Category: United States

IllinoisRating: ExcellentSeafoodUnited States

Bob Chinn’s Crab House – Wheeling, Illinois

Gil Garduno11:09 PM

Over 900,000 customers in 1999 couldn’t be wrong when they spent over $28M, the third largest revenue for the year among independent (non-chain) restaurants at Bob Chinn’s Crab House in land-locked Wheeling, Illinois. In 2004, Bob Chinn’s was fifth in revenue among America’s independents. Fresh seafood flown in daily to a capacious restaurant is the reason why. Turn-away throngs of patrons line up to order their favorite fish feast from a fabulous menu. Many indulge on one of the shrimp lovers choices, all of which are perfectly seasoned (or sweetened as in the case of the wonderful coconut shrimp) with…

Closed in 2012Gone But Not ForgottenOregonThaiUnited States

Typhoon – Portland, Oregon (CLOSED)

Gil Garduno4:44 AM

Among restaurant critics the term “edible art” is so overused it’s become trite, but it really is an apt description for the incredible Thai cuisine crafted by chef Bo Kline. Hailed by Bon Appetit as “one of the hottest chefs in America,” Kline has become somewhat of a regional impresario with six successful Typhoon restaurants in the Pacific Northwest. Kline’s restaurant’s menu is inspired by the humble pushcarts of the peasants and the opulent palaces of her native Thailand where an incomparably delicious balance of sweet, salty, sour and bitter flavors in all their glorious combinations, subtleties and exotic explosiveness…

BurgersClosed in 2012ColoradoGone But Not ForgottenUnited States

Conway’s Red Top – Pueblo Colorado (CLOSED)

Gil Garduno7:34 AM

Bigger may not always be better, but it can be pretty darn good. The gargantuan world famous hamburgers at Conway’s Red Top earn their “one’s a meal” reputation, but fell short in my estimation as one of the best hamburgers in America. A “people’s choice” mainstay in local newspapers, those humongous burgers earned acclaim as among the best hamburgers in America by no less than Michael and Jane Stern’s, America’s preeminent Roadfood experts. These burgers of legendary proportion have–similarly to patrons who can actually finish them–grown larger over the years. A giant hamburger is an eight ounce ground beef patty…

AmericanBurgersClosed in 2021Gone But Not ForgottenNevadaUnited States

Burger Bar Las Vegas – Las Vegas, Nevada (CLOSED)

Gil Garduno12:11 AM

In light of protracted enmity between America and France in recent years, you might think the notion of a French chef crafting an American institution, the hamburger, would be considered audacious at the least and heretical at the worse. True burger aficionados, however, are neither Francophiles nor Francophobes. We’re just crazy about burgers–the bigger, the better. That’s why when French chef Hubert Keller launched the Burger Bar, burger maniacs flocked to the restaurant’s sky bridge location connecting Luxor and Mandalay Bay. Keller improved on the concept of “build your own burger” by giving diners more options than Burger King ever…

ChineseClosed in 2015Dim SumGone But Not ForgottenNevadaUnited States

Cathay House – Las Vegas, Nevada (CLOSED)

Gil Garduno7:49 PM

There are two things I rail against which might classify some of my restaurant reviews as a bully pulpit. One is the incursion of chain restaurants, a pitiable parade of mediocrity that has largely resulted in the homogenization and “dumbing down” of the American palate. The other is the lack of authenticity in so-called ethnic restaurants, a lacking that often goes hand-in-hand with the culinary chaining of America’s restaurants. In my reviews of New Mexican food restaurants, I refer to this phenomenon as the “anglosizing” of New Mexican food (the Taco Bell phenomenon). In Chinese restaurants, this “Americanization” phenomenon manifests…

AmericanCaliforniaRating: N/R (Not Rated)United States

Parcel 104 – Santa Clara, California

Gil Garduno2:55 AM

Freshly caught trout, free-range chickens, hand-picked fruits and vegetables–those are what most influence Bradley Ogden, an uber chef and restaurant impresario dedicated to seasonal, farm-fresh American fare. Like a sculptor who painstakingly fashions inspiring masterpieces, Ogden crafts memorable dining experiences from the freshest ingredients available, melding them so that their inherent flavors, colors and textures combine to bring out the best in each other. Proprietor of several high-end restaurants primarily in northern California, his name has become synonymous with new American cuisine. Las Vegas chowhounds wax poetic about Ogden’s eponymous restaurant, most often singing the praises of the Maytag blue…

IllinoisKoreanRating: Very GoodUnited States

Kimchy Cabana – Niles, Illinois

Gil Garduno3:18 PM

To the unenculturated, the pungent emanations of Korean kimchy (pickled and fermented cabbage) are malodorous and offensive to the olfactory senses. To the Korean people, however, kimchy is so much more than a national dish; it’s a family treasure handed down from one generation to another over the millenniums. The influx of Korean war brides following the Korean War and beyond has meant the gradual introduction into the American mainstream of kimchy and other Korean culinary arts. Having experienced Korean cuisine from coast to coast, it has always impressed me to find Korean food remarkably consistent–usually at least good and…

BarbecueClosed in 2009Gone But Not ForgottenIllinoisUnited States

Bobby Q’s – Arlington Heights, Illinois (CLOSED)

Gil Garduno11:48 PM

I first read about Bobby Q’s on Chowhound’s Chicago board in November, 2003. A newcomer to the Chicago area barbecue scene launched in July, 2003, it was immediately embraced by barbecue aficionados who tend to dismiss most interlopers as pretenders and frauds. Within months, the restaurant named for the owners’ toddler’s pronunciation of “barbecue” was earning accolades and honors in a specialized area which tends to be cynical and unwelcoming. The house sauces, a spicy Cajun sauce and a sweet Texas sauce have both been accorded with national recognition–20th best barbecue sauce in the entire country and a third place…

IllinoisItalianRating: N/R (Not Rated)United States

Graziano’s Brick Oven Pizza – Niles, Illinois

Gil Garduno2:15 PM

Italian beef, barbecue ribs, deep dish pizza–these delectable delights don’t come close to fully defining the Windy City’s culinary scene, but they are the foods most often associated with with America’s most populous lakeside epicurean hotbed–and rightfully so. When it comes to that tasty triumvirate, no American city does it better. It takes an excellent product to compete when prospective diners are savvy and sophisticated as is my brother-in-law Tim who introduced me to this great pizzeria. Graziano’s Brick Oven Pizza is certainly no pretender, featuring honest-to-goodness food that can be categorized only as “terrific” or any synonym thereof. A…

IllinoisPizzaRating: Very GoodUnited States

Gino’s East of Chicago – Lake Zurich, Illinois

Gil Garduno2:10 PM

Ostensibly no one knows more about a city’s best dining destinations than the taxi drivers who ferry famished fares there…or at least, that’s the theory. The original Gino’s East was founded in 1966 by taxi drivers who lured away the pizza chef at Chicago’s Pizzeria Uno and started their own pizzeria. Gino’s East now relies on those taxi drivers for those precious and essential word of mouth referrals when passengers inquire as to the best pizzeria in a city of outstanding pizzerias. Once a year, the original Gino’s East rewards cabbies for those referrals by giving them a free personal…

Hot DogsIllinoisRating: N/R (Not Rated)SandwichUnited States

Superdawg Drive-In – Chicago, Illinois

Gil Garduno3:56 AM

Some of today’s Marvel comic book heroes such as Captain America and the Submariner had their genesis in the 1940s where they crusaded against oppressive regimes fighting to subjugate America’s freedoms. Maurie Berman (himself a recently returned G.I. from World War II) and his wife Flaurie looked no further than the superhero genre when naming their unique roadside hot dog stand, on the roof of which stand statues of well defined male and female anthropomorphic hot dogs attired in leopard skin togas. Today, while serving as both beacons to the restaurant as well as vigilant guardians protecting its south vantage,…