milkshake Archives — Low-Rent Foodie

Sometimes when I go out for a bite to eat, I will find myself in a place that has a lot more history than I realized. Maybe it’s because I am traveling to a new place and had no way of knowing about the restaurant and its history, or maybe it’s somewhere nearby that I just never got around to going to, and then I wonder what took me so long.

Whatever the reason, here are five places I have been recently where the story behind the establishment is at least as compelling as the meal I had there.

McLintock’s Saloon and Steakhouse—Standard City, IL

UPDATE: This restaurant has closed.

Quite possibly the most intriguing thing about McLintock’s is how absolutely out in the boonies it is. It’s just outside of Standard City, which is a “suburb” of Nilwood, which is near Girard, which has a population of 2200. So we’re talking “go to the middle of nowhere and take a left.”

But those who know about it swear it’s worth the drive, and the occasional wrong turn. And a lot of people know about it, so if you’re wanting a seat is this rustic former seed barn, better call ahead.

Some highlights on the menu are the ribeye horseshoe for $12.75 and a 10-ounce bacon-wrapped filet with breaded shrimp for $22.59. For those who like chicken parts, like my dad, this is the only restaurant I can remember going to where you can get chicken hearts, gizzards, or livers as your main meal. They serve a full pound of them for $9.99.

For those who prefer the more standard chicken parts, I recommend the McLintock Cluck.

Dew Chilli Parlor—Springfield, IL

OK, let’s establish something right up front. Yes, it is tripping my linguistic OCD meter that Springfield spells “chilli” with two L’s. Why do they do that?

Well, I don’t know why it started, but I have a good idea when. Chilli (I’m going to spell it c-h-i-l-l-i for the sake of this article, then I will never mention it again) has been a big deal in Springfield for well over a century. Although many prepared chili producers were spelling it that way as early as the 1890’s, the Dew Chilli Parlor officially made it a thing when they opened in 1909.

65 years later, Illinois Governor Dan Walker made a special proclamation to 88-year-old co-founder Joe Bockelmann, declaring “Two-Ls-in-Chilli Day.”

Later in 1993, Illinois State Senator (and eventual mayor of Springfield) Karen Hasara introduced a resolution proclaiming Illinois as the Chilli Capital of the Civilized World and officially recognizing the spelling as CHILLI.

The Dew Chilli Parlor closed its doors in 1995, but was revived in 2013 when Mark Roberts, III purchased the original recipe, which is so secret that it’s said to be split in half and stored in two separate bank vaults!

America’s greatest foods–shipped to your door!

The flavor is certainly unique. It’s rich and smoky, but not spicy or harsh. The original recipe, re-established by new owners John Leskovisek and Mike Monseur, also does not contain beans, though you can request them. You can also ask for heavy or light suet (Springfield chilli is known for its grease). It’s good on tamales…

…or a hot dog.

Dew Chilli Railsplitter and cheese curds — The Rail Splitter ($5.29) normally comes with cheese sauce also, but my wife decided to go for a side of cheese curds to share instead ($7.99).

A newer menu item is the DeWay, in which you choose a base of spaghetti, mac & cheese, green beans or a baked potato and top it with various combinations of chilli, beans, cheese, etc.

Whirl-a-Whip—Girard, IL

It’s springtime here in the 217. That means Whirl-a-Whip’s open.

One of my favorite things about the weather warming up is eating outside. And after this 5-month-plus winter we had here, I am more than ready to grab the wife and the puppadog and head down Route 66 (actually IL Route 4 now) to Girard and get some of this deliciousness.

Whirl-a-Whip Girard IL — Order to the left, pickup to the right, don’t-know-what-I-want-yet to the middle.

Whirl-a-Whip dates back to 1957. It closed briefly a few years ago, but has been up and running again since 2013. As you can guess by the sign, they are known primarily as an ice cream place. They still use the vintage Whirl-a-Whip ice cream machine that whips each order individually.

They have about 50 flavors of ice cream, but these are a tad unconventional. For example, when I see the word “chip” in an ice cream flavor, I am thinking of chocolate chips, or whatever flavor of semi-sweet morsel it might happen to be. “Chip” means something different at Whirl-a-Whip though. It’s more like crushed up pieces of hard candy. It’s good if you’re expecting it, but it can make drinking a milkshake a bit of a challenge.

Now most old-timey, home-towny walk-up ice cream places like this are all about the ice cream, and they may have a few food items as well. That’s not how it is at Whirl-a-Whip. The food here is better than any fast food you will find in the area, and cheaper than any sit-down restaurant. The menu is large, and I haven’t found anything on it yet that isn’t awesome.

Regular readers of LRF know that two of my favorite things are Cajun food and horseshoes. Put those together, and you get this.

Whirl-a-Whip Cajun Ponyshoe Girard IL — Cajun Ponyshoe. $6.50

The Cajun seasoning is excellent, full of flavor, not just heat. They’ll even sell you a bottle of it! Their cheese sauce is fantastic too. Even when I’m not getting a shoe though, I almost always order a side of Cajun fries.

Whirl-a-Whip Philly Cheese Steak — Philly Cheese Steak ($5.75) with cajun fries.
Side note: aside from horseshoes, a Philly Cheese Steak is my go-to for evaluating a new pub or restaurant. I have had many, but the reason I haven’t done a feature on them yet is because I’ve never been to Philadelphia to have a real one. #bucketlist.

Some other favorites of ours at Whirl-a-Whip are the Okie Chicken (with sweet sauce, American and Swiss cheese, grilled onions and bacon) and the deep fried soft tacos. Everything’s made to order and comes out hot and fresh.

The Berghoff—Chicago, IL

Family-owned restaurants are great, but when you can find one that has been in the same family for five generations since 1898? That’s a treasure.

German immigrant Herman Berghoff had great success selling his beer at the 1893 World’s Fair in Chicago.

Chicago World's Fair White City — Painting of the White City from 1893 Chicago World’s Fair in the dining room of the Berghoff Restaurant.

Five years later, he opened a bar selling beers for a nickel with a free sandwich on the side. (Man, THOSE were the days!)

In 1919, Prohibition forced many bars out of business, but Herman rolled with the punches. He produced a “near-beer,” which was legal at less than 0.5% alcohol. He also introduced a line of soda pops (Berghoff root beer is still quite popular to this day, and for good reason!) and expanded into a full-service German restaurant.

When Prohibition ended, Herman procured the first liquor license issued by the City of Chicago, and the bar was back in business. It is now a yearly tradition in Chicago that the Berghoff gets the first liquor license.

Berghoff Chicago liquor license — Herman Berghoff in 1933 with the original liquor license.

Not only the management, but some of the staff are also multi-generational, some having worked there for decades. The multi-generational tradition even extends to my own family. My mother used to eat there when she got her first job at Montgomery Ward’s downtown back in the Sixties. And I introduced my daughter, Kimberly, to it when we went to see Hamilton in Chicago last year.

Hamilton CIBC Theatre Chicago — Great seats, eh buddy?

You’ll want to come hungry and take your time at the Berghoff. Reservations are recommended, but we got in at 5:30 on a Wednesday night with no trouble at all.

Whatever you end up ordering, you’ll want to start with a Bavarian Pretzel. Just one you ask? Well, they’re kind of big…

Bavarian Pretzel Berghoff Chicago — Served with beer cheddar cheese, honey mustard and hot mustard for dipping. $8.95

Moving on to the entrees…

Jager Schnitzel Berghoff Chicago — I had the Jager Schnitzel, a pork cutlet with bacon (mmm, pig on pig) and a Jagermeister-infused sauce, served with root veggies and so…much…spaetzle! $20.50

Beef medallions Berghoff Chicago — Kimberly went with the Beef Medallions with a smoked red onion demi-glaze, roasted fingerling potatoes and grilled asparagus. $21.50

Do your best to save room for dessert, or else, get yourself a Berghoff Root Beer float for $5.00.

Black Forest Cake Berghoff Chicago — Black Forest Cake ($6.75) with coffee ($3.00). The root beer is empty because it’s that good.

White Chocolate Mousse Berghoff Chicago — Kimberly had the White Chocolate Mousse. She let me try some. I’m glad, because one, it’s AWESOME, and two, it’s no longer on the menu.

Old South BBQ—Smyrna, GA

We found this one when we were moving my middle son, Greg, down to Florida. That’s too far to drive in one hit from the cornfields of Central Illinois, so we stopped for the night in Atlanta.

Old South BBQ is another family-owned and operated establishment (are you noticing a pattern here?). Jim and Helen Llewallyn converted a single-family home into the restaurant back in 1968. Jim built the tables and booths himself, and they are still in use today. Old South is the oldest restaurant in the booming ATL suburb of Smyrna.

One thing I love about a place like this is how even if it’s your first time visiting, the employees have been around so long that there’s a certain comfort level established that makes you feel at home. And if the southern hospitality doesn’t get you, the food will!

Something I really appreciate about BBQ joints is the Combo Plate. Decision-making is not my best thing, so it helps me to be able to make one less choice. Plus, MORE FOOD! My experience with combo plates in the South though is that you want to limit it to two meats, unless you are superhuman. With the size of the portions down here, a 3-meat combo would be the death of most Yankees.

Old South BBQ combo plate Smyrna GA — Ribs and pulled pork, hush puppies, Brunswick Stew, garlic bread and hot BBQ sauce. $16.99. Yes, I ate it all. Don’t judge me. It was a long drive.

There are other meats on the menu, but if I get back down to Atlanta, I’d probably order exactly the same meal, because it was perfection. Even if I didn’t, though, I would definitely get this for dessert.

Butter Pecan Pie Old South BBQ Smyrna GA — Butter Pecan Pie. Don’t remember what it cost. Don’t care. I want another one.

This is one of the best slices of pie I have ever eaten. Even as good as their smoked piggy is, I would go back to Old South just for this pie. I think a road trip may be in my future.

Don’t know about you, but I’ve made myself hungry with all this. So go out and GETCHA SOME! I’m sure going to.

Our base camp for this Colorado trip was Estes Park, the eastern gateway to Rocky Mountain National Park.

Estes Park, Colorado — Entering Estes Park from the east.

Now if you are from a lower elevation, you’re going to want to hang out in town for a couple of days to get acclimated to the altitude before you go up higher into the mountains. Therefore, a grocery run might be in order while you’re waiting. I mentioned in my post on donuts that Estes Park has what is quite possibly the busiest Safeway grocery store in the country, at least during the summer peak months. Pro tip: go early, like 7 AM at the latest.

If you’d rather just sit and be served, though, here are a couple of good breakfast options. Just down the hill from the Safeway is The Egg and I, a Colorado chain specializing in breakfast, brunch, and lunch. My favorite item is the Mexican Omelette, stuffed with chorizo, green chiles, onions and cheese, and topped with the pork green chili I love so well (they spell it with an “I” on the end here instead of an “e.”).

Mexican Omelette from The Egg and I — Served with a tortilla and seasoned ranch potatoes.

You Need Pie!

Another local favorite for breakfast is the Estes Park Pie Shop, Bakery and Diner. That’s its official name, but it is usually referred to by its slogan, emblazoned on the banner outside: “You Need Pie!” They have everything from blue-plate specials to a Build Your Own Breakfast Burrito. Pro tip: tell your server “An egg would be perfection,” and they’ll add an extra egg to your order.

But of course, the not-so-subliminal message that lured you here in the first place was that you needed pie. They have some of that. 38 different flavors, to be precise. They cut their pies into six slices, not eight, so when you order pie, you’re getting a BIG ole slice!

But if that’s not enough of a sugar bomb for you, then you can do what I did and order a Pie Shake. This is exactly what it sounds like. They make you a milkshake and blend an entire piece of pie into it.

Pie Shake at You Need Pie — Half of my wife’s Caramel Apple Pie (center)–$4.75. My pie shake on the right–$7.00. There’s more in the container on the left. You can make one with any flavor of pie.

So a couple of days later, when you feel like eating again, maybe you’ll decide that a lighter lunch might be in order? Come back next time for more Yums from Estes Park!

milkshake

Five Places Where the Story is as Good as the Food