Katie's Kitchen — Restaurant in Maine Township

I must have passed this place a million times on my way to work when I worked in downtown Des Plaines. However, on the occasion of my visit, I was out with friends elsewhere when I was invited to Katie's Kitchen.

It's a cute storefront location in a strip mall at the southeast corner of Wolf and Central.

It's a cute mom and pop place...and it's pretty darn inexpensive. Oh, and the food is delicious.

Our server was very friendly and was quick to bring drinks, take our order, and bring our food to us. I think it took 10 minutes from the time she took our order, to entering it on the POS system, to bringing it to our table.

All four of us got the All American Breakfast with different variations. It comes with one egg (any style), two strips of bacon or sausage, red diced potatoes made with onions, and one slice of toast or a pancake. I added an additional egg and ordered a Diet Coke (not a coffee or tea drinker). Others got coffee and tea, so all our bases were covered.

It was a lovely experience and is definitely a place that I've already returned to a couple other times and have had their pancakes (yum) and want to try their crepes soon.

With so many places that are overcharging for their breakfasts, Katie's was a welcome change for quality food, great service, and even...

Perhaps this restaurant is good as a breakfast place, it certainly has a nice atmosphere and what appears to be a strong following. But the menu is overly pretentious and the prices are not in line for the neighborhood, especially since it can't quite deliver on quality.

If you go in looking for a run-of-the-mill diner, Katie's Kitchen fits the bill. Unfortunately, for a menu that waxes over cajun remoulade on foccacia or chipolte and garlic mayos, all at nearly twice the price of quicker lunches, it falls far short.

My meal was a specialty beef brisket sandwich with a side soup, fries, and fresh baked beans. The fries were overcooked to the point of being chewy. The baked beans were a watery mess of beans, bacon, and bits of crumbled hamburger. The brisket was surprisingly well cooked, but marred by the sickly-sweet flavor of what seemed like cheap store bought barbecue sauce.

The soup was a broccoli cheese which tasted almost entirely of corn syrup and potatoes and had the tell-tale sign of overthickening - when the spoon can be left in without falling over.

In the reviews I've heard from co-workers meals here can be hit or miss. Perhaps if it had a menu that didn't overreach and more reasonable prices it would be more often a hit, but as is, this one was a...

We walked in and the “hostess” said, “two and a high chair?” I replied “just two and a stroller.” The hostess informed me that they don’t have a spot for a stroller and could give me a high chair. I explained that my son is only 5 months and can not hold himself up in a highchair. She said this is the lunch rush and we can not have a stroller in the dining room. She said we could flip the high chair over and you could put the car seat on top. Number 1 this is extremely dangerous and there are usually warning stickers on the high chair advising against this. Number 2 he wasn’t even in a car seat.. he was in a stroller. I turned to my sister and we both just looked at each other and said “okay.. I guess we will just leave then?” The hostess then went to “look for a spot” and found a table. She removed a chair and I tucked the stroller in to the table. I have no idea why this was such a big deal? What if a customer is in a wheel chair? We felt extremely unwelcome because we had a baby. This has never happened at any other restaurant I’ve been to before. Her demeanor and tone were so off putting. I wish we did just leave. Food and service were mediocre. We will definitely not return.

Most importantly please tell her never to put a baby in an upside...