Lemont Street Cafe, Darien

Lemont Street Cafe
7511 Lemont Rd., Suite 200
Darien, IL

September 7, 2006



The Lemont Street Cafe is not actually located in Lemont, but a ten minute drive north into Darien. It is, indeed, located on Lemont Street. It is also a cafe, a cafe that closes every day at 2:00. Restaurants with such early hours have a certain obligation to deliver the goods, so to speak, when it comes to certain menu items. We're talking the breakfast menu here, people. Breakfast. Hot breakfast. Fortunately, LSC is already way ahead of us here. What else would you expect from a restaurant that puts its location in its name? They don't have time to take phone calls asking "where are you located?" They're too busy firing up the griddles and brewing the coffee.

I'll get the criticisms out of the way first. Maybe they've got plenty of people firing up the griddles and brewing the coffee, but they could use more servers. I've been to LSC at least a half dozen times, maybe more, but each time there only seems to be one or two servers on hand to wait on the entire restaurant. The girls that wait on us everytime seem so overworked that it's a wonder they stick around month after month.



LSC just finished up their summer remodeling job and the difference shows. Everything is clean and spotless, the abundant windows let plenty of natural light inside. Some people like eating in the dark. I enjoy a clean, well lighted place for a change. The minimal approach to decor is a nice break from too many other restaurants that try to load up on kitchy junk everywhere.



I usually get breakfast at LSC. The selection of sandwiches and burgers is pretty decent, but the side of fries is sometimes insultingly small. My blueberry waffle was every bit as good as it looks. Ayinsan just ordered a plain waffle, but it came with a side of scrambled eggs and sausage that was also good. As usual, I probably finished whatever she didn't eat of that with some Tabasco sauce on top.



If you ever stop by Lemont Street Cafe (and you should, yes, it's recommended!) there's a good bookstore just a few minute's walk down to the other end of the shopping center called The Frugal Muse that offers a good selection of used books, music, and videos. You'll always find something unexpected there.


Ayinsan here. Lemont Street Cafe is saturated with memories for me, since my mom and I used to come here almost every Saturday when I was younger. The remodeling looks nice, but I have to say I miss the old look, especially the cheesy Christmas lights strung up along the walls, regardless of the season. But I'll get used to it. The new cranberry-and-cream color scheme is kind of nice, and the pancakes are still fluffy and delicious. It is a TAD expensive, which is my one criticism. There's really no reason for a basic pancake-egg-and-sausage meal to cost eight bucks (or close to it, I can't remember the exact price). I mean, pancakes are pancakes. The ingredients are pretty similar regardless of where you're getting them. But hey, sometimes you don't feel like eating at Denny's. So if you don't mind forking over a few extra dollars for the ambiance, it's worth checking out.