Jim and Nancy do not disclose the fact that they will review a restaurant before they attend, ensuring their reviews are unbiased and uninfluenced by their position with the Sun Day.
Let’s be honest, retirement isn’t what we thought it would be. Most of your free time is taken up by doctor appointments. Let us walk you through what making a typical doctor appointment entails. First you call the office, navigate through the phone system, finally get a real person to talk to, and make an appointment months in advance. Then you wait… Two weeks before your appointment you get a phone call telling you to check your email which tells you to check your text which tells you to confirm your appointment. Aren’t the golden years wonderful? You are told to arrive 15 minutes early so you can wait even longer to finally see the doctor. When you are finished, he sends your pharmacy a prescription only to have them text you and ask if you want the prescription filled. What do they think, that I want it to sit there while I’m in pain or dying? After all of this, you receive more emails telling you to check your text messages and complete a survey asking you how the medical practice did. If you are around to answer this survey, I guess they did okay. Instead of answering the survey which takes up even more of our time, why don’t we just give them a pat on the head and give them a participation trophy. Dealing with all of this nonsense can work up quite an appetite. Jim wanted breakfast and I wanted lunch, so we headed off to Tony’s Café in Crystal Lake.
Tony’s Café
1030 McHenry Avenue
Crystal Lake 60014
(815) 477-8118
No Website Available
Directions: Take Rte. 47 North to Algonquin Road, East to Randall Road, North to McHenry Avenue, and East to restaurant.
Estimated Travel Time: 22 minutes
The restaurant is a typical cute café/diner with its 12 tables and 12 booths, and 6 counter seats. They offer outdoor seating when the weather is accommodating. This seemed like a favorite haunt among the locals, since a lot of the patrons new each other and the waitstaff.
Jim’s big brown cow eyes began to bulge when he spotted the Stuffed Potato Pancake ($16). This coronary-clogging concoction consisted of two potato pancakes stuffed with two eggs, bacon, sausage patty, cheese, and smothered with sausage gravy. This breakfast was amazing and overflowing with ingredients. Jim powered through and finished the whole thing. We had the EMTs on standby while we drove home.
Nancy decided on the most boring sandwich known to mankind, the Turkey Club ($16). It is so uninteresting that their menu didn’t have a description about it. As you all know, it’s a triple decker sandwich with turkey, lettuce, bacon, tomato, and mayo. She made it even more boring by asking the waitress to leave off the tomato. She had a choice of sides and she chose the homemade potato chips. She was in heaven with her favorite sandwich and the homemade potato chips, which were awesome. Party on Nancy…
FYI: This restaurant is handicap accessible.
This place is a hidden gem. The waitstaff is great, the people are friendly, and most importantly, the food was delicious. We can’t say enough about it.
The total for our meal while waiting for our prescription was $38.25, navigating the medical/pharmaceutical industry, priceless…
Jim’s take: I absolutely loved this breakfast. Even if my cholesterol meds have to work overtime, I like to get my money’s worth.
Nancy’s take: I tasted Jim’s potato pancake and it was thicker than I prefer, but stuffed like this, it was delicious. I prefer lunch, especially if they have my Turkey Club on the menu.
Have comments or restaurant suggestions for the Dining Duo? Send them an email at thediningduo@gmail.com.
