Little Ricky’s

Ribs are better than hecky’s.

Food is definitely good. ⁴⁄₅
Drinks are good ⁴⁄₅.
Exterior is good ³⁄₅.
Deserts are ¹⁄₅.
Patio tables/​chairs ³⁄₅.
Clean ⁴⁄₅.
P.s do not order marshmallow treat it’s just regular bar from Starbucks for 1.25 $

It is a nice restaurant and a good menu. The layout is a bit crowded but I understand they have additional tables outside during the summer.
The food was good. We had an order of chicken quesadilla to start and they were good. For dinner our group had the chicken piccata, pulled pork sandwich and 2 orders of sliders. The food was good and we will be back I am sure. Our server Sarge was great and made some nice recommendations.

I popped into Little Ricky’s a week ago because my kitchen was under construction. I got the ribs and Mac and cheese, and my pals orders the brisket and the pulled pork sandwich. Both their dinners were outstanding — I had to sneak a bite — but mine wasn’t anything to write home about. Don’t get my wrong, I enjoyed the food, it just wasn’t the best ribs and Mac I’ve ever had. Considering this is primarily a ribs place, I was expecting maybe a trifle more. That being said, the BBQ sauce was excellent and I’ll probably come back to this place for the pulled pork or the brisket.

Great place to grab lunch or dinner with my family and one of the few places around that both my husband and I plus kids can enjoy. My favorite is the mongo bongo roll and of course my kids adore the grilled cheese and chicken fingers. Oh and the fries are super yummy!

Chili on a chilly day…
I ended up here by default for a lunch meeting. The sirloin tip chili was flavorful and hit the spot on a really chilly day. It wasn’t chunky or thick, but it was more like a soup base, loaded with lots of goodies… all the standard chili ingredients you would expect. I left feeling full but not too full. Is it weird to think that it didn’t come with crackers or bread or anything?
Little Ricky’s is an establishment that’s been around forever. They have a great large menu, and I always love trying the soup of the day. The service was prompt and courteous, and the restaurant was quiet and calm with lots of natural light. It truly is a great place to have a lunch meeting.
Then why the three stars? I just don’t feel like two soups and one coffee should have cost $ 21.25 with tip. For that I would have expected crackers and something thicker and chunkier… maybe even a small side salad? I agree with Marie D that the value factor just might not be there. Felt the $ ouch on that one. Next time I hope my original lunch meeting place is open for business.

What happened to Little Ricky’s? Everything now has a Mexican flavor or spice. I had fish and chips, but what arrived was some weird fish plate with no similarity to fried cod or whitefish and tepid fries. It is served with some sort of a bacon/​shrimp sauce… and green beans! My friend ordered BLT. It came on almost-​untoasted rye bread, soft bacon… it looked disgusting. Poor service. 1 waitress. Incredible noise. I had a «glass» of wine; they fill it ¼ full. The prices are upped by $ 4/​entrée. Awful!

We love Little Ricky’s. I stop in for a quick lunch during the workday, with my husband for a night out and with a group of families when we bring our group of toddlers. The food and staff is always great. I am always impressed when we bring our kids that the staff continues to be friendly and attentive even though there is more noise and mess with our group.
Now for the food… I love the grilled calamari appetizer with a balsamic sauce. It’s so flavorful and light. For entrees, we like the burgers (always cooked the way I order), BBQ chicken and our absolute favorite is the fish and chips which was recently taken off of the menu.
The Mac and cheese is slightly disappointing but kids still love it.

Little Ricky’s has been on our family’s «close-​by» short list for a few years. The menu is a good mix of what those of us raised here on the North Shore would expect: Baby Back Ribs, Large Burgers and a mix of other wraps, salads and munchies in a convenient location along with a REAL BAR! The main room is comfortable — there are always a few families earlier but, adults later as the night progresses. The Ribs are flavorful, always a good portion and good. Not the best ribs ever, but, for a place that’s right-​here-​right now — you can’t go wrong. Speaking of going wrong — what impresses me the most about LR’s is that when our most recent order was — ahem — not good, their manager, Colleen, credited the dinner and then delivered deserts to our door! That is the sign of a restaurant with someone who cares.
If you’re new to Winnetka or North Shore — Little Ricky’s is worth a shot!

After a recommendation by a friend away from our original choice for dinner over a week ago we have hit Little Ricky’s two times now and not been disappointed. I can see why this is such a popular place the employee’s seem to know everyone who comes through, certainly a local favourite.
We have had the Winnetka, Lakeside Burger, Ricky Club and the Sweet Chili Turkey Burger all done right and tasty. Service was attentive, without being annoying.

Fish tacos were good as were the burgers and the quesadillas. Avoid the Mac and cheese! It’s a real disappointment, it tastes like its from a packet.
Service is good and servers friendly.

I have to start off saying that the food isn’t really that good. Even the Mac and Cheese tasted really blah, like something from a box.
That said, my kids were with my husband and I. Every single table with a kid was seated near the bathrooms in the back where no one could see them when entering the place. I must state that the back is narrow, waitresses don’t come by very often, and there is a feeling of being unwelcome by having to sit back there when the rest of the place is mostly empty with a few people dressed in business casual lunching.
It was quite a rude experience we had. I was insulted by the time we left. Clearly they accept kids, but don’t want to hear or see them… or have their other customers see or hear them.
I won’t be coming back because of the whole experience… plus…I’ve got to say their food was really not all that good… so that’s another reason not to go back.

Really a no star. $ 16.95 for the lousiest platter of nachos (probably the easiest dish on planet, to make good). What nerve. Commercial poor quality chips, handful beans, dried up ¹⁄₁₆^th «cubes of skirt steak? Guacamole from 3 pac you buy at trader joes, really bad. And $ 17!!! These ppl should be embarrassed. Can t imagine anyone coming here if you live more than block away.

Chicken Panini (special) good. Sweet potato fries good. Pulled pork delicious but laden with high fructose corn syrup, MSG (modified food starch) soybean oil (GMO-​I doubt it’s organic) sodium benzoate, mac & cheese… well, I wouldn’t be surprised if it were box mac & cheese. In fact, Kraft would’ve been better than what I was served. Speaking of service (or lack thereof), I haven’t even gone there yet! Little waitress never came by to see how we were doing or if we wanted anything else. If she had, maybe desert or another drink might have been added onto the tab but NOOOOO.
So, question: do you think I’ll be back?

Little Ricky’s is the «Cheers» of Winnetka. I’ve been going here for years and the food is always good.
You can’t go wrong with any of the hefty salads. The Suzie Salad is my favorite. It’s a «manly» chopped salad packed with heaps of sliced chicken, cheese, corn, beans and romaine lettuce. It’s got a South West thing going on.
The ribs are OK but the pulled pork is fantastic! I especially like it smothered on the nachos. Little Ricky’s is not pretending to be fine-​dining but the salmon is cooked to perfection.
The service is great but it’s kind of loud in there. You’ll find lots of kids at the dinner hour, but after-​hours it calms down to an adult bar hangout for Winnetka folks.
Love this place!

So today I ordered the winnetka salad to go and decided to try the tarragon dressing although I didn’t know what it was and would usually have substituted it out for something else. I am so happy I didn’t! The dressing was sooooo tasty and there was so Many veggies mixed into my salad! Loved it! Now I don’t know how I’m going to ever eat a salad the same again!

As the name implies this restaurant is good for the littles in your life!
I figured we’d be eating mac & cheese at home on Easter Sunday, but thanks to Ricky we were able to venture out for our mac & cheese. And boy did my 1-​year-​old love Ricky’s mac & cheese. He pretty much ate the entire bowl and it was a pretty large portion that I expected to take home. I had a few bites and thought it was just OK, but then again my son is the m&c expert.
As for myself I went with the veggie quesadillas, which were quite good. I’d definitely order them again next time if I didn’t want to try something else from the large menu.
Casual atmosphere (hence why it’s good for the «littles»), fast service & decent food. And if it ever warms up in Chicago we may even enjoy our m&c and quesadillas outside.

Had business lunch here earlier this week. When I walked in, I felt like I had left Winnetka (in a good way). The atmosphere is a little dark/​divey with limited décor. There is a rather large bar for how small the place is, and the tables are packed in tightly.
Our service was perfect for us as we were talking business, and we were not in a hurry. Being my first visit here, I wanted to try a barbecue dish since it is a «rib joint». Unfortunately, ribs weren’t a good option for a business lunch. I ended up with the pulled pork sandwich. The pork was tender with enough sauce to be enjoyed but now drowned the pork. I also tried their sauce which was on the table, and I have to say I really enjoyed it. It had the right mix of vinegar and spices. The mac n cheese however was pretty bland.
Overall, this place was a solid meal. I think it would also be a great place to grab a beer. I hope to come back sometime and try some ribs.

Two visits to Ricky’s, two nearly identical experiences: forgettable calamari + great salad + slow service.
The Suzy (basically a southwestern) salad is really good. The Stir-​Fry Shrimp salad is really, REALLY good. The fried calamari is straightforward and serviceable; the grilled calamari is «just okay.»
I’m not sure what the story is with the servers here, but a dinner for four at this kind of place should not take two hours; thankfully the company was good. We would constantly see our waiter hanging out behind the bar or attending to other patrons, but for some reason he wasn’t coming to our table nearly as quickly or as often as he should have been. But he did bring things promptly when we asked for them… and we did have to ask – utensils, condiments, second drinks.
If they tightened up the service and I tried a few more satisfying menu items, I could see upgrading to 3.5 stars.

True this restaurant wouldn’t be as busy if it were located 15 ish miles south, but that said its still a solid meal. The food is dependable, nothing super exciting, but little Ricky’s doesn’t claim to be a mind blowing meal. Wine pours are generous (a big plus!) and its super kid friendly (another big plus). They don’t merely tolerate my rambunctious crowd but embrace it.
Service is a little slow– super annoying when dining w young ones, or when one is extremely hungry, so don’t expect a quick meal.