Sola Restaurant
Having spent a good portion of my life and time commuting back and forth between California and the suburbs of Chicago – the Fox Valley area – it has at times been somewhat difficult for me to decide where to call home. And having just recently returned from another extended sortie west, I was still […]
Topolobampo
It is surely a given that I am a difficult person to buy a gift for… even my mother would have told you that. Lauren would not disagree. But it is also a given that when Lauren gets a good idea for a gift for me, nothing can compare. (This page may contain affiliate links. […]
302 West (2006)
For some reason, this is a restaurant that will always have a place in my heart…no matter what. And no, that’s not a segue to some bad news about 302 West. I have enjoyed some very special moments and occasions there, and I remember how saddened I was with the passing of 302’s Joel Findlay […]
18 Esperienza
Somehow, even after a 4 ½ Zin rating – back in December of 2003 – the owner at what was then 18 North mistakenly got the idea that I had ripped his restaurant. After I reread my own review of 2003, I noticed only two things that I stated I was unhappy about: the way-overpriced […]
O’Brien’s Pub & Grill
There is a small venue in Batavia – just across the river and north of Wilson Street – that, at one time, had some very decent food. It has changed hands several times and the food has never been the same. Another new owner (now O’Brien’s Pub and Grill) has taken over, and I stopped […]
Swordfish
At the very least, Swordfish – contemporary sushi – is a feather in Batavia’s restaurant hat. But that statement is somewhat misleading, since Batavia’s restaurant hat is, at least at this point, relatively featherless… And the statement does absolutely no justice to what both Lauren and I believe to be a simply marvelous sushi dining […]
Tribella Bar & Grill
It was another night where cooking my own dinner was just not at the top of my ‘want to do’ list, so Lauren and I – almost simultaneously – decided to head out for the evening. Our destination: Tribella Bar and Grill. Not the Typical Tuesday I have given Tribella mixed reviews on past occasions, […]
18 North
For some unknown reason, Tuesdays have become our night of choice to go out for something to eat – whether for a snack or for a full-on dinner. Last Tuesday was no exception, except that I had decided to ‘dial it up a notch’ on this particular Occasion. I say that because I decided that […]
302 West (2001)
I remember – vividly – the very first time that I walked into 302 West … the place was empty. I had, on occasion, driven to Chicago for dinner when I wanted a “fine dining” experience. But here was a place – right in Geneva – that offered the same kind of menu! Menu is […]