West burbs people where do you go dinning in Naperville (Chicago: house, pros and cons)

[westburbsil]

Naperville is very unique in that it has the strongest downtown in regards to foot traffic, shopping/dinning, nightlife in the burbs, but also has a strong dining scene in the Freedom Plaza right off I-88.

So I am interested in where most suburbanites who visit Naperville go to for their dining/entertainment.


Here are my pros and cons of both

Downtown Naperville: Charm with riverwalk, pedestrian traffic, bars, restaurants, shopping, Apple Store, children's museum, ice cream shops/popcorn for kids, etc.

Cons- Getting there from highway on busy times adds to commute. Parking at busy times while free can be very difficult. Lots of congestion in traffic


Freedom Plaza

Pro's - Location, location, location. Literally right off 88, zero traffic once off. Excellent upscale and medium upscale chains - White Chocolate, Mortons, Maggianos, Cooper Hawk, Granite City, soon to be Fogo De Chao, etc. Parking no problem.

Cons- Corporate setting, no charm, no pedestrian traffic


So where do you prefer western burbanites in and around Naperville?

[Lookout Kid]

I just go to downtown Glen Ellyn for A Toda Madre or Fire & Wine, which are both among the best restaurants around. If I'm going to drive to another downtown area, it's usually nearby Wheaton... Or even Geneva if I feel like driving 25 minutes. I don't really have a good reason to go to downtown Naperville for dining, since few of the restaurants there distinguish themselves and parking can be tricky. Most of them have better or equal counterparts that are closer to me, with better parking situations. Oak Brook and Lombard have better restaurants in general near the malls.

But I will eat in that Freedom Plaza area, more often around lunch time. I can get there quickly. I really like Naf Naf for lunch. At dinner time the waits can be long at some of those chains. I'll never understand what will make someone wait over an hour for a meal at Maggiano's.

Naperville also has a Joy Yee Noodle shop on Ogden that is an offshoot of their Chinatown location, and I haven't found better Chinese food closer to me yet. The burbs have better ethnic food options than they used to, but they still can't match the offerings found in Chicago. But Joy Yee is pretty good. It ain't no Panda Express!

One true gem in Naperville that is worth driving for is the Solemn Oath Brewery. But that is tucked away in a random spot behind a car dealership, not in any established retail/entertainment district.

[whakru]

I live in Naperville and we frequent the downtown restaurants such as Hugos Frog Bar, Catch 35, Rosebuds and Francesca's. Jimmy's Grill and Wise Boxer Pour House are great for burgers and such type meals. But my new favorite place to go is Ivy in Wheaton. Fantastic food and nice setting.

Places in Naperville that I don't care for....Q barbeque, Gemato's, and Fiamme. Not really my thing and the food wasn't that great.

I rarely go to Freedom Plaza because I don't really like Cooper's Hawk or Maggiano's. We have gone to Eddie Merlots over by Winfield and Diehl and that was pretty decent.

[JustJulia]

Downtown parking is a pain, but I might stop at Chipotle or Naf Naf for lunch if I am at Penzey's or Barnes & Noble. I've been to Rosebud and Catch 35, and although the food was good, it's not THAT good to justify the expense of going. For dining "in," we like Lemongrass on Ogden (Thai food).

[nikitakolata]

I've never been to Freedom Plaza, but that's because I can go to so many other chain restaurants more easily by going to Oak Brook or Lombard since I live in Elmhurst. I've also never purposely gone to downtown Naperville. We have eaten there after visiting the Crate & Barrel Outlet or something else nearby, but I wouldn't go out of my way to go there.

Generally, we stay in Elmhurst or go to Oak Brook or Lombard. There are enough options there to keep us happy.

[Lookout Kid]

Originally Posted by nikitakolata

I've also never purposely gone to downtown Naperville.

I think this is a problem with downtown Naperville. It just doesn't seem to have that restaurant or shopping draw that would bring people from far away. Geneva has some dining options that are good enough to draw me in from 20 minutes away, and Bien Trucha/A Toda Madre were at the top of that list... It also seems to offer more to "tourists" or people that don't live nearby. But now that A Toda Madre moved to Glen Ellyn, I have less reason to go to Geneva.

Naperville needs at least one extraordinary restaurant draw that is like top three in the Western Suburbs. I think right now it's top draw is a concentration of night life for the area (i.e. bar scene), and that doesn't interest me so much.

[aga412]

I prefer downtown Naperville to Geneva, but that might be because I hate Geneva.

[almost3am]

I frequent downtown Naperville when we go out, but I live in Naperville. I never have parking issues because I normally go straight for the big free parking lot just north of downtown.

I guess when we go it is normally casual and family friendly, like Chipotle, Ted's, and my kids love Flat Top, so we go there for them at times.

If we are going to a Francesca's, we head to south Naperville to Passagero, we sometimes go on Sunday's when kids eat free.

I'll occasionally go up to the area around White Chocolate, but its a pain for me to get to, so infrequent.

Our new favorite place is in Downtown Aurora called U Samba. The atmosphere is just okay, but it is real, day to day Brazilian food (Not like Fogo)...not fine dining. We end up getting tons of appetizers and then a couple entrees to share across the family. They are new to the restaurant game, so they can struggle keeping up when a lot of people come in. The couple that runs it is lovely. They want to make it like a real "normal" restaurant in Brazil, but they are still working it all out. The food is authentic, though.

[aga412]

I've gotta say, I think the STC Francesca's > Naperville Francesca's, and I don't really like STC either. But I will concede there.

[JustJulia]

Have any of you been to Meson Sabika? I love tapas and the venue looks very pretty, but I have yet to go.