have ever had at a fast food restaurant. I went in on a Sunday for lunch and I ordered 5 items and waited 15 minutes. When I finally received the order one item was missing and another wasn’t made correctly. The salad looked delicious but when I bit into the chicken it was inedible — hard and cold. The workers are young kids who were friendly but also slow and clueless. Too bad because the place was very clean and well decorated.

It was dreadful, I went there last week and it was great, today it was awful, my soda was all soda water, they torched my burger after I asked for it medium and my fries must have been frozen before they were cooked as they were raw !!! I don’t think I’ll ever go back there again. I was greatly disappointed. They had all young kids working there and i believe they didn’t care about quality. I would have given it no stars if I could!!!

The only reason I even rated this 1 star is because Unilocal won’t let me post my review w/​o one. Working relatively close to this location, my co-​workers & I have ordered from Urban Counter quite a bit for lunch. Today we ordered & were told our delivery would arrive in about 20 mins. An hour & ½ later we finally called to see what the situation was & were told the order was already delivered a while ago. We explained we never received the order. The employee (who supposedly ended up being the manager) continued to argue with us stating someone even signed for it. So we asked who signed for the order (my co-​worker paid by credit card) & she was told that info couldn’t be released to her! Charges on HER card (possibly even a tip) & was told they couldn’t tell her! Apparently they don’t confirm the correct ppl are receiving their orders & just let anybody sign credit card receipts. They ended up delivering the order to a different location of the company we work for. I understand mix ups happen, but not only did they not offer to remake it (the food has been sitting for 1 ½ hrs at this point), but they told us we’d still be charged for the food we never received! They said their delivery driver was on his way to get our food to bring it to us. We obviously didn’t want it at this point (we ordered cream soups & shakes — definitely wasn’t risking food poisoning). The driver arrives & then lies saying that the food is only 10 mins old, that they realized the mix up right away. He clearly wasn’t aware his boss already told us what happened. So when asking for a refund we were at first told no, we would receive ½ off our next order. Finally after arguing some more, we were told the refund couldn’t be returned onto the card, that we had to pick it up. So now we’re even more inconvenienced! When my co-​worker stopped by after work, they already credited her card. They couldn’t call to inform her ahead of time apparently. Worst customer service. It’s a shame because their food is decent & had this situation been handled properly, we would have continued to be customers. We will NEVER order from them again.

I was definitely surprised that this is basically in a BP station! The good thing about it is that the fountain drinks are really cheap and the BP is actually the nicest gas station I have ever been to — so clean and even has craft beers. I shared the burger and fries and they were good and everyone in the group seemed to like what they were eating. They had outdoor seating which we took advantage of.

My expectations for Urban Counter were modest. I hoped for a decent lunch in a clean setting for a reasonable price. What I got was a very good lunch in a surprisingly stylish spot for a good price.
I came in to Urban Counter through its separate entrace from the BP station to the right. On entering, I was really surprised at how nice it was inside. They’ve got a monochromatic color scheme which works very well and lends it a contemporary feel. The quality of the décor seemed about on Chipotle-​level if not a little bit nicer.
I ordered my bacon cheeseburger (medium) and fries at the counter, and walked through a 20 foot hallway to fill my cup at the fountain drink dispenser in the gas station. That was a little odd, but I suppose it makes sense to not duplicate functions between the two locations.
When they brought my meal to the table (about 5 minutes later), I was really pleased with the quality of the burger. It was cooked as requested, maybe even leaning towards medium-​rare. That’s really unusual at a place like this — they usually err on a level or two overcooked.
The bacon was super thick and tasty, and the onion ring which served as a textural element on the top bun was filled with a tasty, though not too spicy, roasted jalapeño salsa. Overall, the burger was excellent.
The hand-​cut fries were a little less successful. They had good color, and were twice fried as all good fries should be, but the end result was not as crispy as I prefer. Perhaps if they were cut a little more thin they would have worked better. They were well seasoned though.
I did some price comparisons with my five guys, who set a good benchmark for the fast casual burger spot. My meal at Five Guys would have cost about $ 2 more, and I’m certain the burger ingredients were better at Urban Counter (especially the bacon). Five Guys fries are definitely better.
I can unquestionably recommend this spot for lunch. If this were a standalone restaurant in downtown Hinsdale, it would be easily the best option of its type (vs. Dips n Dawgs and Doggie Diner). But as they say — location location location.

Urban Counter is a model of what fast food should be. Its fast, has quality food, and is reasonably priced. I had been very curious about this place well before it opened because I regularly fill up at the gas station that it shares a space with. I’m always on the lookout for new places to eat as I tire quickly of visiting the same establishment week in and week out. Before I get into what I like and what I’ve had I just want to preface my review with the mentality and mindset of the preparation of food there. I’ve spent over a decade in the food industry and know what makes or breaks a successful establishment. While doing everything right doesn’t necessarily make a restaurant a success it’s refreshing to see that there are still places that stand by doing things right. When Urban Counter first opened I frequented it several times a week just so I could try a multitude of different things as they all looked so good. In my frequent visits I spent a great deal of time shooting the breeze with the manager who has a great understanding and passion for food. In speaking to him you can tell that he really cares about quality and not cutting corners. He’s not the type of manager that comes in to work, barks orders at people and just goes through the motions to just make it through the day. He takes pride in the product, when he is describing all of the different items you can tell he legitimately enjoys his work and more importantly cares about putting out the best of what they have to offer.
With that being said let’s get to the actual food. I’ve definitely acquired some favorites already and those would have to be the Blue Cheese Burger and the Chipotle Chicken Salad. The burger is a great 8 oz. patty cooked to temp on a flame grill. This is key for me, so many cookie cutter burger places pop up every week that just have some flat grilled greasy patty with a plethora of toppings to choose from that is uninspired to say the least. The burger is topped with blue cheese, arugula, and a bacon jam (made in house) that blends together extremely well. I’m not going to say it’s the best burger I’ve ever had or anything but the thought that went into creating a great flavor profile with fresh and quality ingredients goes a long way in my book. The Chipotle Chicken Salad on the other hand is by far and away my favorite salad to eat from a fast food type establishment. If you ask me, salads at fast food places are generally a joke, you’re getting some vanilla garden salad with a packet of pre-​made dressing. Not so at Urban Counter, the chipotle salad is loaded with fresh and crisp ingredients and is topped off with a spicy and creamy chipotle dressing (also made in house). One thing I ALWAYS look at when I evaluate the freshness of ingredients in a salad is the lettuce and avocado. In this salad the lettuce was fresh and crisp and the avocado was a gorgeous lime green. Anyone that has ever worked with avocado knows how difficult it is to keep them from browning; once it’s cut you literally have a matter of hours before it starts to turn. The fact that my salad was bright, crispy, and tasty is just a further indication of the freshness of its components.
Just about everything at Urban Counter is prepared in-​house. They cut the bacon there, make the dressings for the salads, cut the fries, and most importantly it’s all combined with flavor in mind. I know I sound ranty here but it’s so nice to be able to go somewhere quick and easy and be able to eat quality ingredients that are put together in a way that challenges your palate with something new. There are many great dishes at Urban Counter as well as some stuff I’m not crazy about (Balsamic vinaigrette is a bit too sweet for me and the sausages were meh) but while some stuff isn’t for me I can still tell that it’s a quality product. Another important factor for me that pushed my review to 5 stars was that they want to hear what you think and make changes based on that. When they first opened they served the Italian beef on more of a French bread instead of Italian bread. While it was still good it didn’t feel like an Italian beef to me, more like a French dip. I mentioned this and a couple weeks later the beef was being served on the proper bread. Kudos! So nice to see that suggestions are welcomed, heard, and acted upon. All in all I highly recommend that you check out Urban Counter it’s a breath of fresh air in a sea of run of the mill corporate fast food establishments.

Urban Counter lunch spot is focused on food «for people on the go» (I used quotation marks because it’s from their menu, not because I was being sarcastic) attached to a gas station. It’s relatively small and super clean with tables and a few patio tables.
We dined in and informed the server we were, yet each item was wrapped in wax paper and brown paper taped shut. That seemed wasteful.
I ordered the Southern Dog which consisted of an all beef Vienna Dog, Chili, Diced onion, shredded cheddar on a poppy seed bun.
The bun was very soggy. I don’t know if it was from being wrapped or the bun was steamed. There wasn’t much cheese or onion. I wasn’t impressed with the flavor of the chili. The dog was steamed, juicy and with plenty of snap. Honestly, I was disappointed.
I also got the cole slaw: a BIG portion, vinegar based, crunchy, fresh cabbage and carrots, a lil bit of scallions… really enjoyed it. And I’m not a slaw fan, I’m picky about it.
My aunt got the tuna salad on wheat with a slice of cheese and my uncle got the bleu burger with big patty, blue cheese, bacon jam, arugula on a potato bun. Each ordered sides of the fresh cut, super crispy, French fries. The sandwich and burger were hearty portions (they are VERY athletic, so have big appetites and felt full). They said it all was tasty.
The shining star was the cheerful service!
I’d return.

Just ordered from here as I work in Hinsdale and they offer free delivery, which is fantastic. The burger was awesome and the fries were equally stellar. I ordered the Bacon Burger, who does not like bacon. That was awesome and my employees will be ordering from here frequently.

Stopped in for lunch with a friend. We both had Bacon cheeseburgers. While I must say they are a bit more expensive that I like. The Bacon is the best in the world !!!
If you like think, bacon the thickness of a piece of Ham go there. I’m going to make it a usual stop. Can’t wait to try a BLT. The burgers were really good, and the fries home made and super fresh and hot. Damn with the cholesterol these are delicious.

It just opened so we went to check it out. The food is good, not great or terrible. It’s nice for a quick burger fix. I do think they needed to clean off their grill, though.