Lew's Drive In — Restaurant in Batavia Township

When I look for a hole in the wall, this is the kind of place I picture. The booths are from an old Dairy Queen and there are Christmas decorations on the wall. The plane was clean but it felt like a 1980 DQ with a new sign.

I was very skeptical when walking in and there was nobody dining in. True this was an early lunch but they serve breakfast 🤔

The menu is 5x7 framed pics of the dishes. I was not having a good feeling at that point. But ... Trust the reviews I tell myself 😁 I ordered the Philly and water and my wife had fish tacos. The water was in bottles, warm. I asked for ice and they looked at me like they didn't know how to fill that request. So far, not too happy with my choice.

And then came the food. OMG The Philly was amazing. It's not your traditional Philly, it tasted like skirt steak with shredded cheese melted on top. The steak was cooked perfectly. My wife's fish chicken tacos were amazing too. Now I'm happy that we stuck it out 😂 I think I can get past some of the negatives that I felt at the beginning because it's worth it for the food. Fyi they will charge you for using a credit card and there is no fountain machine for pop.

I'm not in the area much but will probably try it...

Ever walked into a restaurant, but were unsure if it's open... or operational?

The whole setup felt disorganized & dated. Clean, mind you, but was more reminiscent of an old church cafeteria than a diner. And even though it was prime lunch time, only one person was eating there, seated in one of far too many booths (imagine replacing all the actual tabletops in a restaurant with more booths).

So, going against my better judgement, I proceeded to purchase the Big Lew + fries (with an add'l $1 credit card fee) from the menu, which is just a dozen or so yellowing photos on the wall.

After less than 10 min, I received... a surprisingly large, proper quality double cheeseburger at a price point that beats out other restaurants in the area. The fries were fine, but that burger...

Unexpectedly, I now find myself stating I will be ordering (takeout) from here again. And food quality+price point is far more important for repeat business...

Burgers, burgers, and tacos! What else can a girl ask for? Real meat, duh! This place delivers. Food takes 1 or 2 minutes longer because Don Rafa, the owner, cooks it when the order is placed. It is not precooked and reheated like your most popular restaurants in Batavia and especially Geneva. I should know, I worked for them. People have become accustomed to fake frozen patties from fast food joints and have forgotten that great things, take some time. I much rather wait an extra minute for real meat than pay for microwaved fake meat.

• I have an msg allergy. No MSG being used on my tacos. That means the meat is naturally of great quality without using meat tenderizer like the other taco joints in Batavia. Tacos are a great size and the burritos are 🔥!! Try the breakfast burritos. Best breakfast in town. Although I do wish for the place to get remodeled. Must try. I prefer to go...