Portillo's Batavia — Restaurant in Geneva Township

We had to run an errand in the area after work, and it's been a long week so we were gonna celebrate with Portillo's. We normally eat really well, so this is a big splurge for us. It was about 7p on a Friday night. We were ready to wait and be patient, because we aren't monsters. The drive-thru line was around the building; but when we went inside, it was empty. We walked right up to place our order (@ 6.59p), and waiting for our order there was only about four other people waiting. SCORE!

This is where things went off the rails. For starters, our food didn't come out until 7:27p (literally). We saw about a dozen people that showed up significantly (10+ minutes) after us get their food before us. They appeared to be solely focused on the drive through, and ignoring the sit-down customers. A lot of food was going out, but very little of it went to the dine-in customers.

The hot dog (mustard, onion, relish, pickle) had tomatoes on it and was stone cold, it had to have been made when we placed our order and sat the entire time getting cold. The two orders of onion rings tasted like the oil was old; they had a nasty after-taste. The combo beef/sausage was dry and didn't have the giardiniera. The beef and cheddar croissant was dry and didn't have the sweet peppers. My root beer was diet cola (coke or pepsi, I am not sure but they are both equally nasty). We considered taking all the food back to be fixed, but (honestly) we didn't feel like waiting another half hour, SO MUCH was wrong that we had very little confidence that they could get it right the second time around, and it had been a long week/day and I just didn't feel up to raising a ruckus.

With the exception of the hot dog, all the rest of the food was at least at a normally acceptable temperature. The small fries were ok, the shake was good, and the water was...well...water. Everything else we ordered was messed up in one way or another. This was the single most disappointing experience with Portillo's we've ever had. I have been jonesing for Portillo's all week and I am still left unfulfilled. This experience was bad enough that next time we just might go to the Lombard or Oswego location. Over the years, after Mr Portillo sold, the portions have gotten downright miserly, but this is an all time low for one of our favourite splurge...

Dirty. One of the managers Zeek is very combative. On October 30th I brought to the attention of Zeek some old spider webs on the right rear bumper of the car that sits above the eating area of the restaurant. Zeek refused to come out from behind the counter where my daughter and I were eating so I could point it out to him. He did proceed to say that the matter would be taken care of at close up. On November 2nd I stopped in to the same location as I was in the area. I fully intended to grab something to eat but before I ordered anything, I went over and snapped another picture of the same spider web that had not been dealt with. I confronted Zeek on the issue and was rather loud at this point. So loud that I got the attention of another manager who then had an employee climb a ladder and reach behind himself in order to wipe up the spiderweb. Again, Zeek in His Infinite Wisdom or lack thereof decided it was in his best interest to argue the fact that there was a spider web where I was trying to Show him. Shortly after the second go-around with Zeek I contacted corporate Portillo's with hopes that either a district manager or marketing manager would get back to me so I could bring this to his or her attention. Here it is December 4th and I have not heard back from anybody about this. Only because my daughter loves the cheese fries we went back last night on December 3rd. My daughter and wife both looked up and saw a spider web on the driver side fender this time. I tried calling corporate Portillo's again today to no avail. It disturbs me, somebody that has a food service background that there is such little care or little attention to detail in cleaning that place. To not have a Swiffer handle with some type of an extension on it blows my mind. Portillo's is a multimillion-dollar company and they have a hard time putting forth the expense to make sure their stores are equipped with cleaning items that will help prevent stuff from falling in your food. My advice to anybody that goes into a Portillo's to eat make sure you look up to see what could be lurking overhead As the staff only looks straight ahead or down...

I hate Portillos so much.. Because every time I crave some food, it's Portillos... I try my best to eat vegetarian or even vegan when possible, and i know I should be cooking food i have in the fridge, but i hear Portillos calling my name.

I kid of course. I do NOT hate portillos. Hands down the best italian beef from a chain. The chili dogs are to die for and the crinkle cut fries are simply amazing. The burgers are good, but let's be honest, if you're going to portillos, you want the beef or a hotdog. That's where they really shine. And if you're feeling like you need something a little lighter, their salad options are amazing as well.

The decor in the restaurant is top notch as well. I've been coming to this location for many years, and every time i go in i see some piece of decor i've never seen before. My 2 year old loves to look at the car they have hoisted up on steel girders near the order pickup area. He's flabbergasted that they got a car inside the building, let alone all the way up there. It's fun to see how this kind of "magic" makes his eyes just light up.

Aside from the food, what i really appreciate about Portillos is that they do not fall into the classic trap of trying to get the job done with as few employees as possible. They put efficiency and speed over labor costs and it shows. Even when there's a line out the door, you still get your food fast. Having worked for plenty of different companies who always prioritize the minimization of labor costs over everything else, i know first hand the kind of stress that puts on the employees. So as i said, i appreciate that portillos doesn't ask each employee to do the job of 2 or more people just to keep up with demand. In addition to the speed, this also helps reduce the possibility that your order gets put together incorrectly. Employees get to focus on their part of the job instead of having to juggle 10 different things (which is the cause of order mishaps 95% of the time).

I will continue to eat at portillos, and...