Phoenix Restaurant

I’m new to the area and trying out the nearby places to eat (of which there are a lot!) This was about six months ago.
I’m about 300 pounds and it’s pretty common for people to think fat = stupid
The man at the register (presumably the owner) short changed me — probably figuring I wouldn’t notice. I did. I’m the kind of person who checks the change and can still figure out change without the register telling me.
My other observation was the waitress was inattentive as she was socializing with a «regular» in the afternoon. He looked like an extra from a bad TV series — whether he was just playing the part or the real thing, I’m not sure — but she wasn’t watching me when I was done and wanted the bill

Went to the Phoenix with my wife for breakfast a few days ago. We got there around noon or so on a Sunday morning and the place was about half full. The Phoenix had been closed for a few months for some rehabbing and we were curious to see what it looked like after all the work was done. We had only been there once, perhaps 5 or 6 years ago for a light lunch. So were passing by there this past Sunday and we decide to stop in.
We step inside and the guy behind the register can’t be bothered to seat us. He sort of waves at a nearby row of booths and tells us to go ahead and pick one for ourselves. Doesn’t even bother to give us menus. So we grab a booth and start to talk about how jerky the host-​guy seems. And we talk. And we talk. And we talk. A waitress finally comes by and asks if we need menus. Um, yeah. We’ll need a few menus, please. She leaves and we start talking about how weird this whole thing is getting. And we talk. And we talk. And we talk. Finally, she comes back with menus. This is going to take a while, I can see. Every time our waitress left us she would walk around back and disappear. Eventually, she’d come back out front again, perhaps in 6 or 7 minute increments– Disappear for 7 minutes. Come out front, do some waitressing for a few seconds. Then go back in the back again for 7 more minutes. Over and over. Need more coffee? She’ll be back out in 6 minutes with that. We really wished we had chosen to sit in some other waitress’s section, to be honest. Our waitress couldn’t give a sh*t about us, we wanted one who did.
Food was good enough, which is why I gave this place 2 stars. It made me absolutely insane to watch our food sit at the service window while our waitress was in the back doing whatever the hell it was she was doing back there. Finally, she comes back out, takes it off the window and brings it to us.
This place seems to be staffed by people who don’t seem to give a crap about promptness, nor attention, nor service. It’s sort of a shame because I can tell that the guys in the back doing the cooking really try to send out a decent dish. That host/​cashier and the waitress who served us couldn’t care less though.

I’m not sure why this place has received so many bad reviews. Its your typical Chicago, neighborhood diner. Same tacky décor and the same menu selections. My Father loved diners. I grew up eating at places like the Phoenix at least once a week and nothing bad happened to me… well other than the ulcer, gout and restless leg syndrome I’ve had since childhood. Just kidding!
I ordered the Corned Beef Club. The sandwich was an example of your typical, ala carte, diner fare. Both the sandwich and soup were fine. Nothing to write home about, but tasty enough for me to enjoy. It was pretty much the same diner food that I’ve eaten for years. Some people look down at diner food, personally, I enjoy it.
Here’s the bottom line on the Phoenix Restaurant. Like most old Chicago diners, the Phoenix is a place to get a decent hot meal without spending a ton of cash. The food, service and vibe were decent enough for me to come back again if I’m in the area. Old diners like this are a dime a dozen in Chicago. And as the old adage goes, you get what you pay for.

Hubby and I olny go there for breakfast, and i must say we’ve NEVER had a problem, staff is very friendly, service is good, and the food is NOT bad (for breakfast food) I mean how hard is it to cook and egg and bacon? LOL

You can’t really expect much from a typical a la carte restaurant that serves diner food.
No complaints on my end about Phoenix because every time I’ve visited the food has always been «good.» Nothing too highly-​praised, just simple diner eats at an average price.
My twenties were filled with mass consumption of these goods. Venturing out with friends, having late nights at bars, clubs, etc.; all these events have led me to enjoy this specific category of delicacy.
I’m sure everyone will agree with me that breakfast can be eaten at anytime of they day. Phoenix is where it’s at kids. If you find yourself lost in the northwestern part of Chicago around Lawrence & Cumberland, make a pit stop to regroup and collect your bearings here while grubbing on a ham & cheese omelette w/​hashbrowns.

I’m not entirely sure why this place has a bad rep on here, but I thought was pretty good! I came here yesterday with my Dad and brother after dropping my Momma off at the airport, and boy, was it busy! Luckily, we were seated right away because we were all starving. The waitress was cordial, but not much more than that. I couldn’t blame her though, she had her hands very full with tables.
I ordered my usual breakfast/​brunch diner fave – a Gypsy Skillet with over easy eggs. I really enjoyed it, and could only eat half since their portions are very generous. My brother had a vegetarian Omelet with hashbrowns, and my Dad ordered a Mexicana Skillet (spicy) – both dishes were tasty and completely finished! I’m not sure I agree with many of Pheonix’s reviews and would suggest trying it out for yourself!

Their food isn’t that bad but every time I go there, I get sick from the food. I’ve gotten under-​cooked food there, and I sent it back and it still came back under-​cooked.

I’ve come here way too many times in my life, sadly enough. Everytime, it seems to get worse. First off, the décor is old and outdated. It’s so tacky and 1950’s banquet hall that it’s no wonder the clientele are mostly over 80. The owners are also incredibly rude and the waitresses are not knowledgable about anything, including the menu. Last time I went they were practically out of everything and I’d be scared to order anything that is not a breakfast item. Unfortunately the Phoenix recently had a makeover, but I definitely couldn’t tell the difference. This place just needs to die permanently and not rise from the ashes. On a plus side, Elly’s is just the down the street so that you have someone to go when your meal turns out to be a major bust!

OK, this place is to have steak, nothing else.
Restaurant is mostly Old people eating here, but it’s been here forever.
For under $ 25.00 you get a nice FULL meal.
What I got.
2eggs and a skirt steak. (breakfast style)
Steak was over 12 oz long, eggs were pretty well cooked which i like it.
Is nothing fancy, just like a diner, but the steak is pretty good.

Once again, I knew this would be a disaster walking in based on the Unilocal reviews.
Let’s just say I never got to the food, and the only reason they get 1 star is because the two people I encountered were extremely friendly ((and apologetic… but I’ll get to that)).
Strike 1:
Terrible, TERRIBLE, décor. Not only did I feel like I was in a restaurant for senior’s ((which I’m not knockin’ in any way)) but I could have done without the glittery plastic booths. I felt like I was in a bad 1970’s Vegas casino.
Strike 2:
The waitress asked if my friend and I wanted coffee. I politely said no and when I picked up my coffee mug an 18-​legged insect of some sort scampered out from underneath it. Not only was this thing disgusting and creepy, it literally had about 18 legs and was about 2 inches long. Seriously, WTF was that?! A snake with legs?! Vomit. I bet that creature was living in the walls of Phoenix for years, feasting on all the sloppy droppings of food by diners. Ugh. I get the shakes thinking about it. The waitress saw the whole thing, and asked if we wanted a new table. She saw the looks on our faces and said she understood if we wanted to bolt. Well, I pretty much lost my appetite and the credibility of the restaurant so we bounced — fast.
I can understand a fly, a tiny spider, or an ant. Nature happens, I get it. But when some alien-​esque insect with fangs, eyeballs, and more appendages than I can count is encroaching on my lunchbreak — it’s time to call an exterminator.
Strike 3 (as if I needed one):
Leaving the restaurant the owner/​manager/​whatever he was, decided to stop literally 6 inches outside the door to light up a cigarette which I had the pleasure of walking through. As a non-​smoker, I was even more disgusted ((as if it were even possible at this point)). This was the cherry on the whipped cream, on the icing, on the cake.
Ughhh…Too bad, I was craving some pancakes.

Freshly remodeled… doesn’t look like an improvement. Food was terrible and expensive. If they think that opening a can of green beans and slapping them on a plate is good they are nuts. Broccoli soup was chalky, bread was stale, never had a pickle that had no taste, service isn’t much better. Steer clear of this place!!!

NASTY. I ate there once and had rancid mayonnaise on my turkey club. I took one bite and almost vomited.
It’s a typical old-​people restaurant with bland and barely edible food. But when you compare it to other similar style Greek restaurants this one is sub-​par.

Nothing special about this place, but its local, and they serve breakfeast 18hrs/​day. I really like their skillets, pancakes are pretty good too. Always friendly & quick service!
Your average Greek Owned Family style place!
I’ve eaten there several times, and will continue to. Its my preferred place over IHOP & Dennys.

This place is fairly depressing, but its standard for a diner in the x-​burbs. Its nothing special, nothing bad. I would not travel more than ½ mile to eat here. There are much stronger options nearby.

The Phoenix is another one of those places that your grandparents go to if the live on the northwest side. It’s part coffee shop, part diner, all low-​key. My father happens to think it’s a great place because the food is relatively good, the prices and fair and you can sit there all morning and talk about the way it used to be while sipping your coffee. Take it for what it is and give it a try, if nothing else you’ll leave feeling at least ten years younger!

Came for dinner Wednesday night for my dad’s birthday. He likes diners like these so we indulged him.
+
–Ample parking
–Average prices
–Super friendly/​nice waitress & bus boy
-
–Food was «eh». Bland at best. I had the chicken kabob. Picture on the menu showed rice & vegetables. When the food came, the «vegetables» were just all corn — no brocolli, carrots, etc. — just corn.
–The place needs to be updated (the bathroom especially)
Would not go back.

Stopped for breakfast. First time here. It was fair. Broccoli omelette with cheese was a bit overcooked. My wife said her breakfast was nothing special. Bacon obviously cooked earlier in the morning was served barely warm… inexpensive, waitress was friendly and the host/hostess…well, I have no idea what that was… very strange experience is all I’ll say.
I would not go back.

Hey– You guys like Fleetwood Mac?
Well I’m following their instruction and «Never going back again».
If you do eat here, I’ll offer my tip for survival: Go veg. Stay away from any kind of meat. Trust me… or rather, trust the other 10 people who ate here on break from a wake across the street and did order meat. The only thing worse than having to bury their grandmother, was the pain from eating the meat here. Yikes!
The service is okay… the server was really nice with your usual «hun», «sweetheart», and «doll», but the food took forever and our server forgot to take my order. I ended up getting a grilled cheese with tomato and fries. The fries were fine, the tomato on my grilled cheese seemed like it had been bruised and mashed and maybe the only reason it got used is because they knew it would be sandwiched between 2 pieces of cheese.

Ugh, I was caught unprepared, and stopped in at the first place that I saw I had not been to. What a mistake! I usually rely on Unilocal so that I can make a good restaurant decision, and I didn’t give myself adequate time to do the research. Anyways, the service was prompt if anything. This diner leaves little to the imagination, and the food was okay. The prices are average, but nothing to rave about. There’s certainly ample parking.

Ok I am slightly embarrassed to admit I have been here. hahaha
Anyway, not much is open on at 5 am in the morning so this was the only close option…
This probably ranked in about the worst diner food I have ever had.
The place did not look clean… and the omelet, if that is what you want to call it was barely edible. (ok we were starving, so we ate some)
In addition to the less than pleasant waitress, my & my friend were being visually accosted by by some man (who was with his wife & kids) just one table over. After she (the wife) noticed her husband staring at us, she proceeded to glare at us for the whole time we were there… HELLO??? SERIOUSLY!!! Maybe giving her husband the dirty looks would be more appropriate? At 5 am, almost no one was there, and they had to the family next to us?
Ok so maybe we were a little hungover, I am sure we looked like we had been out all night, and maybe we were not in the mood to watch them let their child run all over the place… I mean really, we were so PO’d!!! Whatever, anyway…
I would not recommend… unless it is the only place open and you are hungover to tolerate the food. (And then do not order the cheese omelet — or any omelet for that matter.)