Cafe on the Grove — Restaurant in Palatine Township

Contrary to all the positive reviews, my experience was the opposite. My neighbor and I went went to Cafe on the Grove for lunch, on a Wednesday at noon. We were seated promptly by a courteous greeter and our waitress arrived shortly after being seated and was also very polite and friendly. The restaurant was not very busy. We ordered the lunch special, a half sandwich, soup and chips for my neighbor and a soup and salad for me. After a 15 minute wait our food arrived. He ordered a turkey club but was given a grilled cheese, which was cold and soggy. Both our soups were stone cold and tasted very processed (creamy chicken with rice). My salad was just OK, very basic and a small size; the vinaigrette dressing also tasted very processed and too sweet. We didn't finish our lunches as both were unappetizing and the soup was suspect. While the restaurant decor is pleasant and appears to be newly remodeled, our food experience was a let down. The mix-up with the order, the poor quality ingredients, small portion sizes and the fact that our meals were cold made this a very poor value. I basically paid $13 + $3 tip for a tiny salad of green leaves and a glass of water. That's pretty bad value. After our visit we both went home and made ourselves a proper sandwich as we were both still hungry. Their kitchen staff, menu selection and quality of ingredients need further examination by the owner. Otherwise, I fear, Cafe on the Grove will be another restaurant casualty due to high prices, poor quality food and apparent...

I visited Cafe on the Grove with my family, and initially, everything seemed promising. The atmosphere was pleasant and our server was friendly, which gave us a good first impression. However, things quickly went downhill once our food arrived.

We ordered the All Meat Skillet, expecting a hearty mix of meats as the name suggests. Instead, what we got was a plate of mostly hash browns with just a few tiny pieces of ham—definitely not what was advertised. To make matters worse, the eggs were overcooked and rubbery, far from appetizing.

We politely pointed out the issue to our server, who acknowledged the mistake and went to speak with the manager. That’s when things took an unfortunate turn. A lady with pink hair, who we assume was the manager, came to our table and immediately took a rude and confrontational tone. Instead of apologizing, she started questioning us. We showed her the dish, and she offered a mere \$3 off as compensation, which we declined because it felt dismissive of the poor experience.

We ended up paying full price for a meal that was both disappointing in quality and service. To top it off, even the coffee was bad. Needless to say, the online reviews for this place are misleading.

We won't be returning—and wouldn’t recommend it to others looking for good food or...

What an incredible breakfast/lunch spot this is. Extreme care went into planning this menu and the food is 10/10. The chef’s are highly trained and can very easily tell love what they do. The owner and staff couldn’t be more friendly, helpful, and grateful you are there to dine with them. I’ve tried something new every time for the last 5 breakfast visits and quickly find a new favorite item. The avocado toast is to die for and their skillets are so good. Honestly, any breakfast item you will love. A glass of fresh squeezed orange juice is a must and their coffee isn’t only delicious, they come and refill you whenever you need. Just a very nice, charming place that honestly looks like it was transported from wicker park and dropped in rolling meadows. It’s a great spot for something well above average diner food quality and it’s very reasonably priced. My friend Colin and I discovered it about a month ago and it’s our favorite new spot! Must must must try if you live in the suburbs. The owner is there every day to greet guests and make sure your experience is pleasurable. Tell him the hockey guys recommended you and I promise, you won’t be...