Argenta
These regional specialty dishes will probably throw you for a loop unless you're from the Midwest.
Some of the best bites in Illinois hide in places you would drive right past without a second look. I walked into a small, quiet bakery expecting a quick donut and walked out with a box of buttery Danish treats and a new weekend habit. The kind of flaky layers...
Sixteen first-place wins at Chicago’s WingFest is a lot of hardware for one modest neighborhood grill. Add four Best of Fest awards, and that shelf starts looking crowded. The place doesn’t stop at wings, either. Homemade tavern-style thin crust pizza comes out of the same kitchen, along with garlic buffalo wings that seem to have their own fan club.
A Christmas tree stands right in the middle of a department store dining room, rising so high it nearly brushes the ceiling. People book tables months ahead just to eat lunch under it. The room itself dates back to 1907. The walls are covered in walnut paneling, and crystal chandeliers...
SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (WICS/WRSP) - The month-long Springfield Vegan Chef Challenge has wrapped up and the winning chefs have been presented awards. Winners were chosen by Springfield residents who dined at the participating restaurants during the Challenge. Winner List:. Papi's Pizza Pub: 1st, Best Appetizer – No Mis-Steak Cheddar Fries.
Some Illinois businesses are paying close attention to a new law that will affect what drinks they can sell. Under the Illinois Hemp Act, any consumable or hemp-derived product, including drinks, containing more than 0.4 milligrams of total THC per container is banned from bars, taprooms, restaurants and convenience and grocery stores. They can only […]
A truck stop restaurant that started in 1928 as a garage selling sandwiches is still serving an all-you-can-eat buffet today. That alone deserves a second look. The buffet starts at 6 AM. Breakfast favorites, comfort-food classics, and rotating dishes fill the line, with a soup and salad station waiting nearby.
A carved wooden pig head hands out your number at the door. That’s how your visit starts at one of the most beloved butcher counters in Illinois. The kitchen behind the counter turns out more than 80 kinds of sausages and brats. A smokehouse adds more than 10 kinds of homemade bacon to the lineup.
A French bakery fills an entire Italianate mansion in Illinois, and the garden entry even has swings built into it. That detail alone made me smile. The house once stood on a stretch of town nicknamed Aristocrat Hill. Today it serves croissants, quiche, and a flourless chocolate cake that helped make the bakery famous.
A 16-ounce T-bone and an all-you-can-eat buffet still share the same menu at one Illinois interstate stop. Plenty of families thought that combo vanished along with the restaurants of their childhood. The chain behind it once dotted highways across the Midwest. Most of those locations closed years ago, so finding...
Twelve Illinois spots landed on OpenTable's Top 100 Restaurants in America for 2026, and every one of them sits right here in Chicago.
Illinois has some seriously good barbecue tucked away in small towns and Chicago neighborhoods, but most people don't realize it's even there.
Grocery prices are getting ridiculous, and Thanksgiving dinner isn't cheap. Here are five ways Illinois families can save money without sacrificing their favorite holiday foods.
Javapalooza is brewing across southwest Illinois through the end of November! In the Lifestyle Kitchen, sponsored by More for Less Remodeling, guests share how to explore participating coffee shops, enter the app challenge and vote in a latte art competition. Plus, Whitney Young from Roasters makes an iced latte!
Lunch arrives on a three-tiered tower of real china, and the stained glass windows above your table once watched over a church congregation. That’s the setup at one little lunch spot in Illinois. The building is more than a century old. Old church benches still serve as seating, and...
Free Greek donuts are not something you expect with breakfast, but one Illinois cafe has been known to hand them out on select weekdays. That small surprise is enough to make any morning feel brighter. The kitchen leans on Greek roots and classic diner comfort. Lemon rice soup shares a...