Roost 83 Chicago Style Grill — Restaurant in Grayslake

Mediocre food and a boring atmosphere make this a pass, much better food elsewhere in Grayslake.

I visited this place on a rainy Wednesday evening just after they opened. I had one dining companion. The restaurant it self is unimpressive, its basically a massive empty room with a small side area for an arcade and an open kitchen. Ordering is done via counter, and prices are reasonable considering the area.

We waited longer than I like to get our order placed (considering this is counter service) but that may have been because the POS system is brand new to these employees.

The first hint of a problem came when the the cashier refused my request for free water, instead offering me "bottled water" or a fountain drink (for a cost of course). I ended up with the drink, but as you can see from the receipt picture it cost me.

The restaurants signature is a trifecta of dishes called "roost" sandwiches. the cashier informed me that these were "nothing like Italian beef" then proceeded to describe a sandwich that was functionally the exact same (bread, toppings etc) as an Italian beef, but with a different taste to the meat, and available in Beef, Chicken, and Pork. Not being a fan of their style of "roost" sandwiches (default served with cheese, hot peppers, and condiments" We opted to order some more traditional greay spoon fare.

We ordered a variety of dishes to sample the menu, my companion had a chicken wrap (see photos) with corn nuggets, and I had a Gyros combo (see photos) we also ordered a side of onion rings. Condiments and napkins were kept on a dirty tray next to the pop machine, rather than on the table. For some reason the napkins were also rationed, with only a few being put out at once.

Food was produced in a fairly quick amount of time. Portions were plentiful, my Gyros was stacked quite hi, and the fries on the side looked like a double order. The onion rings were too bready and not cooked all the way, the corn nuggets were of the frozen Cysco variety, but passed muster well enough. My dining companions wrap was a burrito in all but name, with a warm tortilla, chicken, lettuce, tomato, and cheese. The burrito was HUGE, but my dining companion pointed out it was mostly lettuce.

overall the food was plentiful but not very good. The gyros was common, the tiziki sauce was not homemade, and the chicken wrap though large was mostly full of lettuce and my dining companion complained that he could not even taste the chicken. The fries were plentiful but of the frozen crinkle cut variety instead...

Over the top on the grease! Made me sick. Cook disagreed with me when I suggested my food was too greasy!?

Stopped in with my kids for a quick bite. We had the gyro sandwich, kids chicken nuggets and one of their signature sandwiches, the 'pork roost'.

The nuggets were fine, typical pre-prepared food as expected. The gyro was strangely overly greasy. I am not sure how they a accomplished that. Maybe the added oil to the grill when they heated the meat? Not bad, but room for improvement.

The pork roost sandwich was 'meh'. It was described as 'spicy pork with optional cheese and peppers'. I opted for that sandwich with hot peppers and the optional cheese. This sandwich was unique to say the least. Fried pork shreds (??) on toasted bread with hot peppers and a heaping helping of the hot pepper oil and mozzarella cheese. The whole bun was saturated in the pepper oil. Also had a strange sweet sauce. The sandwich was not terrible, but I could not eat it all due to the grease. It left pools in the bottom of my basket, which was pretty repulsive.

I decided to give the cooks some constructive feedback. I know the place is kinda new and I genuinely wanted to help them out with my opinion. I told them a fried sandwich, with greasy cheese and a bunch of pepper oil is a little much in the greasy side. I was basically told I was wrong and that people like the pepper oil and grease. I took a look around me at all the empty tables at peak lunch time and decided he must surely know something I don't. Thanks goodness the cook knows what I like better than I do. I tried to convince him that thee was room for improvement, to no avail. He then asked me how it was overall, and I had to lie. 'Pretty good', I said. I did not want to be told I was wrong again... I mean, no attempt to listen at all!?

Well, I had that sandwich two days ago and I am still unable to keep much down.

If you want your food their way and not yours and if you like being sick - give it a try. Otherwise, go to other local establishments. You will be glad you did.

83 Roost - skip it and go to Wayne's,...

Entrance across from Taco Bell!

Seems most prices increased since a lot of the photos of the menu, seems most things are more expensive

Italian Beef could be more tender, but this is certainly a fair Italian beef. I wouldn't come back for it again, but I might try other items like the burgers if I came back.

Fries are pretty good! The right amount of salt, and the right airy and soft inside with a crisp outside.

The cheese at first was okay, but as I had more of it I recognized it to be a common food service Cheese Sauce. I could take or leave it but it's mostly for going on the fries so it did its job.

Spotless floors and tables, chairs neatly tucked in and Arcade machines on! Greeted at the counter right away and taken care of quickly. Prices were fair, but sadly I would have been ecstatic for the food I was getting if it was more aligned to those older prices ($6 for a beef instead of $8). Also if you're a sports fan then this seems like a great place to go for a game and meal with your friends! Tons of seating and at least 6 TVs it...