Gabby’s Kitchen

It is with great sadness and surprise that Gabby’s Kitchen, St. Chuck’s, Illinois, has departed this mortal coil. Gone are the bawdy, yet obedient, waitresses. Gone are the heaping portions of turkey, slathered with enough brown gravy to substitute for motor oil in a Chevrolet. Gone are the smiles, and drinks, and music.
Gabby’s Kitchen was a wench of a place, if a place can be wench-​esque. But, like a lovable shrew, GK’s was endearing. As if an unshowered bed-​buddy, donning yesterday’s clothes to slink out the back door into the morning sunshine, one can’t help but adore the rascally gal.
The best eating and drinking establishment on that side of the street, inarguably.
Will be missed.

Saw a posting that Gabby’s is closed. Hope it is not true or is only temporary. Breakfast is our favorite. Suggest that they stick with strengths and not try to be all things to all people. Dance with the one that brung you. I have always had good breakfast and good service. Hope to see Gabby’s open soon!

Closed
1650 W Main St
Saint Charles, Illinois

The Liver and Onions is incredible! It’s hard to find a restaurant that even serves liver and onions. They have good soup, and you get a bread basket which is rare these days. If you are having a Liver and Onions craving look no further.

2 stars for service.
Me and my boyfriend went in last night starving after it had been recommended do us by a friend. When we walked in the atmosphere was lively and homey, we were sat right away in a booth seat that made me feel like a giant over the table (I’m 5’4) I asked for chianti, boyfriend ordered an Amstel which he got right after she share her beer notes with him because she had no idea what they had. Then I was told they don’t have chianti by the owner who then listed off other wines, I then picked Pino from the selection of what he said they did have and they didn’t have that either after a trip to the back, I ask for a drink menu which they don’t have and was told to just walk over to the wines myself. I just said screw it I’ll just order the beer, I was so hungry I just wanted to order food. I got a turkey burger, my boyfriend got an omelet with pancakes. He was thrilled to eat breakfast with his beer but it didn’t turn out the way he planned but he was so hungry he didn’t care. My turkey burger was very good, it wasn’t ground turkey like most places. They put a giant onion right on it that tastes like a pancake… odd. I poured half my beer in my glass when I got it and when our waitress came by to check on us she took the other half away with her! I tried to stop her as she was walking away but it’s too loud for her to hear me. My boyfriend said he had a great time and wants to go back, I obviously didn’t but maybe a second shot would so them justice.

Boyfriend and I stopped by Gabby’s for a late weekday dinner. Late like, «Oh my gosh please don’t hate us but we’re starving and will tip well» late. The hostess and waitstaff were friendly, courteous and attentive. Food was yummy. The guy we assumed was an owner was personable.
Here’s what we tried:
We started off with an order of mozzarella sticks, which tasted home-​made and were crispy and yummy.
I had the polish cabbage soup, which was pretty good! I’d have liked it to be a little smaller though to tell you the truth
Boyfriend had the moo and oink burger: Pulled pork was yummy, burger was huge, with a nice sized portion of fries. He said he’d definitely get it again.
I went the comfort food route and had the fried chicken. Crispy outside juicy inside. Not so saturated with grease that it made a huge mess. My only complaint was that the sides I got, the mashed potatoes and mac and cheese left a little to be desired. The gravy on the potatoes had mustard in it, which I wasn’t really expecting. I’m not a huge fan, but if that’s your thing you’ll love it. They were a little lumpy for my taste, although this could very well be because we came in at the end of the night. The mac and cheese was good, but kind of forgettable. But the chicken made up for it! Seriously it was delicious and i’m so happy that I don’t have to go to KFC or Browns for my fried chicken fix.
So overall, we’d be happy to come to Gabby’s again. We’re curious about their taste of Germany/​Poland events, as well as their breakfasts.

Pretty great food. Although we had a bad waitress, and they took forever to seat us. If you’re looking for a quick breakfast/​lunch don’t stop by on a Sunday.

Two stars for «edible»:
We approach hostess, state we’d like a table of 4, and give my name. Hostess/​manager looks at husband (who is clearly with me) and asks how many. He indicates we’re together. Other hostess turns to him and asks how many. He again indicates we’re together. Original hostess/​manager returns and asks him again if he’s already checked in. We both stare blankly, because we’ve obviously entered the realm of the utterly stupid. We indicate, for the third time, that we are a family. We are seated.
We are told there are no more kids’ menus, that we should just ask our waitress what the options are. We do. She is confused. We share that they are out of menus. Turns out there are only three options anyway. She leaves, while we think. Now we’re ready.
Waitress takes order, I ask for extra crispy hash browns.
«Well, you probably won’t get it. I’ll ask, but you’ll get what the universe offers. I have no control over the kitchen.»
I stare blankly. «Umm, ok, but we’re all going to ask for extra crispy.»
Reply; «I’ll try, but I don’t know what you’ll get.»
What I heard «you’re dining experience here will suck… leave now– FLY you fools!»
We complete our order with me stating that I’d like a sliced tomato instead of bread because I cannot eat any bread. «No substitutions are allowed.»
Me, clearly annoyed: «so, I have a food allergy and you refuse to accommodate me?»
Her: «I can ask.» She leaves. She returns «yeah, no substitutions.»
Me, furious at this point, «well am I allowed to BUY a tomato?»
«Sure.»
“Great, go ahead and bring the English muffin, my kids can have it.”
«That’s an extra $.20.»
Banging my head on the wall. «Then bring whatever toast is included.»
Waitress leaves and shortly returns with a tomato, «I told the manager you were very upset, she took the charge off the bill.»
«Thanks», I say, unable to look at the waitress in the face.
25+ minutes pass. The children are near starvation and complaining every couple of seconds about the huger pains.
The food finally arrives. My omlette? You may have seen this coming: dripping, undercooked, egg-​goo. I really can’t look at waitress now, «can I at least have my omlette cooked, now that I’ve waited over 25 minutes?»
She takes the plate.
Side note, all hash browns are a tiny bit crispy.
I go to the bathroom and stop to talk to the manager. An explanation about how 25+ minutes, combined with the undercooked nature of my food is unacceptable. She looks at me like a deer in headlights. She is confused as to why this is an issue.
«If it returns and isn’t edible, I could MAYBE take the charge off. But I think you’ll be able to eat it, it should be edible.»
Seriously? It SHOULD be edible? That’s good, I now have confidence in the establishment.
Food comes. It is cooked this time. The hash browns? I’m certain they replaced my tiny bit crispy, with completely new side that have NO CRISP WHATSOEVER.
I ate my edible food as I shook in anger. Awful.
On the plus side, we got a «gabby buck» to ensure, as the manager put it, «that we’d have to return.»
There is no force in heaven or hell that could prompt my return to this nexus of ineptitude and nitwittedness.

Amazing potions amazing price. Highly recommend Southern Country Steak meal. Ordered it 3 times in a row

A great family restaurant — wide variety on the menu = something for everyone, and large portions = yummy leftovers. For breakfast try the eggs benedict, for dinner the fried chicken! And if the Alex Murphy Jazz Combo is playing be sure to stop by for great entertainment.

Been coming here for a few years now eating both breakfast and lunches. Always greeted with kindness and promptly seated. Service was always good and the servers are knowledgeable and always willing to offer a suggestion. I can’t stand asking «what do you recommend? only to be met with an «I donno».
Kids get crayons and paper to help pass the time, then a sucker when they leave. Food is tasty and I always leave full! I’ve had everything from soup and salads to omelets to chicken. All good and have that comfort food feeling to them.

Everything was frozen crap. After we left we saw all of our multiple crappy waitresses having a cigarette. Nothing we ate was edible.

Went for breakfast and wow great. Had a meatlover skillet and wife had carmel pecan pumpkin pancakes. My skillet was great and wifes pancakes were awesome. Service was great and atmosphere was very good. Cant wait to go there again very soon.

LOVED this restaurant… prices were amazing, food was phenomenal. We even got a peach w/​the fried chicken :) The tortilla soup was one of the best soups I’ve ever eaten. For dessert we had a peach cobbler served in a big skillet, delicious. Even the leftovers the next day were great. The staff was really, really friendly. Very family friendly as well.

I have only been here twice but each time the food was good and the service was good. The place was also very clean. I always got seated right away. I have only gone for breakfast and can say I have always been satisfied. They will make things to your liking and have many options to choose from. Even for people like me who are perpetual dieters!

I think A-​Ok is a perfect way to describe Gabby’s Kitchen. The service was okay, my food was just fine– I had only a belgian waffle and it was done correctly– and the atmosphere was okay too. I won’t be rushing back to visit, but if someone suggested coming here I would not turn them down. It would be interesting to try a lunch or dinner item before I make up my mind completely– no problems, but I wasn’t wowed either!

We stopped in early on a Friday and thankfully we did as by the time we were finished, the place was full-​up crowded with people still streaming in. I will say this, that you get a lot for your money and I appreciate the extensive kid’s menu as well.
Some of our food was hit and miss and I’m not sure if that’s a function of the HUGE number of items on the the menu which forces them to not be excellent on everything but all-​in-​all we’ll be coming back to try some more items.
I had the Moo & Oink burger which is a cheeseburger with bacon and pulled pork. When it came to the table, it was missing the pork but that was quickly rectified by our server. I also got tater tots which were fantastic. The burger itself was also very very good and I was happy with my full order.
My wife had the chili mac and said it was okay, not the greatest but it was a massive portion that she could never have finished.
My Dad went the «breakfast anytime» route with the claimed «homemade corned beef hash». He wasn’t quite sure it was homemade as it looked and tasted quite like the stuff that comes from foodservice companies.
My Mom had the chicken pot pie and said it was fantastic and my son had a Grilled Cheese and at the entire thing in a hurry and he said it was yummy. She got a side dish of the Mac ‘n Cheese and said it was horrible. So someone else mentioned that as well. I think you just need to stay away from it.
For starters we all had the Chicken Dumpling soup and I have to tell you, it was one of the best I’ve ever had. The dumplings were just a tiny bit more solid than they should have been but I’m being really picky here since I’m a bit of a dumpling snob since my Moms are the best in the world!
Server was very attentive, re-​filled all our drinks without being asked and made sure that everything was «right» at all times. Yep, they have the Gabby’s bucks and that’s a nice way to get return business. It’s a little far away from us but that won’t stop us from heading back.

I went during lunch time on a Saturday with my folks. I was happy that they served breakfast throughout the day and that most people were taking advantage of that the afternoon I went in. It made it seem promising. However, I wasn’t impressed with was my breakfast meal. I had the chopped steak and eggs. The meat was bland and I had to season it heavily with salt, pepper, and the steak sauce on the table. My scrabbled eggs were okay and the one pancake had was also okay. Nothing to write home about… or Unilocal about. ;) I suggest saving your money and just go to a real breakfast place.
As for my parent’s meals; I tasted my Mom’s soup and a rib from her BBQ platter. The soup tasted like it could have come from a can and it wasn’t too memorable. Her ribs on the other hand, had good flavor, were tender and fell off the bone.
Maybe this place is better for lunch, dinner, and drinks. Or maybe I should have tried something else… they did have an extensive breakfast menu. We’ll see. It’s a brand new year and I might give it another try later.

food was awful, service was somehow even worse! my daughter spilled her water while the waitress was taking our order, she left and NEVER CAME BACK or sent anyone over. For reals. Same daughters mac and cheese was so overcooked it was unedible paste! sent back and she ate fruit.
Host who seated us could not have been nicer ironically.

I went with a group of nine for a Sunday lunch. As I walked in, the atmosphere felt very simple. No noticeable decorations on the walls or anything, but I believe that makes it feel homey. Couple flat-​screen TVs are always a plus for me.
We started off with a basket of homemade bread. I am a bread junkie and I enjoyed the crumbly crust. The inside wasn’t terribly soft, but it was easy to chew.
Now to the entrée. For just 9 dollars, I ordered a half charbroiled Athenian spiced chicken that included two sides (half the sides are some kind of potato by the way) and soup or salad. The salad came first, it was your basic greens, tomatoes, and cucumber. I liked the richness of the creamy garlic dressing.
The chicken came out on a sizzling, oval platter with plenty of juice underneath. The skin was crispy and the meat tasted incredibly moist. For my sides, I went with roasted potatoes with onions. They used red potatoes and they were very thoroughly seasoned with oregano, parsley, and similar herbs. The thinly-​sliced onions added a nice contrast to the potatoes. I also had a vegetable, zucchini and squash, decent enough. Counting my drink, I spent 15 dollars including tip.
I’m not going to say Gabby’s is doing anything revolutionary or groundbreaking with their menu. But they just make good food, serve it in a comfortable setting, and the prices are very reasonable. Hmm, quality food for a decent cost. That seems to be a good find in my book!