Fritz & Frites Bistro — Restaurant in Galena

My wife and I reserved a table for Sunday evening. Typically a slow day for Galena, and this evening was no exception. It was rather warm outside at 88º but, the outdoor seating area was empty and shaded with a light breeze blowing through. We were delightfully greeted just inside the door as if we were expected company stopping by for the evening. After asking if we could sit outside, we were quickly shown the patio and offered whichever table, out of about 8, we liked.

After choosing the table of our liking, Hannah introduced herself, presenting the beer and wine list. I have to admit that having perused the menu online beforehand, I was not expecting such a, all things considered, broad range of wine and beer to choose from. They even had my old standby from my days of being stationed in Germany, Kristallweizen!

Drinks were set atop our table, and Hannah ran through a few specials. What caught our attention was their Soup Du Jour, "Heated Zucchini Vichyssoise". Having never tried a vichyssoise before, we were intrigued and decided to give it a go. I am truly at a loss for words to describe the Chef's vichyssoise except for "sublime masterpiece". A part of me would want the Chef to make this for sale to the vast public but, the better part of me knows this is not something to be taken so lightly. It should never be canned or jarred and then sold off on the shelf of just any grocery market. The experience of the vichyssoise alone is far above the insulting idea of mass production. It must be experienced as the Chef intended. If it available during your visit, I recommend it with the utmost conviction and amity.

Wow, that's a lot to say about a soup! Deservedly so.

My wife enjoyed a trout with haricot verts(green beans to us Americans) and enjoyed it immensely. Her trout was delicious and it is worthy of your choice should you crave seafood prepared in a light and refreshing manner.

I elected to try their wiener schnitzel with spätzle and sauerkraut, as I'm sure many reviewer before me has. A little aside here: Hannah, my wife and I, to this point, have established a lovely rapport and considering she absolutely hit a grand slam with the vichyssoise, we were very amenable to her suggestion. So when Hannah offered a jaeger sauce that was "off menu", I enthusiastically said yes. I've had schnitzel once in the past 20 plus years since I last visited Germany and this was as good as any schnitzel I ever devoured in Deustchland. Believe me, I've had my fair share of schnitzel! The weiner schnitzel is also deserving of your palate should you fancy. Who knows? You might even be fortunate enough that the Chef would have a jaeger sauce available!

Sadly, the missus and I threw in the towel and left zero room for dessert. We know better than to do that next time. I will skip lunch before dining here to ensure I can partake in dessert. If what we had was any indication, their dessert has to be positively decadent.

One never thinks you'd have a "Midwestern Goodbye" with an employee at a restaurant but, there we were with Hannah, just letting the time go by along with our pleasant and casual conversation. Saying goodbye felt like we had made a new friend. Hopefully you will say the same after your experience here.

DISCLOSURE: I am not affiliated with Fritz & Frites in any way. I have not, nor will I ever, be compensated for this or future reviews. My wife and I have never met any of the staff previous...

Galena IL—We celebrated Valentines weekend with a Friday evening to Fritz & Frites (a favorite of ours in Galena). We called for a reservation initially to believe we were too late. They called us back a few minutes later having made room for us. Now that’s great management.

Our waitress (I apologize I don’t recall her name) was simply FANTASTIC, a seasoned pro with a fun personality, quick wit, and extremely knowledge of the ingredients of their entrees. She was able to offer great options to those with food sensitives, providing confidence she knew what she was suggesting.

The meals were beyond delicious, plentiful, with picturesque presentation. The desserts were so huge I took it with us, it wasn’t till I opened the bag that we discovered our server left a witty note on the carrier that made us all laugh.

Search no more, if you want great food, professional service, and great value — plan a visit to Fritz and...

We ordered the muscle special the sauce for the muscles was good it was leaks and a cream sauce by pretty bland overall. The swine schnitzel or the pork schnitzel Was pounded out way too thin and the 2 layers of breading was thicker than the pork layer itself. It was priced $19 on the website and $24 in the restaurant. Service started out okay but we were forgotten about until the entrance came. The spatzel was good. But did not get enough. The red Cabbage was Okay but tasted like it came out of a glass jar at Piggly Wiggly. The friets were actually shoestring potatoes that came out cold and what little heat they had didn't last long they should have been thick friets Or even fries would have been better.

We were told they had garlic aolie for the muscles but it was curry Aolie.

Overall I would say it's overpriced and not authentic at all. Food was edible but very expensive I wouldn't recommend going here you don't get what...