A selection of the top Cheap Eats, where you can eat for less than $13 an entree. Ratings: 4 forks, don’t miss it; 3 forks, one of the best.
Adobo Express
3 forks
5343 N Lincoln Ave., 773-293-2362
Located in a strip mall next to the huge Korean Garden Buffet, Adobo Express is Filipino grocery store and hip, attractive restaurant. One side holds a food shop, a steam table and a couple of cafe tables. The other side is an artsy, contemporary, 35-seat room with teal and pumpkin walls, modern photography and vases sprouting brightly hued bamboo rods. It offers traditional Filipino fare with small twists.
Recommended: The pork adobo, mung bean and shrimp potage.
Hours: 7:30 a.m.-7:30 p.m. daily
Credit cards: M, V
Bhabi’s Kitchen
4 forks
6352 N. Oakley Blvd., 773-764-7007
If the turquoise, orange and gold walls in Bhabi’s Kitchen, a 50-seat gem, rev up your appetite, that’s precisely the goal of owner and former fashion retailer Qudratullah Syed. Bhabi’s (it means sister-in-law, a reference to real home-cooked meals) sets a new pace for Indian food in Chicago. Most dishes are cooked to order, so be prepared to wait.
Recommended: Bhabi’s samosas, chicken Qorma, rapini (broccoli rabe).
Hours: Noon-10 p.m. daily
Credit cards: A, D, DC, M, V
Curry Hut
3 forks
410 Sheridan Ave., Highwood, 847-432-2889
Don’t let its humble name, nor its workaday setting fool you. Soft Indian music fills a lovely room with white-napped tables against turmeric walls. Small vases with red carnations grace the tables. The full-service vest-pocket bar is tucked into one corner. A few tables with umbrellas dot a small patio if you want a drink outside.
Recommended: Mo mo, a Nepali dish of spiced minced chicken steamed in dumplings.
Hours: Lunch 11:30 a.m.-2:30 p.m. daily; dinner 4:30-9:30 p.m. Sun.-Thurs.; 4:30-10 p.m. Fri. and Sat.
Credit cards: A, D, M, V
Feed
3 forks
2803 W. Chicago Ave., 773-489-4600
On a desolate stretch of Chicago Avenue and backed up nearly to railroad freight yards, is this country-cooking joint that looks like a chicken shack. Inside, the rustic barn-red walls and chicken motif–from a painted frieze of hens to a wall of framed exhibition poultry photos–give the impression of a well thought-out, tongue-in-cheek scheme.
Recommended: Chicken, corn pudding, fried okra, red velvet cake.
Hours: 11 a.m.-10 p.m. Mon.-Sat.
Credit cards: None. Cash only.
Frontera Fresco
4 forks
Marshall Field’s, 7th floor, 111 N. State St., 312-781-4483
Whisk up the express elevator on the State and Randolph side of Field’s to the 7th floor, where chef Rick Bayless has opened his first restaurant in years, a fast-food spot in a food court.
Recommended: Tortilla soup, huaraches, quesadillas.
Hours: 11 a.m.-4 p.m. Mon-Sat.
Credit cards: A, DC, M, V
Honey 1 Ribs
3 forks
2241 N. Western Ave., 773-227-5130
If you’re a barbecue fan, susceptible to being dazzled by a smoky inhale, you don’t have to walk inside this Bucktown storefront to know there’s something terrific going on. Smoky smells account for the succession of cars with blinking lights double-parked in the bus zone outside.
Recommended: Combination of rib tips and links, fried chicken, gizzards.
Hours: 1-9 p.m. Sun., 11 a.m.-11 p.m. Tues.-Sat.; closed Mon.
Credit cards: M, V
Infini-Tea
3 forks
902 Main St., Antioch, 847-395-3520
Great place for a spot of tea in a cozy nook. There’s plenty of tea paraphernalia and tons of fussy Victoriana that many people associate with the English. Indeed, the snug room does seem like the kind of tearoom you might find in an English seaside resort.
Recommended: The “Crabbie Lorrie,” The “Tea Lite Service.”
Hours: 10 a.m.-3 p.m. Sun.-Wed., 10 a.m.-8:30 p.m. Thurs. and Fri., 8 a.m.-8:30 p.m. Sat.
Credit cards: A, D, M, V
Larsa’s Fine Mediterranean Cuisine
3 forks
3724 W. Dempster St., Skokie, 847-679-3663
This Assyrian family restaurant features calming white walls, tile floors, white tablecloth-topped (then plastic-protected) tables, brass lighting fixtures, all dominated by a mural of an ancient Assyrian feast. The Middle Eastern big three of hummus, tabbouleh and baba ghanoush tops the appetizer list confidently.
Recommended: The Cornish hen, hummus, tabbouleh and baba ghanoush.
Hours: 11 a.m.-10 p.m. Tue.-Thurs., 11 a.m.-11 p.m. Fri.-Sat., 1-9 p.m. Sun.
Credit cards: A, DC, D, M, V
Mario’s Mondo Cafe
3 forks
Glenview Plaza, 1869 Waukegan Rd., Glenview, 847-724-3716
Tucked in the back of a strip mall on a street lined with strip malls, Mario’s Mondo Cafe is easy to miss. So consult your map, because this pristine cafe, with its orange-sponged walls, eclectic artwork (all for sale) and dressed-up tables, is a good find for a casual breakfast or lunch.
Recommended: The create-your-own frittata, chicken pesto panini.
Hours: 11 a.m.-10 p.m. Tues.-Sat.; closed Sun., Mon.
Credit cards: A, D, M, V
Rudy’s Mexican Grill
3 forks
55 N. Barron Blvd. (Illinois Highway 83), Grayslake, 847-223-6176
This fresh, clean spot (only eight tables) offers familiar favorites. Decor is spare, but youngest son Israel said his mom is collecting the decorations slowly to be sure everything is just right.
Recommended: Chicken chimichanga, fajitas mar y tierra, chuletas ahumadas (smoked pork chops with grilled onions, tomatoes and jalapenos).
Hours: 10 a.m.-8 p.m. Sun.-Wed.; 10 a.m.-9 p.m. Thurs.-Sat.
Credit cards: D, MC, V
Tacos El Norte
3 forks
906 E. Rollins Rd., Round Lake Beach, 847-548-2367
Snug in the vee of a Y-shaped plaza in Round Lake Beach, Tacos El Norte looks unpromising, like maybe it used to be a drugstore. There’s the counter right as you walk in, with part of the open kitchen beyond that. But then you see the handsome hand-painted murals, and you begin to get a different idea. You see how clean the large place is. You sniff the good smells, and you think, looks aren’t everything.
Recommended: The costillas de res (beef short ribs), coctel de camaron (shrimp cocktail), Fajitas Tejanas.
Hours: 9 a.m.-10 p.m.
Credit cards: M, V
