Lola’s Diner

Wait, wait, wait — how is it that I’ve lived just a minute’s walk away from this snazzy little 50’s style diner called Lola’s Diner? I can’t answer that question, but I can sure tell you that, as those cool cats in the 50’s would say, this place totally razzed my berries. Yeah, you read that right. Lola’s Diner totally put a razzle in my dazzle with their hot-​rodder decorations, that checkered floor (which I want to use to play a serious game of life-​size checkers), and that spankin’ good food. Seriously, spankin’ good.
It’s been a couple of days since eating at Lola’s Diner and still cannot get over how insanely huge the infamous nest was or how incredibly feathery and light those pancakes were. I think I was actually on cloud 9 when I was eating at Lola’s…until at least I was so full that I could barely stand up straight. Believe me — you may not think a nest is that much but you couldn’t be more wrong… it is so much food. From looking at previous pictures it seems that their nest has grown exponentially — it’s huge and what’s more is that it comes with your choice of pancakes or toast — why is that even a choice? Pancakes, duh. This is plenty of food to split with your significant other — I think you may be painfully full otherwise.
Don’t get me wrong — I’m so not complaining about the food because it blows me mind that I could get allllllllll of that for just $ 8. I mean, rewind… say what??? You are not going to get the most for your money anywhere else — Lola’s definitely has a leg up on others because of the amount of food you get for the price. Lola’s also has some of the friendliest staff — something you don’t find everywhere. Our waitress was awesome and she was the one who told me that if I didn’t want to get the original nest I could make any of the omelets into a nest. She advised that the Italian omelet makes a very good nest so I trusted her opinion and ordered it — I was not led astray. With this being said, it doesn’t cost anything additional to do make an omelet into a nest so you might as well take advantage of this little trick in the book.
The best part, you ask? Getting to enjoy all of this food in the middle of diner that feels like it is straight out of Grease… the only thing missing was a juke box, but I don’t need a jukebox to sing «you’re the one that I want» while prancing out of there, satisfied as could be.

Hands down the best diner coffee around and the best plain pancakes I’ve ever had. They add a secret ingredient to the batter and it makes them just delicious. Their cream of mushroom soup is out of this world. My family and I are regulars and we are never disappointed with the food. They have a great selection of all inclusive lunch specials under $ 10 that my colleagues and I take advantage of on teacher institute days. Definitely worth a visit!

I love the diner look at this place, not crazy about the waitress service. She was somewhat of a smarty luckily my Puerto Rican feistiness was hibernating or it wouldn’t of been pretty. The food was ok wasn’t wowed at all, now after eating both my husband and I experienced stomach discomfort. Pretty concerning that it was both. We had the Nest and The big Texas breakfast. We agreed never to return.

Another Chicago café. As we seem to get here when traditional breakfast is still being served but it is after the noon hour I have ordered a hamburger both of my visits. It is a typical diner hamburger cooked on a flat top seared in flavors served on a awesome bun. I would not say this is the best of anything but Lola’s does not have to be the best they have to be good and they are.

We were very impressed with Lola’s from the start. Their prices are fantastic and the place is clean and very kitchy. We happened upon Lola’s after getting caught in a snowstorm after shopping for carpet in the area. I had the blt and chicken dumpling soup. This was definitely an above average blt. There was plenty of bacon without it being overwhelming and the lettuce and tomato were both perfect. My wife ordered the turkey sandwich which she loved, and one of my kids ordered a kid’s breakfast meal (which was huge) while the other got potato pancakes, which was a massive order. Like I mentioned earlier, prices are great. The night before we were at Walker Bros in Highland Park where I spent double what I did at Lola’s. Bottom line is that everyone was very happy with their meal and before we left my kids talked about wanting to come back. Looking forward to it!

Clean, friendly, pricing right on for portion size, well cooked (not over cooked!) chicken in my wrap with fresh cooked bacon and cheese (Alabama chicken wrap), fried came out super hot and fresh, cute décor, loved it.

Typiquement américain, tant pour le décor que pour la nourriture. Abondant et pas cher.

Great breakfast food, fast service. Very cute ‘50s interior stylings. I’d go back to this place if I were in the area.

I love this place it’s my new breakfast spot! I love breakfast it’s my favorite meal so that’s all I’ve had here. Eggs, bacon, hash browns, and pancakes are all amazing. The staff is nice and very attentive. I like the décor it feels a bit like a throwback. It has a fair amount of parking but the lot gets full quickly. I don’t have anything bad to say about this place honestly and I hope to explore the menu more.

We love coming here for lunch. They have the best lunch specials at the best price ever. You get soup, entrée and the drink for a great price of about $ 8. You can’t beat this deal. Cute place too. The bright blue and white décor is great. Good location. I wish I had a place like this in my neighborhood that we can walk to for breakfast, lunch or dinner.

Great meals for a great price.
Very friendly and helpful.
Extremely clean and retro atmosphere.

Solid diner. With clean and recently refreshed décor, this is not a dingy roadside «greasy spoon» by any means. Service is up and down, fast and slow, mostly fine but sometimes inattentive. The food comes out quickly, but is always fresh and hot, so clearly made to order. One thing that really bothers me is that the coffee server comes around every few minutes (seriously, back off – there is only a half-​inch of space at the top of the cups), but our water glasses go unattended through the entire meal. During one recent visit, my cup was empty for almost the entire time, and I didn’t even get a refill after asking for it. I asked again, saying «we» both times to indicate the whole table, but only one glass was delivered. It’s summer, it’s hot, and people are thirsty. Even in any weather this is such a basic element of restaurant service. And both times I had to ask the coffee girl instead of our waitress, who rushed past the table several times but never stopped to check in after the food was dropped off.
So anyway, thank goodness that the food is delicious. The vegetarian omelet is chock-​full of vegetables. The Denver omelet is chock-​full of vegetables and ham – real ham too. The italian skillet is really good, but the sausage is NOT italian; this made me very sad. The pancakes are fluffy and delightful, plain, wholegrain, and chocolate chip. I love a place that offers pancakes as a starch side to savory dishes. Portions are generous – big omelettes and the stack of pancakes numbers five. I always have enough leftovers for a second meal.
Lola’s is really a 3.5 (get the water straight and I would go to 4) but I have to round up because the food is reliable and this has become our go-​to breakfast spot after living nearby for only a couple of months.

Food was awesome, but they get 5 stars for having a dedicated coffee server making rounds in the restaurant. I’ve never seen it before and it’s outstanding

Great food and service! Cute local diner. Haven’t had a bad meal here and we eat here often breakfast and lunch.

Just what you want from a diner. Great variety of food, done quick and at good prices. Solid cup of coffee. Nicely lit throwback feel, and the staff has a weary familial air that comes from protracted success and sore feet. Good counter banter between regulars, staff and passers-​through.
I keep ordering the Southern Benedict, for a few reasons. One: properly poached eggs are hard to come by and you get three perfect ones. Gravy over hollandaise, any time, any where. The tomato slices perfectly complement the patties of spicy sausage. Altogether a knockout of a Benedict.
This is 5 – 10 minutes from The Rivers casino. I hit a six-​number Fire bet in craps one morning when I decided to eat at Lola’s, first. At 1000 – 1, that breakfast was one of the best decisions I ever made!

I’ve gotta say, I really like Lola’s for breakfast. They have an excellent selection of hearty and delicious things to choose from. Many varieties of pancakes, waffles, omelets, skillets. If you can’t find something you like, you don’t like breakfast.
Of particular note was an apple pancake they had on special once that is worth fighting for.
Portions are good, prices are OK, service is friendly but it gets busy on the weekends so you sometimes have to be patient.
The atmosphere is kitschy 1950s-​ish diner — surprise, surprise.
Go. Have a good time. Leave with a full belly.

50s diner kitschy cute! Black and white checkerboard tiles and teal seating! It was just about full. We got a booth. I customized a veg. nest, at no extra charge. My friend ordered a veg. omelette (good) and coffee (ok). My order got messed up and they immediately took care of it and made me another one. Our waitress and cleaning staff came around asking how everything was many times! Good food & service… will be back for more of that!

I LOVED the décor here. It was a blast from the past. Really felt like I was in the 1950s.
I came here for breakfast/​brunch and the service was quick, affordable and friendly. I swear, they must have refilled my bottomless coffee like 5 – 6 times even though it never got below half a cup. The hubby and I split «the Nest» which as they describe on the menu is «A layer of shredded hash browns wrapped around scrambled eggs with cheese and onions. Your choice of bacon, ham or sausage». We ended up splitting this between the two of us and it was more than enough. We still had leftovers by the end of our meal! We also ordered a side of pancakes and fruit. I was impressed by the fruit side dish (blueberries, blackberries, cantaloupe, honey dew, pineapples, the whole shebang). I was expecting it to come out on a small bowl but it actually came out on a full plate!
Nice diner in the area. I’d recommend.

Lola’s Diner is a fun brunch spot. I love the teal chairs, the checkered floors and the retro table top. It’s a great place to go if you want a casual dining experience.
Portion sizes here are very generous. For instance, if you were to order the omelette, you’d definitely get a big one (think something like 3 – 4 eggs used) and they are generous with the ingredients. The meal also comes with potatoes and pancakes (other sides available if you request them).
The serving ladies are very prompt with the coffee. The minute you sit down, you’d get a pour and they are constantly checking back to make sure your cup is full.
This is a great neighborhood gem and you should definitely take your out-​of-​town visiting friends and relatives here on any morning!

We were in the area and decided to stop here for breakfast. So glad we did. One — i love the décor. Two — I loved the food.
It’s diner food but a notch above… I had an egg, ham and cheese biscuit and it was so filling and good. Husbo had biz and gravy and it was really good as well.
The next time we’re in Park Ridge around bfast, i’ll go here.

A cliché in the best possible way!
I had the nest, which is sausage, scrambled eggs and cheese rolled in hash browns, really good!
But the pancakes oh my god the pancakes, I would write them a haiku if I knew how, maybe even erect a monument!
Fluffy perfectly sweet, light.
bundle of joy in your mouth.