Stanley's Kitchen & Tap — Restaurant in Jefferson Township

As I arrived to Chicago midday on a cool February noon, I was distraught and aloof to discover I was tasked with defeating a four hour layover all alone. As I approached my gate, I stayed aware of my surroundings, with a heightened sense of place that made me appreciate the juxtaposition of the quiet, yet bustling terminal E which was to be my home for the next four hours.

I had reached my gate and immediately found myself scouring through reviews of the different cuisines my terminal had to offer.

McDonald’s? No. Why would I subject myself to fast food, especially while in dire need of a warm, intimate atmosphere.

The next option.

Chili’s2. This sparked a nerve in me. Do I play it safe and find solace in the nurturing yet undeniably intimate atmosphere of Chili’s2, as countless travelers have, from Mumbai to Manhattan? The reviews were raving. Clearly terminal E of O’Hare had turned over many happy travelers with a love and respect for the culinary art as I myself held. My heart rate increased as I passionately savored over mental projections of boneless wings and strange blue drinks with vodka. Or was it tequila? I can’t remember as, I sensed a not-so-unfamiliar calling. One of those moments in a movie where you feel the plot developing, but this time I was the protagonist. A summoning as I’d never experienced. I looked up, and it was my third option, almost beaming . Stanley’s.

As I walked through the entrance I immediately felt that since of place I had so desperately desired. The walls and pillars adorned with Blackhawks legends and lore. The red tables, polished to look brand new, though I could sense they had many stories to tell, learned from the travelers they incessantly hosted.

As I sat I was greeted by a tall, cold ice water, and a friendly server who let me know she’d be back in a short while for my drink order. “Let me know if you need anything” she said with a mother’s comfort that held onto me like a warm, weighted blanket on a rainy Sunday morning. As impressed as I was I felt an equitable obligation to educate myself on Stanley’s reviews.

I was shocked. Horror stories of slow service, rude staff; surely this was not the same Stanley’s that had spoken to my soul moments before. I was at a crossroads. Do I abandon the near-religious experience that summoned me to Stanley’s to follow the Chilis2 reviews of mere mortal men? Was this decision not an amalgamation of a lifetime of choices? The waitress was now approaching. Surely she must know of the reviews of Terminal E. Would I be another number? This was fight or flight and I would not waver. “I’ll have a Sam Adams, and the wings. Buffalo”, I said with a friendly sense of confidence. My decision had been made.

As my order came out I was impressed with the sheer speed, which made the execution that much more surprising. My beer: perfectly chilled, a slight frost developed on the glass. The wings: spicy, yet tangy. Homemade sauce I suspected.

I hope one day to cross paths again with...

This place gets 1 start because A: Google makes me at least give them that. B: There is some neat Chicago Blackhawks memorabilia on display. The Blackhawks displays are the reason I went in here. My teenage son is a huge Blackhawks fan and I wanted to take pictures of the stuff on display for him to see.

The food and and service were flat out awful! The fries were super generic. I think they came in a plain white bag that said French Fries in black on them. The fries were not even worthy to come in Equate packaging. The hamburger was a $14 version of a elementary school cafeteria hamburger. Except the school cafeteria burger has mustard and pickles. Stanley’s Kitchen supposedly does not keep mustard and pickles in the establishment. I thought mustard and pickles were standard operating procedure for hamburgers. Maybe it’s a regional thing and haven’t spent enough time in Illinois.

I also was not impressed with my server. Poor service and her attitude came off as if she viewed me as another inconvenient patron during her shift. Then the strangest thing I have ever witnessed happens. My server brings me my ticket. I lay my credit card on top of the ticket she comes and takes my credit card only. A few minutes later she comes and gets the ticket and walks over to the table in front of me. Presents that table with my ticket and proceeds to accuse them of not paying their ticket which was actually my ticket. I don’t know if the party at that table was more shocked and confused or if I was. Finally we were all able to convince her that the folks at that table had just gotten there and had not even ordered yet much less had a chance to pay. Finally she charged my card for the ticket in her hand that was mine.

Avoid this place and eat somewhere...

We stood at the entrance (where there was no host) until what appeared to be the Manager came over to seat us. He led us to a table that was badly in need of balancing, but did not assist us with it, nor did our server.

When our server came over to the table, she didn't even offer so much as a single pleasantry, just asked if we were "ready yet?" The menu is very limited, so as a vegetarian, my options were either a salad or Mac n cheese, neither of which provides a good source of protein. We ordered our drinks and food at once, as the server was clearly in a hurry and had no desire to get our drinks while we decided on food. She did not bring water, nor did I really feel like I had the chance to even ask for it.

When our food was served, it was by another staff member (back server/bus boy). Our server did not check on us once to see if we needed anything else. Only after she saw that I had finished eating, did she come over and ask "done?", as she took my plate. She didn't ask how the food was, whether we wanted another drink, or if we wanted dessert. Twice, when dropping off the check and upon picking it up, she said something about how she "had to go."

The waitstaff appeared to be inexperienced and to conduct themselves in an unprofessional manner. We were sitting near the bar, where we could hear one server complaining to another about the number of tables she had been given. The Manager was the one wiping down tables, despite the fact that there were at least 10 employees that we saw out on the floor.

In conclusion: decent food, terrible service,...