Tinfish
18201 S. Harlem Ave., Tinley Park, Ill.
(708) 532-0200
Spanking fresh crustaceans and fish prepared several ways with imaginative sides. Lively bar with great martinis and raw bar where oysters on the half shell reign, plus three spacious dining rooms decorated with a variety of colorful tin fish hanging from the rafters. Excellent salads, classic New England clam chowder. Entrees include grilled swordfish atop lightly spiced butternut squash, and blackened yellow fin tuna with brown sugar glazed Asian greens and ginger soy hollandaise. Wine list sports 40 whites and 44 reds in the $24 average category; $7 by the glass. Traditional desserts, friendly, professional service. Open for lunch 11:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Mondays through Fridays; dinner 4:30 to 9:30 p.m. Mondays through Thursdays; until 10:30 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays; supper 4 to 8:30 p.m. Sundays.
Cuisine: Upscale casual
Reservations: Yes
Smoking: No
Kids menu: Yes
Price: $$$
Bar: Full bar
Tip: Half-price appetizers in the bar Mondays through Fridays.
T.J. Maloney's Authentic Irish Pub
Radisson Hotel, I-65 and U.S. 30, Merrillville
(219) 755-0569
"Good Irish food" an oxymoron, you say? Then you haven't been to T.J. Maloney's Authentic Irish Pub, at the Radisson. Huge portions of seasonal Irish comfort food in a cozy setting. Lamb stew, ale-battered fish and chips, shepherd's pie, mussels in red sauce, and bangers and mash elbow for menu room with more traditional salads, sandwiches, steaks, chops and seafood. Leave room for dessert -- cobbler of the day served warm with Guinness ice cream made by Valpo Velvet, Irish bread pudding, creme brulee and Bailey's cheesecake. Let the friendly staff pull you a pint of one of the 17 stouts, ales and lagers they serve in a cavernous full-service bar with eight plasma screens (if you're into rugby, this is the place to watch it). There also are extensive martinis and Irish specialty drinks, single malts and Irish whiskies. Menu items range from $8 to $24 with desserts ringing up at $5 to $6. Hours are 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. daily, bar open later. Handicapped accessible. Parking.
Entertainment. Major credit cards.
Cuisine: Irish upscale casual
Reservations: No
Smoking: No
Kids menu: Yes
Price: $$
Bar: Full bar
Tip: Selection of 17 stouts, ales and lagers; eight plasma screens.
The Town Club
2904 45th Ave., Highland
(219) 924-5227
Charred prime rib every night. Mahi mahi, ahi tuna, salmon and orange roughy from the grill. Dry-rubbed barbecue ribs, sauce on the side. Popular, busy restaurant with a lively bar and attractive dining room resembling an English pub with beamed ceilings and friendly waitresses. Restaurant known for its superb French-fried jumbo shrimp and frog legs since its 1947 opening. Steaks are excellent. Dinners start with a bread basket and come with a choice of soup, salad or coleslaw and three potato treatments. Limited but decent wine list and good variety of beers. Seven special sandwiches at lunch with names like "Big Bertha" and "Italian Stallion," ranging from $2.95 to $7.95. Special children's menu. Hours are 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Mondays through Saturdays. Closed Sundays. Entrées $8.95 to $34.95.
Cuisine: Upscale casual
Reservations: On weekends
Smoking: In bar
Kids menu: Yes
Price: $$
Bar: Full bar
Tip: Known for jumbo shrimp, frog legs, fish and steaks.
JD
Tosi's Restaurant
4337 Ridge Road, Stevensville, Mich.
(800) 218-7745 or (269) 429-3689
Tosi's Restaurant started as a resort in the 1930s. Owner Marge Wiatrowski and family have kept this venerable eatery with its tiled roofs, fountains and statuary in tip-top shape. Flagstone, plants, flowers and greenery all conspire to transport you to Italy. The outdoor dining space boasts a covered veranda that provides protection from the sun while letting breezes waft through the fabric screening. The garden serves as cocktail seating and a chef's and baker's herb garden are yours for the exploration behind the restaurant. Inside, it's white-tablecloth dining with a capacity for 300 in the various rooms. "We do everything by hand. We're very old school," Wiatrowski says. Look for wood-burning oven specialties, housemade pasta, tortellini en brodo, malfotti, a spinach roll that literally means "poorly made" or "thrown together," steaks, seafood, among others. And all summer long, avail yourself of the battered and fried zucchini blossoms, supplied by a local farmer. All the
desserts come from Bit of Swiss, the artisan bread and pastry shop next door to Tosi's. As you leave Tosi's, don't forget to dip your hand into a blast from the past -- a bowl of butter mints. How can you miss at a place that has rolling pins for door handles? Restaurant opens at 4:30 p.m. Mondays through Fridays and 5 p.m. Saturdays. Closed Sundays.
Cuisine: Upscale Italian
Reservations: Yes
Smoking: No
Kids menu: Yes
Price: $$$
Bar: Full bar
Tip: Look for wood-burning oven specialties.
Trattoria Enzo
601 Michigan Ave., LaPorte
(219) 326-8000
A renovated old watering hole in downtown Victorian LaPorte that satisfies the family crowd with a clever kid's menu, as well as sophisticates, with its charming ambiance, reasonable prices and creative Italian cuisine. There's a lively bar to warm up in before digging into a Provimi veal scalloppine in the dining room. The best deal on the menu is a prix fixe meal for two, which means sharing one of the signature pizzas and a pasta dish with house salad and dessert for $27.95. Varied and reasonable wine list, but few by the glass. The espresso and tempting desserts are excellent. Lunch served from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Wednesdays. Dinner from 5 to 10 p.m. Tuesdays through Saturdays.
Cuisine: Upscale Italian
Reservations: On weekend
Smoking: No
Kids menu: Yes
Price: $$$
Bar: Full bar
Tip: The espresso and tempting desserts are excellent.
JD
Tyler's Tender
350 E. U.S. 30, Schererville
(219) 322-5590 or www.tylerstender.com
The Schererville eatery, owned by Paul and Emily Petrie, should appeal to Thomas the Tank Engine fans of all ages. Staff wear engineer's caps, red bandanas and denim aprons. There's a $1-a-ride kid-size train, an interactive train display with three push-button stations and, if you sit at the red-stooled counter, your meal will huff and puff its way out of the kitchen on a 100-linear-foot curving track and coast to a stop right in front of you. The theme was inspired by the Petries' sons -- Preston and Zachary -- and their love of trains. The restaurant's moniker is a blend of eldest son Preston's middle name and a type of train car. "A 'tender' was a coal car that used to follow the engine," Paul Petrie says. Kiddie cuisine reigns supreme at this lively place (weekends can be hectic). The Little Engineer's Menu includes Mac & Cheese, Popcorn Shrimp, Popcorn Chicken, Hot Dog, Grilled Cheese, Mini Hamburger and Mini Tacos and Burritos. All kids' items ($3.99 to $4.79) include potato
chips or fries, a beverage and scoop of ice cream. But adults will have their appetites appeased as well. Start with wings, mushrooms, cheese sticks or other appetizers and move on to soup of the day. Ramp up with a Depot Sandwich ($3.29 to $5.99), hot panino ($5.79 to $6.79) or a $7.49 Smothered Strip Steak sandwich. If you're a fork-and-knife kind of person, look into the Chicken Tenders, Shrimp, and Fish and Chips dinners ($8.99 to $10.99). For dessert, the Chocolate Caboose and Caramel Apple Caboose are decadent blends of brownies, ice cream and gooey sauce for $2.99. Birthday parties in a special room include pizza and pop, two train rides and a gift bag for $9.95 per child. The birthday honoree also walks away with a whistle, engineer's cap and bandana. "Some children start to cry when it's time to leave," Emily Petrie says. Hours are 10:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. Sundays to Thursdays, until 10 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays.
Cuisine: American casual
Reservations: No
Smoking: No
Kids menu: Yes
Price: $$
Bar: No
Tip: The kids will love seeing their food come out on a train track.
Up for Grabs
1923 Calumet Ave., Whiting
(219) 659-4508
This local bistro, just south of Five Points, has been providing locals with quality burgers, steaks, shrimp and lake perch for years. Reasonably priced wine list. Open for lunch 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Mondays through Fridays. Dinner is served from 5 to 10 p.m. Mondays to Saturdays. Entrées range from $10.95 to $22.95.
Cuisine: Steak & seafood
Reservations: On weekend
Smoking: In bar
Kids menu: Yes
Price: $$
Bar: Full bar
Tip: Some of the best lake perch in the region.
JD
Ursuline's Kitchen
20 W. 79th Ave., Merrillville
(219) 736-9390
With its dark and cozy atmosphere and mismatched linens and china, Ursuline's Kitchen easily could pass for a little boîte in Paris or New Orleans. It's an effect chef-owner Leslie Kotvasz has perfected at the restaurant that still spins a large collection of vinyls -- everything from Sarah Vaughn to Billy Idol. You may remember the restaurant when it was called Bon Femme and owned by Rich Guelinas, under whom Kotvasz tutelaged. The food was country French then, but now it is just down home cooking cuisine. Don't worry, everything still is made from scratch (yes, they even roast bones for stock), the wonderful, hearty bread is baked in-house daily and French onion soup ($4.95) remains on the menu. But Kotvasz is working her slow-cooking and fresh-herb magic on a lineup of dishes that include "Crusts," a version of quiche. Expect large portions of Dirty Rice, Cajun Catfish, Crab Cakes, Bouillabaisse, Po' Boys, Beef Beaujolais and more, plus daily specials. Entrées begin at $4.95
for lunch and $8.95 for dinner, and wine and Abita, a New Orleans microbrew, and other beers are available. Look for authentic New Orleans-style chicory coffee among the list of usual beverage suspects. Desserts ($3.95 to $5.95) include an awesome bread pudding. Carryout orders, catering, private parties, small frys and vegans are accommodated with aplomb. Not up for a full meal? Soup-and-bread or dessert-and-coffee-only orders won't get you the evil eye. Stop in, shake off the worries of the workaday world, and take advantage of a fast-disappearing way of listening to music -- vinyls. Hours are 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Tuesdays through Thursdays and 11 a.m. tol 9 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays. Closed Sundays and Mondays.
Cuisine: Just fresh down home cooking
Reservations: On weekend
Smoking: No
Kids menu: Accommodated
Price: $$
Bar: Abita beer and varietal wines
Tip: Great bread, desserts and chicory coffee.
Vic's on Main
1336 Main St., Crete
(708) 672-5670
Victor and Kelly Perdue's restaurant takes up the top floor of a 100-year-old building at the corner of Exchange Avenue and Main Street in Crete. If stairs aren't your thing, park behind the restaurant and take the elevator up. You'll be greeted by an art-adorned, exposed-brick hallway that leads to an urbane-yet-casual white-tablecloth eatery (the napkins are paper). Soaring tin ceilings, rich, dark wood and Rat Pack music set the expectations for seeing la famiglia-types in one of the two curving Brown Derby-ish booths. Indeed, Victor Perdue's Italian offerings are reminiscent of Gianotti's where Chicago's glitterati supped and sipped, and where he honed his chef skills before a three-year stint as executive chef for Carmine's (a Rosebud restaurant) in Chicago. It's all here -- clams, mussels, calamari, oysters and artichokes (the last two run as specials), caprese, antipasti, veal, steak, chops, lasagna, manicotti, Chicken Vesuvio, Zuppa di Pesce (literally fish soup but
more like seafood sauce over linguine), Eggplant Parmesan. The Panzanella salad, made with toasted Italian bread pieces, greens, tomatoes, roasted red pepper, olives and big flakes of shaved Parmigiano Reggiano in an Italian vinaigrette, is delicious. With a passion for creating consistent, honest food, Perdue cooks as much from scratch as possible, including the sauces, salad dressings, sausage, meatballs, fettuccine and eight-finger cavatelli pastas, gnocchi, and desserts like tiramisu, ricotta cheesecake and profiteroles. An adequate selection of Australian, Italian, French and California wines is racked, but the martini and specialty drinks are where the bar shines. And, of course, cappuccino and espresso are yours for the asking. Dine-in senior citizens receive a 15-percent discount. Off-premise catering, carryout, private-party accommodations for up to 60, and bambini menu (children's) are in place. A lunch buffet is offered from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Tuesdays to Fridays. An
average tab for two without alcohol is in the $25 to $35 range. "We just throw the food at you (large portions), and we love kids," Perdue says. Oh, paisan, it doesn't get any better than this. Hours are 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Tuesdays through Thursdays, until 10 p.m. Fridays; 3 to 10 p.m. Saturdays; Noon to 9 p.m. Sundays. Bar stays open later.
Cuisine: Italian-American
Reservations: Parties of 10 or more
Smoking: No
Kids menu: Yes
Price: $$$
Bar: Yes
Tip: Lunch buffet offered from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Tuesdays to Fridays
Wagner's Ribs
361 Wagner Road, Porter
(219) 926-7614
An institution in Porter County packed with hungry, happy rib aficionados. Full slabs ($17.95) or half slabs ($11.95) are presented with good selection of sides like fresh hot waffle fries, onion rings by the stack, coleslaw and an enormous selection of beers. Wagner's also has a fine reputation for its grilled filet mignon, rib eye and half-pound hamburgers. Homemade soups change daily. Eli's cheesecakes for dessert. Open 10 a.m. to 11 p.m. Mondays through Saturdays and noon to 10 p.m. Sundays. Steaks $11.95 to $21.95.
Cuisine: Ribs/steaks
Reservations: No
Smoking: Yes
Kids menu: No. See Tip
Price: $$
Bar: Full bar
Tip: All patrons must be at least 21 years old.
JD
